Ngarralinyi Radio Station giving more communities airtime

An Indigenous community radio station on the Mid North Coast of NSW is providing a voice over the airways for people on Biripi and Worimi country, while bringing together the community.

Ngarralinyi Radio Station in Taree currently broadcasts locally, however government funding for a new recording studio and repairs will allow it to reach communities as far as the NSW coastal town of Foster, almost 40 km away.

‘Having an Indigenous radio station on Country is important for our listeners and communities because it promotes culture, language and the heritage of our community,’ said Station Manager, Miranda Saunders.

Miranda works with other broadcasters, like Luke Murphy, a proud Biripi man who is well known in the community.

‘We have a wide audience, Indigenous and non-Indigenous, and we provide a platform for our people to share their music, news, stories and community events’, said Miranda

Ngarralinyi means ‘The Listening Place’ in the local Indigenous language of Gathang people.

By working with local services, the station is able to share information with listeners on a broad range of topics and includes a word of the day in Gathang to promote language.

More than $100,000 in funding from the Australian Government’s Indigenous Advancement Strategy has allowed the station to expand its broadcasting space, to include a recording studio for local artists, purchase equipment to allow live broadcasts, and repair the station’s transmitter.

‘We are not just a radio station, we MC events, DJ functions and we also host community events to give back to our community,’ Miranda said.

‘This new equipment will mean that the broadcast can be operated remotely, increasing our capacity to be involved in community events. And our signal will be a lot better and will go a lot further than it does now. We are excited for this and so are our listeners.’

Miranda’s passion for music, language, dance community and culture has been a driver behind the station’s growth.

‘It’s been a long emotional ride taking over management when there was no funding for 5 years but we never gave up,’ Miranda said.

‘We are the voice for our people, we express our communities' views on issues and advocate for change. We have also seen over many years that we promote effective reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous people. That is empowering.’

Miranda has also started networking with local schools to provide opportunities for Indigenous students to be on radio, build confidence and possibly gain employment in the future.