PRIME MINISTER' S INTERVIEW WITH STUDENTS IN ALICE SPRINGS
ON RADIO STATION 8HA 1 November 1975
I gather the local commercial station has made available
some period every week for the students of the High School
to express these views and to interview visitors like
myself. This is a very fine contribution-by the radio
station itself; it's also a very proper opportunity given
to the students. Many people will get the taste for the
media; many people who go to High School here will now
want to become radio announcers and producers and the
radio station has given them the opportunity, and this is
the time of life, of course, when you're bursting with
ideas and when you respond most quickly to opportunity,
I'm sure that the pupils of the High School will take
advantage of this opportunity and the wider community
will follow their contributions with much interest.
Q: What effect do you feel, what effect do you think this
type of program will have on, say, the staff, the students
and the community as a whole?
Well let me mention the effect on the people interested
in the school itself. I think it's coming to be realised
more and more that a school': concerns not only the staff,
not only the pupils, but also the parents and the wider
community. School-' takes up 12 years of every young persons'
life; he spends more hours at school than he does at hcne or
in any other activity. Accordingly,. it's very important indeed,
that the whole community should realise what goes on at
school. The school is part of life people are staying
at school much longer and so I think as far as the school
is concerned everybody will understand what goes on there
and will be able to contribute to what goes on there much
better than before.
The other thing is that through radio, people who don't have
children at school, people maybe who didn't go to school very
long themselves, people who didn't go to school in Australia,
will get a much better idea of what the rising generation
is interested in doing, what it's succeeding in doing. I'm
sure this will be very valuable for everyone, and it!'. s best
done through radio. I believe that the community in general
is coming to realise that radio is something that people
can enjoy in greater variety and in more circumstances than
any other medium. If you want to read a newspaper, you have
to go out and get it, or you have to have it delivered to you,
and if you' re in a place like Alice Springs many of the newspapers
that you would want to read are delivered, are bought, hours or
days after they are available in the place where they are
produced. Again, television is extraordinarily expensive.
It costs an immense amu-ount to build or to staff or to run a
television station; also if you're to pick up television
programs you have to have some expensive equipment and you can
only operate it in certain circumstances. A radio, on the
other hand, can pick up what is being broadcast instantly
from any part of the world, and you can pick it up wherever
you are, at any time of the day or night, any part of the
country at work or at play, on the beach, out fishing, riding,
whatever it is. you can listen to radio. Radio is-with
you the whole time; you've got the instant choice; you
can pick from programs from all around the world, wherever
you are, whatever you're doing, straight away, without
expense, without delay.
Q: Getting off the subject of the medium of radio and
television, what do you think of the Northern Territoryin
particular the people. Do you think they're different
from any other, other different Australians?
The people of the Territory comprise both the Australians
who've been here longest, tens of thousands of years,
and also the Australians who've been in this region for
the shortest time. The Territory would have people
living here for a shorter time than most parts of
Australia. Most of the people who live and work in the
Territory were not born or educated in the Territory.
Accordingly there is immense mobility in-. the Territory
population. Furthermore, there are things which have.-
to be done in the Territory which can be done to the
advantage of the whole of Australia and which should be
done now. Some of Australia's most valuable resources,
particularly mineral resources, are available in the
Territory. Hitherto, Australians haven't processed
these resources sufficiently themselves. In fact, in
respect of most of the mineral wealth of the Northern
Territory, it was not known to exist as recently as
years ago. So, there was a great lot to be done here,
and Territorians are different from other Australians
because they've been here, except for the Aborigines,
a shorter time than any other people as regards the
Aborigines~ longer than any other people.-Furthermore,
they're in that part of Australia where the resources
are most plentifuil and least used.
Q: Teenagers in Alice Springs say that there's not much to do, you
know, no social life. Do you believe this, in your short
visit here?
I wouldn't care to express a view. This is something
which teenagers express in most parts of the world, including
most parts of Australia. But, there are a great number of
things which teenagers can do here, more excitingly, than
they can do in other parts of Australia. Teenagers very
often say that the community isn't looking after them,
but the things that are worth doing are usually the things
you pioneer and create yourself. And there are an immense
number of things that can be pioneered and created in this
Territory a great number of Australians who are holed up
in the big cities would find this an exceptionally exciting
life.
Q: Do you believe that teenagers are influenced politically by
their parents ' beliefs?
I think they probably are. I think that most people vote
the way their parents voted; nevertheless, the younger
you are the more likely you are to make up your own mind.
3.
It's when you're young that you're likely to be most
critical. It's when you're young that your ideas'
are most likely to be changed or to be formed.
And so whil~ e most teenagers would vote as their parents
did, or maybe their teachers, yet they're more likely
to made up their own minds than older people are -the
older you are ) the more set you become in your ways.
The teenagers are really, and the people in their twenties,
are the people who are most variable and mobile in their
political allegiances. That's largely, I suppose,
because they see more critically what's wrong with our
society, but they also still have the hope that things
can be changed.
Q: Do you think the High School should help teenagers to
understand politics by having a particular subject in
the curriculum to help with politics?
I think -they should. I know this is a very controversial
subject; a very great number of people say that politics
should never be discussed at school. They say that
the students will be too much influenced by the views of
their teachers. This is mainly a view expressed by
conservative people people who want the world to stay as
it is; people who don't want theories, or practices or
habits, to be analysed; they don't want things to be
examined or criticised or reassessed. Now it is absurd that
people going to school shouldn't have a full discussion
on things that are going to be immensely important to them,
particularly during the ten years after they leave school,
when they will be completing their training for life, when
they'll very often be marrying and getting into their life
style these are the formative years; they ought to discuss
these things at school, quite clearly. And moreover, every
high school now has scores of men and women who are able to
vote; it's absurd that they can't discuss these things at
school.
Q: Thank you very much Mr Whitlam for your time.
Well I wish you well in your project.