ABC denies conflict of interest in speaking gig

THE anchor off ABC-TV’s flag- . ship weeknight t s ss,programcurrent affairs7.30, , p ly Leigh Sales, is s re nent among ABC prominews s - personalities s who are subsi- dising lucrativee six-figure publicc broadcaster incomes omes with paid work as public speakers.

Sales (pictured), who earns $280,400 at the broadcaster, normally commands $10,000 an event. The current affairs presenter is just one of a host of ABC news program anchors w whose services are sp spruiked by public speakingsp bureaus; althoughal in Walkleyle Award winner Sales’Sa case, on multiplem bureaus.

An ABC spokesmanm yesterday defendedfe the broadcaster’sca decision to allowal its key journalists the freedomf to supplement their incomes with corporate work, despite concern it flies in the face of the broadcaster’s charter concerning journalistic independence and could compromise the integrity of its news products.