When the ABC’s political editor called in as a listener

When a familiar voice called ABC Radio 666 with a complaint, the announcer had to ask: is this Andrew Probyn from the ABC?

Illustration: Johannes Leak.

Seven West Media’s Allfronts on Friday morning at the network’s new home in Eveleigh was overly long, but Diary is looking forward to the revamped Ms Fisher’s ­Modern Murder Mysteries, set in the 1960s, and drama supremo Bevan Lee’s (find him on our ­Behind the Media podcast) new rich family/poor family drama, ­Between Two Worlds.

But across town at the same time, in the Federal Court, another Seven drama was brewing that didn’t warrant a press release. Lisa Squillace, Seven’s digital sales ­director who has been hired by Ten to be its network sales director, was in court fighting Seven’s application to enforce non-compete clauses that would stop her joining Ten before June 25. Three months’ ­notice ends on December 26, but Seven then wants a non-compete period until June 25, which Squillace reckons is a bit rich and so has launched adverse action proceedings. All parties agreed to a trial taking place before December 20. No comment from Seven. Oh, by the way, Squillace, who has been on leave since June, has a 16-week-old baby and is not being paid because of a dispute between the parties over whether she is ­entitled to paid gardening leave or unpaid maternity leave. Between two worlds, indeed.

Zemiro delivers

The big star of Seven’s Allfronts was Seven newcomer Julia Zem­iro. She was firing on all cylinders.

Julia Zemiro. Picture: Jenny Evans

Diary particularly enjoyed her RocKwiz pub take-down of some unfortunate media buyers who ­attempted to leave early. “I am thinking we will have to find ­another show for her,” one Seven exec was heard to muse.

Same as it always was

Wanted. An ABC chairperson. Contact Lana Gourouleva at ­recruiters Korn Ferry. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people are encouraged to apply. “Candidates must demonstrate an understanding of the media environment and the ABC Charter.” That rules out most of the present board, then. The job ad from the Department of Communications and Arts points out that the independent panel will send a short-list of at least three candidates to the Prime Minister and Communications Minister. But it squibs on pointing out that the government is free to ignore the list when ­appointing board members.

Phillip Adams. Picture: Julie Adams

Prospective candidates should read the great Phillip Adams in The Weekend Australian Magazine. He tells of encountering Four Corners’ Sarah Ferguson in the ABC carpark as the program ­investigates the events that led to the sacking of managing director Michelle Guthrie and subsequent resignation of chairman Justin Milne. Adams writes: “ ‘What went wrong?’ she asked me. As the oldest broadcaster in the building, with a memory of ABC politics, ­internal and external, stretching back to the turbulent times of ­Talbot Duckmanton, and having witnessed more murders in manage­ment than you get in Midsomer, my answer was: ‘When has it ever gone right?’ ”

Hiding around corners

PS. Four Corners’ investigation has not been officially confirmed. Thus Four Corners’ cameras may or may not have been spotted on the executive floor and may or may not have been filming ­comings and goings outside the ABC boardroom.

Probyn, private citizen

Over on ABC Radio 666 Can­berra, a long-time listener, first-time caller rang in to a talkback session with ACT Transport Minister Meegan Fitzharris to register his disappointment at cuts to bus timetables that increased travelling times for schoolchildren. “A trip that takes 15 minutes in the car is going to take an hour and a bit,” said the caller, initially introduced as Andre but then corrected to “Andrew from Lyons”.

ABC announcer Adam Shirley recognised a familiar voice. “Is this Andrew Probyn ringing from the ABC?”, to which the caller replied: “It might be.”

Long-time listener, first-time caller Andrew Probyn.

Turns out it was. Probyn told Diary: “I called on a day off as a private citizen — as I made clear in the call — to register disappointment with a decision of the ACT Labor government that will ­greatly inconvenience thousands of students, including my kids; a decision that followed what I regarded as a shoddy consultation.”

Yes, being a journalist, even ABC political editor, doesn’t mean you can’t complain to elected representatives about cuts to services. And using your journalistic position to get on the air would have been infinitely worse. But Probyn should have been upfront in identifying himself. In his 10 months in the job, Probyn has faced an ACMA finding that he breached impartiality standards. The then-chairman Justin Milne told managing ­director Michelle Guthrie before she was sacked that she had to “shoot” the political editor. The resultant firestorm forced Milne to resign. And that was before the ­infamous behind the pot plant re-enactment on the 7pm news. Last week our cartoonist Johannes Leak drew a masterful cartoon of Probyn disguised as a pot plant calling for a root and branch overhaul of the ABC. Probes has ­already ordered a copy. Leak, for one, reckons he is a good sport.

Tale or two broadcasters

Compare and contrast the hours ABC acting managing director David Anderson endured Senate estimates with the 13 minutes (count ’em!) new SBS managing director James Taylor appeared. Mr Taylor, who joined SBS in 2012 as chief financial officer, was made acting managing director in the wake of Michael Ebeid’s departure for Telstra. He was appointed to the role permanently the Friday before last. Read it and weep, Aunty. And how cute: the flyer at the bottom of the SBS email ­announcing the appointment of Taylor, 43, read: Child Genius.

Sintras’s short stint

But SBS is not without management disruption. The well-regarded John Sintras, who joined the multicultural broadcaster in April as chief audience and content officer, slipped out the door on Friday. Sintras’s stellar career includes a stint as president of global business development and product ­innovation at IPG Mediabrands based in New York and before that as chief executive of Starcom ­MediaVest Australia. “John Sintras recently made the decision to resign and depart SBS to pursue new opportunities,” SBS said. “As a highly respected figure in the media industry, we have valued the energy and insight he has brought to the team, as well as his passion for SBS and its purpose.”

Who told Eric?

Who leaked to ABC-hating Tasmanian senator Eric Abetz the fact that David Anderson had discussed a redundancy with his former boss, sacked managing director Michelle Guthrie? Surely not Ms Guthrie herself? Nah. Diary is sure that she is above making life difficult for her successor by salting the earth. The question totally blindsided Mr ­Anderson in estimates last week.

ABC managing director David Anderson. Picture: Gary Ramage

Here is part of his ­response: “Only my boss and I know about that conversation, and we then talked about, in meaningful terms, what my career might be beyond that, and we moved on from the redundancy conversation pretty quickly. My boss made it quite clear that a ­redundancy was not something that we thought was the right way to go, so the conversations moved to other things.” In fact, moved all the way to Senator Abetz’s estimates questions list.

Spite at estimates

David Anderson was on shaky ground over why the ABC had not surrendered the dossier Michelle Guthrie supplied to the board to the departmental inquiry. But at times the exchanges between himself and Eric Abetz appeared spiteful. Senator Abetz noted the number of roles Mr Anderson had held during his 29-year ABC ­career and the number of times he had moved from acting in a role to being appointed permanently.

“Are you simply going to be the ABC’s Steven Bradbury in relation to the managing director’s role, or are we going to have a proper selection process?” Senator Abetz asked.

Mr Anderson replied: “Firstly, I make no apology for my career.”

Disruption to come

David Anderson was very forthright about the impact of looming cuts on the ABC, pointing out that the $84 million efficiency cut over three years, on top of the 2014 ­decision to cut the ABC budget by $250m over five years, would cut the operating budget as the ABC is hit by rising production costs and the need for greater digital investment. Plus, the ABC is in the dark about the future of funding that ­directly employs 81 journalists, ­including specialist reporters and bureaus in locations such as Geelong, Parramatta and Ipswich. “But those sorts of budget reductions aren’t achieved without major disruption,” Mr Anderson told the senators. But he was really ­addressing the man seated next to him, Communications Minister Mitch Fifield.

The lucky country

The Economist has just released a special report titled “What can the rest of the world learn from Australia?”. “Australia’s economy is without equal in the rich world but its politics are a cause for concern. The last time Australia suffered a recession, the Soviet Union still existed and the internet did not,” the newspaper’s editorial read.

One article contains a picture of a dead sheep in a paddock with the provocative caption: a victim of politics?

Reilly is top club man

A step up for Maurice Reilly, the National Press Club chief executive, who was elected the new president of Clubs Australia. Reilly remains at the NPC and handled the recent controv­ersy over Sharri Markson’s lost entry for the Press Gallery Journalist of the Year award with aplomb, so Diary wishes him well in the new gig.

Big Wednesday

Wednesday is busy busy busy for media types. Halloween is the date for Ten and CBS’s Upfronts presentation, which should give a clearer idea of the US giant’s commitment to the third-ranked commercial network. In town will be Armando Nunez, CBS Studios International president, who will set out his vision more fully.

Across town, UTS Journalism head Monica Attard presents a panel discussion on the future of television and how to keep digital audiences watching featuring, among others, Justin Stevens, the executive producer of ABC’s 7.30; Kylie Merritt, chief executive of the Australian Money Channel; Mich­ael Pell, executive producer of Seven’s Sunrise; and Sarah Yassien, head of digital transformation and product strategy at SBS. Bloomberg editor-in-chief John Micklethwait was to give a Lowy Institute Address on the future of journalism, but he is ill and has cancelled his Australian trip.