The ABC is an unaffordable anachronism, lacking the discipline that comes from meeting the needs of paying customers and meeting the demands of investors; they do as they please - there is no need to please anyone else. They claim that Australians trust them, but statistics show that very few Australians actually use the ABC at all.

The people who pay for the ABC, taxpayers via the government have no say; satisfying the needs of staff and running campaigns against conservatives is the reason for its existence.

The world is saturated with media organisations, all paying their way. There is no need for an outdated organisation like the ABC. In 2018, the Liberal Federal Council voted to privatise the ABC, but gutless Liberal Party politicians squibbed it.

In the face of burgeoning public debt, keeping a fully funded ABC is an unaffordable indulgence - particularly as ABS figures indicate that only 8.6% of Australians bother with it normally. Even when it is in 'emergency broadcaster' mode during bushfires e.g, it still gleans only 25% of the Australia's listening/viewing audience.

Oh, 50% or 0-4 year olds are kept quiet by it in the mornings. Mustn't forget that.

So, the cutting off of the ABC by a responsible government would have no effect on their votes; they might even gain some.

Imagine. The Chinese communist government funds a public broadcaster. It has a charter protecting its independence from the communist party; from the government. It regularly criticises the communist party, and many politicians and supporters of the party hate this. They think it should be defunded, closed down or sold to some corporation owned by the party or its supporters.

We in the west would cheer if the CCP created and funded such an independent body; we would see it as a positive change from the standard authoritarianism. We'd understand the pushback against it by the hardline communists but we'd really hope the CCP would recognise the value of criticism.

Realisticlly, we know the CCP would never fund an independent media agency, however valuable that would be to good government. But blindly, some of us argue to get rid of our ABC.

I having been a farmer for 39 years regularly watched Landline on the ABC but lately it has turned away from hard Rural and agricultural industry reporting to soft light reporting. The entertainment shown only appeals to minorities and wacky minds. If it was equally confronting to all political positions you could say it is seeking out the agenda of their political opinion. However it lauds the communist, the antifascists, the socialist and the anarchist, instead of equally challenging all points of view in journalism. They seek out Anthony Mundine, instead of Warren Mundine opinion on aboriginal affairs. The SBS is twice as biased and false in their reporting.

Josephus, I agree that in an ideal world the ABC/SBS should be balanced: interview both Anthony and Warren Mundine. So should all other media outlets. But if in our non-ideal world all the others interview just Warren, then the ABC does us a service by providing an alternate view, by interviewing Anthony.

I'm using the Mundines as an example only because you did, the argument applies to a thousand other cases where the ABC gives us a perspective that few other media outlets do. You may be happy to live in an echo chamber where you only want to hear reinforcement of what you already think. I like to keep up with views that I don't necessarily agree with. Of course if you do that, the risk is that you may change your mind! That's a scary thought, isn't it.

Don't worry, when China takes over Australia they will get rid of the ABC so that it doesn't go around criticising the new government to be installed under the Chinese.

There, happy now?

I turn the commercial channels off as there is little of interest to watch or listen too, this costs me nothing. I turn the ABC off (dont turn it on often) and I am still paying and paying huge money for plenty of rubbish. They would not survive in a commercial world.

GBC,

As long as it makes you happy just stick to your Bold & Beautiful, I'm a Celebrity, Married at First Sight, Australian Ninja, Home & Away, etc. etc.

IT'S YOU!

How China gets a mention in a post about the AUSTRALIAN Broadcasting Corporation is a mystery. Cossomby's tortured yodelling about keeping an eye on governments and 'echo chambers' reveals the usual inability of the Left to see beyond their own bigoted noses. The ABC is our leading echo chamber, which criticises and nags Coalition governments, never Labor - in government or in opposition - and their Green partners.

However, it has to be admitted that it is the Coalition and it's cowardice that is enabling the ABC to act like another opposition party to THEIR detriment. What a bunch of fools, paying the ABC to rubbish them. It's time for Coalition voters to demand that their money is not spent on the ABC.

ttbn,

China got a mention in this post because when China takes over Australia they will get rid of the ABC so that it doesn't go around criticising the new government to be installed under the Chinese.

Capisce Signor ttbn?

ABC/SBS are just Taxpayer funded propaganda for the Labor Party !

ttbn,
>How China gets a mention in a post about the AUSTRALIAN Broadcasting Corporation is a mystery
WELL IT SHOUDN'T BE!

Australia was broadcasting into Asia, giving the Chinese people access to views other than those of their government. But motivated by his hatred of the ABC (which you apparently share) Tony Abbott shut it down!

Think about how unequivocally contrary to the national interest that decision was. I can't think of a worse decision any Aussie PM's made in the time I've been here. Gillard's carbon tax backflip isn't in the same league. Howard's Workchoices doesn't come close, and neither does Fraudband. Nor even Keating's high interest rate policy - though that was very destructive it did at least have a worthwhile purpose.

Because of Abbott's hatred and short termism, many extra billions will have to be spent on defence. But instead you whinge about spending a comparative trifle on something that most Australians want.

Aidan,

I think you might find that Abbott shut down that service at the behest of the Chinese Communist Party as a prerequisite to the China-Australia Trade Agreement, which took effect on 20 Dec 2015.

Do you know if the shutdown of that service was before or after that date? If it was before then I reckon you have your answer.

And talking about old jockstraps Tony here he is explaining what it is like to be Tony Abbott:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i0AQN2MUQSU

And even better here he is having oral sex with an onion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmPVCKnkKWA

"They would not survive in a commercial world." Yes, and billions poured into unprofitable private business by conservative government. Pensions paid to non-productive old folks. Money spent on warmongering for no good return. Free enterprise governments are great at socialism when it suits. Shouldn't the conservative mantra be "If you can't survive, then you die".

"If you can't survive, then you die".
Paul1405,
Oxymoron !

individual,

No . . . . . . . Tautology !

Dear GBC,

At less than 20 cents per day or under $70 per year it is hardly a huge amount of money is it?

I spend nearly $100 per month for my other streaming services and I would watch and listen to the ABC more than them all combined.

Bloody great value in my book.

GBC,

Just ignore NastyReflux; he attacks individual posters on my threads because he hates me and doesn't have the guts or the brains to address me directly. He is the most egregious of the narcissists on the site. A nasty piece of work, unfit for any society, actual or internet.

I feel the same way as you do. The commercial networks are rubbish but they at least pay for themselves. And, a billion dollars out of the taxpayer bank every year is not chicken feed.

Tautology
Mr Opinion,
I'm just so glad I didn't have the same level of edu-indoctrination as you !
Just read this again "if you can't survive, you die". If that's not stating the obvious then what is !

Mr Opinino,
You're of course correct, I made a typo, I meant Oxy-moron.

individual,

I don't see the contradiction in your statement.

But I do see the repetition. So I say it's tautological not oxymoronic.

What do others have to say?

Something to think about

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volksempfänger

How about OXO stock cubes. Haven't seen them since my mother used them to make soup.

Mr Opinion,
Does the oxygen get cut off for you the moment you get tricked into sticking your head outside the box ? Is that why you can't see/understand ?
Oxy=acid/nasty & stupid=moron !

individual,

Just admit you didn't know what oxymoron meant.

ttbn said; "How about OXO stock cubes. Haven't seen them since my mother used them to make soup."

Gee, didn't know they had OXO Cubes in the Stone Age. What kind of soup was your Mum making? Brontosaurus, a drumstick for little ttbn.

didn't know what oxymoron meant.
Mr Opinion,
In that case I'd have written 'that's an oxymoron'. I could have said Oxygen thief but that's too common. Time for some that need a bit of imagination to understand.
So, you being a nasty git, how do you like being called an edu-indoctrinated Oxy-Moron ?

individual,

You've got some serious issues.

You've got some serious issues.
Mr Opinion,
Well, many here have serious issues-with people such as you that is !

To Ttbn- Yes we should defund the ABC. I don't believe it's representative of the interest of the British Australian people. It seems to serve the interests of foreign powers through their 50% Green 20% Labor Journos. The Main Stream Media on the other hand is still 70% left but the breakdown is more Labor than Green making it much less communist left in make-up.

To Individual- You might be interested in this- Fox Hole Radio

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Foxhole_radio

Build out of some wire, a graphite pencil, and a razor blade. In most embodiments you also require a crystal headset and an amplifier but it's possible to build a headset out of simple parts.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Point-contact_transistor

Home made copper oxide transistors also look interesting but tricky.

The first step would be to allow the ABC to advertise and cut its funding by half.

shifty&shadyminister,

I like the ABC because it doesn't hold back on naming and shaming dishonest and untrustworthy low-life scumbag politicians, bureaucrats and business people.

Allow the ABC to advertise? That hasn't worked very well with SBS. I've been watching the SBS lately as I usually do when all the other channels go to sleep for a couple of months during this time of the year, and they have loads of advertising, despite churning out extreme multiculturalism, aboriginalism, and general Leftist crap.

SBS is my favorite free to air channel.

Kayo is my favorite channel full stop.

Life, for me, would be ...... without sport.

ABC, watch a few documentaries and current affairs, but not much overall.

I love the many railway shows, including by Michael Portillo.

Chris,

I enjoy Portillo. Did you know that he was a front runner to lead the Conservative Party after Thatcher, but retired from politics when he didn't make it. He was of the "wet" kind of Conservative like Cameron, and like Johnson now appears to be.

Yes, I remember Portillo's political career.

I really enjoy his passion for the shows, issues and history he presents. Portillo is one of my favorite media personalities.

Now there is a guy who recognises the strengths and weaknesses of historical trends.

Mr Ignorant and uneducated,

I don't like the ABC precisely because they carefully avoid naming and shaming anyone from Labor or the Greens.

It's the saturation Promo playing that winds me up with ABC/SBS & the blatant pro-Left anti equality reporting.

shifty&shadyminister,

I think you are missing the point.

Naming and shaming is directed at ALL dishonest and untrustworthy low-life scumbag politicians, bureaucrats and business people.

They can come from any group. Especially the types you hang around with.

The ABC and SBS believe they have to carry the minority voice to be representative and make the minority voice equal to mainstream. In their eyes everyone has to be equal no matter how irrational and wacky the ideas. They see this as equal balanced reporting rather than giving due diligence to representing majority views with majority unbiased coverage. e.g. "Australia Day" called "invasion Day" demonstrates their bias and ignorance of What We celebrate.

Mr uneducated ignoramus,

The point that is clear is that the ABC is deeply biased. A good comparison is the song and dance the ABC made of Abbot's supposed punching of a wall next to a left whinge student in an area packed with students yet could not provide a single witness, yet was silent on Juliar's blatant involvement in criminal activities or the claims of rape against Shorten.

The ABC has a clear political agenda of its own and should be cut free of the pretence of neutrality and funding and actually pursue the paedophiles and shysters such as those in the groups you hang around in.

Mr O,

SM said; "pursue the paedophiles and shysters such as those in the groups you hang around in."

There goes that shonkyminister deviant again with a totally unrelated reference to paedophiles, linking you to such people. GY in an e-mail to me once said he had zero tolerance for those who would cast paedophilia aspersions on other posters without evidence, THIS BLOKE DOES IT REGUARLLY, yet is never pulled up about it. Maybe zero applies according to which side of the fence you sit.

Paul1405,

I don't pay any attention to what the likes of the shifty&shadyminister says about people.

He is angry with the world because he wants to be admired as a highly educated person but he has realised late in life that he cannot be one.

What he is left with is his money and his job as just an engineer neither of which qualify him for what he really yearns for.

And now he hates the world and he has withdrawn into extreme right-wing and conservative ideologies that blind him from seeing the truth.

If this was 1934 Germany he would be strutting around the streets with a bunch of stormtroopers beating up old people and invalids.

Continue to engage with him in arguments but just treat him with the contempt he deserves.

Pauliar and Mr uneducated.

The two most active trolls who continuously make wild and unsubstantiated claims on OLO wetting themselves when their own tactics are used against them.

Pauliar was the first to start accusing people and groups of paedophilia and only stopped when I pointed out the kiddie fiddlers in the Greens.

Mr uneducated has the IQ of a squirrel and the literary appeal and consistency of a dog turd that one needs to scrape off one's shoe.

"Pauliar was the first to start accusing people and groups of paedophilia"

SM, I'll give you time to provide the evidence of that claim, or withdraw it.

shifty&shadyminister,

Actually, we see you as the troll.

Pauliar,

feel free to dig up information to try and disprove my statements. They are correct and I stand by them.

Mr uneducated,

As your posts consist entirely of vacuous taunts, you are a troll with the IQ of a post.

I care not what you think, because there is no indication that you can.

shifty&shadyminister,

Oh dear me, you are making me feel just so unloved. Woe is me.

I happened to turn past ABC last night and briefly watched a segment where they were berating Craig Kelly. It appears the ABC will not allow any other opinion other than their commentators. The claim to hold to diversity but that only applies to their opinions of diversity, not the right to intellectual difference.

The ABC is not alone in berating Kelly. His own party doesn't like what he says; there is even talk about dis-endorsement . The ABC's attitude is not surprising seeing that its aim is to rubbish all conservatives. It is more unforgiveable coming from his own side. It's one of the many reasons why I, as a conservative, will not vote for the Coalition, which has not been conservative for a long time - if it ever was. How can a party that calls itself the Liberal party be conservative? Turnbull said that the Liberal party was not conservative, and that might have been one of the few things he got right. We should remember that Menzies broke away from the conservative Nationals.

Dear Josephus,

"not the right to intellectual difference".

You are confusing diversity of intellectual views and differences in levels of intellectual acumen.

Kelly does not hold intellectual views as starkly evidenced by his quackery around COVID.

Such drivel deserves to be publicly dissected and dismissed to a level commensurate with the megaphone of the propagandist. The ABC is completely within its brief to do so. What is your complaint really about?

I thought so typical SR no views other than his allowed to be expressed. Whether it is right or not is not the Diversity we stand for to only allow one view is mind control. He can hold his views and express them publicly, but others have the right to debate the values of his views, not deny his right to speak them. SR is the typical supreme ruler of all truth and fact, that is so he thinks. We have clairvoyants telling us every day in public papers and for money our futures and no action is taken even though we do not believe them.

Learn what democracy really is instead of imposing control of ideas and thoughts.

Dear Josephus,

What rubbish.

Pray tell how is Kelly being silenced when his views are being dissected by the national broadcaster? Most of us would happily have that kind of reach.

His messaging is certainly being disseminated. Does he really have to be present whenever his views are discussed?

SR, learn the difference between banning free speech, and debating ideas. The Labor/ ABC want to silence him instead of demonstrating the flaws in his arguments. Their mantra is "Silence him" as you want to do without debating him with counter facts. You just want only one voice in public, but there are doctors supporting him with information, counter his claims with science not blasphemy law.

I don't believe that the ABC was wrong in criticising Kelly as what he said was irresponsible. Where the ABC goes wrong is not criticising idiots such as SHY when they spout drivel.

How many taxpayer funded dollars are being wasted by the Morrison government pursuing Google and Facebook to cough up the cash to line the pocket of Lord Rupert? Just what is the trash news from News Corp worth, four-fifths of FA! shonkyminister has a lifetime sub to 'The Daily Telecrap' and the wisdom of Beat Up Bolt and co.

The only reason the ABC doesn't criticise SHY for spouting drivel, is because she never does! Morrison was forced to stand up in parliament yesterday and virtually say Kelly's and idiot.

SHY talks just as much drivel as Kelly, for example, when Pauline Hanson wore a Burka in the senate, SHY declared that the next terror attack would be her fault. SHY makes Kelly look intelligent but for the ABC her sh1t doesn't stink.

We shouldn't give credence to this "misinformation" stuff without knowing whether it is really misinformation or information that Leftists do not want to hear. We don't know what Morrison said to Kelly in private, but we do know that Morrison is a five-bob-each-way sort who wants to keep everyone happy - or quiet - by uttering motherhood statements, giving a big smirk, and turning away from the microphone. We plebs cannot make judgements on most things that are said because we have know way of finding out the truth. Never forget that politicians and bureaucrats have a long history of lying. And the 'odd man out' has often been proved to be right.

The ABC Programme Guide for this morning showed the "Dementia Chior", a dementia patients Choir singing.

At least with the ABC it keeps many of the countries enemies together in one place, making them easy to round up when necessary.

Many blogs, here included, show us who is not to be trusted.

"a dementia patients Choir singing" - there day jobs being making up wild stories for the ABC to put on the news and 7.30 Report in the evenings.

Yes, I know - their, not there. The ABC has that effect on me.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_Kelly_(politician)

http://www.drugs.com/medical-answers/hydroxychloroquine-effective-covid-19-3536024/

http://www.covid19treatmentguidelines.nih.gov/antiviral-therapy/ivermectin/

It appears that Craig Kelly possibly had some legitimate basis for his comments on Hydroxychloroquine and Ivermectin- perhaps his information is out of date- or perhaps there is another reason why he commented on Corona. Many on the right understand the necessity to keep the economy running even in the corona crisis- because it will create another economic crisis- people still need to pay bills- so they still need jobs- the government can only pay benefits for so long- supplies still need to be delivered and made.

I'm inclined to give Craig Kelly the benefit of the doubt- I suspect that he is being hung out to dry for an off-handed comment- based on what I've heard- admittedly I haven't tracked this much- but I'm aware of the cancel culture that targets people with beliefs contrary to their own. Obviously Craig Kelly isn't a medical professional or a meteorologist but managers often need to make a judgement on areas of knowledge in which they aren't an expert. He is speaking without the benefit of the Liberal Party infrastructure- I believe he has shown a lot of courage. All nations need heroes willing to make the sacrifice for the nation for the small reward of temporary fame.

I don't agree with everything that Craig Kelly has to say but I understand that in politics one needs to navigate a line acting as a mouth piece of different groups just to get air time so that you can talk about the things that really matter. This seems to be related to branding.

I think that despite any failings Craig Kelly is part of the solution rather than part of the problem.

Communist strategy since Mao's four pillars strategy has involved targeting Education, Health, etc- for this reason I would be suspicious with things coming out of the health establishment as being being tainted.

Thanks Mr Opinion for the piece on Sally Zou and her political donations.

With respect- I think perhaps if you had your way you wouldn't allow any politicians without three degrees.

"Kelly and Tobin clashed on live television after he claimed the bushfires were caused by fuel loads."

It's good that Tobin didn't hold a grudge but the left still seem to claim that Kelly is wrong- do they believe that fuel loads aren't relevant? Perhaps it's reasonable to expect that generally weather reporters don't have a degree in meteorology and work in the field.

Perhaps it would have been fairer for her to point out her qualifications before she made her point.

He was right in saying that she was a pommy weather girl... and for this reason she wouldn't likely understand the Australian situation