Decades of Defining Moments: News That Altered History

In this episode of The Big 6-Oh, we sit down with respected journalist and media icon, Tim Webster, to delve into some of the most significant news events that have shaped our world over the past 40 to 50 years. 

With his extensive experience in journalism, Tim provides unique insights and personal anecdotes about pivotal moments in history, including the awe-inspiring Moon landing, which marked humanity's giant leap into space and ignited a new era of exploration and ambition.

Tim also reflects on the tragic assassination of President John F. Kennedy, a moment that sent shockwaves around the globe and altered the course of American politics forever. We discuss the Vietnam War, a conflict that not only affected millions of lives but also sparked widespread protests and debates about morality, duty, and freedom. 

We also explore Australia's own historical landmark, the Whitlam dismissal, a political crisis that reshaped the Australian political landscape. Tim shares his thoughts on how these events have influenced media coverage and public perception over the years. 

Join us for a conversation that revisits these monumental moments.

* This episode of The Big 6-Oh! is proudly sponsored by www.louiscarr.com.au - helping people in the Hills District find their dream home since 1992.

Transcript

00:00

If you're old enough to remember when phones had cords and the only thing that went viral was a cold, then you're in the right place. Welcome to the Big Six-O with Kaylee Harris and Guy Rawlison. Because who better to discuss life's second act than two people who still think mature is a type of cheese?

00:39

So you know, Kayleigh, we grew up at a time when probably the evening news was the biggest event in the house. Well, probably besides sitting who gets to sit next to a heater. But I remember watching things like the news landing, which was pretty much like a movie back in the day. But your eyes were glued. Was there anything that little Kayleigh sort of had her eyes glued to on the telly?

01:01

I wasn't really, I remember the six o'clock news was a ritual in my house and everyone would sit around the TV and see what would happen because that was your main news source, right? It was the six o'clock news and there was, you know, different to today where you can get news anywhere, anytime. I don't really remember becoming news aware until I was about 10 or 11 or 12 in the 70s. So any major news stories that happened in the 60s and my goodness, there were some doozies,

01:31

young. Yeah it's not exactly like standing up the front of the class and being asked to tell you news in front of everyone because we had those times where we lived through some of the best moments in the news world as far as events were concerned without ever really realising it. Yeah exactly and I think that's a really good cue to bring in our guest this week who we're very happy to have on board with us. He's incredible news reporter, journalist and an amazing person in the media landscape here in Australia.

02:01

And I think no one better to speak about the biggest news stories, certainly in the last 50 or 60, 70 years in this country. Tim Webster, welcome. Hey guy, hey Kayleigh, how you going? Yeah, real well, thanks Tim. Well, it's interesting, isn't it? You're talking about events in the 60s. And of course I ended up reading the news myself from about 1981, but the moon landing, that one I remember vividly, cause we were at school, what would now be year 12. And we watched it on a black and white telly.

02:31

And I'll never forget that, the one small step for man from Neil Armstrong. And I'll never forget that because it was, we're just all sitting there transfixed. And as you both know, I mean, in later years, people said, oh, it was all staged. It was done on a Hollywood set, which is probably nonsense. I'm sure it is nonsense, but that one vivid in the memory, along with of course, the assassination of JFK. Now, I think I said to you, Kayleigh, during the week, I was only 12, but my father,

02:58

was deeply affected by that. He was a very political person. My mum, not so much. And I remember him being really quite emotional about that. And that was, you know, 1963. And as I say, I was 12. But the 60s and Vietnam War, it was, and I grew up in the 60s. I grew up in the 60s as a teenager. And I suppose I became aware of the news then and through the 70s. And of course, since then, Kayleigh, as you know, I've been in...

03:27

involved in it, in broadcasting for, you know, 50 plus years. So, yeah, they were interesting times, the 60s. It's certainly a long way from 2BS back in Bathurst, where you... Yeah. Is that where you got your start? That was where you got your start, wasn't it? It was, yeah, 2BS Bathurst in 1973, February 1973. And, well, we'll talk about the 70s later, but my great memories of the 70s are music, because I became a disc jockey and I love my music as Kayleigh knows. And...

03:55

Goodness me, in the 70s there were tours by the Eagles and Little Feet and the Doobie Brothers and Paul McCartney and Wings. And it was a hell of a decade for music and visiting acts that started to come here that sort of were coming in the 60s, but in the 70s they really started to come. And I mean, you talk at those lot there, some of my favourite bands of all time and I went to see all of them. So 70s was great. Let's go back to early 60s. And we're talking, would you say Tim that

04:24

Kennedy's assassination was your first really big news story of your life? From Dallas, Texas, the flash apparently official, President Kennedy died at 1 p.m. Central Standard Time, 2 o'clock Eastern Standard Time, some 38 minutes ago. Yeah, because of Dad, I mean, as I say, I was 12, but he was, and I mean, really emotional about it. And, uh...

04:52

At the time, he said, oh, it's got to be the Russians, you know, because everyone just assumed that. And there's been the Warren Commission, there's been any number of reports into it over the years as to who did it. And interestingly to you both, I watched that movie, The Irishman, recently where Al Pacino magnificently plays Jimmy Hoffa. And in that period from JFK to Bobby, I mean, the mafia absolutely hated Bobby Kennedy.

05:23

and that whole period of the Kennedys after the assassination. But everyone thought at the time, you probably both remember, oh, look, Lee Harvey Oswald was was a pawn of the Russians. You know, he did it for them. But yes, I do. I was only 12. But because my old man was and he was honestly for a long time really deeply affected by it because he was in fact, my dad was a member of the Communist Party early in his life. And he was a he's a left winger, worked for the main roads.

05:51

And he was just so angry that anybody had dared to assassinate the president of the United States. I mean, the attempts had been made in the past, but because Kennedy was such a figure in his life, he was just horrified, absolutely horrified. And how things changed, though. I mean, you had the assassination attempt on Reagan in the 80s. And more recently, the former President Trump. As the public perception and the outrage.

06:19

Has that changed? Because I mean, the Kennedy assassination was shattering and there was anger and grief. There was shock with the Reagan assassination attempt. And yet it seemed that the public perception of the whole Donald Trump assassination was almost a side issue to the election and the person responsible and the CIA. And I just, you know, I don't know what your views are on that. Look, it's the Americans and their guns, Guy.

06:49

I mean, over the years, I mean, they just become almost immune to it, you know? And president after president gets up there and says, oh, we've got to do something about gun control. And they do a few things, but then, you know, they're still back in the Wild West. I mean, they just don't understand this whole stupid thing about, you know, people, guns don't kill people, people kill people. Well, if you haven't got a gun, you can't kill people, can you? I mean, it's just about stupid thing you've ever heard. And that amendment that allows them to carry guns.

07:16

That's when it was a muzzleloader, for goodness sake, with a ball and powder and a bit of cloth. I mean, they just don't understand that. So I think you're right. I think they're almost, they're just used to it, you know? And it was like, oh, somebody tried to shoot Donald Trump. And it was a little bit of outrage. But Kennedy, that was genuine. And grief guy in Kayleigh. That was grief from the American people. I mean, he had his flaws, but they loved him. They really loved him. And it was just shock.

07:46

horror and grief. I remember my mother was deeply affected. You talk about your dad, Tim, but my mom was eight months pregnant with me. I was born in January 64. And I remember she told me years later that she wondered what kind of a world she was bringing a child into. And if you put it in the environment of the Cuban Missile Crisis, where the world was sort of ramping up towards, you know, the Cold War, that was a very, very volatile time.

08:16

in the West, wasn't it, for people? So when Kennedy was shot, I think people think, my goodness, if they can get to the President, what's the world, what's going to happen now? Well, you know, people should realise, and maybe they don't if they're not old enough, we're talking about the Middle East now, and you know, on the brink of, and there's a lot of catastrophising about it, you know, war there. But we were very, very, very close to mutual assured destruction in the early 60s. The Bay of Pigs,

08:43

You know, it was just an extraordinary thing. And there were battle cruisers cruising up and down the shores of the United States. And if you're not old enough to remember it, and not even really, I mean, I was 10 then. But when you read the history of it, gee, that was close, the two of you. I mean, and everyone realized it then. And, you know, you were looking at nuclear destruction and you probably both remember you were told back in those days, you know, if in the event of a nuclear

09:11

Missile coming your way, get under the desk and put your hands over your eyes, I mean, please. But that's what we were told back then. But look, you're talking about the possibility of it now. It was very, very real in 1962. Yeah, one of the first news events I remember being told I need to pay attention to as a kid, other than the moon landing, which I was just transfixed to, was the war in Vietnam. My parents had a lot of friends that had been conscripted. And...

09:40

I remember now they say, you need to sit down and watch what's happening on TV in the war. And it was a thing, six o'clock news and the coverage, a lot different to coverage today. There was not the censorship on TV screens necessarily that we may have received today. What are your memories of not just, you know, the war but if it had an effect on you and your family and those around you? Oh, very much. I was in the ballot in 1969.

10:08

1970 and I think from memory it was a birthday thing so they drew your your ballot out according to your birthday and mine's December 15 and I think they called out December 13 and December 16 so I missed out and being you know back in those days and I was a chronic asthmatic as a kid so I probably wouldn't have been taken anyway but my mother was just terrified that I was going to be called up to go to Vietnam and like a lot of young people back then in the late 1960s I

10:38

I marched in the streets too, protesting about the war. And as we all got older, we realised how hideous it was for the blokes that went. And we all know that what Normie Rose experience was. And I think through Normie and our love of music, we realised how much it affected the young men who went. And they were treated so appallingly when they came back. And now we're embracing the fact that it wasn't their fault. They were sent.

11:06

But you know, that's, you took late 60s into the early 70s, and anyone my age would have absolutely voted for Goff in 1972 because he said he was gonna bring our troops home. It was just tedious. And you know, when you think about that, both of you, that was probably the first war that we saw live on television. I mean, really horrible images of napalm and people being shot in the streets. I mean, we didn't see that in...

11:34

World War II, yeah, you saw newsreel vision and you saw newsreel vision of Korea. But Vietnam, we were almost watching it as we're now watching it. We're watching bombs dropping and killing people in the Middle East. But that was the beginning. We were starting to watch a war on television. And do you think that's what contributed to the protest movement, particularly in the US, because they were seeing what was happening virtually in real time or at the end of the day in the news?

12:01

and they felt they could do something about it by protesting, whereas compare that to the Second World War, any news that our parents would have got on the Second World War would have been dazing coming through. So there was a bit of distance, I guess, between us at home and those fighting, but it really came to the fore, the anti-war movement, didn't it, with Vietnam? Oh, without a doubt, and remember, it's hideous to talk about, but Americans were seeing body bags coming off planes and coffins coming off planes.

12:31

It was horrific to us that came home to them, that these boys that had been sent over to this war, that they didn't win, by the way. They didn't win it. And it was a horrific war. And the Vietnamese just didn't, they didn't want anyone there. They kicked out the French and eventually kicked out the Americans. And we came home, but the vision of coffins and body bags coming off planes was just too hard for people to cope with. And that led to all of the demonstrations. And...

12:59

the Americans, it was a really, really tough time for them because, I mean, these young boys and women had been sent to this war because there was that terrible fear of communism that McCarthy started. And McCarthyism led to the Americans being absolutely pathologically afraid of communism. So there you are in Korea, there you are in Vietnam and fighting off communism because that's what they wanted to do. But the young people were saying, well, you know,

13:29

Well, yeah, but look at all of these hundreds and hundreds of young men coming back in a body bag or a coffin. So very emotional time for me as a 17, 18 year old in 1968, 1969. And you talk about Goff wanting to bring the troops home and John Gorton getting the ball rolling. Fast forward to the dismissal.

13:56

Where were you? What were you doing? We all have those where I was sort of moments. Where were you when you heard the New Years? Well, you know, I was about a month away from being able to vote in 1972 because it was 21 back then. So I couldn't vote in 72, but I voted in 75. And anyone who was, you know, in their 20s then voted for Goff, I can promise you, because he promised to bring the troops back. The only thing I'd say about that is, and it's a long story, I'll try and shorten it, and I'll never forget this either.

14:26

Goff came to the Wanji Workers Club to deliver a speech. Now, the Wanji Workers Club probably holds, I don't know, two or 300 people at best. There were probably 3,000 people on the lawns outside. And when he arrived, it was like the emperor had turned up and I've never seen or heard anything like it in my life. I mean, I had to wait probably 20 minutes for the cheering to stop to introduce him. So he was such a...

14:55

towering figure with this incredible intellect and wit and the speech he gave that night was terrific and that I'll never forget. This outpouring of, well I'm going to call it love for him because it was and it's Newcastle and as you probably both know Newcastle back then, not so much now, was very much a Labor town, very much in the 70s and I'll never forget that. Let's have a listen now to that famous moment when Goff walked out of Parliament House to

15:25

of people announcing that he was leaving Parliament. Well may we say God saved the Queen. Because nothing will save the Governor General. Very powerful stuff. They loved him. They loved him. Listen to the roaring in the background. They loved him. But what about, what about the, I mean I don't know if he made it up or wrote it in the middle, what about the wherewithal?

15:55

to say that. Yes. Well, may we say God save the Queen because nothing will save the Queen. I mean, it's just in the Australian history, it's just something everybody knows those words, don't they? Everybody knows them. They really do. Maybe the young people don't, but we all do. This episode of The Big Sixo brought to you by Louis Carr Real Estate, helping people in the Hills District find their dream home since 1992. Ready to buy, sell or rent?

16:23

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16:30

Let's go back to 1969, we're talking about Vietnam before, we've jumped ahead of ourselves. I want to go back to Man on the Moon, we touched on it. The words, the immortal words that everyone on the planet probably knows. These ones, spoken by Neil Armstrong. That's one small step for man.

16:49

one giant leap for mankind. Just so powerful. And thanks to movies like The Dish, now we can, people in our generation or even younger, can understand the role that Australia played in that moon mission. And when you think about the fact that we haven't put somebody on the moon since and how long ago that was, it makes it even more extraordinary. It does, doesn't it? I mean, and we played a tremendous part in all of that. And that was a long time ago. And you would have thought

17:19

they'd been back and good, there's that much stuff up in space now. And you think, well, why didn't they? Why didn't the Russians? We've got the international space station and they spend many months there. The Russians, the Americans, they spend months there doing, you know, all sorts of experiments and you think to yourself, well, why not? And, you know, I do interviews, Carly on the radio now with, with scientists who say, well, I can see the day when there will be some sort of colony on the moon.

17:49

probably scientists to begin with. And then you'll say to people, and maybe the wealthy dudes like Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson, and you still can go with him, you can go on SpaceX, you can go on a rocket and go to space with Elon. Maybe it'll be a trip to the moon. But 1969, that's a very long time ago. And you're right, I mean, why haven't we been back? Is it too hard, too much money, whatever. But it was just watching that black and white TV sitting on the desks at school.

18:19

It's a vivid memory. Yeah, domestically too. Something that I think that mobilised a nation back in 74 was Cyclone Tracy. Yeah. I remember relatives billeting people from Darwin down here in Sydney. And that was a time where we did come together as a nation, wasn't it? Yeah, it certainly was. And Australians, and I hope we still are, we do come together in times of adversity like that. And

18:47

I think that took everybody by surprise because we don't, we've just seen that dreadful hurricane haline in America, which is just too depressing to watch. But we weren't used to that because we don't generally have those sort of things. But it flattened it. It flattened Darwin. And it was one of those things where, again, it only just got into radio at that stage and it dominated pretty much everything that you were talking about in 1974 and into 1975.

19:17

of Australians, when there's adversity, you know, Australians are terrific. And that, you know, when you think about that in terms of everything we've endured and we've endured plenty, it was probably Australians at their best. Don't you think the response to that and the way, you know, it was able to be rebuilt and the army was mobilized and people were just chipping in and pitching in and helping. And, yeah, it was, it's hard to imagine that that's 50 years ago, too. Hey, you know.

19:45

Closer to home, we remember in the late 70s, we had the, for people who were outside of Sydney, we had a terrible fire in an amusement park here called Luna Park, the ghost train fire, that tragically took, I think, five, six lives, including young children. But in the broader scheme of what was going on in Sydney at that time, Tim, you know, we had Neville ran as the premier, there were a lot of undertones of corruption in the government, certainly at a state level at that time. What are your memories of that?

20:15

Yeah, well, yes, it was Neville and a rugby league identity called Kevin Humphries. He was in there too. All sorts of accusations being thrown around. You know, I personally think as far as politicians are concerned, I'm not a big fan of the current lot in general with a couple of exceptions, but you know, Neville Rand was just an exceptional politician. And again, like Hawke was much admired in New South Wales, but...

20:44

Oh, the fire at Luna Park. I mean, when you think about that, I mean, we now got OH&S probably would never happen. You'd hope not. But it was one of those things I thought to myself back then, how do these things happen? But, you know, Neville ran even into the 80s for various reasons. I've interviewed Neville a few times over the years. Just an incredibly clever man, a man who loved his politics, loved his Labour Party and loved New South Wales.

21:14

Neville Rand was A, a great politician, and I think B, a terrific premier of New South Wales. He always handled things, always handled things extremely well. But I don't know if you remember, Kayleigh, but one thing Neville always said was, journalists can't ring me early in the morning. Nowadays, you can ring a journalist at six o'clock in the morning. I'll ring a politician and they'll talk to you. Neville said, no, no, I need my sleep. I need my sleep.

21:40

And if you're gonna be at six o'clock in the morning, I won't answer the phone. After nine o'clock, you can talk to Neville, but before that, no chance. You talked about earlier, some of the music and the tours that sort of started to become part and parcel of the Australian way of life, whether it was the Doobies or the Eagles. And of course we had the death of Elvis in 77. What are some of the memories from that period, as far as you're concerned? Well, let me go forward to Elvis.

22:09

I was in Newcastle, 2K0 in Newcastle, and the news came through and I thought, no, that can't be right. It was right and I was doing mornings. And I promise you, we spent the entire morning taking calls from mainly women who were just heartbroken, absolute, in tears on the phone talking to us. And I spoke to them and played Elvis records for the whole morning. I think the radio station did that.

22:36

for the whole day, because no one could quite believe that. I mean, 42. And nobody really knew the sort of lifestyle he had until later. It was just Elvis, and everybody loved him. And it was just an extraordinary day on the radio, that. And for many weeks after that, it was the aftermath and people were saying, well, how could that possibly happen? And then you learned, you know, what his lifestyle was. I mean, an extraordinary.

23:03

way to live to be taking drugs to go to sleep, taking drugs to get up and going to the movies at three o'clock in the morning with all your mates because it's the only place you could go and you couldn't go any other time because he was Elvis and he couldn't go out really. I mean that was, yeah that's another day I'll never forget that one, the death of Elvis Presley. Oh and by the way, I mean talking about the 70s, don't forget the first female Prime Minister in the UK, Margaret Thatcher. Yes, didn't she stir the pot?

23:33

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, didn't she ever? And was the Prime Minister for a long time. You know, people thought the Pommies like to be dictated to. Well, if you like to be dictated to, that's the woman for you. Margaret Thatcher. But remember that interview she did with George Negus. Yes, famous interview. George said to her, she said, you know, people say that you're hard to deal with. And she said, well, who are these people? What people are you talking about?

24:01

And George said, well, you know, I get around and I speak to people and people say that you're and she just stared at him with this icy stare and said, who are they? I want to know who they are. And I just laughed. And George was a great journalist, but he's a great journalist. You probably know that George is suffering terribly from dementia at the moment. But he was a great journalist, George, and he was taken aback by that one. He was he was tough as teak. Margaret.

24:31

Tim, thank you so much for the chat today. I could talk to you forever about this stuff and you know so much about the history of not only this country, but the world. But thank you so much for your time. We really appreciate it. Oh, it's an absolute pleasure. And thank you. It was a fun thing to do. Thanks, Scott. Talk to you soon, Tim. Thanks again. The views and opinions expressed on the Big 6O are personal and reflect those of the hosts and guests. They do not represent the views or positions of any affiliated organisations or companies.

24:58

This podcast is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice. Please consult with a qualified professional for guidance on any personal matters. Ah, and before we go, let's give credit where credit is due. Kayleigh Harris and I came up with all the genius content for this week's episode. Our producer, Nick Aboud, well he keeps the lights on and makes sure we don't accidentally upload a cat video instead of a podcast. So thanks for keeping us on track, Nick.

25:28

Nick. Nick!