As Queensland prepares to vote in a new state government this weekend, radio is getting ready to cover the event live from the tally room.
ABC Local Radio 612 will start their outside broadcast as soon as the booths close at 6pm and will feature the latest results, expert analysis and interviews with party political figures, party leaders and candidates.
Brisbane presenters Madonna King and Richard Fidler will head up the coverage with a panel of guests including Labor Party powerbroker John Mickel and Queensland Liberal Senator and Federal Minister for Ageing Santo Santoro.
There will be regular crosses to reporters on the tally room floor and to journalists around the state.
4BC program director Greg Cary says his station will cover the evening’s battles, both in the tally room and out on the field.
“We’re calling the night ‘Saturday Night Showdown’ and will be covering both League Finals live (the first featuring The Broncos playing The Dragons) with regular election results and analysis thrown into the mix. At the completion of the football it will be comprehensive election coverage until it wraps up.
“News Director Chris Adams will head the election coverage with assistance from Con Sciacca and a variety of others. Journalists will also be out about in key seats. Should be a big night.”
Brisbane’s Triple M will also keep listeners in touch on
Saturday night with hourly updates.
Outside the state capital the coverage will be just as comprehensive. Macquarie Regional Radioworks News Director Greg Henricks has told radioinfo, “Rod Mcleod will be providing complete election coverage for Gold and Sea FM on the Gold Coast, where the coalition would need to ‘win big’ to mount any sort of challenge to the Beattie Government.”
Henricks himself will provide a broader national coverage for network programs through regional Queensland and the rest of Australia.
“We will be across all of our markets, with regular updates (and pizzas) from 7:00pm until midnight (EST).”
Brisbane’s only youth licensed community radio
station, Switch 1197 AM will be broadcasting live from the 2006 Queensland state election tally room this Saturday night as soon as the polling booths close.
Switch will offer up a mixture of talk and music to its youth audience
who want to be kept informed on who’s winning and losing in this
important state election.
The youth of Brisbane are tomorrow’s voters and decision makers and
Switch says it “is proud to be there on the night to keep listeners informed,
whether they be at home keeping an ear on the radio, or out in the car
tuning in for the up-to-the-minute voting tally.”
Queenlanders and interested parties outside the state can still tune into the ABC NewsRadio coverage from 6pm eastern.
NewsRadio’s Russell Powell will be in Brisbane with state of the parties summaries every fifteen minutes.