Free media a key voice for all of us

A free and independent press is essential to our Australian democracy, writes

TUESDAY, May 3, marked World Press Freedom Day.

In Tasmania, I would contend that the public enjoys what a free press, meaning all media, can deliver daily.

When we cast our eye to the rest of the world, we can see the importance of a free press – meaning all media outlets and platforms – as the war in Ukraine unfolds with terrible clarity and tragic human toll.

The fact that the war is “live”, with seemingly hourly updates on the networks is confronting to say the least. But we can see Australian voices and commentators, as well as international experts, explaining the carnage, many of them putting their own lives at risk.

Around Australia, we see the federal election unfolding, coming to its culmination on May 21. And every day we are brought the news by the Free Press of Australia – that is, media not controlled by the government as occurs in other countries.

In Tasmania, we have seen the leaders of the major parties, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Labor’s Anthony Albanese, make their pitches in the marginal electorates of Braddon, Bass and Lyons.

Whether you vote Liberal, Labor, Green or for one of the minor parties, everyone of us should celebrate that we can walk into a polling both on election day (or in pre-polling options) and “make our mark”.

Australia may again face a hung parliament with the great number and quality of independent candidates and voices. And if that happens – that’s democracy, another of our country’s great freedoms.

A free press means Australians can listen to the news outlets they want, receive the news they want, in a huge variety of forums.

You may be an ABC devotee or watch Sky News 24/7 – you are receiving information from reporters and commentators. It’s up to you, as free Australian citizens, to decide from which voices you wish to glean your facts.

That many Australians now receive their news via Facebook or Twitter or Instagram is just the evolution of a “free media”. No longer do we only read it in the morning paper or the 6pm news.

But in Tasmania, our three daily papers – The

Advocate, The Examiner and the Mercury – also publish online across the various platforms.

The week after the federal election, the Tasmanian Media Awards will be presented. I have had the honour and privilege of being involved in the awards for the past 22 years, as a host, an organiser, a sponsor and a judge.

What I can report is that once again the awards attracted more than 100 entries, despite newsrooms under continued pressure from national cutbacks. Put simply, Tasmanian journalists are expected to do more work every day with fewer resources.

And every night and every morning, the news is delivered – I would like to state – without fear of favour, as the winners next week will demonstrate. Tasmanian journalists want to be on the front page of their papers and lead their respective bulletins.

And a massive shout out to the dozens of regional newspapers – in print version or online – which bring their community’s issues to light, often becoming statewide matters of importance.

The State Media Awards are full of stories that changed Tasmania’s political landscape, exposed alleged corruption, focused on the crucial issues of housing and health care and also tugged at our heartstrings.

On World Press Freedom Day, members of my union – the Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance – will take action to call on the major political parties to commit to reforms to protect public interest journalism and support media freedom.

A free and independent press is essential to our Australian democracy. It holds the powerful to account, can counter lies and disinformation and bring to the fore the issues of those who have no voice in our community.

Every day, Tasmanian journalists and camera operators and photographers and editors do that job for each and every one of us in this state. I am proud of what they do.

As Tasmanians, I hope you are too – but you should also be grateful for the community and country in which we live where such freedoms still exist.