Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, my question is to the Minister for Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy, Senator Conroy. I refer to the minister's announcement yesterday of an inquiry into the media. Do the terms of reference permit the inquiry to look at the concentration of newspaper ownership?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Abetz for his question. The media industry is facing significant challenges as a result of technological change. The impact of new communications technologies is eroding the business models of traditional print media organisations, threatening their ability to continue investing the necessary resources to support news gathering and the production of quality journalism. This is a worldwide phenomenon. A healthy and robust media is essential to the democratic process.

In response to these changes, the government yesterday announced an inde­pendent media inquiry. The inquiry will focus on print media regulation, including online publications and the operation of the Press Council. The inquiry will also examine the effectiveness of print media related codes of practice, particularly in light of technological change that is leading to the migration of print media to digital and online platforms. The inquiry will be conducted by former Federal Court judge Ray Finkelstein QC, who will be assisted—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, a point of order in relation to relevance: sessional orders require the minister to be directly relevant. My question was very specific: whether or not the terms of reference permit the inquiry to look at the concentration of newspaper ownership.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I draw the minister's attention to the question. The minister has 42 seconds remaining.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The convergence review, a separate review that we commenced almost 12 months ago, is looking at the questions around media concentration. In fact, I understand they will be releasing a paper next week on that particular matter—the structure of the media. In the terms of reference that we have put forward we talk about diversity, but I have made it absolutely clear on a number of occasions that this is an inquiry that is not targeted at and is not about the level of media ownership. I do not need an inquiry to know that Rupert Murdoch owns 70 per cent of newspapers in this country. (Time expired)

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. I refer the minister to his interview with Fran Kelly this morning in which he gave an answer that could be interpreted as equivocal on the issue of requiring newspapers to be licensed. Will the minister state unequivocally that the government of which he is a member will never require news­papers to be licensed?

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you for your interpretation of my interview. The inquiry and the convergence review are looking at what the appropriate regulatory system in the converged media world is. Traditionally we have had broadcasting and print. Today there is this new grey area online, which is a merger between these two. Increasingly they are coming together. One of the issues that I am sure will be canvassed under the terms of reference that we issued yesterday is the question of whether there should be a converged media regulator. That is certainly an issue that may—

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, a point of order in relation to the requirement to be directly relevant: I was willing to give the minister the benefit of the doubt in my question. I was seeking an assurance that the government will never require newspapers to be licensed.

Chris Evans (WA, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr President, on that point of order: I do not know whether the Liberal tactics committee have run out of questions, but clearly they are seeking to waste time. You could get no greater example of a minister directly answering the question put to him. The question went to the issue of regulation of media. Senator Conroy is directly on topic in explaining to Senator Abetz what he has already explained publicly. I have heard it a number of times but Senator Abetz clearly missed him explaining publicly what the roles of those inquiries are. It is directly relevant to the question asked and I suggest, rather than taking frivolous points of order, we allow the minister to get on with answering the question.

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The minister has 14 seconds remaining to answer the question.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

As I have indicated, it could be that a possible suggestion or recommendation for the converged world, where technology is running over the top of existing regulations, could be—I am not seeking to pre-empt it in any way—that there be a converged regulator. (Time expired)

Eric Abetz (Tasmania, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We will try again. Mr President, I ask a further supplementary question. I refer the minister to the media inquiry's first term of reference which requires it to inquire into:

The effectiveness of the current media codes of practice in Australia …

Are you ready? Will the inquiry be required to examine the ABC's and SBS's codes of practice? Will it also be inquiring into the ABC's and SBS's online publications and, if not, why not?

Honourable Senators:

Honourable senators interjecting—

John Hogg (President) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Conroy, you will get the call when there is silence.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr President. As the ABC do have some online content and the inquiry is looking at the grey area around online, I am sure that the ABC's online content may be considered among all the online content issues. The ABC are mainly a radio and television network and are not specifically covered. But they are being covered by the broader Convergence Review which is examining all of the Broadcasting Services Act obligations and codes of conduct.

There are two inquiries: one that absolutely, definitely would cover the ABC and one that, as far as the online component is concerned, could capture the ABC's online content. It is a grey area and no-one actually knows more at this stage. Senator Richard Alston ruled many years ago that online was not broadcasting. That has created this gap. (Time expired)