SUBJECTS: History
YEARS: 9–10
Australia has never been invaded.
Nevertheless, isolated attacks on Australian soil have killed and injured hundreds of people, destroyed property, and made many people fearful of a large-scale invasion.
In July 1942, Japanese aircraft attacked Townsville, Queensland, bombing the wharf and the surrounding area.
This audio clip — recorded as the bombs fell — reports on events during and immediately after the bombing.
Things to think about
- 1.If you were going to report accurately on an event, such as an attack on a city, do you think you should be there in person? Do you think your report would be different if you were asked to report from a newsroom?
- 2.Who do you imagine might have listened to this broadcast? How does the reporter use language to engage his listeners? Does his language compromise the accuracy of his report?
- 3.The reporter covering this event is 'right there', and yet some of his information about what is happening seems questionable or incomplete. Listen to the clip once more and record evidence of this confusion. Then decide which is or would be more reliable: the account of an eyewitness to the attack, or the account of an historian? Justify your answer.
- 4.Research the attacks on Townsville. Find out how many attacks there were and the damage they caused. Also find out whether the reporter was correct in assuming that the aircraft involved in this attack would not make it back to base. Based upon what you discover, write an updated version of this story. If you like, you could then record it.
Date of broadcast: 29 Jul 1942
Copyright
Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).