On 27 April 2007, the Federal Court recognised the Yungngora people’s native title over Noonkanbah Station in Western Australia’s Kimberley region. The proceedings marked the first time a native title determination was broadcast live on radio, extending the moment beyond the courtroom and into public space.

Aired on ABC Kimberley’s Mornings with Vanessa Mills, the outside broadcast captured formal legal process alongside community response. The soundscape includes judicial statements, speeches, song and collective reaction, allowing listeners to hear both the procedural and emotional dimensions of the decision. Presided over by Justice Robert French, the determination followed decades of advocacy, including the widely reported 1980 Noonkanbah dispute.

The recording demonstrates the capacity of broadcast audio to document legal recognition as lived experience. Through sound, the event is preserved as a moment of shared witness, community presence and historical continuity.

In order, the voices in the recording are:

Vanessa Mills – reporter, ABC

Justice Robert French

Mr D Cox

Ernie Bridge – Singer

Rodney Rivers - Didgeridoo

The Hon Fred Chaney