ABC stars Mark Willacy and Paul Barry in bathroom dispute over war crimes reporting

When Media Watch criticised its own ABC Investigations team, a ‘furious’ journalist Mark Willacy found himself in a bathroom disagreement with host Paul Barry.

Two of the ABC’s biggest stars — Media Watch host Paul Barry and investigative journalist Mark Willacy — were involved in a bathroom confrontation after Barry had criticised Willacy’s reporting on war crimes on his show.

The incident, according to sources, occurred during a time of much internal drama at the public broadcaster, where Media Watch staff were feuding with members of the ABC Investigations team.

In December 2021, Media Watch called out a story by Willacy which alleged Australian soldiers executed an unarmed prisoner in Afghanistan.

The allegation was based on a single source, a US Marine who said he’d heard a “pop” on his helicopter radio, which he assumed was a gunshot.

Barry told his audience he had a “problem with Willacy’s story” and believed the ABC had “hit publish too soon.”

ABC Media Watch presenter Paul Barry also criticised taxpayer-funded ABC for how it spends money. Picture: X (formerly Twitter)

It was after this segment went to air that Willacy and Barry found themselves in a bathroom disagreement, which a source at the public broadcaster said was “spoken about in the corridors.”

“Mark was furious with Media Watch for critiquing his journalism” the source said.

When asked to comment, Barry told The Daily Telegraph he and Willacy “had a minor disagreement about the Media Watch segment, which he (Willacy) thought was unfair. It was no big deal”.

An ABC spokesperson added: “We can confirm there was no physical confrontation and no investigation.”

The move by Barry to criticise his own news division also prompted an angry response from ABC Investigations boss Jo Puccini, who wrote to the Media Watch team in February 2022 seeking a correction.

ABC Investigations reporter Mark Willacy. Picture: Gaye Gerard

Tim Latham, who was then the Media Watch executive producer, replied: “I understand that you feel bruised by the criticism and feel it’s unfair, but I’m afraid this complaint is not going to fly.”

Willacy wrote back to Latham, telling his colleague: “You were wrong, and you have offered absolutely nothing to validate the key premise of your segment. Please let us know whether you will take this complaint seriously. If not, we will escalate it further.”

On February 10, 2022 Puccini and Willacy did escalate their complaint to ABC top brass, including senior figure John Lyons.

“Media Watch hasn’t taken (our complaint) seriously. It has brushed us off and failed to answer the basic questions we posed” Ms Puccini said.

In later correspondence, Willacy told colleagues that “Media Watch had f...ed up.”

The story at the centre of the internal feud has since been removed from the internet, after the ABC and Willacy lost a defamation case against an Australian soldier, retired Special Forces Commander Heston Russell, who was awarded almost $400,000 in damages.

The public broadcaster has also launched an independent investigation into a separate war crimes story by Willacy, following claims by Channel 7’s Spotlight that extra gunshots had been added to the footage.

On Media Watch last month, stand-in host Janine Perrett said the investigation “will not only provide answers but some accountability.”

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Originally published as ABC stars Mark Willacy and Paul Barry in bathroom dispute over war crimes reporting