<H1><b>SBS article in the Green Guide 8 March 2012 by Debi Enker</b></H1>

Those of us who watched SBS during the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s watched it precisely because it provided the best news available on television in Australia and always superbly delivered by Mary Kosatakidis and Anton Enus.

The films they showed, the film reviews by David Stratton and Margaret Pomeranz provided entertainment that was unique in the Australian context.

The advertisements were never in the middle of programmes and one was able to put up with them precisely because they didn't affect one's viewing pleasure.

This all changed dramatically at the end of 2006 because the person who was the CEO at the time, Shawn Brown, destroyed the jewel in the crown of Australian television in a matter of days.

Mary Kostakidis was insulted and treated appallingly so that her position became untenable and she had to leave.

That was the beginning of the end, and that was followed soon afterwards by the departure of David Stratton and Margaret Pomeranz for the ABC. What was SBS's loss was in this instance, the ABC's gain.

SBS just went from one disaster to another and became literally unwatchable - a view obviously shared by many thousands of television watchers.

We are now watching with bated breath to see whether the management change will restore SBS to its former glory. It has a long way to go!!

Here is the SBS article in the Green Guide 8 March 2012 by Debi Enker

One of the dumbest decisions made by SBS in recent years was the introduction in late 2006 of advertising within its programs.

The desperate, short-sighted move by the cash-strapped network infuriated viewers, who were unanimous in their disapproval, and severely damaged the broadcaster’s standing, undermining its unique place in the media landscape.

Before 2006, ads on SBS appeared between programs, or during natural breaks in sporting events. The change in policy eroded precious goodwill and alienated viewers at a time when the free-to-air TV market was becoming increasingly competitive due to the proliferation of digital channels.

The intrusion of ads within programs made the multicultural broadcaster look like a cut-price commercial network.

Unsurprisingly, the initiative failed to provide the projected boost in revenue while also allowing governments that were not keenly committed to funding the broadcaster with a handy excuse to reduce their support.

Last week, a bill to phase out the disruptive breaks was introduced in the Senate by the Greens communications spokesman, Scott Ludlum.

This would be a good time to contact your local member of parliament, Communications Minister Stephen Conroy or shadow minister Malcolm Turnbull, urging them to fund the multicultural broadcaster properly, support moves to end a spectacularly unsuccessful initiative and bring to a close a bleak period that has succeeded only in driving SBS viewers to change channels.