ABC Managing Director Michelle Guthrie will be the keynote speaker at the NEMBC National Conference on 26 November at the Novotel Sydney Central.

The NEMBC annual conference is a unique event representing thousands of ethnic community broadcasters. The convention brings together government representatives, community leaders, academics, multicultural organisations, radio station managers and broadcasters from across Australia, offering networking opportunities for ethnic community broadcasters.
 
This year’s theme is ‘Identity and Representation’ and will consider the ongoing struggle to maintain our principles of visible impact, independence, diversity and multiculturalism.
Identity: Ethnic communities have a high level of visibility in Australia however ‘identity’ remains an ongoing issue in the face of the changing media landscape, funding regulations and globalisation. Although surveys show that multiculturalism is alive and well in Australia, it is constantly challenged by a range of issues including an overall rationalisation of services creating new ‘consumer driven’ business models that require more ‘efficiency and effectiveness’.
Representation: The aim is to explore the role of media and links between media and ethnic communities and their effect on negative media coverage, identify barriers and look for solutions to increase visibility of ethnic representation.
 
The conference shall further develop a framework to guide the media’s engagement and reporting of issues relating to migrant communities and formulate how ethnic community broadcasting can accelerate this engagement.
  
Early bird discount registration closes 14 October 2016; registration forms and details on the NEMBC website. The NEMBC also provides official station delegates with travel subsidies to help with their costs of travel to and from the conference. For further information visit www.nembc.org.au