This special edition of Pacific Journalism Review publishes a selection of the papers presented at the Public Right to Know (PR2K) Conference in Sydney in October 2003. The annual PR2K conferences are a project of the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism (ACIJ) at the University of Technology, Sydney. The 2003 conference was the third in the series

Nash, Chris

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Pacific Journalism Review (Pacific Media Centre, School of Communication Studies, Auckland University of Technology)

 6  PACIFIC JOURNALISM REVIEW 10 (1) 2004Editorial The republican factorTHIS SPECIAL edition of Pacific Journalism Review publishes aselection of the papers presented  at the Public Right to Know (PR2K)Conference in Sydney in October 2003.  The annual PR2K conferencesare a project of the Australian Centre for Independent Journalism (ACIJ) at theUniversity of Technology, Sydney. The 2003 conference was the third in theseries.The PR2K project is both wide-ranging and focussed: wide-ranging in thatthere are no limits placed on the  professional or disciplinary background of thecontributions from academic, professional and public participants, and focussedin that the project anticipates a renewed attempt to establish Australia as arepublic in the not-too-distant future, where the question arises of whether ornot a Republic of Australia should have a Bill of Rights, with clauses dealingwith the various dimensions of the public right to know. Opinion pollsconsistently report that two-thirds of Australians support the transition to arepublic of some sort.  The Leader of the Labor Opposition, Mark Latham,announced in April 2004 that he would launch a series of referenda on the issuein his first term of office as Prime Minister, which might possibly commenceafter the national election likely to be held later this year. A plebiscite in thefirst year would ask voters whether they want a republic. A ‘yes’ vote wouldtrigger a second plebiscite one year later to determine the republican model,which would then be put to a referendum at the 2007 federal election.So the republican bandwagon may creak back into motion sooner ratherthan later.  Latham favours a minimalist approach to constitutional change, andhas rejected calls for a fully elected constitutional convention to determine thenature and extent of constitutional change. However, Australia is one of ahandful of countries in the world that does not include a Bill of Rights in itsconstitution or legislation at either the national or state level (although theAustralian Capital Territory House of Assembly did enact a statutory Bill ofRights in 2003). It is likely that there would be calls and perhaps a campaignPACIFIC JOURNALISM REVIEW 10 (1) 2004 7THE PUBLIC RIGHT TO KNOWfrom a range of community interests to enact or entrench a Bill of Rights at thetime of the referenda. It is imperative in the lead-up to such a campaign anddiscussion that the advantages and disadvantages of a range of statutory andconstitutional models be explored. The PR2K project aims to explore theseissues with respect to the various rights associated with the Public Right toKnow, including freedoms of the press, expression and assembly, and rightsto privacy and information.New Zealand and some Pacific island nations have had experience withBills of Rights, and a critical elaboration and discussion of this experiencewould undoubtedly be valuable for the Australian republican debate. For thatreason, the ACIJ is grateful to Auckland University of Technology’s PacificJournalism Review for this special edition of the 2003 PR2K papers. Itprovides an opportunity to make direct contact with scholarly, professionaland general communities that could make a strong contribution to the Austral-ian discussion.  In return, hopefully a republican Australia with an enhancedPublic Right to Know ethos will provide another bulwark for democraticdeliberation and development in the Pacific region.At the time of the 2003 conference, the potential for an early resurgenceof republican ism looked rather dimmer. Consequently, the articles in thisedition are more wide-ranging and less focussed on the constitutional dimen-sion, although the legal field of contestation over rights to know is wellcovered: David Robie examines two cases involving media regulation in theSouth Pacific – Fiji and Tonga, Patrick Keyzer examines the clash betweenindigenous land rights and freedom of the press, and Mark Pearson mapssome changes in thinking on the Australian High Court about press freedomsince Justice Ian Callinan was appointed to the court. Rosslyn Reed explorescontemporary contests in the public right to know about science, while in arelated area James Arvanitakis examines the concept of a cultural commons,and the stand-off between intellect and intellectual property. Sue CurryJansen and  Brian Martin argue that ‘backfire dynamics’ can have a tacticalimpact on free speech conflicts when attempts at suppression and censorshipgo wrong.The ravages of international conflict, and their resonance on nationalpolitical debates, continue to raise issues in media representation and commu-nication. Mary Quilty and Jo Gow look at the difficulties of mountingadvocacy campaigns on behalf of detained asylum seekers when they areisolated both physically and from communication, while Annabelle Lukin,THE PUBLIC RIGHT TO KNOW 8  PACIFIC JOURNALISM REVIEW 10 (1) 2004David Butt and Chistian Matthiessen present a detailed dissection of the‘grammar of war’ in media coverage of the war in Iraq. Marcus O’Donnellcontinues the textual theme with an analysis of press reports of the gaymarriage debate, while Alan Knight adds an historical dimension with areprise and analysis of the radical press in Queensland in 1968, a year ofinternational student and social activism.In one of two commentaries from PR2K, Quentin Dempster focusses onhow the ABC’s role as Australia’s public broadcaster is being further erodedwhile Andrew Hewett examines a concerted establishment campaign againstNGOs and charities.Among other PJR commentaries in this edition, Steven Price critiques theNew Zealand media coverage of the war on terrorism, in particular thedetention without charge of Algerian theologian and politician Ahmed Zaoui,and Frank Sligo analyses NZ’s journalism unit standards in the context of adebate about academic staffing at media schools. Ben Bohane provides anobituary for the remarkable Pacific film-maker and journalist Mark Worth,whose documentary on  Papua, Land of the Morning Star, was broadcast by theABC shortly after his death, and Jon Stephenson offers a tribute to one of NewZealand’s finest investigative journalists and publishers, Warren Berryman.In the forum section, David Venables, outgoing president of the Journal-ism Education Association of NZ (Jeanz), poses some challenges to hiscolleagues and Tupeni L. Baba discusses ‘embedded journalists’ in thecontext of George Speight’s attempted coup in Fiji in May 2000.Thanks to David Robie and Fran Molloy for a brisk and efficient publica-tion schedule for these articles.Associate Professor Chris NashDirector,  Australian Centre for Independent JournalismC.Nash@uts.edu.auSelections of papers from the previous PRK2 conferences were also published:2001 conference: Drawing Board ( 2002):www.econ.usyd.edu.au/drawingboard/journal/0203/intro.html2002 conference: UTS Law Review (2003)www.austlii.edu.au/au/journals/UTSLR/1.htmlThe call for papers of the 2004 Conference is available at:acij.uts.edu.au/pr2k/call.html

EDITORIAL: The republican factor

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EDITORIAL: The republican factor

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Pacific Journalism Review (Pacific Media Centre, School of Communication Studies, Auckland University of Technology)