Random Good Fortune

THE PUBLISHER Random House, which is no small business, recently issued Anita Heiss' Am I Black Enough For You? As readers will know, the book has been the subject of much comment, but not lately on Random House's web site, where hundreds of critical, but by no means racist, remarks were erased not once but twice. The same thing happened at the ABC, where a comment thread vanished without trace. There were no calls to burn crosses, distribute blankets contaminated with smallpox or remove dusky moppets from their parents' care. The comments were critical of Heiss and that was enough to see them obliterated. This is the sad state of free speech in Australia, and we can only hope that the soon-to-be Abbott government will do something about it.

With this in mind, there is one other thing the next government might wish to examine. Indeed, given the wreck our current PM has made of the nation's finances, one would think it has an obligation to do so without delay.When she sat down to pen her book, Ms Heiss was in receipt of some $90,000 in government grants reserved for Indigenous writers. Had she lacked the requisite melanin to qualify for such support, Heiss would have gone to Random House, pitched her idea and, if it had been accepted, pocketed an advance against future royalties. When the book came on the market, she would not have received another penny until the publisher had recouped its initial investment.

Instead, she and Random House would appear to be making out like bandits. Paid by the taxpayer to write a book about which taxpayers are not allowed to comment, she is now free to pocket royalties from the very first sale. And executives at Random House must be smiling as well. Very little of the company's own cash went into the book's preparation, as its only expenses were printing and distribution. It, too, will be in the black (so to speak) very soon after the release date, regardless of how well or poorly Heiss' book is received.

If this in an inaccurate summation of the way the grants system works, the Professor would like to know. But that is the way it seems from a quick reading of Australia Council charters and wotnots.

So here is a nifty idea for PM Abbott, one that might save the taxpayer just a little bit of cash and improve both the quality and breadth of Australian writing: Instead of simply handing out money in the form of grants, why not underwrite advances to authors? This would mean favoured authors could not double dip -- once on the grant and again on the sales -- and it would also oblige publishers to invest a little more thought to the commercial and literary appeal of projects they take up.

Or think of it this way: You are an acquiring editor and two proposals land on your desk. One is supported by the Australia Council and guarantees a return, regardless of the merit you might see in it. The other is an unsubsidised pitch, one that may well be the worthier of the pair.

Which is likely to get the nod, do you think? 

Big Ideas, Big Gag

UPDATE: As of this morning, 22 comments have been permitted.

ON RADIO NATIONAL's Big Ideas this evening, straight man Paul Barclay interrupted his flow of hit-em-for-six slow balls to Anita Heiss midway through the show. It was both the standard pause for station identification and a moment for Barclay to solicit listener comments for his show's ABC web page. Here are his exact words:

To express your views head to our website ... we welcome your views on all Big Ideas programmes, but a reminder: please be civil and refrain from offensive comments. Difference of opinion is fine. Abuse is not.

So far, some three hours after the broadcast's conclusion, not one comment has been posted. From this absence we can conclude one of two things.

1/ Radio National listeners are ordure-flinging trolls, none of whose comments are deemed worthy of seeing the light of day.


or

2/ Anita Heiss is a protected species who must be kept safe from exposure to criticism of all kinds, even if this means suppressing remarks by even her most ardent admirers.

Tribal Loyalties At Their ABC

WAN BLACKTIVIST and Mordy-Litijus elder Anita Heiss asked ABC visitors if they thought her black enough and received a series of rather astringent responses. Free speech being a relative thing at the national broadcaster, the comments thread was soon suspended, with talking head Carol Duncan explaining via Twitter:
 
The comments that made it onto the site before the gag was imposed were pointed, critical and, in one or two cases, mocking -- all of which meant no more could be permitted at the Appropriate Broadcasting Commission.

Now isn't that peculiar. ABC comments are moderated, which means any racist ones -- if there were any racist ones, that is -- could have been picked out and the rest displayed on the public forum which those now-silenced visitors help to fund and support. But that didn't happen and, for the second time in a year, professional victim Heiss has found herself a beneficiary of officialdom's eager willingness to spare her feelings.

There is another outlet however, at least for the moment, at the site of Heiss' publisher, Random House, where the string of unmoderated comments grows by the hour. We can take them to be representative of the criticisms the ABC refuses to air, and they say as much of the ABC as they do of Heiss.

You can pop on over and add your thoughts to the chain. Just tell them the ABC sent you.

And if anyone has the energy, why not copy and save the comments for the web's future reference? Chances are they will not survive too much longer on the Random House page, which is a commercial entity and could not appreciate so many adverse remarks about the author of a book it is trying to flog.

There is no need to register at Random Online, as the site suggests. Just pick a name nobody else has used, provide an email address and speak your mind.

(H/T: Andrew Bolt)

UPDATE: In 2010, Heiss was gifted by the Australia Council with a $90,000 fellowship to produce "two non fiction literary works: a collection of essays and personal memoirs."

One of those, presumably, is her current effort with Random House. So, a question: Will Random House or Heiss pledge royalties and profits from Am I Black Enough to repaying taxpayers' generosity? Or is it that, while unsupported Australian authors fend for themselves, a select few who know how to play the system have their careers and lifestyles supported without condition or qualification?

Sometimes it really does pay to be oppressed.

UPDATE II: Something very peculiar is going on the ABC in regard to its Heiss interview. Yesterday a click on the audio panel allowed the interview to be played or downloaded. Today that function no longer works. Has it been disabled, possibly because Heiss' self-promotion has become an embarrassment? Keep an eye on the page. If the audio link is not restored, or if the page vanishes altogether, you will know the Appropriate Broadcasting Commission is at it yet again.

Those who wish to hear Heiss skite and preen are not without succour, however:

Heiss details her reasons for gagging debate in general and Andrew Bolt in particular at the 2:45 minute mark. Andrew insulted her whole family, apparently, not just one-sixteenth of it.