Podcasts have been a defining feature of the media landscape in recent times – and New Zealand’s CAMA [Community Access Media Alliance] stations, such as Radio Southland, have been at the forefront of this trans-media delivery.
Ten of the twelve New Zealand Community Access stations collaborate on a podcasting project called AIR – Access Internet Radio, which delivers over 8,500 episodes of hundreds of radio shows/podcasts to niche communities.
This month, AIR partner stations are celebrating a milestone with over 1.8 million podcast hits in the July to June project year, an increase of 77% over the 2017/18 year.
“In the previous calendar year, a total of 22,050 hours of programme time was accessed online, either by live stream or podcast. That equates to over 131 weeks of continuous play on the digital platform.” Radio Southland Station Manager Darren Ludlow.
Project Leader and manager of Hamilton’s Free FM Phil Grey said podcast episodes of diverse content by, for and about former refugees, the LGBTQI community, mental health advocates and service users, and other often-ignored micro-audiences was not simply “catch-up radio”..
“It’s a massive kete of in-depth conversations as we face Islamophobia, xenophobia, otherisation, systemic racism, unconscious bias and more.”
OAR FM Dunedin were the highest contributor with content consumed 541,000 times, but every AIR project partner saw growth.
“Even our stations based in smaller centres are reaping the benefit of leading-edge delivery of our content”, Grey said.
Invercargill’s Radio Southland, Nelson’s Fresh FM, and Kapiti’s Coast Access Radio had all grown podcast audiences by at least 80%, he said.
Radio Southland Station Manager Darren Ludlow said local figures are a source of pride for the station and its volunteer programme makers.
“In the previous calendar year, a total of 22,050 hours of programme time was accessed online, either by live stream or podcast. That equates to over 131 weeks of continuous play on the digital platform.”
To download the app from your App store use search words ‘Access Internet Radio NZ’ you can also keep up todate by following the Radio Southland FaceBook Page