Parramatta is not western Sydney: ABC in talks to move staff to Liverpool – Sydney Morning Herald

For a community less prone to political correctness, identity politics and other inner-city woke indulgences, the best place for the ABC to locate would be the new Bradfield city near the second airport site.

Mr Latham said he hoped the ABCs move to western Sydney would be associated with employing more people who lived beyond a 10 kilometre radius of Ultimo.

ABC chairwoman Ita Buttrose said relocating staff from Ultimo to Parramatta by 2024 would make ABC coverage more relevant.Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

In June ABC chairwoman Ita Buttrose said relocating 300 staff from Ultimo to Parramatta by 2024 would improve diversity in the ABCs newsrooms and make its coverage more relevant. She also said perceptions the public broadcaster was too inner-city focused were fair.

Pointing to Western Sydney Airport and a rapidly growing CBD, Cr Hagarty said there was no more relevant place in Sydney at the moment than Liverpool.

An ABC spokesman said the ABC was open to exploring with other councils how the broadcaster could expand its coverage in their regions.

We know that the people of Liverpool are keen to see more ABC coverage of Sydneys south-west region, and our pop-up newsroom in Liverpool recently proved how successful we can be at achieving that goal, he said.

Liverpool in south-west Sydney.Credit:Wolter Peeters

Federal communications minister Paul Fletcher said decisions on property were matters for the ABC board and management: I have consistently advocated for our national broadcasters to examine relocating their facilities to western Sydney.

More diversity of people will mean more diversity of opinion amongst ABC staff and journalists, and any objective observer would agree that can only be a good thing, he said.

Christopher Brown, chairman of the Western Sydney Leadership Dialogue, said the ABC should consider other areas, besides Parramatta, to improve its engagement with western Sydney.

Loading

However, the real prize is for Liverpool and Bankstown to join with the Dialogue to ensure that the SBS head office, newsrooms and studios are shifted from monocultural Artarmon on the north shore to a new multicultural location in south-west Sydney, he said.

An SBS spokeswoman expressed scepticism about moving its headquarters from Artarmon on Sydneys north shore.

We are yet to see any proposal for moving our premises that would be cost-effective, practical, or yield more value for the Australian public, a spokeswoman said.

The Morning Edition newsletter is our guide to the days most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up here.

See the rest here:

Parramatta is not western Sydney: ABC in talks to move staff to Liverpool - Sydney Morning Herald