Antinuclear

Abbott govt and Murdoch Press attack Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC)

Murdoch and Abbott combine to silence the ABC, Independent Australia,   3 January 2014 Reports on the Abbott Government and News Corporation’s coordinated assault upon Australia’s public broadcaster have ignored numerous key factors, writes Alan Austin.

The Abbott Government is ramping up endeavours to reward its principal promoter Rupert Murdoch with greater media control.

Ministers are now openly attacking the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s foreign television service. As usual, neither Murdoch’s nor the Coalition’s people are telling the truth.

This week’s mini-furore started whenThe Australian ran a front page beat-up attacking the national broadcaster’s management ofAustralia Network, headed ‘ABC put on notice over foreign TV’.

Wow! Put on notice? By whom? Well, no-one with evidence for anything actually amiss. The support offered was only another unspecified whinge by Tony Abbott’s disgraced foreign ministerJulie Bishop.

The piece asserts:

‘Bishop has expressed concerns that the ABC is not meeting the terms of its $223 million Australia Network contract.’

However, it offers no basis for this allegation from her or anyone else.

There are two direct Bishop quotes:…..

Just since November 2011, the Press Council has made more than 27 further adverse adjudications against Murdoch newspapers in Australia for violations of the principles of fair reporting.

It’s no surprise that The Australian suppresses these salient facts, as it routinely does so many other inconvenient truths………

Meanwhile, what of the ABC?

It should certainly expect more gratuitous attacks by conservative forces. That is a given.

But how will it respond?

With a stronger-than-ever commitment to integrity and independence? Or will it buckle under Coalition and Murdoch pressure?

The answer to that is not so clear.

We will watch with interest.  http://www.independentaustralia.net/politics/politics-display/murdoch-and-abbott-combine-to-silence-the-abc,6032

January 3, 2014 - Posted by Christina Macpherson | AUSTRALIA - NATIONAL, media