Toasting 90 years of public broadcasting

THE Australian Broadcasting Corporation is celebrating its ninetieth birthday this month, and so are their supporters.

Twenty-four members of the Ballarat branch of ABC Friends marked the anniversary earlier in July at the Bunch of Grapes, acknowledging all the public broadcaster has offered and achieved so far.

Local ABC Friend Tony Wilson, turning 91 years old, was given the honour of cutting a special cake with the ABC logo on it, alongside his wife Robyn, and toasted the organisation.

Ballarat ABC Friends member David Mac Phail said the milestone has been an opportunity to “sit back and appreciate” the ABC and its history, while reviewing their priorities as an advocacy group.

“The people in our organisation love the ABC for what we get out of it as individuals. It has been, since long, a very important part of maintaining our democracy,” he said.

“We have a government now which has undertaken some of the things that concerned us, like five-year funding, replacing $83 million worth of cut funding will be replaced, and there’s talk about the arm’s-length appointment of board members,” he said.

“These things we’ve been asking for are becoming government policy, so now we have to focus on encouraging this current government to follow through… and ensure that in future, people who are appointed to the board are independent from the government.”

ABC Friends Victoria, and their sub-branches like Ballarat, campaign to protect, maintain and advance the national broadcaster.

The group exists to emphasise the essential nature of the ABC’s wide-reaching news and entertainment services.

“We also critique the ABC, and have written to them raising our concerns about the loss of archival resources… Democracy requires vigilance,” Mr Mac Phail said.