LABOR hopes to ram through its proposed media reforms, including a public interest test and stronger industry self-regulation, within the next two sitting weeks.
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy announced on Tuesday the federal government's long awaited response to the reports of two long-run independent media inquiries handed to it in early 2012.
But opposition communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull says its reply was a "chaotic, half-baked" plan and took issue with the public interest test proposal.
Overall, the government's response avoided many of the wide-ranging recommendations that came out of the convergence review and the Finkelstein inquiry into press regulation.
Among the key reforms are changes to broadcast ownership rules, beefed-up oversight of print and online news media and cuts to television network licence fees.
"These reforms will ensure for the Australian public a media sector that is fair, diverse and able to tackle the challenges of the future," Senator Conroy told reporters in Canberra.
The minister said the government was addressing community concerns about media quality and how press complaints were handled.
A separate bill deals with a previously announced 50 per cent licence fee rebate for television stations, in return for increased local content.
The package of legislation is due to be introduced to parliament this week, with Senator Conroy warning it must go through or be dropped.
He said Labor won't be "held hostage" or barter on the content.
"The parliament either wants this bill or it does not," Senator Conroy said.
The bills require the support of crossbench MPs and the Australian Greens, and already appear to have the backing of most of the independents.
Meanwhile, a joint parliamentary committee would be set up to consider abolishing the "75 per cent reach rule" governing allowable audience share, on-air reporting of watchdog findings on broadcasting breaches and program supply agreements for news and current affairs.
If the one-day inquiry into the reach rule is resolved quickly it could be incorporated into the overall legislation.
Senator Conroy said the rule, which can stop any of the three major commercial networks from buying regional affiliates, wasn't relevant in today's media landscape.
And the public interest test, to be overseen by a public interest media advocate, would ensure diversity was not reduced by nationally significant media mergers and acquisitions.
The new advocate would also ensure the Australian Press Council and media outlets dealt properly with standards issues and complaints.
"Individual complaints are still dealt with in the same way (as now), but if there is a breakdown in the process the advocate is the judge of that," Senator Conroy said.
Mr Turnbull said a coalition government would repeal any public interest test on takeovers.
"I don't see why a bureaucrat should oversee the Australian news media," he said.
The Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA), representing journalists, said the government's plan also raised the prospect of bureaucratic interference in the self-regulation regime.
"The government has adopted a package that threatens a heavy hand without improving the handling of complaints," MEAA federal secretary Christopher Warren said in a statement.
The government will hold the spectrum for a sixth free-to-air channel to support community television.
Seven West Media, which has interests in three TV stations, Yahoo!7, Australia's second largest magazine group Pacific Magazines, The West Australian newspaper and 21 regional titles, welcomed the move to reduce licence fees for commercial TV operators.
But it added it was "extremely disappointed" by the possible introduction of a public interest test for media company mergers.
"The government says it is in favour of media diversity, but putting these kind of arbitrary, uncertain and subjective rules in place will only make it more difficult to attract new investment," the company said in a statement.
"A public interest test works against diversity, not for it."
Seven West also said it strongly opposed further regulation of the print media.
"This is an unprecedented restriction that is wholly inconsistent with the notion of a free press," it said on Tuesday.
News Limited chief Kim Williams said the regulations were an attempt to gag the media.
"This government will go down in history as the first Australian government outside of wartime to attack freedom of speech by seeking to introduce a regime which effectively institutes government-sanctioned journalism," Mr Williams said in a statement.
"The whole approach today constitutes a travesty of public policy and parliamentary process."
Speaking later to Sky News, Senate leader Anthony Albanese said Mr Conroy would not drag the issue out if the government was unable to secure the support needed.
"We're not going to go through months of further consideration and further committees," he said.
Nationals Senate leader Barnaby Joyce leapt on the statement.
"We've heard Anthony Albanese on the TV just then, he took about five minutes to start saying, 'well if it doesn't go through, it doesn't go through'," Mr Joyce told Sky News.
"They only announced it this morning and they're trying to back out of it by tonight."
Senator Joyce said the proposed changes would be a disaster.
"We're going to have the Labor party regulating the media because they're not getting on with the media," he said.
Mr Albanese said deciding who to appoint as the new Public Interest Media Advocate would be a bipartisan job.
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