Insiders fails to analyse its analysis!

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The ABC 'Insiders' had Fran Kelly as its anchor this morning and got off to a bad start with an interview of Foreign Minister Carr in China. It was an embarrassment to viewers to have a senior ABC journalist asking questions that clearly were inappropriate for a Minister whilst overseas and was a feeble attempt to draw Carr to comment on local commentary. Fortunately Carr pulled her back into line something more politicians should do with such questioning. Leigh Sales of 7.30 infamy got a serve from Tony Windsor some time back when she attempted to draw him into commenting on the guilt or otherwise of MP Thompson. Typically Sales and Kelly seek a headline that can be relayed through other media outlets. 

The monthly Poll of Polls by Andrew Catsaras  followed this inappropriate start to the program with an analysis of recent election polls with a poll on 'Who do we trust?' Journalists ranked very low as indeed does the Government. It is a pity that the journalists present were not asked to comment on their low standing as they are certainly  quick to pontificate on the Government's!   

And finally can we have less opinion and more analysis. The commentary today was self indulgent rather than analytical. Is it any wonder that the journalists rate so low!

Fire up

Abbott prefers to put out fires than prevent them!

The media coverage of him as a fire fighter are opportunistic as Greg Sturges writes in a letter to The Age today. 'Abbott will do anything to advance himself. How cynical'. It is hardly a coincidence that the media pack are present when Tony takes on the fires but the same pack fails to question him as to the cause of extreme weather related events and increased fire intensity and frequency. Or is the National Party Leader's comments that there has always been 'hot and cold' in Australia, indicative of a Coalition Government's response to climate change.

 

And it takes Monbiot (The Guardian) to call it as it is and to identify that in Australia climate change 'clashes with the myth of a land where progress is limited only by the rate at which resources can be extracted'. Abbott's response he says is limited to "Our thoughts are with the people and the communities across the country who are impacted by the bushfires." 'Quite right too' says Monbiot, 'but it's time his thoughts also extended to the question of why this is happening and how Australian politicians should respond. He says he's currently on standby with his local fire brigade,  but as his opposition to effective action on climate change is likely to contribute to even more extreme events in the future, this looks like the most cynical kind of stunt politics'.