Why opinion journalism is not Marc Fennell’s cup of tea

Marc Fennell. Image: ABC

Marc Fennell was just seventeen years old when he boldy began his foray into media, as a movie critic at Sydney community radio station fbi.

“I said ‘Hey, I can review movies!’ And they’re like ‘o-KAAAAY!’”

“And they taught me radio from scratch.”

It was the start of something big.

After a year with fbi, Marc was asked to audition for a new-look movie review show on SBS.

“They didn’t know how old I was, so I went in, did my screen test, reviewed some movies … and I ended up on the show. The day we were unveiled to the press was my nineteenth birthday. I told them ‘It’s my birthday today!’ And they’re like, ‘Cool! How old are you?’ and I said ‘I’m nineteen!’”

“And they went PINK! Like, Oh my God, we’ve hired a child!”

Today, Marc is an established TV and radio host who has successfully transferred his broadcasting skills into chart-topping investigative podcast documentaries.

As well as covering cinema across the ABC Radio Network – including ABC Local Radio and triple j – Marc’s technology program Download This Show was broadcast weekly on ABC Radio National for over a decade.

Marc is the creator of the fascinating series Stuff the British Stole (the latest instalment of which charts the history of tea) and quizmaster of SBS TV’s iconic game show Mastermind

Chatting to me on the latest episode of the Food Bytes with Sarah Patterson podcast, Marc says that, as a journalist, his approach is all about creating an environment that makes people feel comfortable.

“My job is to be professionally curious. Whether I’m grilling nerds on Mastermind or we’re doing a podcast at the ABC or the TV shows … my job, really – at its core – is to move through the world and be curious, and make people feel safe to want to talk to me.”

“One of my big rules is that I don’t have opinions in public on lots of things because my job is to make people feel safe. No matter what their political opinion or world view is, I will listen to them fairly.”

“Sometimes that’s hard, right? Because there’s lots of stuff going on in the world right now. We’ve all got lots of feelings.”

“Ultimately, your job as a journalist is to just remain completely curious about the world.”

What about the trend in modern day media for journalists to share their own opinions?

Marc says “Look, I understand it, and some of it’s driven by the internet, because the internet rewards opinion: strong emotions, anger, outrage … those are the things the algorithm responds to, right?”

Marc likens it to the principles of talkback radio.

“I’ve done plenty of talkback radio over the years, and the best way of getting some people to call in is to chuck out an opinion to get people thinking and gets their own opinion going. Sometimes it’s much better than starting with a question, to actually start with a commentary.”

“So, I don’t inherently have a problem with it. It’s just not a thing I’ve chosen for me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of judging how other people execute their careers. Some of my favourite people in the world are people who’ve got really strong, funny or outrageous opinions. That’s fine, and it’s a perfectly viable way to move through the world.”

“It just doesn’t work very well for me, I’ve found.”

Season 3 of the award-winning documentary series Stuff The British Stole premieres Tuesday 9 June at 8pm on ABC TV, with all episodes available on ABC iview. 

Images: ABC