The Australian Broadcasting Corporation has been found to have breached its own editorial standards in a 2024 Four Corners investigation into Northern Territory cotton farming, according to a ruling by the Australian Communications and Media Authority.

The program, titled “Water Grab”, examined water use and environmental concerns linked to cotton production. However, ACMA determined the episode “inaccurately” suggested a pastoral station had illegally used fire to clear land for cotton cultivation.

"ACMA found that the program about water usage in the Northern Territory inaccurately conveyed that a Northern Territory pastoral station had illegally used a fire to clear land for cotton production without approval to do so," the regulator said.

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The authority concluded the broadcaster lacked sufficient evidence and failed to take reasonable steps to verify the claim before airing it. The finding comes despite the ABC’s internal ombudsman clearing the episode in October 2024.

The ABC disputed aspects of the ruling, stating: “The ACMA concluded that the factual assertion conveyed by the relevant statement was not accurate.” The broadcaster added, “The ABC accepts that the statement should have been qualified but does not accept that the statement has been shown to be inaccurate.”

ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said programs such as Four Corners must ensure claims are properly substantiated before broadcast.

“The ABC should have stopped to consider whether it had sufficient supporting evidence to include the statement about the fire,” O’Loughlin said.

“This type of assertion can have a significant adverse effect on the reputations of those involved, so reasonable efforts must be made to ensure any claims are accurate and presented in context.”

The regulator also found the program omitted credible alternative scientific perspectives, limiting viewers’ ability to assess competing evidence. This failure breached obligations around impartiality and presenting diverse viewpoints.

“Australians expect rigorous, fair and factual reporting on complex and contested public issues,” O’Loughlin said.

“Our view is that parts of the program did not meet the ABC’s own standards for accuracy and impartiality.”

The Four Corners episode aired days before the Northern Territory election and drew thousands of complaints. The ABC has since acknowledged an “oversight” in failing to include a regulatory statement on water quality and says it will now publish an editor’s note clarifying ACMA’s findings while strengthening internal training on accuracy and impartiality.