Australians have been adding their names at a rate of one signature every five seconds to a petition seeking increased funding for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The petition will be presented to federal Cabinet next week ahead of a Budget Committee meeting that will consider the next triennial funding allotment for the national public broadcaster. Some 20,000 signatures were added in the first 24 hours after the petition went online. The petition is still gathering signatures at an astonishing rate.

The petition, organised by www.getup.org.au with the support of the Alliance, demonstrates the concern that the ABC’s owners, the Australian public, have for their broadcaster’s lack of proper funding over the past decade.

The Government recently received the KPMG report into the ABC’s funding position. The report acknowledges that the ABC is efficient in the use of its funds, but has a dire need for more funding. The ABC’s budget has declined by about 25% in real terms over the past 20 years – worth $264 million. Out of 17 OECD countries, Australia spends the second least on its public broadcaster.

Despite this, the ABC provides two television stations, four national and 60 local radio stations, two digital radio stations, ABC Online and Radio Australia - all of these public broadcasting activities on a budget about two-thirds of the average Australian commercial television network.

Last week The Bulletin said that based on 2003-04 numbers the ABC’s annual budget for television alone ($400 million) is less than a third of Nine’s $1.3 billion, 40% of Seven’s $1 billion and 58% of Ten’s $686 million.

The strain on the ABC is apparent to all. In the past four years, the ABC’s development of first-run Australian drama has plunged from 103 hours a year, to a mere 13 hours. Without adequate funding, this number will slide further.

“The ABC is a vital part of the media mix in Australia, particularly if proposals in the Government’s discussion paper on media in a digital age go ahead,” says Alliance federal secretary Chris Warren. “The discussion paper’s abandonment of cross media and foreign ownership restriction will seriously undermine media diversity in Australia.”

“The ABC is an invaluable training ground for Australian journalists, performers and crew. If the ABC is to continue its role as an innovator and stalwart of relevant, high quality media content it must be properly funded,” Warren said.

“The Government is sitting on a $14 billion surplus. An increase in funding to allow the ABC to continue its cherished role as Australia’s public broadcaster is unquestionably essential and the support for this petition shows the Australian public’s desire for a better resourced and more vibrant public broadcaster,” he said.