Nine has appointed respected journalist Fiona Dear as director of news and current affairs following the sudden resignation of executive Darren Wick.
The network made the announcement a day after CEO Mike Sneesby urged staff with complaints of “inappropriate behavior” at the network to come forward.
Dear, who began her television career as a work experience girl at WIN Wollongong, has been the executive producer of A Current Affair for the past five and a half years.
He will oversee a roster of nine programs, including the 6pm news bulletins, Today, A Current Affair and 60 Minutes, as well as breaking news teams.
“I am now honored to have been given this role and look forward to the challenges, the news that makes our business great and guides our people as we tell Australia’s stories every day,” Dear said.
Sneesby sent an email to all Nine employees on Wednesday afternoon, two months after Wick’s departure.
Nine has appointed Fiona Dear as director of news and current affairs following the sudden resignation of executive Darren Wick. Dear, the executive producer of A Current Affair, pictured.
“It is important that everyone at Nine knows that we do not tolerate inappropriate behavior in the workplace and we want to know if inappropriate behavior is occurring, so we can address it promptly,” Mr Sneesby’s email said.
Mr Sneesby then assured employees that making a complaint about such conduct would not be detrimental to their careers.
‘…If you feel you have been a victim because you have made a complaint about an issue, you should raise this with senior leaders in our business or with People and Culture,’ he wrote.
‘Our guidelines on workplace conduct and how we handle complaints about workplace issues are on our intranet.
‘I encourage you to raise any concerns you may have about behavior in the workplace, to ensure Nine is a safe and supportive place for us all to work.
“We have all participated in developing our purpose and values that should guide the way we show up each day.”
A Nine spokesperson said the network would not comment on the timing of Sneesby’s email, the reasons for Wick’s departure or the nature of any allegations of inappropriate behaviour.
Nine Network boss Mike Sneesby has urged any staff with complaints about inappropriate behavior on the network to come forward with their concerns. The email comes following the recent departure of Darren Wick as Nine’s director of news and current affairs.
Mr Sneesby’s email referred to recent media attention on Nine’s “internal processes and policies regarding workplace conduct complaints” following Wick’s departure, but did not mention it because of its name.
Stories published by News Corp this week allege there was a “toxic culture” in its competitor’s workplace during Wick’s reign.
Wick announced his resignation in a statement on March 15, ending weeks of speculation about his future during which Nine insisted he was simply taking a long summer holiday.
“I am stepping down as National Director of News and Current Affairs and leaving Nine,” the 61-year-old told colleagues in an email sent that Friday afternoon.
‘This is my thirteenth year in that position and my 29th year at the Network.
‘Some of you know that I have taken a few weeks off to think about my future. And after many long walks on the beach and even longer conversations, I know in my heart that this is the right time to call it quits and leave Nine.
Wick announced his resignation in a statement on March 15, ending weeks of speculation about his future during which Nine insisted he was just taking a break. Wick is shown second from right when he supervised 60 Minutes staff, including Tara Brown (far left).
‘I don’t want to use the word “retire” because I don’t know how to sit around doing nothing. But I’m going to take a long break from what has been four decades of work as a journalist. I’m tired and I need to rest.’
Nine’s head of programming Michael Healey paid tribute at the time to Wick for his work at the network.
“I personally want to thank Wickie for his commitment to the Nine News brand and wish him the best,” he said.
Wick described himself as an alcoholic after being caught driving more than four times the legal limit following a Nine performance in October 2020.
After being pulled over in his Jeep Grand Cherokee with a blood alcohol level of 0.227, Wick attributed his heavy drinking to a mix of stress from his high-pressure job and a double hip replacement.
Wick’s solicitor John Sutton told Hornsby Local Court in January 2021 that his client was effectively working 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Nine Network boss Mike Sneesby (above) assured network employees that making a complaint about inappropriate workplace conduct would not be detrimental to their careers.
Sutton said Wick had also suffered anxiety over the detention of 60 Minutes reporter Tara Brown and her team in Beirut during a failed attempt to bring two children back to Australia in 2016.
On the day he was arrested, Wick had gone to lunch, then taken an Uber back to the Nine studios and then to Willoughby, on Sydney’s north shore, where he attended a farewell function for a co-worker.
“He drank and drank and drank,” Mr Sutton said.
A police statement of facts said Wick had intended to drive the 20 kilometers to his home in Narrabeen on the northern beaches, but traveled just 1.2 kilometers before attracting the attention of police.
Wick had nearly fallen onto the road when he was stopped.
Sutton said one might question why a colleague had not stopped Wick from getting behind the wheel, but Magistrate Robyn Denes was quick to reject that claim.
‘Who’s going to stop him?’ Mrs. Denes said. “If you think about his role in management, who’s going to stop him?”
Sutton said Wick had apologized to Nine staff for his actions and noted that media coverage of his drink-driving had reached more than nine million people.
“He now considers himself an alcoholic,” Sutton told Denes. ‘He understands that he is an alcoholic. That has to be the first stop on the road to recovery.”
Ms Denes sentenced Wick to a nine-month intensive corrections order which included completing 100 hours of community service.
Wick, who was convicted of driving under the influence in 2010, had come to court expecting to be sent to prison.
“I’m in a position where I know better and I should have known better,” he said after the hearing.
‘But it all comes down to me letting my alcohol addiction get out of control. I didn’t respect him for what he was.
“I made a terrible mistake where I could have harmed others.”