Reporter Testifies That 'Nail in the Coffin' Comment Did Not Target Jones

Kate McClymont, the chief investigative reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald, told the Sydney court on Tuesday that her famous comment during a phone call did not refer to Alan Jones. Under cross-examination, she clarified that describing new details as a "nail in the coffin" related to the story she was building, not the accused himself. The testimony came as the recording of her conversation with the mother of Jones's youngest alleged victim was played for the judge and jury.

The case against Jones traces back to McClymont’s December 2023 investigation. After that article published, police told her they had not received complaints about the former 2GB broadcaster and had not investigated him. That information changed when the mother of complainant A told McClymont that her son had actually spoken with police during the year of the alleged assault. McClymont explained in court that this new detail was vital to her reporting because it contradicted what officers had previously told her.

Defence barrister Gabrielle Bashir SC spent the day probing that interpretation. Bashir suggested repeatedly that the reporter meant the comment as a reference to Jones’s end. McClymont denied that she was talking about killing the defendant. The court also heard that McClymont later connected with the specific detective who had interviewed the teenager in his school principal’s office.

Bashir moved on to text messages sent to the complainant’s mother. Questions focused on whether McClymont told the woman that the NSW police minister’s office and the sex crimes unit promised her son would remain anonymous if the case reopened. Other inquiries concerned messages about the investigation, including one where McClymont expressed hope that Jones would face consequences and added two poo emojis.

The reporter acknowledged sending an excited message to a police media contact when Jones’s arrest became imminent. On the day officers took him into custody at his Circular Quay apartment, she contacted the same person to verify the details and confirmed the arrest once it happened. McClymont stated she gave police a statement in June 2024 but continued her coverage because she had not been told she would be a prosecution witness. She paused her reporting only when that instruction arrived.

Jones faces 21 charges of sexual touching and indecent assault. Five men allege he assaulted or touched them between 2003 and 2020. In testimony given last month, complainant A described an overnight stay at Jones’s Fitzroy Falls farm. The man said Jones put his tongue in his mouth and touched his bottom during that visit. The two had begun corresponding when A was 13.

The trial continues before Judge Glenn Walsh at the Downing Centre local court. McClymont is scheduled to take the stand again on Thursday.