Channel 9 forced to confront disaster year at star-studded event

Nine’s newly appointed acting CEO has been forced to address the bombshell report into toxic culture during the company’s own glitzy event attended by network stars.

Channel 9 has been forced to address the culture scandal engulfing the network at its own star-studded event.

The broadcaster hosted its Upfront event at Carriageworks in Sydney on Thursday afternoon, where executives flaunted the network’s 2025 program slate for advertisers.

It wasn’t ideal timing for Nine, coming just days after a bombshell report exposed the station’s systemic bullying and harassment culture.

Acting chief executive officer Matt Stanton, who was appointed to the role after Mike Sneesby stood down in September, opened formalities at Thursday’s event, conceding it had been “a significant year of change and disruption”.

“As an organisation, we’ve had to face some hard truths and confront systemic cultural issues, which has been incredibly challenging for our people,” Mr Stanton said.

“At all levels of the business, we are deeply committed to embedding meaningful and lasting change at Nine.

“Believe, this difficult but necessary process will allow more of our people to perform at their best and pave the way for positive industry leading change.”

Nine Entertainment’s acting CEO Matt Stanton. Picture: Channel 9

A slew of the network’s top talent were in attendance at the event, including Karl Stefanovic, Sophie Monk, Allison Langdon, Sylvia Jeffreys and newcomer Samantha Armytage, who has defected from Seven.

The independent report, which was handed down last Thursday, exposed systemic issues with abuse of power, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment.

The report, which was built from 122 interviews with current and former employees, determined “known perpetrators” weren’t adequately dealt with by senior management.

Allison Langdon. Picture: MATRIX

Sophie Monk. Picture: MATRIX

The Today show team. Picture: MATRIX

Controversially, no-one was named in the investigation, a factor which has caused upset among employees, who were instead advised if they wished to make individual complaints, they needed to follow the usual processes.

As reported last week by news.com.au, Nine staff gathered to hear from executives shortly after the report dropped.

Witnesses said 60 Minutes reporters Tom Steinfort and Dimity Clancey, as well as presenter Deborah Knight, raised concerns including what the fallout would be for those accused of bullying.

“Tom Steinfort asked a very good question. He was just asking if there are no heads that are going to roll, where’s the accountability?’’ a Nine employee said.

“They’re not committing to sacking anyone, there’s no names at all. And that’s where the frustration was,’’ they added.

Staff gave testimony for the investigation, sharing how they “wanted to die” working for the broadcaster, sharing what it was like to be “groomed” and “touched on the “bum”, and frozen out and put on “Punishment Island”.

Tom Steinfort and Deborah Knight both raised concerns at a staff meeting.

One anonymous complainant told the inquiry: “While we like to believe that the #MeToo movement improved working conditions for women, the Nine newsroom reeked of a man’s locker room.

“I had regularly overheard men … boisterously joke about sexual assault … and objectify women in general … I knew it was a ‘man’s place’.”

Another staffer said there were frequent sexualised comments in the newsroom: “It would not be uncommon to be asked or to hear: ‘Who did you f*** last night?’”

“This place is run like a boys’ club, and I say that as a male,’’ a Nine employee said.

“The “cool kids” (those in charge) are woefully underqualified at best.”

Women said they were “groomed” and sexually harassed, and that male reporters were automatically awarded the “serious” stories about crime and politics.

“When I was in (retracted location, name) tried to groom me. He also touched me on the bum at the Xmas party and at other times he would rub my legs under the table,’’ one woman said.

Executives turned a blind eye to complaints, the report found.

Women reported experiencing all forms of inappropriate workplace behaviours.

“Casual sexism and being held to a different standard than men were common experiences for women in the Broadcast Division,’’ the report detailed.

Multiple employees added working at Nine had destroyed their mental health.

Intersection Pty Ltd was engaged by the Nine Entertainment Corporation in May 2024 to conduct the independent review of Nine’s workplace culture.

The review did not extend to investigating or making findings about any individual incident or allegation.

Trouble for Nine first kicked off in March when former news director Darren Wick abruptly left the company after 29 years amid allegations of inappropriate behaviour.