Paul Kelly described as gossipy but fair while ABC stalwart Allan Ashbolt labelled ‘nuts’
• Read the full documents from the National Archives here • John Kerr complained of Gough Whitlam’s ‘malice’ after dismissal
The letters between the governor general Sir John Kerr and Buckingham Palace reveal strongly held views about
Australian journalists and their outlets, not much of it favourable.
The Australian’s political reporter at the time of the dismissal, Paul Kelly, was described by Kerr in 1976 as “pro-Labor”, which may surprise a contemporary reader of the Murdoch broadsheet.