ABC journalist calls Sharri Markson unhinged on hot mic

ABC journalist Stephen Dziedzic has been caught sharing his thoughts on colleagues and describing Sky News’ Sharri Markson as “a pit bull” and “unhinged”.

Offering his unplugged views on colleagues, the ABC reporter also discusses with colleagues the ABC’s new “hardworking” Q&A host Patricia Karvelas in an embarrassing hot mic incident beamed into newsrooms across Australia.

The incident occurred over the weekend as a group of journalists gathered for a press conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Foreign Minister Penny Wong.

But what the group of journalists didn’t realise was that the microphones caught their unplugged views on ABC management and journalistic colleagues and beamed the commentary on colleagues and political leaders into multiple newsrooms.

Sharri Markson compared to ‘pit bull’

In the hot mic tape that is now being discussed throughout the media industry, Dziedzic, who is the ABC’s foreign affairs correspondent, The Australian’s foreign affairs and defence correspondent Ben Packham and The Sydney Morning Herald’s foreign affairs reporter Matthew Knott discuss colleagues and political figures.

Packham observes that Sky News’ Walkley-award winning Markson has written another front-page exclusive in The Weekend Australian on the origins of Covid and the lab leak theory.

“Amazingly, she is looking more and more like she’s … right,” Packham observes.

But Dziedzic then weighs in with a string of slurs about the Sky News host.

“She’s like a pit bull and she’s so unhinged but yet she might still be right,” Dziedzic chuckles.

At that point Knott chimes in that the origin of Covid is “definitely unresolved” but it was suspicious

“You can be unhinged and still be right,” Dziedzic laughs.

“How does she know it’s not a bat?” Knott laughs in response.

Dziedzic then suggests Markson “wouldn’t really know”.

“She doesn’t know, no one does,” Dziedzic says.

“But the location is extremely suspicious. You don’t want to let the Chinese off the hook,” Knott replies.

Dziedzic then concedes that he “remembers being super dismissive of that”.

“That it was the most unhinged thing ever,” Dziedzic says. “I was overly influenced by the fact it was truly nasty, crazy people who were so deep down the rabbit hole. I probably didn’t look at it dispassionately enough.”

Patricia Karvelas is ‘everywhere’

Conversation then turns to an interview that Karvelas conducted with US ambassador Caroline Kennedy on ABC breakfast radio.

Knott observes that there are fewer listeners since the old ABC host Fran Kelly left and that Karvelas is “very tough for the morning” listening because she is tenacious in her questions and he is “still in bed”.

The male reporters then observe that Hamish McDonald is “very good”.

“I don’t listen to RN Breakfast anymore. I’ve renounced it,” Packham says.

However, Knott also observes Karvelas gets better guests than her predecessor Kelly, suggesting fewer Coalition figures would go on the program.

“Well the ratings are through the toilet. And it seems to be a hosting thing, not a radio, not a systemic radio thing,” Knott says.

Packham then asks the ABC journalist what he thinks of Karvelas.

Dziedzic observes that some listeners who are “Fran loyalists” are “hostile” to Karvelas and he doesn’t know why.

“What’s the feeling at the ABC about her kind of, the Patricia everywhere kind of stuff?” Packham asks.

“There’s a level of cynicism,” the ABC reporter replies.

“I mean there’s honestly that there is a bit of tall poppy to that stuff as well, like, people … people are just jealous. I like PK. I think she probably does crowd out a bit but she also works f**king hard which not everyone in the ABC does.”

‘Worst decision’ ABC ever made

Slamming the controversial decision to make ABC political editor Andrew Probyn redundant as the “worst decision”, the journalists all observed it was the wrong call by ABC management and news chief Justin Stevens.

“It was the worst decision we have ever made,” Dziedzic says.

But the ABC reporter insists that Insiders host David Speers, who has been appointed to a similar role, would not undermine the now-redundant reporter.

“No, no, no, no, Speersy would not undermine Probes,” Dziedzic says. “He really wouldn’t. I don’t know, I haven’t spoken to him about it, but I imagine it was super awkward.”

Knott then observes there’s many new and young reporters he doesn’t recognise.

“Honestly. There’s all [these] young people. They’re all on like 70 grand, probably four or five of them would have been Probes [salary],” he says.

Dziedzic suggests there’s a real “generational divide” in the ABC Canberra newsroom.

“There has been a generational split and it was the worst thing like, whoever the f**k leaked to our dear friends at The Australian,” he laughs.

“I would be hypocritical to complain about leaks. But like, people in the bureau feel personally attacked, right? So we had this awful bloody meeting literally afterwards. It was just scarifying. I don’t think it was a diversity thing, I genuinely don’t.”

Discussion then turns to the role of the ABC’s bureau chief Michelle Ainsworth.

“There were big editorial disagreements and Probes was always pushing ‘publish publish publish’,” Dziedzic says.

There is also a brief discussion of the role of the ABC’s 730 host Laura Tingle who is on the ABC board that approved the changes.

“Well, I mean, look, I don’t want to ask her, because look, I respect her,” Dziedzic says.

Another reporter asks if she “argued against it”.

“I just don’t know. I just don’t know. Privately. I mean … she seemed very sad to see Probes go. I always thought they got on really well, as far as I know,” Dziedzic says.

The group then suggested The Sydney Morning Herald’s chief political reporter David Crowe wouldn’t like Probyn joining the newspaper as has been mooted.

“Probes is a news reporter. He would be fishing in the same pond,” Knott says.

“I think David Crowe you’re very good friends but I probably would like him out surfing into a paper every night.”

The three reporters also discuss the recent exclusives of Nine reporter Nick McKenzie about the Home Affairs Department and its chief Mike Pezzullo, with Packham suggesting it sounded like it was being drip-fed by the government.

“Well do they want to get rid of Pezzullo?” Knott asks, before suggesting he was an effective c-word.

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“I don’t think they want to. They see him as very effective. You want him to be your c-word. You don’t want Pezullo on the loose.”

Dziedzic, Packham and Knott have been contacted for comment.

An ABC spokesman said, “The ABC has been made aware of a conversation between members of the press gallery, including an ABC staff member, that was captured by a live mic prior to the start of a media conference. We are urgently investigating the matter. The ABC has a very clear code of conduct. It is also obliged to follow due process in staff matters, including confidentiality.”

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