Adventist Media Network

History of the Adventist Media Network

The Adventist Media Network (AMN) formed in 2006, combining the following entities -

• Adventist Media Centre
• South Pacific Division Communication Department
• Discovery Centre
• Signs Publishing Company

Having all these entities under one 'roof' gives AMN the ability to coordinate all communication aspects of projects, ensuring a stronger and consistent message, while having the benefit of giving customers one point of call.

Media Centre

Communication Department

Discovery Centre

Publishing Company

History of Media Centre

Seventh-day Adventists have been pioneers in using radio and television for the proclamation of the gospel. In the early days of radio broadcasting, several pastors caught a vision of the possibilities and took the opportunities to the airwaves in their desire to fulfil the commission given to Christians by Jesus in Matthew 24 to share the good news with the world.

Thanks go to Reginald K Brown for assisting with some of the history and photos below.

1935 - 1955 | 1956 - 1995 | 1996 - Today

 1935 - 1955

Pastor David Sibley is believed to have spoken on 3DB Melbourne in 1927.

First Advent Radio Choir with Reuben E Hare at 2UE, November 1935. Back Row: Jim French, Nancy Mitchell, Cedric Were, Ruth Balton, Len Minchin, Alma Petterson (Ibbott), Tom Dowling, David Wyborn, Margaret Dever (Morris), Bert White, Hilda Dixon (Williams), Oswald Mills, May Simpson (Ingram), Arthur Stevens, Gladys Bagnall. Front Row: Heather Gray (Todd), Pastor Reuben E. Hare - speaker, Pastor W.G. Turner, Ivan Comley - conductor, Elsie Comley.

Soon after the close of World War II, Adventist leaders in Australia saw the great potential for radio evangelism on a larger scale. The idea of network broadcasting developed in 1946, Pastor Laurie C Naden was called from Western Australia to begin the Advent Radio Church in Sydney. Pastor Naden set up his first office in Rawson Place near Central Railway Station. Later it was moved to Hardy's Chambers in Hunter Street. At that time the ground floor was occupied by the Sanitarium Health Food Company for a vegetarian restaurant, retail shop and hydrotherapy rooms. The radio ministry was located in upstairs rooms.

The successor to the Advent Radio Church was the Voice of Prophecy. A radio evangelist in America, Pastor HMS Richards (pictured left talking to Laurie Naden), was developing a broadcasting network under the title of Voice of Prophecy. Adventist leaders in Australia believed that it would be an advantage to broadcast under the same banner.ps://amn.adventistconnect.org/local/editor/staff1952.jpg

Laurie Naden was joined by Ross C Piper (seated at left) who was in New Zealand at the time of his appointment. He was to become associate speaker, principal of the Bible School and editor of the Voice of Prophecy News. The era of radio saw such popular figures as Jack Davey and Bob Dyer. Naden too was popular: "It was Pastor Naden's sincere, warm personality that attracted people to his program," said Piper. "He had the ability to relate to the needs of the individual, even though he was speaking to many thousands of people at the same time." Naden insisted on a personal acknowledgment to each listener's letter. A farmer in western NSW - typical of many thousands - wrote: "My church is Voice of Prophecy. I never miss it; that chap Naden gets to me."

Stenographic staff preparing outgoing mail at the Voice of Prophecy office. During the 1940's and 1950's, the staff of Voice of Prophecy consisted of sixteen permanent workers plus many volunteers from the churches who assisted on a roster basis, to collate, fold, wrap and mail thousands of pieces of literature that went out of the central office.

.Australasian Union Office 1935

Voice of Prophecy students are prayed for during the daily worship with staff. The staff included Cyril A Hart, business manager, and AM Fraser, Bible School

The Voice of Prophecy goes mobile & photographed here in Perth, Western Australia. At its peak in the 1950's, the Australian Voice of Prophecy program was being aired from no less than seventy radio stations across Australia and was being relayed to many others. Voice of Prophecy was a leading religious program being aired in prime time slots on some of Australia's biggest commercial networks.

Australasian Union Office 1953.Gisborne was one of the first places in New Zealand to air the Voice of Prophecy. Percy Stevens, a layman, saw the possibility of radio and began to transmit before the National Broadcasting Service commenced. He had to overcome tremendous opposition to obtain a licence to operate his privately owned radio station in New Zealand. Stevens provided a practical service to the community, giving flood and earthquake warnings. He broadcast services from all the local churches, taking landlines and microphones to churches and linking up broadcasts. In 1953, Stevens included the Voice of Prophecy broadcast despite the difficulties in the shipping and handling of the twenty inch discs from Australia. Stevens continued to give uninterrupted service until the government took over the station licence in 1963.

Speaking on the air was also well supoorted by the ladies. Mrs Hon (left) and associate speak to audiences on Sydney radio station 2CH.

 1956 - 1995

The Adventist Church has always been at the cutting edge of technology to communicate the life-changing teachings of Jesus Christ. Motivated by the urgency of communicating the "everlasting gospel", church administrators pioneered television broadcasting when the medium became available in Australia. In 1956, the first religious program introduced on TCN9 Sydney was William Fagal's Faith for Today.

The radio ministry expanded to the point where it became necessary to build its own offices and studio. Television arrived and a whole new medium became available to communicate the life-changing teachings of Jesus to the Australian public. Advent Radio Television Productions (ARTP) was established next door to the Australasian Union offices which had been the home of the Voice of Prophecy school for two decades			1965 staff include Pr HMS Richards, speaker and manager Pr Roy Naden, Bible School director and 'Channels' editor RW Howse and studio and  sound producer Geoff Batchelor.
Voice of Prophecy radio speaker and Bible school director Pr Ross C Piper.		Radio speaker Ron Vince, is filmed by ARTP producer Warren Judd.	Radio speaker Pr George Burnside.
Public Relations Seminar held in 1969.		Voice of Prophecy radio and Dial-a-prayer speaker Pr Walter RL Scragg.	Geoff Batchelor in mixing room.
Voice of Prophecy radio speaker and Bible school director Pr Ross C Piper.		Mrs R Wallace - Bible school.	The new ARTP Centre is built and occupied in 1964. Mrs Barb Wilkinson welcomes a guest in the new reception area.
Pr George Vandeman in Sydney The 1960s also saw his weekly "It is Written" program being aired in every capital city every week.		Pastor RR Frame, Secretary and later the President of The South Pacific Division and Chairman of the ARTP Board. Pictured here with Pr Walter RL Scragg at the launching of Dial-a-prayer in 1961.	Pr Hector W Kingston records a series of one-minute prayers. More than one million Sydney-siders have heard the pastor pray on Dial-a-prayer.
Molly Watson mailing 'Channels'.		Joy Branstater checks lessons.	Tape duplicators.
Speaker, choir leader, and ARTP Centre manager Pr Roy C Naden.		Award winning film maker Eric Were captured images from all over the South Pacific on behalf of the Advent Radio Television Productions.	TV and video presenter Geoff Youlden.
Producer Warren Judd on location.		Speaker Russell Kranz.	Radio speaker Pr Ron A Vince.
Mavis Rudge on address machine.		Nellie Knowles.	Filing correspondence in the Bible School.
Phylis Hart marks lessons.		Lucy French in mail room.

1996 - Today

Many changes took place as the centre entered the ten years leading up to the new millennium. With the addition of archaeology, health and relationship courses to the existing Bible courses, the Bible Correspondence school became known as the Discovery Centre. The total business took a name change from Advent Radio-Television Productions to Adventist Media to reflect the additional roles which it accepted in video and CD production, satellite broadcasting and evangelistic presentations.

On 15 December, 1997, the new wing was officially opened of the new Adventist Media Centre. This was an addition to the original building which had been opened in 1964. It included a refurbished sound studio and edit suite, three video and one production edit suite, a fully working television studio and a conference room which can also be converted into a studio.

The cost of screening "It is Written" with George Vandeman and "Focus on Living" with Geoff Youlden on television stations around the country became cost prohibitive, and networks started showing these programs in low rating timeslots. "It is Written", for example, was costing $12,000 per week per episode.

At first the number of requests for home study courses decreased, but as television and radio commercials took over, the responses to this media form increased to levels higher than they had been in "the good old days". Over 22,000 requests for courses are made each year from across Australia and New Zealand.

Video series such as Keepers of the Flame, The Search and the satellite series Jesus 2000 were produced in Australia and have been translated into many languages around the world. These programs have been screened on the Optus cable network on the Australian Christian Channel, and community television stations across Australia.

				Official Opening, 15 December, 1997. Local Federal MP Hon. Philip Ruddock and South Pacific Division President Dr Bryan Ball.
				Edit Suites. Producing Award winning television and video programs for over 15 years Adventist Media is well experienced in just about any type of production. Whether it is a 30 second television commercial, a 10 minute corporate video, a 30 minute drama, or 20 part documentary, we can organise and produce it from concept to duplication and distribution. We also have a fully equipped audio production and post production department. This includes a large sound studio. Specialising in music production, sound post production for video, and radio production.
				New spacious front foyer welcomes staff and visitors alike to the communication centre.
				Conference Room - Meeting and Conference Facility.

The Video Studio is 12 metres by 11 metres and 7 metres at the highest point.

The new TV/Video Studio included:

• 6 x 4 metre cyclorama to a height of 4.5 metres
• Autocue Teleprompter System
• 3 DXC30P Digital Cameras and accessories
• 4 camera triax cables to Edit 1
• 1 metre spaced lighting grid at 5.5 metre above studio floor
• 4 lifting points rated to 2 tonne each
• Jands Event II 36 channel lighting desk
• 12 channels of 4K lighting dimmers
• 12 channels of 2K lighting dimmers
• 53 lighting circuits
• Sony MXP 29 Audio Mixer
• Ramsa Studio Monitors
• Street level access
• Doors large enough for vehicle access
• Attached Prop store / set construction area
• Attached workshop
• Full Routing capabilities to any other suite

Media Centre

Communication Department

Discovery Centre

Publishing Company