8 hours Ago By Rob McKnight
The Prime Minister has been caught out deceiving Australians about their access to sport on TV under his government. You can watch a video version of this article in the video player above. ALBO’S SPORTING LIE Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today It’s election time and that means politicians are popping up all over the place, not just the traditional news and political chat shows.
So, instead of joining David Speers on the ABC’s Insiders show on Sunday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spoke for nearly 18 minutes on Nine’s NRL edition of Wide World of Sports. It was a pretty soft interview, which is to be expected for that type of show, but there was one answer the PM gave that was pure spin and disingenuous. When asked about the anti-siphoning list, the one that keeps sports of significant cultural importance on free to air TV, Albo stood firm.
“On my watch, it’ll be on free TV forever,” he replied. “I think it’s really important that everyone has access to it, and that’s why we’ve made sure that that’s happened.” But that’s not what his Government has done.
You can watch his comments in the video player above. As more viewers forego their traditional antennas and watch free to air television through apps like 7Plus, 9Now and 10Play, the PM neglected to mention those viewers will not have guaranteed access to those sports. Despite pleas from commercial broadcasters, Labor has not included digital rights in its anti-siphoning legislation.
This means that while sports like NRL and AFL must be shown on free to air, the digital sporting rights can be snapped up by anyone. Australians who watch TV through an app could end up being forced to pay to watch those sports if Netflix, Kayo, Disney+ and the like buy up those rights. American streamers have deep pockets so it’s going to be hard for the likes of Nine and Seven to compete for the digital rights as well as the free to air rights.
And you might be surprised to learn that will affect a lot of Australians. As reported by Mumbrella: National polling by Resolve Strategic — and commissioned by Free TV Australia, which represents the free-to-air networks — found 69 per cent of Australians access TV via the internet, only 29 per cent of Australians watch TV exclusively through an aerial, with a number of those planning to ditch their aerial soon. In these tough economic times there’s no guarantee Nine and Seven will be able to cough up enough dough to buy the TV and streaming rights to the NRL and AFL.
In fact, News Corp recently reported NRL boss Peter V’landy is launching a billion-dollar broadcast deal right and with Netflix, Amazon in the mix. How do you expect Nine to compete with that? If Nine and Seven (and for the sake of the argument 10) enter into a bidding war against each other for the FTA rights, they will then have to possibly take on the American streaming giants to get the digital rights. And that is a fight I wouldn’t expect them to win.
Sport is a big driver of consumer consumption and streaming services are now pivoting towards live sport. So, if Nine gets the NRL broadcast rights and someone like Netflix or Disney+ get the streaming rights, it means the 70 per cent of Australians who access TV through an app for free will have to pay to watch their favourite sports. So when the PM says: “On my watch, it’ll be on Free TV forever.
I think it’s really important that everyone has access to it, and that’s why we’ve made sure that that’s happened.” Well, he hasn’t made sure that’s happened. He’s using outdated thinking and not following audience trends.
The world has moved online and Anthony Albanese is leaving 70 per cent of viewers out in the cold. It’s pure spin to think he’s keeping sport free. It’s just not true.
THE RULES WHEN MEETING CELEBRITIES I was asked the other day how you should behave when you suddenly find yourself face-to-face with a celebrity in public, whether at the shops, a café or even on the beach. It all comes down to a simple word: respect. While celebrities make their money through their fame (or at least the work they do makes them famous), they are still people.
They know they are going to be approached for autographs and pictures, but you must remember they are not your property. Here is a simple guide: 1. A quick hello is good, then move on.
2. If you want an autograph or photo, ask nicely — don’t demand. 3.
Once you have your photo or autograph, say goodbye and move on (they are not usually going to be up for a big chat) 4. Remember you are interrupting their personal activities, brevity is the key. 5.
Try to understand the situation from their perspective if they are not forthcoming about something. One of the strangest interactions I ever witnessed was in Beaconsfield when miners Todd Russell and Brant Webb were trapped underground. I was directing the live coverage for 7NEWS and Sunrise at the time and we had just come off air after covering a live press conference.
It was the press conference where 60 Minutes reporter Richard Calrton died of a heart attack. As I stood next to David Koch, a family asked him for a photograph. Despite the chaotic scenes taking place around Richard’s death, Kochie reluctantly agreed to take the photo.
I asked Kochie why he did it and he explained to me that if he’s ever rejected a photo, despite being in a situation like this, he has been abused. So, despite not wanting to take a photo, he did it but with no smiles, just a straight face. And it makes sense.
That family are likely to only ever meet Kochie once, this was there moment. As bizarre at is sounds, they weren’t focused on the fact Richard Carlton had just died. Maybe they didn’t even know, or maybe they did and still wanted the pic.
I don’t know. But I learnt a lesson that day that people in the spotlight face those moments all the time. If Kochie had said no to that photo, he might not have been abused, but that family would certainly bad mouth him when telling their friends and family about how he refused to be photographed.
They would do this without adding any context of the situation. The point is, celebrities know the score — they will most likely take the photo and sign the autograph, but then move on quickly and let them eat their dinner, buy their groceries or be with their friends and family. WHAT TO WATCH Post easter and it’s going to be a frenzy of new and returning shows on commercial TV.
Seven’s Famer Wants A Wife has been making plenty of headlines and looks to be a must-watch season while Nine will launch its new gameshow format The Floor (as I first revealed on TV Blackbox this time last year). 10 is trying to wring out every last drop of its dying franchise MasterChef, which is failing to sizzle. But while I’ve been waiting for the big post-Easter shows, I’ve come across a compelling drama called The Old Man.
Starring Jeff Bridges and John Lithgow the series only ran for 2 seasons and can be found on Disney+. This is storytelling at its finest and despite its slow pacing at times, will leave you hungry for more. I’m halfway through season two right now and I’m really hoping it doesn’t end on a cliff-hanger as the show was cancelled after season two.
Either way it’s worth a watch! Rob McKnight is a content producer for 7NEWS and co-owner of TV Blackbox . INSIDE MEDIA is published every Monday and Thursday on 7NEWS.com.
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