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Weekly round-up 5 July, 1998
Murdoch media blitzes Hanson
Rupert Murdoch, one of the world's richest
and most powerful men, has ordered his editorial staff to use the full power of
the Murdoch media empire to destroy Pauline Hanson and her fledgling One nation
party. This is the only conclusion that any fair-minded person could reach after
witnessing a week of the most disgusting abuse of media power ever in Australia.
If you thought the Murdoch journos were digging the dirt on Ms Hanson last week,
then this week they delivered it in truckloads.
The Australian editorial staff went ballistic with their anti-Hanson
crusade in the Tuesday June 30 edition. The front page headline screamed
'Hanson's nation hijacked'. Most of the front page quoted the bitter comments of
one Barbara Hazleton, a disgruntled former secretary to Pauline Hanson. Not one
word of balance or comment from One Nation. Never mind Article One of the journalists
Code of Ethics.
The anti-Hanson crusade continues throughout all of pages four and five.
The attack continues in the page twelve editorial. It rails against the idea
of David Oldfield acting as a minder and adviser to Pauline Hanson. The
editorial writer seems in great fear that "One Nation is being heavily
influenced by a man who is an accomplished political operator." What an
incredible statement. Is One Nation only allowed to have unskilled people
working for it?
"One Nation starts to crack" screams the front page headline over a
carefully posed, smiling photo of Hazleton, on Wednesday July 1. With very
little new information, The Australian devotes most of the front page attempting
to back up its headline. There are references to various unnamed disgruntled One
nation members. Only one supporter is named. Mr Paul Trewartha had voiced
concerns to Pauline Hanson. Most of page eleven reprints the bitchy statements
from Hazleton with embellishments from reporter, Nicholas Rothwell.
Let's put all this hysteria in perspective. A political leader's private
secretary resigns. She is not a senior executive of the organisation. She is
bitchy and disgruntled. She runs to a newspaper renowned for attacks on Ms
Hanson. She bleats out a tale calculated to impose maximum damage on her
"dear friend". The newspaper does a massive beat-up. It clearly has a
political agenda to get rid of One Nation.
The hacks writing this rubbish should be ashamed to call themselves
professional journalists. They are clearly in breach of their own code of
ethics.
Article one of the Australian Journalists
Association, Code of Ethics states "They shall
report and interpret the news with scrupulous honesty by striving to disclose
all essential facts and by not suppressing relevant, available facts or
distorting by wrong or improper emphasis".
Article four says, "They shall not allow personal interests to
influence them in their professional duties."
What a joke.
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