Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "View from the corner of Manchester and Worcester Streets of Radio Network House with the final piece of demolition of 143-151 Worcester Street in front of it. The fate of Radio Network House is being discussed with its owner".
This article examines the representation of Christchurch, New Zealand, student radio station RDU in the exhibition Alternative Radio at the Canterbury Museum in 2016. With the intention of ‘making visible what is invisible’ about radio broadcasting, the exhibition articulated RDU as a point of interconnection between the technical elements of broadcasting, the social and musical culture of station staff and volunteers, and the broader local and national music scenes. This paper is grounded in observations of the exhibitions and associated public programmes, and interviews with the key participants in the exhibition including the museum's exhibition designer and staff from RDU, who acted as independent practitioners in collaboration with the museum. Alternative Radio also addressed the aftermath of the major earthquake of 22 February 2011, when RDU moved into a customised horse truck after losing its broadcast studio. The exhibition came about because of the cultural resonance of the post-quake story, but also emphasised the long history of the station before that event, and located this small student radio station in the broader heritage discourse of the Canterbury museum, activating the historical, cultural, and personal memories of the station's participants and audiences.
The Civil Defense understanding of the role of radio in disaster tends to focus on its value in providing essential information during and after the event. However this role is compromised when a station’s premises are destroyed, or rendered inaccessible by official cordons. The Radio Quake study examines how radio stations in Christchurch managed to resume broadcasting in the aftermath of the earthquake of February 22, 2011. In New Zealand’s heavily networked and commercialised radio environment there is a significant disparity between networked and independent stations’ broadcast commitments and resourcing. All Christchurch radio broadcasters were forced to improvise new locations, complex technical workarounds, and responsive styles of broadcasting after the February 22 earthquake, but the need to restore, or maintain, a full on air presence after the earthquake, rested entirely on often financially tenuous, locally owned and staffed independent radio: student, Iwi, community access, and local commercial stations. This paper will explore the resourcefulness and resilience of broadcasters riding out the aftershocks in hotels, motels, bedrooms, and a horse truck, using digital technologies in new ways to reimagine the practice of radio in Christchurch.
A page banner promoting an article about the proposed demolition by controlled explosion of Radio Network House.
An aerial photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Radio Network House, Worcester Street and Latimer Square (left)".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Radio NZ House, 51 Chester Street West, viewed from Durham Street".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Lift shaft, Radio NZ House, 51 Chester Street West, viewed from Durham Street".
Photograph captioned by Fairfax, "Sean Crawford, fire service radio communication engineer, at the Woolston USAR base, following Canterbury's earthquake".
A photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Radio Network House seen from a vacant lot at 168 High Street".
Slides from a presentation by Dr Zita Joyce at UC CEISMIC's Contestable Fund mini-conference. The presentation was titled, "Radio Quake: broadcasting in post-quake Christchurch".
An article from the Media Studies Journal of Aotearoa New Zealand Volume 14, Number 1. The article is titled, "Against the Odds: community access radio broadcasting during the Canterbury earthquakes, some reflections on Plains FM 96.9". It was written by Brian Pauling and Nicki Reece.
A page banner promoting articles about a repair report for Christ Church Cathedral, and the controlled demolition of Radio Network House.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Radio Network House, 155 Worcester Street. Described as 'Being discussed - still with owner about its future'".
A scanned copy of page 9 of an issue of Canta published in 1976. The page features an advertisement for Radio U.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Latimer Square and Radio Networks House (under demolition). IRD building top left and Pacific Tower centre right".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "On the footpath in Worcester Street near Radio Network House. Pacific Tower (Marque Hotel) is at centre rear".
A video of the demolition of the Radio Network House on Worcester Street. The building was demolished by Controlled Demolition Inc using a controlled implosion.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Westpac building (centre), Radio Networks House (lower left), Pacific Tower (right) and Novotel hotel (extreme right) and Cathedral roof behind it".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Looking from 205 Manchester Street to Radio Newtwork House across concrete rubble from the demolition of SBS House, 180 Manchester Street".
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "A new building, Westende Building on the corner of Manchester and Worcester Streets is nearing completion. Radio Network House (behind) to be demolished".
A video of a press conference about the implosion of Radio Network House on Worcester Street. The video includes statements by Peter LockHart, Bill Johnson, and Warwick Isaacs.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Worcester Street looking east from Colombo Street. The Westende building on the left is a new building, and Radio Networks House will be demolished by implosion".
This audio file was recorded in Lyttelton. It captures the human and electronic responses following the 22nd February 2011 earthquake such as people talking, snips of radio broadcast, and alarms going off.
A PDF copy of pages 16-17 of the book Christchurch: The Transitional City Pt IV. The pages document the transitional project 'The RDUnit - Mobile Broadcasting Facility'. Photos: Rachel Morton
An aerial photograph of Worcester Street near Latimer Square. The photograph was captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Worcester Street runs diagonally up the photograph from the bottom left to the top right".
A post on the NZ Raw blog written by Mark Lincoln on 4 September 2010. Mark says, "This is the first [blog post] I wrote on 4th Sept. I always remember an announcer on the radio having the first on-air interview with Geonet/EQC (obviously only 1 or 2 staff members at that stage!). The announcer asked if the aftershocks would carry on for much longer and the Geonet guy said they could carry on for a few weeks. Radio announcer seemed shocked".
A photograph of the site of the Crowne Plaza Hotel taken from Radio New Zealand House on Durham Street. The hotel has been demolished, leaving large piles of rubble which an excavator is working to clear.
An aerial photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "Latimer Square". Seats set up in Latimer Square in preparation for the commemoration of the anniversary of the 22 February 2011 earthquake can be seen on the right.
A video of a tour of the inside of the Radio Network House on Worcester Street. Maurice Gibbens, demolition supervisor from CERES, and Craig Stracey, operations manger, explain how the building has been prepared for demolition by implosion.
A photograph of an exhibition sign next to the 'Quilt for Christchurch', in the Canterbury Quakes exhibition at the Canterbury Museum. The quilt was created by members of the public who sent squares to The Breeze radio station in Auckland.