Antisemitism envoy proposes ‘external ombudsman’ to monitor ABC and SBS coverage of Israel and Middle East

The federal government’s anti-semitism envoy has proposed an “external independent ombudsman” to monitor ABC and SBS coverage of the war in Gaza, as well as codes for arts organisations to limit “personal political or ideological activism”.

In an updated plan released on Friday, Jillian Segal said Australia’s two public broadcasters should be subjected to greater oversight.

“Given the extent and seriousness of concerns about subjective, inaccurate and disproportionate reporting in accordance with its own standards, it would be in the public interest for the public broadcasters’ coverage and approach to be the subject of more detailed analysis and independent review,” Segal wrote in the new ASECA Priorities plan.

It suggests a government-appointed panel review the public broadcasters’ previous reporting and states the government should consider “transferring” responsibilities from the ABC and SBS ombudsmen. Those powers would be transferred to an “external independent ombudsman consistent with other sectors such as telecommunications and banking”.

“Many in the Jewish community remain concerned that coverage they perceive as one-directional may contribute to a negative – and even hostile – view by audiences of those who support Israel, or have sympathy for it,” Segal writes.

“Jewish Australians have reported being abused, harassed and accused of being ‘baby killers’ or supporters of ‘genocide’ simply for their belief in the right of Israel to exist.

“That perception of a link between coverage and hostility is itself a matter of public importance.”

Segal said she had received “many expressions of concern from the Australian Jewish community” about ABC and SBS reporting that was perceived to be “disproportionate, misleading or inaccurate on issues relating to Israel and the conflict in the Middle East”.

The special envoy to combat antisemitism’s initial plan, released in mid-2025, said the envoy would “work with the publicly funded broadcasters to encourage them to develop programs that add to social cohesion”.

Segal then told the royal commission into antisemtism in mid-2026 she wanted a new “oversight” committee that could give ABC and SBS coverage a “tick” or “guidance”.

The broadcasters rejected calls for external oversight.

The royal commission was established in response to the Bondi beach massacre in December when 15 people were killed during a Hanukah celebration.

Segal appeared before Senate estimates this week, telling senators she held concerns about “the tone [and] the frequency of reporting about Gaza from the ABC”.

Friday’s report argues publicly funded arts organisations should be able to impose “enforceable conditions” on artists and terminate grants if they promoted antisemitism.

Segal states that all arts organisations – private and public – should develop policies to govern the use of their venues, festivals, and stages “or artists’ personal political or ideological activism outside the scope of the advertised show, performance or exhibition”.

Similarly for universities, the envoy’s updated plan proposes allowing grant authorities to impose enforceable conditions on academics, allowing “for the termination of grant funding … where the recipient engages in antisemitic speech or conduct”.

Segal said the proposals outlined in the plan were “not about silencing criticism of Israel”.

The report argues that “modern ‘progressive’ antisemitism” was the most pervasive form of the prejudice in Australia today.

“It takes the hostility of Islamic extremism and far-left antisemitism, together with traditional antisemitic tropes, and gives it a respectable face through the language of social justice and human rights”.

Segal said Islamic extremism, far-left and far-right antisemitism were still prevalent “and they require vigilance and laws that are properly enforced”.

“But the form that is leaving Jewish Australians increasingly anxious and excluded is the one that has taken root in influential institutions, where Jewish Australians are being discriminated against, blamed and vilified for the actions of the government of the state of Israel.”

The release of the envoy’s updated plan comes two days after Segal appeared at Senate estimates.

She defended evidence she gave to the royal commission into antisemitism, during which she criticised SBS for quoting death toll figures provided by the Gaza Ministry of Health, saying those figures failed to distinguish combatants from civilians, were “grossly inflated” and their inflation was “well known and even accepted by the United Nations”.

A spokesperson for the UN secretary general responded at the time: “For us [the UN] the Ministry of Health in Gaza is a source we, and many others, often cite. Independent validation of subsets of the data has found no significant discrepancies in their numbers.”

Segal told the estimates hearing this week: “I note the United Nations views. I accept the United Nations views because they are the United Nations but that does not detract from the concerns of the Jewish community as conveyed to me about the way in which the reporting had been done.”