ABC Chairman Attempted To Stop Triple J From Moving The Hottest 100
“Malcolm will go ballistic”
In November last year, after extensive consultation with the public and Indigenous artists, triple j announced their decision to move the Hottest 100 away from the controversial date of January 26.
The decision was widely celebrated by the public, but it sure pissed off a few old white men: in the days that followed the announcement, the federal government itself condemned the date change, with communications minister Mitch Fifield accusing triple j of “making a political statement”.
“I am bewildered by the ABC’s decision to move the Hottest 100 from Australia Day,” Fifield said at the time. “The ABC shouldn’t be buying into this debate. Australia Day is our national day. The ABC, through its actions, is actually helping to delegitimise Australia Day, which is the objective of those who don’t want to have Australia Day celebrated as we currently do.”
And it turns out the government pressure nearly made the ABC crack, with The Guardian today reporting that ABC Chairman Justin Milne was “vehemently” opposed to the move, and even attempted to force the ABC board to reverse triple j’s decision.
“Malcolm [Turnbull] will go ballistic,” he was reported saying at the time.
Milne also reportedly tried to interfere following Tonightly’s March sketch about the racist background of grazier John Batman, which used the word “cunt”. Michelle Guthrie — who was Managing Director of the ABC at the time, and who was dramatically ousted yesterday — insisted that the ABC support their staff in the face of government criticism, a stance Milne didn’t particularly like.
“Michelle was always saying we should back our artists and staff but Justin was always interfering and saying this will annoy the government,” a source told The Guardian. “Michelle stood up to Milne when he tried to interfere with management decisions. He believes Emma Alberici should be sacked and the Top 100 [Hottest 100] should not be moved.”
Regardless of Justin Milne’s worm-like actions and an army of internet neckbeards threatening to boycott, the 2017 Hottest 100 was actually the most successful in the poll’s history, with over 2.3 million votes cast. It also delivered a historic win in the form of Kendrick Lamar, who became the first person of colour to top the poll with ‘HUMBLE.’.