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ABC apologises over Ms. Represented

Episode was in breach of ABC editorial standard, and leads to an apology to former senator Cory Bernardi.

ABC has apologised to former senator Cory Bernardi over claims made in episode 2 of Ms. Represented, presented by Annabel Crabb.

The episode which screened on 20 July 2021 included allegations by Senator Sarah Hanson-Young about the conduct of then Cory Bernardi in Parliament on the night of 4 December 2014.

Senator Hanson-Young alleged that Bernardi moved closer to her during the parliamentary proceedings and whispered to her nursery rhymes and inappropriate personal remarks and suggested he may have been inebriated at the time.

Cory Bernardi subsequently strongly rejected the allegations, publicly and in correspondence with the ABC, describing them as “misleading and false”.

He stated: “1. The suggestion I was whispering nursery rhymes to Hanson-Young is a total fabrication. 2. There is no evidence, except the smear from Hanson-Young, that I was inebriated. 3. There was no party I attended that evening. The majority of the evening was spent in the Senate coalition ante-room waiting for divisions. 4. Moving seats in the chamber is a product of voting in divisions and it is not unusual to remain in the chamber to listen to debate and/or liaise with colleagues. This is not ‘creepy stalking’ as your program suggested. 5. There is no evidence that I made any statements in respect to Hanson-Young’s personal life”.

The ABC yesterday published a correction acknowledging that it did not provide Cory Bernardi with a fair opportunity to respond to the allegations prior to broadcast, which was in breach of ABC editorial standard 5.3.

The ABC has apologised to Cory Bernardi for failing to do so and added his strong denial of the allegations to the program.

He told The Australian he didn’t want to comment whilst he is seeking advice.

4 Responses

  1. … unfortunately it’s not only ex conservative politicians who are finding the ABC to be “misleading and false” … the continued practice of blocking or hiding comments on the ABC News Facebook page in order to present only views that accord with particular sections of the news department’s own view has become almost an epidemic … it is truly sad that an organisation that used to command respect from all Australians should have sunk so far … FWIW I have actually raised this matter with the ACMA and while their response is understandable given the legislative position they find themselves in, it does result in the news department’s ability to do what they like without fear of consequences … the response was “While we appreciate you bringing this matter to our attention and note your concern, the ACMA has a relatively limited oversight role in relation to the ABC and no jurisdiction over the ABC’s social media content.”

  2. The problem with these sorts of things is that it comes down to a “he said, she said” type of thing.

    It seems to me that most of the stories that have come out in recent times have all been in situations where there are no credible witnesses to back up the claims of either person inovolved in the exhange/discussion/event etc. But then, who would be silly enough to have witnesses around when you wanted to do something inappropriate? Thus perpetrators are on safe ground knowing they will get away with it as it cannot be proved beyond reasonable doubt. It beats me why people risk all by going on national TV to expose this sort of behaviour knowing full well they cannot win the battle.

    It makes me angry every time I read a story of someone abusing their power in this way, but how do we fix the problem?

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