Alan Jones (radio broadcaster)
Encyclopedia
Alan Belford Jones AO
Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service"...

 (born 13 April 1941 (some sources also claim 1942 or 1943)) is an Australian radio broadcaster, former rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...

 and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 coach and administrator.

Jones hosts Sydney's most popular breakfast radio program, on radio station 2GB
2GB
2GB is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia broadcasting on 873 kHz, AM. It is one of Australia's most popular talk-back radio stations, and is the number one station in Sydney.-History:The station commenced broadcasting in August 1926...

. Like his former colleague and competitor John Laws
John Laws
Richard John Sinclair "John" Laws, CBE , an Australian radio presenter, sometimes known as Lawsie, was from the 1970s until his retirement in 2007, the host of a hugely successful morning radio program, which mixed music with interviews, opinion, live advertising readings and listener talkback...

, the popularity of Jones' program (a mixture of talkback
Talk radio
Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often feature interviews with a number of different guests. Talk radio typically includes an element of listener participation, usually by broadcasting live...

, interviews, opinion and commercial endorsements) has made him one of Australia's most highly paid media personalities. Jones is highly politically motivated and sometimes uses his program and his popularity to advocate his conservative views; he has been described as one of the most influential broadcasters in Australia.

His on-air conduct has attracted numerous adverse findings from Australia's media regulators, and one on-air incident resulted in Jones being charged with contempt of court
Contempt of court
Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...

. He would eventually be exonerated.

In 2008, Jones' audience numbers began to slip, with strong competition from ABC Radio 702
702 ABC Sydney
702 ABC Sydney is an ABC radio station in Sydney, Australia. It is the flagship station in the ABC Local Radio network and broadcasts on 702 kHz on the AM dial....

, though he retains his number one position with a slim margin.

In July 2008 Jones underwent surgery for prostate cancer. And in December 2008, he had surgery to remove a benign brain tumour.

Early life

Jones was born and raised on a dairy farm near Oakey
Oakey, Queensland
Oakey is a rural town situated in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia. It is situated west of the state capital, Brisbane, and west of the regional city of Toowoomba. At the 2006 census, Oakey had a population of 3,657.-History:...

 in south-east Queensland, and attended primary school at Acland
Acland, Queensland
Acland is a small town north of Oakey, on the Darling Downs, west of Queensland's state capital, Brisbane. At the 2006 census, Acland had a population of 53....

 state school, before attending Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding grammar school for boys, in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia....

 as a boarder.

After leaving school, he trained as a teacher at the Kelvin Grove Teachers College
Kelvin Grove Teachers College
Kelvin Grove Teachers' College established 1961 provides courses in primary and secondary teacher education. It established from its predecessor the Queensland Teachers' Training College....

 (now part of the Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology
Queensland University of Technology is an Australian university with an applied emphasis in courses and research. Based in Brisbane, it has 40,000 students, including 6,000 international students, over 4,000 staff members, and an annual budget of more than A$750 million.QUT is marketed as "A...

) in Brisbane. After this training, in 1961 he taught first at a state primary school, then in 1963 won a position at the Brisbane Grammar School
Brisbane Grammar School
Brisbane Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding school for boys, located in Spring Hill, an inner suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia...

 for boys. He was studying part-time at the University of Queensland
University of Queensland
The University of Queensland, also known as UQ, is a public university located in state of Queensland, Australia. Founded in 1909, it is the oldest and largest university in Queensland and the fifth oldest in the nation...

 for a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree, which he was awarded in 1969.

In 1970, Jones was appointed Senior English Master at The King's School
The King's School, Sydney
The King's School is an independent Anglican, day and boarding school for boys in North Parramatta in the western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831, it is Australia's oldest school and forms one of the nine "Great Public Schools" of New South Wales. Situated within a site, Gowan Brae,...

 at Parramatta in Sydney's west, where he coached the rugby union side to victory in 1974. Jones was later asked to leave,. Later that year, another parent at Kings, Doug Anthony
Doug Anthony
John Douglas Anthony, AC, CH , is a former Australian politician. He was leader of the National Party from 1971 to 1984, and Deputy Prime Minister from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1975 to 1983.-Early life:...

, leader of the Country Party (now the National Party of Australia
National Party of Australia
The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...

) in the Australian Parliament, offered Jones a position with the party in Canberra. The next year, he sought party preselection as the candidate for the parliamentary seat of Eden-Monaro
Division of Eden-Monaro
The Division of Eden-Monaro is anAustralian Electoral Division in New South Wales.The division was created in 1900, and was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. It is named for the town of Eden and the Monaro district of southern New South Wales...

, but he was unsuccessful at the election.

Jones went to Oxford University in 1977 to undertake a non-degree diploma course, distinct from the University's traditional graduate and undergraduate programmes. He excelled at tennis, in which he won a University Blue
Sporting Colours
Sporting colours, more often known merely as colours or house-colours, are awarded to members of a university or school who have excelled in a sport. Colours are traditionally worn in or on scarves, ties, blazers, gowns, cuff-links, and other items of apparel...

.

Returning to Australia, he was the candidate for the July 1978 by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....

 for the NSW state seat of Earlwood for the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...

, formerly held by deposed Liberal leader Sir Eric Willis. The formerly safe seat was lost, and Jones' antics at a Greek cultural event were called into question. Notwithstanding this he again contested the seat in the Liberal interest at the subsequent general election in October of the same year. This time the ALP candidate was returned with an even greater majority despite the absence, on this occasion, of a Gay Liberation and another three conservative party and independent candidates. Jones then worked for several years as a speech writer for NSW Opposition leader John Mason, meanwhile standing for preselection for the Federal seat of North Sydney
Division of North Sydney
The Division of North Sydney is an Australian Electoral Division in New South Wales. The division is named after the North Sydney area where it is located. It was proclaimed in 1900 and was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election...

.

In 1979, Jones again moved to Canberra, where he was a speech writer for the Prime Minister of Australia, Malcolm Fraser
Malcolm Fraser
John Malcolm Fraser AC, CH, GCL, PC is a former Australian Liberal Party politician who was the 22nd Prime Minister of Australia. He came to power in the 1975 election following the dismissal of the Whitlam Labor government, in which he played a key role...

, until early 1981. He then moved back to Sydney to be Executive Director of the Employers' Federation of NSW, which he held until 1985.

Union

1982 was the beginning of Jones' association with semi-professional rugby, firstly appointed as (part-time) manager of the NSW Rugby Union team. The next year he served as First Grade coach for the Manly Rugby Union team, which won the Premiership for the first time in 32 years.

In February 1984, Alan Jones replaced Bob Dwyer as coach of the Australian Rugby Union
Australian Rugby Union
The Australian Rugby Union is the governing body of rugby union in Australia. It was founded in 1949 and is a member of the International Rugby Board the sport's governing body. It consists of eight member unions, representing each state and territory...

 national team
Australia national rugby union team
The Australian national rugby union team is the representative side of Australia in rugby union. The national team is nicknamed the Wallabies and competes annually with New Zealand and South Africa in the Tri-Nations Series, in which they also contest the Bledisloe Cup with New Zealand and the...

, and he was to coach the Australian team for 4 years with victories in 102 matches including 23 victories in 30 Tests, making him one of the more successful Australian coaches. The side included Mark Ella
Mark Ella
Mark Gordon Ella is an Indigenous Australian former rugby union player, often considered as one of his country's all-time greats in that sport. In a relatively short career , Mark Ella established himself as one of the all-time greats in world rugby union...

 until his retirement, but quickly added Nick Farr-Jones
Nick Farr-Jones
Nicholas Campbell Farr-Jones is a former Australian rugby union footballer. His position was scrum-half. He attended Newington College and St Andrew's College within the University of Sydney...

 and two Manly players Peter FitzSimons
Peter FitzSimons
Peter John FitzSimons AM is an Australian journalist and author, based in Sydney. He is a former radio presenter and national representative rugby union player.-Early life:...

 and James Black
James Black
James Black was the creator of the original Bowie knife designed by Jim Bowie.-Early life:James Black was born in Hackensack, New Jersey on 1 May 1800. James' mother died when he was very young and he had difficulty getting along with his stepmother. Black ran away from home to Philadelphia,...

. Also in 1984, Australia's national team, the Wallabies, won the Grand Slam victories over England, Ireland, Wales and Scotland, and a side made up of the best players of those countries and France.

The 1986 Bledisloe Cup
Bledisloe Cup
Rugby Union's Bledisloe Cup is contested by the Australia national rugby union team and New Zealand national rugby union team. It is named after Lord Bledisloe, the former Governor-General of New Zealand who donated the trophy in 1931. The trophy was designed in New Zealand by Nelson Isaac, and...

 victory against New Zealand was the first time that had been achieved in six years, and only the third since 1949. Jones was awarded the Rostrum Speakers' Award as the Communicator of the Year, and named the 1985 Confederation of Australian Sport as Australia's Coach of the Year. However, Jones also pulled out of the Liberal preselection for the Federal Division of Wentworth
Division of Wentworth
The Division of Wentworth is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. It was proclaimed in 1900 and was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election. The Division is named after William Charles Wentworth , a noted Australian explorer and statesman...

 in Sydney.

In 1988, Jones was made a Member of the Order of Australia for services to Rugby Union football. 1989 saw Jones elected to the Confederation of Australian Sports' Hall of Fame
Hall of Fame
A hall of fame, wall of fame, walk of fame, walk of stars or avenue of stars is a type of attraction established for any field of endeavor to honor individuals of noteworthy achievement in that field...

 in recognition of his contribution to Australian Sport as the Australian Rugby Union coach.

League

In 1990, he switched codes, being appointed coach of the Balmain Tigers
Balmain Tigers
The Balmain Tigers are a rugby league football club based in the inner-western Sydney suburb of Balmain. They were a founding member of the New South Wales Rugby League and one of the most successful in the history of the premiership, with eleven titles...

 rugby league football club, without accepting a fee. He resigned in July 1993 with these results: 1991 – 8 wins, 12th place; 1992 – 10 wins, 10th place; 1993 – five wins, 12th place. The next month he was appointed Director of Football for the South Sydney Rabbitohs
South Sydney Rabbitohs
The South Sydney Rabbitohs are an Australian professional rugby league football team based in Redfern, a suburb of South-central Sydney, New South Wales. They participate in the National Rugby League premiership and are one of nine existing teams from the state capital...

 rugby league football club, also without a fee.

In October 2007 Jones implied his interest in coaching the Wallabies after Queensland Rugby Chairman Peter Lewis suggested to the media he be the right person for the job.
"If Peter Lewis and the Queensland Rugby Union – who have played a major role in Australian rugby for many years – are of the view I am the person who can make that contribution then I am obligated to put my hand up and say, 'Well if that is the case, I'm available'."

The Australian Rugby Union (ARU) on 14 December 2007 ruled Jones out of the coaching position, instead appointing New Zealand Crusaders coach Robbie Deans. ARU Chairman Peter McGrath however left the door open for a future position for Jones, saying there would "always be a place" for the former coach and radio broadcaster.

Radio and the media

1985 saw Jones join Sydney radio station 2UE
2UE
2UE is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia owned by Fairfax Media. It is Sydney's and Australia's oldest commercial radio station, first broadcasting on 26 January 1925 on 1025 kHz AM before moving to 950 kHz in 1935 when virtually all Australian radio stations were assigned new...

 as the morning show host after John Laws
John Laws
Richard John Sinclair "John" Laws, CBE , an Australian radio presenter, sometimes known as Lawsie, was from the 1970s until his retirement in 2007, the host of a hugely successful morning radio program, which mixed music with interviews, opinion, live advertising readings and listener talkback...

 left for 2GB. He moved to the 5.30am to 9.00am Breakfast slot in February 1988, and achieved the largest breakfast audience and also the largest radio audience in Australia.

His opening and closing theme music from both stations has been the hit Gloria
Gloria (Laura Branigan song)
"Gloria" is a pop song originally written and composed in Italian by Umberto Tozzi and Giancarlo Bigazzi, which -with English lyrics written by Trevor Veitch- became an international hit for Laura Branigan in 1982-83, selling more than two million singles in the US alone.-Origins:Umberto Tozzi...

 by Laura Branigan
Laura Branigan
Laura Ann Branigan was an American singer-songwriter and actress of Italian and Irish ancestry. She is best known in the United States for her 1982 Platinum-certified hit "Gloria" and in Europe for the number-one single "Self Control"...

, whom he met and was the inspiration for using the song.

In 1990–93 and 1995–97, Jones was awarded the title Australian Radio Talk Personality of the Year.

In 2001, Jones was awarded both the Centenary Medal
Centenary Medal
The Centenary Medal is an award created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the Centenary of Federation of Australia and to honour people who have made a contribution to Australian society or government...

 and the Australian Sports Medal
Australian Sports Medal
The Australian Sports Medal was an award given during 2000 to recognise achievements in Australian sport.Recipients of the award included competitors, coaches, sports scientists, office holders, and people who maintained sporting facilities and services. Over 18,000 Medals were...

. Both were awarded for his significant contributions to sport and the broadcasting industry.

In 2002, Jones joined 2GB as breakfast announcer, reportedly also taking a financial interest in the station. When passionate about a topic, he occasionally discusses it on air and during ad breaks with his panel operator Ross Geddes. Afternoon announcer, Philip Clark
Philip Clark
Philip Corriston Clark was an American rugby union player who competed in the 1924 Summer Olympics.He was a member of the American rugby union team, which won the gold medal.-External links:*...

 occasionally appears on Jones' show to show support to big news items. Jason Morrison
Jason Morrison (radio broadcaster)
-History:Jason was born in 1971 and raised in Hornsby, which is a suburb of Sydney's North. He went to St. Leo's College at Waitara and is Catholic. He has given little away about his family but has revealed that his father is an Engineer and his mother is a Librarian.He trained at 2GB in a...

 is a daily contributor with two appearances to discuss news items and also filling in for Alan should he be on leave. Along with his radio show, he also did a segment making editorial comment on the Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

's Today
Today (Australian TV program)
Today and Weekend Today are Australian breakfast television programmes, the show is often referred to as The Today Show. The show has been broadcast live by the Nine Network each morning since 1982...

.

In 2004, Jones received a Queen's Birthday Honour – an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) partly for his service to the media and sports' administration, but also helping many charities, including Youth off the Streets
Youth Off The Streets
Youth Off The Streets is an Australian community organisation working for young people who are homeless, drug dependent and recovering from abuse.It was started in 1991 by Father Chris Riley...

, the Children's Hospital, Starlight Children's Foundation, the Sir Edward Dunlop
Edward Dunlop
Lieutenant Colonel Sir Ernest Edward "Weary" Dunlop, AC, CMG, OBE was an Australian surgeon who was renowned for his leadership while being held prisoner by the Japanese during World War II.-Early life and family:...

 Medical Research Foundation and the Heart Research Institute.

On 6 June 2007, Jones ended his 7.15am editorial on Nine Network
Nine Network
The Nine Network , is an Australian television network with headquarters based in Willoughby, a suburb located on the North Shore of Sydney. For 50 years since television's inception in Australia, between 1956 and 2006, it was the most watched television network in Australia...

's Today
Today (Australian TV program)
Today and Weekend Today are Australian breakfast television programmes, the show is often referred to as The Today Show. The show has been broadcast live by the Nine Network each morning since 1982...

. His last editorial was on 15 June.

Arrest for outraging public decency

In December 1988, Jones was arrested in a public lavatory in London's West End
West End of London
The West End of London is an area of central London, containing many of the city's major tourist attractions, shops, businesses, government buildings, and entertainment . Use of the term began in the early 19th century to describe fashionable areas to the west of Charing Cross...

. He was initially charged with two counts of outraging public decency, but was later granted bail and charges were dropped.

Plagiarism

For a time until 1990, Jones had been writing for The Sun-Herald
The Sun-Herald
The Sun-Herald is an Australian tabloid newspaper published on Sundays in Sydney by Fairfax Media. It is the Sunday counterpart of The Sydney Morning Herald. In the 6 months to September 2005, The Sun-Herald had a circulation of 515,000...

but it announced that Jones' column would no longer appear following a petition by staff calling for his removal as a contributor. This followed Jones' publication of a column predicting an oil crisis, in which a large amount of material had been taken from Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth
Frederick Forsyth, CBE is an English author and occasional political commentator. He is best known for thrillers such as The Day of the Jackal, The Odessa File, The Fourth Protocol, The Dogs of War, The Devil's Alternative, The Fist of God, Icon, The Veteran, Avenger, The Afghan and The Cobra.-...

's novel 'The Negotiator
The Negotiator (novel)
The Negotiator is a crime novel by Frederick Forsyth first published in 1989. The story includes a number of threads that are slowly woven together. The central thread concerns a kidnapping and the negotiator's attempts to solve the crime.-Synopsis:...

' without attribution or indication that their source was a work of fiction. Following his dismissal, Jones was hired by the Sun-Herald's rival paper, the Sunday Telegraph
Sunday Telegraph
The Sunday Telegraph is a British broadsheet newspaper, founded in February 1961. It is the sister paper of The Daily Telegraph, but is run separately with a different editorial staff, although there is some cross-usage of stories...

.

Parker v Jones

Later that year, Jones in his role with 2UE was ordered by a court to pay more than $55,000 damages for defaming David Parker, a former councillor of the NRMA
NRMA
NRMA refers to either of two historically related Australian companies:*The National Roads and Motorists' Association, known as NRMA Motoring and Services, is a member-owned mutual organisation offering , motoring advice and other services in New South Wales and the Australian Capital...

, the NSW Motorists' organisation; 2UE was also ordered to pay $80,000. Parker claimed he was defamed during the NRMA election campaign in October 1986.
July 1991 had Jones commenting during a conspiracy to murder
Murder
Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

 trial, of Tom Domican and two others; about the key crown witness, a self-confessed heroin smuggler, Jones said, "Why is he the witness and not the defendant?" Contempt
Contempt
Contempt is an intensely negative emotion regarding a person or group of people as inferior, base, or worthless—it is similar to scorn. It is also used when people are being sarcastic. Contempt is also defined as the state of being despised or dishonored; disgrace, and an open disrespect or willful...

 is not proved; what Jones did is said to be "dangerous".

1992

1992 brought several events:
  • Jones was rebuked by the New South Wales
    New South Wales
    New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

     Independent Commission Against Corruption for making attacks on former State Minister Dr Terry Metherell
    Terry Metherell
    Terry Alan Metherell is a former Australian politician who represented the Electoral district of Davidson in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1981 to 1992. When the Liberal Party won the 1988 election, Premier Nick Greiner appointed him Minister for Education and Youth Affairs, a...

     during evidence in an inquiry relating to Metherell's appointment to a government job.
  • Media Watch showed how on-air comments made by Jones about the Rio summit and the Green movement
    Green Movement
    The Green Movement refers to a series of actions after the 2009 Iranian presidential election, in which protesters demanded the removal of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad from office...

     aligned with those made by B.A. Santamaria in The Australian
    The Australian
    The Australian is a broadsheet newspaper published in Australia from Monday to Saturday each week since 14 July 1964. The editor in chief is Chris Mitchell, the editor is Clive Mathieson and the 'editor-at-large' is Paul Kelly....

    . Santamaria later said Jones had contacted his office for permission to quote from the article.
  • Jones and 2UE were found guilty of contempt of court after the criminal trial of ex-policeman John Killen was aborted following an interview with a former Drug Enforcement Squad officer.

1993

1993 was another year of controversy:
  • In January, Jones described the choice of Mandawuy Yunupingu
    Mandawuy Yunupingu
    Mandawuy Yunupingu , born 17 September 1956, is an Aboriginal Australian musician, most notable for being the front man of the band Yothu Yindi.-Early life:...

     (an Australian Aborigine) as Australian of the Year
    Australian of the Year
    Since 1960 the Australian of the Year Award has been part of the celebrations surrounding Australia Day , during which time the award has grown steadily in significance to become Australia’s pre-eminent award. The Australian of the Year announcement has become a very prominent part of the annual...

     as an "insult" and said he'd been granted the award simply because he was black.
  • In March, Jones and 2UE were prosecuted by the NSW Director of Public Prosecutions for contempt of court
    Contempt of court
    Contempt of court is a court order which, in the context of a court trial or hearing, declares a person or organization to have disobeyed or been disrespectful of the court's authority...

     and fined $77,000, of which Jones' share was $2,000, after Jones caused the trial of a policeman to be aborted: the policeman was facing a charge of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice on the same day as Jones conducted an interview with the Police Association and dealt with allegations that police had suffered at the hands of false accusations.
  • In June, leading Australian Aborigine Charles Perkins and Jones clashed in a live TV and radio debate. Jones said Australians are "getting no say when [Aboriginal people] say this is [their] nation; it's not, it's Australia's nation"... "[Average Australians] are being asked to pay taxes to fund people who are seeking title to productive land to which they've made no contribution to its productivity". Perkins called Jones racist and a redneck and commented "You've sat on your white bum at 2UE in Sydney all your life so you wouldn't know what goes on out there".

1994

1994 also had its moments:
  • In April, after only 13 weeks and 64 episodes, the Network Ten
    Network Ten
    Network Ten , is one of Australia's three major commercial television networks. Owned-and-operated stations can be found in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth, while affiliates extend the network to cover most of the country...

     program Alan Jones Live
    Alan Jones Live
    Alan Jones Live was a nightly Australian current affairs and talk-back television program that aired on Network Ten from 31 January 1994 to 28 April 1994...

    was pulled due to low audiences and criticism. It was intended to be similar in purpose and content to Larry King Live
    Larry King Live
    Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....

    .
  • In July, Media Watch highlighted Jones' on-air promotion of Optus
    Optus
    SingTel Optus Pty Limited is the second largest telecommunications company in Australia, and is a wholly owned subsidiary of Singapore Telecommunications...

    .
  • In November:
    • Separately, Don Mackay, president of the NRMA sued Jones and 2UE alleging Jones made a number of false imputations against him.
    • Further, Jones had a public spat with his fellow 2UE broadcaster John Laws. In an interview with Laws, then Prime Minister Paul Keating
      Paul Keating
      Paul John Keating was the 24th Prime Minister of Australia, serving from 1991 to 1996. Keating was elected as the federal Labor member for Blaxland in 1969 and came to prominence as the reformist treasurer of the Hawke Labor government, which came to power at the 1983 election...

       said of Jones "You know, he's got a good-rating program, even though it's basically, you know, most of the stuff is middle-of-the-road fascism". Keating had refused Jones' requests to appear on his program all year.

Harrigan v Jones

In 1998 Jones claimed on-air that rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...

 referee
Rugby league match officials
Rugby league match officials are responsible for fairly enforcing the Laws of the Game during a match of rugby league football and imposing penalties for deliberate breaches of these Laws...

 Bill Harrigan
Bill Harrigan
-External links:**http://www.billharrigan.com.au/Referee-career-pg2853.html*http://www.mediaman.com.au/profiles/harrigan.html*http://www.abc.net.au/queensland/conversations/stories/s1766903.htm*http://www.claxtonspeakers.com.au/speakers_profile/134...

 was biased. Harrigan sued Jones for defamation and, in 2001, was awarded damages of $90,000.

In the late 1990s, Jones suffered more public humiliation when unedited studio recordings of pre-recorded material he had taped at 2UE were leaked to the ABC radio station Triple J
Triple J
triple j is a nationally networked Australian radio station intended to appeal to listeners between the ages of 18 and 30. The government-funded station is a division of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation...

.

Coates v Jones

In 2008 Jones was found to have defamed Australian Olympic Committee chief John Coates in comments Jones made regarding Coates' handling of an incident involving rower Sally Robbins' performance at the 2004 Olympics.

"Cash for comment"

Between 1999 and 2000, the Cash for comment
Cash for comment affair
The cash for comment affair was an Australian scandal that broke in 1999, concerning paid advertising in radio that is presented to the audience in such a way as to sound like editorial commentary. John Laws, a shock jock radio presenter for Sydney talk back, was accused of misusing his authority...

investigation was conducted. Jones had been accused of contracting to have personal commercial support in exchange for favourable "unscripted" comments, principally for Telstra
Telstra
Telstra Corporation Limited is an Australian telecommunications and media company, building and operating telecommunications networks and marketing voice, mobile, internet access and pay television products and services....

 and Qantas
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited is the flag carrier of Australia. The name was originally "QANTAS", an initialism for "Queensland and Northern Territory Aerial Services". Nicknamed "The Flying Kangaroo", the airline is based in Sydney, with its main hub at Sydney Airport...

, during his radio show. The independent Australian Broadcasting Corporation
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...

 TV show, Media Watch, was heavily involved in exposing these practices. The Australian Broadcasting Authority
Australian Broadcasting Authority
The Australian Broadcasting Authority was an Australian government agency whose main roles were to regulate broadcasting, radiocommunications and telecommunications....

 finally decided that disclosure had to be made, hence the "Commercial Agreement Register" at the Jones portion of his station's web site. (Jones was investigated along with John Laws from 2UE.)

Impartiality of Flint

In April 2004, another scandal broke after it was revealed the Chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Authority
Australian Broadcasting Authority
The Australian Broadcasting Authority was an Australian government agency whose main roles were to regulate broadcasting, radiocommunications and telecommunications....

, David Flint
David Flint
Professor David Flint, AM, LLM , BSc , DSU is an Australian legal academic, known for his leadership of Australians for Constitutional Monarchy and for his tenure as head of the Australian Broadcasting Authority.-Background:...

, who had headed the Cash for comment
Cash for comment affair
The cash for comment affair was an Australian scandal that broke in 1999, concerning paid advertising in radio that is presented to the audience in such a way as to sound like editorial commentary. John Laws, a shock jock radio presenter for Sydney talk back, was accused of misusing his authority...

inquiries, had sent a stream of admiring letters to Alan Jones.
This called into question the impartiality of Flint, and the then Federal Minister for Communications, Daryl Williams
Daryl Williams
Daryl Robert Williams AM QC , Australianpolitician, was a Liberal member of the Australian House of Representatives from March 1993 to October 2004, representing the Division of Tangney, Western Australia.-Biography:...

, was embroiled in media speculation as to the future of Flint. With an inquiry imminent, Flint resigned. In an appearance on the ABC's
Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly referred to as "the ABC" , is Australia's national public broadcaster...

 Enough Rope
Enough Rope
Enough Rope with Andrew Denton is a television interview show originally broadcast on ABC Television in Australia...

, John Laws
John Laws
Richard John Sinclair "John" Laws, CBE , an Australian radio presenter, sometimes known as Lawsie, was from the 1970s until his retirement in 2007, the host of a hugely successful morning radio program, which mixed music with interviews, opinion, live advertising readings and listener talkback...

 accused Jones of placing pressure on Prime Minister John Howard
John Howard
John Winston Howard AC, SSI, was the 25th Prime Minister of Australia, from 11 March 1996 to 3 December 2007. He was the second-longest serving Australian Prime Minister after Sir Robert Menzies....

 to keep Flint as head of the ABA, made comments that many viewers took to imply a sexual relationship between Jones and Flint and broadly hinted that Jones was homosexual like Flint, who is openly gay.

2005 Cronulla riots

In December 2005, in the lead-up to the Cronulla riots
2005 Cronulla riots
The 2005 Cronulla riots were a series of sectarian clashes and mob violence originating in Cronulla, New South Wales and spreading, over the next few nights, to additional Sydney suburbs....

, Jones used his breakfast radio program to read out and discuss a widely-circulated text message
Short message service
Short Message Service is a text messaging service component of phone, web, or mobile communication systems, using standardized communications protocols that allow the exchange of short text messages between fixed line or mobile phone devices...

 calling on people to "Come to Cronulla this weekend to take revenge... get down to North Cronulla to support the Leb and wog bashing day", which was similarly discussed in the wider media including on the front page of publications like the Sydney Morning Herald. Media commentator David Marr
David Marr (journalist)
David Ewan Marr is an Australian journalist, author, and progressive political and social commentator. His areas of expertise include the law, Australian politics, censorship, the media and the arts...

 accused Jones of inciting racial tensions and implicitly encouraging violence and vigilantism by the manner of his responses to callers even while he was verbally disapproving of them taking the law into their own hands.

On 10 April 2007, the Australian Communications and Media Authority
Australian Communications and Media Authority
The Australian Communications and Media Authority is an Australian government statutory authority within the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy portfolio...

 (ACMA) found that the broadcaster 2GB and Jones had broadcast material (specifically comments made by Jones between 5–9 December 2005) that was likely to encourage violence or brutality and to vilify people of Lebanese and Middle-Eastern backgrounds on the basis of ethnicity. During his on-air rebuttal of the ACMA findings on 10 April 2007, Jones stated that by referring to his show as "Breakfast with Alan Jones", the ACMA
Australian Communications and Media Authority
The Australian Communications and Media Authority is an Australian government statutory authority within the Department of Broadband, Communications and the Digital Economy portfolio...

 had little credibility as his show was actually known as "The Alan Jones Show". However, the 2GB
2GB
2GB is a commercial radio station in Sydney, Australia broadcasting on 873 kHz, AM. It is one of Australia's most popular talk-back radio stations, and is the number one station in Sydney.-History:The station commenced broadcasting in August 1926...

 website prior to this broadcast clearly showed the Jones program as being "Breakfast with Alan Jones", this was changed after the broadcast of Jones' rebuttal to be "Alan Jones Show".

Once again, David Flint leapt to Jones' defence by appearing on Jones' morning show "to support his friend and to condemn the process that found him guilty. He told 2GB listeners that the vigilante movement existed at Cronulla long before Jones began broadcasting and that the ACMA findings amounted to a classic case of shoot the messenger. He said the complaints process was flawed because, unlike the Press Council, Jones could not face or question his accusers".

The NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal upheld a complaint of racial vilification against Jones and 2GB on 21 December 2009. The tribunal said:
His comments about “Lebanese males in their vast numbers” hating Australia and raping, pillaging and plundering the country, about a “national security” crisis, and about the undermining of Australian culture by “vermin” were reckless hyperbole calculated to agitate and excite his audience without providing them with much in the way of solid information.

Jonestown

Jonestown: The Power and the Myth of Alan Jones
Jonestown: The Power and the Myth of Alan Jones
Jonestown: The Power and The Myth of Alan Jones is a controversial 2006 biography of radio personality Alan Jones by Chris Masters. The biography deals in part with Jones's sexuality; Masters asserts that Jones is homosexual, something that Jones does not self-identify with...

(Allen & Unwin
Allen & Unwin
Allen & Unwin, formerly a major British publishing house, is now an independent book publisher and distributor based in Australia. The Australian directors have been the sole owners of the Allen & Unwin name since effecting a management buy out at the time the UK parent company, Unwin Hyman, was...

), is an unauthorised biography of Jones by Australian journalist Chris Masters
Chris Masters (writer)
Christopher "Chris" Wayne Masters PSM is a multi-Walkley Award winning and Logie Award winning Australian journalist and author.-Life:Chris Masters was born in Grafton, New South Wales...

.

Extracts of the book published in The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald
The Sydney Morning Herald is a daily broadsheet newspaper published by Fairfax Media in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831 as the Sydney Herald, the SMH is the oldest continuously published newspaper in Australia. The newspaper is published six days a week. The newspaper's Sunday counterpart, The...

concentrated largely on Jones's sexuality, questionable behaviour while Senior English Master at The King's School
The King's School, Sydney
The King's School is an independent Anglican, day and boarding school for boys in North Parramatta in the western suburbs of Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1831, it is Australia's oldest school and forms one of the nine "Great Public Schools" of New South Wales. Situated within a site, Gowan Brae,...

 and the "cottaging
Cottaging
Cottaging is a British gay slang term referring to anonymous sex between men in a public lavatory , or cruising for sexual partners with the intention of having sex elsewhere...

" incident in a London public toilet. The book claims that Jones is a homosexual and that his denial of this is "a defining feature of the Jones persona".

Contempt of Court charges

Jones was originally convicted of breaching the Children's (Criminal Proceedings) Act 1987 (NSW), by broadcasting the suppressed name of a juvenile witness in a murder trial.

The deputy chief magistrate, Helen Syme, criticised Jones for not issuing an on-air apology to the boy he had named, and said that Jones' offence was "serious". The magistrate placed Jones on a nine month good-behaviour bond, fined him $1000.

Outside the court, Jones said, "The court found it was not a simple mistake. My view does not count."

In February 2008 Jones lost an appeal against his conviction. His lawyers told the judge they would be challenging the penalty at a future date.

On 27 March 2008, Jones's criminal conviction was quashed. The judge presiding over the appeal, Judge Michael Finnane, said: "While it was no excuse from liability in law that Mr Jones relied on The Daily Telegraph, the fact that he did, to some extent ameliorates the seriousness of the offence." The judge confirmed Jones' guilt, but dismissed the charge and annulled the conviction.

Kovco Comments

On Wednesday 18 October 2007 it was revealed that NSW State Coroner
Coroner
A coroner is a government official who* Investigates human deaths* Determines cause of death* Issues death certificates* Maintains death records* Responds to deaths in mass disasters* Identifies unknown dead* Other functions depending on local laws...

 Mary Jerram was referring Jones and The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...

 to the NSW Supreme Court for comments made the Friday earlier relating to the inquest into the death of Private Jake Kovco. Jones claimed that assisting counsel John Agius had unfairly attempted to persuade Kovco's mother into refusing a jury inquest, comments which Jerram stated could prejudice the inquest.

Business endorsements

Alan Jones has personally endorsed two failed businesses, the Ronald Coles investment gallery (an art investment group), and Fincorp (a high-yield interest property investment company) which Jones described as a "great Australian company". Both companies have since folded under suspicious circumstances, leaving many of their backers with significant financial loss.

Military Trial Commentary and Criticism of Brigadier McDade

An episode of the ABC's Media Watch was devoted to Alan Jones' pre-trial comments supportive of three soldiers charged over an incident in Afghanistan, including one soldier charged with manslaughter. The comments were seen to be 'in contempt of court' but as the court had not yet been convened at the time of the comments, Jones could not be charged. He also vilified Brigadier McDade.

Vilification of Prime Minister Gillard and others

Despite claiming that he never dealt with the "personal", Jones made several statements in 2011 suggesting that his political opponents should be violently treated. On June 29 he said of the Lord Mayor of Sydney ... "put her in the same chaff bag as Julia Gillard and throw them both out to sea" and about Greens leader Bob Brown ... "The woman's [Julia Gillard] off her tree and quite frankly they should shove her and Bob Brown in a chaff bag and take them as far out to sea as they can and tell them to swim home." Also in February 2011 Jones called the Prime Minister "Ju-liar" over the federal government's then announcement of a new carbon tax policy in an on-air discussion with the pair. He also berated her for being 10 minutes late for his program. . These comments were widely reported and attracted condemnation from media commentators including Jonathan Holmes on Media Watch.

Breach of Radio Standards

On 25 November 2011 the Australian Communications and Media Authority found that Jones had breached the commercial radio code of practice in his reporting of environmental issues. His reporting was found to lack accuracy and failing to allow other viewpoints to be heard. A decision on the penalty for this breach was reserved.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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