Oz Federal Election 2013 - Discussion and Comments

[quokka77]

Re: ALP or other bias on the ABC. I think there is minimal left-leaning bias on the ABC currently. Most of the big/popular political commentators (I'm thinking Barrie Cassidy, Fran Kelly, Annabel Crabb, Chris Uhlmann, Leigh Sales) do their jobs diligently and report the story rather than the spin (whoever is in power).

The final days of the Howard government saw a lot of bad coverage for the Coalition on the ABC (the wheat / Iraq stuff, Costello-Howard tension, Habib and Hicks arbitrary detention, SIEV X and cover-up, immigration detention scandals including Cornelia Rowe and Mohamed Haneef, Work Choices fallout) but I think that was justified.

The ALP has benefited from the same treatment over the Thompson / Health Services Union affair, Rudd-Gillard tension, Slipper misconduct and carbon and mining tax debacles. I can't erase the memory of Michelle Grattan publicly calling for Gillard to resign on Fran Kelly's AM program after Gillard had so heavily backed Thompson and Slipper in April last year. Again, I think this was justified.

I am actually very happy with the political coverage we get from the ABC, as well as the AFR (my other main go-to). I really don't have time for the partisan Australian editorials dressed up as news reporting, nor the idiotic commercial current affairs. Just watching the ads for Today Tonight and Current Affair makes the skin crawl.

 

[drsmithy]

I'm another one where the results were spot on...

I'm not disagreeing with where votecompass is putting you, I'm disagreeing with where they've put the Greens, Labor and the Liberals.

 

[drsmithy]

My type? Now what would that be? So you think you're mainstream too lol

Stop trying to conflate "mainstream" with the centre of that graph.

 

[Pukka]

Stop trying to conflate "mainstream" with the centre of that graph.

Why .............

 

[amaroo]

Nope, basically where Labor appears. Not that I find myself in much agreeance with most New Labor policies.

Though where Labor appears on ABC's Vote Compass is completely wrong - they belong where the Liberals are, and the Greens belong where Labor are. Political Compass does a much better job (and appears to have a recently added Australia 2013 update):

View attachment 17714


By all means, quote some of my views that are "extremist".

That makes as much sense as a Barry Jones white board.

 

[quokka77]

Ros Kelly's whiteboard perhaps?

 

[drsmithy]

Why .............

Uh, because they're not the same thing ?

 

[drsmithy]

That makes as much sense as a Barry Jones white board.

Which part is unclear ?

 

[Pukka]

Uh, because they're not the same thing ?

Ok I admit you're not mainstream just extreme

 

[drsmithy]

Everything you say Is extremist as far as I'm concerned but good luck In the election

Yes, well, I suppose when you're waaaaaaaayyyy over on the right like you claim to be, people over in the centre do look pretty "extreme".

 

[drsmithy]

Ok I admit you're not mainstream just extreme

Please, quote some examples.

If "everything I write" is "extremist", you shouldn't have trouble finding half a dozen quotes.

 

[Pukka]

Yes, well, I suppose when you're waaaaaaaayyyy over on the right like you claim to be, people over in the centre do look pretty "extreme".

Lol in the centre do me a favor you are as left as they come

 

[drsmithy]

Lol in the centre do me a favor you are as left as they come

By all means, quote some of the "as left as they come" posts I've made.

 

[Moody]

So that would be right up in the top left hand corner next to Medhead, Moody & badgerboi

But really you think you should be in the middle because you consider your views mainstream rather than extremist.

Can't comment on my alleged position on the quadrant because I am not so egotistical that I need to take the poxy poll to know where I stand.


I just call bullshiite where I see it ... and am happy to debate it with those that try to call it fertiliser.

 

[Pukka]

Can't comment on my alleged position on the quadrant because I am not so egotistical that I need to take the poxy poll to know where I stand.


I just call bullshiite where I see it ... and am happy to debate it with those that try to call it fertiliser.

You are top left without any doubt

 

[amaroo]

Which part is unclear ?

You mustn't know who Barry Jones is and what he is most famous for.

 

[amaroo]

Can't comment on my alleged position on the quadrant because I am not so egotistical that I need to take the poxy poll to know where I stand.

No doubt, too busy reading The Australian trying to catch Rupert casting his wicked spell.

 

[drsmithy]

You mustn't know who Barry Jones is and what he is most famous for.

I know who he is, I'm just a little bemused at which part of "on the ABC's votecompass spectrum, Labor should be where they have put the Liberals, and the Greens should be where they have put Labor", is unclear, confusing, or complicated.

 

[Skyring]

You are top left without any doubt

That is not so. I did the poll for him, based on his statements here - something anybody can do for themselves - and it did not actually put him in the top left quadrant.

Or any other. The program stops about three-quarters of the way along, says, "This is bullsh*it. We provide this tool for free, not the other way round. Stop jerking us around."

Seriously - and drsmithy, you are as entitled to your opinions as anyone else, whether they be mainstream, partisan, left, right, traffic island in the middle of the road, or on the verge - this Vote Compass has some serious issues.

It grabs a whole bunch of very personal information and as noted in the article, that data can be hijacked. Your IP address is fair game, of course, but I certainly wouldn't recommend supplying your email address. Not unless you create a onesy from Gmail or something.

 

[Skyring]

Re: ALP or other bias on the ABC. I think there is minimal left-leaning bias on the ABC currently. Most of the big/popular political commentators (I'm thinking Barrie Cassidy, Fran Kelly, Annabel Crabb, Chris Uhlmann, Leigh Sales) do their jobs diligently and report the story rather than the spin (whoever is in power).

The final days of the Howard government saw a lot of bad coverage for the Coalition on the ABC (the wheat / Iraq stuff, Costello-Howard tension, Habib and Hicks arbitrary detention, SIEV X and cover-up, immigration detention scandals including Cornelia Rowe and Mohamed Haneef, Work Choices fallout) but I think that was justified.

The ALP has benefited from the same treatment over the Thompson / Health Services Union affair, Rudd-Gillard tension, Slipper misconduct and carbon and mining tax debacles. I can't erase the memory of Michelle Grattan publicly calling for Gillard to resign on Fran Kelly's AM program after Gillard had so heavily backed Thompson and Slipper in April last year. Again, I think this was justified.

I am actually very happy with the political coverage we get from the ABC, as well as the AFR (my other main go-to). I really don't have time for the partisan Australian editorials dressed up as news reporting, nor the idiotic commercial current affairs. Just watching the ads for Today Tonight and Current Affair makes the skin crawl.

This sounds about right to me. The ABC is a fair and reliable source.

I wouldn't say that The Australian is partisan. I don't see it being strongly or blindly supportive of Abbott. He gets a fair go, but the paper just shoots Rudd and Gillard down in flames.

Because they deserve it. Government in this country has lost its focus. Good government isn't the name of the game so much as infighting and mudslinging. Honestly, if Labor had gotten its head down and not worried about feeding the media stories, it would be in a solid position, looking forward to a few more terms. Rudd never looked much beyond getting whatever thoughts were dancing around in his mind onto the front page, and Gillard just pressed the bogan slogan button from day one.

Whatever happened to thoughtful, well-researched argument anyway? In the old days, a speech by a senior government figure was full of wisdom and information. Nowadays, it's just a matter of stringing together a bunch of motherhood statements in lieu of policy and throwing in a few soundbite kicks at the other team.

If The Australian - or any other media outlet - criticises poor output from the government, then that's just standing up for standards. We pay these folk enough, devote vast slabs of our public wealth to giving them staff and offices and facilities of all kinds and the end result is more like reality TV than anything useful.