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Articles on Public broadcasting

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Taking the politics out of it, what should the ABC be doing with its reduced budget? AAP/Joel Carrett

Expert panel: is there a place for the ABC in modern Australia?

In the recent ABC funding debate, many have questioned what the public broadcaster is for. What should its role be in Australia’s contemporary media landscape? Some argue that the ABC is a market-failure…
The BBC, like the ABC, has faced significant pressure to change in response to repeated debates over how it should be funded. EPA/Andy Rain

It’s open season on public broadcasters as ABC joins hunt for cuts

2014 is turning into a grim year for public broadcasting. In June, Hubert Lacroix, the president of Canada’s public broadcaster CBC, announced an unprecedented series of job cuts. One-quarter of the staff…
The ABC’s focus on digital will not help it make a case for its uniqueness. Dan Peled/AAP

The ABC’s ‘me too’ strategy puts it on track for redundancy

Is the ABC trying to make itself redundant? Because that appears to be its strategy. Here’s why. The ABC is expensive. In 2013 it was allocated more than A$1 billion of taxpayer funds. The ABC claims…
ABC boss Mark Scott is strengthening the broadcaster’s digital offerings in response to budget cuts – a template established by the BBC. AAP/Alan Porritt

Is this the beginning of the end of the ABC as we know it?

While Australia’s elected representatives argue over what then-opposition leader Tony Abbott meant when he promised “no cuts to the ABC, or SBS” the night before the last election, directly to the electorate…
By cutting back in regional and remote areas, the ABC risks sending a message that some parts of Australia are more important to our national conversations than others. AAP/Joel Carrett

ABC cuts a tale of two Australias: Sydney-Melbourne and also-rans

ABC managing director Mark Scott undertook the unenviable task on Monday of wielding the axe to meet the Abbott government’s cut to the broadcaster’s funding. Government cutbacks to Australia’s publicly…
ABC Radio plans to cut back on the number of concerts recorded on Classic FM. Ryan Egan/Flickr

ABC’s Classic FM faces cuts: it’s time to change the tune

Today, in a statement to his staff, ABC Managing Director Mark Scott said: ABC Radio plans to cut back on the number of concerts recorded on Classic FM. This is a prudent efficiency measure that still…
Malcolm Turnbull and the government have been unapologetic after breaking a pre-election pledge not to cut the ABC’s budget. AAP/Nikki Short

ABC feels pain of broken promise: prepare for cut-price broadcasting

Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has announced a further cut to Australia’s public broadcasters. The ABC’s budget will be slashed around 4.6% per year, or A$254 million in total, over the next…
Treasurer Joe Hockey and finance minister Mathias Cormann face a difficult sell for the Abbott government’s tough first budget. AAP/Alan Porritt

Federal budget 2014: political experts react

The Abbott government is hoping an A$11.6 billion infrastructure spending package, combined with a $20 billion medical research fund, will help soften the blow of widespread tightening of health and welfare…
If you can’t attack the Beeb, shoot the messenger. Dominic Lipinski/PA Wire

The controversial business of researching BBC impartiality

Whoever takes over from Lord Patten as the new head of the BBC Trust has a tough job ahead – there’s the Scottish referendum and the general election, both potential minefields for a public broadcaster…
That the ABC is too big and too expensive for an affluent democracy such as Australia is nothing but a myth. AAP/Tracey Nearmy

Does the ABC deliver Australians good bang for their buck?

Due to Australia’s small population and high concentration of few media voices, public broadcasters play a pivotal role in shaping the media ecosystem and cultural landscape. With the ABC and SBS under…
There’s much binding in Broadcasting House. Jonathan Brady/PA Wire

Flawed and could improve, but BBC is still the best of British

If the current media debate about the future of the BBC is anything to go by, the corporation seems to be facing the gravest crisis of its 92-year history. Indeed, this week a book with the title: “Is…
UK Culture Secretary Maria Miller threatens BBC retreat if Scotland votes ‘yes’ Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

Never mind the BBC leaving Scotland – do Scots still want it?

When culture secretary, Maria Miller, said a Yes vote by Scotland would entail the departure of the BBC, it reignited the debate about its future in an independent Scotland, and also its value north of…
Is the existence of the public broadcaster necessary for a healthy democracy in Australia? AAP/Tracey Nearmy

Do Australians really need the ABC?

Since 1803, when its first newspaper was published, Australia’s media have been owned largely by private enterprise. Except for the Government Gazette, which was confined to publishing official government…
There’s no clear need for a review of the ABC’s operations – and such calls have a long history. Sarah Ackerman

What would be the point of yet another ABC inquiry?

Prime minister Tony Abbott may be a fan of institutional inquiries and a critic of supposed ABC bias, but he has nothing to gain by responding to calls for yet another review of the ABC. First, there’s…
Liam Lenten presents Part 5 of Some Sports Economics.

Media broadcast rights and the Prisoner’s Dilemma (VIDEO)

Welcome to Some Sports Economics, a six-part video series explaining economic concepts through sport, by La Trobe University senior lecturer, Liam Lenten. In the fifth part of this series, Liam looks at…
Mark Scott, managing director of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. AAP/Alan Porritt

Mark Scott on the future of your ABC

Welcome to In Conversation, our series of discussions between leading academics and major public figures in Australian life. In this instalment, Mark Scott, managing director of the Australian Broadcasting…

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