In the same article, Mike Sneesby also justified his participation in the torch relay, despite strike action by Nine newspapers journalists (affiliated with MEAA) back home.
Sneesby said that was a commitment he had made on invitation from the IOC almost 12 months ago and standard practice for a media company chief executive at the outset of a new rights deal. He said he had been engaged each day with the ongoing negotiations with staff led by “the right leader”, publishing boss Tory Maguire.
“I certainly did not know that that would coincide with the industrial action that was taking place,” he said.
“Certainly, to do the right thing in terms of those commitments to the IOC, to want to represent the thousands of people across Nine who had put in so much hard work was certainly the right thing to do.
“I’m certainly grateful for everyone who contributed to the continuity through that process, and I’m also glad that we reached an outcome that is positive for all stakeholders.
“As much as I wasn’t the public face of those negotiations, I was very much engaged, very much focused on getting the right outcomes for those people who are represented by the union, as I am always, as a chief executive, looking after the interest of our staff whether they’re part of a union or not.”