Vote Compass - Letter to the ABC

Posted by 5sc on April 27, 2022

Letter from Zali Steggall to David Anderson re ABC Vote Compass 2022 and exclusion of Independent Condidates

26 April 2022

Mr David Anderson
Managing Director
Australian Broadcasting Corporation ABC Ultimo Centre
700 Harris Street
Ultimo NSW 2007
(GPO Box 9994
Sydney NSW 2001)

Re: ABC Vote Compass 2022 and exclusion of Independent candidates

Dear David,

I write to express concern that ABC Vote Compass 2022 is highly misleading to the ABC audience living in Warringah, with the survey providing no option to ‘vote’ for me as the sitting Independent member.

According to Antony Green’s 2022 Federal Electoral Pendulum, I currently hold the seat of Warringah with a margin of 7.2 percent, and yet on Vote Compass none of my constituents will be able to indicate their intention to vote for me as the survey currently stands. This is problem that extends beyond Warringah, with Independents running in almost every seat around the country.

I also note that in the policy section of the survey there is no question about a federal integrity commission, which is a central plank of my policy platform and a key issue at this election.

According to the ABC’s Editorial Policies relating to Accuracy and Impartiality, it has a statutory duty “to ensure that the gathering and presentation of news and information is accurate” and that “no significant strand of thought or belief within the community is knowingly excluded or disproportionately represented”. I believe the Vote Compass 2022 survey currently breaches these duties, and respectfully call on you to rectify it accordingly.

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