ABC news boss Justin Stevens says altered audio in a news report on war crimes ‘shouldn’t have occurred’

Justin Stevens concedes the issue with altered audio in a news report on alleged war crimes in Afghanistan ‘shouldn’t have occurred’ and that an investigation was ongoing to determine who was responsible | LISTEN

ABC news boss Justin Stevens will not say whether the taxpayer-funded broadcaster will apologise to former November platoon commander Heston Russell after it published doctored audio depicting an Australian soldier firing six shots at unarmed civilians in Afghanistan.

Speaking at a Melbourne Press Club luncheon on Tuesday, Stevens said the issue with the offending footage “shouldn’t have occurred” and an investigation was continuing to determine who was responsible and how it took place.

“I think we need to in the first instance … exhaustively get to the bottom of what’s happened,” he said.

“As I said we will be upfront and transparent at the appropriate time in coming days as to what happened.”

Addressing the apology specifically, Stevens said: “I’m not going to pre-empt that.”

The ABC news boss on Tuesday queried the use of the word “doctored” that was used by The Australian to describe the audio error.

“You use the word doctor which is an extremely high allegation to make of any journalist, that a journalist would falsify information for their own journalistic gain,” he said.

“As we have stated there is no evidence to hand that (the editorial staff) Jo Puccini, Mark Willacy or Josh Robertson had any role in the publishing of that online video which we have taken down immediately.

“We are looking into it and it shouldn’t have occurred.”

At Senate estimates last year the ABC’s managing director David Anderson said the broadcaster would not be apologising to former November platoon commander Heston Russell despite the former soldier successfully suing the ABC for defamation.

“I am not going to apologise to Mr Russell,” Mr Anderson said in October.

Mr Russell received $390,000 in damages plus legal costs over multiple stories published by the ABC that included allegations regarding the death of a prisoner in Afghanistan in 2012.

On Sunday night Channel 7’s flagship investigative program Spotlight claimed audio accompanying a video included in an ABC report on a military operation by Australian soldiers depicted six shots instead of one being fired at unarmed civilians in Afghanistan.

The video – which was removed last week – aired on the ABC’s flagship news and current affairs program 7.30.

Channel 7 Spotlight reporter Liam Bartlett with former soldier Heston Russell. Picture: Channel 7.

Mr Russell wrote to ABC chair Kim Williams on Monday requesting a face-to-face meeting with him to discuss the matter.

Stevens said on Tuesday he had not seen Mr Russell’s letter and would leave it to Mr Williams to determine whether he would agree to a meeting with the former soldier.

Mr Russell said he was yet to receive a response from Mr Williams.

During the Spotlight episode Mr Russell said the raw, unedited version of the footage of the military operation in Afghanistan from 2012 was provided to the ABC before last year’s defamation trial which showed one shot being fired, not six.

“This is the exact footage that my legal team provided to the ABC and their legal team just prior to our trial when on three separate times they kept trying to rely on their truth defence, saying it was me shooting out of the helicopter,” he said on Spotlight.

“Two things: first and foremost, it’s not me; secondly, here’s the full context – they were not unarmed civilians.

“Even after we gave the ABC the footage, the narrative was that I was shooting at unarmed ­civilians.”

During his Tuesday address, Stevens said he expects “scrutiny at the ABC to be rigorous and thorough and I don’t shy away from that when it’s warranted.”

“Our staff are rightly held to the highest standards because they work for the Australian taxpayer,” he said.

“My job is not to be liked at all the time by everybody, it’s to work for the public and to uphold the reputation of ABC news so that we remain the best and most trusted media organisation in the country.”

Originally published as ABC news boss Justin Stevens says altered audio in a news report on war crimes ‘shouldn’t have occurred’