{"id":946087,"date":"2026-10-30T07:08:11","date_gmt":"2026-10-30T07:08:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/946087\/"},"modified":"2026-10-30T07:08:11","modified_gmt":"2026-10-30T07:08:11","slug":"antisemitism-envoy-proposes-external-ombudsman-to-monitor-abc-and-sbs-coverage-of-israel-and-middle-east-australian-media","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/946087\/","title":{"rendered":"Antisemitism envoy proposes \u2018external ombudsman\u2019 to monitor ABC and SBS coverage of Israel and Middle East | Australian media"},"content":{"rendered":"

The federal government\u2019s antisemitism envoy has proposed an \u201cexternal independent ombudsman\u201d to monitor ABC and SBS<\/a> coverage of the war in Gaza, and a requirement that all visa applicants be screened for \u201cthe risk of holding antisemitic views\u201d.<\/p>\n

In an updated plan released on Friday<\/a>, Jillian Segal said Australia\u2019s two public broadcasters should be subjected to greater oversight.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiven the extent and seriousness of concerns about subjective, inaccurate and disproportionate reporting in accordance with its own standards, it would be in the public interest for the public broadcasters\u2019 coverage and approach to be the subject of more detailed analysis and independent review,\u201d Segal wrote in the new plan.<\/p>\n

It suggests that a government-appointed panel review the public broadcasters\u2019 previous reporting and states the government should consider \u201ctransferring\u201d responsibilities from the ABC<\/a> and SBS ombudsmen to an \u201cexternal independent ombudsman consistent with other sectors such as telecommunications and banking\u201d.<\/p>\n

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Segal writes that \u201cJewish Australians have reported being abused, harassed and accused of being \u2018baby killers\u2019 or supporters of \u2018genocide\u2019 simply for their belief in the right of Israel to exist\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat perception of a link between coverage and hostility is itself a matter of public importance.\u201d<\/p>\n

Segal said she had received \u201cmany expressions of concern from the Australian Jewish community\u201d about ABC and SBS reporting on \u201cIsrael and the conflict in the Middle East\u201d.<\/p>\n

The special envoy to combat antisemitism\u2019s initial plan, released in mid-2025<\/a>, said Segal would \u201cwork with the publicly funded broadcasters to encourage them to develop programs that add to social cohesion\u201d.<\/p>\n

She then told the royal commission into antisemitism in mid-2026 she wanted a new \u201coversight\u201d committee<\/a> that could give ABC and SBS coverage a \u201ctick\u201d or \u201cguidance\u201d.<\/p>\n

Segal told Senate estimates this week she was concerned about \u201cthe tone [and] the frequency of reporting about Gaza from the ABC\u201d.<\/p>\n

The broadcasters rejected calls for external oversight last year. On Friday, the ABC said its complaints process was \u201cthe most robust and transparent in the Australian media\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe ABC has the highest editorial standards and a comprehensive framework to ensure accountability, transparency and high editorial standards,\u201d a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis framework is designed to balance accountability with editorial independence and robust journalism.\u201d<\/p>\n

SBS said on Friday it condemned antisemitism \u201cunequivocally\u201d and the organisation\u2019s existing complaints and accountability framework was \u201crobust and fit for purpose\u201d, including external oversight by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.<\/p>\n

The royal commission was established in response to the Bondi beach massacre<\/a> in December when 15 people were killed during a Hanukah celebration.<\/p>\n

Visa applicants to be screened<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s report proposes that all visa applicants wanting to travel to Australia should be assessed for \u201cthe risk of holding antisemitic views\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt would be disingenuous not to acknowledge that a minority of migrants bring to Australia ingrained antisemitic views. This is often a function of migrating from countries or environments where antisemitism is commonplace and reinforced by political, religious, educational and cultural institutions or leadership,\u201d Segal writes.<\/p>\n

The report states the home affairs department should prioritise \u201cthe identification of antisemitic conduct before visa grant, including through new technological capabilities and thorough consideration of information already recorded on a client\u2019s record\u201d.<\/p>\n

The vice-president of the Australian Palestine Advocacy Network, Hiba Farra, said she was alarmed by the proposal to use visa controls to prevent people accused of antisemitism \u2013 potentially without evidence \u2013 from entering Australia.<\/p>\n

The measure represented \u201ca further step down a racist path\u201d, Farra said in a statement.<\/p>\n

\u201cBigotry and racism have no place in Australian society, and to seek to conflate criticism of Israel with antisemitism continues the dehumanisation of Palestinians. It further entrenches anti-Palestinian racism in our society.<\/p>\n

\u201cSpeaking out against Israel\u2019s ongoing atrocities is the prerogative of anyone who believes in human dignity and human rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

The arts and universities<\/p>\n

Friday\u2019s plan suggests publicly funded arts organisations should be able to impose \u201cenforceable conditions\u201d on artists and terminate grants if they promoted antisemitism.<\/p>\n

The envoy states that all arts organisations \u2013 private and public \u2013 should develop policies to govern the use of their venues, festivals and stages or \u201cartists\u2019 personal political or ideological activism outside the scope of the advertised show, performance or exhibition\u201d.<\/p>\n

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The envoy\u2019s updated plan proposes allowing grant authorities to impose enforceable conditions on academics, allowing \u201cfor the termination of grant funding \u2026 where the recipient engages in antisemitic speech or conduct\u201d.<\/p>\n

Segal said the proposals outlined in the plan were \u201cnot about silencing criticism of Israel\u201d.<\/p>\n

The report argues that \u201cmodern, progressive antisemitism\u201d was the most pervasive form of the prejudice in Australia.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt takes the hostility of Islamic extremism and far-left antisemitism, together with traditional antisemitic tropes, and gives it a respectable face through the language of social justice and human rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

Segal said Islamic extremism, far-left and far-right antisemitism were prevalent \u201cand they require vigilance and laws that are properly enforced\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut the form that is leaving Jewish Australians increasingly anxious and excluded is the one that has taken root in influential institutions, where Jewish Australians are being discriminated against, blamed and vilified for the actions of the government of the state of Israel.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Trumpian\u2019<\/p>\n

The progressive Jewish Council of Australia criticised the envoy\u2019s new plan as \u201cTrumpian\u201d, arguing it was a \u201cdangerous and ideologically driven roadmap that threatens freedom of speech, academic freedom and democratic rights, while failing to meaningfully address the causes of antisemitism\u201d.<\/p>\n

The council said the envoy\u2019s claims about \u201cprogressive antisemitism\u201d verged on \u201cconspiratorial\u201d.<\/p>\n

Bart Shteinman, an executive officer at the JCA, said Friday\u2019s report did \u201clittle to mask a rightwing ideology that will go to incredible lengths to silence those drawing attention to Israel\u2019s genocide in Gaza\u201d and that it sought \u201cunprecedented oversight\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat Segal is proposing as the path forwards to combatting antisemitism is similar to what we might expect coming out of Trump\u2019s America, not Australia.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shteinman urged the federal government to remember that \u201cthe special envoy does not speak for all Jews, many of whom could be classified as \u2018progressive antisemites\u2019 themselves under the ridiculous analysis Segal is promoting\u201d.<\/p>\n

Alex Ryvchin, the co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told 2GB radio that Segal\u2019s decision to highlight \u201cfar-left antisemitism\u201d was \u201cinsightful and courageous\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cAntisemitism comes from different facets of society, but with the far left, it\u2019s laced in this dishonesty. It\u2019s packaged in the language of human rights, of compassion, and peace, and progressivism, but actually, they repurpose classic neo-Nazi antisemitic tropes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ryvchin said within the ABC and SBS \u201cthere is a certain culture, there is a certain groupthink, which I think is driven by almost a handful of journalists and executives, who have this kind of political ideology, which they then coach and mentor through the organisation\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said genuine accountability could only be acheived \u201cthrough external accountability\u201d.<\/p>\n

The release of the envoy\u2019s updated plan came two days after Segal appeared at Senate estimates.<\/p>\n

She defended her previous criticism of SBS for quoting death toll figures provided by Gaza\u2019s health ministry. She told the royal commission the figures were \u201cgrossly inflated\u201d and their inflation was \u201cwell known and even accepted by the United Nations\u201d.<\/p>\n

A spokesperson for the UN secretary general responded at the time: \u201cFor us [the UN], the Ministry of Health in Gaza is a source we, and many others, often cite. Independent validation of subsets of the data has found no significant discrepancies in their numbers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Segal told estimates this week she accepted the UN view \u201cbut that does not detract from the concerns of the Jewish community as conveyed to me about the way in which the reporting had been done\u201d.<\/p>\n

Israel\u2019s military accepted in January<\/a> that the death toll compiled by health authorities in Gaza was broadly accurate.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The federal government\u2019s antisemitism envoy has proposed an \u201cexternal independent ombudsman\u201d to monitor ABC and SBS coverage of…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":946088,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-946087","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/946087","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=946087"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/946087\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/946088"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=946087"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=946087"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=946087"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}