BY PAUL THOMAS, STAR NEWS GROUP MANAGING DIRECTOR
This week I witnessed firsthand the power of the Murdoch-owned News Corp over Geelong businesses.
As an owner of one of the properties involved in the new Moorabool St building development, which will have GMHBA as a major tenant, I was long aware of the prospective development but ethically confined to confidentiality until the appropriate time.
Of course, also as an owner and publisher of Geelong’s only other newspaper, the Geelong Indy, I wanted the Indy to have at least equal opportunity to report the announcement at the same time as any other media.
The developer preferred the Financial Review but, apparently like so many Geelong businesses and others in Australia, GMHBA had a “deal“ to give the story to the locally owned Murdoch newspaper exclusively.
Apparently the deal was sealed to stop any potential negative publicity, and no doubt not just locally but due to the wider Murdoch press machine.
When discussing it with GMHBA corporate affairs manager Holly Williams, she said the deal was done some time ago.
It’s the same with government.
The ALP State Government routinely provides Geelong’s Murdoch-owned paper with stories exclusively. However, leading up to the election, and knowing that the government’s desired audience was the Indy’s readership, the government used the Indy significantly for advertising while trying to have it to run the party’s election campaign stories.
I’ve personally raised this exclusive arrangement with Premier Daniel Andrews and with his staff but they don’t provide answers.
Anyone could surmise only that the arrangement is not about readership but fear of wider ramifications from the Murdoch machine.
Our small, independent newspaper group doesn’t have the Murdoch machine’s ability or the desire to sensationalise the same negative agendas.
This week’s confirmation by Fairfax shareholders for a Nine takeover will only further concentrate power, reducing democracy and the voice of the community.
Businesses in Geelong need to stand up or will be forever beholden to the threats of negative publicity and the power of just a few in Australia’s media.
