The deep involvement of Information Corp’s Janet Albrechtsen in what we now know is the contaminated Sofronoff inquiry into the prosecution of Bruce Lehrmann has led to loads of scrutiny and criticism.
The behaviour of Walter Sofronoff in the course of the inquiry was, we now know, fairly extraordinary — presumably unprecedented. It’s exhausting to recall any inquiry or royal fee in fashionable instances that has been so characterised by such inappropriate contact between the inquiry head and a 3rd get together — not to mention a member of the media engaged in campaigning straight on the problems being contested by that inquiry. Sofronoff’s justification that it was acceptable for him to have contact with the media doesn’t even come near overlaying the sheer quantity and time he devoted to texting and chatting with Albrechtsen, lunching together with her, sharing paperwork and proof together with her and, presumably, acquiring her enter to drafts of his report.
Albrechtsen was, clearly, a participant on this inquiry, not a journalist. Nonetheless, she was doing her job of securing entry to somebody essential to the difficulty she was overlaying. To acquire such high-level entry to somebody on the very coronary heart of one of many largest tales of the day was, bluntly, nice journalism. I’d wager many journalists across the nation can solely envy the extent to which she obtained entry to the top of a significant inquiry. You may rebuke the use to which she put that entry however nonetheless marvel that she obtained it.
Sofronoff, if he significantly thought a part of his job was relations with the media — and that’s the primary time I’ve heard the top of a significant inquiry declare that — had the duty of appropriately managing these relations to the good thing about his inquiry, not giving privileged entry and, probably, a drafting position, to 1 member of the media.
The issue just isn’t with Albrechtsen, engaged in doing her job, a lot as her employer. Information Corp was — and is — engaged in a marketing campaign of cruel character assassination of Brittany Higgins. It’s dedicated to the duty of exemplary punishment of her for the injury she inflicted on the Liberal get together — together with Liberal MPs and senators who proceed to pursue her.
Will Information Corp, or the Coalition, ever be happy that they’ve inflicted sufficient injury on Higgins? Or on anybody concerned within the prosecution of Lehrmann (for, we should bear in mind, a sexual assault he has all the time denied)? It appears not, regardless of the in depth proof of the grotesque toll the Information Corp marketing campaign, and relentless litigation, has taken on Higgins.
Certainly, fairly presumably there are some engaged within the marketing campaign in opposition to Higgins who could be content material to see it take as heavy a toll as doable, to make sure each staffer, each girl, each prosecutor, each journalist will get the message to not embarrass the conservative aspect of politics.
The Albrechtsen-Sofronoff relationship is a type of micro model of the bigger downside with Information Corp. It’s a malignant participant within the public affairs of the nation. Nevertheless it stays a most cancers in our physique politic as a result of folks in energy enable it, and allow it. Nobody compelled Sofronoff to develop such a detailed relationship together with his Information Corp interlocutor. Nobody compels Labor politicians — Invoice Shorten the honourable exception — to tug the forelock to the Murdochs, as is going on proper now on the information media bargaining code. Nobody compels Information Corp’s media rivals to deal with its lies and propaganda significantly, as if it was an precise media outlet.
It isn’t a media outlet, however a foreign-owned political participant engaged in promoting hate and division. If it’s a pustulent tumour, additionally it is a overseas physique lodged right here and allowed to stay. Highly effective folks and establishments enable the injury that this overseas firm inflicts. And the remainder of us put on that injury like a rash.
