Triple J, Double J Safe From ABC Cuts For Now

ABC managing director Mark Scott has today outlined the details of government-imposed funding cuts for the national broadcaster, which will see more than 400 jobs to go in the near future, as well as the restructuring of its state-based director system and the regional TV and radio landscape.

A total of five regional radio outposts — those in Wagin, Morwell, Gladstone, Port Augusta and Nowra — will be shut down as a result of those sites' need for "continual maintenance", according to Scott, while Adelaide will lose its television production studio and the rest of the country — outside of Sydney and Melbourne — will lose its non-news-based production houses.

In addition, among "programming changes and staff cuts" to Radio National and local radio, the broadcaster is looking to "reshape the structure and flow of programming" during the middle of the day, though most proposed savings will come from "administration and management areas".

However, despite the turbulent news — which extends to the creation of a national (rather than state-based) iteration of 7.30 on Friday nights, and the shifting of Lateline to ABC News 24 — some good can be taken away, with non-commercial radio havens triple j and Double J — as well as the former's digital Unearthed arm — seemingly being spared the knife, and, in fact, being a key part of the company's plans for reinvestment. In addition, he proposed the creation of a new regional division and widening of the broadcaster's regional radio streaming scope.

In his statement to employees this morning, Scott said the company's key focus going forward "will be on priority areas of News, children's, triple j and iview, and include … the extension of radio streaming to regional areas and the development of the personalised radio player that enables listeners to draw in content from across the ABC's array of services and to access it in one location".

In addition, Scott said that, far from being under threat, the digital arm of the national broadcaster — ABC Digital Network — is front and centre of the company's strategy to ensure ongoing success in the face of the government's imposed cuts of $254 million (over five years) from its budget.

"The creation of ABC Digital Network will ensure we mobilise our resources to deliver a better audience experience in online and mobile – factors that are vital to success in this competitive market," Scott said in his statement. "That is the first of our reinvestment priorities with other initiatives to be rolled out as savings become available."

Despite the inevitable loss of jobs, there is a thin fringe of silver lining - that where some doors are closing, others may open in the future as part of the broadcaster's renewed focus on the digital realm.

"The ABC expects that new specialist jobs, funded by our programming changes, will be created across the ABC as we roll out these new digital initiatives," Scott said.