Greens Senator calls for inquiry into Sky News Aus for spreading misinformation

Australian Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young has called for the government to investigate Sky News Australia for spreading misinformation

Youtube suspended News Corp’s Sky News TV network for seven days for spreading misinformation. Now, Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young is calling for a investigation into the network.

“This is a commercial broadcaster so why isn’t the government regulator holding it to account?” she wrote.

“As Chair of the Senate Inquiry into Media Diversity, I will call the tech giant, Sky and ACMA to front the inquiry to investigate”.

“If the spread of misinformation is dangerous on the internet why is it on television?”

Youtube suspends Sky News

“Sky News Australia acknowledges YouTube’s right to enforce its policies and looks forward to continuing to publish its popular news and analysis content to its subscribers shortly,” Sky News said in a statement.

The 24-hour cable channel has grown its audience to 1.85 million YouTube subscribers. The channel has a strong focus on alternative opinions against Donald Trump, Joe Biden and coronavirus.

Sky News Australis, is operated by Australian News Channel Pty Ltd and is a subsidiary of News Corp Australia.

YouTube confirms the suspension

“We apply our policies equally for everyone and in accordance with these policies and our long-standing strikes system, removed videos from and issued a strike to Sky News Australia’s channel,” a YouTube spokesperson said.

The one-week suspension was issued on Thursday and came after a review of Sky News Australia’s content. Youtube has reportedly removed several videos from Sky News Australia.

Youbue believe they either denied the existence of Covid-19 or encouraged people to use hydroxychloroquine or ivermectin to treat the coronavirus, without providing countervailing context.

Free speech defence

The news network is not backing down, with the company’s digital editor Jack Houghton arguing YouTube’s decision to suspend Sky News Australia is a disturbing attack on the ability to think freely.

“Sky News Australia has been temporarily suspended from posting on the Google-owned platform YouTube for publishing opinion content the tech giant disagrees with,” Houghton says.

“Among the videos deemed unpalatable for societal consumption were debates around whether masks were effective and whether lockdowns were justified when considering their adverse health outcomes.”

“The stance taken by some commentators at this network was that masks are not effective in containing outbreaks, particularly when mandated outside in the fresh air. Some also took issue with the frequency and mechanisms of locking down Australians.

“Other commentators vehemently disagreed, and their views were also published.”

“The science is certainly not clear on either of these two points,” Houghton says.

Fox News coverage

In the US, Fox News has been criticised for its coverage of coronavirus. Now the hosts are pushing the vaccine.

Last week, a pair of Fox News hosts urged viewers of the network to get vaccinated against the coronavirus, dismissing conspiracy theories about the safety and efficacy of the vaccine. 

“Well, here’s the thing. And one of the CDC officials said yesterday, look, the pandemic right now is really just with people who have not been vaccinated. Ninety-nine percent of the people who died have not been vaccinated. What they are trying to do is make sure that all of the people who have not been vaccinated get vaccinated,” Steve Doocy said Monday on “Fox & Friends.”

It comes as cases rise in US, and US President Joe Biden calls on states to offer $100 vaccine incentive.

The comments from the Fox News personalities come amid criticism the network has been hit with over controversial comments some hosts have made about local lockdown measures, face mask mandates, vaccine science and the pandemic as a whole. 

Last week, The New York Times published a story detailing a litany comments made by prime-time hosts Tucker Carlson and Laura Ingrahamthat the outlet said ran “at odds with the recommendations of health experts” relative to vaccines.