2003 - 04 Annual Report - Sbs

61documentaries and documentary series that cover abroad range of subjects from current affairs and politics,science, history and archaeology, religion, race, culture,health and science.SBS Radio broadcasts education, entertainment andinformation services in 68 languages, providing anessential life-long learning service to ageing members ofAustralia’s migrant population who become less willing toaccess media services in English as they age and tendto rely heavily on their first language for communication.SBS Online has a range of educational websites,including GOLD, a website on the nation’s gold mininghistory developed in association with eight Victoriancultural organisations, and World Tales, an animationand youth-based multilingual website. SBS Onlinealso provides a range of services to complement SBSTelevision and SBS Radio programs, including audiostreamingin 68 languages.Review of Indigenous Film ProtocolsThe Australian Film Commission conducted a review ofprotocols used by filmmakers working with Indigenouscontent and Indigenous communities. As a majorcontributor to the Australian Indigenous film industry,SBS encouraged the development of new protocols andprovided information to address areas of ambiguity inprotocol use. SBS highlighted the importance of properconsultations and approval of any new protocols.With respect to the question relating to languagesspoken at home, SBS also strongly opposed thereduction of response options to ‘English’ or ‘Other’.SBS argued that such an amendment would significantlycompromise SBS’s ability to provide relevant servicesto people who speak a language other than English athome and would have a particular impact on the servicesprovided by SBS Radio.Aged Care Review of Tobacco AdvertisingProhibition Act 1992SBS provided a written submission to the Department ofHealth and Aged Care review of the Tobacco AdvertisingProhibition Act (TAPA) 1992.SBS submitted that the current regulation of thebroadcast and publishing of tobacco advertising waseffective and appropriate. SBS was not aware of anysubstantial change since the enactment of the legislationthat would justify changing the existing regulatoryframework for broadcasters. Furthermore, SBS supportedthe retention without alteration of the existing provisionsfor accidental and incidental broadcast of tobacco andtobacco products, and the existing restrictions on thepublication of tobacco advertisements. In its submission,SBS raised concerns that changes to the currentregulatory framework may have a negative impact onSBS’s ability to commission and broadcast authenticstories of relevance to all Australians.Changes to 2006 Census Questions onAncestry and LanguageIn 2003, the Australian Bureau of Statistics proposeda series of changes to the 2006 Census on Populationand Housing (Census). The proposed changes wouldremove the question relating to a person’s ancestry andreduce the available responses to the question relating tolanguages spoken at home.Senate Tobacco Advertising ProhibitionSBS made a submission to the Senate Community AffairsLegislation Committee in relation to the proposal by theAustralian Democrats to prohibit tobacco advertising andtobacco product placement in film. SBS supported thesubmission of Free TV Australia and, in addition, notedthat product placements are already prohibited undertobacco legislation and in the SBS Act.In its submission, SBS strongly supported the retentionof the question relating to ancestry. Census informationabout the ancestral background of Australians of allgenerations is essential to SBS’s ability to identify andunderstand Australians from third and later generations.Such information is integral to the construction ofequitable SBS programming schedules.SBS purchases programs internationally and is notaware of any commercial benefit received by a programmaker for a tobacco product placement. SBS expressedconcern that a ban on portraying smoking in film couldhave a significant impact on the programs it broadcasts,particularly as smoking has different social significanceamong the many cultures portrayed in SBS programs.