Event Reports

From the ACL Team

Last Saturday more than 5000 people turned out for the second annual March for the Babies to commemorate the second anniversary of the passing of Victoria’s abortion laws which allow abortion up until birth for any reason. In response to the apparent media ‘blackout’, ACL’s Victorian Director Rob Ward penned an article for the internet journal Online Opinion.

“Just because abortion is controversial and divisive, doesn’t mean journalistic standards should not apply”, Rob writes.

He begins " ...news judgements employed last weekend call in to question whether or not there is interest in striving for accuracy and balance when it comes to controversial topics such as abortion.

One must wonder this when we look at the reporting, or rather non-reporting, of the March For The Babies on Saturday, October 9, in Melbourne. Despite pre-event media notices being sent to every TV, radio and newspaper in Melbourne and the presence of a number of film crews and journalists, the event was subject to a virtual media blackout. What little reporting there was came via the published comments of opponents of the event.

Conservative estimates put the crowd at March for the Babies at more than 5,000, while a protest group representing the “pro-choice” side was between 30 and 60, the higher number coming from an ABC staffer who was present.

The Australian Associated Press news wire service, reporting from Brisbane on the small “pro-choice” rallies, appears to have relied solely on information from a “pro-choice” spokesperson and seemed unable to get anyone from the March For The Babies to comment. How hard could it have been?

AAP said March for the Babies in Melbourne attracted 400 people while the “pro-choice” demonstrators numbered 200. I was present at March for the Babies and witnessed the “pro-choice” protest. I counted around 60 but note the Herald Sun reported there were 30.

AAP was happy to have a “pro-choice” spokesperson speak on behalf of March for the Babies saying that the “cashed up pro-life movement bused people in from all over the State”.

If AAP had bothered to check, they would have found that both claims were false. Yet this was syndicated throughout the nation and picked up uncritically by several reputable news outlets including The Age."

Read the entire article>

PS: Naturally, the Life Network Australia team were at the March in Melbourne. We can verify that there were a lot more than 400 pro lifers there!

Interestingly, the Sydney Morning Herald today described pro life Australians as a ‘noisy minority’. Apparently ‘the anti abortion lobby is loud, it is organised and often it is downright offensive.’

Standing on the steps of the the Victorian parliament on Saturday looking at 5000 peaceful families and 30-odd coat-hanger waving and condom-brandishing pro-abortionists with signs saying ‘I f***ed Jesus’ and chanting through megaphones, it wasn’t hard to tell which crowd was the offensive, noisy minority.