A legal letter sent to Nine newspapers claims some journalists were green-eyed over Alan Jones’ rise to prominence, which has resulted in “demonstrably false” allegations in a series of articles over the past week.
In a concerns notice sent to the editors of the Nine Entertainment-owned The Sydney Morning Herald, and The Age, lawyer Mark O’Brien said the allegations made against Mr. Jones were false and had “no basis in fact.”
This follows the publication of a series of articles alleging that Mr. Jones indecently assaulted six young men without their consent.
“Over many years, certain journalists employed by Nine (formerly Fairfax) newspapers have been resentful of our client’s prominence as a commentator on many political and cultural issues, and the malicious and concocted allegations giving rise to the imputations constitute a concerted attempt to destroy our client’s reputation,” lawyer Mark O’Brien said, reported the SMH.
In the concerns notice—the first step in the commencement of defamation proceedings—Mr. O’Brien demanded the articles be removed from their website, and for the media group to publish a front-page apology. Additionally, Mr. O’Brien said both compensation and legal costs be covered by Nine’s newspapers.
In response, Tory Maguire, executive editor of the SMH, The Age, as well as the Brisbane Times, and WAToday, said in a statement: “We stand by Kate McClymont’s diligent and thorough reporting on this matter, and stand ready to defend this important public interest journalism on all fronts.”
Police Informed of One Matter, But No Others
On the morning of Dec. 7, the two mastheads published a 4,000-word article alleging that Mr. Jones indecently assaulted the young men. The story relied heavily on the testimony of the individuals with some speaking behind an alias.However, none of the men made a statement to the police.
Other claims made against Mr. Jones included that he used his position of power to “prey on a number of young men,” which included groping or inappropriate touching.
According to the SMH, a schoolboy with the pseudonym Neil was allegedly indecently assaulted by Mr. Jones in January 2017.
Neil said that he told the police in writing about the alleged assault but, in the end, decided not to pursue the matter.
“Since that time, one of the officers, who now holds the rank of inspector, has continued to counsel and support the family,” the SMH wrote.
However, a police spokeswoman has said that no current investigation into the alleged incidents was underway.
Questions concerning Neil were not addressed by the police spokeswoman, but email communications between Neil, Neil’s mother, a detective, and the NSW Department of Education over the allegations against Mr. Jones were published by SMH.
According to the concerns notice, the articles contained “gravely serious” imputations of criminal conduct by Nine.
“The imputations … have caused our client great anxiety and distress, and have caused immense harm to him, both personally and professionally,” the letter states.
