Yup. The SIBC is the government funded broadcaster.
There is however a Radio Australia FM outlet there (and other broadcasters).
Ref: WRTH
Philip Williams farewells the ABC after a brilliant career
It’s with our profound thanks and gratitude, as well as much regret, that the ABC farewells Philip Williams.
Williams’s distinguished journalism career has spanned 46 years – 40 of them spent at the ABC, the past five as our Chief Foreign Correspondent, a role created especially for him.
He has decided it’s time to unpack his bags for a bit and spend some more time with his family and on his farm.
Gaven Morris, ABC Director News, says: “Philip Williams is one of Australia’s most accomplished foreign correspondents, one of the best storytellers in the ABC’s history and one of the most experienced and skilled field reporters of his generation.
“In the echelons of Australian journalists, and in the ABC pantheon, he sits at the very top.
“He is genuinely loved by ABC audiences. He’s always considered their needs and committed himself to thoughtfully explaining complex issues and disturbing events with care, clarity and compassion.
“He is loved and admired by his colleagues and peers for the quality of his character, his professionalism, his humility and the personal integrity he brings to every story and role.”
Williams started work at the ABC in Canberra in 1975 as a stagehand before moving into News. He went on to roam the world and tell countless stories, bringing the world’s biggest events into the living rooms of Australians, including as the ABC’s Bureau Chief in Tokyo and London.
Some of the many stories he has covered include: The dismissal of Gough Whitlam in 1975. September 11 in the US and the ensuing Iraq War. The Arab Spring. The Beslan school siege. London’s Grenfell Tower fire – where he filmed a whole 7.30 story on his mobile phone. Brexit. The rise of Donald Trump. Terrorist attacks all over the world – Norway, Russia, France, Spain and the UK. Natural disasters all over the world – the Pacific, Asia, North America and Europe.
One of Australia’s most respected journalism leaders, he has been a mentor and a friend to dozens of journalists and operational staff.
In the words of two friends and colleagues who have worked closely with him over many years:
ABC Editorial Director Craig McMurtrie: “Phil makes it look effortless. It isn’t. He has led ABC reporting from impossibly difficult and dangerous locations so many times. And through it all he has remained the most warm and generous of colleagues. He is an exemplary broadcaster.”
Senior journalist and News Breakfast presenter Lisa Millar: “Phil brings an emotional intelligence to his work rarely seen in other reporters. Above and beyond what he does for the ABC and its audience he is constantly working to improve how the media treat people who have faced trauma and violence.”
Says Williams: “I have been incredibly lucky to have been given extraordinary opportunities to report around the world over a 46-year career. I feel so privileged to have been allowed to tell so many peoples’ stories of disaster, heartbreak and, occasionally, pure joy.
“I have always tried to keep front of mind my tribe – the Australian people – who have enabled my career through the ABC.
“Everything I’ve done, from the steps of Parliament during the dismissal in 1975 to the extraordinary defeat of Donald Trump in last year’s US election, has been a collaboration with wonderful colleagues.
“I’m proud of what the camera people, the editors, the producers, the executive producers, management – and everyone else I’ve had the good fortune to work with over four and a half decades – have achieved. My work is their work and I’ve learned from the best.
“For all its foibles, the ABC remains the most important media institution in the nation. It is a vital part of our democracy and must be protected and preserved.
“For all the natural disasters, the fires, floods, droughts, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, the revolutions, insurrections, wars, the economic upheavals, the social and technological changes I have reported on, it’s the people I remember the most.
“It is the father digging for the bodies of his children killed in a flash flood; the mother sitting by her young daughter on life support after being shot in the head; the wail of the grandmother searching for her grandson after a terrorist attack on a school.
“These images, these stories, live with me. It’s an enormous responsibility telling these stories, honouring those who have allowed me to intrude on their lives on their worst ever day.”
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Phil is a great bloke and a terrific journo, but one line in this story highlights the “jobs for the boys (and girls)” mentality that has taken over the ABC news department …
… too many of the ABC’s overseas-posted journos over the past couple of decades have come back to Oz and, instead of just resuming their positions in the general pool of reporters which had always been the case in the past, they have had highly-paid, “special correspondent” contracts created for them … just another one of the reasons why there have been so many budget cuts and redundancies in other departments of the ABC to pay for this kind of excess … and for those who will immediately jump to put a political spin on what I’ve written, the departmental budget cuts I’m referring to started long before Tony Abbott got his feet under the PM’s desk 
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… and here’s another reason why the ABC is not going to dig itself out of the financial hole it has dug for itself … on the ABC’s jobs page is a position of Presenter for ABC Regional & Local in Townsville which is required to produce and present “a daily two hour radio program” … the salary band for this position has now gone up to Band 5/6 which at current rates takes it up to $92,765 plus $1,510 regional allowance plus two additional days leave (with 17.5% loading) plus 15.4% super … compare that to 2011 when I rejoined the ABC in the same role that required, at that time, “a daily two and a half hour radio program” on a Band 3/4 salary which at 2021 rates is the equivalent of $75,868 (in today’s dollars) plus all of the above allowances … so nearly $17,000 more (in today’s dollars) than the same job ten years ago for doing half an hour less on air … my crystal ball says more redundancies on the way 
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oh… you mean John Howard because Labor would never do any form of cuts would they?
er no … John Howard’s cuts were in 1996, before all this started happening … and as for the ALP making cuts, according to the ABC itself the biggest cuts ever made to its budget was by Hawke and Keating 
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ABC searches for Australia’s brightest emerging minds in 2021
The ABC has started the search for this year’s brightest minds across science, the humanities and the arts, to give a voice to Australia’s next generation of research talent.
Applications for the 2021 intake of the ABC TOP 5 media residencies are now open, to support emerging researchers, scholars, and practitioners in sharing their work with the nation.
This year’s TOP 5 Arts scheme, in partnership with the University of Melbourne and Australia Council for the Arts, has been expanded to include practitioners and scholars in music and literature, alongside visual arts, performance, design, architecture and screen.
The TOP 5 program is also open to early-career researchers in science, in partnership with the Australian National University, and the humanities, in partnership with the University of Sydney.
Successful TOP 5 applicants in all three fields will receive intensive two-week media training and practical experience in residence at ABC Radio National in Sydney or Melbourne, working alongside some of Australia’s best journalists and broadcasters.
Jennifer Collins, ABC Head of Factual & Culture, said the TOP 5 program would bring the work of researchers, scholars and practitioners to a broad audience. “Audiences are hungry for credible, reliable information and thoughtful analysis and debate about issues big and small. With our partners at the University of Melbourne, Australia Council for the Arts, Australian National University and University of Sydney, we look forward to giving a voice to our next generation of big thinkers,” she said.
“Great ideas and research do not operate in a vacuum. The ABC is committed to equipping dynamic and passionate scholars with the skills to share their knowledge and expertise with the nation.”
The 2020 TOP 5 residencies were held virtually due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The ABC intends to present the 2021 residencies face-to-face, pending any further COVID-19 restrictions.
Applications are open from 1 May to 1 June 2021.
Who can apply for the TOP 5 programs?
Science : PhD-qualified early career researchers in science, technology, engineering, maths and research (STEM). The two-week media residency will be hosted by the ABC at its Sydney office in Ultimo from 30 August to 10 September.
Humanities : PhD-qualified early career researchers in humanities, arts and social sciences (HASS). The two-week media residency will be hosted by the ABC at its Sydney office in Ultimo from 25 October to 5 November.
Arts: Graduate, independent or freelance professional artists, or arts practitioners working for an Australian arts organisation, and PhD-qualified early career researchers who are working at an Australian university or a research organisation. The two-week residency will be hosted by the ABC at its Melbourne office in Southbank from 27 September to 8 October.
For further information and to apply for a TOP 5 residency, go to: abc.net.au/top5
According to The Australian, ABC chair Ita Buttrose addressed the National Press Club yesterday, and queried why she was excluded from the selection process of the national broadcaster’s board members, just weeks before three vacancies on the board are expected to be filled.
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Probably because under the Australian Broadcasting Corporation Act 1983 the Chairperson has no role in the appointment of a Director.
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Christian Porter is attempting to suppress the ABC’s defence statement in his defamation action against the corporation as he reportedly has concerns about its contents. Normally the ABC’s defence would have been publicly available on the Federal Court website yesterday, but the two sides are said to be in discussions.
Source: Twitter
Edit:
It appears that the ABC defence contains material that Porter disputes.
It’s the second attempt by the ABC to sell the property, following a listing in 2018 that ended without a deal struck despite several offers.
Savills state director Clinton Baxter said the 1.174ha holding next door to National Trust mansion Rippon Lea was expected to notch a sale north of $20m.
Mr Baxter said it was possible someone may try to save the studios, but a heritage overlay would not stop developers bidding.
A four-week tender process will commence this Wednesday and close on June 2, with a deal expected to be finalised shortly afterwards.
… they would only end up in the same position as Gore Hill where, because of asbestos, an attempt to save the studios resulted in only saving the main admin building that then stood there slowly rotting away …
Ultimately, Mr Porter is seeking a court order that the schedules to the defence and one paragraph be struck out, so they no longer form part of the defence, and the schedules be removed from the court file.
The ABC’s barrister, Renee Enbom QC, told the Federal Court on Friday that “this is an application to effectively strike out our entire defence” and the broadcaster’s lawyers would need at least a fortnight to prepare for the fight.
She said the schedules, which contain particulars said to support the ABC’s defences including the public interest-style defence of qualified privilege, were “the substance of the defence”.
The parties will return to court at a later date.
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ABC still does OBs?
Not really new for the ABC to outsource outside broadcasts. At the Sydney Entertainment Centre back when Ten had the NBL and the ABC had the WNBL, on those Saturday nights when both Sydney games were broadcast, Ten did the live coverage for the ABC, with the ABC only supplying the commentators.
Déjà vu all over again (said he channelling 1996) … the other thing to remember is that these vans were purchased to be based in all the capital cities whereas these days there are no production operations outside of Sydney/Melbourne and most of the crews are freelance anyway …
ABC’s current fleet of OB vehicles are reaching the point where they will need to be replaced – at significant cost
Reasonable reason to review operations
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