Key Points
- ABC managing director David Anderson has apologised to employees who experienced racism at the broadcaster.
- Responses from staff during an independent review “overwhelmingly indicate that racism exists” in the ABC workplace.
- Anderson says the ABC has committed to implementing all 15 of the review’s recommendation.
ABC managing director David Anderson has apologised to current and former staff who have experienced racism at the broadcaster, following the release of an independent review into its complaints systems and processes for supporting employees.
The review Listen Loudly, Act Strongly was announced by Anderson in May 2023 and led by Indigenous lawyer Dr Terri Janke, a Wuthati, Yadhaighana and Meriam woman.
The review was commissioned in response to calls from senior ABC Indigenous staff and the ABC Bonner Committee, who advise the managing director on Indigenous matters.
In 2023, Wiradjuri journalist Stan Grant announced his departure from the ABC’s Q+A program in response to racist comments and threats he received following the broadcaster’s coronation coverage.
Grant said at the time that no ABC producers or executives had refuted what was written about him, calling it an “institutional failure”.
Anderson later apologised to Grant, saying he “always had our full support” and “makes an enormous contribution to conversations of national importance”.
David Anderson’s apology
In a statement to ABC staff, Anderson apologised for “any and all racist behaviour and past harms experienced by our Indigenous and CALD employees, either currently or formerly employed”.
“We all need to do better for our colleagues on our commitment to zero tolerance for racism in our workplace,” he said.
The review involved interviews with 120 current and former ABC staff to hear their perspectives and said their responses “overwhelmingly indicate that racism exists within the ABC workplace and that ABC staff are subjected to racism from external individuals and organisations in connection with their work”.
The review made 15 recommendations to improve the ABC’s systems around racism, including requiring ABC’s board, managing director, senior leadership and staff to read the review in full, recommending that the ABC becomes “pro-actively anti-racist” and improve its responses to public attacks.
Anderson has committed to implementing all the recommendations made in the review.
In a statement published on Tuesday, the ABC committed to launching an internal campaign to “raise awareness of racism and discrimination and to make it easier for staff to report instances of racism and discrimination”.
ABC said it would begin specific anti-racism training with staff in addition to its current anti-bullying and harassment training.
The broadcaster has also created a new role on its leadership team, the director of First Nations strategy, to implement these changes. The ABC’s current head of Indigenous, Diversity and Inclusion, Kelly Williams, has been asked to step into the role before a recruitment process begins.
Dan Bouchier, chair of the Bonner Committee, applauded the ABC’s commitment to implementing the review’s recommendations and said: “Australian people expect more from the ABC to ensure it remains the important institution it is.”
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