Antisemitism envoy proposes external ombudsman to oversee ABC and SBS Middle East coverage

Australia's special envoy to combat antisemitism, Jillian Segal, has released an updated plan that proposes an "external independent ombudsman" to monitor ABC and SBS coverage of the war in Gaza. The plan, published on Friday, also calls for every visa applicant to be screened for "the risk of holding antisemitic views."

On the broadcasters, Segal argues that concerns about subjective, inaccurate and disproportionate reporting make it in the public interest for their coverage to face more detailed analysis and independent review. The plan suggests a government-appointed panel review their past reporting. It also says the government should consider transferring responsibilities from the ABC and SBS ombudsmen to an external body, modelled on oversight in sectors such as telecommunications and banking.

Segal writes that Jewish Australians have reported being abused and harassed, and called "baby killers" or supporters of "genocide" simply for believing in Israel's right to exist. The perceived link between coverage and that hostility, she says, is itself a matter of public importance. She says she has received many expressions of concern from the Jewish community about the broadcasters' reporting on Israel and the Middle East, and told Senate estimates this week she was worried about the tone and frequency of the ABC's Gaza reporting. The context is the royal commission into antisemitism, set up after the Bondi beach massacre in December, when 15 people were killed at a Hanukah celebration.

The position has shifted over time. Her first plan, in mid-2025, spoke of working with the broadcasters to develop programs that add to social cohesion. By mid-2026 she told the royal commission she wanted an oversight committee that could give coverage a "tick" or "guidance." The broadcasters rejected calls for external oversight last year. On Friday the ABC said its complaints process was the most robust and transparent in Australian media, and that its framework balances accountability with editorial independence. SBS said it condemns antisemitism unequivocally and that its framework is robust and fit for purpose, including external oversight by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

The visa proposal says the home affairs department should prioritise identifying antisemitic conduct before a visa is granted, using new technology and information already on a client's record. Segal writes that a minority of migrants bring ingrained antisemitic views, often from places where antisemitism is reinforced by political, religious, educational and cultural institutions. Hiba Farra, vice-president of the Australian Palestine Advocacy Network, said she was alarmed at the prospect of barring people accused of antisemitism, potentially without evidence, calling it "a further step down a racist path" and arguing that conflating criticism of Israel with antisemitism dehumanises Palestinians.

The plan extends to arts and universities. Publicly funded arts bodies would be able to impose enforceable conditions on artists and end grants if they promoted antisemitism, and all arts organisations would be asked to set policies on use of their venues and on artists' political activism outside the advertised show. Grant authorities could also place enforceable conditions on academics, including terminating funding where a recipient engages in antisemitic speech or conduct. Segal says the proposals are not about silencing criticism of Israel. She describes "modern, progressive antisemitism" as the most pervasive form in Australia, one that gives hostility a respectable face through the language of social justice, while saying Islamic extremist, far-left and far-right antisemitism also need vigilance and enforced laws.

Reaction split sharply. The progressive Jewish Council of Australia called the plan "Trumpian" and a dangerous roadmap threatening free speech and academic freedom, and said the "progressive antisemitism" claims verged on conspiratorial. Its executive officer, Bart Shteinman, said the special envoy does not speak for all Jews. Alex Ryvchin, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, told 2GB radio that highlighting far-left antisemitism was "insightful and courageous," and said a groupthink at the broadcasters, driven by a handful of journalists and executives, could only be fixed through external accountability.

The release followed Segal's Senate estimates appearance two days earlier, where she defended her criticism of SBS for citing Gaza health ministry death tolls. She had told the royal commission the figures were "grossly inflated." A UN secretary general spokesperson said independent validation of subsets of the data found no significant discrepancies, and Segal told estimates she accepted the UN view, though it did not lessen the community's concerns about the reporting. Israel's military accepted in January that the health authorities' toll was broadly accurate. What happens next depends on whether the government acts on the visa, grant and review proposals.