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Previously, we got to know the newly sworn-in Communications Minister Michelle Rowland, her most notable works, and her plans for the office.
This time, we will talk about her counterpart from the opposition, Shadow Minister for Communications Sarah Henderson.
As the opposition’s principal media representatives in Congress, shadow ministers examine, evaluate, and critique the plans of action of a particular minister and the agencies that are under their purview.
Thus, it is equally essential for us to understand Henderson’s stances on different issues Australia faces, her background, and her goals for the portfolio.
A home of public servants
Sarah Henderson grew up in Geelong. She attended Sacred Heart College and Geelong College, earning her degree in 1981.
As the oldest of three children, Henderson said she continues to draw inspiration from her late parents, who also held government positions.
Henderson’s mother, Ann, represented Geelong as a state representative from 1992 to 1999, serving as the Minister of Housing and Aboriginal Affairs in her second term.
Her father, Michael, was a Geelong solicitor and served as the city’s mayor and councilor.
The Media Woman
Henderson joined Channel 7 in Melbourne in 1982 as a cadet reporter. She later worked for Channel 9 in Brisbane before moving on to Channel 10 in Melbourne, where she hosted the Victorian edition of the 7.30 Report.
She continued working as The 7.30 Report’s law correspondent when the show went national in 1996 and won a Walkley Award for reporting on the Port Arthur atrocity.
Henderson obtained her Bachelor of Laws degree (Honours) from Monash University in 1998 and joined Arthur Robinson & Hedderwicks (now Allens) as a commercial lawyer.
She became a lawyer for the News Corporation in New York, then founded her media consultancy, the Kudos Management Group.
These resulted in her employment as a Network Business Manager Programming for Network Ten and as a Legal and Business Affairs Manager for National Indigenous TV.
To building a better Australia
In 2019, Henderson took the oath of office as a Liberal senator representing Victoria and signified her goal to create a better Australia through sound policies.
“I am here in this place because I love my country and because I have great hopes and dreams for its future. I am here because, through the pursuit of good policy, I want to contribute to building a better nation.”
Henderson is a member of many committees, including the Joint Standing Committee on Migration and the Joint Select Committee on the Implementation of the National Redress Scheme.
She also chairs the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee.
Henderson held the office of Member for Corangamite in 2013 before becoming a Senator.
Prior to getting assigned to the Ministry in August 2018 as Assistant Minister for Social Services, Housing, and Disability Services, she presided over the House of Representatives Standing Committees on Economics and Social Policy and Legal Affairs.
As the Member for Corangamite, Henderson promoted the need for significant infrastructure improvements and investments in job creation, gaining financing for the Geelong City Deal, a new ABS National Data Center, and a couple of community, health, and athletic facilities.
Henderson believes in free competitive markets and the importance of foreign capital to help build a better nation. However, she thinks Australians must never forget that they are a country before they are an economy.
In the past, Henderson has opposed foreign ownership of essential assets, calling for strengthening foreign investment regulations.
“Australia’s critical infrastructure assets, such as airports, power plants, data networks, communications infrastructure, and ports – including the Port of Darwin – simply should not be falling into foreign hands,” said Henderson.
Goals for the communications industry
Commenting on her appointment as the Shadow Minister for Communications, Henderson highlighted the importance of the portfolio.
She said, “Accessible, efficient, and affordable communications and connectivity are critical to the welfare and prosperity of all Australians.”
“A free and vibrant Australian media sector is a fundamental tenet of the rule of law. Australian stories on our screens enrich social cohesion and our cultural identity.”
She commits to maintaining Australians’ online safety, upholding the highest standards of public broadcasters, ABC and SBS, and ensuring fair access to communications infrastructure in rural and regional Australia.
“Whether it’s making the NBN available to 99 percent of homes and business premises across Australia, funding more than 1,300 mobile base stations, supporting regional publishers, or enhancing online safety, the Coalition did so much to transform our digital economy,” she said.
Henderson said she looks forward to using her extensive experience, which includes work for the ABC and National Indigenous TV, in the shadow communications position to hold the government accountable and pursue alternative policies that are in the best interests of all Australians.
Henderson handling the Labor Party
Indeed, Henderson does not mince words in calling bull on the Labor Party’s questionable actions just weeks after her appointment to her new position.
As a staunch advocate of online safety for every Australian, Henderson has criticised Labor for having no plan to hold big tech giants accountable for the harm online trolling causes to many Australians.
For this, she urged the party to support the Coalition’s “Social Media (Anti-Trolling) Bill,” which she claimed would have made it easier for victims of online trolling to ‘unmask’ the originators of anonymous defamatory posts made on social media.
The shadow minister said, “Defamatory posts on social media can spread virally. Posts are often made anonymously, which makes it challenging to pursue defamation proceedings against the perpetrator, especially for ordinary Australians.”
“I know this because I, too, am the victim of systemic, abusive online trolling which Twitter refuses to do anything about, even after Victoria Police served Twitter with a police search warrant demanding the details of my alleged abuser,” she added.
Henderson also called out Minister Rowland for allegedly misleading Australians when the latter branded the $480 million funding for NBN’s wireless network upgrade as the “first major milestone” delivered under Labor’s plan for rural and regional Australia.
Read here: Australia pumps $480m into NBN Co’s network upgrade (commsroom.co)
Calling the investment announcement a “deception,” Henderson said, “The only broadband plan Labor has for the NBN fixed wireless and satellite network is to adopt, under the cover of darkness, the Coalition’s plan.”
She added, “Labor has a sorry history of showing negligible interest in communications infrastructure across rural and regional Australia. When Labor was last in government, it connected just 51,000 users to the NBN and failed to fix a single mobile black spot.”
Henderson further claimed that the upgrade resulted from the Liberal Nationals’ tremendous efforts and dedication while in office, including commissioning the 2021 Regional Telecommunications Review, which was finished in December 2021 and presented to the legislature on February 14, 2022.
Now, what are your thoughts? Will Rowland and Henderson be able to work hand in hand for a better communications industry in Australia?
Jaw de Guzman is the content producer for Comms Room, a knowledge platform and website aimed at assisting the communications industry and its professionals.
