David Marr (journalist)
David Marr (b.
1947 in
Sydney) is an
Australian
journalist and
author. He was educated at the
Sydney Church of England Grammar School and the
University of Sydney, where he graduated in
Arts and
Law.
Marr began working as an articled clerk with the legal firm Allen, Allen and Hemsley but then turned to journalism. He wrote for
The Bulletin and
The National Times and became editor of the latter in
1981-
1982; during this period he oversaw the publication of the sensational articles by
David Hickie that detailed long-suppressed allegations of corruption against former NSW Premier
Robert Askin -- the first article, headlined "ASKIN: FRIEND OF ORGANISED CRIME" was famously published on the day of Askin's funeral in 1981.
Marr was editor of the ABC program
Four Corners (
1985,
1990-
1991), a role in which he won a
Walkley Award and the presenter of Radio National's
Arts Today programme (
1994-
1996). From
2002 to
2004, he hosted the
Australian Broadcasting Corporation programme
Media Watch and
as of 2005 works for
The Sydney Morning Herald.
During Marr's term as presenter, Media Watch played a key role in exposing the ongoing
cash for comment affair, which Media Watch had first raised in 1999, concerning radio commentators
Alan Jones and
John Laws. In
2004, the program's exposé of
Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA) head
David Flint - who had written fan letters to Jones, at a time when Jones was being investigated by the ABA - played a significant role in forcing Flint's resignation.
Marr has been accused of
left wing bias, particularly by commentators such as
Andrew Bolt,
Janet Albrechtsen and
Paddy McGuinness who in turn have been labelled as having a
right wing bias. Many of these comentators come from the
Murdoch press, which has been frequently been accused by the Media Watch program of using questionable journalistic practices.
Marr has published several books including a critically acclaimed biography of Australian writer
Patrick White, which won
The Age's Book of the Year award and the New South Wales Premier's Award for Non-Fiction. More recently, Marr wrote, along with
Marian Wilkinson,
Dark Victory, an account of the
2001 Australian election campaign in the wake of the
MV Tampa incident.
|
Patrick White book cover by David Marr |
Barwick 1980The Ivanov Trail 1984Patrick White: A Life 1991Patrick White: Letters 1994The High Price of Heaven 2000Dark Victory (with
Marian Wilkinson)
2004 ISBN 0143002589
*
Sydney: the beauty and the vice - an Article by David Marr
