The dinner, at the Subiaco Hotel, was held to mark 30 years since our WA branch of ABC Friends was formally created. There were WA supporters active with East Coast Friends before, but little evidence remains. Our inaugural AGM was held at the ABC on Sunday 18 September 1996. The group, headed by Mark Brook, had been busy building support for the ABC.
Beth Schultz, now a well-known activist for forests, was at the inaugural AGM and said a few words. She remembers her father listening to the war news on the ABC – Beth turned 90 in May – and her mother listening to Blue Hills. She was an Argonaut. She had a close association with ABC Science journalist Peter Hunt in the 1980s. He wrote a number of articles on forests, but died in 1992. Beth’s husband Phillip accompanied her to the dinner. They had met as students in Paris, and married there.
After the entrées had been served, ABC journalist Charlotte Hamlyn told us about how her career has developed. Now, with two young sons at home, Charlotte presents the 7 pm WA TV News on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights. Her career began with a newspaper cadetship in regional Western Australia and has seen her travel to some of the remote corners of the country and overseas with the ABC program Foreign Correspondent. She has worked across radio, television and online, and won multiple awards. She was born in Kalgoorlie but moved to Perth as a child. Returning to Kal as a young journo was a very different experience!
WA President Cathy Bardon had mentioned that the Committee has started a scholarship award to an impressive journalism student of $2000. All universities in WA were notified of this award, and we have received some applications already. Charlotte referred to this as a great initiative, as she thinks it would be hard to encourage students to do journalism in this time of misinformation, disinformation and declining job opportunities.
Senator Fatima Payman, who attended with her chief of staff, asked Charlotte about how the ABC distinguishes misinformation and disinformation from the truth. Charlotte said it was through painstaking checking and verification. This is, of course, why the ABC is important, not least of all, due to the processes it goes through for verification of stories, but also because it is free and accessible to all in Australia. ABC Friends exists to support the ABC.