3AW is a
talkbackTalk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
radio stationRadio broadcasting is a one-way wireless transmission over radio waves intended to reach a wide audience. Stations can be linked in radio networks to broadcast a common radio format, either in broadcast syndication or simulcast or both...
in
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
,
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
on 693 kHz
AMAM broadcasting is the process of radio broadcasting using amplitude modulation. AM was the first method of impressing sound on a radio signal and is still widely used today. Commercial and public AM broadcasting is carried out in the medium wave band world wide, and on long wave and short wave...
. It began transmission on 22 February 1932 as Melbourne's fifth commercial radio station.
History
3AW's original broadcast
frequencyFrequency is the number of occurrences of a repeating event per unit time. It is also referred to as temporal frequency.The period is the duration of one cycle in a repeating event, so the period is the reciprocal of the frequency...
was 1425 kHz and changed to 1280 kHz on 1 September 1935 as part of a national reshuffle of the radio broadcasting spectrum. On 23 November 1978 the station changed to 1278 kHz with the introduction of 9 kHz spacing on the
AMAmplitude modulation is a technique used in electronic communication, most commonly for transmitting information via a radio carrier wave. AM works by varying the strength of the transmitted signal in relation to the information being sent...
band. Due to poor reception problems, at 7:15 a.m. on 1 May 2006 3AW swapped with its sister station Magic 1278 to its present frequency of 693 kHz.
The station is now broadcasting from a transmitter in
WerribeeWerribee is a city in Melbourne, Australia, 32 km south-west from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Wyndham. At the 2006 Census, Werribee had a population of 36,641. Statistically, Werribee is considered part of Greater Melbourne.Werribee is...
and its studios are located at Media House which is located at 655 Collins Street,
Docklands, in Melbourne. 3AW shares facilities with Magic 1278 and
The AgeThe Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
newspaper. 3AW was previously located at Bank Street,
South MelbourneSouth Melbourne is an inner city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km south from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area are the Cities of Port Phillip and Melbourne...
since 1991 until March 2010. The station is owned and operated by
Fairfax MediaFairfax Media Limited is one of Australia's largest diversified media companies. The group's operations include newspapers, magazines, radios and digital media operating in Australia and New Zealand. Fairfax Media was founded by the Fairfax family as John Fairfax and Sons, later to become John...
, while the station's format is primarily
newsNews is the communication of selected information on current events which is presented by print, broadcast, Internet, or word of mouth to a third party or mass audience.- Etymology :...
,
talkTalk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...
and
sportA Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
.
The station is considered by some to be the most vocal conservative voice in Melbourne radio.
Controversy
In 1996, drive-time host Paul Barber was fired for telling listeners to boycott the
Nine NetworkThe Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...
program,
A Current Affair over the treatment of the Paxton family. He was fired after the Nine Network withdrew up to $300,000 in advertising.
A handful of announcers around the country were fired after admitting they accepted cash to talk favourably about sponsors. They were later re-employed.
Announcer
Steve PriceSteve Price is a radio broadcaster currently working as program director and breakfast presenter on Melbourne talkback radio station MTR 1377...
was tricked into accepting fake ecstacy tablets from comedian
John SafranJohn Safran is an Australian documentary maker and radio broadcaster, known for combining humour with explorations into religion and other issues...
as part of Safran's television show.
Ratings and Market Position
3AW has long been the top-rating radio station in Melbourne, although its Australian football coverage - once indomitable - has recently begun to lose its stranglehold on the market.
In the March 2010 ratings survey, 3AW was the highest rating station in
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
for breakfast, mornings and evenings but Fox FM was the best rating for afternoons and drive.
3AW's main competitors are
774 ABC Melbourne774 ABC Melbourne is an ABC Local Radio station in Melbourne, Australia. Originally known by its callsign 3LO, it began transmission on 13 October 1924 – Melbourne's second radio station after 3AR.-History:...
and recent addition MTR 1377.
Presenters
Current presenters are listed below as of 2011:
- Breakfast with Ross Stevenson
Ross Stevenson may refer to:*Ross Stevenson , Australian radio presenter*K. Ross Stevenson , Canadian politician...
and John BurnsJohn Burns, with on-air partner Ross Stevenson are icons of Melbourne radio. Breakfast with Ross Stevenson & John Burns on radio station 3AW is one of Australia's most successful radio shows....
- Mornings with Neil Mitchell
Neil Mitchell AO is an Australian radio announcer on Melbourne AM talk-back station 3AW. The son of a school teacher, he entered journalism at an early age straight after completing high school...
- Afternoons with Denis Walter
Denis Walter is an Australian media personality and singer.Throughout his music career Walter has recorded 14 albums. For many years until his resignation in November 2008 to join Melbourne radio 3AW full-time, Walter was the host of the evening news in the regional areas of Victoria for WIN TV...
- Drive with Derryn Hinch
Derryn Nigel Hinch is an Australian media personality best known for his work on Melbourne radio. He is currently the host of 3AW's drive time radio show...
- Sports Today with Gerard Healy
Gerard Healy is a former Australian rules footballer and commentator.Healy attended St Bede's College in Mentone, where he was the Senior Football Captain.-Melbourne Demons:...
and Dwayne RussellDwayne John Russell is a former Australian rules footballer and currently a commentator of the sport. He played for the Port Adelaide Football Club in the SANFL, before crossing over to VFL club Geelong in 1987...
- Nightline with Bruce Mansfield
-Early career:Mansfield began in radio with stints on stations including 3UZ, 3KZ, 3AW and 3XY in the 1960s. He later moved to television appearing on The Graham Kennedy Show on GTV-9 in the early 1970s...
and Philip BradyPhilip Brady is an Australian media personality.Born in Melbourne, Brady was involved in the early days of television. He left school at the age of 18 and started working as a booth announcer at Channel Nine in 1958....
- Overnights with Andrew McLaren and Alan Pearsall (Weekends)
Former Presenters
- Norman Banks
Norman Tyrell Banks, MBE was a pioneering radio broadcaster of Australian rules football in Melbourne for over 50 years from the 1930s...
- Harry Beitzel
Harry Beitzel is an Australian sports broadcaster and media personality best known for his contribution to Australian rules football.-Umpiring career:...
- John Blackman
John Blackman is an Australian radio and television presenter. He is best known for his voice-over work for the comedy show Hey Hey It's Saturday from 1971 to 2010.-Biography:...
- Martha Gardener (Kathleen Worrall)
- Keith McGowan
Keith McGowan is an Australian radio presenter.McGowan was born Melbourne, his first job in radio was in 1957 at 3UZ. Then he worked at the following radio stations in order : 3TR, GLV-10 , 7BU, 7HO, 6PR, 3TR , 2NM, 2KA, 2HD, 2UW, 3MP, 3DB, 3AK...
- Ernie Sigley
Ernest William "Ernie" Sigley is an enduring Australian entertainment personality known for his square-rimmed spectacles, the gap between his front teeth and his slapstick approach to comedy.-Radio career:...
External links