Media
DARWINIAN: Journos at war yarns in the Northern Territory cause Nameless more attribution pain
Victorian Giles sub-faction of the Socialist Left running-dog Andrew Crook of the cheeky cash for content millionaire left email newsletter Nameless that loves to steal VEXNEWS stories without attribution did done well in reporting on the troubles in the Australian yesterday.
The story of journos at war was picked up today in the NT News, the newspaper essentially at war with The Australian despite having the same owner.
Today, the NT News excelled itself by referring to the living arrangements of controversial Labor rat Angry Anderson and The Australian’s scribe Nicolas Rothwell. They claim Angry lives in Rothwell’s “luxury Hastings on Mindil apartment” when in Darwin, which we believe to be most of the time, despite representing a remote electorate.
The Hastings on Mindil’s website certainly spares no amount of hyperbole in describing the luxurious accommodations, suggesting that scribes might be paid danger money for serving in a Darwinian environment.
It’s been a delicious feud, with the first casualty in the form of dummy spitting Paul Toohey who has left the warm embrace of News Corporation to look for gainful employment on the inebriated mean streets of Darwin.
The Crook wrote:
The incestuous nexus enveloping Northern Territory journalism and politics has claimed its second victim, with Walkley Award-winning Australian journalist Paul Toohey quitting the paper following an apparent fall-out with senior colleague Nicolas Rothwell.
Nameless understands that last Friday, Toohey tendered his resignation to The Australian’s editor Paul Whittaker, claiming the broadsheet’s Darwin bureau had been irretrievably damaged by Rothwell’s de-facto relationship with former NT minister Alison Anderson, who quit last week.
Insiders say Toohey was furious Rothwell had apparently fed a series of exclusive stories to Sydney-based Australian rival Natasha Robinson, pre-empting Anderson’s threats to leave the government. Effectively, Toohey had been sidelined in the midst of the biggest northern political story in years.
This morning, Toohey confirmed to Nameless that he had quit, but refused to comment, claiming he was still an employee of News Limited. It is believed he is seeing out his notice period.
It is understood Robinson is a close friend of Rothwell’s. As previously reported, Nameless understands she left the Territory last year telling editors in Sydney she could no longer work with Toohey. Despite the resignation occurring last week, Toohey’s resignation has not been reported by The Australian, with the story strangely absent from its Media section yesterday.
Australian editor-in-chief Chris Mitchell has previously denied to Nameless there were any problems in the relationship between Toohey and Rothwell.
However, Mitchell had agreed to send Toohey to Jakarta as Indonesian Correspondent, where he would have been well out of Rothwell’s way. It is unclear whether Toohey ever took up the new role. On 20 July, he reported on the Marriot Hotel bombing for the Murdoch broadsheet from Jakarta.
The latest revelation comes after a war within News Limited that has consumed the Territory’s chattering classes.
When Rothwell’s partner Anderson sensationally left the Labor government last week, she claimed the last straw was a “racist” opinion piece by NT News journalist Nigel Adlam. Adlam, it later emerged, is married to Henderson’s press secretary. Anderson promptly sent a fiery resignation letter to an adviser in Opposition leader Terry Mills’ office.
The NT News then revealed that Anderson’s “eloquently worded” resignation was sent from Rothwell’s Bigpond email address.
That, in turn, provoked this article from The Australian’s former Darwin correspondent Ashleigh Wilson, who detailed the Adlam Henderson connection. But Wilson failed to declare his own conflict — the journalist was in a relationship with senior Labor spinner Nicola Lekias during his time covering politics in the Territory. (A story originally reported on VEXNEWS that Nameless failed to attribute, they are really are Shameless as well as Nameless)
Toohey is the well-connected son of former High Court judge John Toohey, while the softly-spoken Rothwell is a veteran foreign correspondent.
Nameless contacted The Australian’s editor Paul Whittaker, The Australian editor-in-chief Chris Mitchell and News spinner Greg Baxter for comment but they failed to respond before deadline.
Nicolas Rothwell refused to comment to Nameless.
Sources say Toohey is currently in Darwin looking for work.
Discussion
21 comments for “DARWINIAN: Journos at war yarns in the Northern Territory cause Nameless more attribution pain”
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Sad to see the big fella fall.
He added a certain quality to an otherwise dull and self serving fish wrapper.
It is an indication of the Oz’s declining standing amongst the Darwin population that the early delivery of the Weekend Edition to Darwin was suspended months ago.
Eager readers now have to wait for the afternoon plane to deliver the goods.
the Australian arrives in Darwin mid afternoon, and we’re meant to pay added freight charge for the privilege of reading that shit.
The Australian is even worse than the NT news in its coverage of NT politics. Portraying Anderson as some indigenous Joan of Arc without disclosing its Rothwell connection is piss weak.
The NT (including its indigenous people) are being failed by both NT politicians and NT media.
Darwinites normally wait until the afternoon for air-freighted newspaper. Airport curfews kick in long before most newspapers roll off the presses.
Darwinites normally wait until the afternoon for air-freighted newspaper. Airport curfews kick in long before most newspapers roll off the presses.
Posted by Manly Halfback Craig Field | August 12, 2009, 15:49
Not always true little one
We use to have the pleasure of getting the Weekend Edition early Saturday morning, along with the Pauls iced coffee milk, a pack of winnie blues and the bread.
Now that it comes in the arvo of course we can get all the above plus a slab of VB.
I am sure Rothwell the god son of Rup Murdoch?????? Untouchable
There is more, much more, to run here – have a look at the Rotter’s writings on the Yarts in the NT – particularly the support for a particularly aggressive arts dealer in the desert – and his partner’s administration of the Arts portfolio – and whether a certain “indigenous” academic will stay in the job to which they were appointed by the Rotter’s wife – and when did the Rotter get married?
Oh, and to whom and when did the Rotter declare his relationship – apparently he told his editor & others at the OZ, and also to some selected pollies and staffers on the 5th floor…but what about his readers?
and finally – for now – I understand that Crikey didn’t pinch their piece off the Vexatious one – they’d written about this mess some time ago – and outed the precious pair – and good research & well-placed sources helped
Seems that Nicholas Rothwell’s literary talents are found to be less than inspiring by a number of writers
From Bob Gosfords blog the following – I haven’t had the chance to read Nicolas’s latest book yet and confess that I’ve always had some difficulty with much of what he writes.
For mine a lot of his journalism is informed by a rather naive take on politics, an emotionless “flat-white right” version of the “latte left”. And to me his long-form work – his essays and books – often seem terribly overwritten and badly in need of an editor’s blue pencil.
From Peter Cochrane
In a review in the Australian Literary Review, to which Rothwell has been a reasonably frequent contributor, Peter Cochrane damns The Red Highway with the faintest of praise.
Cochrane’s review is an exemplar of its type – fair but unstintingly and cruelly accurate.
He says that Rothwell’s book may appeal to:
“Readers who respond to a romantic, secular spirituality, who like stories laced with dream or reverie or who thrill to the idea of ‘the strange, assertive harmony of chance’…”
Cochrane nails what he sees as a fundamental flaw in The Red Highway – that Rothwell, in his search for the “truth of things” only talks to himself, or to a cohort of people that seem very much like him:
“The conversation, at times, is enjoyable to read. But the cohort does give rise to a nagging irony: surely the search for the “truth of things” in the far north must go wider than this? If wisdom resides in sameness, what is the point of travel? Is plumbing the depths of one’s own cohort as revealing as transcending those depths? Why not cast a wide net, and reach into realms and ranks, black and white, high and low, where strangeness or otherness is the spark for self-knowledge?”
The nub of his concerns is that The Red Highway contains too much “implausible nonsense”:
From another reader
Frank Campbell
Posted June 11, 2009 at 10:07 am | Permalink
Rothwell’s writing has always seemed to me precious and over-written. Straining for effect, comically at times. I think Private Eye would have nailed him as a pseud.
For those who didn’t go to an elite private school the following definition of a pseud is provided.
Noun 1. pseud – a person who makes deceitful pretenses
faker, imposter, impostor, pseudo, role player, sham, shammer, pretender, fraud, fake
beguiler, cheater, deceiver, trickster, slicker, cheat – someone who leads you to believe something that is not true
name dropper – someone who pretends that famous people are his/her friends
ringer – a contestant entered in a competition under false pretenses
It’s all happening in old Darwin town.
After a whirlwind tour of Arnhem Land and the Tiwi’s Tash Robinson has returned to her old stomping ground.
Local scribes expected to be flocking to her one women show at the Darwin Festival titled “Reporting from a prone position, my life as a reporter in the Top End.”
The perfomance has been described as an ecletic mix between the Vagina Monologues, Sex and the City and Boogey Nights.
Guest apperances by well known aboriginal rights lawyers, human rights activists and senior traditional owners are expected.
How lucky is Ashleigh Wilson.
He gets handed story after story on the biggest political event in the territories history.
But unlike his fellow reporturds from the Oz he doesn’t have to swap any body fluids with the sources.
Leaves him plety of time to tone up for Mardi Gras
They claim Angry lives in Rothwell’s “luxury Hastings on Mindil apartment” when in Darwin, which we believe to be most of the time, despite representing a remote electorate.
Well Vexnews it’s not the first time Rothwell’s glass jaw on his housing status has been belted by the NT New.
A little while back Nic wrote another of his eloquesnt pieces bemoaning the demise of Ye Old Darwin Town and its “unique” architectural qualitlies.
Sadly for Nic his perch upon the high horse called “Santimonious Piss Ant” was knocked askew when the NT News ran a piece detailing his address.
Now given that the Hastings on Mindil complex is nicknamed “two balls” because of its prominent positon and less than spectaular design qualiites many people had a quiet chuckle.
Seems tha Nic has been harbouring dark thoughts about the NT News and its colourful band of jounalistic misfits since being outed as psued.
yes its all getting a bit personal and the mud is being slung around and the dummy spits abound.
I find it interesting that when someone stands up against the party line and stands up for an oppressed group of people who are vulnerable; they get pasted for revealing the truth.
you cant be wrong if your right.
shame on you institutionalised racist’s.
obviously with the level of attacks; these people have very poor self esteem and should get some cognitive behavioural therapy to sort out there anger management issues.
So Giancarlo
Which one of the evil trio are you shagging???
“obviously with the level of attacks; these people have very poor self esteem and should get some cognitive behavioural therapy to sort out there anger management issues”
Typical drivel from the latte left when the spotlight of truth is turned uopn them.
Come come, people, it’s colourless crud compared to how we used to do things in the Territory. How they’ve managed to keep these two bulls (?) in the same paddock so long is a bloody wonder. I just wish I could be at Throb the night they cross paths on well-trodden path to the unisex toilets. We all know Nicholas froths well, but only Paul would buy you a beer or two, ey?
Haven’t heard much from Tash, Ash and Nicholass on the Oz this week.
Is it because Oz Editor Chris Mitchell has hit the panic button on the ever spreading stain of putrid puss that is his NT Team and put them into the back room.
Interesting that Mitchell sent in the A team of Koch and Owens at the weekend to try and add a bit of class to the rapidly fading lusture of the Oz.
Of course Tash has been sighted around Old Darwin Town, usually tring to embed herself in one of her old sources.
There have been the odd sightings of Nicholass on his balcony at the luxury apartment he occupies with Angry Anderson.
Though we expect to see more of him in the coming weeks at the local coursts as he fights to clear his shrinking reputation from a range of charges.
So ‘get a life giancarlo’ obvious your life must be so sad and lonely to react in this manner and to make assumptions which are untrue. You hide behind a code name and not prepared to divulge your real identity. You definitely have anger management issues and need help. If you like i can refer you to a good therapist to sort out your abandonment and attachment issues. Obviously from your comment about the latte left you reveal much about yourself. I wonder are you part of the facisto right and your lack of insight and institutionalised racism is transperant.
Geez Giancarlo
Seems you are a paid up member of the Rothwell Fan club.
giancarlo mazzella Says:
July 23rd, 2008 at 5:50 pm
Can’t wait for this book to be published. Rothwell’s take on the north is real and refreshing amongst the mediocre non-fiction that looks at the north of Australia.
giancarlo mazzella of kununurra 5:51pm September 08, 2008 On the money once again Rothwell. Alcohol is the big problem in the Kimberley and Northern Australia and not enough resources are being put into this area.The rivers of grog are killing men women and children.
Though it does seem that your recent posts on Vexnews show a much greater level of eloquence and sophistication than your previous fawning posts.
poor fella ‘get a life giancarlo’
in denial about what is the real world and what is truth. Obvious you have totally missed the point and enjoy going for the man and not the ball. It is interesting to see your reactions and obvious contempt for some human beings.Maybe they all should be shot but of course we live in a democracy and every one is entitled to there opinion. Or is your universe one of narcsisistic rage?My advice to you is to lay off the booze so your front lobe and executive functioning can start working. Again I can refer you to a good therapist so you can sort out your anger management issues and maybe then you can join the real world.
Dont forget jesus loves you.
‘GREATER SPIRITS ARE MET WITH VIOLENT OPPOSITION FROM MEDIOCRE MINDS’