Editorial - Free-to-air sport: Is it worth protecting? - 'Hawke's Bay Today'

Doug Laing asks whether it's time for government intervention on TV sport. Photo / File

EDITORIAL:

Being able to watch Spark's coverage of Rugby World Cup 2019 live via the internet and using whichever device you wish is all fine and dandy.

But, while we'll be able to see All Blacks games and the final live free-to-air, there are long-term issues looming. These were dealt with in Australia quarter of a century ago via oddly named anti-siphoning legislation, which tries to protect a public right to see sports events of significant national importance.

By conditions of the Broadcasting Services Act 1992, it lists them. They include the Melbourne Cup, the Olympic Games, Commonwealth Games, and a truckload of rugby league, Aussie Rules football, cricket matches, and even the Wallabies.

This is for good reason, because the more we have to pay for access to these events, the less we can claim that our top sportspeople are role models for our young people.

Simply, sport is a nationally significant part of our culture, and its top performers are some of the people our young might aspire to be.

Digressing to a degree, we have forgotten that the real role models are supposed to be mum and dad and older siblings.

We are also forgetting that the social responsibilities that go with running sports now beholden to the almighty dollar are diminishing with the inking of every outrageous contract.

Consequently, our top sports stars are becoming as remote to our young as Hollywood movie stars.

It may already be true that children have far more and access via TV and other technology to things we don't really want them to see than the things we'd like them to see. They can, for example watch shooting and violence on a wide scale, gladiatorially, and as if it's the thing to do.

The country's become used to paying for TV viewing via Sky, but now we have other players in the market it is always at an extra cost.

It's time for some government intervention to ensure the channel we're taking on this issue is the right one.