Australia: CFWIJ Condemns The Bullying And Stands In Solidarity With Samantha Maiden

Samantha Maiden, a Walkley award-winning author and political editor for news.com.au, was bullied in an article written by Aaron Patrick, a senior correspondent at the Australian Financial Review (AFR). After digging into her childhood and work history, Aaron described Samantha as “difficult, challenging, and spiky”. Samantha Maiden is the journalist who revealed the ground-breaking story of Brittany Higgins, the young staffer who was raped in the Australian Parliament on March 23, 2019. Samantha wrote a detailed report on how Brittany’s vulnerable situation was mishandled with insensitivity and indifference by Liberal Party officials. In his article, Aaron Patrick criticized seasoned women journalists and accused them of instigating anger directed at the government. CFWIJ is troubled by Aaron Patrick’s senseless allegations and the Australian Financial Review’s facilitation of such blatant bullying. We demand that Aaron Patrick issues a public apology, and The Australian Financial Review clears its position of what it considers fair journalism.