this government. HonestlyâŚ
Gosh, and itâs not even MondayâŚ
They probably have someone on staff looking at every piece of bad media against them and having someone send out correction statements.
Like any large organisation Iâm sure ABC has media monitoring to see whatâs being reported about it, and it would no doubt always taking a keen eye on The Australian. Correcting reports from The Australian is almost routine for them now. Usually itâs on a Monday, which must be when The Australian publishes its media section, so to have to issue a correction on a Thursday is a bit unusual.
I agree that the current government are trying to gut the ABC by a thousand cuts. However, wouldnât the lack of funding in this budget be due to the ABC triennial funding arrangements needing to be a separate negotiation/matter because the current arrangement ends in June next year?
You might be right. But does that exclude ABC from any annual funding arrangement or commitment? The government seems to be happy to give a boost to other sectors of the media as a one-off. I suppose we should be thankful there is no handout to Foxtel, yet.
the Guardian Amanda Meade
⌠why is Amanda totally incapable of writing actual facts and has to create a totally false agenda to satisfy her besties in the Ultimo bunker ⌠no wonder the Guardian is not covered by the rules of the Australian Press Council like the real newspaper industry âŚ
âABC iview will ask for an email, first name (or pseudonym), year of birth, suburb or postcode and gender". Presumably the only verification probably required will be to click a link on an email, so you can enter anything you want to when you create an iView account.
To subscribe to any News Corp service you have to give them your email, real name, real address, real phone number, and credit card number or PayPal account details.
The government has made three new appointments to the ABC Board.
Peter Tonagh is the non- executive chairman of Quantium which is a data firm majority owned by Woolworths, an advisor with Derwent which is an executive employment search company, and is a former long-time News Corp executive. He is also a director of Village Roadshow and on the AFTRS council.
Mario DâOrazio is the chairman of the Australian Institute of Management WA, the chairman of the WA Academy of Performing Arts, is on the boards of Australia Post and the Australia Council, and is a former managing director of Channel 7 Perth.
Fiona Balfour is a director of data centre company AirTrunk, a director of the privatised Land Services South Australia, a director of Western Sydney Airport, and is a former director of Airservices Australia and also of Metcash.
Story in The Australian ($):
https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/media/media-telco-experience-in-new-abc-board-appointments/
The Canberra Times adds:
They replace Kirstin Ferguson and Donny Walford, whose terms ended last year, and Vanessa Guthrie who resigned in the middle of her term this year.
The board meets six times a year, with non-executive directors collecting $58,670 a year.
The Australian Financial Review says Tonagh and DâOrazio were recommended by an independent panel, while Communication Minister Paul Fletcher made the âcaptainâs pickâ on Balfour. He will have to provide a written explanation on her appointment to both houses of federal parliament within 15 sitting days.
Award-winning EP Louise Smith joins ABC
The ABC has appointed award-winning television and film creative Louise Smith as an executive producer for Australian drama, entertainment and Indigenous content.
Louise has more than 20 yearsâ experience producing television titles and feature films in Australia and overseas, including the AACTA Award-winning telemovie Riot about the 1970sâ gay and lesbian rights movement, which screened on the ABC in 2018.
More recently, Louise produced the 10-part drama series The End for Foxtel Australia, Sky UK and Showtime USA, created by Samantha Strauss.
Sally Riley, ABC Head of Drama, Entertainment & Indigenous content, said: âFresh from her outstanding series The End , Louise brings a wealth of industry knowledge to the role. Her wide-ranging experience across scripted production in drama and comedy will be an incredible addition to an already amazing team.â
Louise said she was drawn to the quality of the shows broadcast on the ABC. âWorking across the drama, comedy and Indigenous slate at our national broadcaster will allow me the opportunity tell world-class stories and collaborate with the best producers, writers and directors in Australia,â she said.
âI am excited for the chance to discover and develop diverse and emerging voices that we are yet to see on our screens. With the focus on ABC iview as a key ABC platform, Iâm eager to see what bold adventures we can create within the scripted story space.â
Louise produced the 2008 feature film The Square, directed by Nash Edgerton and written by Joel Edgerton and Matthew Dabner, and co-produced the 2003 feature film The Rage in Placid Lake , written and directed by Tony McNamara and starring Rose Byrne and Ben Lee.
She was also executive producer on the 2017 Dance Academy: The Movie feature film, written by Samantha Strauss and directed by Jeffrey Walker.
Very nice gig for those three to add to their existing suite of part-time jobs.
ABC appoints new Head International Services
The ABC has appointed respected media executive Claire Gorman as Head International Services, an expanded role that reflects the ABCâs commitment to communities in the Indo-Pacific region.
Claire has been acting in the role of Head International Strategy since November, and in this new expanded role of Head International Services will manage both the International Strategy team and the International Development team.
Claireâs impressive career at the ABC over almost two decades has included Policy Advisor for ABC Radio, Senior Investigator at A&CA, Policy and Strategy Manager in Commercial, Editorial Policies Advisor, and Manager International Strategy.
ABC Director of Strategy Mark Tapley said Claire will bring many years of experience both inside and outside the ABC to the role.
âBringing together the two internationally-focussed teams in the ABC â International Development and International Strategy â demonstrates the ABCâs full commitment to audiences and the media sector in the Indo-Pacific region,â he said.
âGiven her experience in Canberra in development assistance and researching human rights, and her work across PNG, China, Indonesia, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia, Claire is an excellent candidate for this role.â
âThe new Head International Services, with the support of the Corporation, will be focussed on continuing to strengthen our portfolio of international channels, to enhance our digital offering, and to engage with the media sectors across the Indo-Pacific region, and indeed globally.â
Claire will officially start as Head International Services on Monday 24 May
Update:
Applications are now open for people with disability to work with ABCTV Fremantle Australia and
@flyingbark under a new joint initiative with @BusStopFilms to widen the pathways to employment in the Australian screen industry #pathwaysstrategy
EXPOSED: The Ghost Train Fire. Correcting Troy Bramston in The Australian
Troy Bramston is publishing a series of attacks in The Australian on how ABC investigative series EXPOSED: The Ghost Train Fire has reported on the late Neville Wran, who was NSW Premier at the time of the Luna Park tragedy in 1979.
Itâs important to remember that the focus of EXPOSED: The Ghost Train Fire is not Neville Wran.
The focus of EXPOSED is the tragic deaths of six young children and one father; the involvement of corrupt senior NSW Police in the original investigation; and the inadequate investigation that followed.
The families of the victims are calling for an inquiry into this horrific event and the subsequent police investigation.
The NSW State Coroner has requested material be produced by the ABC from its reporting to help make a determination. The ABC is supportive of inquiries into the tragic deaths and the police investigation that followed.
Bramston is entitled to his own opinions on Mr Wran. He edited the book âThe Wran Eraâ and describes Mr Wran as being âan inspirationâ to him.
However he isnât entitled to misrepresent the ABCâs reporting on this story. He confuses what interviewees have said as being claims that EXPOSED is making.
For example, he writes:
âThe ABCâs Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire claimed Saffron âorchestratedâ the fire and was âassisted by corrupt police and political figuresâ to win the tender to operate Luna Park via a front company.â
In fact, the program reports an allegation made by former police officers. The online story says (emphasis added):
âNotorious crime boss Abe Saffron ordered the fire that killed six children and a man in the Luna Park Ghost Train, former senior police officers have claimed publicly for the first time . Speaking exclusively to the ABC documentary series EXPOSED, they say Sydneyâs âMr Sinâ got away with the crime because he was assisted by corrupt police and political figures.â
Bramston also writes:
âThe ABC claimed it had âconfirmedâ Wran conspired with High Court judge Lionel Murphy and solicitor Morgan Ryan to ensure Saffron won the Luna Park lease. An interview with former policeman Paul Egge, who was involved in an illegal wire-tapping operation, was relied upon to support this claim .â
Again, EXPOSED is in fact reporting an allegation made by former NSW policeman Paul Egge.
Itâs worth noting The Australian also reported on the Wran-Luna Park allegations.
The ABC fully supports the public interest journalism of EXPOSED.
According to The Australian, Labor will use Senate Estimates hearing this week to interrogate the ABC over the integrity of Exposed: The Ghost Train Fire documentary and and the broadcasterâs adherence to editorial policies. Labor communications spokeswoman Michelle Rowland said the ABC had editorial independence, but noted the many criticisms of the program for alleging the late Neville Wran had a relationship with crime boss Abe Saffron and organised for the Luna Park lease to go to his front company.
Australia Talks returns to find out what you â and your neighbours â think and feel.
This year the Australia Talks National Survey was even bigger than last time.
We polled more than 60,000 Australians across every State and Territory and federal electorate.
We asked almost 600 questions not found in the Census, covering issues big and small to learn more about what matters to us all.
- Should the coronavirus vaccine be mandatory?
- Do you like your boss?
- Is racism prevalent in Australian sport?
- Should politicians resign if they lie to the public?
- Are allegations of sexual assault almost always true?
- How often do you change your bedsheets?
Go to abc.net.au/AustraliaTalks now to answer a selection of the national survey questions and get instant, personalised results showing how your views compare to those of your fellow Aussies.
Over the next four weeks, across ABC TV, Radio and online, weâll discuss the fascinating key themes emerging from the survey.
The major findings will be revealed in a special TV event on Monday 21 June hosted by Annabel Crabb and Nazeem Hussain and featuring entertaining and thought-provoking contributions from some much-loved Australians.
Australia talks. Weâre listening.
ABC statement on EXPOSED
This year the ABCâs EXPOSED: The Ghost Train Fire investigated the fatal fire at Luna Park in 1979, in which six children and a father tragically lost their lives, and the police investigation that followed.
The families of the victims as well as multiple witnesses have called for an inquiry into this horrific event and into the subsequent police investigation.
Following an application received by the NSW Coroner after the EXPOSED program aired, the NSW Coroner directed NSW Police to review the evidence concerning the cause and origin of the fire and the circumstances surrounding the deaths as a result of the fire.
Specialist investigators attached to the Homicide Squadâs Unsolved Homicide team, as part of Strike Force Sedgeman, are conducting a review into the origin of the Luna Park fire and the circumstances surrounding the deaths caused by the fire.
The ABC is engaging and cooperating with the NSW Coroner and NSW Police to support this investigation by the production of relevant material.
The ABC has already produced thousands of pages of material and will continue to produce relevant material.