Despite more misleading stories in the Murdoch press, Sunday host — or rather former Sunday host — Jana Wendt is not going to 60 Minutes nor is she going to be doing the odd story for Sunday. Her future remains undecided after she fronted the program for the last time yesterday.

Wendt must have read the story in the Sunday Telegraph claiming she was set to file stories for 60 Minutes and report for Sunday. But late yesterday she made it known that they weren’t an option.

It’s understood Wendt and Nine bosses, Eddie McGuire and Gary Linnell, will try to sort things out this week, but then again Wendt has been expecting McGuire, Linnell and Sunday executive producer, John Lyons to sort things out for the past month or more.

Nothing much has happened and communication has been through lawyers. It’s unclear if Wendt will be staying at Nine. Her last morning in the chair at Sunday was highly emotional and she was in tears as she left Studio Two at Nine. 

The SMH‘s Stay In Touch column covered Jana’s last day and had this comment from Nine: “Yesterday an extremely defensive Nine spokesman would not answer questions about the precise nature of the ongoing role. His only comment was that ‘everything you have read in the last two weeks about Jana has been incorrect’.”

The usual Nine “commenter” is Jamie Campbell, the head of publicity. He should have chosen his comments more carefully, or perhaps he was making a highly unfortunate slip.

Last Wednesday night Nine issued this statement:

Reports that Jana had been forced to leave the hosting role on Sunday were unfounded. Further, press reports to the effect that Jana had been the subject of official complaints from Sunday staff – or anyone else at the Network — were untrue. Nine Network CEO, Mr Eddie McGuire, said: “Jana is one of Australia’s most respected television journalists and the Network holds her in the highest esteem. I am determined to see her remain in a prominent role with Nine…

Is the defensive Nine spokesman now saying that this statement is “untrue”?

If so it would explain the litany of lies from Nine management at all levels for the past month about the position of the host of Sunday from next week.