Former ABC staff ask Scott Morrison not to consider 'biased' candidates for chairman role

Almost 100 former ABC staff members have asked Prime Minister Scott Morrison to disqualify any candidates for the public broadcaster's chair who have criticised its online activities, like former Fairfax Media chief executive Greg Hywood.

In an open letter to Mr Morrison released publicly on Friday morning, ABC Alumni - a recently launched lobby group of former employees at the public broadcaster - asked the government to delay choosing a replacement for former chairman Justin Milne.

Former Fairfax chief executive Greg Hywood.Credit: Dom Lorrimer

Mr Milne resigned in September amid allegations he encouraged sacked managing director Michelle Guthrie to fire journalists the government didn't like.

“The Federal Government must not rush to appoint a new ABC Chair, especially one who has displayed bias against the national broadcaster’s comprehensive role in Australian society,” the letter says, “The current process of selecting and appointing board members is open to political influence and needs urgent reform."

The letter says the public interest test should be whether a potential candidate has “a strong track record of support for the ABC and the concept of public media generally”.

“Commercial media executives who lobbied to restrict the ABC’s online activities and confine it to areas regarded as uneconomic for commercial media should be disqualified from consideration," the group says.

In May 2017, Mr Hywood criticised the ABC for "using taxpayer money to drive traffic" to its news by paying to boost Google search results. He also described himself as not "anti-ABC".

Mr Hywood left Fairfax after completing a merger with Nine Entertainment Co (owner of The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age) last year and has not commented on his future career plans or the ABC role, though is widely considered a candidate.

The ABC and SBS were recently cleared of claims they competed unfairly with commercial media companies, after a six-month investigation into their operations.

The ABC Alumni further requests that any decision about a new chair comes after the completion of a senate inquiry into allegations of political interference at the broadcaster, which is expected to report on March 29, and says it should not be a "captain's pick".

Mr Milne’s friendship with former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has come under scrutiny, with some suggesting the hiring process for the chairman and board members should be changed.

The current process involves a recruitment firm creating a merit-based shortlist though the government is not required to pick from these candidates.

Some ABC sources have suggested the government could make a decision as soon as February, however there have been no formal guidelines provided to the broadcaster's board. Applications for the position closed on November 16.

A spokeswoman for Mr Hywood declined to comment.