ABC should realise its culture lies between Labor and the Greens
The ABC has become a megaphone for whinge of the day. Following the election, even the ABC must surely acknowledge that its house culture, somewhere between Labor and the Greens, does not reflect a presentation of news that is “accurate and impartial according to the recognised standards of objective journalism”.
The ABC is losing impartiality though an editorial policy that increasingly appears to be: let’s just give a megaphone to whingers of the day and pepper that with ads for its own programs, where it would do an in-depth analysis of whinge of the week.
With the pre-election interviews of the Treasurer and his Labor counterpart still in mind, where only the former was subjected to a torrent of disruptive interjections, it is timely to consider the issue of cultural bias at the ABC. For an organisation required by statute to be impartial, it is a sad fact that many Australians now automatically associate the ABC with the Left.
When a perverse culture becomes too entrenched in an organisation, the best solution is often to change the organisation itself. One option would be to excise the ABC’s news and current affairs and establish an independent service that would have stronger statutory guarantees of impartiality. The remaining entity could continue to provide popular programs now provided by the ABC.
A genuinely impartial public news service would serve as an exemplar for all media and would strengthen our democracy.
Reclaim ‘progressive’
I am outing myself as one of Scott Morrison’s quiet Australians. Further emboldened, I wish to claim back the word “progressive “ from it being a nomenclature badge of the Left.
Words and their use are important as the debate about free speech and giving offence attest. Progressive as an adjective means “happening or developing in stages; of a person or idea favouring social reform”. As a noun, it’s an advocate of social reform.
It is not progressive to increase taxes and wastefully expand government spending of taxpayers’ money. It is highly regressive.
Live export risks
New Agriculture Minister Bridget McKenzie says she wants to protect Australian farmers’ reputation, but in the same breath says she wants live animal exports to continue. Leading animal welfare expert Don Broom recently addressed a veterinary conference in Perth at which he said the inherent cruelty and risks associated with long-distance sea transport are too great and that there is a reputational risk for Australia as a whole —- not just animal products or farming. Broom’s comments are reinforced by the RSPCA’s analysis of the department’s independent observer that reveal heat stress is a welfare problem.
McKenzie would better protect the nation’s reputation by phasing out live sheep exports. It is not worth risking the reputation of Australia’s entire agricultural industry.
Nuclear improvements
Graeme McNally (Letters, 23/5) called for the repeal of the Radiation and Nuclear Safety Act so that private enterprise could use our resources for clean, reliable and affordable power. And Bill Mathew (Letters, 31/5) says the only source of green and relatively inexpensive power comes from nuclear energy.
I call on the federal government to form a bipartisan body to reconsider the question of using nuclear energy. Immensely improved technology in use in nuclear power stations should also be assessed and might well bring a change to the legislation.
Food industry brings home extent of our energy crisis
With big increases in electricity bills leading to higher food prices, the conclusion is that by placing ideology over pragmatism, the Albanese government has failed us.
Government yet to act on anti-Semitism
The government’s inaction on the current wave of anti-Semitic attacks in the community, combined with the Labor politicians’ responses replete with platitudes, is aggravating the situation.