Australia began the 1970s with a change in government and politics.

It said goodbye to the

more conservative policies of the Liberal-Country Party, initially at least, and elected the more
radical and reform friendly Whitlam Labor government into power.
Whitlam drew on this sense of the individual, as well as using a largely consumerist society to
his advantage, to lead his party to victory because it was time after 17 years of a conservative
government. This impacted Australia, because it was the first time in a while we had a huge
change in politics over such a short time. Aussies were also surprised at how much was being
spent and the dramatic changes to daily life.
After 3 years of the Whitlam government, the governor general was forced to dismiss the Labor
party from power in 1975, and in turn the Liberal Fraser government took the reigns of
parliament house. This had an impact because it is the first time this has been done in
Australian politics and a conservative government was brought back after such a short while.
Australia also began the 1970s fighting in Vietnam. Many people protested this and in turn we
withdrew our troops from Vietnam after 10 years of fighting in 1972. This had an impact
because many people were against the war and forced the Government to withdraw our troops
from unnecessary conflict.
In this decade we also allowed Papua New Guinea to become a fully independent and selfgoverning country. We also tried to prevent Indonesia from invading East Timor, both in 1975.
This had an impact because we, as Aussies began to realize the importance of our country in
the international and diplomatic fields.
All was not well in Australia for the first half of the decade, though. We were in a hard-hitting
recession and it was very difficult for many ordinary citizens. Because of the Whitlam
Governments spending, inflation was increasing at an increased rate and the unemployment
rate was also rising, meaning many people could not afford the basic necessities of life. The Oil
Strike in 1973, when members of Petroleum producing countries launched embargoes against
the western world, meant oil prices increased dramatically as it was difficult to attain. However,
Australia eventually pulled through and managed its inflation rate and unemployment rate. This
had an impact on the country because many people were suffering because they could not
afford basic items, and made the government work out their priorities.
We also tried to create a more equal and free country by recognizing the traditional custodians
of our land. This was done by establishing the racial discrimination act 1975, abolishing the
White Australia policy, designing the aboriginal flag and allowing the tent embassy to be erected
out the front of Parliament House. This was further pushed by Neville Bonner, Australias first
indigenous parliament member in 1971. Gough Whitlam even said The aborigines are our true
link with the region. This had an impact on Aussies lives because it made people realize that
the indigenous people should be both respected and recognized, things people did not do
before this decade.

Music also played a large part of many peoples lives during this decade. This was a decade of
change for Australian music, with many new bands and artists entering the spectrum, from
traditional rock bands like AC/DC, Little River Band, Cold Chisel, Daddy Cool and Air Supply, to
new-era disco artists like the Bee Gees, KC and the Sunshine Band and John Paul Young. Its
pretty amazing to see such a wide array of talent from such a small country.
Aussies changed their listening habits, a bit too. We listened to rock and disco more and more,
and we moved away from British music and towards American music. This had an impact
because the young adults began to see more of a free side to life rather than conservative
British bands.
The television also had a great decade. We received colour tv on the ABC in 1975, and the
Australian government encouraged the production Australian television, to support the local
industry. Brilliant shows were transported into our living room in full colour, such as Countdown,
Skippy and Cop Shop. Other shows like Kingswood Country and the Norman Gunston show
explored Australian themes and tried to show the world our sense of humour. Other shows such
as the Flying Doctors, the Sullivans, 60 Minutes and Prisoner all told diverse stories of everyday
life in Australia. These all had a large impact on Australia because it was a relatively new form of
technology and a different form of entertainment and news.
Australia has also become quite well known for its movies this decade and they include movies
such as Picnic at Hanging Rock, My Brilliant Career and just this year, Mad Max. These movies
were produced because of the Whitlam government's decision to increase funding for culture
related topics. This meant entities such as Screen Australia could fund these projects and
support the local industry.
In sport, the 70s started well with the discovery of Shane Gould, who put up an amazing
performance at the 1972 Munich Olympic games, taking in 5 medals for swimming. Things went
downhill afterwards and the 1976 Montreal Olympic games was the worst performance of
Australia in the history of the Olympics.
This meant that more funding was given to sport and the Australian Institute of Sport is set to
open this year, supporting athletes and creating professionalism in these areas. This had an
impact because Australians began to see an increase in professionalism in sport driven by our
desire to do well and succeed.
Onto clothes now, and instead of wearing traditional clothes, women began to wear pantsuits
and hot pants, of bright colours and patterns influenced by exotic and distant lands, such as
China and India. Men started wearing more coats sporting wide lapels and bright business shirts
with paisley ties. Clothes have had an impact on the last ten years because clothes have
changed to reflect the wider availability of lighter and cheaper fabrics, which are mainly
synthetics. Clothing became more brightly coloured and free flowing and fashion became more
commercial and aimed at the masses.

There we go, everyone. I feel like weve gone through what made the 70s the 70s and Im off
now. From everyone here at 702, we hope you have a great New Years Eve and look forward to
the next decade. But dont forget all the great achievements Australia has had in the last ten
years. Thanks for listening and we hope you have a great night.