‘We owe her nothing’: Buttrose pushed for Lattouf removal, court hears

Antoinette Lattouf says she doesn’t care if people found the “facts” she posted to social media were controversial, in a day of blistering evidence in the Federal Court where it emerged that former ABC chair Ita Buttrose had pushed for the broadcaster to be taken off-air following complaints about her.

Lattouf, who has sued the ABC for unlawful termination, was cross-examined about whether material she had shared on social media could be considered controversial by some sections of the public, including one claim that “Gaza was being annihilated hourly” and another that said, “HRW [Human Rights Watch] reporting starvation as a tool of war”.

“Facts are never controversial. I don’t share facts worrying if somebody might think it’s controversial,” she said in response to questioning from ABC barrister Ian Neil, SC.

Antoinette Lattouf arrives at the Federal Court on Monday ahead of her unlawful dismissal case.Credit: Edwina Pickles

Lattouf’s lawyers argued members of a lobby group had conducted a “spectacularly successful campaign” to have her taken off-air, including a “barrage of complaints” sent to ABC managing director David Anderson and Buttrose.

Buttrose wrote in emails with Anderson: “I have a whole clutch of complaints. Can’t she come down with flu, or COVID or a stomach upset? We owe her nothing,” the court was told.

The correspondence was revealed in the opening statements made by Lattouf’s barrister, Oshie Fagir, as the high-profile case began in front of a packed courtroom on Monday morning, where Lattouf is arguing she was unlawfully terminated three days into a five-day contract as a fill-in presenter on ABC Radio Sydney in late 2023. Central to the case are social media posts she made before and during her time at the ABC.

“We’re copping criticism because she [Lattouf] wasn’t honest when she was appointed,” Buttrose had said, according to Fagir.

Lattouf was cross-examined for several hours on Monday afternoon, and was pushed to acknowledge some of her online posts might be considered “controversial” by sections of the public, and to agree that some people might find Human Rights Watch a non-impartial, or even controversial organisation.

Earlier in the day, the court heard Anderson had told ABC content chief Chris Oliver-Taylor, “I think we have an Antoinette issue”, after receiving complaints from what Fagir described as pro-Israel lobbyists, and that her social media accounts were “full of antisemitic hatred”.

After explaining Lattouf would finish up on the Friday of that same week as part of a “managed exit”, Buttrose responded: “Managed exit, really? We should be in damage control not managed exits, David.” Buttrose departed the ABC in March last year after one term as chair.

The ABC’s top editorial expert, Simon Melkman, had argued that Lattouf had done nothing wrong and that the complaints were “seriously misguided”, with editorial codes applying to content broadcast rather than assessing the people the ABC hired.

Melkman had advised there had not been a breach of either the social media guidelines, editorial protocols or the act, according to Fagir, who in his opening statement argued the ABC’s most senior executives were sympathetic to and “embraced” the views expressed by the pro-Israeli lobby and the anti-Lattouf campaigners.

Outgoing ABC managing director David Anderson is set to appear on Tuesday.Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald

The names of anyone who complained directly to the ABC chair and managing director about Lattouf’s employment were suppressed ahead of the trial on Monday morning.

Anderson, who leaves the ABC at the beginning of March, is one of a number of high-profile witnesses set to appear, alongside the departed Buttrose and chief content officer Oliver-Taylor, who was shown in documents to have made the call to remove Lattouf.

Anderson, Buttrose and Oliver-Taylor exchanged a flurry of emails in the days leading up to Lattouf’s termination on December 20, 2023, documents released by the Federal Court on Friday revealed, prompted by a number of direct complaints after her first show.

Lattouf’s team amended their initial statement of claim in October to reflect their claim both Anderson and Buttrose were key decision-makers in her sacking, after evidence relating to the trial was filed. The ABC has positioned Oliver-Taylor as the decision-maker, who claimed in correspondence that Lattouf had breached a directive.

The presenter brought the case to the Fair Work Commission, arguing she was unlawfully terminated by the ABC based on political opinion and/or race, and that the decision to end her contract contravened the public broadcaster’s enterprise agreement.

Her dismissal came after she shared a Human Rights Watch post on Instagram with the caption, “HRW reporting starvation as a tool of war”. In her Fair Work submission, Lattouf said the ABC said the post had breached its social media policies and cited it in its reasons for her dismissal.

Other ABC figures expected to appear in court include audio boss Ben Latimer, former ABC Radio Sydney manager Steve Ahern, and then-acting editorial director Melkman.

The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.