Politicians are saying the ABC is out of touch with ordinary Australians

A Liberal senator says the ABC needs to be more tightly regulated after its Four Corners report alleging a drinking culture within the SAS.

An attack by the ABC on the alleged drinking culture of an elite SAS unit has been slammed for being out of touch and further evidence that the national broadcaster needs more supervision and less disconnect from the people it is supposed to serve.

South Australian Senator Alex Antic said on Monday that a recent episode of 7.30, which suggested that drunken revelry — such as a game of naked Twister at an off-base bar in Perth — was representative of a culture that led to allegations of war crimes in the Brereton ­Report.

“Unless you are part of a small group of inner city elites, sipping an Aperol Spritz at a Double Bay wine bar, then our national broadcaster appears to have no interest in pitching to you,” Mr Antic said.

Liberal Senator Alex Antic has criticised the ABC story. Picture: AAP Image

Sergeant Matthew Locke was killed in action during a gunfight in Oruzgan Province, Afghanistan in 2007

“They fail to understand that most Australians prefer letting off some steam over a beer and cherish the service of those who are asked to put their lives on the line to defend our way of life in a faraway land. The time to rein in the ABC is well overdue.”

Mr Antic is leading a push for an independent ombudsman to take oversight of the national broadcaster.

The ABC’s report coincided with the release of a book by its journalist Mark Willacy about SAS culture titled Rogue Forces. Among other things, the report claimed a song entitled Getting Away With It, which had been played at the funerals of a number of SAS members was actually a “tap of the nose, a nod’’ to committing war crimes.

In fact, the 2001 song about a man saving a woman from drowning and beating alcohol addiction, was revered by the SAS because it was introduced to the soldiers by a member who later died in a car crash.

ABC journalist Mark Willacy has written a book about the culture of the SAS. Picture Kym Smith

The ABC’s attempt to ­associate it with war crimes led some family members to protest at the way the song had been used to support a one-sided account of their ­deceased relatives’ memories.

The song was played at the funeral of SAS member and Medal for Gallantry recipient Sgt Matthew Locke.

Sgt Locke was killed in Afghanistan in 2007. His son Keegan denied the ABC’s claims about the song, saying: “The boys came home from Afghanistan and were happy to be able to sing that song and remember the friends who did not make it back.’’

When contacted for comment, the ABC referred The Daily Telegraph to a previous statement which said the report "tells another aspect of the Afghanistan story and one that it is in the public’s interest to bring to light.’’

Originally published as Politicians are saying the ABC is out of touch with ordinary Australians