For close to 18 months the prime minister has done his level best to keep his relationship with a QAnon family friend out of the public domain. Now, courtesy of an ABC decision to halt a Four Corners investigation from airing on Monday night, the news is everywhere. It was even on Seven’s Sunrise this morning.
Crikey has been reporting in detail on the relationship between Scott Morrison’s wife, Jenny, and her best friend Lynelle Stewart, whose husband, Tim, became at one point Australia’s most prominent QAnon adherent, as measured by Twitter followers.
The Morrisons and the Stewarts are long-term family friends going back to when the two couples were married almost 30 years ago, but Morrison is no longer an ordinary suburban bloke and Sharks fan. And Lynelle has been paid by the taxpayer as a government-employed helper for Jenny, working at Kirribilli House. So the relationship is fair game for public scrutiny — although it is one that most of the mainstream media has dodged for close to two years.
The key issue is the potential security threat and what, if any, actions Australia’s security services have taken. On that we have precious little information.
Stewart family expressed concern
Earlier this year Tim Stewart’s sister, Karen Stewart, told Crikey that the Stewart family was so worried that it had reported its concerns to “the authorities”. The concern was driven by a series of tweets supporting the violent storming of Capitol Hill in January after Donald Trump lost the presidency.
The Stewarts believed Tim had tweeted under the since-deleted Twitter account Spies Like Us (@RealStealthSpy). Crikey also published evidence of Tim and his 22-year-old son, Jesse, in discussion with US QAnon figures during the height of the Trump-induced madness. The 90-minute discussion was via a QAnon online channel, the Patriot Voice, with the Stewarts given special billing as Australian guests under their Twitter names Burn Notice and Negan_HQ, respectively.
Yet despite the family’s evident anxiety about how far Tim Stewart had gone down the rabbit hole, the prime minister’s office had no comment.
Last year parliamentary hearings also confirmed that Lynelle Stewart was employed through the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet (PMC). Under questioning from ALP Senator Penny Wong, the PMC’s deputy secretary, Stephanie Foster, told the hearing that all appropriate checks were undertaken, “including the relevant police checks”.
Another official said all three staff employed at the prime minister’s Sydney residence had security clearances. Disconcertingly though, the PMC also claimed at the same October 2020 hearings to have no knowledge that Tim Stewart’s Twitter account had been suspended by Twitter or the reasons for it.
Does Tim Stewart wield any influence directly or indirectly on the prime minister? He certainly claimed that he did when it came to Morrison’s 2018 parliamentary apology to survivors of institutional sex abuse. As we reported, Morrison’s speech included a reference to “ritual” sex abuse, when referring to institutional sex abuse. The “ritual” tag was in line with the driving QAnon belief that the world has been overtaken by Satan-worshipping pedophiles.
Again, Morrison’s office refused to answer that question.
The Four Corners investigation has been carrying on for several weeks. The program was reportedly deferred a month ago pending further work. Pressure? What pressure?
The decision at the most senior levels of the ABC to block its planned airing on Monday will raise issues of the broadcaster’s editorial independence and whether it has pre-emptively buckled to head off further anger from the Coalition government, already seething over Four Corners’ coverage of Christian Porter.
The question is pointed because the program was reportedly cleared by the ABC’s legal department and approved by senior editorial executive in charge of investigations, John Lyons. It was halted after the ABC’s head of news declined to give it his backing and referred the story upstairs.
Consider the timing: at the beginning of the week the ABC emerged from a protracted and bitter court action over whether or not Four Corners alleged the former attorney-general was a brutal rapist.
Yesterday senior Liberal figure Michael Kroger savaged the ABC’s chair, Ita Buttrose. She was “a hopeless failure”. Appointing her was a massive mistake. Programs like Four Corners were “political acid in the face of the Liberal Party”. There were people in the cabinet who “regretted” her appointment. She had lost control and should be sacked. Close observers of how power works in Australia will note this was all given a generous run in The Australian.
The Australian also reported that the ABC’s managing director, David Anderson, was prepared to apologise personally to Porter for two tweets sent out by Four Corners’ staffers — an abject, cap-in-hand moment for the boss of the independent broadcaster.
The day before that, LNP backbencher George Christensen let rip on the alleged bias of the ABC and called on his colleagues to “strike while the iron was hot” against the broadcaster.
All roads lead to Porter
All these, of course, have one thing in common: conservatives’ anger at Four Corners’ coverage of Porter.
In one interpretation, the ABC dodged a bullet at the beginning of the week when Porter withdrew his defamation action. Porter claimed the ABC had been forced to make humiliating concessions as part of the settlement — in truth the humiliation appeared to be all his.
Yet amid the claim and counterclaim of who “won” there was a sober truth for the ABC. The ABC’s government enemies will never forgive it for the manner in which it pursued Porter.
And then, within days of the settlement, along comes Four Corners again. Reporter Louise Milligan. Again.
At the same time Buttrose finds herself surrounded by fresh government appointments, dropped into the highest reaches of the ABC and privy to its operational secrets. In a press club address she raised her concerns about being excluded from the board selection process which appears to have at least in part favoured mates over merit.
And on Monday Anderson is due to return to Canberra for a further grilling on the ABC’s Porter settlement.
Of course this helps to explain why the government can’t seem to do any actual, err, governing. They’re too busy looking at every word that is published out of the ABC, keeps them far too busy to do unimportant things like actually deliver vaccines to health centres, clinics and GPs, or to construct viable quarantine facilities, or do anything on climate change.
They have their priorities, if you don’t like them they have no others.
I see a story with Milligan or Meldrum-Hana and just know it’s a must read. Two of the most trusted investigative reporters in Australian media. Not surprised if it was Gaven Morris who booted it upstairs. Wasn’t he the bloke who canned Emma Alberici because she upset the coalition government?
Yep
Yes – spineless critter that he is. Alberici was a solid journalist, thrown under a bus.
$cotty used his most aggrieved and hurt tone (you know the one that generally means his pants will combust shortly) when asked about his relationship with a QAnon figure. We know the PMO has had ‘talks’ with ABC news director Gaven Morris. We just don’t know how much pressure has been applied. I look forward to watching the Four Corners program.
PS – I don’t recall any interference or outrage from the Liberal party when Julia Gillard was being trashed in various shows on the ABC. I understand they were quite supportive of it. The Liberal party as a whole are showing their glass jaws.
PSS – Now the Liberals are attacking Ita Buttrose because she is being independent and not partisan enough in their favour. You just can’t please some people. Snort.
They will probably put the skids under Ita and “Captain’s pick” Porter to replace her!
Not Porter – I think Murdoch wants a viable ABC.
Now that Brittany Higgins has been admitted to care to guard her mental health it is clear why this cruel government is protracted the charging of her alleged attacker.
if Miss Higgins mental health goes the same as the tragic lady who was the centre of the Porter case and she should take her life then this PM would have been saved another political problem as was the case in Porters case.
Has anyone known of a rape case where the allegations are so well known that the police have taken so long to charge the man involved. There must be a reason and the continued harassment of the victim with a view to breaking her mentally is the obvious tactic by the PM and his cohorts. Is it not a fact they the government has had six or more inquiries about the matter with no results published as they obviously can’t get a report to favour them. If Morrison is a religious man as he claims I am with the Evil One
NSW Police are required to meticulously gather evidence and assess whether there is enough credible evidence to mount.a case against the alleged perpetrator. Considering there were no eyewitnesses and the alleged rape was not reported for over two years, such evidence may take some time. Fortunately, police look further than news realises from the alleged victims and her media team to gather such evidence.
The mental health of the alleged perpetrator, already found guilty by most, must surely be of some concern to anyone who values the (now much besmirched) legal precept of the presumption of innocence.
And please, spare me the ‘continued harassment of the (alleged) victim’ – for someone who initially requested that her privacy be respected, her media output has been astonishingly prolific.
AFP (ie ACT Police) is responsible for investigating, not NSW. NSW was supposed to do the Porter allegation.
Noted, thanks.
Very true the other side of the coin is that the accused faces 14 years jail in most jurisdictions – so each allegation of complainants must be dispassionately investigated. Complaints have to be sifted so they are not merely a RSE [regretable sexual experience].
RSE?????- you are making things up now. It is a fact the the vast majority of reported sexual abuse complaints are real. The vile people peddling rubbish like “RSE’ are not worth listening to. So many men want to believe their own vile actions towards others are ‘RSE’ when they are actual sexual assaults perpetrated by them in their youth or when drunk or ..or…. There is NO excuse for sexual assault. Police, courts & the public fail victims of sexual abuse all the time. Your comments are an example of the thoughtless rubbish survivors must endure on an almost daily basis.
The corrections I would make to your comments are
Firstly the AFP are the responsible for investigation. The AFP will not comment on whether they have interviewed the alleged perpetrator but will comment effusively on Ms Higgins.
Secondly there are rarely “eyewitnesses” to rape cases. However there are a number of witnesses; the security guard and others who checked them in. The same guard who on their rounds entered the office and found Ms Higgins unconscious and naked on the couch. The guard placed her dress over her and left. Bruce LEHRMANN, the alleged perpetrator had checked out left the building earlier. When Ms Higgins finally woke and signed out the guards called a cab for her.
Thirdly contrary to your assertion as to mental health of the alleged perpetrator, how is it that Mr Lehrmann’s name is not and has not been mentioned in the main stream media. This is a piece of SPIN to distract from the issues. Ms Higgins is mentioned all over the place and we almost know what she has for breakfast. Mr Lehrmann is now almost a ghost on the internet, his social media accounts have been wiped clean and there is even very little about the 12 years he has worked in Parliament house in senior roles for various ministers.
Fourthly we hear the PM lie by saying there was a security breach and that is why Mr Lehrmann was sacked when there was no security breach all. Both people had accreditation for any hours access to the office and everyone followed procedures.
Incidentally the PM and other ministers have never named Mr Lehrmann in public comments. The person sacked seems to be just some anonymous person or a mist in the ether of the parliament.
Fifthly the office and couch were quickly cleaned the next day at direction from the Parliament services office. Hence any DNA or whether Rohypnol was used, etc was lost. The office comes under the direction of the Finance Minister who was Mr Cormann. So others high up in the Government knew what had happened as the security would have reported the incident.
Sixthly her media output has been “prolific” when the PM and others have tried to shut her up and make it go away.
The offensive comments made by Mr Abetz about Ms Higgins being drunk. Do I need to go on?
Perhaps if you spoke about something you knew about first would be a good idea instead of rehashing spin.
Thank you Wayne. Excellent summation.
Is he in any sense a religious man or is he just a tRump-like user of religious influence for his own purposes ?
In answer to your query – yes, many times, even when charges were quickly laid – the rapists walked because the victims embellished their story in court and therefore the rapists walked. No one ever tells the victims it is not their case but the State’s case and they are Crown witnessess and should only stick to the true facts and not add to the details to embellish the crime. The victim always bears permanent mental scars which cannot be erased by counselling or otherwise- in fact it has been shown too much counselling only makes the scar deeper – like continually raking embers of a fire which actually stokes the fire.
Inventing more things. Where is your proof that victims ’embellish’ their claims? You really need to stop making things up & pretending they are real facts.
Counselling adds more scars??? What would YOU know? You defend the indefensible. Makes me wonder what YOU think is acceptable. Certainly not what the majority of society thinks is acceptable.
Both your claims are pure & unadulterated RUBBISH. Stop it.
Your comments are so out of touch with reality. Blaming the victims of rape for your imagined ’embellishing’ is actually a very telling comment. You clearly need help understanding the issues. You have a long road to travel to find some balance in your very patriarchal world.
Oh I don’t know – the ABC might be being quite clever.
“We’ve got this program about the PM and we’re not sure when or whether to run it ” might shut a few big mouths for a while.
Agreed, my money would always be on Ita. I suspect some ‘ammunition’ is being stored for future strategic use.
Ita has never confronted Power – always the Handmaid.
That would be encouraging were it true. Unfortunately, I doubt it.