Nine interim chief executive Matt Stanton has broken his silence on the ongoing toxic scandal engulfing the network, as he brought the channel closer to advertisers.
Speaking at Nine’s star-studded ‘upfront’ on Thursday, Stanton confessed the media giant was still reeling after an independent investigation found the network had an entrenched culture of bullying, abuse of power and sexual harassment.
But he promised there would be “significant” changes at Nine in the wake of the revelations, and thanked loyal advertisers for sticking with the channel despite the damaging headlines.
“As an organization, we have had to face some hard truths and confront systemic cultural issues, which has been incredibly challenging for our people,” he said.
‘At all levels of the business, we are deeply committed to delivering meaningful and lasting change at Nine.
‘(We) believe this difficult but necessary process will enable more of our people to perform at their best and pave the way for positive, industry-leading change.
“As our trusted partners, I would really like to thank you for all your continued support, which has been a lot, which I know our people really appreciate.”
An awkward silence hung over the room before Stanton abruptly changed tact…and topic.
“So,” he said, immediately more optimistic. ‘Looking ahead, we are focused on setting new benchmarks in content, data and technology and continuing to lead the Australian market.
“Today we are all in this room with the shared goal of growing our respective businesses.”
Acting Nine boss Matt Stanton first addressed the ongoing scandal surrounding the network’s toxic newsroom culture while surprising advertisers at the channel’s annual ‘Upfront’.
Nine’s biggest names, including Liz Hayes and Karl Stefanovic, attended the star-studded lunch at Sydney’s Carriageworks on Thursday.
60 Minutes star reporter Tara Brown was also among the network’s celebrities at the event.
Stanton’s comments came after reporters covering the lavish luncheon were warned not to grill the network’s star panelists with embarrassing questions about the ongoing scandal.
Instead, they were encouraged to ask Nine’s assembled “personalities” about the channel’s exciting slate of upcoming shows.
But despite the network’s best attempts to bury conversations about its internal dramas, the topic continued to dominate conversations among its guests.
Nine executives were worried the saga would overshadow their ‘upfront’ – an annual party designed to convince potential advertisers to buy airtime – after the explosive report on the network’s culture was made public last Thursday. .
The review, conducted by workplace culture firm Intersection, found that Nine had ‘a systemic problem of abuse of power and authority; intimidation, discrimination and harassment; and sexual harassment’.
The investigation revealed that 57 per cent of staff in the media company’s broadcast division had experienced bullying, discrimination or harassment in the past five years, and a third said they had been sexually harassed in the same time period.
Mike Sneesby commissioned the independent report into Nine’s workplace culture in June, but ended up leaving the company five weeks before the findings were finalized.
The report said the company’s toxic culture had been enabled by ‘a lack of leadership responsibility; power imbalances; gender inequality and lack of diversity; and significant distrust of leaders at all levels of the business.”
Former Nine chief executive Mike Sneesby commissioned the external investigation in June following a series of allegations against the broadcaster’s recently deceased head of news and current affairs, Darren Wick.
Sneesby resigned from the company last month, just five weeks before the report was finalized, but maintained he was leaving for unrelated reasons.
His departure came three months after Peter Costello was forced to resign as Nine chairman in June after he appeared to knock down a journalist who peppered him with questions at Canberra airport.
Ironically, the journalist had been asking Costello if he was still supportive of Sneesby’s current reign as CEO.
Stanton has since been named the company’s interim CEO while a formal recruiting process is underway for Sneesby’s replacement, although insiders speculate he will likely end up taking over the role full-time.
Former Nine chairman Peter Costello resigned in June following a controversial encounter with a journalist at Canberra airport while being peppered with questions about Sneesby.
Costello is captured on video during the confrontation as the reporter falls to the ground.
Nine staff have been outraged by the broadcaster’s clumsy handling of the Intersection report and a perceived lack of accountability within the company.
Several high-profile network stars, including 60 Minutes reporters Dimity Clancey and Amelia Adams and A Current Affair weekend host Deborah Knight, criticized bosses at the media giant at an internal staff meeting about the review.
They raised concerns on behalf of their colleagues after staff were told that no action would be taken against alleged bullies lurking within the network’s executive ranks as a direct result of the report.
Stanton this week assured staff there would be “changes at Nine” in the wake of the damning external investigation.
“Given some speculation inside and outside Nine, I also wanted to be clear about what we are doing to hold people to account,” he told staff in an internal email.
‘We currently have a number of active investigations underway into issues raised by employees, some of which are led by an external investigator with whom we have partnered.
60 Minutes star Amelia Adams raised concerns about a perceived lack of accountability at the network as her colleagues fumed over Nine’s handling of the report.
The weekend’s respected A Current Affair host Deborah Knight also questioned the network’s handling of the damning outside investigation during the staff meeting.
‘No two cases are the same and I am sure you will understand that these investigations must be carried out following a fair and proper process, which can take time. This will not be influenced by external interests or public scrutiny.’
“Formal investigations that uncover irregularities will lead to a ‘proportionate’ response,” he added. ‘This could be counselling, formal disciplinary action or even dismissal.
‘There is no place at Nine for the abuse of power, bullying, sexual harassment or inappropriate conduct outlined in the Intersection report for people who behave in that way.
“There will be changes at Nine and individuals will be held to account for behavior of this nature.”