Allegations of bullying, sexism, assault and exploitation were levelled against Seven Network last night in an explosive Four Corners report by Louise Milligan.
They included interviews from both past and present staff naming news executives who have since departed the network.
At their most serious level were claims that some staff had attempted suicide and been hospitalised.
Some of the 200 people who spoke to Milligan had been forced to sign Non-Disclosure Agreements (one of those, Anber Harrison, did not appear in the final edit). Four Corners criticised the media company for operating in news and journalism yet silencing its own staff from whistle-blowing.
Amongst the key allegations raised were:
A young Queensland journalist who became so distressed at her workplace treatment, she ran in front of a car outside a Seven office before tumbling into Mt Coot-tha bushland.
Former Seven presenter Mark Gibson was one of several Perth staffers complaining about news boss Shaun Menegola. He claims he was followed by private investigators, while Menegola stayed on.
Current Seven Sunrise producer Matthew McGrane lodged a workers compensation claim after an accident with his wheelchair whilst returning home. It was rejected when the network said it had no formal agreement for him to spend some of his working hours at home. McGrane is suing Seven for disability discrimination.
Claims of ‘anti-semitic’ and offensive texts sent by former Spotlight executive producer Mark Llewellyn to producer Taylor Auerbach.
An investigation into former Seven reporter Robert Ovadia following alleged unprofessional conduct. He denies the claims and is suing Seven for unfair dismissal.
Current Seven Toowoomba reporter Olivia Babb claimed harassment and bullying and complaints around salary.
A former Human Resources staffer who claimed she was instructed to go through emails to construct false or misleading cases against staff in order to terminate their contracts.
A journalist on Spotlight, suing the network for sexual discrimination, describes it as a profoundly sexist workplace. Her legal claim cites one example in 2022 of entering an edit suite and seeing a pornographic picture on the wall (She does not suggest that the executive producer was aware of it).
The Queensland journalist who was working extremely long hours for a base salary and was suffering from crippling anxiety told Seven that she was leaving, but was told she would have to remain at the network for another six months.
“The only way I can describe it is I felt like I had a noose around my neck,” she told Four Corners. She said she felt like she was “in a committed domestic violence relationship with [Seven News]”.
“I just spiralled,” she said, “I saw a car driving towards me up the road, I ran in front of it and hoped it would hit me. It stopped. I kept running to find another car. I saw the edge of the cliff at Mt Coot-tha and I jumped. I tumbled down the hill, through the bush.”
One Spotlight journalist said,”I got to the point where I was suicidal, and I remember in one particularly dark moment where I’d worked all weekend.
“I rang Lifeline, and I made a doctor’s appointment because I knew I was so close to taking my own life. And I had a child that I couldn’t do that to because I was a single parent.”
Reporter Olivia Babb, currently earning less than $60,000, said, “It is one of the most degrading, soul-crushing places you can work….We did a story the other day and one of my [interview subjects] said, ‘We’re all one or two pay cheques away from homelessness.’ That’s me.”
#dontspeak #4Corners pic.twitter.com/EtsCwU7cww
— Olivia (@oliviababb88) August 12, 2024
Mark Gibson, now employed by ABC, said, “It often uses the phrase, ‘It’s the Sunrise family, it’s the Telethon family, it’s the Seven News family…It’s a very dysfunctional family.”
He said he was speaking out now because “I don’t want to be the person who stays silently complicit in this sort of behaviour. This sort of behaviour in a workplace needs to be called out and it needs to be changed.”
Four Corners only made a fleeting reference to Nine newsroom and ABC allegations (in June 97 ABC News staff reported having experienced sexual harassment and 25% had personally experienced bullying).
According to the Daily Telegraph Mark Llewellyn claimed “the messages that have been shared in ABC’s Four Corners program have been selectively chosen. For context, Taylor and I shared a mutual love of absurd word play. This included a silly game which he and I created where he would speculate on what was the most ridiculous or un-PC thing you could get away … he was not only in on the joke, he was the instigator of it.”
In response to the claims a Seven statement said:
“Seven West Media (SWM) notes the issues raised by the ABC’s Four Corners program in tonight’s episode. While we are clearly concerned about allegations of poor behaviour and any mistreatment of employees, a number of matters raised represent old issues that have been well aired and dealt with, in some cases many years ago.
“A number of people who have displayed behaviour not reflective of SWM’s values have already been removed from the organisation.
“We encourage all Seven West Media team members to call out any behaviour that does not reflect our values. Whistle-blower protections are in place and are regularly re-emphasised with 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 the best, hardest working and most passionate media professionals in Australia. Our focus is to build a stronger culture that enables our great people to thrive, and where unacceptable behaviour is not tolerated.”
Last month Seven West Media was announced in the Workplace Gender Equality Agency’s cohort of WGEA Employer of Choice for Gender Equality citation holders, for a second time.
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