Indigenous journalists detail experiences of racism in newsrooms and media to inquiry

First Nations journalists and media leaders have told a parliamentary inquiry negative and often inaccurate reporting of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people continues to fuel racism, influence public policy and make it harder for Indigenous voices and success stories to be heard.

Giving evidence to the Joint Standing Committee on Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs’ inquiry into racism and violence against First Nations people on Thursday, witnesses said mainstream media frequently focused on crisis and conflict.

Successful community-led solutions were often ignored they said, reinforcing harmful stereotypes and creating an environment where misinformation flourishes.

The inquiry also heard social media had intensified those harms, exposing First Nations journalists to abuse that in some cases had forced them to withdraw from public debate.

John Paul Janke, NITV/SBS National Indigenous Affairs Editor, said racism is present in the lives of Indigenous people “today”.

He pointed to recent online news articles marking the release of a commemoration coin celebrating the 1966 Wave Hill walk-off.

The coins depict the iconic image of Gough Whitlam pouring Gurindji soil into Vincent Lingiari’s hands.

“The comments section were littered with racial slurs, abuse, and derogatory remarks, thousands of them,” he told the committee.

“They remain unmoderated. They are still there right now. The media company can see them. Other Australians can see them, and so can every Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander person who opens that page.”

Mr Janke said his extensive travels and community engagement across the country left him in no doubt that it was not “an isolated incident”.

“Racism is being left in plain sight. It's amplified by social media algorithms and tolerated by platforms and publishers that have both the capacity and the responsibility to do better.”

Successful community-led solutions ignored in favour of 'crisis and conflict'

Former Nine and ABC journalist Brooke Boney told the committee negative reporting did not need to rely on overtly racist language to perpetuate racism.

"Racism doesn't require an explicit slur. It can operate through disproportionate images, unverified claims, crime reporting without trend data, and portraying a whole group of children as a threat," the Gamilaroi woman said.

Reporting on First Nations communities, particularly children and crime, should be "verified, contextualised, and corrected transparently" Ms Boney said, with Indigenous expertise embedded throughout the reporting process rather than treated as an afterthought.

Instead, Indigenous issues were too often framed through crisis.

"Coverage often concentrates on crisis and conflict, while constructive reporting on prevention, mitigation, community-led policy and solutions receives less attention."

She said examining that imbalance could help explain how media framing shaped public understanding of Indigenous issues, and left space for misinformation and disinformation to spread.

Veteran journalist Narelda Jacobs told the committee she had witnessed negative stereotypes repeated throughout a career spanning more than two decades.

"In my 26-year career as a journalist and presenter, I've seen regular examples of negative stereotypes perpetuated in the news," the Whadjuk Noongar woman said.

Stories about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people often relied on familiar imagery of poverty, rubbish, arrests or homelessness, she said, adding that commercial newsrooms frequently failed to provide broader context.

Jacobs also described experiencing racism inside newsrooms, saying anti-racism education had not been treated with the same importance as mandatory legal training for journalists.

"I think anti-racism training should be treated the same," she said. "It should be mandatory."

The inquiry heard the way Indigenous issues are covered can shape public attitudes and, ultimately, government responses.

Drawing on her Oxford University research into youth justice, Ms Boney argued Aboriginal children had increasingly become symbols of disorder through political and media narratives.

"The evidence doesn't support the policy, but fear can," she said.

"Fear of youth crime can be amplified through racial narratives until Aboriginal children become symbols of disorder."

Politicians could then convert that fear into policy while presenting the outcome as race-neutral public safety, she said.

Indigenous journalists seen as 'too close' to the issue when pitching stories

The journalists also spoke about the difficulty of convincing editors to pursue stories about racism affecting First Nations people.

Boney recalled struggling to persuade editors to investigate the death in custody of David Dungay Jr despite obtaining documents raising serious questions about the circumstances of his death.

Pitching stories about racism was similarly difficult, Jacobs said.

"The onus is extremely high to prove that it was in fact racism," she told the committee.

"And even then you'll be met with comments ... 'No, we're not going to run it.'"

Stories were often dismissed because First Nations journalists were viewed as being "too close" to Indigenous issues.

"I have been told that I'm too close to the story sometimes, and that to me is a form of racism because my journalistic integrity is everything," said Jacobs.

Witnesses repeatedly argued the imbalance in reporting meant successful Indigenous initiatives struggled to receive attention while stories about crime or dysfunction dominated coverage.

They pointed to Aboriginal community-controlled organisations as an example.

"I think the success of community controlled organisations and community-led programs," one journalist said when asked what stories should receive greater attention,” said Jacobs.

"We need to have the balance."

Positive stories, they said, were regularly rejected because crews were unavailable, bulletins were full or newsrooms lacked resources. Even during NAIDOC Week, they said, it could be difficult to secure coverage.

Boney said constructive reporting offered audiences practical solutions rather than simply highlighting disadvantage.

Using youth crime as an example, she said reporting frequently focused on images of offending without examining programs that had successfully reduced crime through justice reinvestment.

"Often we present issues around Aboriginal disadvantage like there's absolutely no solution," she said.

"When you scratch the surface and focus a little bit more on constructive reporting, the answers are there."

The committee also heard examples of reporting that lacked important context.

Using Alice Springs as an example, Jacobs said footage of unrest had been repeatedly replayed nationally, creating the impression violence was constant while omitting the circumstances that led to the incident.

Police and community leaders had been aware tensions were escalating and there had been opportunities to prevent the violence, but that nuance rarely appeared in coverage she said.

Instead, Jacobs the city had been further demonised, damaging trust between Indigenous communities and mainstream media.

'Devastating impact of racism'

SBS Director of First Nations Tanya Denning-Orman told the inquiry those concerns reflected changes she had witnessed across more than three decades in the media industry.

"I've worked in media for more than 30 years, including with NITV since its inception almost 20 years ago," she said.

"During that time I've seen first-hand the devastating impact of racism, the challenges facing our journalists and communities, and the difference trusted First Nations media makes," she said.

Denning-Orman said the inquiry came 35 years after both the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and the National Inquiry into Racist Violence found negative and inaccurate media representations of First Nations people contributed to "a social climate that tolerates racism and violence".

She said the problem had become more acute in the digital era.

"Those same conditions have intensified, fuelled by a digital environment where misinformation, disinformation, racism and hate can spread at unprecedented speed and scale."

Social media featured prominently throughout the hearing, with witnesses describing online abuse as one of the greatest challenges facing First Nations journalists.

Janke also spoke of leaving X, formerly Twitter, due to the abuse he said he witnessed during the Voice referendum, a decision which limited opportunities to contribute to national conversations.

“I saw the platform as a platform that brought hate and trolling to First Nations voices,” he said.

“It was used to delegitimise First Nations agency, and I made the decision to withdraw from that platform.

“It took me out of the national debate, national conversation. So it takes away our opportunity to participate on that platform on national issues.”

Witnesses said First Nations media played a critical role in countering misinformation and ensuring Indigenous perspectives reached Australian audiences.

But they warned greater accountability across the broader media sector was needed, alongside stronger anti-racism measures and more accurate, contextual reporting.

Concluding his evidence, Janke said he had listened to many of the public hearings and read submissions from everyday citizens.

He urged the committee to ensure its recommendations led to meaningful change for those people.

“They are frustrated, they are angry, and they are disappointed with the lack of action.

"The time to act is now," he said.

"They've seen recommendations, reviews, inquiries and royal commissions come and go ... my overall recommendation is that the time for action is now."