Sarah Ferguson leaves Four Corners for new China posting

Long-time Four Corners host and journalist Sarah Ferguson is set to leave the show to head up ABC’s China Bureau.

Sarah Ferguson is expected to take up her role as bureau chief in China later this year. Picture: ABC

ABC has appointed long-serving Four Corners reporter and presenter Sarah Ferguson as its new bureau chief in China, as the public broadcaster plans to ramp-up its international news coverage.

Ferguson will join ABC’s China correspondent Bill Birtles in Beijing later this year after wrapping up a three-part documentary series for ABC TV.

“Now more than ever Australians need quality, in-depth coverage of China through Australian eyes,” ABC news director Gaven Morris said in a statement.

“Delivering that for our audiences will be a key element of the ABC’s international news gathering in 2019, as well as an enhanced focus on the Asia-Pacific.”

A recent report by the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of China revealed the increasing pressure on journalists working for the ABC in China, with its former correspondent Matthew Carney under surveillance at home and work, and given only a short extension of his visa after reporting on a trip to Xinjiang.

Carney, who returned to Australia in December and is now the executive producer of ABC’s Foreign Correspondent program, said in the report that two interviews with Chinese authorities last year for his visa renewal had been “angry, confrontational and threatening”.

Carney was given an extension of only 2½ months on his visa, resulting to his departure in December.

An ABC spokeswoman declined to comment on Ferguson’s start date, but it is understood that she won’t start in the role until October. An ABC insider said Ferguson didn’t apply for the role, and some staffers are surprised with her appointment.

“The China story is irresistible for a journalist. It has become the story of our time — and one with immense implications for Australia. Understanding China and the Chinese perspective is vital,” said Ferguson, who has been a reporter with Four Corners for 10 years, as well as presenting the program for the past three years.

Four Corners journalist Michael Brissenden, who has worked for the ABC for decades, will present the show tonight, but nothing has been announced beyond that yet, the ABC spokeswoman said.

Ferguson’s husband, Tony Jones, will continue to host ABC’s Q&A program.

“It’s business as usual for Q&A, there are no changes to the program’s plans for 2019,” she said.