Malcolm Long - Inside a Cultural Transformation

Name: Malcolm Long - Inside a Cultural Transformation
Start: 2026-09-11T18:00:00+10:00
End: 2026-09-11T18:00:00+10:00
Location: Upstairs at Gleebooks

About

6pm for 6.30pm Friday 11th September

Malcolm Long, launched by Kim Williams

Since the 1960s Australia has undergone a cultural revolution. During this period five public media and arts bodies have been key players in the emergence of our unique national identity. The five institutions are the national public broadcaster, the ABC; Australia’s multicultural broadcaster, SBS; our renowned performing arts school, NIDA; the world-leading film, television and radio school, AFTRS; and our media regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, the ACMA.

The collective impact of these institutions as builders of culture for Australia, is a largely untold story but an important one. Malcolm Long tells this tale through three lenses: the origins and evolution of the these five organisations; his often colourful experiences as a leader in each of them; and, a look at their (and our culture’s) uncertain future in today’s era of global digitisation.

This important book also reveals inside stories about events, celebrities, political and public figures in the battles for hearts and minds in an era of radical cultural change.

Malcolm Long AM has been a journalist and broadcaster with a special interest in media, culture and ideas. In 1985 he was appointed Director of ABC Radio and then Deputy Managing Director of the ABC. In 1993 he became Managing Director of SBS. For ten years he was a Member of the Australian Broadcasting Authority and its successor, the Australian Communications and Media Authority. In 2003 he became Executive Director of the Australian Film Television and Radio School and then for six years he was Chair of the National Institute of Dramatic Arts. He has also been a consultant in digital media. He is the author of two previous books and has spoken and written widely on media, culture and the digital revolution.