Nine News chief Darren Wick has criticised the request by police to ban media helicopters from flying over Melbourne to cover protests,describing it as an overreach.
Wick,the national director of news and current affairs at Nine,told radio station 3AW on Wednesday afternoon that the decision was made by the Civil Aviation Safety Authority,but the request had been made by police.
“[Victoria Police] want our chopper footage stopped for operational reasons,because they’re concerned that the protesters are going to use the live feeds to give updates on the locations of the police. We find that pretty ridiculous,” he said.
The helicopter is contracted by Nine,Seven and the ABC,which Wicks described as “the three most reputable sources of news in this country”.
“We know what we’re doing,we’re not here to scaremonger or do anything ridiculously but the concern for us about this decision was it was made without consultation,” Wick said.
“In the past,if police sought our assistance,during a siege,or during bushfires in terms of excluding chopper vision,we’ve always talked it through with them,we’ve always come up with a sensible decision,and we support them.
“We’re not a police state,it’s very unprecedented,and it’s very uncomfortable,the decision that’s been made.”
He said he didn’t like what the protesters were doing but to ban helicopter coverage was an overreach and set a very dangerous precedent,which moved into the realms of censorship and a police state.
Wicks said Nine were looking into their legal options to try and have the decision reversed.
“I really urge Victoria Police to rethink this decision immediately. It’s a very bad look for them,it looks as though they’ve got something to hide,we don’t think they do,” he said.
“We have all of our reporters and crews on the ground covering it. If we can’t get those pictures out in the air,we’re actually going to have to put more reporters,more crews on the ground working beside the police. So we need to cover it. We live in an open,free society,we’re a democracy.
“We allow these basic freedoms to disappear now,what comes next?”
Police are trying to find alternative options after they requested a no-fly zone over Melbourne,meaning media could not cover the protests from the air.
In a statement,a Victoria Police spokeswoman said they were aware of media concerns.
“Victoria Police made an application to CASA for restricted air space in the Melbourne CBD,due to operational and safety reasons in relation to the protest activity,” she said.
“We understand the concerns from the media about this decision. We are looking to find alternate options that would meet the needs of both Victoria Police and the media.”
She said an update will be provided as soon as possible.