Why isn't AJE broadcast on Australian TV?

"Gaza war coverage raises Al Jazeera hope" is the headline in today's Australian over a story about Al Jazeera English (AJE)'s attempts to gain access to Australian television screens.

Just as the 1991 Gulf War gave cable news channel CNN a boost, the war in Gaza has given Al Jazeera English a chance to break into the American and Australian markets.

Al Jazeera English (AJE) managing director Tony Burman told Media the network was the only one to have its own reporters inside Gaza during the war because Israel barred international networks CNN and BBC World from entering.

So keen were people to get an alternative source of information, AJE's web video stream saw a 600 per cent jump in worldwide viewership -- from 3 million to 17 million minutes.

A good point this. It's not the only time that AJE has been able to provide on the spot coverage when the big two were excluded: last year's Zimbabwe elections is another example.

I regularly watch AJE reports on YouTube, which has probably hitherto been the easiest means for most people here to access them, though another source Livestation, is now available.

It appears that Foxtel has considered ( is considering?) adding AJE to its current suite of mostly western-oriented news channels or, IMO a less desirable option, allowing subscribers to pay an additional fee (presumably like the Setanta Sport option)

[A] Foxtel spokesman says the decision to take AJE depends on demand from consumers. "Foxtel has not had significant commercial discussions with Al Jazeera for a number of years," he says. "Our decision on whether or not to incur the costs of adding AJE to our current choice of channels would depend on whether our customers value it compared with many alternative channels we could provide.

"Al Jazeera could make AJE available to Foxtel customers through our Access Undertaking, which has been approved by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission. This agreement enables them to offer their channel over Foxtel's digital television platform to Foxtel customers."

Al Jazeera does present a different perspective on the news, though it is far from a mouthpiece for radical Islamic ideas. While it's not shown in the USA it is available on pay TV networks elsewhere, eg in the UK where the Fox affiliate Sky TV shows it.

I've tried to contact Foxtel to state that I would "value" AJE "compared with many [unspecified] alternative channels we could provide." Unfortunately I've not yet been able to make my point through its written feedback processes.

Update 24 February

Have contacted Foxtel by phone to convey my views,

Big ship, small minds

Today the large P&O cruise ship Arcadia called at Port Adelaide.

I went there to meet some English friends, one of whom is 87 years old, who were visiting Adelaide for the first time.

Arrangements, or lack thereof, for disembarking passengers left much to be desired. A wire fence security cordon extending well beyond the passenger terminal (and my comprehension) added to the third world ambience. I took the photo from the security barrier. The passenger terminal is the white building on the right, about 200m from the barrier.

The port security staff, while courteous, lacked the authority and perhaps the desire to assist those passengers who had not booked tours or taxis. It took me several phone calls and about 45 minutes to obtain permission to drive to the terminal and collect my friends, who'd been left waiting outside the building.

One problem was that nobody with a skerrick of authority seemed to have easy access to a passenger list, let alone a list of those who'd actually disembarked. This is a major deficiency in security arrangements.

Another was that the security cordon was crack-brainedly large. Why does Port Adelaide need a large fenced off compound surrounding its terminal building when other terminals eg ports such as San Francisco and Singapore and every international airport I've seen, don't?

On reflection it seems as if the port operators are trying to dissuade cruise ships from visiting Adelaide. If they were serious about supporting tourism in SA they could do a few simple things such as putting information on the web and allowing people meeting passengers to register in advance so that they can meet their friends without having to wait in limbo for an indefinite time.

Recent ABC highlights

As well as continuing its comprehensive coverage of the Victorian bushfires and their aftermath the ABC has broadcast some very interesting programs lately.

The first Four Corners of the year "The Perfect Storm" was a succinct survey of the global financial crisis financial with particular reference to Far North Queensland. The program can, at least for the time being, be viewed online while the program transcript and a lot of other material is on the website.

Radio National continues to broadcast many gems. The latest Counterpoint featured a long interview with Dennis Dutton, philosophy professor and editor of the estimable Arts & Letters Daily discussing, among other things, evolutionary aesthetics. The transcript is available and worth reading.

A quirkily interesting Lingua Franca discussed the outcomes of the Collins Dictionary "Save the last word" campaign (transcript also available).

The endangered words are/were:

abstergent: cleansing or scouring
agrestic: rural, rustic, unpolished, uncouth
apodeictic: unquestionably true by virtue of demonstration
caducity: perishableness, senility
caliginosity: dimness, darkness
compossible: possible in coesistence with something else
embrangle: to confuse or entangle
exuviate: to shed (a skin or similar outer covering)
fatidical: prophetic
fubsy: short and stout, squat
griseous: streaked or mixed with grey, somewhat grey
malison: a curse
mansuetude: gentleness or mildness
muliebrity: the condition of being a woman
niddering: cowardly
nitid: bright, glistening
olid: foul-smelling
oppugnant: combative, antagonistic, or contrary
periapt: a charm or amulet
recrement: waste matter, refuse, dross
roborant: tending to fortify or increase strength
skirr: a whirring or grating sound, as of the wings of birds in flight
vaticinate: to foretell, prophesy
vilipend: to treat or regard with contempt

You'll need to look for yourself to find out which ones were reprieved.

Poetica featured John Clarke. Listen if you can, but if you can't read the transcript!

Finally, on a lighter (to some minds), note By Design broadcast a segment about the history of mail order catalogues. There's no transcript of this one so you'll have to listen or download the audio while it's available.

Heat and fire

Bushfires have caused huge loss of life and property damage in Victoria.

As I post it appears that at least 65 people have died and 600 homes been destroyed . This figure may well be exceeded.

After almost a fortnight of extreme heat in Adelaide spanning late January and early February without any major fires I'd assumed that the worst was over. This may have been true for South Australia, but it was not for Victoria where a cocktail of high temperatures and high winds wrought destruction yesterday and overnight.

I, like many others in southern Australia, have been uncomfortable in the heat of the last two weeks but seeing what has happened to so many people in Victoria has put my discomfort into perspective. It is trivial in comparison to their sufferings. My sympathies to them and condolences to those who have lost family and friends.

More older Australians opt to remain in their homes

Siobhain Ryan in The Australian reports an emerging trend in aged care:

Elderly Australians are breaking down the retirement village walls, with aged care operators lodging twice the interest in providing care in the community than in nursing homes.

Official figures obtained by The Australian show the federal Government has received 10 times the number of applications to provide care in people's homes as there are places available.

The 27,039 bids for the government-funded community care places dramatically outnumbered the 13,956 received for nursing home places.

Minister for Ageing, Justine Elliot, said the Government was looking at ways to expand community care in response to the demand. "It is wonderful that the aged-care sector are listening and responding to the concerns and preferences of older Australians," Ms Elliot said.

"Older Australians are telling us they want the choice to remain in their homes and only want to enter nursing homes when it is absolutely necessary.

"Older Australians are healthier and more active (when) they are in familiar surroundings."

Community care offers in-home support services such as cleaning, washing, showering and preparing meals for the frail aged, including those with dementia. Almost 465,000 Australians are forecast to develop dementia by 2031, more than double the current number, forcing many of them into nursing homes unless at-home services are available.

Sounds like an eminently sensible approach.

Cool heads on the Hudson

US Airways flight 1549 crash landed in the Hudson River without loss of life, for which we should all be very thankful.

I've been in that very location, most recently last November when I, as many other visitors have done, took a Circle Line cruise around Manhattan Island from the 42nd Street Pier.

Despite what many media reports claim I don't think that the result was a miracle, but rather a demonstration of human behaviour at its best. The main examplar of this was the pilot Captain Chesley b Sullenberger III but by all accounts he seems to have been supported by his cabin crew and all those, not just the trained emergency services workers, who came to the aid of those aboard the aircraft.

Benaud spins for bookies

Natasha Robinson in The Weekend Australian reports concerns which have been expressed about an online "betting agency" (aka bookmaker) using TV commentators, including Richie Benaud, to drum up business by quoting odds at different stages during the day.

World Vision head Tim Costello and South Australian senator Nick Xenophon said yesterday they were shocked to see Betfair's strong presence on advertising billboards at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Mr Costello, who was at the MCG yesterday, said he was "very worried" about the potential for children who viewed the Betfair advertising to go home and gamble online without their parents' knowledge.

"You've got families and kids here," Mr Costello said. "Of course gambling is part of life, but I think when it's a family cultural event like the Boxing Day Test, the advertising is inappropriate."

He said he was particularly concerned at the way Benaud had quoted Betfair's odds during his commentary, broadcast live around the nation on the Nine Network yesterday morning.

"The truth is we know that gambling addiction breaks up families, causes crime and comes at a huge social cost," Mr Costello said. "When it's a family event like the cricket, when it's being broadcast live and kids are listening to it, it is overstepping the mark. It's inappropriate certainly for kids at a family event."

Senator Xenophon, who was elected as a South Australian senator at the last federal poll largely on an anti-gambling platform, described the online gambling world as the "wild west" and called on the Rudd Government to impose regulations on the broadcasters.

"Online gambling such as Betfair has the potential to deliver the next wave of problem gamblers," he said.

"There's very little regulation in relation to advertising. Gambling advertising ought to carry with it warnings, and we ought to be looking at restrictions similar to those that apply to cigarettes and alcohol."

Senator Xenophon agreed with Mr Costello that the ability for online betting agencies to advertise at the cricket threatened the Boxing Day match's family-friendly status. "It's a shame for the great game of cricket that it's been reduced to just another event to have a punt on," Senator Xenophon said. "It diminishes the great game of cricket."

Nine's publicity officer did not return calls yesterday.

Andrew Symonds seems to appear in more TV commercials than any other current player. A recent addition to his repertoire features him elbowing a cross dresser to the ground. All this to promote a soft drink!

Given Symonds's on and off field reputation this looks like another example of art imitating life.

Ministerial accountability?

Today Michael Owen in The Advertiser/Adelaide Now reports on some discrepancies between a state government minister's statements and official records:

Families Minister Jennifer Rankine, under fire for using a consultant to help with her new portfolio, had 19 full-time personal staff to assist her, a government document shows

This is despite official 2008-09 Budget papers for Ministerial Office Resources stating Ms Rankine had 10 full-time equivalent staff, with a budget of $1.26 million.

A confidential government document obtained by the Opposition under Freedom of Information laws reveals Ms Rankine actually had 19 full-time personal staff. Among those listed as working in her office are a chief of staff, three ministerial officers, a media adviser, five ministerial liaison officers, and seven administrative staff.

Consultant Margaret Wagstaff completed a four-month contract, worth $80,000, in the minister's office on December 11.

Liberal Upper House MP Rob Lucas yesterday said Ms Rankine was either "extraordinarily wasteful of taxpayers' money or needs a lot of help".

"Minister Rankine should now explain why she has claimed to have only 10 FTE staff when in reality she has almost double that number," Mr Lucas, who obtained the FoI document, said.

"It is incomprehensible that a minister with so many personal staff to help her to be a minister should then have to spend $80,000 of taxpayers' money on a consultant to help her."

Ms Wagstaff is the partner of Philip Bentley, a long-time friend of Premier Mike Rann. Together they receive about $100,000 a year of taxpayers' money for government board and committee appointments. Ms Wagstaff last week was appointed to yet another committee position by the Premier, as chair of the Boundary Adjustment Facilitation Panel, for two years. She will be paid $190 a meeting.

A spokesman for Ms Rankine yesterday said she has 17 staff, including a trainee, for five portfolios, including the new Northern Suburbs portfolio.

Ms Wagstaff could not be contacted for comment.

The consultant story was first reported earlier this month .

All above board? These kind of matters often appear to be swept under the carpet here. Raising the issue again on Christmas Eve will restrict public discussion.

Former Muslim chastised by media

David Hicks is no longer subject to a control order.

To mark the occasion The Australian has seen fit , in today's lead editorial "Hicks can count himself fortunate", to make some comments about his situation.

As a sign of his goodwill and to fulfil his duty, Mr Hicks should tell the full story of his recruitment and training to Australian Federal Police in his exit interview. In the interests of terrorism prevention, he should not be allowed to duck this responsibility.

Judging by his court hearing, he could have much to tell about guerilla warfare, explosives, weaponry, surveillance, commando tactics, grenade and sniper training. He might also be able to cast light on terrorists' brainwashing techniques, given his view, at one point, that Osama bin Laden was a "lovely brother". Full co-operation with authorities would be the best way Mr Hicks could show his determination to start a new life.

Is this a thinly veiled threat that, unless the AFP is satisfied that Hicks has given "full co-operation", he will be liable to further restrictions? Surely there are bigger fish, even in Australia, for the anti-terrorist authorities to fry.

A-SPAN

A-SPAN is the acronym for Australian Subscription Public Affairs Network which was, as reported in today's Australian, launched by the Prime Minister yesterday.

A-SPAN, or Australian Subscription Public Affairs Network, will begin broadcasting on January 20 next year with live coverage of the inauguration of US president-elect Barack Obama.

Operators say it will become part of the subscription TV platform and will be available for broadcast as a free-to-air digital channel, online and on mobile phones.

A joint initiative of Foxtel, Austar and the Australian News Channel (ANC), provider of Sky News, it will be an Australian version of US network C-SPAN, which provides live coverage of the US Senate and Congress.

.....

“Political junkies will of course love it, they'll now have one more way to drive their family and friends absolutely mad,” Mr Rudd said.

He described the new network as “a good thing” for our democracy and valuable to educators, students and all Australians who want to understand how democracy works.

The venture jumps ahead of the ABC, which a few months ago announced that it was considering a dedicated news and public affairs channel.

The chief executive of Sky News, Angelo Frangopoulos, said A-SPAN would be available on pay TV from January 20.

He expected it would initially be available on free-to-air digital TV only in Sydney.

Former Nine and Seven network political correspondent Laurie Wilson will host a program on A-SPAN, which will also provide broadcasts of the British and New Zealand parliaments and question time from parliaments in Queensland, NSW and Victoria, with more to come.

There will also be live broadcasts of speeches from the National Press Club, think-tanks such as the Lowy Institute and the Sydney Institute, and from universities.

The ABC report is slightly different: it implies that the network will be available on free to air TV throughout the country, not just in Sydney.

I'm currently a pay-TV subscriber but believe that this kind of material should be as widely available as possible, which means on a free to air network (and preferably one free of commercials). The ABC comes to mind but it appears, as the report indicates, to have been caught napping. Once again it seems the ABC will be left with the radio rights to broadcast the national parliament but little else.

In the new world of digital TV (15 " Freeview" channels) which we are being promised parliament should fund a direct telecast and online streaming of all its proceedings, not just Question Time and a few other highlghts which is all we get nowadays. It may be that few people watch it but it shold not be left to solely to private commercial interests.

Joshua Gans makes some good points on his blog post, including one about the cost to users of online streaming, which sounds good in theory but can be expensive in practice.

Mumbai madness

I've spent a lot of time following the media coverage of the appalling events in Mumbai, which I visited in 2005. Not only am I familiar with the location of most of the sites attacked I've had first hand experience of some of them. Like millions of Indians I've used the CST (formerly VT) railway station and, like many other tourists, I've eaten at Leopold's Cafe in Colaba, where apparently the first shots were fired.

My sympathies go out to the friends and families of all those killed or injured in the attacks.

Directors increase fees by up to 40% despite loss

Today I went to the AGM of the RAA (Royal Automobile Association of South Australia).

A major item on the agenda was a proposal to increase the remuneration available to the Directors by 40%, from a total of $250,000 to $350,000. This despite a loss of $2,000,000 in the last financial year (due mostly to poorly performing investments).

The explanatory note issued with the AGM papers (and available in the current SA Motor magazine at p8) states

Independent advice received by the RAA Board from Mercer Human Resource Consulting indicates that the level of remuneration paid to RAA Direcors is significantly less than the rate paid to directors of similar sized commercial organisations and public companies. There is no intention to change this margin, since it is recognised that serving on the RAA Board will always include an element of community service. However, it is clear that the cap on the total amount permitted by the RAA Rules for allocation to the Directors needs to be increased to provide flexibility to recognise the changing responsibility of Directors in a complex business environment, ensure we are able to attract and retain appropriate skills, and allow for inflationary movements over the coming years. This will ensure that RAA continue to be remunerated at a reasonable level whilst maintaining the discount well below the rate applied to directors of comparab le commercial organisations.

The Board considers that the proposed new maximum total amount of $350,000 will enable the RAA to continue to provide suitable recognition to Directors for their time and expertise.

The motion was carried, though only, as I recall, by 200-300 votes in a total of almost 7,000 cast (most of them by proxy).

I have no objection to large non-profit organisations like the RAA remunerating directors but my eyebrows, and those of many other members, were raised by the percentage increase sought and granted in the current environment. I can only hope that the Board exercises some restraint when it comes to determining just how much will be paid to whom.

For many, probably most, South Australians the RAA's core business is providing services to motorists, yet it derives a lot of its income from commercially oriented related activities such as insurance. I hope that this continues and that the insurance tail doesn't come to wag the service dog.

No more control orders for David Hicks

Following an online video request from David Hicks posted on the Get Up Australia website, the Australian Federal Police will not seek an extension of the control order on David Hicks. This is a welcome and overdue move.

News.com.au reports

Former attorney-general Philip Ruddock - the man many hold responsible for Mr Hicks' long incarceration at Guantanamo Bay - said he had no problem with the decision not to renew the control order.
"I'd have no problem with him living in my street," Mr Ruddock told Sky News.

I wonder how many of the others who were so strident in their insistence for the harsh control order imposed last year, eg Mr Rann, Mr Downer, now think likewise.

RTW08

I have been silent for some time as I have been travelling in the UK and USA. Here are some photos I took.







RTW= Round the World

Change in the air for Radio National?

Today Paul Collins on Crikey reports about changes proposed for ABC Radio National. Extract:

Several specialist programs are being taken off-air including the Religion Report, the Media Report and Radio Eye. The Reports are flagship programs that deal with issues central to current culture. Apparently they are being replaced by a movie show and something about the future. Specialist broadcasters will spend more time responding to opinionated bloggers rather than making programs. God help us!

Let's be clear what ABC Radio management is up to: it is a case of the bland leading the bland. Specialisation is out. Nowadays the belief is that any old (or, more likely, young) "interdisciplinary" journalist can deal with any topic. Well, I've been interviewed literally hundreds of times on ABC radio and TV. My experience is that while most journalists make a reasonable go of it, they just don't know the detail and often have to be led to the key questions.

An ABC spokeswoman has replied. Extract:

"A number of line-up changes are planned for ABC Radio National next year, these are currently being finalised and will be announced shortly. They do include a number of programs being moved, changed or ended.

"These changes are in part a response to the move in ABC Radio National's audience growth, particularly online. This necessitates a shift in resources - in some cases from on air to online. There will be no job losses."

I shall wait to see what happens. I listen regularly to The Media Report (which is usually of very high quality) and occasionally to The Religion Report and Radio Eye (which often have items which interest me). I'm not necessarily averse to increasing online content (including transcripts) to supplement the material which goes to air: this is already happening with some programs eg Hindsight .

Crime in the neighborhood

Today was a public holiday here. Unfortunately its tranquility was disturbed by a stabbing near where I live and whose aftermath I witnessed.

Here is The Advertiser/ Adelaide Now report and accompanying photograph.

A bloodied man who staggered into a Norwood bottle shop after being stabbed eight times in the chest and stomach remains in hospital in a critical condition.

About 2.50pm today, the 34-year-old stumbled into the Norwood Hotel drive-through bottleshop – covered in blood and begging for help.

He was then rushed to the Royal Adelaide Hospital.

More than a dozen police cars arrived at the scene within minutes. A Kensington Gardens man, 38, was arrested in relation to the alleged attack.

Police also spoke at length to two women before taking them away without arrest.

It is understood the two men were travelling together in a Mitsubishi Verada when they were involved in an argument.

The victim then got out of the car and began walking along The Parade. He was allegedly then repeatedly stabbed with a knife in a second altercation with the same man outside the Norwood Hotel.

Hotel management declined to comment this afternoon.

"We just came down here for a quiet coffee and didn't expect to see anything like this,'' bystander Jessica Matern said.

"It's pretty scary for something like this to happen in an area like this."

Detective Chief Inspector John Gerlach said police would continue to investigate the incident to determine the motive and if other people were involved.

"It's a very serious incident and would have been terrifying for the people involved," he said.

"At the moment I'm not sure how many individual persons were connected other than the four allegedly involved, if anyone else was involved it certainly is serious and would have been terrible."

The stabbing, which occurred in broad daylight on what should have been a sleepy public holiday, follows a shooting on Sunday morning in Gouger St.

In that attack, a man was wounded in the leg and a bystander injured by shattering glass.

The ABC reported the story more briefly though the 7pm TV News did lead with it.

Spot the differences

Two versions of the same story from The Advertiser 27 September 2008 print edition.

1. Page 20

Stopped at lights

Handbag snatched

A brazen thief snatched a women's handbag from a car while the driver was inside the vehicle and stopped at traffic lights at Mile End early yesterday.

The thief, one of about five men in a car which pulled alongside, opened the victim's car door to steal the handbag while she was waiting for lights to change at the intersection of Henley Beach and South roads about 6.10am.

The man got back into a blue Subaru WRX sedan and sped off towards the city. The woman was unhurt. The partial registration umber of the car was "AA62". Anybody who sees the car should contact BankSA Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

2. Page 39

Brazen handbag snatch

Police need help to find a brazen thief who snatched a woman's handbag from a car stopped at traffic lights at Mile End yesterday morning.

The man, one of about five in a car which pulled alongside the woman's car , stepped out and opened her car door to steal the handbag as she waited for lights to change at the intersection of Henley Beach and South roads about 6.10am.

Described as an Aborigine, wearing white gloves, he got back into a blue Subaru WRX sedan which sped off across Bakewell Bridge towards the city.

The woman, who was physically unhurt but shaken, noted the registration number of the car as "AA625K".


Note

• The 'Tiser's website Adelaide Now has subsequently reported that the Subaru has been found.

• The "Bakewell Bridge" mentioned in the p39 report no longer exists. It has been replaced by an underpass.

Watching from the sidelines

As the global financial crisis unravels or unfolds or whatever it is difficult for people like me, an interested though relatively uninformed bystander, to make a lot of sense of events. Perhaps even those who are presumed to know what is happening don't know all that much themselves. After all they've been the ones running the system which is now wobbling.

"Crisis" is often used loosely but the capital C version of the word does seem to apply at the moment as international financial leaders meet and try to cobble together a "solution". Almost everyone seems to agree that an important, probably essential, element of any solution (or whatever it's called) will be a government ie taxpayer funded bailout of the system. In other words the free market advocates whose voices have dominated economic and financial discourse for so long have been forced to admit (doubtess they'll put it differently) that they have been following false prophets (or gods).

Don Bradman centenary

Today is the 100th anniversary of the birth of Sir Donald Bradman , IMO the greatest cricketer ever.

I doubt whether many cricket followers would disagree with me, even though the Don did not play the shorter versions of the game.

There are tributes and assessments aplenty in the media, including from the Federal Parliament via Cricket Australia and, as you'd expect, a wide coverage on Cricinfo, including pieces by Suresh Menon and Gideon Haigh.

[Also posted at Nudges and Deflections ]

Back from leave...more transport problems

Adelaide Now/The Advertiser reports that a train was delayed for almost an hour because the driver missed a stop, while a tram (presumably one of the recently acquired ones) was delayed due to a malfunctioning door:

A Transadelaide train was stopped in the middle of a busy peakhour service because the driver missed a stop and the rules say he had to be relieved.

According to an explanation given to passengers on the Noarlunga line train stopped on the city side of the Emmerson station, regulations say the driver must not continue with the run after making such a mistake.

The train was stopped about 8.20am and did not resume until a relief driver took over about 9.10am.

Also this morning, a peak-hour tram into the city arrived 15 minutes late after problems with a door delayed the tram at a suburban stop.

PS Will try to post more frequently from now on.