Veteran Australian TV journalist George Negus dies aged 82

Veteran Australian TV journalist George Negus has died after a long battle with Alzheimer’s disease. He was 82.

He “passed away peacefully surrounded by loved ones”, his family said in a statement.

They thanked Australian healthcare workers for supporting him “in the best possible way”.

“Despite the challenges diseases like Alzheimer’s inflict on families, we still shared beautiful times, laughter and happiness together in recent times. “We also learnt a lot.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was among those paying tribute, calling Negus a “giant of Australian journalism” and writing that his “courage, curiosity and integrity gave millions of Australians a sense of the big issues on 60 Minutes, and a window to the world through Foreign Correspondent”, in a post on X.

“George sought and served the truth with steely determination and a twinkle in his eye, and along the way, he made even the smallest TV screen feel that much bigger.

“He was a wonderful human being and his loss will be deeply felt by so many Australians. We offer his family the heartfelt condolences of our nation. May he rest in peace.”

Negus, a teacher who became a reporter at age 28, was a legend in the Australian media industry.

He started out writing for The Australian and the Australian Financial Review before stepping in front of the camera for ABC television’s current affairs program This Day Tonight.

Negus went on to lead coverage of foreign affairs across numerous channels during his long and acclaimed career.

When he made the switch to commercial television to become a founding member of Nine’s 60 Minutes, Negus said addressing the everyday Aussie became his passion.

”It became important to me — a lot of Australians weren’t being treated with the right respect — they were being treated like they were idiots because they watched commercial television,” he said.

”But what we’re doing turned out to be a little bit better than idiotic.”

He co-hosted the news and current affairs show for seven years as it became a ratings juggernaut. At its peak in the 1980s, at least a third of the national TV audience were tuning in on a Sunday evening.

Later, Negus became the first host of the ABC international current affairs program, Foreign Correspondent, and fronted it from 1992 to 1999.

Despite labelling himself a “committed coward”, Negus reported from the frontlines of conflicts worldwide and asked the hard questions of world leaders and others.

His swagger and roguish charm enabled him to win over countless big-name interview subjects, including Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and made him a household name in Australia.

Negus was renowned for his prickly 1981 interview with then-UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher when he confronted her about her image.

In a sit down interview, Negus told Thatcher the public’s perception of her was that she was “not just single-minded” but on occasions “just plain pig-headed”.

In an icy voice, she demanded that he tell her who had said those things and where and when.

”I guess it sounds a bit pretentious, but I would describe myself as an anti-war correspondent,” the news veteran said when reflecting on a career that spanned five decades.

”I’m a committed coward. I’d go so far as to say I was a gutless wonder. I didn’t get a buzz out of that kind of journalism at all.

“I did it because you have to get close enough to tell people why you shouldn’t be there at all.”

Negus took pride in breaking down complicated political issues and communicating them Australia-wide.

”If you can throw some light into dark corners for people who don’t necessarily have as much opportunity to work out why the hell things happen ... that’s why I ended up being a current affairs person,” Negus said in 2015

Negus also presented Nine’s Today Show and SBS’s Dateline program, was a regular on Ten’s 7pm Project and had two current affairs programs: George Negus Tonight on ABC and 6.30 with George Negus on Ten.

He also contributed to Seven’s coverage of both Gulf Wars.

”I’ve always been fascinated by what makes places and people and politics in particular tick,” Negus said.

“Politics is the best way to solve problems without killing each other.”

Negus was awarded the Order of Australia medal in 2015 for his significant service to the media as a journalist and TV presenter and to environmental conservation. He also won a Walkley for Outstanding Contribution to Journalism in 2021.

Negus was also an author, penning a number of books, including The World From Down Under; The World From Italy and The World from Islam.

Negus is survived by his partner, journalist Kirsty Cockburn, and sons Serge and Ned.

In their family statement, they said: “While we know he will be celebrated for his unique contribution to journalism, football, and the environment, he would also want to be remembered for the incredible family man he was.”

Last month, Ned, who is the A-League’s chief commercial officer, revealed his father was non-verbal after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s five years before.

“Today is Father’s Day in Australia and we had a walk on the beach together. He was clearly not sure why this particular walk was symbolic and sometimes not sure with whom he was walking,” he wrote in a post on LinkedIn.“At one point we stopped, he smiled broadly and then hugged me for quite some time. “It was sad, but it was uplifting to know that even when you can no longer say what you feel, you can still DO what you feel.”

— with AAP