ABC host Raf Epstein takes aim at Peter Dutton
ABC mornings host Raf Epstein took it upon himself on Friday to take one for the team and declare he was fed up with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton picking on journalists.
In a lengthy on-air interview with Dutton in the taxpayer-funded broadcaster’s Southbank studios in Melbourne, Epstein told the Liberal leader that it was a bit uncool to repeatedly criticise reporters for just doing their jobs. Epstein’s spray came on the heels of Dutton’s swipes at Murphy, Albo’s spinner, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age’s chief political correspondent David Crowe, and the ABC’s 7.30 host Sarah Ferguson.
I am genuinely shocked to see Murpharoo take up a spot to now be officially running lines for Labor. The real outrage is David Crowe missed out. What more must he do to prove his credentials to formally be employed by the Labor Party? #givecroweago
— Peter Dutton (@PeterDutton_MP) January 29, 2024
Epstein said: “You tweeted about some journalists last week and you had an interesting exchange with Sarah Ferguson. I don’t want to go over that ground, but I did want to say this or ask you this question: having a go at the media and journalists, it’s not very prime ministerial is it?”
Dutton replied: “Really? I think you can go back to Paul Keating and Bob Hawke, there’s plenty of footage … from Bob Hawke slamming the desk and having good exchanges with journos.”
But Epstein wasn’t convinced by the Opposition Leader’s answer, likening Dutton’s conduct to that of US presidential hopeful Donald Trump.
“It’s not a bit Trumpy, doing the whole attacking the media thing?”
Dutton: “I thought you would say it’s a bit Hawkey or Keating, does that make it OK? I think John Howard’s had good exchanges with journos in the past, I think Kevin Rudd did, I remember some famous language from him, Kevin Rudd. I think there’s a robust discussion to have and I believe very strongly in our country, I want to make sure our national broadcaster is objective and I don’t think it always is.”
Murpharoo’s new law; first, just keep quiet
Press gallery types – a species that loves a wild rumour more than most – were captivated last week by chatter that Katharine Murphy, the former Guardian political editor turned government spin doctor, had rocked HMAS Albo in her first week on the job.
The word around the corridors of Parliament House was that at a joint Senate tactics committee hearing, chaired by Senate leader and Foreign Minister Penny Wong, the PM’s newbie senior press secretary had decided to pipe up with a countervailing view to the one being embraced by the Big Dogs – aka the ministers – in the room.
And according to one source, Murphy’s generous input wasn’t exactly met with a hearty round of applause.
“After she spoke, you could deadset hear a pin drop,” the source said.
So what, we hear you cry? That’s democracy at work, right? You go, girl? Murpharoo for PM?
Yeah, nah.
As one source close to the tactics committee told Diary, these meetings are not the forum for staffers to have their say. They sit quietly at the back, and they speak if spoken to.
“Tactics meetings are a huge ego fight between the ministers who all want to be heard. If you’re a staffer in the room and you decide to put your two cents in, you’re either crazy-brave or naive. Or both.”
Diary approached Murphy for comment, but she did not reply. However, another government source told Diary that the rumours were “total fiction”.
Fair enough. Maybe our sources in the room were confused.
But what isn’t fiction is that Labor types appear to be willing to critique Murphy via a whispering campaign just a coupla days into her new gig.
Nasty stuff. Anyway, at least tactics meetings sound a bit more exciting than news conferences at the Guardian Australia. Not a whole lot of countervailing viewpoints in there.
Missing Richard
Richard Marles has always loved the camera.
But the silver fox from Geelong – who also happens to be the Deputy Prime Minister of Australia, not to mention the guy in charge of our defence forces – seems to be less interested in boosting his profile in 2024, if his ongoing absence from his regular slot on prime time TV is anything to go by.
Since 2019, Marles has enjoyed weekly appearances on Nine’s Today breakfast show, usually opposite Peter Dutton, with the pair engaging in entertaining political sparring sessions.
But in 2024, the Defence Minister has gone AWOL.
Wonder why?
So far this year, Marles hasn’t appeared once on Today, instead choosing to send erstwhile Labor leader and Minister for Government Services Bill Shorten into battle for him.
But on Friday, at the end of what had been a bruising week for Marles with the exposure of his rift with his own department, Dutton took aim when Today host Karl Stefanovic asked about drones.
The Opposition Leader asked: “Well, where is Richard, Karl?
“I mean he’s MIA. And Bill … this should be Richard’s bread and butter this morning, but he’s nowhere to be found.”
Shorten, the one-time king of zingers, chimed in: “I’ll tell him you miss him.”
But Dutton out-zinged him. “Please do. I understand you two aren’t talking, but if you could send him a text that’d be good.”
Curiously, earlier in the week Marles did have time in his busy schedule to do a couple of solo TV interviews including on the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing with host Greg Jennett and on Sky News Australia, joining host Kieran Gilbert in the Canberra studio.
Sources told Diary that within Labor circles some believe Marles isn’t good enough TV talent to go toe-to-toe with Dutton, while others claim that Nine is actually trying to push the Defence Minister overboard.
So will Marles eventually return to his early morning TV slot with Dutton?
It’s understood the minister’s diary has been overloaded with other commitments in early 2024 and he won’t be able to meet his regular Today show commitment for the first few months of this year.
Diary contacted Marles’ office, but no comments were forthcoming.
But a Nine spokesman reassured Diary that Marles will be back on the breakfast TV show soon.
“Richard has limited availability for the next few weeks due to ministerial commitments,” the spokesman said.
“Bill Shorten is filling in for his regular appearances, and has been on air.
“We expect to have Richard back on air for his regular spots in March.”
We will be watching with interest.
Side hustler
Melbourne Lord Mayor Sally Capp’s media adviser Alexandra Keefe has been busy in recent days scrubbing information from her online social media profiles after it was brought to Diary’s attention that she also moonlights as a journalist for Ten News First.
Keefe was scrambling to erase numerous traces of her second job as a TV journo for Ten after concerns were raised to Diary about potential issues that may arise from switching between being a spinner and a journo.
Up until Friday morning, Keefe’s LinkedIn profile was comfortably declaring that she worked as both a media adviser and also a freelance journalist for Ten, boasting to the professional networking site of the benefits of doing both.
“My freelance reporting role at 10 News First allows me to maintain my contacts within the industry,” her profile read.
But this reference was quickly removed by Keefe just several hours after she was contacted by Diary, with her online bio now telling followers she’s a “proactive and quick-thinking media adviser to Lord Mayor of Melbourne Sally Capp”.
Keefe’s Instagram account also removed the fact that she is a “journo @10newsfirst” and “media @cityofmelbourne”, and now makes no mention of where she works, nor does her TikTok account called @alexinthecity.
But it didn’t end there. Keefe also flicked her Instagram account to private so it could no longer be viewed by the public, but she appears to have forgotten to update her profile on X, formerly Twitter, which states she is a “media adviser @cityofmelbourne” and “journo @10newsfirst”.
Keefe was asked by Diary why she had scrubbed references to her work at Ten on her social media profiles but received no response.
It’s understood Capp is aware Keefe does both jobs and has no issue with it – Keefe does not report for Ten on specific matters relating to the City of Melbourne or the Lord Mayor.
In Keefe’s last TV news report on January 14, when she was not busy working as a media adviser for Capp, she was putting together a report on a firebombing at a Melbourne tobacco shop for Ten’s weekend news bulletin led by newsreader Chris Bath.
A spokeswoman for Ten reassured Diary there were no problems with Keefe juggling her two roles – one as a spinner and the other as a reporter.
“Alexandra Keefe is an experienced journalist having worked for all Australian commercial networks and is sporadically employed in a freelance capacity by Network 10 to cover unplanned staff absences,” the spokeswoman said.
“Ms Keefe’s intermittent freelance work at 10 News First is restricted to only national news stories and does not include stories related to the Melbourne City Council.”
When Capp’s office was contacted about the matter – firstly by directing questions to Keefe – no comments were given.
Back on track
Melbourne 3AW drive host Jacqui Felgate only took up her full-time gig with the Nine Entertainment-owned station in January but has already made it abundantly clear that she will continue to be spruiking commercial products while performing her radio broadcasting duties.
In her latest paid promo, the former food reviewer turned radio host uploaded a series of posts in recent days, revealing her new “paid partnership” with the Australian Grand Prix Corporation.
Standing alongside a fancy navy blue racing car in numerous pics and Instagram stories, Felgate told her followers: “It’s going to be an incredible four days of motorsport, glamour, entertainment and fun.
“I hope to see you trackside for this year’s Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix 2024.
“I went to my first GP 15 years ago and it’s such a thrill to be part of it this year.”
Felgate’s deals got Nine Radio in a serious spot of bother last year after scoops by The Australian revealed the station had failed to declare she held 15 lucrative deals that weren’t declared on the station’s register.
The matter now remains the subject of an ongoing investigation by the media regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority, which is looking at the registers of all of Nine’s major station’s including 3AW, 2GB, 4BC and 6PR.
Over the summer, Felgate has used her Instagram account to plug many more of her lucrative deals and, according to the 3AW commercial agreements register, she now has 11 paid partnerships, down from 15.
This includes deals with Chadstone Shopping Centre, Chemist Warehouse, Smile Solutions, BMW and Maybelline.
Felgate got herself into strife last year after failing to disclose some of these deals on-air, including with BMW.
She told listeners of her wonderful experience with the German luxury car brand’s electric iX3 vehicle, without declaring she was in deal with the car company.
A Nine Radio spokeswoman assured Diary that the radio arm, led by managing director Tom Malone, is now well and truly on top of its disclosure obligations.
“Everything currently on the register meets legislation requirements and 3AW will always cover any news relevant to its audience regardless of commercial agreements,” she said.
Over summer, Felgate was also plugging paid deals on Instagram with food delivery service DoorDash and body essentials business All Kinds, but Diary understands these are not on Felgate’s latest list of declared deals because they don’t meet the requirements to do so.
Ross overload
Newspapers are at their very best when they cover major events, be they natural disasters, political bombshells or unforgettable moments in history – such as, say, the moon landing. Or Ross Gittins’ work milestone.
Last Wednesday, readers of The Sydney Morning Herald were treated to an extraordinary tribute to the newspaper’s economics editor on the occasion of Gittins’ 50th anniversary at the masthead.
The SMH tabloid devoted eight (EIGHT!) pages to Gittins’ work birthday, plus a letters page full of praise for the veteran economics scribe, whom one reader described as “the thinking woman’s sex symbol”.
Golly! Diary can’t recall a print journo enjoying sex symbol status since mild-mannered reporter Clark Kent used to get changed in a phone box.
Now, lest there be any doubt, Diary is not suggesting Gittins is undeserving of the plaudits lavished upon him.
To work for 50 years in the news business is an amazing achievement, and a milestone that very few journalists reach.
But as it happened, the lead-in to Gittins’ 50th anniversary celebration was a particularly busy news day – King Charles III’s cancer diagnosis was revealed, new Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock fronted her first media conference after a critical decision on interest rates, and Peter Dutton flagged more Coalition tax cuts if elected.
On any other day, any of those stories might have been the biggest yarn of the day.
But with the Gittins package all pre-written and ready to go, did the SMH pull the right rein in devoting exactly half of its Wednesday news section to the highly-respected journalist, or should the paper have dialled it back a little bit to give more space to, dare we say it, legitimate news stories?
And how is it that the death of celebrated Indigenous rights advocate Lowitja O’Donoghue warranted only one news story on page 7 of the SMH last Monday and an obituary back on page 30? It’s a bit hard to justify when compared to the homage to Ross.
Diary sought comment from SMH editor Bevan Shields but we didn’t hear back.
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