Australian media outlets will be put on notice by key watchdogs about the language they use when reporting political events involving the Liberal Party at federal and state levels.

I understand that the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) and the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) are set to issue an unprecedented joint order to media outlets to outlaw the use in news reporting of terms such as “Liberal moderates” or references to “the moderate wing of the Liberal Party”.

An ACMA source told me that the authority had been approached in November last year by the ACCC which expressed concerns that news consumers were being misled by such terms.

“The ACCC’s concern was sparked by reports of the foreshadowed retirement of South Australian Liberal Party Senator Simon Birmingham containing repeated references to him being a ‘Liberal moderate’,” the source said. (below)

“The ACCC expressed the view that consumers of Australian news media are being misled by the continued use of such expressions. It quite rightly pointed out that no such creature has existed for a long, long time.

“The Liberal Party started moving to the right of the political spectrum in the 1980s and hasn’t stopped.

“It moved rapidly right under prime ministers John Howard and then Tony Abbott, only to tread water under Malcolm Turnbull who masqueraded as a ‘moderate’ but did everything the right wing of his party wanted which made it easy for Scott Morrison to take over and now Peter Dutton continues to push the boundaries well into and even beyond the far right.

“If you need proof, just consider that Simon Birmingham’s role as opposition Senate leader will be filled by Michaelia Cash! (below) Enough said.

“Basically there is no such thing as a ‘Liberal moderate’ and nobody in the party actually tries to moderate the right and far right, so any contrary reference is misleading.

“I can assure all Australians that both ACMA and the ACCC will not hesitate to take no action if we detect breaches of our order,” the source told me.

I approached the Australian Press Council to find out if it too would join the combined ACMA/ACCC action to protect news consumers by outlawing terms like “Liberal moderate”.

But a spokesperson told me: “You’ve got to be kidding. You know how much the Press Council’s very existence depends on the Liberal Party… I mean, the Murdoch media and Nine Entertainment? Fuck off!”

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