The radio host Alan Jones has announced his retirement, saying he has to “listen to the experts” and wind back his work commitments.
Jones is the top-rating talkback breakfast presenter in Sydney and made the announcement he would quit at the end of the month on his regular 2GB show on Tuesday morning.
“We are living in the world of coronavirus,” Jones told listeners. “The most repeated statement we hear is ‘we must listen to the experts’. Well, the experts are telling me in no uncertain terms, and not for the first time I might add, ‘continuing with the present workload is seriously detrimental to your health’.
“I have listened to the experts and I am taking this opportunity to indicate to my radio family that I will be retiring from radio at the end of this month.”
Our national conversation will be different and poorer without @AlanJones on radio every morning.
— Tony Abbott (@HonTonyAbbott) May 11, 2020
The departure of the 79-year-old broadcaster comes earlier than his planned retirement from 2GB at the end of his contract in June 2021 and would be a relief for Nine Radio, which was paying him $4m a year despite an advertiser boycott which stripped 50% of the show’s revenue last year.
Jones is also costing his employer millions in legal fees, including $3.4m in damages for being “wilfully blind to the truth” when he made “vicious and spiteful” comments about the Toowoomba-based Wagner family in 2018.
The broadcaster has dominated breakfast radio in Sydney for 35 years, recording an unequalled 226 survey wins, but his conduct on air has led to the radio station losing advertisers and haemorrhaging revenue.
His program had been under review by what was then Macquarie Media after hundreds of advertisers pulled out in the wake of his comments about the New Zealand prime minister, Jacinda Ardern. After Jones said Scott Morrison should shove a sock down Ardern’s throat, 2GB and 4BC suffered an exodus of advertisers across the schedule.
His retirement comes nine months after management said he was on his final warning for offensive comments and took the unprecedented step of scolding him publicly.
Nine Entertainment’s chief executive, Hugh Marks, made it clear Jones was not indispensable when he said Jones’ breakfast show was “less than 10% of the revenue of the radio business and a fraction of the revenue of Nine”.
“Alan’s a good broadcaster, Macquarie have made plenty of comments about their relationship and recent events so I won’t go into that, but yes, of course, that business can survive the loss of any of its talent,” Marks said after Nine acquired the remaining shares in Macquarie Media.
Jones has survived numerous controversies, including cash-for-comment on 2UE in 1999 and the attacks on Julia Gillard in 2012. The broadcaster said the then prime minister should be “shoved in a chaff bag” and later that her father had died “of shame” because she “told lies every time she stood for parliament”.
Reaction to his announcement was immediate, with praise from some and criticism from others.
Huge congratulations to @AlanJones on a sensational breakfast radio career. Following advice from doctors, AJ has announced he’s giving the early hours away. His television and newspaper work will continue. There will only ever be one Alan Jones.
— Ben Fordham (@BenFordham) May 11, 2020
The managing director of Nine Radio, Tom Malone, told staff that loyalty was at the centre of “everything Alan does”.
“He has been loyal to this company and to his listeners – their greatest advocate – and they have repaid him in kind with their ears and their hearts,” Malone said.
“His success in radio stemmed from an already rich and experienced life in teaching, sport and politics. He can talk with equal ease to prime ministers and the everyday person. Of course, we know and love him for his unique turn of phrase and warm sense of humour. I’ll always remember one of my first days in the 2UE newsroom as a cadet in the late 90s, when Alan advised me: ‘If you’re going to be a dog, be an Alsatian’.”
To be fair it's pretty impressive that Alan Jones still hasn't died of shame
— Tom Ballard (@TomCBallard) May 11, 2020
Nine clearly had a succession plan, immediately announcing that the drive host, Ben Fordham, a Channel Nine veteran, would replace Jones.
“I feel a sense of both responsibility and opportunity,” Fordham said. “There’s a huge responsibility in taking over from Alan and the opportunity to bring my own flavour to breakfast.”
#Breaking
— Peter FitzSimons (@Peter_Fitz) May 11, 2020
Alan Jones announces his retirement from radio at the end of the month.
Good.
Scott Morrison called in to Jones’ show as politicians across the spectrum lined up to congratulate him.
“You’ve always spoken your mind to everyone, including me, and we’ve had one or two disagreements, but you’ve always done the right thing for your country,” the prime minister said.
The New South Wales premier, Gladys Berejiklian, wished him well and the former prime minister Tony Abbott called in and told Jones “it was a significant day”.
Excited to announce that I'm replacing @alanjones
— Dan Ilic 🧴👐 (@danilic) May 11, 2020
next month to slowly convince his listeners that climate change is real and action needs to be taken immediately. I salute @2GB873 for using the power that they have to make small but positive change in the world. #alanjones pic.twitter.com/8bgZmGYThr
