Nine boss apologises to Gina Rinehart for 'disgraceful and false' mini series
Channel Nine's boss has offered an apology to Australia's richest woman Gina Rinehart over an "inaccurate" fictionalised drama about the mining baron's family.
The multi-billionaire sued the network over the portrayal of her family in the TV mini series House of Hancock.
The drama series was slammed as "disgraceful" and "false" for its depiction of Mrs Rinehart family, including her late parents Hope and Lang Hancock and her husband Frank Rinehart.
The apology was written one week but Mrs Rinehart only received it today, News Corp reports.
"That mini-series was a drama, not a documentary, and certain matters were fictionalised for dramatic purposes," the apology, signed by the Nine CEO Hugh Marks, stated.
The settlement between Nine and Mrs Rinehart has not been disclosed but Nine reportedly can no longer on-sell the series co-produced by Cordell Jigsaw.
"Nine and Cordell Jigsaw accept that Mrs Rinehart had a very loving and close relationship with her mother, father and husband, and has with Hope and Ginia," the apology stated.
"They also acknowledge the significant contribution that Mrs Rinehart has made to Australia through her years of hard work and dedication and by her investment in this country, to its industry, economy and to the employment of Australians and by her longstanding support of elite sport and numerous worthwhile charities.
"Nine and Cordell Jigsaw accept that Mrs Rinehart found the broadcast to be inaccurate.
"That was certainly not the intention of Nine or Cordell Jigsaw, and each unreservedly apologises to Mrs Rinehart and her family for any hurt or offence caused by the broadcast and its promotion."
The suit was not about money but correcting the record, a spokeswoman for Mrs Rinehart said.
"It was about Mrs Rinehart standing up for her deeply loved family members to try to stop the further spreading of unfair and grossly disgraceful falsehoods about her family, especially when certain of her family members are no longer here able to defend themselves," the spokeswoman said in a statement.
"This matter was not just about the fundamental right of Mrs Rinehart and her family not to have lies and misrepresentations spread publicly about them, but Mrs Rinehart hopes that this matter will lead to the greater protection of others from such unfair conduct by the media and lead our politicians to activate long overdue reform in this area."
Sam Neill played Lang Hancock while Mandy McElhinney starred as Gina Rinehart in the mini series.
