Fed: Bitchiness - a dish best served cold

AAP General News (Australia)
04-30-2004
Fed: Bitchiness - a dish best served cold

By Sharon Labi

SYDNEY, April 30 AAP - When two egos the size of John Laws and Alan Jones share a dinner
table, the gossip between courses is bound to turn bitchy.

The small talk between the one-time work colleagues at a 2000 dinner party hosted by
Laws' agent John Fordham turned into a very public spat this week as the two traded insults,
allegations and denials.

Mr Laws launched the pre-emptive strike, with his claim that Mr Jones said at the party
he "instructed" prime minister John Howard to reappoint David Flint as head of the broadcasting
regulator or lose his support in the upcoming election.

Professor Flint had been in the news all week after it was revealed he wrote a letter
as head of the Australian Broadcasting Authority (ABA) supporting Jones ahead of the now
infamous cash-for-comments inquiry.

This gave Mr Laws his launching pad for a tirade against his rival.

And he makes no secret that it was, in part, fuelled by sour grapes and, in part, by
the desire for payback. He's a bitter man.

Mr Laws called Mr Jones "a vicious old tart" while Mr Jones accused Mr Laws of making
the allegation to bolster his flagging ratings.

"I think the outburst today most probably relates to the fact that perhaps 2UE are
not doing well in the ratings and perhaps Mr Laws is struggling in that time slot and
is no longer the received broadcaster that he once was and this is giving him obviously
a lot of publicity," Mr Jones said.

His insults were not as colourful as those of Mr Laws but he still dished them out.

Mr Laws denies Mr Jones has the upper hand career-wise, although Mr Jones could take
home a fatter pay packet with the clever deal he stitched up with Macquarie Radio when
he defected from 2UE to 2GB two years ago.

Mr Laws: "There seems to be a certain fear of Alan. Maybe because you know, he's such
a vicious old tart.

"I don't know but there seems to be an element of fear that exists. Why, I don't know
because he does have a big rating but he only talks to Sydney. I talk to 63 stations around
Australia and I think that probably aggravates Alan a bit. I don't think he likes that
much."

Mr Laws didn't hold back. Asked by The 7.30 Report's Kerry O'Brien about the origin
of their animosity, Mr Laws pointed to their religious beliefs.

"We only really disagree on religion ... I refuse to treat him like God," he said.

Mr Laws stood by his dinner party claim, despite Mr Jones describing it as "fanciful
and ludicrous" and Mr Howard denying he ever takes instructions from media identities.

Asked on ABC television if it was sour grapes on his part, Mr Laws replied: "It probably
is a bit. I mean I had a pretty rough run and it seems that Mr Jones didn't have a pretty
rough run. I don't deny human frailties. There probably is a bit of payback."

Mr Jones and Mr Laws have been the subject of several ABA inquiries. Mr Jones came
out on top but Mr Laws was hit with 19 breaches of the act.

The sting was over their sponsorship deals, and Mr Laws is now forced to declare his
sponsorship whenever one gets mentioned on his 2UE morning program.

Mr Jones defected to rival 2GB and the sponsorship deals are done with his employer,
Macquarie Radio Network, in which he holds a share.

That means he doesn't have to spell out each time a sponsor is being plugged.

Nobody disputes the hold Mr Jones has over the prime minister. And when John Howard
wants to get a message out there, he knows that 7.10am slot on Mr Jones' breakfast program
is always available to him.

Mr Jones has questioned Mr Laws' memory of that Tuesday night dinner party in November 2000.

Mr Laws says he remembers verbatim Mr Jones boasting about having gone to Kirribilli
House to instruct the prime minister to reappoint Prof Flint.

But Mr Laws apparently can't recall what sparked his earlier derogatory comment about
Prof Flint that drew Mr Jones' ire.

Media commentator Mark Day can't say who is telling the truth, but can imagine that
sort of conversation round a dinner table with Mr Laws and Mr Jones as guests.

Mr Jones certainly had the access and the gall, Mr Day suggests.

With both broadcasters using their programs to launch more claims and counter-claims,
it could provide a ratings boost for both.

AAP sal/nf/tma/bwl

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