RRR program proposal form part A (pdf)

INTRODUCTION (please read before completing the form) Thanks for your interest in submitting a program proposal for Triple R. The station survives on the goodwill of our subscribers and volunteers, these are the primary ways to engage with and support Triple R – unfortunately weekly broadcasting opportunities with the station are limited and in very high demand, so please also consider other ways in which you can engage with the station. If you don’t have any previous broadcast experience, you should apply to enrol in the Triple R broadcaster training course or one of the courses offered by other community stations. Triple R is Australia’s best known community radio station and therefore receives hundreds of program enquiries every year. On average we only add 3-5 shows to the grid each year. Before submitting a program proposal you should carefully consider the existing program grid to make sure you are not proposing a program that already exists. The station is committed to diversity in programming and is looking for program ideas that add to our diversity. Programs that mimic common commercial radio formats and content are unlikely to succeed; likewise proposals that don’t adequately distinguish themselves from current Triple R programs won’t be viewed favourably. Programs are presented on a weekly basis and presenters are expected to be committed to presenting the show for at least 44 weeks a year, including public holidays. Please don’t submit a proposal if you cannot make this commitment. Triple R has around 60 weekly programs presented by over 150 volunteer presenters (only the Breakfast presenters are paid). Shows are appointed to the grid by the station’s Program Advisory Group (PAG). The PAG is convened by the Program Manager and is made up of a variety of staff and volunteers including Board representatives. It reviews the program grid three times a year in February, June & October. Any changes approved by the PAG as part of these reviews usually take effect around the first week of April, August & December respectively. The deadlines for program proposals are the first of February, June and October respectively. In addition to the weekly programs there are over 200 volunteers on the station’s graveyard roster (2-6am) who average a shift every 4-8 weeks. The graveyard shift is a collective effort and shifts are not considered individual programs. The graveyard roster is separate from the weekly programs and is co-ordinated by the Program Manager. Volunteers participating in the graveyard roster are not specifically prioritised when weekly programming slots become available but they have an advantage in that they have already demonstrated their proficiency as radio presenters and their commitment to and understanding of the station. It’s required that you completed broadcaster training before being considered for the graveyard roster. Before submitting a program proposal to the PAG please consider your other options. If you have done a training course elsewhere in community radio then you can apply to the Program Manager to be added to the graveyard roster. If the timing or irregularity of graveyard shifts is a disincentive then you may consider applying for a show with one of the other community radio stations in Melbourne including the sub-metro stations that generally have far fewer volunteers and a much greater turnover of shows. Receipt of all program submissions will be acknowledged by an email response from the programming department which will indicate if they are going to be considered in the next PAG review. All submissions under review by the PAG will be notified of the results of the process within six weeks of its completion.

FILLING OUT THE PROPOSAL FORM SECTION A DETAILS There can be a maximum of three hosts in the studio at any one time. You may attach details of other presenters if you are building a rotating team of hosts. You do not need to be a subscriber or existing volunteer to present a program on Triple R but subscribing and volunteering will be considered in terms of demonstrating a commitment to the station, the service we provide and our values. SECTION B EXPERIENCE Triple R runs an introduction to radio broadcasting course. If you have little or no experience producing or presenting your own radio program then your starting point should be a training course rather than a program proposal. You need to learn how to make radio, how Triple R approaches program making and the regulatory responsibilities of community broadcasters at Triple R before submitting a proposal. Graduates of the training course may apply to join the Triple R Graveyard Roster (shifts 2-6am 7 days a week). NB: Being a guest on someone else’s radio program does not constitute producing or presenting experience. SECTION C PROPOSAL Triple R has an informal split of roughly 70% music programming and 30% talks programming. Music shows can be generalist or specialist (eg genre based) but all are based on the expertise of the presenter(s) and their own extensive music collections. Talks shows contain content of a particular nature be it sport, film, health, the arts etc and require presenters with specialist knowledge. Other than the breakfast show, the station has two formatted programming slots. Mornings (9am-noon Mon-Fri) are magazine-style talk slots that cover a range of current issues. Drive (4-7pm Mon-Fri) is a general music slot. These slots often go to volunteers who have started out doing shows elsewhere on the grid. You should refer to the program grid to consider where your proposal might best fit. Your program description should explain both the content and the structure including details of all segments. You should be mindful of the challenge of replicating this idea on a weekly basis for a period of years. Some proposals quickly appear unsustainable when you look beyond a couple of months. All applications should include a demo of no more than 30-40 minutes in the style of the proposed program. This demo should only include 15-30 second snippets of tracks to demonstrate music selections with the focus on the presentation content and style. If you have already presented a show in the vein of your proposal then a copy of that is fine as your demo with the tracks edited down. Demos should be on CD and in standard CD or high quality .mp3 format. Include details of all the presenters, guests and music which feature in your demo.