The Australian media policy omelette cannot simply be unscrambled. But forward-thinking diversity rules could help prevent further concentration of media ownership.
Striking Fairfax journalists protest out the front of Parliament House, Canberra.
AAP/Mick Tsikas
As the federal government looks to reform media ownership laws, the Australian media environment – in diversity and stability – is looking decidedly shaky.
PBS headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.
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The Turnbull government is engaged in a media reform process that is all about the sideshow – not forward-thinking policy with the public interest in mind.
The Nine Network’s Here Come The Habibs is one of very few Australian TV programs not dominated by Anglo-Australian faces.
AAP/Nine Network
A generation on from revelations about the lack of diversity in the Australian media at the dawn of the digital era, what is pushing this concern now? And what’s changed since then?
If a New Zealand-focused deal between Fairfax and APN gets approval readers can expect less access to local news content.
Communications Minister Mitch Fifield said the government would establish stronger local content obligations for regional commercial TV.
Mick Tsikas/AAP
At an event that bills itself as ‘the place to preview the technology of tomorrow today,’ one of the fastest-growing, youngest and most tech-savvy segments of the population was largely ignored.
Based on Eddie Huang’s bestselling memoir, ABC’s Fresh Off the Boat premiered last month.
Bob D'Amico/ABC
Did SBS chief executive Michael Ebeid score a well-timed free kick or an own goal in his attack on the ABC this week? The ABC recently secured the free-to-air television rights for the Asian Cup football…
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull has put media deregulation plans on the backburner, but that isn’t stopping market speculation of mergers to come.
Dave Hunt/AAP
Communications Minister and internet evangelist, Malcolm Turnbull, says media deregulation is off the agenda for now and he’s in no rush to remove the remaining media ownership rules. The reason for the…
Winter is coming…for Time Warner.
Jason Szenes/EPA/AAP
At age 83 Australian-born tycoon Rupert Murdoch is as restless as ever. He is anxious to add the behemoth Time Warner, owner of everything from HBO to Cartoon Network to Superman, to his already bulging…
Loss of the service will impact Australia’s international image, media diversity in the region and coverage of news from the Pacific.
dithern
The termination in the 2014 budget of the ABC’s international television broadcasting contract to run the federal government’s Australia Network service, barely a year into its ten-year term, was hardly…
Fairfax editorial staff went on strike to protest the cutting of photographers.
AAP/Julian Smith
You know the adage: a picture is worth a thousand words. News photographs can capture a story’s emotion whether it is sport, politics or human tragedy. Think of the 1983 America’s Cup win. Prime Minister…
Consumers have never had more choice, but does that mean more local content?
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Communication minister Malcolm Turnbull’s proposal for changes to cross-media ownership laws has reignited calls for the government to protect local content. On the surface, it appears reasonable to expect…