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| ABC chair resigns over Australian political interference claims | ABC chair resigns over Australian political interference claims |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| The chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has resigned following allegations of political interference. | The chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has resigned following allegations of political interference. |
| Justin Milne resigned from the national broadcaster amid reports he had asked for journalists to be fired because their reporting was disliked by the Australian government. | Justin Milne resigned from the national broadcaster amid reports he had asked for journalists to be fired because their reporting was disliked by the Australian government. |
| The government has denied pressuring the broadcaster over its staff. | |
| ABC's managing director Michelle Guthrie was fired on Monday. | ABC's managing director Michelle Guthrie was fired on Monday. |
| Mr Milne said there had been no interference from the government, and he was stepping aside to "provide a release valve" from the public pressure. | |
| "Nobody from the government has ever rung me and told me what to do in relation to the ABC," he said. | |
| 'Get rid of her' | |
| The government has announced an inquiry into the allegations of improper intervention by Mr Milne, who is a former business partner of Australia's ex-prime minister Malcolm Turnbull. | |
| He is alleged to have lobbied for the sacking of two senior journalists whose reports were critical of the government. | |
| In one leaked email about a reporter, economics journalist Emma Alberici, he wrote: "They hate her... get rid of her. We need to save the ABC, not Emma." | |
| Australian news outlets reported he had also directed Ms Guthrie to sack the ABC's political editor, saying: "You have to shoot him." | |
| The revelations sparked protests from the broadcaster's staff on Wednesday who called for Mr Milne's removal and for the organisation's editorial independence to be protected. | |
| Prime Minister Scott Morrison welcomed Mr Milne's exit. | |
| "Time for the ABC to resume normal transmission, both independently and without bias," he said on Twitter. |