The Coalition is still struggling to pass its media laws with crossbench senator Nick Xenophon saying he will not back a deal the Government has struck with Pauline Hanson's One Nation party.
Senator Hanson has given the "conditional support" of the four One Nation senators in return for demanding "fair" and "balanced" be part of the ABC's Charter, its commitment to regional areas, and power to reveal the salaries of its top broadcasters.
But even with her support, the Coalition needs to win the support of key crossbenchers in the Nick Xenophon Team, or convince Labor and the Greens to change their mind.
Those two parties are still negotiating with the Government but have made it clear they will not support a "dirty deal" with One Nation.
And Senator Xenophon has also said he does not support the deal in the form it is being proposed by One Nation.
"I cannot see the need for the so-called fair and balanced test, what that would mean to the ABC in terms of the way that it can fearlessly report issues, to cover issues, really concerns me," he said.
"I don't think the ramifications have been thought through."
And he said it would be unprecedented for ABC employees' salaries to be published and would put the organisation at a disadvantage with commercial broadcasters.
The Coalition wants to scrap measures such as the so-called "two-out-of-three" rule, which prevents a company owning a TV station, newspaper and radio station in the one licence area.
It would also end the "reach rule", which prevents a single TV station from reaching more than 75 per cent of the population.
Senator Hanson said she had a "hot and cold relationship" with the media but was genuinely concerned for the industry's future.
Media laws architect lobbies crossbench
Nationals senator Bridget McKenzie has been lobbying for many of the changes that have been included in the One Nation deal, and is now campaigning Senate crossbenchers to support the agreement, arguing there was "no additional cost to budget in any of these measures".
"It is merely asking the ABC to be more accountable," Senator McKenzie said.
"I think the fact that the measures outlined in my private senator's bill are actually quite cost effective, there will be a number of crossbench senators that want to see increased transparency, accountability from our public broadcaster."
Senator McKenzie called for two members of the public broadcaster's board to come from regional Australia, a prescribed amount of regional news broadcasts, and the introduction of a rural and regional advisory council to the board.
But Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the One Nation deal would undermine the ABC's independence and "take an axe" to online video platforms.
She said Senator Hanson had a "grudge" against public broadcasters and an investigation into balance would open "a hornet's nest" of complaints about the ABC.
"Make no mistake, Pauline Hanson has the ABC and SBS in her sights and she wants to damage," Senator Hanson-Young said.
"She wants to attack them, she wants to cut their funding, and she wants to stop them being able to broadcast online."
Shadow attorney-general Mark Dreyfus said he was still concerned about the concentration of media ownership.
"We won't support what seems to be a dirty deal done with One Nation," he told Lateline.
