AUCKLAND Auckland diocese communications officer Lyndsay Freer is saddened the Churches Broadcasting Commission has been wound up. It is disappointing to see the demise of one of our few remaining active ecumenical bodies, Mrs Freer told NZ Catholic.
Set up nearly 40 years ago as an advisory board for Radio New Zealand before widening its scope to television, the CBC represented 14 churches.
It was wound up after a final meeting late last year, after member church leaders were consulted.
Mrs Freer was a member for 10 years while national director of Catholic Communications.
For the first five years of that period, the CBC had some influence with major broadcasters, Mrs Freer said. But several factors made it less effective and relevant latterly, she said.
Radio New Zealand and TVNZ used to have religious units to which CBC member churches contributed programming. But the broadcasting industry became more fragmented with private production houses, radio networks and the Internet being factors.
Mrs Freer also believes broadcasters increasingly didnt want to emphasise Christianity in a diverse and multi-faith society.
Some of the member churches also withdrew membership or failed to offer financial support and so, with fewer resources and personnel to give to projects, CBC began to founder, she said.
But it made a significant contribution to the now defunct Broadcasting Charter, Mrs Freer said.
It also sponsored annual scholarships for young Christian broadcasting students. These are now run by the Christian Broadcasting Association.
Former CBC chair Trish Moseley said many churches have their own communications departments and are working individually with broadcasters.
But former CBC members were effective in recent protest over time-slot changes for TVNZs Praise Be, she said.
There are still little avenues like that we will work with.
Mrs Moseley sees the CBC as being in recess rather than wound up.
Salvation Army communications secretary Major Christina Tyson told NZ Catholic declining participation from some churches made it difficult for the CBC to be a truly representative ecumenical group.
When the group voted to conclude, there was some hope expressed that a new ecumenical group might yet arise, perhaps one that looks at wider media issues, she said.
There are no concrete plans for such a group at this stage.
The Salvation Army nonetheless retains a keen interest in the area of media engagement and broadcasting, Major Tyson said.
