Nine’s chairman Peter Costello has backed Mike Sneesby (pictured above) to improve how the media company’s TV newsroom culture and how it handles bullying and sexual harassment complaints.
Costello, Sneesby and Nine’s HR boss Vanessa Morley met yesterday to deal with staff concerns about Nine’s culture in the wake of revelations its former TV news and current affairs chief Darren Wick has left the business following sexual harassment complaints.
Sneesby has been under fire internally, and externally by rival media outlets, for offering Wick and another former Nine colleague, former Stan publicity chief Adrian Foo, golden handshakes after the pair left following allegations of improper behaviour.
The Nine CEO was forced to cut short a trip to the US and retunr to Nine’s North Sydney HQ to handle the escalating situation.
In a joint statement, Morley, Sneesby and Costello said that Nine has commissioned an external investigation to reset the culture of Nine’s news and current affairs teams led by Intersection – a consultancy that specialises in improving workplace diversity, equality and inclusion.
The trio said that efforts to improve Nine’s workplace culture and respect within those teams need to accelerate.
“It is important we all acknowledge the trauma some of you have experienced in the past, and the distress and frustration the substance of these reports has caused. We also acknowledge and thank those who have come forward to share their experiences with us,” the statement read.
The departure of Wick had left a cloud over Nine due to various reports of staff complaining about his behaviour, which included allegations of sexual harassment over a number of years.
Wick spent more than a decade at the helm of Nine’s news and current affairs operation, having ultimate oversight over shows including 60 Minutes, Today, A Current Affair and Nine News.
Foo, who was Stan’s publicity chief until last May, had also received complaints of alleged bullying.
