The ABC ‘is part of the problem’

Controversies engulfing British public broadcaster the BBC have shone renewed light on Australia’s ABC and its alleged failure to live up to the impartiality clause in its charter. 
The turmoil at the British public broadcaster was been driven by a leaked internal review that identified among other issues the way it edited a speech that US President Donald Trump made on January 6, 2021 and significant shortcomings in its reporting of the Israel–Hamas war, including concerns about selective story treatment, omission of Israeli perspectives and the amplification of unverified claims from Hamas-linked sources.

The BBC’s director-general and its head of news resigned earlier this month after the review was leaked to the UK Daily Telegraph.

The episode has resonated in Australia, where the ABC faces similar scrutiny over its coverage of the Middle East conflict and its handling of issues affecting the Jewish community.

The taxpayer-funded media giant has also been accused of editing Trump’s speech in a similar way.

Joe Gersh, a Melbourne businessman and former ABC board member, has been increasingly speaking out in recent years about the ABC’s shortcomings.