ABC viewers may have been pleasantly surprised to see retired veterans Philip Williams and Michael “Brisso” Brissenden pop up to lend their considerable expertise to analysis of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Once the ABC’s chief international correspondent, Williams quit in April for a quieter life cultivating grapes. But the 64-year-old had to abandon the vineyard and jump on a train to Ultimo last week when the call for help came from his former ABC colleagues.
A charmingly dishevelled Williams spent hours on air on the ABC news channel. As a former Europe correspondent, Williams has the gravitas and authority of someone who was the eyes and ears of ABC viewers on the world stage for decades.
And this week Brisso, a former Moscow, Brussels and Washington correspondent who filed his last story for the ABC in June, also stepped into the breach.
Europe correspondents Nick Dole and Isabella Higgins, and the Middle East correspondent, Tom Joyner, are on the ground in the conflict and winning plaudits for their live coverage of the unfolding events.
If I’m counting correctly this is the 6th time air raid sirens have sounded in Lviv today. Mostly we are given a safety signal within the half hour. But I’ve watched a woman drag her 3 small, children to our hotel shelter at all hours now. Each time you feel her sense of panic
— Isabella Higgins (@isabellahiggins) February 26, 2022
And Eric Campbell of Foreign Correspondent and David Lipson travelled to Ukraine for a report from the frontline, aired on Thursday night.
Here’s our @ForeignOfficial story
— David Lipson (@davidlipson) March 3, 2022
Road to War: Ukraine on the Eve of Russia's Invasion. https://t.co/1srKJmVPD7 -
A privilege to work with such a great team on this. Mat Marsic, Leah Donovan, @ericperipatetic @MJSCarney @JuliKutsenko and more.
Their work is dangerous and mentally and physically exhausting. Former ABC correspondents, including Williams and Sally Sara, have spoken of the toll that reporting on conflicts can take on their personal lives.
But back in the studio in Ultimo, endless rounds of redundancies and the slow erosion of resources for foreign correspondents has meant there are fewer senior staff to support those in the field.
ABC journalists and former correspondents told Weekly Beast the drafting of Williams and Brisso exposed the “gaping hole” at the public broadcaster, where journalistic ranks had been “hollowed out in the middle”. Coalition cuts totalling $783m since 2014 have resulted in fewer staff, while the demand for continuous news coverage has increased.
A lot has changed in Ukraine in the last few days. @isabellahiggins and I have been in Lviv. The city and atmosphere has changed a lot. Here are a few more photos I’ve taken:
— Tom Joyner (@tomrjoyner) March 1, 2022
An ABC spokesperson said: “The ABC currently has reporters, producers and camera operators on the ground across Ukraine, Poland, Hungary, the UK and the US. They are all doing a superb job. A wide range of other expert voices is also adding to the coverage. The coverage has been comprehensive and of the highest quality and the huge audience response demonstrates its value to Australians.”
‘Ramsay Street is eternal’
While Fremantle only confirmed this week that Neighbours will come to end in June, the soapie’s producers have been thinking about how to craft the end of the 37-year-old story for months.
The executive producer, Jason Herbison, has revealed that the fictional suburb of Erinsborough will not end with a bang, or anything as dramatic as a bomb, which will be a relief to the 1.5 million Britons and north of 100,000 Aussies who watch the series every day.
“Ramsay Street is eternal and I like to think it will live on in the hearts and minds of the viewers long after the final scene,” Herbison told TV Tonight after the announcement on Thursday. “I would never, ever blow it up. The ending will be a celebration of the past and the present, with the door very much left open for a future.”
The door has even been left open for a revival. Fremantle said the show would be “rested” and not axed, although the cast and crew would be let go.
Just give Shields a chance
After a bruising week of staff leaking against him and Twitter critics hammering him, the Sydney Morning Herald editor, Bevan Shields, it was left to the celebrated SMH journalist Kate McClymont to appeal for readers to remain calm.
Shields’ initial insistence on the morning of the train shutdown that it was a “strike” rather than a lockout dominated the gossip at the industry event. Shields blamed “a few activist accounts” on Twitter for whipping up the furore over the issue, with the Herald later describing it as a “shutdown”.
After picking up her ninth Walkley – for best print report for her Melissa Caddick story – McClymont thanked people for praising her journalism but asked them to give Shields a chance because he was new to the job. It didn’t go down well.
Thanks so much, that is greatly appreciated. But can I ask that people please give @BevanShields a decent go. He's only been in the job a couple of weeks. https://t.co/IaKfCrG8Li
— Kate McClymont (@Kate_McClymont) February 28, 2022
Inside edge?
There is a great deal of competition among authors to get a review published in a newspaper. The Australian’s literary editor, Caroline Overington, says she receives 200 requests for reviews each week and can only select 10 to 15.
If a book is self-published and not supported by a major publishing house, getting a spot in the Oz or the Herald is even harder.
But a self-published book by the celebrated cricket writer Gideon Haigh was not only reviewed in the Weekend Australian, it was given a second plug in Overington’s editor’s column in the Review section.
“In today’s Books pages you will find a review of an Edwardian murder mystery in which the weapon is a cricket bat,” Overington wrote of Roy Hay’s review. “Gideon Haigh has self-published, making the book available only through his website, in the main to ensure the quality of the design and printing.”
Overington goes on to say she welcomes self-published novels.
Haigh has been a cricket writer for the Oz for many years and it’s not unusual for the paper to cover the literary work of its own writers, but Overington didn’t mention that Haigh is her partner.
We asked Overington if she should have disclosed her relationship with the author but she didn’t respond.
News crews join flood rescues
The ABC’s floods coverage has been excellent and a decision to send presenters out into the field has paid off. The ABC news channel presenter Joe O’Brien and News Breakfast’s finance reporter, Madeleine Morris, and meteorologist, Nate Byrne, have all been out in the rain, bringing immediacy to the story. Morris even helped stranded residents into a boat. She wasn’t alone in helping out.
Seven’s Matt Doran climbed on to a roof during a live cross and Nine’s Jessica Millward paddled up to stranded residents in a canoe.
— Kirsten Aiken (@kirstenaiken) March 3, 2022
With all those reporters in the field the ABC 7pm bulletin couldn’t resist having five of them in different locations in one live cross. But Seven News went even further, putting 10 reporters in the field in one live cross box.
Signing off
The editor of The Monthly, Nick Feik, has quit after eight years at the helm of the Schwartz Media publication.
“It’s been a great privilege and a pleasure to do this job, but I feel in my bones that it’s time to hand over the reins,” he said on Friday. “I look forward to publishing my last few issues - up to and including the June post-election issue - and will do everything I can to assist Morry [Schwartz] and the team with a smooth handover to the new editor, whoever they may be.”
Feik did not elaborate on his reasons but said he looked forward to “pickling vegetables, listening to country music, growing potatoes and reading fiction”.
Court short
Any reporter who has covered courts in Sydney has come across the legendary 2GB court reporter Gil Taylor, who has been on the beat for more than a decade. Taylor retired last week, prompting an outpouring of appreciation from journalists who had worked alongside him.
Farewell to legendary 2GB court reporter Gil Taylor @873gt, who departs court today after a stellar career. His professionalism and strong moral compass will be sorely missed in the legal district. One of the greats. (Here we are filing outside court - breaking news won’t wait!) pic.twitter.com/LbIThkluyP
— Michaela Whitbourn (@MWhitbourn) February 25, 2022
Kate McClymont, her colleague, SMH court reporter Michaela Whitbourn, and Nine’s Kelly Fedor all paid tribute to his professionalism over the years.
The New South Wales attorney general, Mark Speakman, quoted jurist and philosopher Jeremy Bentham who said, “Publicity is the very soul of justice,” adding that Taylor had “provided sterling service informing citizens about their courts”.
