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25.01.2022 Statement from ABC Alumni Limited Monday, 22 February 2021 ABC should not be taking any ad money from Google or Facebook. Extract: Although the ABC is now a media industry leader in Australia’s online news industry there is an obvious risk of compromise to the ABC Charter from this precedent-setting commercial relationship. ... Defunded by the Federal Government from the 2014 Budget, with the consequential destructive loss of original Australian programs and experienced program makers, plus the imposition of a vicious indexation pause from the 2018 Budget, the ABC has been significantly weakened in the range of quality content it can offer audiences. While many will be grateful for any respite revenue from Google, ABC Alumni, representing former ABC production staff and program makers, believes that this source of the revenue, ad spend, carries unacceptable risk. The ABC has indicated its intention to apply any revenue earned from Google to regional services. The current Communications Minister, Paul Fletcher, has indicated the federal government would not withdraw any Google revenue from the ABC. Noted. But the precedent set by the ABC entering into a contract to share Google’s ad revenue will set the ABC on a commercial path and make it easier for any hostile federal government in future to demand the evolving digital economy will only soften up the ABC for privatisation, an objective pushed by those fundamentally hostile to a public broadcaster or cybercaster"... ABC Alumni believes the ABC’s future viability must come from adequate untied funding from Australia’s consolidated revenue as a public good, with no commercial agendas. It is a major contributor to media diversity in this country and should not be put at any risk in the current disruptive media industry environment. Quentin Dempster See more

23.01.2022 A MUST SEE! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C4y5w0khvfc

22.01.2022 What do these people have in common?

21.01.2022 Status quo for funding... "The ABC is an essential service but funding cuts remain, says boss" By Karl Quinn April 2, 2020 5.27pm Sydney Morning Herald p.16 [exerpt]... The ABC is in the second year of its current triennial funding round, in which the government declined to index its base funding, effectively meaning its budget has been cut by $84 million over the three years to 30 June, 2022. Last month Mr Anderson [ABC Managing Director] told the Senate estimates committee that coupled with budget cuts announced in 2014, the cut to the broadcaster's bottom line will be almost $106 million in 2021-22. Despite the elevated role of the national broadcaster as an adjunct of emergency services throughout the bushfire season and now the coronavirus crisis, Mr Anderson said nothing had changed on the financial front. "I think there was never any doubt that the ABC was an essential service," he said. "It didn't necessarily take a bushfire crisis or a pandemic to prove it. [But] there aren't any different conversations around funding. In the foreseeable future turning off a channel will happen one day. It's just not right now ....While he continued to worry about the funding situation "in the background", front of mind was adapting to the challenges posed by coronavirus. On Wednesday the broadcaster announced it would turn its ABC Me channel over to education during school hours, and on Thursday it revealed a slate of local and imported content that would become available over the next three months, including new seasons of Mystery Road and Rosehaven and the UK adaptation of Les Miserables, starring Dominic West. It has also launched a range of podcasts, newsletters and health and wellbeing content to help people stay fit and healthy during the coronavirus crisis. And that is a concern for ABC staff as much as anyone else. "What I'm worried about is making sure we can still continue our service if some areas have to self-isolate and there's not enough people left to mount a broadcast," Mr Anderson said. "We need to ensure our people are as safe as possible so we can stay on air." Picture from The Conversation http://theconversation.com/the-abc-didnt-receive-a-reprieve

21.01.2022 More great ratings news! https://www.smh.com.au//abc-news-breakfast-breaks-ratings-

18.01.2022 http://about.abc.net.au//what-would-australia-look-like-/

17.01.2022 Please consider donating your time and energy to our stalls held throughout the year. This is where our best work happens - in outreach to the community. We are looking to mount stalls in the Hawkesbury and the Blue Mountains. Get on board!

17.01.2022 From an ABC Friend ~ Greeting from Gulag Covid-19 Cell 56. Once we jolly retirees Thought the world was ours to roam... We never dreamt the law would say We have to stay at home. From friends and family we must stay apart Our jailer is a virus and it hasn’t any heart In this archipelago of isolation Orders stern keep us asunder Cos it’s better being five feet apart Than being six feet under From friends and family we must stay apart Our jailer is a virus and it hasn’t any heart. How we miss the joys and freedoms And celebrations when we met But we cheer up with love and funnies Sent to us on the internet From friends and family we must stay apart. Our jailer's a virus and it hasn’t any heart. Cate Caro (c) 2020. See more

17.01.2022 https://www.theguardian.com//australians-say-abc-saved-liv

17.01.2022 Long post but a good one: James Valentine writes - THIS WAS MY WEEK. The ABC claims that chess is racist. Actually, it didn’t. I did. Only I didn’t. Someone else said I was going to. But I hadn’t. And I was never going to. ...Continue reading

16.01.2022 FABC Blue Mountains is back! Our next meeting, after the enforced break, will be 18 July, 10.00 a.m. at the Grandview Hotel, Wentworth Falls. Look for us in the Dining Room. Lots to discuss!

15.01.2022 https://www.theguardian.com//abc-seeks-voluntary-redundanc

14.01.2022 https://www.smh.com.au//abc-to-axe-content-and-shift-staff

13.01.2022 https://thenewdaily.com.au//quentin-dempster-ita-buttros/

13.01.2022 200 people at the ABC stand to lose their jobs, many of them from local and national newsrooms. It's the latest in a long line of heavy blows to our media landscape: across the country more than 100 mastheads are preparing to print their final editions, and the Australian Associated Press is hanging on thanks to some last minute investors. Right now, we need our ABC and its world class reporting and investigative journalism more than ever. We need to shine a light on thes...e gut-wrenching lay-offs across the country. So together, we can flood the Letter to the Editor pages of every major newspaper in the country in support of the ABC. ABC staff have been there for us, keeping us informed through thick and thin. Now it's time for us to stand with them by making sure these lay-offs don't get swept under the rug. ACTION: Will you write a letter to the Editor of your local paper demanding that the ABC be fully funded? http://www.getup.org.au/abc-job-losses *LOCAL is powerful!* bluemountainsgazette.com.au/co/send-a-letter-to-the-editor/ https://www.getup.org.au//ra/raise-your-voice-for-the-abc https://www.getup.org.au//ra/raise-your-voice-for-the-abc

13.01.2022 https://www.smh.com.au//abc-pushes-ahead-with-job-cuts-in-

09.01.2022 And for something completely different - from Trust for Nature: John Clarke’s legacy was never in doubt. The actor, famed for his satirical comedy on the ABC, left a body of work fans will enjoy for decades when he passed away in 2017. However the family of the late comedian, who was also a passionate conservationist and ornithologist, has now left another invaluable gift in his name - a small area of globally significant wetland on Phillip Island.... Helen McDonald, John’s widow, recently donated an eight hectare property that she owned with her husband to Trust for Nature. It’s a timely gift, given John would have celebrated his 72nd birthday today. The land is part of the unique, richly biodiverse Rhyll Inlet, which is one of the most significant sites for migratory birds in Australia and recognised as a globally significant wetland under the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. Thank you Helen and John. For the full story and to read what Helen says about the property https://www.trustfornature.org.au//satirist-john-clarke-le

08.01.2022 And that was the week that was....these gorgeous guys topped their timeslots in the first ratings period for the year. https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=10154103896049015&ref=watch_permalink 'A spokesperson for the station praised the strong results from Glover, Macdonald and James Valentine in the afternoon. We are pleased to see that we are reaching more people, with both our share and reach up significantly. We had a strong line-up over summer and we know our cricket coverage was popular, giving us a good lead into the first survey of the year.'

08.01.2022 Unfortunately, due to the latest COVID restrictions on the number of people allowed to gather in a hotel, the meeting planned for this Saturday 18th July is postponed. We can only hope that we will be able to meet in August. Please watch this page for further information. Keep safe and well.

06.01.2022 Radio National's Late Night Live host and commentator, Phillip Adams, wrote a column for the Weekend Australian Magazine, saying that "even for its critics, the ABC is vital."The veteran journalists laments that "after Covid the [ABC] building will be even emptier because of the current round of retrenchments." Adams goes on to note that the budget cuts have come from both sides of politics, and that voter support for the ABC is similarly bipartisan - especially for National ...supporters in the bush. Phillip Adams is one of the most loyal of ABC Friends having spent a lifetime defending Public Broadcasting and Media Freedom - including attending a recent ABC Friends rally where a minute's silence was held. He "asked the crowd to imagine that silence lasting an hour, a day, a week. An endless silence. That may well be the future. If you remain silent. And I’m talking to you Lib voters, to you Nat voters. Not just to that scruffy Labor mob." He understands why the ABC is essential to Australian democracy and challenges critics - across the entire political spectrum - who deny the importance of investigative journalism and transparency to stand up for our ABC.

05.01.2022 Stand up for the ABC! This is an important webinar with great speakers. Join us please if you can! ABC Friends is deeply concerned that the government will inflict more cuts in the October budget. To help us keep you informed during this crucial period, I urge you to like and follow our ABC Friends NSW/ACT Facebook page by clicking on this link:... Join us on Facebook: https://bit.ly/34fEccp [copy and paste into browser] Please also encourage your friends and families to follow us. All ABC supporters are welcome, regardless of whether they are members of ABC Friends. As part of our campaign, we will hold an important online event at 4pm on 2 September with three keynote speakers: Kerry O'Brien, Emma Dawson and Ed Davis. Save the date! Next week we will provide you more information about the event, along with an invitation to participate. For now, I encourage you to save this date in your diaries.

04.01.2022 STOP PRESS : From Susan Templeman SAVE OUR ABC virtual rally RMIT ABC Fact Check has confirmed what we always knew: Scott Morrison and Paul Fletcher are misleading the public on ABC funding cuts.... It states that ABC funding is decreasing year-on-year in real terms. It therefore can be, and should be, referred to as a cut (July 16, 2020). I will host a Save the ABC virtual rally with Shadow Communications Minister Michelle Rowland MP live on my Facebook page on July 30 in light of the cuts. Tune in to hear us talk about ABC funding, media changes, and all things communication from 6.30pm to 7.30pm. Want to ask the Shadow Minister a question? Email me at [email protected] and I will get to all that I can on the night. It’s your ABC. It’s our national emergency broadcaster. Let’s stop the cuts.

02.01.2022 https://www.theguardian.com//abc-loses-793m-funding-since-

01.01.2022 Here is a chart drawn from figures on ABC funding produced by the combined research of the independent and highly regarded Sydney and RMIT Universities. These figures, revealing a $783 million shortfall in ABC funding 2014-2022, are confirmed recently by other research (e.g. Per Capita) and indeed by the words of ABC Managing Director David Anderson: 'The ABC will have to absorb cumulative budget cuts that amount to $105.9 million p.a. by the time we reach the 2022 financial ...year.' CALL TO ACTION send a message to your local member, Susan Templeman: https://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian or the Minister, whose assertions are at variance with these facts: The Hon Paul Fletcher MP, https://www.aph.gov.au/Senators_and_Members/Parliamentarian See more