The tiny private Catholic college making a big impression at Sky News
By Calum Jaspan
A small private Catholic college in western Sydney is punching above its weight at Australia’s largest and most conservative news channel, Sky News.
Campion College has developed a close relationship with sections of Sky News Australia, particularly its digital department, with alumni links for its very small student base leading to a comparatively large cohort at the network, while receiving regular promotions across Sky’s on air programming.
Campion College in western Sydney is punching above its weight at Australia’s largest and most conservative news channel, Sky News.Credit: Marija Ercegovac
The college offers subjects on Western history, civilisation, literature and philosophy, and is supported by a host of conservative figures, including mining billionaire Gina Rinehart.
In 2021, the college encouraged students to apply for roles at Sky, and to contact digital editor Jack Houghton directly.
“Sky News is currently looking to fill three digital news producer roles. Six Campion alumni have successfully commenced at Sky News within the past year,” the listing said.
Sky has grown its voice online by pushing content towards more international, ultraconservative and reactionary content, with culture war issues and US President Joe Biden at the forefront. It has so far been successful, with 4.5 million YouTube subscribers.
Officially welcoming its first students in 2006, and founded by Australian entrepreneur James Power, Campion launched with the intention of teaching young Australians about Catholic culture. It had an initial intake of 12 students, modelled on similar liberal arts colleges in the United States. Power died last month and his obituary was published in The Australian by editorial writer Tess Livingstone. Both Sky and The Australian are owned by News Corp.
A career in journalism and communications is natural progression for liberal arts graduates (the main course Campion offers), its president, Dr Paul Morrissey, said. “A degree which encourages deep thinking and good writing,” he said.
“Apart from Sky, other alumni have worked as freelance journalists in local papers, Catholic media, the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference and Archdiocesan communications.”
While the current number of Campion graduates at Sky is unknown, at least six list it on LinkedIn as their employer.
“Around 10” alumni had been hired by Sky in the past few years alone, Morrissey said.
Campion lecturer Stephen Chavura has a weekly slot on Sky News with Andrew Bolt.Credit: Sky News Australia
The college is so small – fewer than 50 graduates a year – it says students can expect to know everyone on campus by name. Yet, despite its size, its profile within conservative media and politics is large.
Campion’s history lecturer Stephen Chavura appears on Sky on The Bolt Report every Monday as a commentator, offering views on topics such as politics, culture war issues and religion alongside Daniel Wild, the deputy executive director of the Institute of Public Affairs (IPA), a right-wing think tank.
This week, Chavura discussed the table scene at the opening of the Paris Olympics, which was said to convey imagery of the Last Supper, saying it serves as “a civilisational sign of what is to come … and of the forces and the ideas vying to replace Christianity”.
“We’re talking about a very destructive child-sexualising neo-pagan tribalism which is entering in; it’s not just this, it’s also the Black Lives Matter movement, it’s the pro-Palestine riots,” he said.
Art historians have since said the scene was inspired by a 17th-century Dutch painting of Greek Olympian gods, rather than the Last Supper.
Chavura said there was generally very little overlap between what he says on Sky or social media and what he teaches at Campion.
“The subjects covered at Sky and the lecture topics at Campion are completely different,” Chavura said.
The college has received other endorsements on Sky. Former host (and Senator) Cory Bernardi called it a “fantastic institution”, while The Australian’s foreign editor, Greg Sheridan, said during an interview with Sky News host Peta Credlin that it was a “wonderful institution”.
Morrissey also had a lengthy interview with Credlin about Campion on air several years ago.
Sheridan appears regularly at the college in his capacity as an honorary fellow, as does Livingstone, who has written about Campion at least four times in the past year. In 2002, Livingstone wrote a biography of the late Catholic cardinal George Pell.
Honorary fellows were appointed by the college usually in recognition for their support, said Morrissey, through speaking appearances, or partaking in one of its academic committees. This was the case for both Sheridan and Livingston, he said.
Sky and Campion said there was no formal relationship between them, although Morrissey said, “Sky might let us know [when a junior position opens up] and we spread the ad to our alumni.
“I guess Sky could give a more precise answer as to why they might appreciate our graduates.”
Campion College’s new library named after Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart.Credit: Campion College
Sky declined to comment; however, it hires from a very broad range of institutions and organisations, according to sources at the network not authorised to speak publicly.
In 2019, students at the college were being targeted to stack the NSW Liberal Party, according to a report by The Sydney Morning Herald. At that time, at least 20 of the college’s 90 students had signed up to the party following approaches by classmates and NSW parliamentary staff, with jobs allegedly being offered in exchange for recruitment efforts in some cases.
The college has links to the IPA, which in 2021 declared Campion “free of identity politics”, unlike other universities, praising it on several other occasions.
Similarly, two Campion alumni now list online Alan Jones’ fringe broadcaster ADH TV as their employer, while Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, bought the naming rights to Campion’s new library in 2023 with a “transformative contribution”, Morrissey said.
“She is a great Australian, committed to our country’s wellbeing and its future, and it is fitting that this library is named after her,” he said.
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