Managing director says public is more 'attuned' to breadth of corporation's content

This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

The ABC’s managing director, Mark Scott, has hit out at the federal government's attitude to the broadcaster, saying the public is more in tune with the organisation's true value.



"If we look at our research it's very clear, nearly nine in 10 Australians believe the ABC provides a valuable service," Scott told an audience at Australia House in London on Tuesday.

"At times I've felt in Canberra that they're not quite attuned in the way our audiences are attuned to the breadth of ABC content."

Scott, who was part of a discussion on the future of public broadcasters, said there was a disproportionate focus in Australian political circles on certain ABC content.

"There's a focus on a handful of programs, a handful of broadcasters that seems to dominate the debate ... At times I think the focus is too narrowly on political programming and political coverage."

The comments follow last month's budget, in which the ABC lost its $220m contract to run the Australia Network and was dealt a 1% funding cut.

Scott said on Tuesday the ABC would try to find efficiencies but the effect of potential future cuts was a concern.

"There's a limit to how much efficiency we can find, and sooner or later if the budget cuts are too great, it fundamentally has to go to programming and people," he said.

Responding last month to questions on the ABC cuts, the treasurer, Joe Hockey, told the Today Show the broadcaster had not produced an efficiency dividend for up to 15 years, while every other area of government had.

To complain about a 1% cut was "frankly ridiculous", Hockey said.

