Media Alliance warns of press freedom promises slipping away

Tim Burrowes

May 6, 2012 5:27

The Labor government’s promise to champion freedom of the press in Australia seems to have “slipped away”, the boss of the country’s journalists’ union has warned.

Writing in the Media Alliance’s annual Press Freedom report, federal secretary Chris Warren said that Australia had slipped down global press freedom rankings, in part because of restrictions on how journalists’ access to immigration detention centres and also because of the recommendations of the government-commissioned Independent Media Inquiry which wants a new news media regulator.

After highlighting restrictions on freedom of information and protection of whistleblowers,Warren wrote: “The 2007 election brought to power a Labor government which included in its platform a promise to address these restrictions on the freedom of the press in this country. We applauded when the Rudd government announced new Freedom of Information laws (some states haven’t yet joined that party). We were enthusiastic participants in the public hearings that led to new Commonwealth shield laws and urged the states to follow suit.”

He added:

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Tim Burrowes

Tim Burrowes is the publisher of Mumbrella and Unmade. He co-founded Mumbrella in 2008 and sister title Unmade in 2021. He's worked in the UK, Middle East, Asia & Australia and has specialised in writing about the communications world for the last 25 years. He wrote the book Media Unmade, published in 2021, and became the presenter of MediaLand on ABC Radio National in 2025.