'Biggest regret': Caroline Wilson opens up on 'horrible' James Hird blunder
Veteran AFL reporter Caroline Wilson has opened up about her ‘biggest regret’ as a journalist in a revealing segment in Channel Nine program Footy Classified.
Wilson was a key figure in the reporting surrounding the Essendon Bombers’ supplements scandal throughout 2013, but it was a 2014 report about the future of then coach James Hird that she cited as her lowest moment in the business.
'ELEVATED READINGS': Concerns over 'unusual' forecast for AFL grand final
TRAGIC: New details about death of popular footy coach
The Age published a story written by Wilson in October of 2014 under the headline ‘James Hird removed as Essendon coach’ - the problem was that he hadn’t.
In fact, Hird would continue to coach the embattled club up until August the following year - leaving Wilson and the newspaper searching for answers.
Wilson stood by her story, arguing that she had been told by sources on the Essendon board before publishing that Hird was indeed on the way out.
The following day a story was published under the headline ‘Day of execution becomes stay of execution’, as well as other coverage downplaying the potential for Hird to leave the club, but the damage had been done.
The day after the initial story Wilson published a follow-up article in which she admitted and pologised for the scoop about Hird being incorrect, but maintained her information was right at the time.
“This columnist regrettably reported wrongly that Hird had already been removed. It was an error of timing but still an error,” Wilson wrote.
Caroline Wilson opens up on ‘big regret’
The Australian Press Council ultimately found the story breached its standards following a series of complaints, and discussing the saga on Footy Classified, Wilson admitted it continued to weigh heavily on her.
“It was disappointing because it was wrong,” she said, saying it was an ‘easy’ choice as the worst moment of her career.
“At the time I wrote it there were key people on the board who told me it had happened. I suspect that maybe it had happened and then they changed their mind, I don’t know what happened,” she said.
“My bad, I got it wrong. It never appeared in the paper, it did appear online for an hour or two.
“I came on Footy Classified that night and (AFL reporter) Damian Barrett absolutely smashed me, like went ballistic at me. It was horrible and I felt bad.
“I felt I’d done such a good job on the Essendon drug scandal story with The Age and all the journos I worked with on it, so that was a big regret.”
Click here to sign up to our newsletter for all the latest and breaking stories from Australia and around the world.
