Paul Murray: ‘I hope to outlast my haters
Opinionated Sky News broadcaster Paul Murray has developed a thick skin throughout the course of his career, but that doesn’t make him immune to the barbs thrown at him by friends, colleagues and the public.
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“What’s the best thing you’ve ever ordered from the kitchen downstairs?”
Of the many questions Sky News broadcaster Paul Murray has asked in his time on the air, this was not the one he expected would end up being among the most controversial when he lobbed it during a three-minute chat with US President Donald Trump at the White House last September.
Months later, reflecting on the fallout as he talks with Stellar, he says, “People were saying it was the most offensive question. ‘This man is the devil and you’re asking him about food?’ But I’m a West Wing guy. I thought the question was in the light of that show.”
Plenty didn’t, and when the 41-year-old host of Paul Murray Live found himself at the centre of a pile-on – from fellow media personalities, such as ABC News Breakfast host Michael Rowland, as well as Twitter users – the thick skin he has spent a career developing was admittedly pierced.
“I can’t be the devil some want me to be and I can’t be the bulletproof person, either,” he says. “I let the collective hate take some of the shine from the experience of interviewing Trump.” (For the record, Trump said he enjoys the steak.)
When the storm passed, Murray reminded himself what it had all meant to a self-proclaimed “bogan kid” who grew up in a working-class suburb of Sydney dreaming of following in the footsteps of Andrew Denton and Stan Zemanek. “The idea that the son of a bus driver could shake the president’s hand is pretty f*cking amazing,” he says.
The visit to Washington D.C. is now on the highlights reel for Murray, who will mark a decade fronting his high-rating Sky News panel show next month – which surprises even him. “For a long time, my dream was to be a radio guy, so television was always the cream on top,” says Murray, who did in fact start on radio, hosting shows for Sydney’s Triple M and 2UE.
But following his dream and being paid to have a solid point of view – which, in his case, is often unerringly conservative – has had consequences.
“I’ve lost more friends than I’ve gained over the past 10 years,” he says. “That’s the downside of being opinionated, especially if you’re going to have an opinion that bucks the trend.”
And while Murray is glad to proclaim that “conservatism is the new punk”, he also wants it to be known he appreciates a wealth of opinions, whether the public realises it or not. “The strength of a rich life is to have people in it that you disagree with, and I’ve been heartbroken at times with the number of people who I share so much with who then refuse to be seen having a connection to me.”
His friend Katrina Blowers, a weekend news anchor with the Seven Network in Brisbane, met Murray when the two worked in local radio – and before he’d grown out his signature beard.
She tells Stellar he has not only toiled to make his job look effortless, but that “he’s also worked hard to develop his thick skin over time. I’ve seen people not be able to separate his public and private personae, and understand he has a role to play. Paul’s a good person; I can rely on him to answer my call at 2am if something goes wrong.”
Likewise, she reveals, “I’ve also taken many of his soul-searching chats that come when he polarises people.”
Murray, who was on air for 11 hours during the Lindt Café Siege and spends considerable time broadcasting from regional Australia, believes many of us have lost the ability to agree to disagree.
“My view is that, in terms of decency, we can only be judged on our actions, not our opinions,” he says, admitting that even he has struggled with things he has said.
“I hate the world where people who disagree with you think you should lose your job and you should be kicked out of the city limits. That penalty should be reserved for people who break the law.”
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There is one thing he wishes both loyal viewers and ferocious detractors could see more of: “Me, bringing up fiercely independent, confident little girls.” Murray and his wife, high-school sweetheart Sian, are parents to daughters Asher, five, and Zadie, two. A son, Leo, born in August 2012, tragically passed away 33 hours after birth due to umbilical cord complications.
Blowers said the experience changed her friend. “It made him a much more mature and emotionally connected journalist,” she tells Stellar.
But even now, Murray admits all the effort he throws into his job still comes at a personal cost. “The great regret I have, frankly, is I just don’t spend enough time with the kids. I don’t tuck them into bed, and I don’t see them most mornings.”
Asked if he thinks this is setting them up for future rebellion – maybe they will join the Greens, perhaps? – Murray quickly says it wouldn’t bother him if they did.
“I want them to be a hardcore left-winger and a hardcore right-winger,” he says, adding that he was a leftie himself during his time at university. “I want them to be all of those things so they can work out what they are.”
And if the Murray you see on TV firmly knows his stance on the state of the world, he also knows what he wants every time he sits down in front of the camera to share that stance: one more person tuning in to hear what he has to say, or in the case of Trump, ask – even if it does invite blowback.
“When you tell the truth as you see it, your path gets narrower and narrower,” he says. “But I hope to outlast all my haters.”
Paul Murray Live airs 9pm, Sundays to Thursdays, on Sky News.