Power games

The shortlist for the staff-elected ABC board director spot; changes at the top of Fairfax; plus Press Gallery grumbles at the White House.

Illustration: Johannes Leak

Chris Janz, the youthful but powerful managing director of the Australian Metro Publishing division of Fairfax Media, has ­decided. He doesn’t want the editors of The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, Brisbane Times, WAtoday, The Sun-Herald, The Sunday Age, Good Food, Essential Baby, Essential Kids and Traveller reporting directly to him. So Janz has advertised for a group executive editor. This is a new role, everyone is stressing, and not a direct ­replacement of the editorial director position last occupied by Sean Aylmer, who left at warp speed last October. “Reporting to me, this role will lead editorial across The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, The Canberra Times, Brisbane Times, WAtoday and Life Media,” Janz wrote to staff. “They will develop and execute our editorial strategy, working with the broader business to ensure we grow our subscriber and quality reader base while safeguarding editorial independence.” But wait, there’s a twist not revealed until the memo’s final line. The GEE gets reduced duties that don’t include oversight of the AFR nor its editor-in-chief Michael Stutchbury. Janz wrote: “The Australian Financial Review editor-in-chief will report directly to me, reflecting that masthead’s different business and operating model.” And thus removing the occasional resourcing disagreements that Stutchbury and Ayl­mer used to have, mainly over AFR gossip columnist Joe Aston’s ­expenses.

Gallery grumble

Send the federal parliamentary press gallery to Washington and it’s cats in a sack. The reason? AFR columnist Joe Aston , former staffer and friend of US ­ambassador Joe Hockey. Some gallery members were irked about Aston covering Malcolm Turnbull’s visit to the Oval Office with US President Donald Trump. What was he doing there? Aston, who filed a piece on the weekend about his visit and the sizeable business ­delegation, made it on to the list of the “randomly ­selected media pool” covering the Oval Office, released via a Whats­App message to travelling media by the embassy. The list of 18, ­almost but not entirely political ­reporters, also included Sky News’s Kieran Gilbert, Fairfax’s David Crowe, The Australian’s Cameron Stewart, ABC’s Andrew Probyn, the Daily Telegraph’s ­Miranda Devine, News Corp’s ­Annika Smethurst, Nine’s Chris ­Uhlmann and SBS’s Brett Mason. But get this. AFR chief ­political correspondent Phillip Coorey was already on the list. Two reporters from one publication is totally against convention, according to experienced insiders, and ­defeats the purpose of a pool ­arrangement. Aston used to work for Hockey, and since leaving has worked even harder at maintaining relations.

Randomly missed out

Not on the Oval Office list: ABC Washington correspondent Zoe Daniel, who was furious. Also missing out: the West Australian’s Sarah Martin and 2GB’s Laura Parr. Coorey graciously gave his slot to Martin, in exchange for the right to ask Trump a question at the subsequent press conference. DFAT handballed our questions, after one day, to the Prime Minister’s office, which had not responded before publication. People are at odds over whether the media pool was decided by a ballot or selected. Diary is keen to know how a ­“randomly selected media pool” can ensure journos from a mix of different outlets and platforms are included, which is the entire point of a media pool. And funny old world when the national broadcaster’s Washington correspondent is excluded from the Oval Office. A complaint to the government is being considered. But the matter is not a press gallery committee priority, says committee president David Crowe: “We’re busy enough with whiteboard stunts.”

Board games

There was a febrile atmosphere at ABC’s Sydney headquarters in Ultimo on Friday (OK, when is there not?) as the deadline for nominations for the staff-elected ABC board director came and went at noon. Was Emma ­Alberici going to nominate as a ­revenge attack against ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie’s pointed lack of support at Senate estimates? She was not. Was Radio National Saturday Extra host Geraldine ­Doogue going to stand as a champion of ABC values? She was seriously considering it, but decided not to late in the day upon discovering that Jane Connors, a former boss at Radio National, was going to throw her hat in the ring. ­Doogue feared splitting the vote would be counter-productive. Connors, head of editorial quality and governance, sounds well qualified. Others in the running include Victoria’s Karen Percy, Queensland news presenter Matt Words­worth, NSW political ­reporter Brigid Glanville, senior news journalist Philippa McDonald, news and sports presenter ­Tracey Holmes and business and finance reporter Stephen Long.

Attard into the fray

It’s all change at University of Technology, Sydney, one of the biggest journalism schools. Former ABC Moscow correspondent and Global Mail editor Monica Attard will arrive in time for second semester to become head of journalism. Attard, head of journalism at Macleay College, said it had achieved results in her two years there. “It’s kicking goals, our kids are getting jobs, which is the most important thing.” She will take over from Peter Fray, the ­former Sydney Morning Herald editor-in-chief who stays at UTS as Centre for Media Transition ­co-director. Diary has long suspected Fray’s ideal transition would be back into full-time journalism, but let’s see how that plays out.

Journo Jules outraged

Run-ins, Diary has had a few. There was the time Russell T Davies, executive producer of Doctor Who, took offence to a ­review for the Guardian and emailed me some late-night feedback: “You c. t.” Now Ecuador embassy’s most famous lodger, ­Julian Assange, has spat at comments made on our Behind the Media podcast interview with ­former CNN war correspondent Michael Ware. CNN’s man in Baghdad during the Iraq War insurgency ventured the opinion that the Wikileaks founder is not a journalist. Ware called Assange a unmentionable nameduring the interview. ­“Assange, at best, is an archivist or a librarian or a webmaster. And I say that without trying to offend those professions. I feel (offended) on behalf of our profession when he tries to cloak himself in the ethics and the ­nobility of journalism because he’s more of a personal crusade to promote himself.” Assange cottoned on to it after Australian New York Times bureau chief Damien Cave sent out a tweet noting Ware’s descriptors, and responded: “Who would choose to class themselves among one of the least trusted, most dishonest, craven, careless, cynical, anti-intellectual, power obsessed, herd-like professions in existence whose incompetence & duplicity has led directly to the death and displacement of millions?” Who on earth would choose to be a journalist? Well, Assange would. This is what he told a room full of scribes in 2011 about Wikileaks. “It has bought out the best in people, courage, loyalty, compassion and strength. Tonight I want to thank you and the Walkley Foundation for showing these values, as journalists and Australians.” Assange was accepting what must be the worst decision ever by the Walkley Foundation, the outstanding contribution to journalism Walkley. More like outstanding contribution to hypocrisy.

Nervous mischief maker

A giant departs the stage. Sydney Morning Herald and Age Southeast Asian correspondent Lindsay Murdoch started in journalism ­exactly five days before Diary started breathing. The Bangkok-based Fairfax correspondent, 64, won three Walkleys over a 16,290-day career since joining The Age in 1973. “Lindsay’s exploits and storytelling as a journalist are legendary,” Fairfax chief executive Greg Hywood told staff in a memo. Murdoch, who will move back to Australia with his wife and two children, 8 and 12, had a major hand in breaking The Age tapes story on police corruption in the 1980s. “It’s a tough decision, hardest decision of my life,” Murdoch tells Diary. “I just get a buzz out of making mischief.” Will he find it hard to go cold turkey? “I’m absolutely s......g myself.”

Comings and goings

Former Greens senator and dual citizen Scott Ludlam, subject of the most awkward episode of Kitchen Cabinet ever, is a new “peace and reconciliation” columnist at (where else?) The Guardian. After 23 years at Pacific Magazines, Jackie Frank has resigned “to take the next step in her ­career”. We’d love to ask Frank what that is, but she wasn’t giving interviews.

Less than a month after John Choueifate resigned, Ross Dagan is Ten’s director of news. International appointment too. Gee that global search got organised quickly. And following on from Mel Cornford’s appointment as managing editor of ten daily, and Lisa Wilkinson’s appointment as executive editor of ten daily, Sandra Sully is managing news editor of ten daily. That’s a heck of a lot of talent for one standalone, mobile-optimised website that will be rich in short-form video content.