The ABC withdrew its China correspondent,Bill Birtles,in 2020 after he was informed he was a person of interest in a national security case. Birtles was one of the last journalists working for Australian media organisations in China.
The ABC previously operated The Australia Network,which broadcast its content into 46 countries across the region including Papua New Guinea and Indonesia. But the service was shut down in 2014 following budget cuts by the then Abbott government,a move critics say has hurt Australia’ soft diplomacy power in the Pacific. The ABC has continued to run an international TV service in the region.
The federal government has invested significant amounts of money into communications services in the region. It struck a $1.9 billion deal with telecoms giant Telstra to buySouth Pacific operator Digicel in October. In 2020,it signedmulti-million dollar deals with commercial TV networks Nine Entertainment Co (owner of this masthead),Seven West Media and Network Ten to broadcast live sport and entertainment programs.
Until recently,the ABC’s investment in the area was poor. The ABC switched off its shortwave transmissions to remote parts of northern Australia and across the Pacific in January 2017 following a series of budget cuts and funding freezes.
The ABC insisted at the time the shortwave technology was outdated and it would save $1.9 million by cutting the service,which would be reinvested in expanding content and services. A Chinese station has since taken over some frequencies once used by the national broadcaster.