Ian Stanistreet, the former CEO of the Community Broadcasting Foundation (CBF) and former Station Manager at 3PBS & Bathurst’s 2MCE has been further acknowledged for his 4 decades of dedication to community radio, awarded the Medal of Order of Australia (OAM) for his services to broadcast media on January 26 2025.
Ian is also the founder of the National Radio News (NRN), a former President of the Community Broadcasting Association of Victoria, past Secretary of the Northern NSW Community Media Association and has also served on the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA)‘s National Committee. After starting in community broadcastinh in 1982 at 3PBS and becoming their first employee and station manager, we moved to Ballarat’s 3BBB (now Voice FM) where he devised a training program for long-term unemployed people. From there he joined 2MCE assisting in the establishment of the community broadcasting sector’s NRN service. In 2017, Ian won the CBAA Michael Law Award for his sustained and outstanding contributions to community broadcasting.
The CBF said of Ian:
“(He) was a fierce champion for the guiding principles of community broadcasting who always maintained the highest levels of integrity and accountability to ensure the sector received the best value from government funding. Ian completely transformed the way CBF grants were managed through the introduction of online grant applications and the implementation of a new funding structure and governance model.
Thank you Ian for your extraordinary service and contributions of wisdom, knowledge and passion for a sector that you have made your life’s work which will continue to benefit many thousands of community broadcasters, communities, participants and volunteers across Australia.”
Other volunteers in the community broadcasting sector awarded on January 26 include: