Journalists at Nine were “really angry” about the content of Karl Stefanovic’s independent podcast well before his interview with far-right figure Tommy Robinson led to a management rebuke, sources say. The Today show host, who was still being paid millions by Nine, ignored multiple warnings from executives about his choice of guests, which included anti-immigration figures.
Guardian Australia understands there has been “huge disquiet” about Stefanovic’s roster since he launched the Karl Stefanovic Show in February. His first interviewee was One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, and his most popular YouTube videos featured guests with strong anti-immigration views. Staff privately accused him of giving extremists a “megaphone”.
The situation came to a head on Friday when Nine announced that Stefanovic would no longer host Today while continuing his podcast. Sources said Stefanovic “panicked” after Nine executives told him he had “gone too far” over the Robinson interview, and he removed the content from YouTube and streaming platforms without being ordered to do so.
One senior Nine journalist, speaking anonymously, said: “Staff are really, really angry. Because it’s like there’s two sets of rules: there’s one set of rules for the richest guy in the business who is mates with the former CEO. But the rest of us have to abide by normal, common decency and work within the rules.”
Multiple staff made complaints to management about Stefanovic undermining their journalism and flirting with the far right, which they said put them at risk from extremists. “Stefanovic just ignored it totally, so there’s been anger for months,” a source said.
Nine’s news and current affairs chief, Fiona Dear, said in a staff email that the network believed in protecting freedom of speech but upholding the Nine brand “built on trust and respect” was vital. It remains unclear what Stefanovic told Nine about his plans for the podcast.
