SBS still seeking deradicalisation funding. SBS, still on the hunt for funding after the failure of a bill that would have allowed it to air more ads in prime time earlier this year, has been “engaging” with ministers and government departments on how it can play a role in Australia’s efforts to combat the radicalisation of Muslim youth. It is still talking to the government about “what government programs may provide a funding source” for the promotion of “social cohesion”, CEO and managing director Michael Ebeid says.

The revelation was first made at Senate estimates late last month. It was reported at the time that SBS had been rebuffed in its advances. “I’m forever hopeful,” Ebeid said then. “Some of these initiatives might now have more resonance and be more accepted.”

But in a letter to senators put on the Senate website last week, Ebeid said he might have given the wrong impression at that Senate estimates hearing. “Whilst we have had, and are currently having, discussions on possible opportunities for SBS to do more to support social cohesion as a way to counter radicalisation, it is incorrect to state that we have made formal submissions for funding that have been rejected”. — Myriam Robin

Don’t blame us for forgetting Beirut: journos. Journalists have hit back over claims terror attacks in Beirut were ignored in favour of extended Paris coverage. News outlets faced a wave of condemnation on social media, with UK Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn jumping on the pile. Media Watch joined in last night, questioning the Australian media’s overwhelming coverage of Paris.

It’s hard to deny the horrors of Paris dominated headlines, but Vox’s Max Fisher pointed out the Beirut attacks actually received fairly extensive coverage across the board and flipped the blame on readers for ignoring it. He asked whether anger over “forgotten” Lebanon might be redirected guilt from a society that does indeed care more about some countries than others.

Guardian journalist Jamiles Lartey fired off a blistering series of tweets condemning the “minimisation” of a tragedy. He summed up the Beirut criticism with:

“Some commentators today honestly sound like tragedy hipsters, ‘Bro- I care about suffering and death that you’ve never even heard of.’”

Folker Hanusch, writing for The Conversation, ridiculed the notion that “journalists should report in equal amounts on such deaths, regardless of where they occurred”. Hanusch said modern newsrooms should not be expected to ignore the vast analytic data on audience habits in favour of pushing stories the reader “should” be interested in. He called on readers to reflect on their own attitudes.

“If more people actually read stories about Beirut or Kenya, it would be more difficult for the news media to avoid such stories. To change news coverage, a change in people’s mindset is also needed — and, with that, a change in their empathy with others.”

— Crikey intern Edward Gardiner

Video of the day. Waleed Aly says Islamic State is much weaker than we think.

waleed