ABC refuses to end Tokyo Olympic boycott Ita Buttrose v John Coates
An emergency meeting between media icon and ABC chair Ita Buttrose and Australia Olympic Committee boss John Coates has failed to end the broadcaster’s Tokyo 2020 boycott.
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The Australian Olympic Committee have been unable to convince the ABC to lift their blackout on the Tokyo Olympics - but talks will continue.
An emergency meeting between media icon and ABC chair Ita Buttrose and AOC boss John Coates was held at the head office of the radio broadcaster in Sydney on Wednesday.
In a statement from Coates, the AOC president failed to declare that a resolution had been made.
Instead he said he would continue to pursue the ABC for its coverage of next year’s games.
“The AOC appreciates the courtesy of a meeting and the chance to make our case on behalf of the broader community, Olympic sports and their communities,’’ Coates said.
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“We listened to the reasoning behind the decision, however the AOC will continue to explore ways to ensure all Australian can get access to the Games’ coverage in Tokyo.’’
The meeting was called in the wake of widespread criticism directed at the ABC for its decision not to buy the non-commercial radio broadcast rights for the Tokyo Games next year.
If the ABC stand by their decision — which has been slammed by sports broadcasters and the Australian public — the Tokyo games next year will be the first Olympics that the public broadcaster hasn’t covered since Helsinki, Finland, in 1952.
The ABC has claimed it would cost $1 million to stage its coverage at a time when the organisation is trying to find savings more than 84 times that amount.
The AOC left the Wednesday meeting having put forward their case as to why they felt it critical the ABC overturn their decision.
An ABC spokesman told media that chairwoman Ita Buttrose and managing director David Anderson “had an open and frank meeting with the AOC” on Wednesday at its Sydney headquarters in Ultimo.
“We recognise that the Olympics has a hallowed place in Australian cultural life. The ABC has been proud to contribute to Australia’s storied Olympics history.
“However, in weighing up relevant factors – current budget pressures, massive changes in the media environment, and the fact that the public now has a variety of ways to access Olympics coverage, the ABC maintains its decision not to bid for the Olympics radio rights,” the spokesman said.
It’s expected Coates and chief executive Matt Carrolll will maintain dialogue with the ABC in coming days.
“Due to competing budget priorities coupled with the fact that Australians can access Olympic Games coverage in many other ways, we have chosen not to pursue rights in 2020,” an ABC spokesperson told reporters recently.
In response, the AOC allowed chief executive Matt Carroll to take a brickbat to the ABC for being “shortsighted”.
“The Olympics can inspire Australians to embrace something valuable and as the ABC’s charter indicates – to contribute to a sense of national identity. There’s no bigger event in the world to fulfil this ambition,’’ Carroll said.
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“Tokyo 2020 presents such an opportunity to do that, given the time-zone, in particular.”
However, ahead of the landmark meeting, the AOC were taking a different tact when approached by The Daily Telegraph.
Coates hoped to use his longstanding relationship with Buttrose to win the ABC back with commonsense and clarity.
The Olympics will begin in late July and run for nearly three weeks before finishing in early August.
Originally published as ABC refuses to end Tokyo Olympic boycott Ita Buttrose v John Coates