Your morning Briefing: Senior ABC staff ask board to ‘please explain’

Welcome to your 2-minute briefing on the day’s top stories and must-reads.

Hello readers. Here is your 2-minute digest of what’s making news today.

Former ABC Chairman Justin Milne returns to his home in Sydney, Thursday, September 27, 2018. Justin Milne has resigned as chairman of ABC after the controversial sacking of Michelle Guthrie. (AAP Image/Joel Carrett) NO ARCHIVING

‘Please explain’

Senior ABC staff are demanding that the national broadcaster’s ­directors explain publicly why they continued to support chairman Justin Milne amid claims he demanded the sacking of senior journalists because their reporting had outraged then prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

Only hours after his resignation, the outgoing chairman stared down his internal critics last night by declaring ABC journalists could not expect to “go around ­irritating the person who is going to give you funding again and again and again if it’s over matters of accuracy and impartiality’’.

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18th July 2018.ACTU president Michele O'Neil at the ACTU Congress in Brisbane.Photo: Glenn Hunt / The Australian

Union gap

New analysis of Australia’s highest paid union officials has debunked the movement’s claims to be champions of pay equity, revealing women hold less than a third of top-ranking union ­positions and are being paid on average $36,000 a year less than their male counterparts.

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Senate hearings Washington and judge

Attempted rape or political hit?

Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford, who has accused him of sexual assault, are giving testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee. Ms Blasey Ford has spoken first, followed by Mr Kavanaugh. “I believed he was going to rape me,” she told the hearing.

His voice resonating with anger, Mr Kavanaugh began his testimony by attacking his confirmation process as a “national disgrace” accusing the Senate committee of delaying his chance to clear his name for too long and dismissing the accusations as an orchestrated political hit.

“In those ten long days my family and my name have been totally and permanently destroyed by vicious and false additional accusations.”

Brett Kavanaugh

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AFL Round 2. Western Bulldogs v West Coast Eagles at Etihad Stadium. West Coast's Willie Rioli third quarter action . Pic: Michael Klein

Grandma Rioli’s gift

If it hadn’t been for a near-death experience in the football-crazy tropical outpost where his family lives, Willie Rioli might not be walking onto the field in ­tomorrow’s AFL grand final to become the fifth in his family to ascend to the game’s greatest stage, ­according to his father.

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Kudelka’s view

Jon Kudelka Letters Cartoon for 28-09-2018. Version: Letters Cartoon (1280x720 - Aspect ratio preserved, Canvas added)COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.