Labor proposal to take bias out of the ABC board
When the ABC lost two prominent members of staff to the Labor Party – some government MPs said the episode was proof of the national broadcaster’s left-wing bias… Meanwhile, right wing appointments to the ABC board like columnists Janet Albrectson and historian Keith Windschuttle has seen The Howard Government accused of making political appointments to counter the national broadcaster’s perceived left-wing bias. But could a new Labor Party proposal go someway to restoring any real or imagined ideological imbalances on the board? Labor wants to adopt the Nolan process, which is used extensively in the UK, for future appointments to the ABC board here. Under this process the Federal Opposition Leader would have to endorse board’s chairman. Professor Stephen Bartos from the National Institute of Governance at Canberra University explained how the Nolan process works in the UK.