Press freedom declining: audit Irene Moss and the Right to Know Coalition present the report.State of free speech in Australia. An independent audit by former New South Wales ombudsman Irene Moss has found a general "subtle shift" towards secrecy in Australia.
The audit reviewed legislation and practices related to free speech issues affecting the media in Australia.
Ms Moss says Australians should not be complacent about declining media freedom.
"I observe a subtle shift, which shows we need to be vigilant," she said.
"Although we enjoy tremendous democratic freedom by international standards, we shouldn't take it for granted."
The report was presented by the media coalition group called Right to Know, which includes the ABC. The group says it will use the report to pressure all levels of government to lift their game.
Labor has already promised to increase the media's access to information if elected and today Fairfax boss David Kirk encouraged the Coalition to follow.
"I cannot think of a better moment for some me-too policies and we've seen plenty of those from the Coalition," he said.
"I think it's incumbent on the Prime Minister to be fully responsive to the issues presented in the Moss report today.
"Now is the opportunity to make a commitment." http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/11/05/2081787.htm
Report of the Independent Audit into the State of Free Speech in Australia 31st October 2007. Australias right to know
Journalists’ experiences
Overwhelmingly journalists complain they are denied access to information, particularly background information on government decisions. They say the flow of information is controlled, largely because of the centralisation of the source of government information. In what now appears to be the majority of cases, public servants are prohibited from giving journalists information directly. Journalists are either referred to the department’s media section or the minister’s office. Their experiences and comments provide a telling account of the flow of information from governments at all levels. This audit sets out comments from journalists across the country. Save for some slight editing, the words are reproduced verbatim.
News conferences
Canberra journalists say the news conference system has become worse under the Howard Government. Gallery journalists complain that conferences—now conducted in the US Presidential style—are short and do not allow free-ranging questions. The politician will say what he/she wants to say and not allow questions or provide only trivial answers. The media is usually given short notice, allowing journalists little time to research and prepare questions. Some journalists say certain media representatives are selected, rather than all being given the opportunity to attend. This style of conference allows the politician to sidestep important issues by giving “soft” answers. In the words of one, the present type of conferences is “… not submitting yourself to scrutiny”. One senior journalist described it as “government by announcement”.
Talkback radio
Canberra-based journalists complain of the trend of the Prime Minister to use talkback radio to their detriment. These broadcasts allow politicians to make political statements without close questioning by political journalists. One journalist described them as easy avenues to reach a mass audience without facing “more difficult or less convenient questions on the national agenda”.
Spin
Journalists contributing submissions to this audit say that government PR staff all too often try to block or frustrate, rather than facilitate, their inquiries. Directing all inquiries through ministers’ offices, restricting the government employees with authority to speak to the media, demanding that all questions be submitted in writing, taking a long time to respond to questions, offering answers of little value, and completely ignoring some questions, are the common features in a long list of grievances submitted to this audit. http://www.abc.net.au/news/opinion/documents/files/20071105_righttoknow.pdf
