Pictured left to right: Erin Phillips, Ali Clarke, Eddie Bannon
This morning, Mix 102.3 Radio Announcer Ali Clarke responded to the controversial Advertiser article that discussed the alleged “end” of the popular FM radio station.
Published on Saturday 27 August, the article entitled “How Mix Ended up in a Muddle” revealed that Mix 102.3 ranked the 3rd most popular radio station in the latest survey results with The Ali Clarke Breakfast Show rating 6th in Breakfast. The article appears to suggest that Ali joined the radio station for money and co-host and comedian Eddie Bannon only got the position due to Ali’s “clout”.
Ali Clarke has revealed that the piece was “filled with countless inaccuracies”, prompting her to make corrections live at 8am this morning.
“I thought long and hard about how to deal with this,” says Ali. “Criticism is a part of this job… but this was filled with inaccuracies and falsehoods.”
“When what is being written is wrong and in the process really harms people, isn’t that a type of bullying?” Ali continued.
Ali further explained that after posting about this “quandary” over the weekend and witnessing the how “sad and hurt” Eddie was post publication, she had had enough.
“I know how this has affected the incredibly hard working team at this radio station,” says Ali. “To everybody listening, these guys are your team. I’ll be stuffed if I’ll let them pick on our team.”
Ali reiterated that she’s “open to criticism”, but it is necessary to correct factually incorrect information.
“Suggesting I left my previous place of employment for money is false,” says Ali. “I chose this for my family and my mental health. I was waking up at 1 or 2 in the morning, panicking. Even worse, I was taking all of that home with me.
“If my kids came to me, I would snap at them, and they didn’t deserve that. In my rush to make sure I was okay for my job; I was missing out on things.”
Ali shared that the main reason for joining the Mix 102.3 team was to be a apart of an on-air team and work together.
“The safe thing would’ve been for me to stay. The healthy thing for me to do was to leave,” says Ali.
Moreover, Ali clarified that Eddie “got this job on his own merit” and “deserves to be here”.
“Mate, I am so proud to stand alongside you and taken on criticism. You’re learning this new craft and care for everyone around you,” Ali said to Eddie on-air.
Finally, Ali addressed the Erin Phillips leaving her role within the breakfast team.
“She has to do something no one else has ever done. She’s trying to win two AFLW premierships and raising three kids. That makes doing radio very hard. This has been repeatedly shared on record,” says Ali.
“If we want better journalism and news built on fact-checking, then we need to demand better. The fact I was only contacted on this piece very late on a Friday, it turns something presented as fact into opinion. Not being asked or given any specificity or given an opportunity to comment meant they could write whatever they want.”
Ali concluded this morning’s address by asking the public to give the author “care and respect” and space for her mental health.
“They [journalists] are doing double the work…” says Ali, “…To the people who made the decision to publish this piece, you had my number. I used to work for you.”
“To everyone who works at Mix, we will continue to try to bring our best selves,” concluded Ali.
The Advertiser article which prompted this rebuttal can be found here.
