Alan Belford Jones
AO (born 13 April 1941
or 1943)
is an Australian former radio broadcaster. He is a former coach of the
Australia national rugby union team and
rugby league coach and administrator. He has worked as a school teacher, a speech writer in the office of the Prime Minister
Malcolm Fraser, and in musical theatre. He has a Bachelor of Arts from the
University of Queensland, and completed a one-year teaching diploma at
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms w ...
. He has received civil and industry awards.
Jones hosted a popular Sydney breakfast radio program, on radio station
2GB from 2002 until 2020. Jones advocates conservative views, and the popularity of his radio program has made him a highly paid and influential media personality in Australia. Despite his success, he remains a controversial figure. His on-air conduct has received adverse findings from Australia's media regulators, and he has frequently been sued for defamation. In May 2020, Jones announced his retirement from his role at 2GB. In November 2021 it was confirmed that he would not have his contract with
Sky News Australia renewed.
Early life and career
Jones was born to farmer and coal miner Charlie Thomas (1906–90) and former school teacher Elizabeth 'Beth' (née Belford; 1906–82). Alan was the middle of three children, with an older brother, Robert Charles, and a younger sister, Colleen, both of whom would become school teachers like their mother and brother.
Jones was raised on a dairy farm near
Oakey
Oakey is a rural town and locality in the Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia. The Museum of Army Aviation is located at Oakey Airport.
Geography
The town is situated on the eastern side of the Darling Downs and the Toowoomba Region lo ...
in south-east Queensland, attending primary school at
Acland
Acland is an English surname. The Aclands of Devon (often Dyke Acland: see Acland baronets, Dyke Acland baronets) were an influential family, whose name was derived from Acland near Barnstaple. Notable people with the surname include:
* Alexande ...
State School,
before transferring to
Toowoomba Grammar School as a boarder.
After leaving school, Jones trained as a teacher at the
Kelvin Grove Teachers College (now part of the
Queensland University of Technology) in Brisbane. In 1961, he commenced his teaching career at a state primary school, Ironside State School in the inner suburbs of Brisbane. In 1963, he obtained a position at
Brisbane Grammar School
, motto_translation = Nothing Without Labour
, established = 1868
, type = Independent, day & boarding
, gender = Boys
, denomination = Non-denominational
, slogan =
, key_people =
, ci ...
, a private secondary school for boys, where he remained until the end of 1969. Throughout this period he also studied part-time at the
University of Queensland for a Bachelor of Arts degree, which he was awarded in 1967. Apart from his teaching duties at Brisbane Grammar, Jones additionally proved to be a highly successful sporting coach in athletics, tennis, and, later, rugby union.
In 1970, Jones was appointed Senior English Master at
The King's School, Parramatta in Sydney. Again Jones was also heavily involved in coaching a number of sports with considerable success, including progressing to coaching the First XV rugby union side, which he took to the championship in an unbeaten season in 1974. At the end of the first term in 1975, following a meeting with the school's principal, Jones chose to resign from the school.
After leaving King's School Jones briefly moved to
Canberra
Canberra ( )
is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
where he made a failed bid to win preselection to stand as a Country Party candidate for federal parliament. He then spent several years as the manager of a small airline in
Quirindi in country New South Wales, where he also coached the local rugby team.
During this same period, over 1976–77 while in his mid-30s, Jones spent time in England where he completed a one-year diploma in educational studies at
Worcester College, Oxford
Worcester College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. The college was founded in 1714 by the benefaction of Sir Thomas Cookes, 2nd Baronet (1648–1701) of Norgrove, Worcestershire, whose coat of arms w ...
. While at Oxford Jones won a university
Blue for tennis.
In 1978, Jones returned to Sydney to run for the State Parliament as a
Liberal Party candidate. After failing to win his seat in the election, Jones worked for some time as a speechwriter for the Liberal
NSW Opposition leader,
John Mason.
In 1979, Jones was recruited as a speechwriter for the Liberal
Prime Minister of Australia
The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the Australian Government, federal government of Australia and is also accountable to Parliament of A ...
, Malcolm Fraser, so returned to Canberra for the position, remaining there until early 1981. He then moved back to Sydney after being recruited to be executive director of the
New South Wales Employers' Federation, where he worked until he began his radio career in 1985.
In October 1985, Jones was awarded the
Rostrum Speakers' Award as the Communicator of the Year.
Political aspirations
In 1974, a parent at The King's School, Parramatta,
Doug Anthony, leader of the Country Party (now the
National Party of Australia) in the
Australian Parliament, offered Jones a position with the party in Canberra.
In 1975, Jones sought party preselection as the candidate for the Federal parliamentary seat of
Eden-Monaro
The Division of Eden-Monaro is an Australian electoral division in the state of New South Wales.
The previous member, Mike Kelly resigned due to ill health on 30 April 2020. The seat was filled at a by-election on 4 July 2020.
Geography
S ...
, but lost the bid.
In 1978, he was the candidate for the July 1978 by-election for the NSW state seat of
Earlwood for the
Liberal Party of Australia, formerly held by deposed
Liberal leader Sir
Eric Willis. He lost what had been considered a "safe seat". Jones again contested the seat for the Liberal Party at the
1978 New South Wales state election
A general election was held in the state of New South Wales, Australia, on Saturday 7 October 1978. The result was a landslide victory for the Labor Party under Neville Wran, popularly known as the "Wranslide."
It is notable for being so suc ...
held in October; the
Australian Labor Party candidate was returned with a greater majority.
In September 1979, Jones stood for Liberal preselection for the Federal
Division of North Sydney, placing third in the ballot. The winning candidate, Peter Solomon was later disendorsed, but Jones did not re-contest the ballot in March 1980, with
John Spender taking preselection and winning the seat.
In 1986, Jones nominated for the Liberal preselection for the Federal
Division of Wentworth in Sydney, but was a late withdrawal from the ballot; the preselection and seat was won by future Liberal leader
Dr John Hewson.
Coaching career
Rugby union
1982 was the beginning of Jones' association with semi-professional rugby, firstly appointed as (part-time) manager of the
NSW Rugby Union team. The next year he served as coach for the
Manly Rugby Union team, winning the
Shute Shield competition for the first time in 32 years.
In February 1984, Jones replaced
Bob Dwyer
Bob Dwyer AM (born 29 November 1940) is an Australian rugby union coach.
Early life
Educated at Sydney Boys High School, graduating in 1957, where he played 2nd XV for the school where he played alongside former Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs a ...
as coach of the
Australia national rugby union team (the Wallabies). Jones coached the Australian team for 4 years with 86 victories from 102 matches including 23 victories in 30 Tests. When he took the team on it included
Mark Ella, and it soon recruited
Peter FitzSimons and
James Black, both Manly players, and
Nick Farr-Jones. Also in 1984, Australia's national team, the
Wallabies, won the
Grand Slam victories over
England,
Ireland,
Wales and
Scotland, and a ''
Barbarians'' side made up of the best players of those countries and
France.
In 1985, Jones was awarded Coach of the Year from the Confederation of Australian Sport.
The 1986
Bledisloe Cup victory against
New Zealand in New Zealand was the first time that had been achieved in 39 years. In 1988, Jones was made a
Member of the Order of Australia for his service to Rugby Union football. In 1989, Jones was elected to the
Sport Australia Hall of Fame for his contribution to sport as the Australian rugby union coach.
In October 2007, Jones signalled his interest in coaching the Wallabies after
Queensland Rugby Chairman Peter Lewis suggested to the media he was the right person for the job. "If Peter Lewis and the Queensland Rugby Union – who have played a major role in Australian rugby for many years – are of the view I am the person who can make that contribution then I am obligated to put my hand up and say, 'Well if that is the case, I'm available'."
The Australian Rugby Union (ARU) on 14 December 2007 ruled Jones out of the coaching position, instead appointing New Zealand
Crusaders coach
Robbie Deans.
In 2017, Jones took up an invitation to coach the
Barbarians against the Classic Wallabies in Lismore and the
Wallabies in Sydney during the
2017 end-of-year rugby union internationals The 2017 end-of-year rugby union internationals, also known as the November internationals, or autumn internationals in the Northern Hemisphere, were international rugby union matches in 2017.
Rugby Championship winners New Zealand travelled to Fr ...
.
Rugby league
In 1990 Jones replaced
Warren Ryan as coach of the
Balmain Tigers rugby league football club, without accepting a fee. Balmain had been quite successful, including coming runners-up in 1988 and 1989 in the
New South Wales Rugby League premiership
The New South Wales Rugby League premiership was the first rugby league football club competition established in Australia and contributor to today's National Rugby League. Run by the New South Wales Rugby League (initially named the New Sout ...
, but with Jones in charge they struggled despite his claims upon appointment that "Balmain are sick and tired of coming second". It was while coaching Balmain that Jones was dubbed with his best known nickname, the 'Parrot', by comedian
Greig Pickhaver
Greig Pickhaver Order of Australia, AM (born 1948) is an actor, comedian and writer, who forms one half of the Australian satirical sports comedy duo ''Roy and HG'' as the excitable sports announcer H.G Nelson. The Roy and HG#Awards and nominati ...
in his role as sports commentator
H.G. Nelson, although Jones has never approved of the name.
Jones coached Balmain from 1991 to 1993 with these results: 1991 – 8 wins, 12th place; 1992 – 10 wins, 10th place; 1993 – 5 wins, 12th place. At the end of the 1993 season he reapplied for the coaching role, offering a new business plan to the board, but when it was rejected he resigned. He was soon after appointed as the Manager of Football Operations with the
South Sydney Rabbitohs rugby league club, also without a fee.
Media career
Radio
In 1985, Jones joined the Sydney
AM radio station
2UE
2UE is an all-music radio station in Sydney owned by Nine Entertainment Co and run under a lease agreement by Ace Radio. It currently broadcasts from its studios in Pyrmont, New South Wales.
History 1920s 2EU
Electrical Utilities applied to the ...
as the morning show host after long-time host
John Laws left for
2GB. Laws returned to 2UE in 1988 to again host the morning show, so from March of that year Jones was moved to the breakfast slot from 5.30 am to 9.00 am. On changing to the breakfast show, Jones first adopted the program's long-time opening and closing theme music, "
Gloria
Gloria may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Music Christian liturgy and music
* Gloria in excelsis Deo, the Greater Doxology, a hymn of praise
* Gloria Patri, the Lesser Doxology, a short hymn of praise
** Gloria (Handel)
** Gloria (Jenkins) ...
" by
Laura Branigan. By the mid-1990s Jones' audience share in the Sydney market was up to 22%, giving him the largest radio audience in Sydney, and, including his transmissions into regional and interstate markets, possibly the largest radio audience in Australia.
Jones' program has remained little changed over time, as a mixture of opinion pieces, interviews,
talkback, and commercial endorsements. His on-air popularity has made him a highly paid and powerful media personality. Jones uses his program to advocate largely conservative views, and he has been described as one of the most influential broadcasters in Australia. Throughout his time on radio Jones has frequently been referred to as a '
shock jock' due to the style of his presentation, although he personally rejects this term.
In January 1993, the
International Year of the World's Indigenous People, Jones described the choice of
Aboriginal Australian Mandawuy Yunupingu as
Australian of the Year
The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Governmentowned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the State and Territo ...
as "ridiculous" and suggested Yunupingu had been granted the award because of his "colour or ... history".
Later that year, prominent Aboriginal Australian
Charles Perkins and Jones clashed in a live TV and radio debate. Jones said Australians are "getting no say when
boriginal peoplesay this is
heir
Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officiall ...
nation; it's not, it's Australia's nation ...
verage Australiansare being asked to pay taxes to fund people who are seeking title to productive land to which they've made no contribution to its productivity". Perkins called Jones racist and a redneck and commented "You've sat on your white bum at 2UE in Sydney all your life so you wouldn't know what goes on out there".
On seven occasions between 1990 and 1997, Jones was awarded by
Commercial Radio Australia the title Australian Radio Talk Personality of the Year. In 2001 Jones was awarded the
Centenary Medal
The Centenary Medal is an award which was created by the Australian Government in 2001. It was established to commemorate the centenary of the Federation of Australia and to recognise "people who made a contribution to Australian society or go ...
and the
Australian Sports Medal, both being awarded for his contributions to sport and the broadcasting industry.
In 2002, Jones switched to 2GB as breakfast announcer,
reportedly also taking a financial interest in the station.
In 2008, Jones' audience numbers began to fall, with competition from
ABC Radio 702, although he retained his number one position.
In 2011, Jones had an audience share of 19.2 per cent, still the largest for a radio commentator in Sydney. In 2012 Jones retained the largest share, with 18.5% of the Sydney radio audience, although this represented an average number of listeners of just 151,000 out of a listening audience of 469,000 and a possible Sydney audience of 4.1 million, and was down from 185,000 in 2006 despite an increase in population.
In February 2013, his audience share dropped to 15.4%.
In November 2014, Jones celebrated having the highest share in Sydney breakfast radio for 100 consecutive radio rating surveys.
In May 2020 Jones announced he would retire from his role at 2GB at the end of that month.
He cited ill health, however some news outlets have stated that it was a forced resignation after making controversial comments about
New Zealand Prime Minister
Jacinda Ardern last year cost his breakfast program large sums of money from advertisers. Some of that revenue has never returned.
Print
Jones' first regular position in the media was writing a column called "The Way I See It" for the Quirindi ''Advocate'' newspaper from November 1977 until February 1978.
From 1988 until 1990 Jones wrote a regular column for the Sydney Sunday tabloid ''
The Sun-Herald'', but did not appear following a petition by staff calling for his removal as a contributor. This followed Jones' publication of a column predicting an oil crisis, in which a large amount of material had been taken from
Frederick Forsyth's novel ''
The Negotiator'' without attribution or indication that their source was a work of fiction. Jones was later hired by the Sun-Herald's rival paper, ''
The Sunday Telegraph'', where he wrote a one-page column titled "To the Point" until 1995.
Since the 1980s, Jones has frequently been the subject of profile pieces in newspapers and magazines throughout the country, which have ranged in style from complimentary to investigatory and critical.
Television
At the end of January 1994, Jones debuted in his own
Network Ten
Network 10 (commonly known as Ten Network, Channel 10 or simply 10) is an Australian commercial television network owned by Ten Network Holdings, a division of the Paramount Networks UK & Australia subsidiary of Paramount Global. One of five ...
program, ''
Alan Jones Live'', intended to be similar in purpose and content to the American program ''
Larry King Live''. Proving to be a ratings failure, it was cancelled in April 1994 after just 13 weeks on air.
In March 1995, he began a segment making editorial comment on the
Nine Network
The Nine Network (stylised 9Network, commonly known as Channel Nine or simply Nine) is an Australian commercial free-to-air television network. It is owned by parent company Nine Entertainment and is one of five main free-to-air television netw ...
's ''
Today'' breakfast show.
Jones continued to present this 7.15 am editorial on ''Today'' until it was eventually cancelled in June 2007.
From 2013, Jones began co-hosting a political discussion program on
Sky News Australia with
Graham Richardson named ''
Richo + Jones''. The episode on 22 April 2014 was the twentieth most watched show on subscription television reaching 39,000 viewers and was the channel's second highest broadcast that day. An episode on 17 June, featuring a live interview with
Clive Palmer, was the seventeenth most watched show on subscription television and the most watched broadcast on Sky News with 43,000 viewers. The program has since been retitled ''Jones & Co'' and co-hosted by
Peta Credlin. In November 2021, Jones' contract with Sky News was not renewed.
This means that for the first time in Jones' media career he has not had a media platform.
Stage
Jones had his stage musical debut in 2012, playing the role of
Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...
in the
Lyric Theatre's production of ''
Annie'' the Musical in Sydney.
Charity work
Jones is noted for his support of
charity organisations and charitable causes. As well as financial contributions, Jones has regularly made personal appearances and given talks to support organisations which he backs. Jones is also well known for providing support to individuals, such as listeners who contact him through his radio show, and for giving personal, professional, and financial assistance to friends and acquaintances, especially young elite sportspeople.
In 2004, Jones received a Queen's Birthday Honour of an
Officer of the Order of Australia
The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gove ...
(AO) partly for his service to the media and sports' administration, but also helping many charities. These organisations included
Youth Off The Streets
Youth Off The Streets is an Australian not-for-profit youth organisation with locations in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria. The organisation works with young people, their families and communities to create safety, offer support and provid ...
, the Children's Hospital,
Starlight Children's Foundation, the Sir
Edward Dunlop Medical Research Foundation and the Heart Research Institute.
Views and comments
Jones has been a participant in national debates for some decades. A former candidate for Liberal Party of Australia preselection, and former adviser to Liberal Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser, Jones is a noted supporter of conservative politics in Australia. He has nonetheless at different times criticised or joined forces with Australian politicians from across the party-political spectrum to lobby for political causes.
Jones says he does not believe in significant
human induced climate change and has been critical of Government policy to use the Australian taxation system as a means of reducing carbon emissions. His radio show often promotes
climate change denial
Climate change denial, or global warming denial, is denial, dismissal, or doubt that contradicts the scientific consensus on climate change, including the extent to which it is caused by humans, its effects on nature and human society, or th ...
, including claims that increases in carbon dioxide are natural and that there is significant scientific disagreement on the IPCC's findings. Jones is a supporter of the
Galileo Movement
Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He was ...
, a climate change denial group which argues that climate change is a hoax perpetrated to form a world government. After the 2010 Australian Federal Election, Jones was critical of Prime Minister
Julia Gillard
Julia Eileen Gillard (born 29 September 1961) is an Australian former politician who served as the 27th prime minister of Australia from 2010 to 2013, holding office as leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). She is the first and only ...
's decision to introduce a price on carbon claiming that this was breaking a pre-election promise.
In 2012, the Australian Communications and Media Authority censured Jones for broadcasting falsities about anthropological carbon dioxide, ordering him to undergo factual accuracy training and employ a fact-checker.
Jones, a Sydney-based broadcaster, has criticised Sydney Lord Mayor
Clover Moore
Clover Margaret Moore (née Collins, born 22 October 1945) is an Australian politician. She has been the List of Mayors and Lord Mayors of Sydney, Lord Mayor of the City of Sydney since 2004 and is currently the longest serving Lord Mayor of Syd ...
's efforts to close lane ways and parking areas in the city of Sydney to cars. Jones says that this unduly inconveniences long-distance commuters and adversely affects city based businesses. On 29 June 2011, Jones said of the Lord Mayor of Sydney ... "put her in the same chaff bag as Julia Gillard and throw them both out to sea" and about Greens leader Bob Brown ... "The woman's
illardoff her tree and quite frankly they should shove her and
Bob Brown in a chaff bag and take them as far out to sea as they can and tell them to swim home." In February 2011, Jones asked Gillard on-air how she felt about being called "Ju-liar" and that "...
eople..are saying that we've got a liar running the country" following the reversal of her pre-election pledge not to introduce a new carbon tax.
He also criticised her for being 10 minutes late for his program. These comments attracted condemnation from critics, including ABC Television's
Jonathan Holmes of ''Media Watch''.
Jones has called for consideration of expanding Australia's irrigation and dam systems. He opposed the
Iemma Labor Government's plan to privatise the
Snowy Mountains Scheme in 2006, and in 2011, he broadcast from Mildura from where he criticised the
Gillard Government's
Murray-Darling Basin Plan, saying "we're seeing policy made without any consultation with people who are the stakeholders – the farmers".
Jones has been a campaigner against
coal seam gas mining in prime agricultural regions in Australia. Jones said on ABC Television that "...no-one can be serious when they talk about food security and the great opportunities for us in Asia when our prime agricultural land is being surrendered to mining." In October 2011, Jones addressed the
National Press Club on the issue.
In August 2019, Jones was criticized for his remark that Prime Minister
Scott Morrison should "shove a sock down
hethroat" of his
New Zealand counterpart Jacinda Ardern following her criticism at the 2019
Pacific Islands Forum
The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) is an inter-governmental organization that aims to enhance cooperation between countries and territories of Oceania, including formation of a trade bloc and regional peacekeeping operations. It was founded in 197 ...
conference in
Tuvalu of the Australian Government's inaction on climate change. Jones later derided Ardern as a lightweight Prime Minister and hypocrite. Jones' remarks were widely criticized by several quarters including former Australian Prime Minister
Malcolm Turnbull and his successor Morrison. At least five companies canceled advertising with Jones' 2GB radio show following complaints from customers. Jones later sent an apology letter to Prime Minister Ardern, apologizing for "not choosing his words carefully."
Jones is a critic of
foreign ownership
Foreign ownership refers to the ownership of a portion of a country's assets (businesses, natural resources, property, bonds, equity etc.) by individuals who are not citizens of that country or by companies whose headquarters are not in that countr ...
in Australia, especially by China.
"Died of shame" controversy
In a September 2012 speech at a
Sydney University Liberal Club
The Sydney University Liberal Club (SULC) is a student association operating under the auspices of the University of Sydney Union (USU). The club hosts policy debates, annual dinners, student election campaigns, and guest speaker events with mem ...
social function, Jones stated that Prime Minister Julia Gillard was a liar, and as a consequence her father had recently "died of shame".
The remarks relating to Gillard's father were condemned from all sides of the political spectrum by politicians, media and social media outlets. Jones held a press conference and said he "got it wrong", and wanted to apologise to the Prime Minister both publicly and in person.
Julia Gillard refused to receive a call from Jones for an apology.
Both the Prime Minister's Labor colleagues and Liberal figures including Opposition Leader Tony Abbott criticised Jones for his remarks.
Labor Party figures sought to associate Tony Abbott and the Liberal Party with Jones' remarks, leading to counteraccusations that they were seeking to "gain political capital" from the affair. Many sponsors pulled advertising from Jones's show, followed by lobbying campaigned through social media to have the remaining advertisers boycott the program.
On 7 October Jones' employer, the Macquarie Radio Network, announced that it would suspend all advertising on the Alan Jones show on 2GB to protect its advertisers from pressure being applied through social
media activism. Jones called the campaign "cyber bullying".
More than 80 sponsors boycotted Jones' program, including Telstra, Woolworths, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz and Coles. Macquarie Radio estimated the boycott cost the station between $1 million and $1.5 million, and some advertisers said they will never return.
COVID-19
During March 2020, while Australia reacted to exponentially-increasing infections from the
COVID-19 pandemic, Jones played down the risk, saying "We now seem to be facing the health version of global warming. Exaggeration in almost everything. Certainly in description, and certainly in behaviour". In statements playing down the risk of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Jones concentrated on static numbers of infected and dead, omitting mention of the universally-agreed exponential increase in those numbers that is behind medical professionals' concerns about the disease. At the time, Jones was in isolation at his country estate to avoid risk of infection. Jones's radio audience consists largely of older people who are in the most severe risk group for the disease. Commentator
Mike Carlton labelled Jones's COVID-19 comments as "dangerous" and "reckless".
Jones backed down soon afterwards, agreeing that for "...those at greater risk, older Australians and those who are more vulnerable, particularly those with pre-existing conditions… it is a far more serious virus", but still failed to mention the exponential increase in infection and death. Jones said that "China brought this disaster on..." and raised rumours without evidence of China buying up devalued Australian assets.
Court actions and tribunal findings
Throughout his time as a radio personality Jones has been the subject of a number of court and tribunal investigations.
Defamation cases
Jones has been involved in numerous defamation cases arising from his comments on radio. These have included:
* 1990: Jones in his role with 2UE was ordered by a court to pay over $55,000 damages for
defaming David Parker, a former councillor of the
NRMA, the NSW Motorists' organisation; 2UE was also ordered to pay $80,000. Parker was defamed during the NRMA election campaign in October 1986.
* 1994: Jones and 2UE were sued in November by Don Mackay, president of the
NRMA, alleging that Jones made a false imputations against him.
* 1998: Jones claimed on-air that
rugby league referee
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...
Bill Harrigan
Bill Harrigan (born 24 May 1960 in Sydney, New South Wales) is an Australian former rugby league football referee, and former head of refereeing for the National Rugby League. Unusually for a sports official, in his long career he was accorded the ...
was biased. Harrigan sued Jones for defamation and, in 2001, was awarded damages of $90,000.
*2002: Jones and 2UE settled out of court a defamation claim by Detective Chief Inspector Deborah Wallace, a NSW police officer. Jones defamed Wallace during five broadcasts in 2001.
* 2008: Jones was found to have defamed Australian Olympic Committee chief
John Coates with comments regarding Coates' handling of an incident involving rower
Sally Robbins' performance at the 2004 Olympics.
* 2011: Jones was sued in December by health bureaucrat Terry Clout over comments made by Jones in March 2009.
* 2015: Jones was sued in January by former Queensland Premier
Campbell Newman
Campbell Kevin Thomas Newman (born 12 August 1963) is a former Australian politician who served as the 38th Premier of Queensland from 26 March 2012 to 14 February 2015. He served as the member for Ashgrove in the Legislative Assembly of Quee ...
and deputy
Jeff Seeney over comments made by Jones alleging Mr Newman of lying to him and the public about expanding the Acland coal mine in southern Queensland.
* 2018: Jones was successfully sued by members of the Wagner family after he accused them of being responsible for the deaths of 12 people during the
2010–11 Queensland floods
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
following the collapse of a wall in a quarry they owned. Jones and the radio stations that broadcast him were ordered to pay $3.7 million in damages to the Wagner family.
* 2018: Jones was sued by Jeff Parnell, a NSW government acoustic scientist, who was accused by Jones of altering an independent noise-monitoring report for a wind farm.
Others involved in defamation proceedings with Jones have included Aboriginal woman Mary-Lou Buck, Lola Scott (previously the highest-ranking female NSW police officer), Rockdale mayor
Shaoquett Moselmane
Shaoquett Chaher Moselmane (born 1965) is a former Australian politician who was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 2009 to 2023 as a member of the parliamentary Australian Labor Party. He was assistant president of the L ...
, Aboriginal leader
Pat Dodson, the rugby league judiciary, liquidator Ian Ferrier and his twelve partners, Racing NSW's chief steward Ray Murrihy, rugby union chief John O'Neill (about $50,000), former Herald letters editor Geraldine Walsh (about $100,000) and QC Bob Stitt (about $50,000).
London incident
On 6 December 1988, Jones was arrested in an underground public toilet on Broadwick Street in the
Soho area of London. He was taken to the
Mayfair
Mayfair is an affluent area in the West End of London towards the eastern edge of Hyde Park, in the City of Westminster, between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Piccadilly and Park Lane. It is one of the most expensive districts in the world. ...
police station and charged with 'outraging public decency' and 'committing an indecent act'. Jones' friends rushed to his support, and when the case was heard in the
Marlborough Street Magistrates' Court the next day
The Crown withdrew the more serious charge, with Jones pleading not guilty to the lesser charge of committing an indecent act. The authorities ultimately did not present any evidence to support either charge, and the second charge was also later dropped, with Jones' lawyers winning
£70 in costs. Jones read a prepared statement when he first appeared back on his radio show on 16 January 1989, saying "I am and always was innocent of the charges levelled against me".
Jones has avoided talking about the incident ever since, although it is frequently raised by his opponents or those looking to highlight alleged hypocrisy in his comments.
Early contempt of court charges
In 1992, Jones was rebuked by the
New South Wales Independent Commission Against Corruption for attacking former State Minister Dr
Terry Metherell during evidence in an inquiry relating to Metherell's appointment to a government job.
Also in 1992, Jones and radio station 2UE were found guilty of
contempt of court
Contempt of court, often referred to simply as "contempt", is the crime of being disobedient to or disrespectful toward a court of law and its officers in the form of behavior that opposes or defies the authority, justice, and dignity of the cour ...
after the trial of former police officer John Killen was aborted following Jones' interview with a former Drug Enforcement Squad officer.
Killen was facing a charge of conspiracy to pervert the course of justice when Jones conducted the interview and alleged that police had suffered from false accusations. The station was fined $77,000 and Jones $2,000.
Cash for comment affair
In July 1994, ''
Media Watch'' highlighted Jones' on-air promotion of
Optus.
Between 1999 and 2000, the ''
Cash for comment
The cash for comment affair was an Australian scandal that broke in 1999 concerning paid advertising in radio that was presented to the audience in such a way as to sound like editorial commentary. John Laws, a shock jock radio presenter for Sydne ...
'' investigation was conducted. Jones had been accused of contracting to have personal commercial support in exchange for favourable "unscripted" comments, principally for
Telstra and
Qantas, during his radio show. The independent
Australian Broadcasting Corporation TV show, ''Media Watch'', was heavily involved in exposing these practices. The
Australian Broadcasting Authority finally decided that disclosure had to be made, hence the "Commercial Agreement Register" at the Jones portion of his station's website. (Jones was investigated along with John Laws from 2UE).
In April 2004, another scandal broke after it was revealed the Chairman of the
Australian Broadcasting Authority,
David Flint, who had headed the cash for comment inquiries, had sent a stream of admiring letters to Jones. This called into question the impartiality of Flint, and the then Federal
Minister for Communications
A Communications Ministry or Department of Communications is a ministry or other government agency charged with communication. Communications responsibilities includes regulating telecommunications, postal services, broadcasting and print media. T ...
,
Daryl Williams, was embroiled in media speculation as to the future of Flint. With an inquiry imminent, Flint resigned. In an appearance on the
ABC's ''
Enough Rope'', John Laws accused Jones of placing pressure on Prime Minister
John Howard to keep Flint as head of the ABA, made comments that many viewers took to imply a sexual relationship between Jones and Flint and broadly hinted that Jones was homosexual like Flint, who is openly gay.
Cronulla riots
In December 2005, in the lead-up to the
Cronulla riots
The 2005 Cronulla riots were a race riot in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It began in the beachside suburb of Cronulla on 11 December, and spread over to additional suburbs the next few nights.
The riots were triggered by an event the pr ...
, Jones used his breakfast radio program to read out and discuss a widely circulated
text message that called on people to "Come to Cronulla this weekend to take revenge... get down to North Cronulla to support the Leb and wog bashing day". Media commentator
David Marr accused Jones of inciting racial tensions and implicitly encouraging violence and vigilantism by the manner of his responses to callers even while he was verbally disapproving of them taking the law into their own hands.
On 10 April 2007, the Australian broadcasting watchdog the
Australian Communications and Media Authority
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) is an Australian government statutory authority within the Communications portfolio. ACMA was formed on 1 July 2005 with the merger of the Australian Broadcasting Authority and the Austr ...
(ACMA) found that the broadcaster 2GB and Jones had broadcast material (specifically comments made by Jones between 5–9 December 2005) that was ''likely to encourage violence or brutality and to vilify people of Lebanese and Middle-Eastern backgrounds on the basis of ethnicity''. During his on-air rebuttal of the ACMA findings on 10 April 2007, Jones stated that by referring to his show as "Breakfast with Alan Jones", the Australian Communications and Media Authority had little credibility as his show was actually known as "The Alan Jones Show". However, the 2GB website prior to this broadcast clearly showed the Jones program as being "Breakfast with Alan Jones", this was changed after the broadcast of Jones' rebuttal to be "Alan Jones Show".
David Flint again defended Jones by appearing on Jones' morning show "to support his friend and to condemn the process that found him guilty. He told 2GB listeners that the vigilante movement existed at Cronulla long before Jones began broadcasting and that the ACMA findings amounted to a classic case of shoot the messenger. He said the complaints process was flawed because, unlike the
Press Council, Jones could not face or question his accusers".
The
NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal
The Administrative Decisions Tribunal of New South Wales (ADT) was established in 1997 and was replaced in 2014 by the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT). It did not have general jurisdiction, but had various jurisdictions conferred b ...
upheld a complaint of racial vilification against Jones and 2GB on 21 December 2009.
The tribunal said:
His comments about "Lebanese males in their vast numbers" hating Australia and raping, pillaging and plundering the country, about a "national security" crisis, and about the undermining of Australian culture by "vermin" were reckless hyperbole calculated to agitate and excite his audience without providing them with much in the way of solid information.
Jones appealed the decision, but in October 2012 the NSW Administrative Decisions Tribunal dismissed his appeal, and upheld his conviction for inciting hatred and for vilification of Muslims.
Jones apologised on-air for his remarks on 6 December 2012. However, on 12 December the Tribunal ruled that this apology was "an inadequate statement of wrongdoing" and ordered him to make another on-air apology during the week of 17 December, this time prescribing the words he was to read:
Contempt of court charges
In 2007, Jones was found guilty of breaching the ''Children's (Criminal Proceedings) Act'' 1987 (NSW), by broadcasting the suppressed name of a juvenile witness in a murder trial.
The deputy chief magistrate, Helen Syme, criticised Jones for not issuing an on-air apology to the boy he had named, and said that Jones' offence was "serious". The magistrate placed Jones on a nine-month good-behaviour bond and fined him $1000.
In February 2008, Jones lost an appeal against his conviction, but Jones's criminal conviction was quashed the following month. The judge presiding over the appeal, Judge Michael Finnane, said: "While it was no excuse from liability in law that Mr Jones relied on ''The Daily Telegraph'', the fact that he did, to some extent ameliorates the seriousness of the offence."
The judge confirmed Jones' guilt but dismissed the charge and annulled the conviction, saying it was "an honest mistake".
Kovco comments
In October 2007,
NSW State Coroner
The Coroner's Court of New South Wales is the court in the Australian state of New South Wales where legal proceedings, in the form of an inquest or inquiry, are held and presided over by the State Coroner of New South Wales (or NSW State Co ...
Mary Jerram
Mary Stella Jerram (born 1945) is a former State Coroner of New South Wales. Jerram was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in the Honorary Division in the 2018 Australia Day Honours: "For significant service to the law in New South Wal ...
considered referring Jones and
''The Daily Telegraph'' to the
NSW Supreme Court for comments about the inquest into the death of Private
Jake Kovco. Jones said that assisting counsel John Agius had tried to persuade Kovco's mother into refusing a jury inquest, comments which Jerram said could prejudice the inquest. No charges were brought against Jones.
Military trial commentary
An episode of ABC's ''Media Watch'' was devoted to Jones' pre-trial comments on the charging of three Australian soldiers serving in Afghanistan.
The commentators believed that if the case had already been convened, Jones' comments would have been in contempt of court. The charges against the soldiers were eventually dismissed at a pre-trial hearing.
Breach of radio standards
On 25 November 2011 the Australian Communications and Media Authority found that Jones had breached the commercial radio code of practice in his reporting of environmental issues. His reporting was found to lack accuracy and failed to allow other viewpoints to be heard. A decision on the penalty for this breach was reserved.
Climate change commentary
On 15 June 2012, the Australian Communications and Media Authority found that Jones had breached the commercial radio code of practice in his reporting of environmental issues. This related to his claim that "human beings produce 0.001 per cent of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere". ACMA chairman Chris Chapman said that the watchdog was not penalising the licensee of 2GB, but was working with it to improve procedures. On 18 October 2012 ACMA ordered Jones to undergo factual accuracy training and employ a fact-checker.
Jones responded to these claims on 19 October 2012 claiming that he had mistakenly claimed the 0.001 to be of all "carbon dioxide in the atmosphere" where it should have been "all gases in the atmosphere" and that he had repeated the correct and undisputed figure of 3 percent numerous times later that week and offered a correction.
COVID-19 lockdown comments
Jones is a critic of Victorian Labor Premier
Daniel Andrews
Daniel Michael Andrews (born 6 July 1972) is an Australian politician serving as the 48th and current premier of Victoria since December 2014. He has been the leader of the Victorian branch of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) since December ...
and his government.
During August 2020, Jones broadcast an editorial on his Sky News show in which he opposed
restrictions over COVID-19 within Victoria, claiming the science did not support stronger regulations.
An investigation by the Australian Communications and Media Authority found Jones correctly quoted the science journal, but "misrepresented the research on the effectiveness of lockdowns" and wearing masks to restrict the spread of the virus.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority made Jones issue a correction in January 2021.
Personal life
Jones has never been married and has no children.
He resides in
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
.
In 2003, Jones purchased a 27-hectare property in
Fitzroy Falls for $2.3 million. It was sold by Jones in 2022.
In 2017, Jones purchased an apartment in
Circular Quay for $10.5 million.
In 2021, he bought a riverfront house in
Southport, Queensland
Southport is a coastal Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the City of Gold Coast in Queensland, Australia. In the , Southport had a population of 31,908 people. It contains the Gold Coast central business district.
Geography
Sout ...
for $12.25 million.
Health issues
In July 2008, Jones underwent surgery for prostate cancer. In December 2008, he had surgery to remove a
benign brain tumour. Jones had back surgery and neck operations in November 2016 which caused him to be off-air for four months.
In November 2018, Jones was hospitalised for severe back pain and again was off-air.
He underwent back surgery again in November 2022.
Jonestown
''
Jonestown: The Power and the Myth of Alan Jones'' (
Allen & Unwin
George Allen & Unwin was a British publishing company formed in 1911 when Sir Stanley Unwin purchased a controlling interest in George Allen & Co. It went on to become one of the leading publishers of the twentieth century and to establish an ...
) is an
unauthorised biography of Jones by Australian journalist
Chris Masters. Masters began Jonestown in 2002 after profiling Jones for an episode of the current affairs program ''
Four Corners
The Four Corners is a region of the Southwestern United States consisting of the southwestern corner of Colorado, southeastern corner of Utah, northeastern corner of Arizona, and northwestern corner of New Mexico. The Four Corners area ...
''. The book won the Australian Book Industry Awards, Australian Biography of the Year 2007. It reported on Jones' term as Senior English Master at The King's School, Parramatta
and an incident in London in 1988 for which charges were ultimately dropped.
References
External links
*
Radio station 2GB– see link and then biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jones, Alan
1941 births
Living people
Alumni of Worcester College, Oxford
Australia national rugby union team coaches
Australian agnostics
Australian male stage actors
Australian monarchists
Australian rugby league administrators
Australian rugby league coaches
Australian rugby union coaches
Australian schoolteachers
Australian talk radio hosts
Balmain Tigers coaches
Conservative talk radio people
Former 2GB presenters
Officers of the Order of Australia
People educated at Toowoomba Grammar School
People from Queensland
People involved in plagiarism controversies
Radio in Sydney
Recipients of the Australian Sports Medal
Recipients of the Centenary Medal
Sky News Australia reporters and presenters
Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductees
University of Queensland alumni