Additional Comments
Australian Greens
1.1
The ABC is a highly valued and trusted Australian institution. A 2010
Newspoll survey found that 88 per cent of Australians believe that the ABC
provides a valuable service to the community. The number of submissions and
form letters received by the committee in this inquiry reflect the degree of
interest and concern felt by Australians about the future of “their” ABC.
1.2
In particular, Australians value the fact that the ABC is independent of
political and commercial interests and is seen to be a trusted source of
accurate news and information and a means of conveying Australian culture and
identity, in all its diversity, to Australians.
1.3
Given the public standing of the ABC, and the significant amounts of
public money invested in its continuing operations, it is understandable and
fitting that the Australian public feels a sense of entitlement to scrutinise,
understand and be consulted on the overall direction of the ABC and programming
decisions that affect us all.
1.4
The ABC’s Charter encompasses expectations and tasks which require it to
be almost “all things” to “all people”. In a climate where there is an increasing
need for content to service an increasing number of channels and delivery
modes, this is increasingly difficult to achieve. Indeed, the ABC’s funding for
2010/11 is 24.4 per cent less, in real terms, than what it received
in 1985.[1]
Much of the discussion in the course of the inquiry reflected the fact that the
ABC could do so much more in fulfilling its Charter and public expectations if
it were more adequately funded.
The degree of outsourcing of program making versus internal production
2.1 As reflected in the report, this issue emerged as
key to the inquiry and the consensus was that a mixed production model was a
necessary, and even desirable feature of modern broadcasting.
2.2 It is the balance to be struck between these
sources of programming which must be carefully determined and, in the view of
the Australian Greens, clearly articulated and communicated by ABC management
to the Australian public.
2.3 It was submitted by some that the viewing or
listening public was not overly concerned about who actually made the programs
they enjoyed (the ABC itself, with a co-production or someone else entirely)
and was often not able to differentiate. While this may be true, evidence
before the committee made it clear that the source of programming will affect many
aspects of the ABC’s future functioning if the balance is not struck
appropriately.
2.4 On one hand, co-production enables a stretching of
dollars through leveraging of funds available to the co-production partner and
some of the best-loved programs which have featured on the ABC have been
co-produced or purchased externally. Certainly, the involvement of outside
program-makers can be a source of fresh ideas, vision and expertise.
2.5 On the other hand, the evidence before the
committee pointed to the fact that an undue reliance on outsourcing runs the
risk of:
- concern about commercial success and ratings and resale value on
the part of production partners skewing decisions about content and a
homogenous “commercial” voice;
- a loss of objectivity and independence in the commissioning of
some work by interested institutions (such as performances or documentaries);
- a loss of diversity and regional content;
- reduced revenue from resale and the licensing of products;
- reduced control over intellectual property in the programs in the
form of re‑screening rights and use of archival material;
- loss of internal production capacity weakening bargaining power
in negotiating purchase of content;
- loss of staff skills and corporate memory;
- loss of the capacity to train new/junior staff in broadcasting
skills and in the ethic of public broadcasting; and
- failure to embrace or value the creativity, ideas and expertise
of internal staff in the commissioning of new programs.
2.6 Certainly many of the submissions asserted that
these effects are already in evidence.
2.7 We note with concern the evidence before the committee
that over the past decade there has been a steady decline in the proportion of
expenditure on internally produced content from 65 per cent (2001–02) to 45 per
cent in 2010–11.[2]
It is clear that outsourcing is proceeding apace at the ABC.
2.8 It would be highly damaging for the ABC to reach a
point whereby it is merely a transmitter of other people’s content (apart from
News and Current Affairs content, which was outside the scope of this inquiry).
It could lose its identity as a shaper and custodian of Australian culture. It
would be even more damaging if that content, as has been presaged in some of
the submissions, was so similar to that provided by commercial broadcasters
that there was little justification for continued funding by taxpayers.
2.9 The report (at paragraphs 3.35 to 3.39) discusses
the ability of ABC staff to “pitch” ideas for new programming ideas. We note
that a substantial number of the submissions to the inquiry asserted that staff
were actively discouraged from offering or pursuing new program ideas to ABC
management. We are concerned that this indicates a lack of respect for staff
expertise and value, contributes to poor staff morale and deprives the ABC of a
potentially rich source of creative ideas.
2.10 The Australian Greens regret the Committee's report,
while presenting an accurate summary of the range of issues presented by
witnesses, ultimately falls far short of turning this evidence into a focused
set of recommendations.
Recommendation 1
2.11 The Australian Greens recommend that the ABC engage an
external provider to conduct a performance and financial audit of the
Television division’s production commissioning model and to recommend ways to
improve the transparency of the ABC’s commissioning decisions, including an
articulation of the willingness of ABC management to consider internal staff
proposals for programming ideas.
Loss of internal arts production capacity
3.1 The Australian Greens are extremely concerned by
the recent decision by ABC management to axe the TV Art Nation program
with the likely redundancy of the 15 producers and researchers who make up
the specialist TV Arts Unit. (The decision to cut the Radio National specialist
arts program is a further cause for concern.)
3.2 The Arts in all their manifestations are a
fundamentally important aspect of Australian cultural life and not well
represented on commercial broadcasters. The Arts Unit has produced content
which covers the gamut of arts including forms which are little discussed or
featured in other media: design, installation art, musical theatre,
photography, sculpture, street art and architecture – as well as visual and
performing arts.
3.3 On the basis of the evidence before the committee,
the likely effects of these decisions are:
- An inability to make regular, timely programs about the arts
which involve objective commentary, reviews and critiques independent of the
institutions, companies and individuals who make the art which is being
portrayed;
- A decrease in the availability of content documenting Australia’s
diverse and regionally widespread arts scene – not only for TV but also radio
and online broadcast:
The other significant contribution of the TV Arts unit is the
content it provides for ‘Arts Gateway’. In addition to Art Nation and Artscape
stories, the Gateway will lose hundreds of items such as web extras, previews,
photo galleries and blogs produced by the Arts unit.[3]
- A reduction in the ABC’s rights to own and re-screen arts content
and a concomitant reduction in the national archive of TV Arts material owned
by the ABC which can then be used for retrospectives, obituaries and historical
overviews.
3.4 It is our view that the ABC management decisions
to axe Art Nation (and thereby the staff who currently produce it) will
lead to a diminution in the ABC’s capacity to fulfil its charter obligation to
encourage and promote the musical, dramatic and other performing arts in Australia.
The provision of arts broadcasting on the ABC also falls within the Charter
obligations “to inform and entertain” and “reflect the cultural diversity of
the Australian community”.
Recommendation 2
3.5 The Australian Greens recommend that ABC management
reconsider its decision to axe its only TV arts magazine program and disband
the television arts unit, and instead retain a team of specialist arts
programmers for the creation and commissioning of quality arts content
including critical, review type programming.
Recommendation 3
3.6 The Australian Greens recommends that the ABC adopt a
mandated proportion of regional content on ABC television in order to meet its
Charter obligation to ‘reflect the cultural diversity of the Australian
community’.
3.7 We thank all those who demonstrated their concern
about the future of the ABC by making submissions and giving up their time to
appear as witnesses to the inquiry, including ABC staff and former staff,
program makers from outside the ABC, interested commentators, members of the
public and ABC management.
Senator Ludlam Senator
Wright
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