This was published 1 year ago
Former ABC political editor Andrew Probyn joins Nine
By Calum Jaspan
Former ABC political editor Andrew Probyn has joined 9 News as national affairs editor, working in the Canberra press gallery.
In June, ABC management made Probyn’s political editor role redundant, alongside up to 120 other staff at the public broadcaster, with host of Insiders, David Speers taking the lead role in the capital.
Andrew Probyn joins 9 News.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen
Following the decision to make his role redundant, Probyn told this masthead he was “gobsmacked”, adding he struggled to understand the ABC’s direction.
Probyn, a three-time Walkley Awards finalist, has been twice named press gallery journalist of the year. He has also won the Melbourne Press Club’s prestigious Golden Quill, and was named West Australian journalist of the year in 2016.
“I’m delighted to be joining Nine’s powerhouse Parliament House bureau. At a time when the need for reliable, trusted and agenda-free news has never been greater, I look forward to working alongside Charles Croucher and some of Australian journalism’s best,” Probyn said.
Nine’s national director of news and current affairs across broadcast, Darren Wick, said Probyn will add value to the network’s coverage through his brief to break exclusive stories. Nine is the owner of The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.
Croucher was appointed as political editor in October 2022, replacing Chris Uhlmann, another former ABC political editor, after his retirement earlier in the year.
Since leaving the ABC, Probyn says he has been recovering from knee surgery, an operation planned for some time after four decades playing soccer and cricket.
Having landed his first broadcast role in 2003 at ABC Tasmania, Probyn says he partly has Nine to thank for his initial switch from newsprint.
While working for the Herald Sun in the parliamentary press gallery, colleagues at Nine helped him produce a show reel for his application at the national broadcaster, eventually landing the role. Now, two decades on, he joins Nine.
Probyn will join Nine in November.
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