Revised June 2018

Purpose

To establish Valley FM’s community interest responsibilities policy that complements the licence conditions required under the Commonwealth Broadcasting Services Act 1992.

Policy

Valley FM will not broadcast any material that may:

  • Incite, encourage or present violence or brutality
  • Mislead or alarm listeners by simulating news or events
  • Present as desirable the use of illegal drugs, the misuse of tobacco or alcohol as well as other harmful substances
  • Glamourize, sensationalise or present suicide as a solution to life problems. In particular, broadcast material shall not provide explicit details about the method and/or location of a suicide attempt or death.

Censorship shall be avoided where possible. All programming decisions are to consider Valley FM’s community interest, context, degree of explicitness, the possibility of alarming listeners, the potential for distress or shock, prevailing indigenous laws or community standards’ and the social importance of the broadcast.

No material will be broadcast that is likely to stereotype, incite, vilify or perpetuate hatred against, or attempt to demean any person or group on the basis of ethnicity, nationality, race, language, gender, sexuality, religion, age, physical or mental ability, occupation, cultural belief or political affiliation. This requirement is not intended to prevent the broadcast of material which is factual.

Valley FM’s programming practices protect children from harmful material but avoid hiding the real world from them.

Valley FM adheres to Commonwealth Privacy principles by:

  • Respecting people’s legitimate right to protection from unjustified use of material which is obtained without consent or through invasion of privacy
  • Only broadcasting the words of an identifiable person where that person has been told in advance that the words may be broadcast, or it was clearly indicated at the time of recording that the material would be broadcast, or in the case of words that have been recorded without the knowledge of a person, that person has indicated his/her agreement prior to broadcast.

Compliance

The Board is responsible for the development, implementation, operation and review of this policy. Compliance with the policy is the responsibility of all Directors and members of Valley FM.

Legislative Framework

Broadcasting Services Act (Cwth 1992)
Privacy Act (Cwth 1998)

References

Australian Communications and Media Authority, Community Radio Broadcasting Codes of Practice (2016), Code 1: Community Interest Responsibilities