Controversially,the committee delivered on Rudd’s call in November,with Labor senators teaming up with the Greens torecommend the government initiate a judicial inquiry with “the powers of a royal commission” to investigate media concentration.
But Labor’s senior ranks moved almost immediately to snuff out any momentum. First in opposition and then in government,Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Communications Minister Michelle Rowland made it clear they had no interest in taking up the cause,repeatedly ruling out a royal commission into the Murdoch press or the Australian media landscape more broadly.
This obvious brick wall has not deterred Rudd,nor the organisation he chairs,Australians for a Murdoch Royal Commission (AFMRC),which was set up last year to continue the lobbying efforts.
The former Labor leader has set a longer-term goal of convincing party members to back the issue at the ALP’s next national conference,which is held every three years to help shape Labor’s platform for the federal election.
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“The next big step in this process is for the next National Conference to consider the question of media diversity,concentration of media power and a royal commission,” he said in a statement.
“Politicians can’t resolve this market failure on their own,because they are simply too vulnerable to Murdoch’s power. Until we have a fully empowered royal commission to break the cycle of policy failure,the media industry will continue to shrink,journalists will continue to lose their jobs,and our democracy will be more vulnerable to misinformation.”