Press gallery committee rejects corporate sponsors for Midwinter Ball

The federal parliamentary press gallery has closed the door to corporate sponsorship of the annual Midwinter Ball after lobbying from politicians who opposed the high-profile patronage of fossil fuel companies last year.

In an email to independents and members of the Greens, press gallery committee president Jane Norman of the ABC and vice-president James Massola of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, said this year’s ball will not accept “any sponsors” nor “advertising from any company”. 

“The gallery committee’s view is that we want MPs from all sides of politics to be welcome at the ball,” the email said, first reported by The Australian on Monday.

Last year’s headline sponsorship by Shell and Woodside drew criticism from Senator David Pocock and calls for a boycott by Greens senators Larissa Waters and Jordon Steele-John. The event itself was criticised by then-Greens-now-independent Senator Lidia Thorpe, who called attendees “fossil fools”, and Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young wore a dress adorned with the words “end coal and gas”.

Hanson-Young and other members of the crossbench welcomed this week’s decision, even if the move to roll out a blanket ban, rather than limiting it to fossil fuel companies, was an “interesting” one. 

“It’s a win for those of us and the community who are frustrated at the greenwashing of the fossil fuel industry,” Hanson-Young told Crikey. “I think there’s a big debate about quality of journalism in Australia, and the press need to and do play an important role in holding power to account, and the press gallery ball is an important part of the political ecosystem.”

Comms Declare, a coalition of communications professionals lobbying for a ban on fossil fuels advertising, said the decision was just “one step” towards watering down the influence of fossil fuel companies on the media. 

“Fossil fuel corporations are still influencing our media, threatening journalistic integrity and climate reporting,” said founder Belinda Noble. “Our most prestigious journalism awards, the Walkleys, are sponsored by Ampol and the Today show takes sponsorships from Glencore and Shell.”

In its sixth assessment report released in 2022, the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change wrote that fossil fuel companies exerted notable political influence in Australia, and had “unique access” to mainstream media around the world.

Are Australia’s media in thrall to fossil fuel companies? Let us know by writing to letters@crikey.com.au. Please include your full name to be considered for publication. We reserve the right to edit for length and clarity.