ABC 'deserts long-time Geraldton supporters'

OPINION: Grant Woodhams

What’s happened to Aunty? You know, everyone’s alleged favourite Aunt, the ABC, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.

But the Aunt has either turned into a barren old crone or a trendy city-focused charlatan.

I haven’t made up my mind as to which one.

You see, once upon a time, there used to be an excellent sporting program every Saturday morning on our local ABC Radio.

I’ve been listening to it, and a part of it, since Bruce Anderson was doing it back in the early 1990s.

It started at a quarter past six and went through to 10 o’clock.

When Bruce retired, Glenn Barndon took over and then he was succeeded by John Harvey.

I enjoyed the company and good humour of all three — great and humble men with real community values.

And I’m sure the listening audience, which unofficially was the biggest of any morning of the week, was appreciative of being given a chance to take part in the program.

It not only gave Geraldton, but every community from Southern Cross to Jurien Bay and Northam to Kalbarri, and all points in between, an opportunity to tell their sporting stories, whether it was football, netball, athletics, basketball, cricket, hockey, golf, tennis, yachting, bowling, speedway and even pigeon racing.

These stories are a big part of the glue that holds many of our small communities together.

And the program kept people in the Mid West, and further into the Wheatbelt, informed as to what was happening both on and off the sporting field.

You had a real sense of belonging and involvement, of being part of a greater family.

But sadly it is now mainly gone.

Without warning, the ABC dropped most of the program in favour of yet another bloody gardening and cooking program.

I can’t wait for the next exciting instalment on the best fertiliser to get petunias growing … more maggots to you, dear aunt!

What a callous, pathetic, small-minded, city-centric view of the world ABC management must have.

In a nutshell they’re saying the opinions and the needs of people living in rural Western Australia don’t matter.

No one from the ABC has had the decency to thank the many contributors to the sporting program.

Not a phone call, not an email, not a jot.

They’ve just turned their back.

I’d say it borders on traitorous behaviour.

The ABC have deserted their long-time supporters and left us with a giggling pile of compost.