The ACMA has today released a consultation paper seeking feedback on a ‘news measurement framework’ to monitor levels of diversity across Australia’s contemporary media landscape.
The proposed framework was initially outlined in an ACMA 2020 research paper, and was developed in collaboration with leading experts. In late 2022, the Minister for Communications asked the ACMA to proceed with scoping the potential implementation of this work.
The ACMA is now seeking views from relevant stakeholders including media companies, digital news and social media platforms, government bodies, academia and consumers on the suitability of our proposed framework. The consultation period will be open until 18 March 2023.
We will also be hosting industry and subject-matter expert roundtables during this period to explore these issues in greater detail.
In addition to providing a better understanding of media diversity, this work will also build on existing tools and research to measure local news availability across Australia and identify possible areas of concern.
This project will contribute towards the government’s objective to build a robust evidence base to inform longer term news media policy interventions as part of its News Media Assistance Program (News MAP).