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About 2PR FM
Based in the shire of Sutherland, near Sydney's National Park, 2PR FM is an online internet radio station that broadcasts various programs, produced by a team of persons with disabilities. Most of the format carries retro music from the 70s 80s and 90s.
The stations administrator, Mark Boerebach is visually impaired and has Asperger's syndrome, a condition where social interaction is impaired. A documentary recently highlighted on SBS, noted Mark's incredible ability to recall various pop charts from the 70s 80s and early 90s, yet on the other hand noted his severe difficulty in locating paid work. Since leaving school in 1988, he has never seen a paypacket, and feels frustrated that he has not been able to part-take in paid employment. 2PR FM has allowed Mark and his friends who also suffer various disabilities, to participate in a different and constructive way.
Give Mark any week in time in the 1980's and he will give you the top five, and if you have time for a coffee, he'll give you the entire top 40. He is also proficient in all the latest graphic design and audio production software, and has done everything from arranging voice talent, making promotional flyers and posters, to the production of entire radio programs. Where employers look at him as a potential Occupational Health and Safety risk, Mark is able to exploit all his skills when operating 2PR FM.
Jessie, a bright and enthusiastic 28 year old, suffers from Cerebral palsy, but has a sharp hand at media production. Due to limited movement in his body, the logistics of placing Jessie into open employment would not be possible, as he has movement in his head only. Due to little to no interactive activity, Jessie once found his days empty and depressing; however he is now producing future program material for 2PR. He has noted how much happier he feels to contribute and to participate.
As his carer, Charles needs to be on call for Jesse's physical and medical requirements, which has a major impact on his employment prospects. Charles also has a case of severe diabetes, which effects the times of the day he is active, and when he needs to take meals. This is due to fluctuations in his energy levels. As 2PR FM's co producer, his skills in program production are utilised, as he is able to prerecord his material at a time of day that suits his needs.
2PR FM is a unique radio station, giving Mark, Jessie and Charles who have had extreme issues with finding employment, the ability to participate. With this they are able to earn an income above their disability support allowance, with the airing of sponsor and advertising announcements.
On Thursday 4th November 2010 at Midday, 2PR celebrated its tenth anniversary, by officially launching its full-time broadcast schedule. After four successful tests, Sydney now has a true retro radio station with a deep comprehensive catalogue of music incorporated into its playlist system.
The station commenced hosting its site in November 2000, with a number of CD and album reviews. In May 2001, the Retro Gaming Section was added, with a guide to restoring LP records in 2002, and a historical page and program logue on the ABCs classic music show Countdown.
2PR has conducted some test broadcasts to ensure everything is running smoothly with the stream made available only to those actively participating in the station. These tests were conducted via the LoudCity web radio hosting service. LoudCity was selected based on a combination of online praise for reliability plus LoudCity handles the legal side with issues such as licensing fees. License and Copyright royalties are paid as part of any broadcasting package.
Now with full time broadcasting, 2PR FM is delivering a fresh program run to Sydney and Australia. This includes the cities only extensive 80s program, The Purple Zone, which airs every Friday night from 6:00 for twelve continuous hours. Saturday night sees the dance floor get hotter then ever with retropartymix.com, a show dedicated to playing original extended 12 inch mixes from the 70s 80s and 90s. Listeners can then wind down their week end with Sunday Night 70s, which starts at 6:00 every Sunday evening, and goes for six hours.
Ultimately, 2PR FM is on a mission to kill the monotony out of Sydney Radio by offering something radically different. At present our extensive playlists have over 10,000 tracks from the 70s 80s and 90s, and is destined to reach over 20,000. Our aim is to do this with considerably much less talk and interruptions, typically heard on normal commercial radio.
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