The chairman of Australia's main print media watchdog will no longer be involved in adjudicating any complaints against publications belonging to the nation's biggest print media company, News Corp.
In a statement released on Friday, Australian Press Council executive director John Pender said he had received requests from two News Corp papers that the chairman, Professor Julian Disney, withdraw from two complaints against them.
"They did so on the ground that there could be an appearance of bias," Mr Pender wrote.
He said Professor Disney had resolved to not only withdraw from the adjudication process relating to those two complaints, but from any complaints relating to News Corp.
"He believes the council cannot afford to have its complaints work subjected to the further severe disruption which would flow from resisting the newspapers' demands and related misrepresentations," Mr Pender said.
"The chair regrets that his decision may be interpreted as indicating that he would no longer be able to chair adjudications with sufficient independence from News Corp pressures.
"On the other hand, he is aware that concerns have already been expressed by a complainant that recent criticism in The Australian's reports and editorials may cause him to be unduly responsive to such pressures when chairing adjudications."
As a result, he would not participate in any adjudication of News Corp matters.
"This decision has taken account of the fact that it will only affect complaints considered at the one panel meeting which he is scheduled to chair before leaving the council next January," Mr Pender said.
He ended the statement with a warning to members of the Press Council, including News Corp and Fairfax Media, the publisher of The Sydney Morning Herald and smh.com.au.
"As executive director, I will need to raise for the council's early consideration whether, and if so how, it is able to respond effectively to serious misrepresentations of its work and to breaches by its members of their agreed obligations."
The Press Council is funded by 15 publishers which agree to abide by its rulings.
News Corp newspaper The Australian has been heavily critical of the chairmanship of Professor Disney.
In a comment piece published on Saturday, Peter Fray, a deputy editor of The Australian - and former publisher and editor-in-chief of The Sydney Morning Herald - wrote: "Now recent adjudications have pushed this paper to editorialise against the council's 'mission creep'."
He indicated News Corp would consider whether to keep funding the Press Council. "There is now a real chance the council's largest funder, News Corp, publisher of The Australian, may consider its own options," he wrote.
