Fools don’t need to rush in these days, they just tweet where angels fear to tread
Noah Shachtman, editor-in-chief of the US-based Daily Beast, on Twitter yesterday:
While the rest of the world held their tongues, The Beast reported that Cardinal George Pell had been convicted of molesting choir boys. Journalists who decided to accept the government’s gag order called us every name in the book for reporting the truth about the monstrous acts of one of the Vatican’s most powerful men. I hope they are equally vociferous in their investigations of Pell.
The Australian’s former media diarist Stephen Brook replying with admirable restraint:
Quite unfair. It wasn’t a government gag order. It was a court suppression order. It was THE LAW and local journalists can be jailed for disobeying it.
Quite unfair. It wasnât a government gag order. It was a court suppression order. It was THE LAW and local journalists can be jailed for disobeying it. https://t.co/RFs0rj39q7
— Stephen Brook (@ViscountBrooky) February 26, 2019
The Australian Financial Review’s Phillip Coorey taking a more concise approach to Shachtman:
You are a dickhead.
Amanda Meade in The Guardian Australia yesterday:
Dozens of journalists have been threatened with a charge of contempt of court — and could face possible jail terms — over reporting of the Cardinal George Pell trial. Victoria’s Director of Public Prosecutions, Kerri Judd QC, has written to as many as 50 individual publishers, editors, broadcasters, reporters and subeditors at the media giants News Corp Australia, Nine Entertainment, the ABC and several smaller publications, accusing them of breaching a nationwide suppression order imposed during the case. Show-cause notices were sent to the journalists in early February saying that they had potentially interfered with the administration of justice and scandalised the court. The ones who do not have a strong enough explanation could be prosecuted.
Apropos of very little, Malcolm Tucker announcing his verdict on a freshly promoted colleague in The Thick of It (2009):
He’s so dense light bends around him.
The Italian job. The ABC’s Emma Alberici on Twitter yesterday:
Il cardinale George Pell e stato condannato per aver molestato due ragazzi del coro. Era l’autorita piu rispettata ne la chiesa cattolico Australiano. Piu recentemente e stato responsabile delle finanze del Vaticano #VaticanAbuseSummit.
Il cardinale George Pell è stato condannato per aver molestato due ragazzi del coro. Era l'autorità più rispettata ne la chiesa cattolico Australiano. Più recentemente è stato responsabile delle finanze del Vaticano #VaticanAbuseSummit
— Emma Alberici (@albericie) February 26, 2019
The pain in Faine. Labor’s Clare O’Neil on ABC Radio Melbourne yesterday:
Jon Faine: Ita Buttrose to lead the ABC — good idea or bad?
O’Neil: Well, I think Ita Buttrose is a great Australian, I really believe that, and certainly an inspiration to Australian women. I’m a bit frustrated that the government continuously sets up these processes to get expert advice on things and then just ignores the advice when it doesn’t like the answer it gets. But we’ll see what happens and I think Ita is a great Australian and she’s got a lot of media experience … What do you think Jon? You’re the journalist.
Faine: Last time I expressed any opinions about the managing director or chair of the board of the ABC I got into all sorts of strife, so I’ll resist that temptation, thank you.
A saga. The Daily Beast on Saturday:
Can the broken, boring Oscars ever be fixed?
The Daily Beast on Sunday:
Roma will win best picture — and change the Oscars forever.
The Daily Beast yesterday:
The Oscars were an embarrassment.