‘One of the most important things for Aboriginal people is identity and cultural renewal. That business of being able to tell your own stories has made a huge difference across the country.’
The Central Australian Aboriginal Media Organisation (CAAMA) is the most significant Aboriginal media organisation in Australia, working to advance First Nations voices by sharing stories for, by and about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people for over 45 years.
CAAMA is Australia’s oldest and largest Aboriginal-owned and run media organisation, delivering culturally relevant content to preserve and maintain First Nations languages and cultures.
CAAMA has long played a major role as producers of local in-language content and caretakers of an extensive, nationally important audio-visual archive and back catalogue of First Nations music.
Our Charter
CAAMA’s social charter is to use the mediums of radio, television, music and digital content to elevate the voices of Aboriginal people in the development of country, culture, politics and education; to use the broadcasting arts and sciences to arrest cultural disintegration, to empower people and bring inspiration to their lives.
Our History
CAAMA emerged after decades of broader community desire for self-determination and more immediately because of concerns about the impact mainstream television and radio would have on the languages and cultures of remote communities.
The Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association (CAAMA) came to life in 1980 with the establishment of radio station 8KIN FM. Aboriginal-owned media was seen as being vital to the broad educational and community development aspirations of First Nations people in Central Australia.
Radio was a platform to express Aboriginal aspirations as well as being a tool to maintain and sustain the culture and languages of Central Australia. Originally offering music and programming in Arrernte, Pitjantjatjara, Luritja and Warlpiri to the local community, today CAAMA reaches audiences across Australia and beyond.
Our Value
Australia’s most extensive and culturally significant archive of Central Australian Aboriginal cultures and languages.
Australia’s first Aboriginal organisation to hold a broadcasting license for radio and TV.
Australia’s first licensed Aboriginal radio station.
Australia’s most prominent First Nations youth-oriented digital content producer.
Australia’s first and largest Aboriginal production house, and oldest Aboriginal record label.
Australia’s living archive and keeper of stories, language, people, culture and identity
A Vital Platform for Sustaining Language and Culture
‘It is a monument of cultural survival, made collectively by committed stewards and guardians of Aboriginal cultural history … It is a living archive and should be treated accordingly. Rapid changes in media technology and uses suggest multiple future values for the collection. Priority needs to be given to preserving it for all time.’
Many First Nations languages are threatened with extinction, which would take with them tens of thousands of years of oral history. Australia has one of the world’s fastest rates of language loss in the world. First Nations languages in Australia comprise only 2% of languages spoken in the world, but represent 9% of the world’s critically endangered languages.
Given its breadth and scale, the CAAMA Archive represents an irreplaceable record of First Nations languages, stories and music that must be protected. But preserving the historical Archive only goes so far. Supporting CAAMA’s broader work – with its diverse mix of radio, digital content, music and more – helps build and sustain a living archive of past, present and future, actively engaging younger generations.
How Can You Support
The Central Australian Aboriginal Media Association (Aboriginal Corporation), ICN 67, is a public benevolent institution. In accordance with the Australia Taxation Office, CAAMA is a Deductible Gift Recipient.
CAAMA’s ABN: 32 603 325 704
