Journalists may be stripped of award after Laming defamation suit

A prestigious journalism award given to two television news reporters will be reviewed after their employer apologised to former federal Liberal MP Andrew Laming to put an end to a defamation lawsuit.

Laminginitiated proceedings against Nine – publisher of this masthead – in August 2021 over a segment on Nine News Queensland’s 6pm bulletin on March 27.

Nine News spoke to a woman claiming Laming,who was in political office at the time,took an “inappropriate” photo of her bottom on his mobile phone while she bent down to fill a fridge with drinks at a Brisbane business.

Laming claimed the story portrayed him as a “lecherous” person and a “pervert” who took a photo of a woman’s buttocks for sexual gratification.

This week,lawyers representing Nine told the Federal Court the parties had“settled on confidential terms”,and Nine issued a public apology to Laming.

“Nine News has now seen material which indicates that the photograph Dr Laming took was not lewd in nature,” the apology read.

“Nine News unreservedly withdraws those allegations about Dr Laming and apologises to him and his family for the hurt and harm caused by the report.”

Journalists Peter Fegan,who remains with Nine News Queensland,and Rebeka Powell,who has moved to 10 News First Melbourne,won the 2022 Walkley Award for Television/Video News Reporting for the Laming story.

In response to this week’s defamation suit settlement and apology,The Walkley Foundation announced it would be reviewing the award.

“The Walkley Foundation notes that in Federal Court of Australia defamation proceedings commenced by Dr Andrew Laming against the Nine Network,Nine issued[an] apology to Dr Laming,” the statement said.

“The Walkley Foundation directors have resolved to commission an independent review of the awarding of the 2022 Walkley Award for Television/Video News Reporting to Peter Fegan and Rebeka Powell.

“The Walkley Foundation has given awards to recognise Australian journalism since 1956,and regularly reviews its processes.

“The review of this particular award will be conducted by individuals with no connection to the work under examination.”

Queensland Police investigated the allegations made against Laming in the TV segment and determined that hehad not committed a criminal offence.

Laming maintained the photo was “completely dignified” and showed the woman in a kneeling position.

He described it as a “humorous situation” in which the woman was trying to get “every possible can” of drink into a fridge,“like a game of Tetris”.

Laming alleged the Nine News report defamed him in several ways.

He argued it suggested that he took a lewd photo of the woman without her knowledge or consent,that he was “lecherous” in taking an indecent photo,and that he was “a pervert” who took a photo “for his own sexual gratification”.