Your ABC.. sticking its nose where it shouldn't

I am not a fan of the ABC, but those that are, claim that its in the national interest to have a non-commercial broadcaster providing news and current affairs coverage. Despite the fact that the free market always provides these things so long as consumer's demand them, friends of the ABC proudly boast that because they are funded by government taxes, they are not susceptible to evil, corporate interests which skew their news reporting.

Of course, they ARE very prone to the left-wing biases of their editors and staff, but hey, lets not mention that.

Well lets concede for a second, that the ABC has a useful role as a provider of news and current affairs, and that is in the "national interest". But why the children's shows, or the gardening and cooking shows, or comedies and dramas ? Oh well.. I guess the ABC would justify that content as being important because they show "Australian made" shows, or with a local flavour, or "higher quality" shows than the commercial rivals. Mind you, unlike the commercial broadcasters, the ABC has a measure of quality that doesn't have anything to do with audience share and ratings.

Well lets even concede all of these things.. can someone please tell me what the hell the ABC staff are doing writing a book which is nothing more than a sensationalist smear attack on a conservative radio journalist, Alan Jones ?

After the ABC itself refused to publish the book written by one of its journalists, most likely because of pressure from Alan Jones' lawyers, the ABC writer found a publisher in the private market:

ALLEN & Unwin will publish the controversial biography of radio broadcaster Alan Jones, after the ABC dumped its plans to produce the book. Allen & Unwin today revealed it had secured the rights to publish the biography, penned by ABC investigative journalist Chris Masters. No release date has been announced for the book, which will be titled Jonestown: The Magic and The Myth of Alan Jones.

Of course, even though the ABC is no longer the pubisher of this book, they can't help but endorse it through their proxy mouthpiece, Media Watch, who pretend that the legal threats had nothing to do with the ABC's decision not to publish the piece of defamation and slander:

But ABC's Media Watch program this week claimed the decision not to publish was influenced by members on the public broadcaster's board.

This really makes my blood boil. Its not the fact that the ABC are biased. Everyone is biased. What is offensive is that the ABC are the only people with the arrogance to claim that they are not funded by sponsorship and advertising, so therefore they are free from corporate influence and bias. And they run a program with the seemingly innocuous name "Media Watch". But its nothing more than a mouthpiece for their left-wing ideology, each week attacking conservative media and journalists and never criticising or correcting their brethren within the ABC.

Privatise the ABC now !