ABC News and Current Affairs Director appointed

John Cameron has been appointed as the ABC’s new Director of News and Current Affairs after acting in the position since May this year.

He takes over the highly pressured job from Max Uechtritz, who was in the chair when Senator Alston launched his swag of complaints against ABC news and current affairs programs last year.

In the lead up to the impending election, Cameron will be required to monitor bias and account for the minutes spent on coverage of each political party.

Cameron, aged 51, was the National Editor of ABC News and
Current Affairs. He worked in newspapers and commercial radio for 12 years, before joining the ABC in 1984.

From 1984 to 1992, he worked as a reporter and producer for a range of ABC news and current affairs programs on both radio and television. He was a correspondent and then Bureau Chief in Washington from 1989 to 1991, the
Head of ABC News and Current Affairs in Queensland from 1993 to 1998, and News and Current Affairs Head in Victoria from 1998 to 2000.

Russell Balding says: “John has an outstanding record in both editorial and management areas. As National Editor he has been a key player in the management of the News and Current Affairs Division over the last four years. John is well qualified to now take on the leadership of this high profile division.

“John also has a strong commitment to maintaining the ABC’s reputation for comprehensive, independent, accurate and impartial news and current affairs. I am delighted to have him as a member of my executive team.”

Balding says he is “confident” that under John Cameron’s leadership, the ABC will “continue to be
positioned as the pre-eminent Australian provider of quality news and
current affairs services.”