ABC apologises over ‘incomplete’ Alice Springs crisis meeting coverage

The ABC has apologised after sparking backlash over its coverage of an Alice Springs crisis meeting that was described as a ‘white supremacist fest’.

The public broadcaster issued a grovelling apology admitting it provided ‘incomplete’ coverage of the Save Alice Springs meeting held on Monday.

Some 3,000 terrified locals had turned up to discuss their concerns over the out-of-control youth crime wave spreading throughout their community.

The ABC was accused of bias after interviewing people who slammed the meeting as ‘racist’ with one labelling it ‘scary’ and a ‘white supremacist fest’ in spite of the fact Indigenous leaders were also present at the gathering.

The public broadcaster issued a grovelling apology admitting it provided ‘incomplete’ coverage of the Save Alice Springs meeting held on Monday

The public broadcaster faced the threat of an official investigation over its coverage that was aired on its flagship current affairs show AM and in another TV report.

The ABC released a statement on Saturday apologising to its audience. 

‘We acknowledge that one report on AM was incomplete, and did not adequately cover the full context of the meeting or the range of perspectives expressed at it,’ it read.

‘ABC News apologises to audiences for providing an incomplete picture of the event in this instance.’

The public broadcaster went on to say it had ‘reportedly accurately’ on the views of ‘some people who attended the community meeting’.

‘However, this report should have included a broader range of perspectives expressed at the meeting and further information about what was discussed, to provide additional context,’ the statement read.

‘Following this report, ABC News published additional coverage of the issue which included a broader range of perspectives and context.’

The ABC stood behind its journalists saying it had extensively covered the ongoing issues of substance abuse and public violence in the area.

ABC Indigenous Affairs correspondent Carly Williams’ live cross on TV of the meeting said many people had left the meeting early and that ‘a non-indigenous person’ had described the meeting as ‘a disgusting display of white supremacy’

The AM report of the crisis meeting is still available online but comes with an Editor’s Note.

Liberal senator Sarah Henderson, who is a former ABC employee, filed a complaint about two reports the ABC filed about a crime meeting to the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

Senator Henderson called the report ‘monumentally distorted’, and slammed ABC management defending the reporting as ‘complete and utter rubbish’.

The senator, who once worked as a consumer reporter on the ABC and once presented 7.30 in Victoria, described the broadcaster’s coverage as ‘rubbish reporting’.

But she said the the report highlighted a deeper issue with the taxpayer funded broadcaster, which is supposed to be free from bias under its charter.

‘The ABC’s senior management and spin doctors have defended this report,’ she said.

Liberal senator Sarah Henderson, who is a former ABC employee, filed a complaint about two reports the ABC filed about a crime meeting to the Australian Communications and Media Authority

‘There should be a retraction, and an apology, and a review of journalism training standards.

‘I’m asking ACMA to investigate the ABC for a breach of its code of practice.’

Thousands of fed-up residents attended the Save Alice Springs meeting after intense media focus on the town’s battle with a crime crisis, amid threats by locals to sue the Northern Territory government for $1.5billion in compensation.

The audience at the town hall meeting was comprised of concerned families, business owners, Indigenous leaders, health and emergency services workers and police. 

ABC Indigenous Affairs correspondent Carly Williams’ live cross on TV of the meeting said many people had left the meeting early and that ‘a non-indigenous person’ had described the meeting as ‘a disgusting display of white supremacy’.