Tiananmen Square: Don’t mention the massacre

“We meet here to mourn this tragedy and to share the grief of those who have lost members of their families, their loved ones and their friends, and to express our profound sympathy to the Chinese-Australian community that has expressed its outrage at the massacre in Beijing.” That was Prime Minister Bob Hawke speaking at …

Is ScoMo the new People’s PM? Not by a long shot

What would Bob Hawke have said? That’s the first thought that came to mind when I read the Daily Mail piece about the Prime Minister of Miracles, Scott Morrison, being compared to Labor’s best PM, the late Bob Hawke. Scott Morrison went to an National Rugby League (NRL) game the day after the Coalition won …

A tale of two septuagenarians: A Queen reigns over the ABC while a Cardinal simmers in his cell

This is a tale of two septuagenarians: one a journalist, the other a Cardinal. You know which one should come first. It was 1981, and Ita Buttrose was the Murdoch recruit, the new editor-in-chief of the Sydney Daily and Sunday Telegraph, after a sterling career as an editor for Sir Frank Packer for the popular …

Kerry O’Brien: A mammoth memoir and a history lesson

It’s been a while since my last blog post. The reason: I have been reading the mammoth memoir of the distinguished journalist, foreign correspondent, presenter and author, Kerry O’Brien. It’s 834 pages of meaty material, with 36 more: acknowledgments, notes, bibliography and an index. No photos. Otherwise, it would have reached 900 pages. (The TV …

I’m dreaming of a fallen Trump

Like all lapsed Catholics, I still have a guilt complex: guilt drilled into me from priests and nuns and Christian Brothers, guilt from committing a mortal sin, ranging from thinking impure thoughts to telling lies in confession. It was a long time ago. These days the greatest guilt of all comes from a recurring nightmare …

The Sedaris Diary: Something to write home about

Theft by Finding: Diaries 1977-2002 by David Sedaris I have to admit it's taken me a long time to finish reading volume one of David Sedaris' Theft by Finding 1977-2002 (Photo of David Sedaris above). I've reviewed other books in the past year and posted them on my blog, including Hugh Riminton's Minefields, his compelling …

Leslie Seymour: The Everywhere Man — Have Camera Will Travel

“Who the hell is Leslie Seymour?” That’s what journalist and broadcaster Ray Martin asks facetiously in his foreword to the autobiography of Les Seymour, his long-time mate, and it’s a fair question. Unless you’re a veteran journo or a media junkie, you may not have heard about cameraman extraordinaire, Les Seymour. All he’s ever done …

Strewth! A magnificent memoir of home truths

“What do you call a fart in the bathtub?” It was a question I asked award-winning columnist of The Australian, author, snake lover and bagpipes player, James Jeffrey (Photo above The Australian), a decade or so ago. The answer, of course, is “Gorp,” the sound of a fart in the bath. James liked it and …

Sam the Man: A tenacious titan of television generous to a fault

Sam Chisholm, sales director and former head of Channel Nine, Managing Director of BSkyB, and television executive extraordinaire, was also known as a legend in his own lunchtime. But lunches were special to journalists and tv executives in those days. My best mate, Cliff Neville, who died in 2012, was the supervising producer of Nine’s …

Dear Diary: Why hast thou forsaken me?

Sorry about the headline, but I wanted to get your attention. It comes from Psalm 22.1: "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" The psalm Christ recited on the cross. My cross is much less of a burden. It's just trying to decide if it's worth going through more than 30 years of …