Members of three groups have gathered at the ABC's Sydney headquarters today to protest cuts and an impending restructure being considered by the board (see our earlier report).
Our reporter at the protest has been talking to some of the protesters to get their views on the proposed cuts:
A coalition of protesters will today gather outside the ABC headquarters in Ultimo to protest restructure plans by new Managing Director Michelle Guthrie.
The protest is planned to coincide with an ABC Board Meeting being held to discuss the restructure.
A spokesperson for the groups has told radioinfo they are extremely concerned that the ABC "is failing to meet its charter obligations and that senior management is not genuinely listening to staff or responding to the needs of its audiences."
An exclusive article in Fairfax Media's Sydney Morning Herald says the ABC's new managing director Michelle Guthrie is planning to cut a significant layer of middle management and use money saved to fund more programming.
A website has been created in response to the ABC’s decision to cut music programming from Radio National.
The site, savernmusic.com is also urging people to sign an on-line petition arguing the decision has “disastrous implications for the independent and non-mainstream music industry in Australia, and for listeners Australia-wide, particularly in remote or regional areas”.
ABC RN staff have moved a no-confidence motion against radio management over recent radio division cuts.
More than 60 Radio National staff met at the broadcaster's Ultimo office today.
The CPSU has confirmed to radioinfo that staff unanimously passed a motion of no confidence, citing " systemic failure" in senior radio management and "the erosion of the editorial and managerial responsibilities of executive producers."
In a major speech to The Wheeler Centre in Melbourne last night, ABC Managing Director Michelle Guthrie outlined the direction for the ABC in the era of social and mobile media.
She also revealed a series of changes on the way for ABC Radio and ABC News, as revealed earlier by radioinfo.
ABC Managing Director Michelle Guthrie will introduce changes to ABC Local Radio's brand and approach in a speech at the Wheeler Centre in Melbourne tonight.
In a memo to staff from the Director of ABC Radio, Michael Mason said,
" We’ve put a lot of thought into revitalising the Local Radio brand to make sure it resonates for current and future audiences in the way they want it to. A major development has been optimising the Local Radio websites for live and on-demand audio.
Due to popular demand, the NEMBC has made available half day conference registration with attendance starting from afternoon tea, a choice to attend one of two workshops and an opportunity to listen to Michelle Guthrie’s (ABC Managing Director) keynote speech - All for a very special fee of $99.
This offer is only for a limited number of positions and once booked out, there will not be another opportunity to book.