ABC Friends welcomes the appointment of Hugh Marks as the new Managing Director of the ABC.
Image: ABC
Mr Marks brings extensive experience in the commercial sector to the role; he oversaw the merger of Channel Nine and Fairfax media, creating Australia’s largest commercial media group with major interests in newspapers, radio, television and streaming services. Mr Marks’ experience in leading that change, alongside his experience in content creation, will be an asset to the ABC.
Not having worked in public media, Mr Marks will need to develop a deep understanding of public broadcasting and the unique role the ABC plays in Australia’s cultural life.
Kim Williams says that he sees no difference between commercial and public media imperatives and it’s true that both are subject to many of the same constraints. But there are also distinct differences.
Writing for the Sydney Morning Herald, Elizabeth Knight said:
“What makes a good CEO in a listed company can be assessed easily: the metrics of success are profit, return on capital and, ultimately, share price. As for governance, shareholders of public companies such as Nine are happy to outsource full governance control to the directors they vote in and the chief executive the directors appoint."
"However, the ABC is a different beast. It doesn’t have a profit motive but an engagement motive.”
The ABC’s success depends on the trust that Australians place in it.
ABC Friends will be looking to Mr Marks, as editor in chief, to uphold the ABC’s editorial independence and integrity as laid down in the legislation that governs the ABC. We will seek his assurance that he will defend staff against external attacks and hope he will place greater emphasis on rigorous public-interest journalism, with fewer soft lifestyle stories.
ABC Alumni notes that, although Mr Marks is not a journalist by training, he “supported investigative journalism at 60 Minutes and at The Age and the Sydney Morning Herald, notably by spending many millions of dollars to support the allegations of war crimes, first published by Fairfax prior to the merger, against the defamation suit brought by Ben Roberts-Smith VC.”
Mr Marks has been quoted as saying that he will be more proactive in dealing with workplace culture problems than occurred when he was CEO at Nine Entertainment. Following a year of upheaval at the ABC, it is essential that he adopt as a guiding principle the need to treat all staff with respect and dignity, with fair and transparent systems for addressing workplace concerns.
And a final call to the ABC. We’d love to see more senior women in the ABC’s management ranks.
Cassandra Parkinson
ABC Friends President