Regional media get COVID lifeline but ABC, SBS remain in peril
While the government’s media relief package is welcome, it excludes SBS and ABC, explain Alexandra Wake and Michael Ward in this crossposting from The Conversation. SBS must be facing revenue decline, and it’s unclear whether the ABC will be spared from continued budget cuts and freezes.
After weeks of devastating reports of local newspaper closures and regional broadcast stations turning off local news services, media supporters and observers were united in joy as the Australian government announced a coronavirus relief package for local journalism.
The four-part initiative has been designed to assist local newspapers and commercial free-to-air radio and television and subscription television, following calls for a lifeline from the industry and the communities they serve.
As a long standing journalist who started in the country, great to hear regional journalism has been given a lifeline.
We need regional journalism now more than ever, it’s so important local communities can have access to news in their area.
Maybe the ABC and SBS will gain some relief from reducing their massive annual domestic travel bill.
Typical commentary from non-private sector talkers – supporting the ABC/SBS.
There is no ABC $800m cut to 2022. It’s a denial of a $80m growth budget request. This is whilst all commercial media had been actually cutting costs.
The danger in letting the ABC/SBS off the hook from the dire economics circumstances we are in, is that plurality of voices, already heavily skewed against commercial media representing the centre and centre right of Australian discourse, is further, in relative resources, diminished. All the networks – radio and TV – are reducing costs by between 15-20%. After they review April results in May, one would expect more cuts. As a tax payer, I might have reduced income, and therefore reduced ability to pay tax to keep the current level of Government services going. One would think that a deep cut to an esoteric service like the ABC/SBS could be made and fair to the private sector competitors.
For the Last 30 years or so, the ABC/SBS has been relentlessly hunting down every time slot and commercially viable news and current affairs slots and programs, that the commercial TV networks had. Late night news, current affairs and Sunday mornings. They have well succeeded in influencing the discourse such as with Pell, where they obviously got into the heads of the 12 jurors for that miscarriage of justice. (Louse Maddigan take a bow).
So where does this end up. Look to NZ. TV3 the only relevant commercial TV network will likely close. Nine’s Stuff business can’t be sold and will be largely closed down after Nine leaves NZ. That leaves just one content player in that country – NZ Media with its national daily and its talk station radio network. Australia wouldn’t want to be even half way to that scenario. In NZ, substitute XI for Ahern and you have a near dictatorship of media. And, ultimately, the country.