Alan Jones

Jones is on trial in Sydney without a jury. Following the withdrawal of several counts before the hearing, as of 3 September 2026 he still faces 20 counts of indecent assault and two counts of sexual touching concerning six men, in relation to alleged incidents between 2003 and 2020. The trial is ongoing.

Attribution

Directly implicated

ACMA required a correction after a Jones segment inaccurately described research on masks and lockdowns. In 2021, several Sky News videos involving Jones and others were removed for breaching YouTube's medical misinformation rules; the Daily Telegraph ended his column, and Sky News did not renew his contract amid COVID controversies and declining audiences.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Institutional responsibility

Jones attacked New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in violent and sexist terms, notably suggesting that Scott Morrison should 'shove a sock down her throat'. Numerous advertisers withdrew. ACMA subsequently found breaches of accuracy and decency rules.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

ACMA found that 2GB and the Alan Jones Breakfast Show had breached several provisions of the Commercial Radio Current Affairs Disclosure Standard concerning on-air disclosure of relevant commercial interests or agreements.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Direct responsibility

The Wagner family sued Jones over a long series of broadcasts concerning, among other matters, the deadly Grantham floods. In 2018, the Supreme Court of Queensland found several imputations defamatory and awarded approximately 3,7 million Australian dollars in total damages.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Jones aggressively confronted Opera House chief executive Louise Herron because she refused to allow the sails to serve as a full advertising billboard for the Everest horse race, even demanding her dismissal. The episode triggered a petition attracting more than 200 000 signatures and a debate over the broadcaster's political influence.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Directly implicated

ACMA again found accuracy breaches in October 2012 broadcasts, notably concerning power station closures and the staffing or costs of the Department of Climate Change. These decisions are distinct from the earlier case concerning the human share of CO₂.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

ACMA concluded that an edition of the Alan Jones Breakfast Show concerning the National Broadband Network had breached the commercial radio code's accuracy rule.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

In another investigation in 2014, ACMA concluded that Jones's programme had breached the accuracy code during a discussion of an IPCC report on climate change.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Remarks made by Jones in April 2005 about Keysar Trad and Lebanese Muslims became the subject of lengthy anti-discrimination litigation in New South Wales. The proceedings resulted in a finding of vilification/incitement to hatred, damages and an obligation to apologise on air.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Jones repeatedly claimed that humans accounted for only approximately 0,001 % of atmospheric carbon dioxide. ACMA found the claim materially inaccurate and concluded that 2GB had failed to take the reasonable precautions required to ensure factual accuracy.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Personally implicated

Jones stated on air that women in positions of power were 'destroying the country', targeting Julia Gillard, Clover Moore and Christine Nixon, among others. The remarks triggered widespread controversy, fuelled the #DestroyTheJoint movement and intensified criticism of his treatment of women in public life.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Personally implicated

At a Young Liberals dinner, Jones said that Prime Minister Julia Gillard's recently deceased father had 'died of shame' because of his daughter's lies. The remark triggered national outrage and advertisers withdrew from his programme.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Personally implicated

Jones repeated on air a suggestion that Julia Gillard and Bob Brown should be placed in a chaff bag and taken out to sea. The expression became emblematic of criticism directed at his aggressive and sexist style of political rhetoric.

State of the evidence

Documented

Legal status — source text

Not applicable

Attribution

Personally implicated

Statements by Jones concerning Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates led to a defamation action. A jury found the imputations defamatory, and the court ordered Jones and Harbour Radio to pay approximately 360 000 Australian dollars in damages.

Attribution

Personally implicated

Jones was prosecuted for identifying a child witness on air during judicial proceedings and initially received a sanction. On appeal in 2008, the District Court upheld the finding that the offence had been committed but regarded the mistake as honest and dismissed the charge without recording a conviction.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome

ACMA examined several Jones broadcasts preceding the Cronulla riots and concluded that certain content breached the code, notably because it was likely to encourage violence or brutality and to vilify people of Lebanese or Middle Eastern origin.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Former assistant police commissioner Clive Small sued Jones over comments accusing him of mishandling Lebanese gangs. A jury found that Jones had defamed him; the case was subsequently settled confidentially before the hearing on defences and damages.

Attribution

Personally implicated

The 'cash for comment' inquiry examined commercial agreements involving Jones and John Laws with companies whose interests they discussed on air. The ABA concluded that these arrangements had contributed to serious transparency failures, and 2UE faced numerous findings of breaches and licence conditions.

State of the evidence

Documented

Attribution

Directly implicated

Alan Jones was arrested in London in 1988 in a public decency matter. The episode was repeatedly revisited in controversies surrounding his career.

Attribution

Directly implicated

Course of the proceedings

1. Formally charged — Formal charge before the current outcome