With just over a week now until we head to the polls, Junction Journalism and Vision Australia Radio are joining forces to provide a unique national election night radio broadcast.
More than 70 students will be reporting on the story of the night, providing analysis and interviews in electorates across Australia, which will be broadcast on Vision Australia Radio across the country and online.
In the Swinburne University host studio, a team of student presenters, data analysts and politics academics will keep listeners informed and up to date with the latest information on an election which many predict will be a very close contest.
The journalism students are producing the broadcast, providing a real-world experience to complement their studies and is part of The Junction, which aims to bring together the best of student journalism from Australian universities.
Vision Australia’s Manager of Radio and Audio services Conrad Browne said “Vision Australia Radio is a trusted source of information for people with a print disability and we’re thrilled to work in partnership with The Junction team and universities across the country to bring election information to our audience in real-time.”
“It’s also great that we can help the next generation of journalists to get first-hand experience in covering an election and producing live coverage.”
Students are already writing electorate and candidate profiles that are being published on The Junction website (junctionjournalism.com).
On election night, Saturday May 3, this preparatory work will culminate in a four-hour broadcast from Swinburne University.
Swinburne Communications and Radio Lecturer Peter Marcato is the Co-Executive Producer of the broadcast.
“This will be a great experience for the students, producing Australia-wide coverage of an event that will decide the future of the nation,” Marcato says.
“We have students from universities all over the country who are coming together to tell the story of the election night and demonstrate their considerable skills. This is a great live learning environment that will provide real outcomes for students for their future careers.”
The Junction is a collaborative publishing platform owned by the Journalism Education and Research Association of Australia that allows universities to work together to produce impactful and creative reportage.
Editor-in-chief of The Junction, Professor Andrew Dodd from the University of Melbourne, said “The election broadcast will convey all the drama and excitement of the national vote with student reporters across the country giving unique perspectives from dozens of electorates.”
“This is such a great example of universities working together for the common good and providing authentic training in the process.”
“It’ll be wild and well worth tuning in for.”
You can listen to the broadcast online here and also on Vision Australia’s digital stations across Melbourne, Adelaide, Perth and Darwin and regional stations in Victoria. Coverage will also be shared online as well as on associated social media accounts.
Main photo: ABC