ABC managing director Mark Scott: we’re a public broadcaster, not a state broadcaster

ABC managing director Mark Scott has issued a passionate defence of the embattled broadcaster as he confronted Tony Abbott’s question of “whose side” the ABC is on and accused News Corp of failing to engage in a “rational discourse” over the appearance of Zaky Mallah on its Q&A program.

In what has been a torrid week for the ABC following Mallah’s participation in the show, Scott again conceded it made the “wrong call” in allowing the former terrorism suspect to take part.

But in a speech to corporate affairs professionals in Melbourne, Scott hit back at critics and stressed the ABCs role and position in Australian society was as a “public broadcaster”, not a government-controlled “state broadcaster”.

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