Television in Australia Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Television in Australia - Essay Example Notably, the difference comes in where the television has to involve a camera to capture images that are to be displayed on the screen. A television camera converts the images into electronic waves and as well as the microphone. These signals are then converted back to images by an electron gun at the back of the television set (Herd, 2006:119). Television was first introduced in Australia on 1929. It was however, launched officially twenty-five years later because the Australian government wanted to observe the reaction of countries which had introduced themselves to the system. The official launch was on September 1956 with a studio called the communication network (TCN) being the only TV station in the country. Bruce Gyngell was the first presenter of the television station and his first words are still documented up-to-date (Hartley, 2007:44). The incision of the television in Australia drew the attention of many. Debates in the various cultural bodies and public interest groups struggled to define the impact the television would have to the country. The debates that came about were whether Australia was to have a television service at all and whether it should have a public or private owned television system (Byes, 2006:160). There were also controversies on whether any privately owned system would be in scrutiny by the government agencies. The people also wanted to know whether there would be control on ownership in order to prevent the influence of foreign companies in the ownership or overconcentration by local companies bringing unhealthy competition (Spigel, 2001:385). The country also had debates on whether there was to have protection of the Australia-made television materials against the imported material. Generally, the debates in the country revolved around ownership, control and the regulation of the materials that had come up due to the introduction of the television. The many controversies surrounding the television industry posed numerous que stions on the cultural aspect. The people were concerned on the role of the audience in response to determining the nature of the TV programming. There was also a desire to know the role of the government in the real matter considering that Australia was a liberal democratic country (Arrow, 2009:91). There was also a question on whether the models adopted by the United States were appropriate for Australia. There was a major contradiction between the politics and culture of the country. These debates and controversies overrode in the context of the cold war era and the great depression of the world super powers a global confrontation, which had powerful repercussions in the world countries and certainly within Australia (Hazelhurst, 1982:112). The Australian government showed much consideration on the matters concerning the establishment of the television in the country. It thus appointed an interim committee to look into the matter (Hartley, 2007:46). The report of the committee wa s to be significant, as it would lay regulations on the radio, which in turn would lay the basis for the television industry. The committee established a policy where all radio stations were to have operation licenses. It also determined the roles of ABC radio, which was the national broadcasting station (ABC). The general finding of the committee was that the government officials were optimistic about the introduction