Page 17 - AdNews May-June 2020

“And one of the things for me is just I don’t want to be tokenistic. It needs to be true. I would say that we here in Townsville, hand on my heart, are one of the most fiercely local stations out there.”
In the days and weeks following the flood, the radio station rallied local businesses and handed out more than $43,000 of mosquito repellent, batteries, water, grocery and fuel vouchers.
About 30 Southern Cross staff were in the flood zone, cooking sausages, helping families clear debris and, as radio does, listen- ing. People didn’t feel alone.
“We soon realised the massive impact to local business and we knew we needed to let Queensland know Townsville was open for business,” says Cazzulino.
The Do Townsville campaign came to life and, using Southern Cross’s national and local talent, the push was shared across Queensland.
Local artist Jade Holland col- laborated with Busby Marou on a song she had written during the floods, called Lives on the Lawn. This raised money for localised flood support.
A Rob Thomas Triple M Garage session was organised for 5000 displaced members of the com- munity. “This was a free event, we really just wanted to bring people together,” says Cazzulino.
“We have a massive responsibil- ity to not only keep people across what’s happening to keep them safe but to fill the void for those that rely on us for companionship.
“We hosted community BBQs and we offered free advertising vouchers to critically damaged busi- nesses to help them share their key messages with the community
“In the weeks to follow we have had thousands upon thousands of people calling, thanking us for what we did on air and in the streets.”
A survivor
Audience numbers tend to rise in an emergency, says Joan Warner, CEO of industry group Commercial Radio Australia.
“Radio shines in a crisis and this last year we’ve been hit with the triple whammy – drought, bushfires and COVID-19,” she says.
“Each time, we’ve responded quickly with special program- ming and community initiatives
L-R Jack Post, Christian O’Connell, Mazen Hajjar
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