and so it begins...
| quote: |
PRIME Minister John Howard says he didn't pressure the ABC to shelve popular comedy show The Glass House.
The ABC yesterday axed the weekly panel show hosted by comedian Wil Anderson, which has been accused of anti-government bias.
"I have not axed the program," Mr Howard said on Adelaide radio 5AA today.
"If it has been axed, then it has been axed by a decision of the ABC, I haven't asked that it be axed."
Mr Howard said he occasionally watched the program, which also features comedians Dave Hughes and Corrine Grant, who is involved in the ACTU's workplace rights campaign.
"I don't watch it – occasionally will flick it on but not very often," Mr Howard said.
"I do not tell the ABC what programs it should run. I respect the independence of the ABC.
"From time to time, if the ABC treats a news item in an unbalanced fashion I will say so, and I will say that in relation to other programs as well."
The ABC gave no explanation for their decision not to continue the satirical program apart from telling the cast and crew yesterday that not all shows could be renewed.
Anderson posted a blog last night promising to "go out with all guns a'blazing". "It's been a really fun five years," he said.
Co-compere Hughes said axing the show made little sense.
"We have had our best ratings ever," he said.
The show was at the centre of a storm of allegations of anti-Howard Government bias and there has been speculation it is the latest casualty in the "culture wars".
It was axed just one day after Liberal NSW senator Connie Fierravanti-Wells said during a grilling of ABC executives that co-host Corrine Grant had been guilty of a serious conflict of interest because she was the public face of the ACTU's workplace relations campaign.
And it follows revelations the ABC will pay a new chief censor $280,000 a year to investigate and monitor instances of bias on ABC programs.
The show had been achieving its highest ratings since it first went to air in 2001 – with average audiences of 728,000.
The program regularly outrated commercial programs in the same time slot and this year won a peak audience of almost 860,000 viewers.
Anderson, Hughes and Grant regularly make jokes about John Howard and US President George W. Bush, provoking critics to accuse them of bias.
But during a recent show Anderson responded to criticism by saying if Mark Latham had been in power they would be having a great time.
The last episode of The Glass House will go to air on November 29. |
source
we can expect to see more programs disappearing or changing somewhat with these lovely new guidelines to ensure "impartiality" (as if such a thing ever existed) in broadcasting. now, im not saying the glass house was axed due to the new constraints on freedom of expression, but i thought id raise the issue with all of you, who really dont care.
i dont see the commercial channels having the same constraints. they're quite free to peddle their government-loving bullshit and nobody can give a damn. yet, the ABC has some of the best news programming in the country which now has to meet some arbitrary notion of "impartial". who exactly is gonna decide on something's impartiality? it should be the viewer.
___________________
|
