Hanson Challenges Public Broadcasters
Pauline Hanson Proposes Major Reforms for ABC and SBS During First Press Club Address
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Key Points
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In response to SBS reporter Anna Henderson’s challenge, Hanson said “The internet has overtaken the need for it” and told Henderson she was “going to be without a job,” after Henderson questioned whether scrapping SBS aligned with One Nation’s assimilation stance (SBS produces news across roughly 60 languages).
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Hanson again defended her media-management approach with a vivid line: “If you want to keep bashing me around, I don’t forget. I’m like a bloody old elephant.”
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A panel of political experts said the Press Club appearance was “an audition for the position of opposition leader, not prime minister,” framing her performance as an effort to seek time to develop solutions rather than present detailed governing plans.
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Analysis of the speech said Hanson’s “real target was not Labor, nor the Coalition, nor even the ABC” but a broader set of institutions—“governments, media organisations, bureaucracies and experts”—that she argues “stopped listening to ordinary Aust…”
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Experts said Hanson stated a preference for “a ‘monocultural’ Australia,” which they argued reinforced the movement’s culture and themes rather than offering concrete policy detail for government.
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson used her first National Press Club address in a 30-year career to call for scrapping SBS entirely and cutting ABC funding in cities, signaling her party's most aggressive push yet against public broadcasters Mumbrella. The speech came as Roy Morgan polling placed One Nation's primary vote at a historic 32% — rivaling the major parties — following the federal budget Sky News.
The June 17 address drew protesters outside the venue and a mid-speech banner drop by GetUp! inside the hall, which the National Press Club later referred to the Australian Federal Police Sky News. Despite the disruptions, analysts said Hanson stayed composed and landed her key lines with force au.headtopics.com.
Hanson Tells SBS Reporter She'll Lose Her Job
The sharpest moment came when SBS Chief Political Correspondent Anna Henderson challenged Hanson on whether killing SBS contradicts One Nation's push for migrant assimilation. SBS produces news in more than 60 languages and receives roughly $360 million a year in government funding — about two-thirds of its total budget Mumbrella. Hanson brushed the challenge aside: "The internet has overtaken the need for it," she told Henderson, adding, "You're going to be without a job."
Hanson also took aim at the ABC, which receives $1.2 billion a year from taxpayers Mumbrella. She backed shifting city viewers to a subscription-style model while keeping free public funding only for regional and remote audiences. She pointed supporters toward Sky News as a "great go-to" commercial alternative, according to Sky News.
'Old Elephant' Warning to Media She Deems Unfair
Hanson defended her practice of blacklisting the ABC and The Guardian from press access, calling Guardian journalist Sarah Martin "trashy" during a tense exchange au.headtopics.com. She framed the approach in blunt terms: "If you want to keep bashing me around, I don't forget. I'm like a bloody old elephant."
Media analysts noted the line doubled as both a warning and a political brand statement Sky News. Hanson accused the ABC of "stunning" arrogance and entrenched left-wing bias — a charge ABC supporters push back on, pointing to polling that shows 74% of Australians want ABC funding kept the same or increased, according to Mumbrella.
Experts Call It an Audition for Opposition Leader, Not PM
Political analysts said Hanson's real target was not Labor or the Coalition but a broader cluster of institutions — "governments, media organisations, bureaucracies and experts" — that she argues stopped listening to ordinary Australians au.headtopics.com. One panel described the address as "an audition for the position of opposition leader, not prime minister," focused on grievances rather than detailed governing plans.
Experts noted Hanson stated a preference for a "monocultural" Australia — a single cultural umbrella over a multiracial society — citing France as a warning about failed immigration policy Sky News. One Nation won the Farrer by-election in May 2026 and now sits at 32% in primary polling, raising real questions for the established parties about what is driving her support au.headtopics.com.
What Scrapping SBS Would Actually Mean for Australians
If Hanson's proposals became law, SBS would close entirely and ABC funding in capital cities would be cut, leaving over 60 migrant language communities without a dedicated public news source Mumbrella. Urban viewers who currently access the ABC for free would need to pay under a subscription model — while rural Australians kept free access.
Institutional media experts warned the "subscription model" argument is cover for targeting the only outlets that regularly scrutinize One Nation Mumbrella. One Nation previously demanded $600 million in ABC cuts in 2017 as a condition for supporting media ownership reforms — a sign the party's hostility to public broadcasting runs deep and long Sky News.
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