Wednesday, March 10, 2010

He's Kidding, Right?

The ABC chairman thinks the media have been too prone to group think and cheer leading on the subject of climate change, but the ABC has been more balanced than most. Good grief! This is the organisation that thinks that Robyn Williams is a science journalist, that 5 rants from serial looney Clive Hamilton should be balanced by 2 contrary articles in "The Drum" last week (having axed at least two others because their tone was similar to Hamilton's), and that pilloried Ian Plimer's book "Heaven and Earth" mercilessly while denying him an opportunity to defend himself.

From their ABC:

ABC chair criticises climate change coverage


ABC chairman Maurice Newman has attacked the media for being too willing to accept the conventional wisdom on climate change.

In a speech to senior ABC staff this morning, Mr Newman said climate change was an example of "group think".

He says contrary views on climate change have not been tolerated and those who express them have been labelled and mocked.

"It's really been the question of what is wisdom and consensus rather than listening perhaps to other points of view that may be sceptical," he said.

But he believes the ABC has been more balanced than other media organisations when it comes to reporting on climate change.



REad the rest of the article here, inexplicably in the news coverage rather than the comedy section.

2 comments:

  1. Sounds almost like new here, everyone claims to be fair and balanced but isn't.

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  2. Strangely enough, despite the fact that he is oblivious to his own organisation's shortcomings, he was savaged by his own journalists for suggesting that they needed to be more open minded and indeed sceptical- how bizarre!Predictably, the Greens politicians are saying that it's terrible that the ABC should be encouraged to promote freedom of speech and opinion when it deviates from their party line.

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