The Committee considers the broadcasting of news and current affairs the single most important service provided by government-funded national broadcasters. The importance of independent, comprehensive coverage of news and current affairs was also a major finding of the 1996 Mansfield Review of the ABC.
The ABC's 1997/98 Financial Reports indicate that News and Current Affairs comprises one quarter of the ABC's total operating expenses.
In this important service, the Committee has identified two related problems:-
