Recently sacked Channel Seven news presenter Sharyn Ghidella has revealed she was not surprised to hear of allegations of harassment and bullying at the network.
Seven was the focus of an exposé on the ABC’s Four Corners programme this week, with many female employees describing it as a “toxic” and “devastating” work environment.
One journalist said she jumped in front of a moving car after claiming it caused her “crippling” anxiety, while another called Seven one of the most “degrading” workplaces.
Ghidella, one of 150 Seven West Media staff who were made redundant last month amid widespread redundancies, admitted she had seen problematic behaviour during her 17 years at Seven.
“I saw it. A lot of that information I already knew,” he said. The courier mail.
“Sometimes you see things that you might find questionable. And I, of course, speak my mind. I’m not a person who would sit back and allow things to happen to me that I don’t think are right.”
Ghidella, who has since announced he will be joining Network 10 to present Queensland’s 5pm news bulletin, said he had personally had an enjoyable experience working in television but was sad for those who had not.
The issue of toxicity within the journalism industry was also highlighted by veteran television presenter Tracy Grimshaw at the Kennedy Awards on Friday night.
Recently sacked Channel Seven news presenter Sharyn Ghidella has revealed she was not surprised to hear of allegations of harassment and bullying at the network.
Grimshaw used her acceptance speech for the lifetime achievement award to warn those who act inappropriately that “it’s game over.”
“Let all of this be a warning shot to anyone in any workplace anywhere who still thinks it’s the wild, frontier land out there, because the truth is you’re now just a phone call away from a career-ending headline,” he told the crowd.
‘The game is over, so think about it.
‘And I’m also not comfortable with young women being told that they should somehow expect to leave their dignity and self-determination at the door when they enter this industry.
“They certainly shouldn’t, and telling them that sets them up for failure. Think about it: If you tell them that they’re going to be bullied and harassed and that they’d better not say anything about it when that happens, guess what? They won’t say anything about it.”
The issue of toxicity within the journalism industry was also highlighted by veteran television presenter Tracy Grimshaw at the Kennedy Awards on Friday night.
Around 200 current and former Seven employees spoke to the ABC for award-winning journalist Louise Milligan’s investigative feature Don’t Speak.
One woman who asked to remain anonymous said she had been working “extremely long” hours for pay barely above minimum wage and her life began to “deteriorate”.
On March 8, the journalist had informed her superiors at the broadcaster’s Brisbane office atop Mount Coot-tha that she wanted to look for another job, but says she was told to stay another six months.
“The only way I can describe it is that I felt like I had a noose around my neck,” he said.
‘(I) felt like I was in a committed domestic violence relationship with (Seven News).’
At 10.45am that day, his worried partner received a call saying: “They won’t let me go”, “I’ve screwed up my career”, “I want to get run over by a car”.
Just five minutes later, the reporter threw herself in front of a vehicle.
“I just went into a spiral,” the woman said.
Seven reporter Olivia Babb (pictured) claimed she, like other women, had been “harassed and bullied” during her time at Seven.
‘I saw a car coming towards me on the road, I ran in front of it and waited for it to hit me.
“It stopped. I kept running to find another car. I saw the edge of the cliff on Mount Coot-tha and jumped. I fell rolling down the hill into the bushes.”
She was taken to hospital and never returned to work at Seven.
The explosive allegations come amid a tumultuous time for the television station, with massive job cuts, falling ratings and recent civil court testimony from a former Spotlight producer alleging that interview subject Bruce Lehrman was provided with prostitutes and cocaine.
Mr Lehrmann and Channel Seven have denied the allegations.
“It’s one of the most degrading and heartbreaking places you can work,” former Channel Seven reporter Olivia Babb told the programme.
‘Sometimes I feel like I’m dying inside when I go to work every day.’
The journalist said that she, like other women, had been “harassed and bullied” during her time at Seven.
‘I have been verbally attacked. I have been put in situations where I don’t feel safe several times.
“This cameraman stood up to me and said, ‘I don’t like you. I hate you. You’re a jerk.’ And I’ll never forget that.”
Babb told one of her bosses that she wanted to talk to Human Resources about it.
“My boss looked me in the face and said, ‘Well, this is going to mean more work for me if we go to HR,'” she said.
‘Do you really think #MeToo has made any difference to Seven?’
“I’ve never seen anything that would make us think that happened, that Seven even knew about #MeToo.”
Seven West Media released a brief statement shortly after the Four Corners investigation aired on Monday night.
“While we are clearly concerned about the allegations of misconduct and any mistreatment of employees, a number of the issues raised represent long-standing problems that have been well aired and addressed, in some cases many years ago,” it reads.
‘Several people who have displayed behaviour that is not in line with SWM values have already been expelled from the organisation.
‘We encourage all members of the Seven West Media team to speak up about any behaviour that does not reflect our values. Whistleblower protection mechanisms are in place and are regularly highlighted to all staff.
‘We have a great team at SWM and the actions of some individuals do not reflect the values, behaviour and attitude of the business as a whole, which is home to some of Australia’s best, hardest working and most passionate media professionals.
“Our goal is to build a stronger culture that allows our great people to thrive and where unacceptable behavior is not tolerated.”