ABC discusses News Corp and Murdoch 1700 times in just 30 days
The broadcaster has been told to ‘look in the mirror’ after attacking News Corp’s coverage of its Four Corners Fox News series.
The ABC has criticised News Corp publications for “banging on about the ABC” despite the public broadcaster mentioning “News Corp” or “Murdoch” more than 56 times a day.
Analysis by the Institute of Public Affairs used media monitoring data for the period from August 1 through to August 30 and found across all of the ABC’s channels – including radio, television and online – they discussed News Corp or Murdoch more than 1700 times.
It comes after both the ABC and the Guardian criticised News Corp – which includes The Australian – for publishing 45 stories on the ABC’s Four Corners’ two-part “expose” on Fox News following the first episode airing on August 23.
IPA communications director Evan Mulholland said the ABC was simply “using their massive taxpayer-funded platform to campaign against their perceived media rival”.
“Murdoch derangement syndrome is very infectious at the ABC, which is acceptable at a private media company like the Guardian but completely inappropriate at a taxpayer-funded broadcaster which is meant to be impartial,” he
said.
“ABC staff who claim a News Corp pile on against the ABC ought to look in the mirror.”
In a radio interview on August 26, conducted by ABC Melbourne’s morning host Virginia Trioli with Four Corners journalist Sarah Ferguson who led the two-part series, Ferguson criticised News Corp for having extensive coverage on the ABC in their publications.
Trioli described it as, “It can be seen by some or reduced by some to this News Corp versus ABC, ABC versus News Corp battle which is now, let’s be frank, totally entrenched and completely tedious in many respects as well.”
Ferguson responded: “Do they (Australians) really want to see such a large number of correspondents for those newspapers banging on about the ABC, I don’t think so.”
Ferguson also appeared on ABC Radio National with host Fran Kelly last Monday and said the coverage of the Four Corners program by Fox and News Corp “wasn’t a massive surprise and I think it’s a tremendous disservice to their audience”.
On the same day Trioli also tweeted about the coverage in News Corp and wrote: “Fifty articles in @newscorpaus and counting!”
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