Judith Whelan, respected and loved editor at Sydney Morning Herald and ABC, dies from cancer aged 63

Judith Whelan has been remembered as ‘a true fighter’ for journalism, a ‘fearless’ advocate for truth and a beacon for women in newsrooms. Photograph: Oscar Colman/ABC

Judith Whelan, a former editor of the Sydney Morning Herald and an ABC executive, has died aged 63.

Senior journalists, editors and media executives around Australia have paid tribute to the woman they described as “a true fighter” for journalism, a “fearless” advocate for truth and a beacon for women in newsrooms.