Murpharoo unlikely to get another call up at a Labor tactics meeting
Former Guardian Australia political editor Katharine Murphy appears to have upset senior Labor members including Penny Wong at its latest tactics meeting. She’s unlikely to be invited back.
Last week, Diary brought you the tale of former Guardian scribe Katharine “Murpharoo” Murphy’s regrettable intervention at a Labor tactics meeting.
As any political staffer knows, those meetings – at which democratically elected politicians thrash out ideas about how best to publicly attack the issues that affect the nation – are not the forum for ministerial underlings to air their views. Except if your name is Murpharoo and it’s your first week on the job as one of Anthony Albanese’s senior spin doctors. In that case, you pipe up and tell the professional pollies what you think.
To no one’s surprise, Murpharoo’s soliloquy landed with a thud. Diary reckons she might struggle to get a guernsey at the next meeting, particularly if Penny Wong happens to be chairing.
Diary is also reliably informed Senator Wong was none-too-pleased that news of Murpharoo’s faux pas made it to the pages of The Australian, and let her annoyance be known to the PMO staffers.
Anyway, the plot thickens.
Word of an unusual staffing set-up within the PMO has reached Diary’s desk, prompting Labor insiders to start speculating about a potential power struggle within Albanese’s media team.
The PMO’s new-ish media director, Brett Mason – formerly a journalist with Ten and SBS – has occupied an office in one area of the PMO, leaving experienced Labor staffer Fiona Sugden, who previously worked for Kevin Rudd when he was PM (fun job, no?) to share a separate office space with Murpharoo.
Labor moles say it’s a highly unusual odd set-up for the PMO, especially given Sugden and Murpharoo were Albanese’s captain’s picks for their roles, and Mason is close to the PM’s chief-of-staff, Tim Gartrell. Rumour-mongers within Team Albo are openly wondering if the PM’s comms team is on the same page.
Stay tuned.
Aunty in Fran’s firing line, does anyone care?
ABC TV host Jan Fran describes herself as a “journalist-ish” in her Instagram bio, but regardless of how she self-identifies, Diary has been informed her social media use has been catching the eye of some very displeased managers at the taxpayer-funded broadcaster.
Fran, a prolific user of Instagram and co-host of ABC’s Question Everything program alongside Wil Anderson, has flooded the internet with her opinions on the Israel-Hamas war, in what feels like one never-ending rant to her 86,000 followers.
Among her stream of angry posts, Fran has taken aim at a long list of politicians along the way including former prime ministers John Howard, Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard, Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison, after the cohort drafted a letter about supporting a “two-state solution for long-term lasting peace between the Israeli and Palestinian peoples”.
The letter said: “Our multicultural nation’s success is founded on the Australian values we all share and the respect we show for our fellow Australians’ diversity of cultures and faiths.”
But Fran was having none of this in an Instagram rant: “What does that mean? I’m just curious as to what the commonality of values it is that we share, and what the f--k you’re talking about.”
She also scoffed at the six PMs who said both Jewish Australians and the Palestinian community “deserve our love and support”.
“Love and support, OK I don’t know how to say this in a way that is diplomatic or respectful but f--k your love,” Fran declared.
“We as a country had the opportunity in a vote for a humanitarian truce that was put forward at the UN and we abstained, so what does love look like?
“Are you seeing what’s unfolding in Gaza at the moment, or, what do you think they need now, some love … what the f--k.”
She even lashed out at her own employer, the ABC, over its treatment of sacked fill-in radio host Antoinette Lattouf, whom Fran declared “is a personal friend of mine, we went to uni together”.
Fran’s takeout: “One of the things that blows my mind about this, is just hours before Antoinette posted about this Human Rights report the ABC covered the exact same report.”
But is anyone at the ABC paying much attention to Fran’s prolific and controversial posts? If they don’t breach the ABC’s social media policy, then what does?
Or is it the case that for all the ABC’s chest-beating about its rigorous social media policy, very few staff take any notice?
If ABC managing director David Anderson’s comments last week at Senate estimates are anything to go by, Fran can rest easy.
“We’re not wasting energy looking at people’s personal use of social media,” he said.
“We don’t take responsibility for it … so under our code of conduct, which is not an editorial matter, it’s an employment matter.”
When Diary asked the ABC if Fran’s social media commentary was a problem, there was no response.
Barnaby pile-on
The conga line of female ABC staffers slamming Nationals MP and former deputy prime minister Barnaby Joyce for disgracing himself late at night on a Canberra footpath was quite something.
As Joyce himself admits, gibbering down the phone while horizontal on a concrete slab at bedtime wasn’t one of his finest moments. And it certainly warranted news coverage and commentary from the ABC and other media outlets.
But the ABC’s double standard regarding Joyce’s misstep was, well, hard to miss.
Cast your mind back to April, when then Greens senator Lidia Thorpe was filmed screaming profanities at a group of men outside a Melbourne strip club.
Can’t remember it? You must have been watching ABC TV at the time, because the national broadcaster didn’t think it was worth reporting that a left-wing politician had disgraced themselves in public in an alcohol-fuelled incident.
Even ABC Media Watch host Paul Barry labelled the taxpayer-funded broadcaster’s almost non-existent coverage of Thorpe’s nocturnal blow-up as “pathetic”. Fair call, Paul.
But back to the ABC’s Barnaby pile-on.
First up, we had 7.30 chief political correspondent and ABC board member Laura Tingle.
“The images that people have generally seen of this are pretty astonishing for a former deputy prime minister and somebody who is now being paid by taxpayers to sit on the opposition frontbench,” she told ABC Late Night Live host and Weekend Australian Magazine columnist Phillip Adams last week.
“I find it absolutely astonishing, frankly, that instead of people saying, ‘this is just not good enough’, everybody is saying ‘we’re worried about his welfare’, or ‘gee, this isn’t good’ or whatever.”
Tingle told Adams Joyce had made “a complete goose of himself”, and “nobody (in the media) is saying ‘enough, no further’.” (That is patently untrue, of course. Plenty of commentators took a big swing at Joyce. But we digress.)
Tingle went on to lament the “various sanctimonious treatments that’s handed out to other politicians and even other women in public life”.
Over on The Party Room podcast with ABC Radio National breakfast host Patricia Karvelas and Fran Kelly, the topic was also chewing up plenty of airtime.
“As we’ve seen over the years he’s (Joyce’s) got a stronghold of supporters who see him as a larrikin, a maverick, all of these words that are used and has incredible cut-through and he is often forgiven,” Karvelas said. (Often forgiven? Except for the time when he, ah, lost the leadership of his party because of a personal relationship. But again, we digress.)
At least Kelly recognised the double standard in relation to Joyce versus Thorpe … or did she?
“I think his (Joyce’s) behaviour that was captured on video for everyone to see also raised questions for double standards in parliament,” Kelly said.
“When independent senator Lidia Thorpe was caught on camera during an early-morning incident outside a strip club, she was swearing at a group of men, the Prime Minister (Anthony Albanese) and (Opposition Leader) Peter Dutton were quick to condemn her actions and calling for her to get help and support, she saw that as dog whistling about her mental health.
“The initial response to Barnaby Joyce video from our political leaders was much more muted, much less strident.
“I’m sure, PK, if this video was of a female MP the reaction now would be really different.”
Diary respectfully disagrees. The reaction may well be “really different” through the lens of the ABC, but most others across the political or media class wouldn’t see gender as the central issue of the story. If The Daily Mail can rip into Joyce and Thorpe in equal measure, surely the ABC can manage it, too?
Kelly, of course, didn’t offer a view on why the ABC ran dead on Thorpe’s boozy indiscretion, but went bonkers on Barnaby’s bad behaviour.
But she was of the view Joyce should be punished.
“There should be consequences for Barnaby Joyce,” Kelly said.
We await the ABC’s commentary on the drunken performance of Nationals deputy leader Perin Davey during a parliamentary committee hearing last week.
We’re sure it will be even-handed.
Nine frictions
High-profile journalists at Nine Entertainment’s radio and publishing arms continue to take potshots at each other.
Less than three weeks after 2GB morning show host Ray Hadley tore into Sydney Morning Herald chief political correspondent David Crowe over his Labor-friendly assessment of the Albanese government’s controversial backflip on tax cuts, an SMH journalist has had a big dig at one of 3AW’s biggest names.
Last week, sports writer Andrew Wu penned his annoyance with newly appointed 3AW mornings host Tom Elliott in a column in The Age on Friday under the headline “It’s not un-Australian to enjoy Lunar New Year”.
Wu said he almost had an unfortunate incident with his Lunar new year’s leftovers as he listened to comments by Elliott about the attention given to the event.
“So you can imagine I just about choked on my new year’s dinner leftovers when on Monday I discovered Tom Elliott on 3AW Melbourne using the Lunar New Year to whip up outrage over Australia Day.
“The reason for Elliott jumping on the offence bandwagon?
“Politicians, corporations and sporting clubs who, while respecting Australia Day as a celebration for some, expressed their empathy with First Nations people, but then later wished Asian-Australians a safe, healthy and happy Lunar, or Chinese, New Year. Oh, the humanity.”
Elliott was fired up on the topic, telling listeners: “It’s really beginning to anger me how many people talk down Australia Day, that say it’s evil, it’s Invasion Day, we need to change the date, we shouldn’t celebrate it.”
Elliott also took a swipe at Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil, playing audio of her saying “happy new year everyone and welcome to the year of the dragon”. But if 3AW’s Instagram account is anything to go on, it seems listeners backed Elliott.
While Nine loves to cross-promote across its print, radio and TV arms, time will tell if staff at the left-leaning Age pop up on the conservative radio host’s Melbourne show in 2024.
That aside, all eyes will be on Nine Entertainment chief executive officer Mike Sneesby when he delivers the company’s half-yearly results on Thursday.
Nemesis, no thanks
While the dust has settled on the ABC’s three-part documentary on the trials and tribulations of the former Coalition government, the off-camera anecdotes continue to roll in.
Former treasurer Joe Hockey, speaking to Diary from the US, said he rejected multiple invitations from the taxpayer-funded broadcaster to take part in the series led by reporter Mark Willacy, executive producer Morag Ramsay and head of investigative journalism and current affairs Jo Puccini.
In fact Hockey, it’s fair to say, was pretty disgusted with many of the Libs who did take part.
“I’m sorry they did it, I wish they hadn’t because everyone who went on it came out as a diminished figure in my view,” he said.
“I formed the view that it was a group therapy session that was best left to others who felt the need to try and rewrite history in a fashion that suited them, and I didn’t want to be a part of it.”
Asked which politicians missed the mark, Hockey wouldn’t go there. “Nice try,” he said.
Hockey said while he didn’t watch the entire series, he digested enough to describe it as a “distorted, biased view of mainly people who weren’t at the epicentre of what was going on”.
To be clear I was asked multiple times to go on #nemesis. @abcnews I refused all requests from multiple sources. As I said in my Valedictory Speech I care too much about Australia to be bitter and twisted… no matter how much justification I may have for those emotions.
— Joe Hockey (@JoeHockey) February 5, 2024
Former prime minister Tony Abbott, deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop and Abbott’s former chief-of-staff turned Sky News Australia host and News Corp columnist Peta Credlin were among other key players in the Coalition government who refused to take part. Credlin wrote in News Corp papers on Sunday that she declined “because it was always going to be an ABC hit-job on conservatives”.
“It was always going to try to rehabilitate Malcolm Turnbull as someone who could have been a better PM than he turned out to be, because ‘poor Malcolm’ never really got his chance to shine,” she wrote.
Former education minister Alan Tudge was another senior Lib who said there was “no way” he would have agreed to take part.
“The ABC is fundamentally and systemically hostile to conservatives, so why would I trust them to be fair in their treatment of our time in government?
“At least with a live interview, you have an opportunity to put your side of the story, but this style of program where they take a few select quotes from you to fit their preset narrative … no way.”
Diary contacted former attorney-general Christian Porter to see if he was on the Nemesis invite list but he would not comment.
It was hardly a surprise that Tudge and Porter weren’t up for it after the pair were front and centre of the ABC’s controversial Four Corners episode, “Inside the Canberra Bubble”, compiled by reporter Louise Milligan, which detailed allegations of inappropriate conduct and extramarital affairs.
KIIS Mystery
Melburnians have been well and truly in the dark over the much-hyped arrival of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie “O” Henderson to Victorian airwaves.
But commuters were given an inkling that the duo surely can’t be far away now.
Commuters were stopped outside Richmond train station on Wednesday morning by an extremely happy trio wearing KIIS FM T-shirts handing out flyers that read: “Melbourne, are you ready to fall in love with a new breakfast show?
“KIIS 101.1 Kyle & Jackie O in the morning, COMING SOON!”
But those dishing out the pamphlets weren’t giving anything away about the exact start date.
When Diary ran into the station’s big boss, ARN chief executive officer Ciaran Davis, in Sydney last week, he too wasn’t about to spill the beans on the highly secretive start date.
Sandilands, meanwhile, said there was a simple reason behind the media’s curiosity about his show’s delayed foray into the Melbourne radio market.
“The newspaper journalists are no fans of Kyle, they always write horrible things,” Sandilands told radio host Byron Cooke.
Nick Tabakoff is on leave.
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