AustLit

BEHIND THE NEWS

Behind the News is an award-winning Australian television news and current affairs program for upper primary and lower secondary school students. It aims to provide information and context on political, social, economic and environmental issues of national and international importance. The show first aired on 6 June 1969 at Sydney’s ABC studios. In 1986, production moved to Melbourne, and the program was broadcast live to air, before moving in the 1990s to its current production location in Adelaide, where it has since been pre-recorded. The ABC axed Behind the News in 2003, citing government budget cuts. Network Ten’s The Total News filled the void before Behind the News returned in 2005; the program is still being broadcast.

The television program is supplemented by the Behind the News website, which provides educational resources and interactive activities for teachers and students. Behind the News is also used as a tool for English as a Second Language (ESL) students, and has attracted a growing adult audience seeking an alternative news source. Notable presenters over the years have included Richard Morecroft (1982–85), Paul Higgins (1986–93) and Tania Nugent (1993–2000). Behind the News is broadcast on ABC1 and the current presenter is Amelia Moseley (2018– ).

REFs: Behind the News Records (ABC Adelaide); http://www.abc.net.au/btn.

MADELEINE TURNER