ABA finds ABC Guilty

The Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA) has confirmed the ABC breached its own code of practice four times in its Iraq war broadcasts on the AM program in 2003.

The ABA was asked to investigate 43 alleged breaches of its code by former communications minister Richard Alston.

Mr Alston had complained that the AM reports were biased and anti-American.

The authority has found four of the 43 matters constituted breaches of the code.

The decision confirms all but one of the ABA's draft findings, which was overturned after further evidence from the ABC.

The ABA acting chair, Lyn Maddock, says the ABC should take note of the findings and review procedures to prevent further breaches of the ABC code.

"The code requires that ABC news and current affairs programs make every reasonable effort to ensure that they are balanced and impartial," she said.

"'While AM presented a range of views and perspectives during the period in question and was therefore balanced, the language and presentation styles used in some programs would have caused an ordinary reasonable listener to think that the programs were predisposed to particular views on some issues."

Ms Maddock says the ABC plays an important role in analysing and commenting on significant issues.

"While scepticism and probing questions are a useful way to explore issues, when a program uses tendentious language in connection with a controversial matter, listeners are likely to understand that the program favours a particular view of the issue," she said. Review ABC managing director Russell Balding says he remains of the view that AM's coverage of the war in Iraq was professional, comprehensive and balanced.

He says the four breaches the ABA has found related to a few minutes out of many hours of coverage of the war.

Mr Balding notes the ABA's comment that "the ABC may wish to consider whether the code should more clearly differentiate between news programs and current affairs programs".

"I will ensure the ABA's comments are taken into consideration when the code is reviewed shortly," he said.

But he says that the ABC continues to be concerned about the basis for the ABA's conclusions.

"These concerns were set out in the ABC's submission to the ABA in January 2005 and in the interests of informing public debate on these matters, I am releasing this submission," Mr Balding said.