Is it a contra? Is it a freebie? Is it chequebook journalism?
Is it taxable?
At Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation trial this week, the court heard that Channel Seven had paid Lehrmann’s rent for a year, as compensation for him giving two interviews to the Spotlight program.
Seven said it was “well reported” that it assisted with accommodation. Putting someone up for a couple of nights is a fairly standard thing to do when an outlet wants to get talent in a studio.
But a whole year?
Lehrmann said Seven organised to pay the rent, and he didn’t know how much it was. The Sydney Morning Herald reckons it could add up to six figures. Seven is paying for the digs until June next year.
In 2022, the former political staffer complained of being “broke” after he lost his job.
It’s interesting to consider if there’s a tax on what some might call chequebook journalism.
According to the Australian Taxation Office, bartering or trades are assessable for income tax.
Without commenting on any individual case, the ATO told the Weekly Beast that generally when a person receives a non-cash benefit as payment for services rendered, “the value of that benefit will be assessable income” and must be declared in their tax return.
“If there is an employment relationship, there may be Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) implications,” a spokesperson said.
In adjacent news, earlier this week the Walkley Foundation said it was “considering its position” after the rent revelations.
Liam Barlett’s Spotlight interview was nominated for the Scoop of the Year at this year’s awards, but didn’t win.
Under the Walkley Foundation’s terms and conditions, entrants must “declare any payments or benefits provided to third parties in connection with the work/s, including payments or material gifts given in exchange for interviews, information or access”.
“This will not necessarily disqualify an entry – transparency is important for the judging process,” the Ts and Cs say.
In a statement, Seven said: “We said at the time we were assisting Bruce Lehrmann with his accommodation costs. It was well reported back then.
“The 7NEWS Spotlight report was rightfully judged by the esteemed Walkley Foundation as one of the top three scoops of 2023.”
Not the end of the world – yet
Streem has released its 2023 State of Australian Media report, combining a range of sources with its own data to cast an eye over the media landscape.
There was good news and bad news.
Good news? That 96% of Australians aged 14 and over engage with the news.
Bad news? That’s on a monthly basis.
Good news? There is more trust in news in Australia than there was last year.
Bad news? It went from 41% to 43%. Still, that’s a biggish minority, right?
Two-thirds of Australians are worried about misinformation, a 5% increase, but only 22% are prepared to pay for news (up from 17% last year).
Oh, and one in five Australians are worried that artificial intelligence brings with it the “possible risk of human extinction”.
Bad news.
Late news
Reports of Rod Carnegie’s death have been greatly exaggerated – again. In February the Nine newspapers’ CBD column issued a “heartfelt apology” for referring to the former mining baron as “the late”.
“Sir Rod has been in touch to point out our error, confirming that he is very much alive and well, aged 90,” the paper reported.
Then they resurrected the issue this week.
On Monday, in a story about Carnegie’s eldest son, Mark, the Herald mentioned Carnegie senior in passing, again as “late”.
In a correction on Thursday, the paper apologised for the error.
Sir Rod must be hoping three times is a charm, not a curse.
Deserting the bush
An update from the Australian Newsroom Mapping Project shows the continuing spread of news “deserts”, where local producers no longer exist.
The Public Interest Journalism Initiative monitors newsrooms and news production. Its latest update shows 1,214 active news outlets in Australia, as of 30 September.
A handy colour-coded map shows a hefty concentration of news outlets in capital cities and more densely populated areas, and sparse news coverage for regional and more remote areas.
It looks at local government areas that “do not appear to have a local news producer and, by implication, which may not be the subject of any consistent news coverage” – what are called news deserts (with the caveat that some news “oases” may spread their resources into the “deserts”).
Since 2019, there have been 171 “expansions” of news producers, and 323 “contractions” (closures or shrinkages), again disproportionately affecting rural and remote areas.
There are 29 local government areas without a local news outlet. They must be thirsty for the government’s planned media assistance reforms.
Is losing a whale twice … a fluke?
Adelaide’s Moby Dick, a giant whale sculpture that is a famous part of the Riverbank Christmas display, escaped this week to float down the Torrens – again. Back in 2005 Adelaidians were treated to the comic sight of the untethered mammal seemingly making a break for it.
Another Free Willy incident today in Adelaide. @abcadelaide reports that the Torrens/Karrawirra Parri Riverbank display whale has escaped again after heavy rain and is about 500 m downstream. The garden is now tended by @WestTorrens Council.
— Keith Conlon (@KeithConlon) November 28, 2023
Last escape was 2005.
📸 @slsa @ABC pic.twitter.com/ni4t8VCLg0
This week’s escape – amid lashings of rain and local flooding – inspired the Advertiser headlines “Moby Dick’s no Free Willy” and, once the beached beast was rescued, “All’s whale that ends whale”.
It seems like somewhat of a missed opportunity. What about “Moby Dick orcastrates another getaway”? Or “Going in for the krill”?
Business or politics on Dutton trip
The Labor MP Patrick Gorman told parliament on Wednesday that the opposition leader, Peter Dutton, was playing a two-sided game.
Dutton was putting out some press releases on his November trip to India through the normal channels in Australia, but hiring a PR firm to do the same job for the Indian media.
At the heart of the difference between the two was a “Dutton goes to India to meet pollies and give a speech” vibe (for the Australian media) versus a “Dutton takes 20 industrialists to India in a ‘momentous visit’” vibe (for the Indian media).
“He was taking an entire business delegation,” Gorman told parliament. “Who was on the delegation?” Dutton had not distributed transcripts or press releases, he said.
“Maybe they’re too busy in the opposition leader’s office, or maybe he has something to hide,” Gorman told parliament.
Guardian Australia has contacted Dutton’s office for comment.
