Tag: Michelle Guthrie

CANBERRA, Australia — The chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corp. resigned on Thursday over allegations that he pressured the independent national broadcaster to fire two political journalists because the ruling conservative government disliked them. The scandal has damaged the credibility of both the governing coalition and the ABC, which is government-funded but is required by law to operate independently of party politics. Media reports have since alleged that Milne, who is responsible for maintaining ABC independence, had unsuccessfully pressured Guthrie to fire political editor Andrew Probyn and chief economics correspondent Emma Alberici to prevent potential cuts in government funding. “There was absolutely no interference in the independence of the ABC by the government. Nobody ever told me to hire anybody, fire anybody or do anything else,” Milne said. Fairfax Media has reported that Milne wrote an email to Guthrie calling for Alberici be fired on May 8, a day after Turnbull complained to the ABC’s news director about an Alberici report on government spending. News Corp., citing ABC board documents, reported Milne told Guthrie in a June 15 telephone conversation that Turnbull “hates” Probyn and: “You have to shoot him.” Turnbull, who has lived in New York since he was ousted as prime minister on Aug. 24, said on Thursday that while he had complained about the two reporters’ journalism, he had never asked for them to be fired. My concern has been on the accuracy and impartiality of reporting,” Turnbull told reporters. The minor Greens Party has called for a Senate inquiry into the entire ABC board, not trusting a government inquiry into the government’s potential involvement in the scandal. Prime Minister Scott Morrison tweeted that Milne’s resignation was the right decision.