PHILOSOPHY CRUSADE #1 - ABC 2 (ALL SANFL FANS PLEASE ACT NOW

[Strawb]

I got the same response
Dear Mr Cole

Thank you for your email regarding repeat broadcasts of regional sports
programming on ABC2.

ABC Television has recently announced new changes for ABC2 in 2008. This
new ABC2 schedule aims to cater to wider national audiences, which means
there is less scope to include repeat regional based programming, such
as regional football (SANFL, VFL, WAFL, NTFL). However regional sports
programming will still be broadcast on ABC1 to the state/territory
audience for whom the program was intended.

Please be assured that the ABC pays careful attention to what you tell
us, whether supportive or critical. I have noted your comments and
passed these on to Television Management so that they are aware you are
disappointed with this programming decision.

Thank you for writing and providing your views, which are appreciated.

Kind regards,

Anna Lee
Audience and Consumer Affairs
http://abc.net.au/tv/abc2/

[StrayDog]

And I got this, which I must say is quite prompt - although pre-written....

Dear smac
.........
Kind regards,

Anna Lee
Audience and Consumer Affairs

....and I am sure you will all get the same one.

No doubts. Seems the response template to this topic might be getting a good workout around their office.

From the 18/03, here's the response to my query (sent nearly 5 weeks earlier), posted http://www.safooty.net/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13134&start=40. Also note the similarities to the response they gave to TroyGFC on page 2 of the same thread.



Dear .......


Thank you for your email regarding repeat broadcasts of regional sports programming on ABC2.

ABC Television has recently announced new changes for ABC2 in 2008. This new ABC2 schedule aims to cater to wider national audiences, which means there is less scope to include repeat regional based programming, such as regional football (SANFL, VFL, WAFL, NTFL). However regional sports programming will still be broadcast on ABC1, to the state/territory audience for whom the program was intended.

Please be assured that the ABC pays careful attention to what you tell us, whether supportive or critical. I have noted your comments and passed these on to Television Management so that they are aware you are disappointed with this programming decision.

Thank you for writing and providing your views, which are appreciated.

Yours sincerely

Parker Bourke
ABC Audience and Consumer Affairs

[Sandy]

Like everybody else, I have received the "standard form letter response" too. I have now submitted another one via this email link. My first letter I actually sent to the ABC, plus the Members of Parliament both Federal (including the Shadow Ministers for the two portfolios concerned - Department of Sport & Department of Broadband) and my local member. I received a reply back from the ABC with the standard response. However, the only MP that got back to me was my local member. Her press secretary rang me on Tuesday to see if I had heard anything from the ABC to which I said I had & I read the standard reply to him. He had tried getting in touch with the ABC & to date had not heard anything at all. All we can do now is keeping sending letters to the ABC & make them heartily sick of hearing from us & reverse their decision in time before the SANFL season commences.

[MagicKiwi]

Done.

[mr o]

done

[Pseudo]

does anybody here read the VFL/WAFL fan forums? Might be worth repeating Phil's post on those boards too.

[Big Phil]

I just gave it to them as well...

What a bloody pathetic excuse...

They have a stupid 'next day' with crappy music for most of the late night coverage. How hard is it, with todays technology to broadcast these games GOD DAMN IT !!!

GO U DOGGIES...

Big Phil...

[zipzap]

done

[doggies4eva]

done

[Dutchy]

Phil....Wonder if the SANFL could put the broadcast game on their website for viewing and/or downloading during the week (like they did their highlights package last year), this would not only appease interstate fans but Im sure a few overseas as well!...would be good to see the SANFL get on the front foot here...

[purch]

Sounds like a case of plagiarism. Time for Media Watch to get involved??

[PhilH]

THANKS TO THOSE WHO SENT AN E-MAIL

FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T AS YET PLEASE GO TO THIS SITE AND TAKE FIVE MINUTES
TO HELP MAINTAIN THE MEDIA PROFILE OF THE SANFL.


FOR THOSE WHO HAVE NOW RECEIVED A STOCK STANDARD REPLY
CAN I SUGGEST A STAGE TWO FOLLOW UP. (Click reply on your e-mail)

HERE IS MINE AS AN EXAMPLE........

Dear Anna

Thank you for your reply.

It requires some follow up response.

1) To label the SANFL as "regional sport" for mine is rather demeaning
The SANFL is the longest running football league in Australia commencing in 1877.
For over 130 years it has produced some of South Australia's greatest sporting stars and finest sporting moments.
In terms of publicity, attendances and media coverage it is not only the best football competition outside of the AFL it is also clearly the best state sporting competition. That's ANY SPORT in ANY STATE.

You terminology suggests it some some social parkland style competition.
The SANFL if far from that as the ground and TV audiences attest to.
How many NATIONAL sports get over 300,000 its its games over the season including 30,000 to its grand final?



2) My e-mail asked some specific questions. Many of them were not answered in your reply.

I appreciate that you are probably being bombarded with many complaints on this and thus have developed a standard reply on the general subject. However given I have been specific in my questions I would appreciate some specific answers.

In particular I and I am sure many others want to know how we are able to watch state league football in the states we do not live in. This was a service many people appreciated and as you are probably finding out not happy about it being taken away from us, especially after two years of regular advertising.

If you are not in a position to answer the specific issues raised please pass onto someone who can.


Kind Regards

Phil Herden

[PhilH]

BTW

I just checked the ABC 2 guide for next week to see what was so national, so good that the state leagues had to go.


Question --- Bar Tuesday Night guess what is replacing the late night state leagues?


Answer --- The end of night Test Pattern !!!


As KG would say unbelieveable.

[Wedgie]

I think we're being a bit harsh on test pattern, its not a bad show, better than most of the stuff on FTA.

PS Nasty complaint sent.

[cd]

Personal Post Only

I'm up to my third email over 4 weeks - so far have received one standard reply.
I am also sending copies of the sent emails and replies to the pollies.
I have then rung the pollies office to ask if they have got my emails and what they are doing about it and when will i know their results.

The noisy wheel gets oiled - The lady at the pollies's office now knows me and as said yesterday to me 'you arent giving up are you' my response was 'no i want my local member to represent me and i'll be continuing to hassle him as well as the ABC til i get a change or at least an answer that makes sense"

If we want results we must continue to hassle all concerned.

Col D

[SimonH]

This personalised response sent to me way back on 22 Feb in response to a follow-up email of mine pointing out the nonsensical nature of the original justification given.

"Dear Mr Healy

Thank you for your further email regarding regional football replays on
ABC2.

You are correct in your observation that the reworked ABC2 schedule of
themed nights, would not interfere with regional football replays shown
at other times. I am sorry that my inclusion of this information about
the themed nights somewhat muddied the main issue, which is the new
direction which ABC2 is taking in 2008.

The focus of the new ABC2 schedule is to cater to a wider national
audience, which means that ABC2 is looking to schedule more national
programming and not State/Regional based programming, such as
"Stateline" or "NTFL".

I have been advised by the ABC2 Programmer that at this time ABC2 in
unable to support a 24 hour broadcast of high quality Australian and
overseas programs, however it is our aim to provide a 24 hour schedule
sometime in the future although a date has not been set at this time.

You may not be aware that holding broadcast rights for programming does
not always allow for the it to be broadcast in any format, caveats can
apply. For instance, the ABC may have the broadcast rights to screen
music video clips on "rage", but we are not able to provide these as
downloads, or sell them to the public. Nevertheless, it is the aim of
the ABC to provide our audience with more quality programming as either
video on demand or downloads, and sport is one of the genres which is
being discussed.

Please be assured that I have noted your further comments on this issue
and passed these on to ABC2 Programming and Television Management so
that they are aware of your disappointment with the decision to shift
focus to national programming on ABC2.

Thank you for your interest in the ABC.

Kind regards,

Anna Lee
Audience and Consumer Affairs
http://abc.net.au/tv/abc2/"

All of us interstate SANFL fans really appreciate Adelaide-based complainants going in to bat for us. It should only take a quiet word from a politician or other person in power to get this silly decision reversed-- we aren't fighting against any other show being broadcast at 11:30pm Tuesday. We're fighting against test pattern. While the ABC refuses to make a program that it spends public money on, available to 90% of the Australian population, where the extra cost of making it available is near enough to zero.

Thanks again,
Simon.

[am Bays]

Done: whats scary though is this:

Section 1 c - Functions of the Corporation:

(c) to encourage and promote the musical, dramatic and other performing arts in Australia.

Farg Me, where is sport? Givent he national obesity epidemic surely broadcasting program content that encourages physical activity like sport should be part of the Charter of the ABC.

[Wedgie]

Done: whats scary though is this:

Section 1 c - Functions of the Corporation:

(c) to encourage and promote the musical, dramatic and other performing arts in Australia.

Farg Me, where is sport? Givent he national obesity epidemic surely broadcasting program content that encourages physical activity like sport should be part of the Charter of the ABC.

Perhaps the SANFL clubs should play like the Power as that way we'd get a gig under the arts as its comedy gold.

[bayman]

i just sent mine with direct questions & statements, will get back to you in 4 weeks as it said it'll take 4 weeks to get back to you


phil, when your on radiotab make a point of it then qld & the nt will know as well

[bundy]

I have sent mine,and will continue to hassle them.