University of Sydney Unveils Recipients of 2024 ABC TOP 5 Media Residencies

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has discovered 15 of Australia’s inspiring early-career researchers across science, humanities, and the arts to take part in the 2024 ABC TOP 5 media residency program.

This year, Dr Laura Case, a lecturer in musicology whose research examines the social and cultural history of music in Australia, and Dr Laura Driessen, an astronomer searching for radio stars using the Australian SKA (Square Kilometre Array) Pathfinder telescope, have been selected to take part in an intensive two weeks in residence at ABC Radio National.

Working with some of Australia’s foremost journalists and broadcasters, the residency program enables practitioners to go behind-the-scenes of the media industry and learn how to amplify their impact by effectively communicating their research and ideas to a diverse audience.

Based at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, Dr Laura Case is a descendent of the Wiradjuri people of Central West New South Wales. A classical violinist with over 20 years of performing and teaching experience, her research focuses on how music can reframe Indigenous histories and reclaim Indigenous knowledge.

“I am passionate about adding an Indigenous perspective to the dialogue surrounding Australian history, society, and culture – a space where Indigenous people have regularly been marginalised,” Dr Case said.

“In my most recent research I have used music, specifically violin playing, as one example to illustrate how Aboriginal people have resisted colonisation. Indigenous engagement with the violin cannot be seen exclusively as a means of cultural loss: Aboriginal people adapted the instrument as a particularly rich manifestation of cultural expression and collective identity.

“To solely report the brutality of and the destruction caused by the British Empire in Australia is to miss seeing how Indigenous people engaged, influenced, rejected, and survived such forces.”

Dr Case hopes to use the media residency to better understand how to navigate online spaces and connect with a wider audience, including younger generations, as she believes the emotions of music provide a means of shifting perspectives about the world.

“I have first-hand experience of just how little many Australians know about the complexities of Indigenous people, our culture, and traditions,” she said. “Music is a means of promoting understanding in an accessible way, and I believe it can provide a safe space to continue having heartfelt conversations about this country.”

Dr Laura Driessen is a radio astronomer in the Faculty of Science. She searches for and investigates stars that emit radio light using Australia’s world-leading telescope facilities. Along with her team, she has more than doubled the known number of radio stars, a huge contribution that aids in the search for habitable planets.

“If a star emits radio light, that means that it emits X-ray flares and big bursts of plasma. Any planet orbiting the star would be bombarded with radiation, which isn’t a good thing for life. When we search for habitable planets, we want to avoid radio stars. Historically, the scientific community hasn’t had a good idea of exactly which stars are radio stars. Having this understanding gives us a better chance of searching for life in the right places.”

Dr Driessen believes the ABC TOP 5 residency is the perfect opportunity to learn how to share science by crafting messages that resonate.

“As a scientist, it’s challenging to find the balance between what I want to share and what the audience wants to hear. We’re often caught up in the exciting niche of our own research area without seeing the bigger picture. I’m keen to learn how to identify which aspects of my work are interesting to the public and the media.”

She also hopes to use the residency to share how exceptional the Australian astronomy industry is. “Many people don’t know that we have multiple world-class radio telescopes right here in Australia. These facilities mean that we’re a world leader in radio astronomy, and the world’s largest radio telescope, the SKA, is being built in Western Australia. I’m excited to share my own research as part of the ABC TOP 5, but also to let everyone know about our amazing Australian telescopes and the science being done with them.”

Dr Mahesh White-Radhakrishnan, a musician and linguist at the Conservatorium of Music, was a 2022 ABC TOP 5 media resident. Their research explores circulations of music and dance in Indian Ocean nations with a focus on Sri Lanka.

“My TOP 5 experience was poignant,” said Dr White-Radhakrishnan. “I got to learn more about communicating ideas effectively through storytelling from ABC presenters and producers who are masters at their craft and alongside great research minds.”

As a direct result from the TOP 5 residency, Dr White-Radhakrishnan and their band produced an hour-long ABC broadcast titled Dances across the Indian Ocean, a story of music, dance and culture flourishing in different countries.

“Probably the most important thing I took away from the residency was the power (and challenge!) of keeping things simple,” they said. “It also made me more attuned to my audience when communicating my research.”

Professor Emma Johnston, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research) said the TOP 5 partnership is crucial for early career researchers and to keep the community informed:

“Now, more than ever, we need our experts and media to work together to share important research and use their knowledge to hold misinformation to account and provide an evidence-based perspective. The TOP 5 partnership is vital in helping our early career researchers understand the media landscape and how best to inform the community of their groundbreaking work and expertise.”

ABC Chair Kim Williams said developing relationships with the higher education and cultural sectors continues to be a key priority for the national broadcaster. “We are living through a time when informed debate is being undermined and facts questioned, so the ABC has a major responsibility to be where all Australians can turn to. With the TOP 5, the ABC is working in conjunction with our leading educational and cultural institutions, to ensure it’s the place where new ideas can flourish, and that Australians can trust”.