Hundreds of staff gathered at the foyer of ABC Australia’s Sydney building on Wednesday, September 26, following reports of chairman Justin Milne’s alleged instruction to sack a senior reporter.
Union workers demanded the board to support the public broadcaster and its staff and called for an independent investigation into accusations that Milne asked former managing director Michelle Guthrie to fire presenter Emma Alberici, whose political coverage allegedly received a complaint from ex-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, Fairfax reported.
Guthrie was fired on Monday and was considering legal actions against the organisation at the time of writing. There were also calls from the media industry for Milne to resign following the saga.
In a statement addressing the row, Milne declined to comment on the specific allegations.
He said: “The job of the ABC Board is to independently govern the Corporation, protect its best interests, ensure that it is well funded, well managed and that our content is of the highest standards. That is precisely what the Board has done and will continue to do. I do not propose to provide a running commentary on day to day issues which arise in pursuit of our duties.” Credit: Avani Dias via Storyful
