Regional newspapers still battling for relevance in 2010

From the Australian Newspaper History Group October 2010 newsletter produced by Rod Kirkpatrick:

Four regional dailies had double-figure percentage declines in circulation for the three or six-month period to 30 June, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. They were: the Standard, Warrnambool, 16.45; the Gold Coast Bulletin, 15.31 per cent; the North West Star, Mount Isa, 12.98; and the Geelong Advertiser, 11.56. And the Townsville Bulletin, down 9.95 per cent, was only a whisker short of a double-figure dip. Three of these papers are big dailies, not based in areas where there is a population slump.

The table below from this same newsletter shows that newspapers on the NSW North Coast continue to lose circulation as they battle to retain relevance for local readers.

Diversity with regard to range and editorial stance is important for regional media - whether it is print or digital, produced by professional journalists or bloggers.

While local newspapers urgently need to break out of parent company moulds which often simply clone the news across their banners and apparently encourage journalists to go for cheap regurgitation of media releases; readers also need to keep purchasing these papers as a way of encouraging regional journalism and protecting their own ability to access all shades of opinion on regional, state and national issues.

Buy a local newspaper today.

Aussie nags get their own political party

Yep, you heard it here first. Sturdy farm horses, riding school nags, gymkhana stalwarts and thoroughbred high steppers now have their own political party - the Stable Population Party of Australia.
Wonder if lucerne hay and crushed oats are served at party meetings?


Pic from Craft Company No 6

Mixed public perceptions of Prime Minister Gillard's character and attributes

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard gets a mixed response from survey respondents in the Essential Report of 4 October 2010:

While Opposition Leader Tony Abbott does not fare well in comparisons with Julia Gillard in the same report:

Click on images to enlarge

Have Keneally and Sartor let down regional indigenous communities once again?

New provisions of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Act came into effect at the beginning of this month.

In light of increasing competition over land use on the NSW North Coast and the sometimes cavalier destruction of indigenous heritage sites which has occurred in the not so distant past, it is worth noting that the Keneally Government and Minister Frank Sartor are still falling short in relation to commitments given according to this NSW Aboriginal Land Council media release:

The State's peak Aboriginal groups have expressed extreme concern at the lack of honesty and integrity displayed by the NSW Government in withholding key information about new Aboriginal cultural heritage regulations, despite its commitment to negotiate.

The NSW Government's undertaking to negotiate on regulations was a key condition for the NSW Aboriginal Land Council (NSWALC) and NTSCORP Ltd to remove their opposition to legislative changes to the National Parks and Wildlife Act 1974 (NSW), opening the way for Coalition and Greens support for the National Parks and Wildlife Amendment Bill 2010.

NSWALC and NTSCORP are very disappointed they did not receive key information or copies of the final National Parks and Wildlife Amendment (Aboriginal Objects and Aboriginal Places) Regulation 2010 until the documents were made publicly available by the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water (DECCW) this week.

This is despite a commitment made in Hansard in April by the Environment Minister, Hon Frank Sartor MP to continue working with both organisations on the regulations.

"While meetings between our organisations and the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water took place, it now appears the negotiations were not in good faith," said Bev Manton, Chair of NSWALC.

She said that repeated requests for copies of the regulations had led to late and partial information being provided and there had been no response at all on several key issues raised by NSWALC and NTSCORP over the past four months until this week.

"Unfortunately, now that we have the information, it's clear that commitments made by the Minister in writing are absent, including a promised amendment to ensure that court appeals would still be available if there was substantial non-compliance with the consultation process.

"This was one of the few hard-won rights for Aboriginal people under the previous law," said Ms Manton.

The regulations will support new provisions in the National Parks and Wildlife Act which are due to come into effect on 1 October 2010.

The regulations will detail the defences available where a person has damaged or destroyed an Aboriginal object, and also outline the processes for consultation with Aboriginal groups.

Defences will be available if a person was carrying out a wide range of activities defined by the regulations as 'low impact', including major farming infrastructure and mining exploration works. Separate codes of conduct set out in the regulations for the forestry and mining industries will also act as a defence if a person destroys an Aboriginal object.

NSW still remains the only state without standalone Aboriginal cultural heritage legislation.

"Aboriginal cultural heritage is not only significant to our people, but holds a central place in the cultural heritage of this State. It's insulting that it continues to be treated under the same legislation as flora and fauna," said Warren Mundine, CEO of NTSCORP.

"Aboriginal People have the cultural responsibility to protect their significant objects and places and the traditional right to speak for those places but in NSW we still don't have the legal right to protect and speak for our own cultural heritage," Mr. Mundine said.

During debate on the legislative changes earlier this year, the Minister announced the establishment of a working party to undertake a two-year review of the regulation of Aboriginal cultural heritage in New South Wales and to develop a new legislative model.

But NSWALC, NTSCORP and other Aboriginal groups are still waiting for a further announcement from the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Hon Paul Lynch MP, and confirmation as to who will be invited to participate on the Working Group.

"These changes to the National Parks and Wildlife Act were announced with great fanfare by the NSW Government as an improvement for Aboriginal heritage protection, to be followed by much overdue broader reform in the coming years," said Ms Manton.

"The lack of details put forward by the Government on the establishment of a working party to undertake a two-year review of the regulation of Aboriginal cultural heritage in New South Wales and to develop a new legislative model, and the failure to properly and respectfully negotiate with Aboriginal groups on the changes to the National Parks and Wildlife Regulations, tell a different story," she said.

• National Parks and Wildlife Amendment (Aboriginal Objects and Aboriginal Places) Regulation 2010
• National Parks and Wildlife Amendment Act 2010 No 38
• Frank Sartor, NSW Minister for Climate Change and the Environment (NSW Hansard 21 April 2010): Since then my department has had further targeted consultations with stakeholders, which we undertook to do. I have also met with peak Aboriginal groups to discuss their outstanding concerns. I have committed to continuing to work with the New South Wales Aboriginal Land Council and the Native Title Services Corporation to develop amendments to the draft regulations and the draft Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water code of practice, which will reflect and give effect to the objects of the legislation to conserve places, objects and features of significance to Aboriginal people and to strengthen the protection afforded to Aboriginal objects and places in New South Wales. [my emphasis]

Teh Bolta will take the stand in his own defence

Australian journalist Andrew Bolt may be facing some well-deserved legal difficulties if he intends to be the only witness on his own behalf in a matter where it is asserted that he breached the Commonwealth Racial Discrimination Act:
UP TO nine fair-skinned people will testify that they were hurt, humiliated and offended by newspaper columns that questioned their right to claim they were Aboriginal, the Federal Court was told yesterday.
The nine are suing Herald Sun journalist Andrew Bolt over articles and blogs including one headlined ''White is the new black'' that suggested it was fashionable to choose Aboriginal racial identity, which brought ''political and career clout''. Earlier articles, ''It's so hip to be black'', and ''White fellas in the black'', had similar themes.
Bolt wrote that ''white Aborigines'' were ''people who, out of their multi-stranded but largely European genealogy, decide to identify with the thinnest of all those strands, and the one that's contributed least to their looks''.
Bolt will be the only witness in response, his lawyer told the court.

# Fellow journalist Chris Berg defends Bolt and takes a swipe at anti-discrimination law in the process here.

Gold star for the Australian economy

In coming weeks it shall be interesting to see how the Opposition's Abbott and Hockey work a negative political spin on the International Monetary Fund and the Reserve Bank of Australia's consistently positive view of the national economy.

International Monetary Fund's Australia—2010 Article IV Consultation Concluding Statement September 15, 2010:

This statement contains our preliminary policy recommendations following discussions with the Australian authorities and a range of private sector institutions. The discussions focused on the pace of exit from macro stimulus, managing the mining boom, and addressing vulnerabilities related to high household and external debt.

1. Despite growth slowing due to the global financial crisis, Australia was one of the few advanced economies to escape recession in 2009. This reflected strong demand for commodities from China, a prompt and significant macro policy response, a healthy banking sector, and a flexible exchange rate. With a mining boom now driving the recovery and dissipating spare capacity, policy stimulus is appropriately being withdrawn.
2. Australia’s growing integration with emerging Asia also underpins its favorable medium-term growth prospects. However, it brings with it vulnerabilities to which policy will need to respond. The impact on Australia’s terms of trade from industrialization and urbanization in China and the rest of emerging Asia is expected to be long lived. Careful macroeconomic management of the mining boom could permanently raise household incomes in Australia. However, shifting resources to the mining sector without giving rise to inflationary pressures will be challenging. Moreover, the growing dependence on mining may amplify the business cycle, as the economy will be more vulnerable to swings in the terms of trade.

Reserve Bank's 30 September 2010 Financial Stability Review :

The Australian financial system remains in relatively strong condition, as does the broader economy. The effects of the global crisis on the Australian economy and financial system were quite mild, and economic growth has now broadly returned to trend. This performance reflects several factors including the greater scope that existed for macroeconomic policy action in Australia to moderate the impact of the crisis, the comparatively strong balance sheets of the domestic banks in the period leading into the crisis, and the high exposure of the Australian economy to trade with the Asian region.
Indicators of the financial strength of Australian banks have generally continued to improve recently.
In aggregate, Australia’s banking system remained profitable during the crisis period, and profits have increased further in the latest half year. The flow of bad debt charges has generally peaked, while the stock of non-performing assets on banks’ balance sheets appears to be stabilising at a level that remains low in comparison with previous cyclical experience. Loan impairments and losses have been concentrated mainly in lending to businesses, particularly for commercial property. There has been some upward drift in arrears rates on the housing portfolio, though these remain fairly low overall......

The financial position of the household and business sectors in Australia remains sound. Household incomes have been growing at a solid pace and unemployment has been declining. Households continue to exhibit a somewhat more cautious approach to debt than prior to the crisis, with welcome signs that the recent housing market strength led by first-home buyers has cooled.
Notwithstanding recent cyclical variations, housing prices have shown little net change as a ratio to incomes over several years, following an earlier structural increase in this ratio associated with financial deregulation and the shift to a low inflation environment. Within the national housing market, there has been some significant regional variation, with market conditions particularly strong recently in Victoria.

In the business sector, there has been considerable deleveraging in the post-crisis period, bringing average debt-to-equity and interest-payment ratios to levels close to their lowest in three decades.
Businesses have made use of both new equity issuance and strong internal funding during this process. While this shift in business funding was in part demand-driven, there was also a notable tightening of supply in 2008 and 2009; the availability of debt funding to businesses now appears to be improving, though credit availability for some sectors, including commercial property, remains quite constrained.....