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The public broadcasters, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) and the Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), play a crucial role in Australian society, one that is especially significant due the concentration of media ownership in Australia. Despite strong and consistent public support, the ABC has had its funding severely cut and has been under constant attack.
The public broadcasters provide daily independent radio, television and online news content. This role is recognised and respected by a great majority of Australians. Opinion polls show that 82 per cent of Australians think the ABC is doing a good job (Newspoll, 2002) that 89% of Australians continue to believe that the ABC provides a valuable service to the community, and that 50% believes it provides a “very valuable” service (ABC Annual Report, 2007). A large number of Australians (60 per cent) also support increases in the ABC’s budget through government funding. A Newspoll survey found that only 2 per cent believed that funding should be less (Newspoll, 2002). Despite continued public support for the ABC, governmental funding continues to be inadequate. In 2006, the Howard Government enlisted the services of independent consultants KMPG to review the adequacy of the ABC funding. As a result of the KMPG report, the Government agreed to provide the ABC with an additional $88.2 million over the 2006-09 triennium. Although this was significant, it was not the amount requested in the ABC Triennial Funding Submission “to sustain its existing range, quantity and mix of programming and services” (see ABC Annual Report 2006).
| YEAR | ABC PROGRAMMING FUNDS |
| 2005–06 | $625 million |
| 1985–86 | $889 million |
| Source: ABC Annual Report 2005, p.56 http://www.abc.net.au/corp/annual_reports/ar05/pdf/ABC_AR05_Complete.pdf |
|
The table above shows that the ABC had almost $250 million more funding in 1985 than it receives today (adjusted for inflation). Put another way, the ABC’s funding has decreased by 29.7 per cent over this period. This is a huge reduction. Channel 9’s budget is over three times the ABC’s TV budget per station. The increasing discrepancy between public and commercial broadcasting budgets in recent years further strengthens the case against under-funding for the ABC. Furthermore, the BBC, the British public broadcaster, gets almost five times the ABC’s funding on a per capita basis.
The funding crisis has already led to the axing of long running programs and the abandonment of Australian drama production. There are other serious threats to iconic programs and increasingly viewers are seeing fewer reflections of Australian society on their television sets. Australian drama content is one of the lowest in the English speaking world. The funding crisis also results in a serious loss of employment opportunities for Australian creative artists.
On 24 March 2006, the former Communications Minister Helen Coonan announced the abolition of the statutory position of staff-elected Director of the ABC Board. The Rudd Government has promised to restore this position.
The SBS, the ABC’s sister public broadcaster, also plays a vital role in Australia bringing programmes to Australia’s ethnic minorities as well as broadcasting other high quality material for general viewers. Advertising has been progressively forced on the SBS to supplement its dwindling funds, despite viewer objection. If the ABC is likewise forced to adopt advertising, its integrity and independence will gradually be undermined.
Funding under the Rudd Government is still severely constrained.
ABC Annual Report 2005, http://www.abc.net.au/corp/annual_reports/ar05/pdf/ABC_AR05_Complete.pdf
ABC Annual Report 2006, http://www.abc.net.au/corp/annual_reports/ar06/pdf/ABC_Annual_Report_2005-06.pdf
