SURG, previously styled as SURG FM, is the
campus radio station of the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...
. The station is run entirely by students as an initiative of the
University of Sydney Union
The University of Sydney Union (USU), established in 1874, is the student-run services and amenities provider at the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia. The USU's key services include the provision of food and beverages, retail outlets ...
, and broadcasts online through the
iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming Computing platform, platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbr ...
platform. SURG stands for the 'Sydney University Radio Group'. SURG showcases a diverse array of music and shows, allowing students to create their own programming.
SURG's studio are located in the Holme Building on Science Road. Notably broadcasters have interviewed the likes of
André Aciman
André Aciman (; born 2 January 1951) is an Italian-American writer. Born and raised in Alexandria, Egypt, he is currently a distinguished professor at the Graduate Center, CUNY, Graduate Center of City University of New York, where he teaches ...
,
Matt Okine
Matthew Okine (born 12 April 1985) is a stand-up comedian, author and radio presenter from Brisbane, Australia. Okine is of Ghanaian and European descent, born to his father, Mack Okine, and his mother Roslyn, who died of breast cancer when he w ...
&
Nick Lutsko.
History
Student radio groups have existed on the
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...
campus since the 1920s.
In 1924 Major E. H. Booth, then President of the Sydney University Union, founded the Radio Club, with Professor J. P. V. Madsen as President. Holding lectures on subjects such as ‘The Fundamentals of Broadcasting’, ‘The Nature of Wireless Waves & Methods of Broadcasting’, ‘Broadcasting & Reception’, and ‘Commercial Wireless’, the club had 30 members and averaged 4 members at their weekly events.
Madsen proposed in 1926 that their studies should continue under a ‘Radio Research Board’ within the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR – now the
CSIRO
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) is an Australian Government
The Australian Government, also known as the Commonwealth Government, is the national government of Australia, a federal parliamentar ...
), which was founded the same year. The CSIR would build the first National Standards Laboratory in Australia – what is now the Madsen Building.
In the late 1970s, University Broadcasting Services, running from the Wentworth building, created content and recorded lectures for 2SER. When further community radio licenses were made available to Sydney stations, the USU Society, ‘Sydney University Friends of the Radio Station’, was formed to conduct test broadcasts and lobby for a campus station, under the name 2SUX. After a General Meeting of the USU attracted 30 people – 21 voting for and 9 against the bid, the USU withdraw its support of the society’s bid as it was believed not an economically feasible investment at the time.
Radio Skid Row-Radio Redfern took over the Wentworth studio until being kicked out in June 1984. University Broadcasting Services, now
FBi Radio
FBi (call sign: 2FBI) station is an independent, not-for-profit community radio in Sydney, Australia. FBi places a heavy emphasis on local emerging music: it has a policy that at least 50 per cent of its music content is to be Australian, of wh ...
, was granted a lease to use the space under the Footbridge Theatre in the mid-90s, and moved briefly to the Wentworth studio before leaving for a Pitt St Mall shopfront, and then finally moving to their current home in Waterloo in the early 2000s.
At the same time, William Balfour created the Sydney University Radio Group. When FBi left campus, SURG applied for a Temporary Community Broadcast License, broadcasting twice a year from Manning House or a caravan in front of the Quadrangle: for a week during O-Week, and for two weeks during Verge Festival in October. The license was owned by the USU and thus the station was formally ‘USUFM’, used interchangeably with ‘SURG FM’.
In late 2010, after renovations to the Holme Building radio studio, SURG began to use that space for its broadcast periods, broadcasting from the University’s own FM transmitter on top of Fisher Library.
In Semester 2 2012, SURG launched its online broadcast, broadcasting on weekdays for 10 weeks of each semester. This coincided with a Memorandum of Understanding with the USU, noting that SURG provides a service outside the scope of most clubs and societies, and thus receives special funding.
In Semester 1 2017, SURG launched in
iHeartRadio
iHeartRadio (often shortened to just "iHeart") is an American freemium broadcast, podcast and radio streaming Computing platform, platform owned by iHeartMedia. It was founded in August 2008. , iHeartRadio was functioning as the national umbr ...
, ‘Australia’s leading online entertainment platform’, appearing next to radio stations from
Australian Radio Network
ARN is a group of commercial radio stations around Australia. It includes the Pure Gold, KIIS Network, CADA, ARN Regional and iHeartRadio brands.
The company operates the ARN News service in Australia, which uses international correspondents ...
(ARN) and national broadcasters.
In Semester 1 2022, the SURG studio and website underwent major renovations in preparation for students' return to campus post-pandemic.
Notable alumni
Michael Koziol- Journalist
Current structure
SURG is run as a club within the
University of Sydney Union
The University of Sydney Union (USU), established in 1874, is the student-run services and amenities provider at the University of Sydney in Sydney, Australia. The USU's key services include the provision of food and beverages, retail outlets ...
. This means it is independent but relies on funding from the Union's Clubs & Societies Program, of up to $6000 per annum.
SURG is run by a student executive, elected at the end of each academic year.
References
External links
"SURG" official website site.
{{coord missing, New South Wales
University of Sydney
Student radio stations in Australia