On the ABC at Estimates
Laurie Patton writes: Re. “ABC admits it ignored thousands of pages of Cabinet Files” (Wednesday)
The boss of the ABC is also the editor-in-chief responsible for news and current affairs. Ms Guthrie says she decided to return the Cabinet Files. It would be outrageous if she’d delegated such a major decision. That said, it reopens the debate on whether the ABC’s managing director should be required to have had high level journalistic experience (which IMO they must).
Rais writes: Re. “ABC admits it ignored thousands of pages of Cabinet Files” (Wednesday)
Might be time to start setting up a community-based public affairs network using material from volunteer journalists and whistle blowers. This kind of operation wouldn’t be what the ABC should be but it could supplement the weakened national broadcaster.
Terryg writes: Re. “ABC admits it ignored thousands of pages of Cabinet Files” (Wednesday)
I believe the ABC did the right thing by returning these documents. If I had been in the position of accidentally obtaining these I would just have taken them back to PMC. There is a need for confidentiality as at times people need to speak frankly without their comments being released to the world.
Sometimes the public interest is served by release especially if a government is lying about a situation or covering up corruption. But often it is not about public interest but only the ego of journalists and the profits of media companies.
Brian Crooks writes: Re. “ABC admits it ignored thousands of pages of Cabinet Files” (Wednesday)
Under Guthrie the ABC has just [become] another branch of News Corp, and Murdoch’s takeover of independent journalism is almost complete. SBS must be next in line to be subjugated, and Julie Bishop has the hypocrisy to come out on national television and warn of the dangers of media suppression in foreign countries while her own government and its real leader Rupert Murdoch stifle any dissent against the Coalition trickle-down Turnbull government. The gall of these neo cons is astounding.
Oh no not the privacy of the executive branch! Handing it back to the PMC directly would be extremely Piss Weak.
This craven behaviour would never have been put into a ‘Yes, (Prime) Minister’ script as it would have been thought impossible twenty or even ten years ago.
No wonder journalism is at its inevitable dead end. They could go no lower and so were cut loose, no longer worth feeding.