ABC staff told not to delete emails, documents relating to antisemitism
ABC staff have been ordered not to delete emails, photos and documents relating to antisemitism, social cohesion and the Bondi terror attack ahead of a royal commission into last December’s massacre.
The National Archives of Australia has issued “freeze disposal notices” to institutions including the ABC and SBS, ABC’s news director Justin Stevens said in a message to staff seen by this imprint.
The orders inform staff that the public broadcaster must retain any documents or records that may relate to the commission, including matters relating to social cohesion, antisemitism, religious extremism, radicalization, law enforcement, border control and the circumstances surrounding the Bondi attack on December 14 last year.
Last month, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announced the establishment of a Royal Commission into the devastating Bondi attack on December 14, which left 15 people dead.
Albanese initially opposed a federal investigation, arguing a NSW-based inquiry would be sufficient, but backtracked after criticism from across the political spectrum. Former Supreme Court justice Virginia Bell was hand-picked as a commissioner, and the investigation is scheduled to conclude before December 14, 2026.
The commission will investigate “the nature and prevalence of antisemitism in institutions and society in Australia”.
Stevens told ABC staff that the message about record keeping was “going out to all news staff to ensure we don’t accidentally miss anyone, but only some of you will have material on the subject.”
Stevens said ABC staff were responsible for safeguarding a range of materials, including documents, emails, text messages, social media posts, audio recordings and datasets. It also warned employees about the use of self-deleting messages in encrypted applications such as Signal, which journalists often use to discuss sensitive material with sources.
“Going forward, if you receive or send messages through Signal or similar apps for that matter, continuing to use the disappearing messages setting will be a violation of the notice,” Stevens said.
“If you regularly delete emails for storage and security reasons, we will need to exclude emails on these topics from deletion until further notice,” he told staff.
The ABC, along with other government agencies, issued a similar notice in 2020 by the National Archives regarding a federal investigation into possible violations of the laws of war by Australian forces in Afghanistan. This notification remains in place.
ABC declined to comment. The National Archives and SBS have been contacted for comment.
The current notice was published this week by National Archives Director-General Simon Froude and applies to more than 30 government agencies, including the ABC, SBS, the Department for Foreign Affairs and Trade, the eSafety Commissioner and the Attorney-General’s Office.
“A freeze on destruction is necessary to ensure that these records are preserved and available when needed,” Froude said in a statement on the archive’s website.
Technically, this announcement suspends the National Archives’ permission to destroy government records related to antisemitism and social cohesion. Failure to comply with the notice may result in penalties of up to $6,600.
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Kishor Napier-Raman is senior business writer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. He previously worked as a CBD columnist and reporter in the federal parliament press gallery.Connect with: X or email.
