Alan’s 8.10 editorial
Press Council June 6 2017
Well, another redundant body we can do without
This Australian Press Council, which adjudicates complaints against newspaper reporting, has been a joke for years
In 2014 The Australian newspaper wasted a year defending a complaint about an opinion story by a food writer which sang the praises of eating wild Kangaroo meat
The Australian Society of Kangaroos complained the story was not balanced and fair because it failed to include the Society’s contrary view
This is the sort of nonsense the current Press Council concerns itself with
Recently, it undermined its credibility even further by appointing Carla McGrath, the Deputy Chairwoman of GetUp!, as its newest member
In response any number of newspapers say they will no longer appear at Press Council complaints hearings or accept Press Council rulings where McGrath is a participant in adjudications
These newspapers participating in the boycott include the Herald Sun, The Courier Mail, The Australian, The Townsville Bulletin, The Adelaide Advertiser and The Daily Telegraph
Community Newspapers of Australia, which represents more than 180 mastheads, also agrees McGrath’s roles at GetUp! and at the Press Council are incompatible
Paul Murphy, the head of the journalists’ union, and Professor David Flint, a former Chairman of the Press Council, have called on McGrath to resign
Press Council Chairman, American-born University of Sydney law professor, David Weisbrot, claims McGrath was chosen “for her outstanding personal qualities and qualifications”
He has to be joking