Revisiting Creative Australia’s decision to drop Khaled Sabsabi

<p>The fallout from this year&rsquo;s Adelaide Writers&rsquo; Week debacle has reignited fierce debate about political interference in the arts and about who gets to speak in Australia&rsquo;s cultural spaces.</p> <p>After the invitation to Palestinian-Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah was withdrawn, 180 writers pulled out in protest.&nbsp;</p> <p>The festival was eventually cancelled and Adelaide Festival has since apologised for excluding the author from Writers&rsquo; Week, admitting it had failed to uphold artistic freedom. The whole saga raises urgent questions about how decisions are being made &ndash; by governments, by boards, and by those in charge of our institutions.&nbsp;</p> <p>Today, we&rsquo;re bringing you a story from last year that exposed one of the initial fault lines in cultural administration.</p> <p>It&rsquo;s about artist Khaled Sabsabi, who was dropped from representing Australia at the Venice Biennale after political pressure. Then, as the backlash intensified, Sabsabi was reinstated.&nbsp;</p> <p>It&rsquo;s an episode that feels more relevant than ever.&nbsp; It features chief political correspondent for <em>The Saturday Paper </em>Karen Barlow, speaking with Ruby Jones.</p> <p>This episode originally aired in February last year.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>If you enjoy <em>7am</em>, the best way you can support us is by making a contribution at <a href="http://7ampodcast.com.au/support">7ampodcast.com.au/support</a>.</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Socials:</strong><strong> </strong>Stay in touch with us on <a href="http://www.instagram.com/7ampodcast">Instagram</a></p> <p><strong>Guest:</strong> Chief political correspondent for <em>The Saturday Paper </em>Karen Barlow</p> <p><strong>Photo:&nbsp;</strong>Khaled Sabsabi and Michael Dagostino in Granville. Photo: Anna Kucera</p><p>See <a href="https://omnystudio.com/listener">omnystudio.com/listener</a> for privacy information.</p>