Dick Smith writes: Re. “Dick Smith is an exemplary candidate for Arsehat of the Year” (Thursday). In an article in your publication, David Salter has claimed that the $1 million donations attributed to me may not have really happened. Here is his wording:
“Or does he? Do the media ever check whether all those millions, so breathlessly reported at first, are actually paid out as promised? We’re still waiting.”
I have asked my financial people to produce a list of the $1 million or more donations with the date of the donation and the recipient. You can read the list here. Perhaps David Salter could contact the organisations listed and verify that they received the money.
You may also like to send David the list my staff recently prepared showing the donations that have been given to humanitarian and refugee causes. Then again, that may not be a good idea — it will make him even madder! I would love to see his list.
By the way, the reason I don’t keep the donations secret is that I am simply fulfilling an obligation — that is to put something back in because I have done well financially. I don’t know why you would keep “obligations” secret.
Of note, the recipients of the $9.189 million (as at August 31, 2017) given away by Dick Smith Foods are listed on the Dick Smith Foods website and can be easily checked.
David Salter may be pleased to know that the $41 million received from the sale of Australian Geographic from Fairfax has now all been donated to important causes. David is welcome to visit my financial people and go through the recipients, dates and receipts if he doubts that.
Dick’s response is measured, to the point, and invites scrutiny of the evidence which he is making freely available. (No administrative or financial hoops, just there it is, analyse at your leisure.) Everything Crikey aims to be, but conspicuously failed to be in the article in question. No question in my mind as to who, in the present instance, is the bigger Dick.
This current case of ‘journalism’ by Crikey fills me with shame to have recommended Crikey to so many friends. The striking thing about the Murdoch media is they never apologise, several comments have likened Crikey’s article and style to that of the Murdoch rags. The thing is they NEVER apologise. Lets see how Crikey responds. They could start with a new article on who the arsenals of the year are
bloody predictive text, I mean arsehats!
Well done Dick. A great Australian.
Well done Dick – it was an emotional, ridiculous article with little substance.
I was disappointed that the crikey editor let that be published.
Well answered Dick. Please don’t spoil it by supporting Hanson’s vicious pseudo-party of hatred and divisiveness just because they have one policy that you like.