Response by Federal Senator Margaret Reid on violence and the media
5 June 1998
Dear Mr Tidswell
I refer to your January 7 letter to me concerning violence in the media and apologise for the time it has taken to reply to you.
I read your letter and the enclosed Australian Shooters Journal article with interest. Certainly the points raised in this article are disturbing and all causes of the rise of violence in Australia need to be addressed.
The Government has taken action to address public concerns about violence in the media. In May 1996, the Minister for Communications, the Information Economy and the Arts, Senator the Hon Richard Alston, chaired a Ministerial Committee formed by the Government to inquire into the portrayal of violence in the electronic media.
After considerable research and meetings the Committee made recommendations to the Government on a range of ways to tighten controls on media violence. These recommendations are currently being implemented or have already been implemented by several Commonwealth and State departments and authorities as well as industry bodies.
The Committee also decided to put in place measures to ensure that the wide range of issues raised in the 650 submissions they received can be further pursued, and that there is a means of the on-going monitoring of public concerns.
Yours sincerely
(signed)
Margaret Reid
Senator for the ACT
Copy held SSAA National
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