Photographer : Mamish |
Democracy folks, it’s a beautiful thing. Without it, you wouldn’t be sitting here, reading this. Our democracy works because we have a free press that is able to report in an unbiased fashion, what the score is. We, armed with this information, are then able to make decisions that influence the way this country is run. Hooray for democracy and free speech. But wait, there are dark clouds gathering on the horizon, things are getting grim…imagine not being able to have your concerns about uni fees or petrol prices represented. Or not being told what’s
really happening in Iraq…
Australia is, so they say, the ‘lucky country’. We cherish our freedom, and we see it as a right, not a privilege, to be kept informed of what’s happening in and around this wide, brown land of ours; the freedom of our press is one of the building blocks on which our democracy is founded. And yet our federal government, through a series of laws giving effect to media reform, has effectively stripped some of that freedom, pretty much weakening our democratic process. Sounds un-just to me.
There are many bits and pieces to these laws, but perhaps the most worrying aspects are the changes to ‘cross media ownership’laws. Traditionally, these laws were in place to prevent any one person or media organisation, local or foreign, from controlling too many media sources (newspapers, TV and radio) in the same region. This was to encourage diversity amongst our media, therefore guaranteeing us a fair, open view of events.
The new changes, in an effort to update these laws to fit with the increasing rise of digital media (the internet; digital television and radio), cut the minimum number of media owners in the country's major markets, from 11 to five. This has the potential to drastically reduce diversity, not guaranteeing us a fair, open view of events, but the view according to only a few…this is where the madness begins.
Firstly, the changing or curtailing of these laws is completely against the spirit of a vigorous democracy. By allowing the majority of our media to fall into the hands of only a few, we run the risk of our political agenda being set by these few, severely cutting our public debate, therefore weakening our democratic process.
Secondly, there was no demand for these changes. They create the impression the government is looking after a small number of media owners, as opposed to us, the people. How can the government justify these changes as anything less than the muting of our public voice?
Thirdly, as media organisations rush to buy up expensive strategic assets, they’re going to have to cut costs. The initial victims will be journalists, particularly in rural areas, which will lead to a drop in the quality of news reporting, ultimately leaving us, the people, with less information. Or at least, only the information certain people deem worthy of public intake. Good journalism is vital for a functioning democracy…without it, we don’t know what’s going on and we have no say…that’s a scary thought.
So do you care about the future of this country? About your right to information and the right to express yourself as you see fit? As the future leaders of this country, the answer to those questions should be a loud ‘yes’. These media reforms may seem small and insignificant at the moment, but when they come into effect, it’s surely a nail in the coffin of Australian free speech and democracy.
