Friends of the ABC - Who are We?

Friends of the ABC (FABC) represents the public's interest in its national public broadcaster. It is comprised of Friends of the ABC organisations from every Australian state and territory working together in a national campaign.

Friends of the ABC's objectives:

To support the maintenance and advancement of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation

• to fulfil to a high standard its role as an independent and comprehensive national public broadcaster
• to be adequately funded by government to fulfil its role;
• to remain independent of government influence, commercial sponsorship and advertising; and
• to promote Australian culture in all its diversity.

Friends of the ABC in each state and territory are independent, non-profit community organisations. They have a diverse range of members, and earn their income from membership subscriptions, public donations and fundraising activities. They receive no government funding. Most have local groups that operate in regional and some metropolitan areas.

Friends of the ABC engages in a range of activities at national, state and local levels. These include: informing the public, communicating with Members of Parliament and media, presenting submissions to government reviews and inquiries, addressing public meetings, conducting rallies and publishing newsletters.

FABC is politically unaligned. It works for the best interests of independent and comprehensive national public broadcasting, challenging governments of any political persuasion that attempt to dismantle or interfere in the ABC's independence.

FABC is critical of the actions of the present Liberal-National Coalition Government, which has slashed the ABC's funds and is seeking to undermine the broadcaster's independence. In the past, FABC has defended the ABC against attacks of both the Fraser Liberal Government and the Hawke Labor Government.

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