Student Youth Network
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| SYN 90.7 | |
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| City of license | Melbourne, Australia |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Melbourne |
| Branding | SYN nine-oh-seven |
| Slogan | Creators not consumers |
| First air date | 28 January 2003 |
| Frequency | 90.7 MHz FM |
| Format | No formal playlist |
| Class | Community |
| Callsign meaning | 3SYN - Student Youth Network |
| Former callsigns | 3SRA/3TD |
| Owner | Student Youth Network Inc. |
| Webcast | http://www.syn.org.au/listen/syn-wm.asx |
| Website | http://www.syn.org.au/ |
SYN (pronounced sin) stands for Student Youth Network. The Student Youth Network (SYN) is a not-for-profit, completely youth-driven organisation based in Melbourne, Australia Launched in January 2003, SYN is proudly Melbourne’s only INDEPENDENT youth media organisation.
- SYN broadcasts on one of the largest community radio licences in Victoria and can be heard throughout Melbourne, Geelong and in parts of regional Victoria on 90.7 FM.
- SYN is responsible for producing 5 hours of live youth television each week for Channel 31.
- SYN produces a regular e-zine Pecado, and a range of other original zines and print publications.
- SYN manages SYN.ORG.AU: an interactive online community for people under the age of 26 to exhibit, distribute and share their content to their peers and the world.
- SYN presents SYNBURBIA, a series of all-ages events in the Melbourne CBD.
- SYN is one of the largest youth projects in Australia, and has over 1,000 volunteers.
SYN provides access, participation, education and training to all students and youth aged 12-25 that are into radio, television, print and web media, providing practical hand-on experience. It is one of the only media organisations in the world run solely by people aged under 26. Everything from administration, finances, talent casting and sponsorship is organised by youth between 12-25, in an aim to provide a base for young talent in all fields of media production and journalism.
SYN membership is open to any individual for a nominal fee and all members aged under 26 have the opportunity to apply for their own show. To ensure that as many young people as possible are given the opportunity to access airtime, the program grid is completely re-formulated five times a year. All presenters exercise autonomous control over the content, style and music of their show.
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[edit] Mission Statement
The mission statement of SYN is:
• “to provide young people with opportunities, education and training in all areas of the media;
• to provide an informative and entertaining alternative to mainstream media;
• to support the interests of the youth community;
• to be youth focused and operated, fully;
• to respect local and new music, arts and ideas;
• to represent and to keep SYN real.
[edit] About SYN
The House of SYN (which stages the SYN offices & reception) is at 16 Cardigan Street, Carlton. The Radio Studios are located in RMIT University's City Campus.
SYN has become a dynamic, informative and entertaining media outlet providing unparalleled media-making access for young people. SYN has proved to be an innovative leader in the community broadcasting sector and many of the participation programs developed by SYN have been adopted by community broadcasters across the country. SYN’s leadership role was formally recognised in 2003 when the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia presented SYN with the Tony Staley Award for excellence in community broadcasting.
SYN is more than just a content producer; it offers a unique access point and meeting place whereby like-minded youth organisations and individuals collaborate in support of the diverse needs and interests of the youth community. As-a-result, SYN has been able to undertake numerous high-level projects encompassing a broad range of activities involving young people from across Victoria.
Young people are rarely granted a forum in the mainstream media to air their fresh and inspiring views—instead they are habitually disregarded or stereotyped as binge drinkers, drug addicts and trouble makers. SYN empowers young people as creators and not consumers of the media. Moreover, young people are given the opportunity to be innovative at every level of the organisation
[edit] A Short History of SYN
The Student Youth Network Inc. was formed in 2000 as a result of a merger between two youth radio projects: 3TD (an AM station run by high school students from Thornbury-Darebin Secondary College) and SRA (Student Radio Association), the RMIT University radio station that also spawned 3RRR in 1976.
In December 2001, following a competitive bidding process, the ABA awarded SYN a Melbourne-wide FM community radio broadcasting licence. Given the commercial value of the licence and the strong competition from 26 aspirant broadcasters this was a monumental achievement for a fledgling organisation (only 2 FM licences and 1 AM licence were awarded).
After an intense twelve-month period focused on raising $1 million to purchase and set up the necessary infrastructure, SYN 90.7 FM commenced permanent broadcasting at midday on 28 January, 2003.
SYN’s expansion into television was soon to follow with the launch of SYN TV in 2003. A live music-video program simulcast on C31 Melbourne and 90.7 SYN FM, SYN TV was the first program in Australia, commercial or community, to be simulcast on TV, radio and the internet. It was also the first television show to be hosted by young people exclusively under the age of 18. By November 2003 it was airing in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Perth and attracting audiences of up to 80,000 viewers in Melbourne alone! SYN’s television department has since gone onto produce over 1000 hours of live television including: SYN Summer, SYN City, The Sauce (award winning) and current production: 1700.
In February 2004, SYN launched its publication arm with the inaugural issue of Pecado (Spanish for sin). This completed SYN’s ambition of producing media in all its forms: radio, TV, online and print.
Around the same time SYN launched The Nodfather – a hip-hop compilation album showcasing both fresh and established Australian talent. It received airtime on radio stations across Australia and achieved moderate sales success. It was also the first time a US-based hip-hop artist (Chino XL) collaborated with the Australian hip-hop scene (Cerebral Atrophy’s ‘The Front Line’).
In mid-2006, just before SYNcasting was launched, SYN gained significant funding for the SYN.ORG.AU project. Providing an interactive online community for people under the age of 26, the new website will exhibit, distribute and share media content in all its forms to the extended SYN community and beyond. Set to be launched in July 2007, SYN.ORG.AU will put SYN at the forefront of the new media world.
After just 4 years of full-time broadcasting it is estimated that over 5000 young people have been directly involved in SYN, many of which have gone onto bigger and better things within the creative and media industries. And with an estimated listening audience of 124,000 per week (McNair Ingenuity Research 2006; more than double the previous ratings in November 2003) it is clear that SYN is resonating more and more with the Melbourne youth community. SYN has won awards from the Community Broadcasting Association of Australia in every year since its launch, including the prestigious Tony Staley Award for its dedicated service to the youth community of Melbourne. Many of SYN’s education and training programs are also utilised by community organisations across Australia.
As far as we are aware SYN is internationally unique. If Australia is considered to have the most advanced community broadcasting sector in the world – which it does – and if SYN is at its forefront – which it is – it is quite reasonable to consider SYN to be one of the most amazing youth media projects worldwide!
[edit] SYN Alumni
In just four years of full-time broadcasting over 70 ex-SYN volunteers have gone on to work in mainstream media. There are SYNners working at ABC TV, Triple J, BBC World Service, SBS radio, SBS TV, Ten, Fox FM, Nova FM, Radio National, the Herald Sun, The Age, Beat Magazine, Triple R and even on the David Letterman Show.
[edit] Education and Training
Education and training is a major focus of the Student Youth Network. Since full-time radio broadcasting commenced in January 2003 over 100 secondary-schools from across Victoria have directly participated in SYN’s on-air programming. Secondary colleges have used SYN in curriculum areas such as Media, Music in Industry, SOSE, Oral English and ESL. SYN has also developed curriculum for the Victorian Certificate of Applied Learning (VCAL) in the areas of Personal Development and Industry Experience through radio production and media studies.
SYN has the formal support of every major tertiary student union in Melbourne, the National Union of Students, and several TAFE colleges. Secondary colleges use SYN for curriculum initiatives such as Oral English and ESL. SYN has also developed curriculum for the Victorian Certificate of Advanced Learning (VCAL) in the areas of radio production and media studies. All SYN’s education and training programs are delivered on a peer-to-peer basis.
[edit] Youth Participation in SYN
Since 2003, SYN-FM has put over 3200 young people to-air on both radio and television. It has been estimated that over 4300 young people have been involved in SYN’s extensive education and training programs. For nearly three years, SYN has successfully applied media learning to young people from diverse cultural backgrounds including:
- Indigenous communities
- at-risk environments
- the juvenile justice system
- VCAL candidates
SYN is staffed entirely by young people under the age of 26.
Young people have the opportunity to be involved at every level of the organisation. Currently, SYN’s Board, paid staff and volunteers are under 26 (SYN has an exemption from the Equal Opportunity Act to discriminate in our employment practices on the basis of age). While many volunteers at SYN are attracted to the on-air component of the organisation, SYN actively encourages volunteers in a range of management and operational roles. SYN seeks to actively provide learning and development opportunities in the management and day-to-day operations of the organisation.
[edit] SYN 90.7 Radio
SYN 90.7 can be heard 24/7 all around the Melbourne and Geelong areas, at 90.7 on the FM dial.A typical week on SYN 90.7 will include programs created by: … jazz musicians/political commentators/music historians/sexual experimenters/medical students/freestyle rhymers/internet downloaders/footy freaks/writers/wrestling fans/Somalian Melburnians/feminists/ comedians/playwrights/international students/DJs/cultural commentators/media moguls in the making/ recent arrivals to Australia/ hip hoppers … and the rest!
SYN specialises in music that young people cannot find anywhere else. This includes a commitment to local hip-hop, indie, punk and ska, metal, dance and roc
SYN-FM’s broadcast signal covers the entire Metropolitan Melbourne area and extends as far as Ballarat, Lorne, Kilmore and Warragul and can be streamed from the web from any location at http://www.syn.org.au/listen
Key programs include:
[edit] New and Approved, Weekdays at 6pm
New and Approved is SYN’s new nightly music show playing the latest release tracks from all major music genres. Presented and produced entirely by under 18s, New and Approved provides an opportunity for young people to show off their new music knowledge. The show features such a nightly gig guide, ‘first-plays’ of tracks and interviews with current artists. All hosts of the show are under 18.
[edit] The Hoist 7pm Nightly
The Hoist is focused on local music and emerging artists. All hosts are under the age of 25 and the program has hosted a variety of acts including Shihad, TZU, The Vasco Era, Mia Dyson and The Pictures.. The Hoist Top 5 allows the listeners to vote for their favourite Australian track which is counted down each week live-to-air.
[edit] Panorama - Current Affairs and News 9am Daily
Panorama is a nationally-syndicated youth current affairs program, and part of Syn's flagship program schedule. Topics covered include Politics (Monday), Health and Relationships (Tuesday), Art, Culture & Education (Wednesday), Science, Environment and Technology (Thursday) and the Media & Weekly Wrap-Up (Friday). The program features interviews with guests such as Democrats Leader Lyn Allison, News Ltd columnist Andrew Bolt, Senator Barnaby Joyce and Mark 'Chopper' Read, as well as news packages and vox pops.
[edit] Pathways Training Program
The Pathways Project has helped to establish a unique media outlet for young people (aged 12–25) with physical disabilities. The project was generously supported by the Department of Human Services and Foundation for Young Australians.
[edit] LIP Radio
Radio is traditionally a male-dominated medium. The LIP Radio project has two central benefits: giving young women the real opportunity to become involved in radio and raising the community profile of issues relevant to young women. The project is directly supported by the Alfred Benson Bequest. Lip Radio has provided a non-threatening, easy-going forum for women to discus issues including body image, femininity, mother/daughter relationships, dating and empowerment. In a short space of time, Lip has interviewed Senator Natasha Stott Despoja, Killing Heidi's Ella Hooper, John Safran, Helen Razer, Labor MP Tanya Plibersek, and conducted vox pops with numerous young adults from schools and universities across Melbourne.
[edit] Asian Pop Night
A night of seven hours of extended programming run by local and international students, SEA Pop has introduced the broader SYN listenership to a wide variety of south-east Asian issues. The night provides a significant space for international students to become a stronger part of their local Australian communities, opening up new connections and dismantling cultural barriers to engagement. Asian Pop Night broadcasts every Tuesday night from 7pm to 2am on SYN 90.7fm. Within this time there is an English (which plays Asian music), mandarin, Japanese, Korean and cantonese show.
[edit] Kicking Behinds
Part of the Melbourne culture is Australian Rules football and SYN embraces it with its football program, Kicking Behinds. Kicking Behinds gives young footy fans a chance to have a say about the wonderful world of Footy and has interviewed some of the biggest names in football including Andrew Demetriou, Jeff Kennett, Kevin Sheedy, Dermott Brereton, Kevin Bartlett and James Hird just to name a few. As well as vox pop interviews from events such as the Brownlow Medal and the annual Grand Final Parade.
[edit] The Naughty Rude Show
The Naughty Rude Show is a forum dealing with sex, sexual issues, drugs, alcohol, and relationships in general. Constant listener interaction is encouraged (listeners are allowed to SMS text in their questions live) which results in a fluid, anything-goes format that addresses issues which may not get a lot of airplay in the mainstream media. Currently the show airs from 8pm until 10pm every Sunday night.
[edit] SYN Television
SYN produces two television programs on Melbourne Community TV Station, Channel 31, 1700 and The Sauce, a current affairs program. Interviews on SYN television have included Simple Plan, Magic Dirt, Rove Mc Manus, The Donnas, The Darkness, Steve-O & Johnny Knoxville (Jackass) and Slipknot.
SYN-TV was launched in June 2003, a joint venture between C31 and SYN. SYN-TV was a live music video program hosted by presenters under the age of 18. SYN-TV was simulcast on 90.7 SYN-FM, C31 Melbourne and www.syn.org.au (4:30 – 5:30 pm weekdays). In the period since, SYN’s C31 programming has increased to 7.5 hours a week and television production has been incorporated into the education and training program. SYN continues to explore further expansion opportunities in partnership with C31.
[edit] SYN Print
Four times a year, SYN releases its youth magazine, Pecado (Spanish for 'sin'). Pecado is distributed to SYN’s membership base of 1500 and at live SYN outside broadcasts, in city bars and cafes, at secondary schools that SYN visits and at music gigs presented by SYN. Pecado has a total distribution of 2,500 per edition.
[edit] SYN Events
SYNBURBIA is a vibrant series of events for young people to create, attend and participate in. The SYNBURBIA program is currently supported by FReeZA Victorian State Government funding. SYNBURBIA events are all ages, drug and alcohol free and are usually held in the Melbourne CBD. The events aim to represent diverse youth interests and not be solely music focussed; but encompass various forms of art, music and culture including film, theatre, dance, art, music, discussion and comedy.
[edit] External links
Station/Frequency: Melbourne LPONs | 3PVF 88.6 | 3MGR 89.9 | 3SYN 90.7 | 3PTV 91.5 | 3ZZZ 92.3 | 3SBS 93.1 | 3BAY 93.9 | 3JOY 94.9 | 3CAT 95.5 | 3INR 96.5 | 3WSC 97.4 | 3NRG 99.3 | 3MEL 100.3 | 3TTT 101.1 | 3FOX 101.9 | 3RRR 102.7 | 3MBS 103.5 | 3KKZ 104.3 | 3MMM 105.1 | 3ABC 105.9 | 3PBS 106.7 | 3JJJ 107.5
