Janet Albrechtsen

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Janet Albrechtsen
Born (1966-09-23) 23 September 1966 (age 57)
Adelaide, South Australia
NationalityAustralian
Alma mater
University of Adelaide
Occupation(s)Journalist, columnist, critic
EmployerNews Corp Australia
SpouseJohn O'Sullivan (sep.)
Children3

Janet Kim Albrechtsen (born 23 September 1966) is an Australian opinion columnist with The Australian. From 2005 until 2010, she was a member of the board of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia's public broadcaster.

Early life and education[edit]

The daughter of Danish immigrants to Australia, Albrechtsen was born in Adelaide and attended Seacombe High School. She subsequently studied at University of Adelaide, graduating with a Bachelor of Laws with Honours.[1] She subsequently attained a Doctor of Juridical Science from the University of Sydney.[1] Her thesis was titled The regulation of the fundraising process in Australia: searching for an optimal mix between legislative prescriptions and market forces.[2][3]

Career[edit]

Albrechtsen moved to Sydney to work as a commercial solicitor at Freehills.[1] and taught at the University of Sydney Law School. Since turning to commentary, Albrechtsen has written for the Australian Financial Review, The Age, The Sydney Morning Herald, Quadrant, Canada's National Post, the Vancouver Sun, The Wall Street Journal and The Wall Street Journal Asia.[1]

Albrechtsen was a member of the Foreign Affairs Council from 2003 until 2007.[4]

Albrechtsen was appointed to the board of the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in 2005. She had previously derided the ABC as a "Soviet-style workers collective".[1][5][6][7] She told reporters in late 2009 that she was planning to retire from the board, and completed her five-year term on 18 February 2010 without seeking reappointment.[8][9] In 2014 it was reported that Albrechtsen was appointed to an independent nomination panel that advises the Minister for Communications on the short–listing of candidates for appointment to the ABC Board.[10][11]

In 2008, Albrechtsen wrote a chapter for Peter van Onselen's book The Liberals and Power. She argued the Liberals have become preoccupied with "dominating the rational low ground", abandoning the high moral ground to the left.[citation needed] Norman Abjorensen said he appreciated her view of Howard's legacy as not just a transformation of the Australian economy but also one of the Labor Party.[12]

Albrechtsen conducted a lengthy interview series in 2014 with former Prime Minister of Australia John Howard, which aired as a featured story on Seven Network's Sunday Night, and again in January 2015 as its own five-part series on Sky News Australia entitled Howard Defined.[13]

Albrechtsen was from 2014 until 2017 director and chair of the Audit, Finance and Risk Committee of the National Museum of Australia.[14]

Janet Albrechtsen was appointed a director of the Institute of Public Affairs in 2016, and as chairman in July 2018, replacing Rod Kemp, a position held until November, 2019.[15][16]

As of November 2020 she is an ambassador for the Australian Indigenous Education Foundation.[17]

Commentary[edit]

Albrechtsen's political views can be described as libertarian, as expressed by the Institute of Public Affairs. These views are based around the dignity of the individual, freedom from government control and individual responsibility. She writes about the fiscal responsibility by government[18] and the people,[19] issues relating to political correctness, identity politics and modern day 'grievance feminism',[20][21] the growing censorship on campuses,[22] freedom of speech[23] and the role of civil society.[24]

Personal life[edit]

She was married to lawyer John O'Sullivan, a friend of Malcolm Turnbull. They are now separated.[25] The couple had three children,[26] including Sascha O'Sullivan, who was also a journalist for The Australian.[27][28]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Dr Janet Kim Albrechtsen", Who's Who in Australia (subscription required)
  2. ^ Albrechtsen, Janet (1999). The regulation of the fundraising process in Australia: searching for an optimal mix between legislative prescriptions and market forces (Doctor of Juridical Studies thesis). University of Sydney, Faculty of Law. OCLC 223336466. Retrieved 29 February 2024.
  3. ^ "Profile: Janet Albrechtsen". The Australian.
  4. ^ "Lawyer-turned-columnist Janet Albrechtsen talks pop culture, public figures and guilty pleasures" by Julia Baird, ABC News (Australia), 22 October 2014
  5. ^ Caldwell, Alison (24 February 2005). "ABC critic appointed to board of directors". ABC News (Australia). Retrieved 30 April 2007.
  6. ^ "ABC Friends label Janet Albrechtsen and Neil Brown panel appointments a declaration of war on independence".
  7. ^ "Janet Albrechtsen appointed to ABC and SBS board appointments panel".
  8. ^ Sharp, Ari (11 November 2009). "Albrechtsen to step down as director on ABC board". The Sydney Morning Herald. p. 7. Retrieved 5 June 2010.
  9. ^ Meade, Amanda (22 February 2010). "Board vacancy". The Australian. p. Media section, p. 31.
  10. ^ Markson, Sharri (3 July 2014). "John Howard loyalists join ABC panel". The Australian. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
  11. ^ Knott, Matthew (2 October 2014). "ABC efficiency reviewer Peter Lewis appointed to broadcaster's board". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 22 December 2014.
  12. ^ Abjorensen, Norman (February 2009). "The long road back to office". Australian Book Review (308): 18–19.
  13. ^ "Airdate: Howard Defined". TV Tonight. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  14. ^ "2016–17 Annual Report", National Museum of Australia, pp. 38–39
  15. ^ Hutchinson, Samantha; Loussikian, Kylar (15 May 2019), "Albrechtsen in Kemp out at the IPA", The Sydney Morning Herald
  16. ^ Janet Albrechtsen LinkedIn profile.
  17. ^ "Ambassadors – About". Australian Indigenous Education Foundation. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  18. ^ "Turnbull has failed to justify his knifing of Abbott" by Janet Albrechtsen, The Australian, 14 September 2016
  19. ^ "We, the people, are the threat to fiscal reform" by Janet Albrechtsen, The Australian, 17 February 2015
  20. ^ Why "Grievance Feminism" is a Threat to Serious Feminist & Humanitarian Issues on YouTube, Dr Janet Albrechtsen, Centre for Independent Studies Annual Big Ideas Forum, October 2015
  21. ^ "New puritanism at work in refusals to show film The Red Pill" by Janet Albrechtsen, The Australian, 19 April 2017
  22. ^ "No-offence culture of American campuses hurts Australia too" by Janet Albrechtsen, The Australian, 1 November 2016
  23. ^ Albrechtsen, Janet (25 November 2015). "Paris attacks: fight for liberty must include freedom of speech". The Australian. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  24. ^ Janet Albrechtsen: big government kills civil society on YouTube, Institute of Public Affairs, May 2014
  25. ^ "Former rich lister Craig Gore's wings to stay clipped" by Colin Kruger, The Sydney Morning Herald, 13 June 2018
  26. ^ "Michael Kroger's quiet on new love, Janet Albrechtsen", The Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 31 August 2011[dead link]
  27. ^ "Contributions by Sascha O'Sullivan", The Australian
  28. ^ "The new News Corp aristocracy" by Guy Rundle, Crikey, 23 November 2018

External links[edit]

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