While head of Cleo, Ita Buttrose was raising 2 kids. She was chastised for being 'a bad mother'.

Ita Buttrose is synonymous with Australian media.

And with such a long career in the industry, it makes sense why.

Buttrose left school at the age of 15 to become a copy girl at the Australian Women's Weekly. By age 23, she was the women's editor of the Daily Telegraph.

But perhaps what Buttrose is best known for doing is launching Cleo – which in the early '70s was quite the bold move, considering there were few women-focused media mastheads in Australia. Yet she forged on as a magazine editor and publishing executive for decades – building a strong feminist brand amongst a sea of men's media. 

As she said on Mamamia's No Filter podcast in 2016, celebrating all things female was always at the core of her mission in magazines.

"There were no women's voices being heard, and that's where magazines filled the gap. Being a feminist is a proud thing to be. I've been a feminist since I was a very little girl, I just didn't know it," she said.

Ita Buttrose during her magazine days. Image: Getty.

But it was a tough slog to work her way up to the top. And around this time, she was also a busy woman outside of work – raising two children, and dealing with two back-to-back divorces.  

"Things were easier for working women in my day... We did not have to be on tap 24/7, because when I finished work I finished work. I finished at 6pm... Sometimes I might have worked at the weekend, but that was my call. You knew you had your playtime, your time with your children."

As she said to Australian Story in 2011: "I had the children, but I kept working. And people would say, 'And who's minding your daughter today?' in that way as though 'You're a bad mother!'"

In 1981, Buttrose became the first female editor-in-chief of an Australian metropolitan daily newspaper when Rupert Murdoch appointed her to the Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph.

Also on her resume was her time editing the most popular magazine in the country – the Australian Women's Weekly. And for a time, the Weekly under her editorship became the highest-selling magazine in the world per capita.

More recently, Buttrose was appointed the Chair of the ABC. At the age of 77 she received the top job, chosen by Scott Morrison in a Prime Ministerial captain's pick over a short-list of three men for the top spot. 

It was a position, she says, she was "stunned" to be offered. But it was also a position she was determined to take with both hands and make her own.

Now at 80 years old, Buttrose's term as ABC Chair will be coming to a close in March 2024. And on Monday night, Buttrose's life and career was featured on Australian Story, unpacking how she has juggled the complexities of one of the country's largest media institutions. 

Watch Ita Buttrose on the problem with Australian Women's Magazines. Post continues below.

Looking back on all she has achieved she said to the program: "When I was offered the job I realised 'Ah, I see what my whole career has been about'. Because I thought everything I've ever done in my career has equipped me to be the Chair of the ABC."

When she first landed at the ABC's head office in Sydney, she felt like there was a dark cloud over the institution. And she was determined to solve it.

"When I walked in the doors at Ultimo at that time, I could sense a sense of gloom," she explained.

The Australian Federal Police raid of the ABC in 2019 was one point in particular that still makes Buttrose frustrated.

"I was shocked. I mean, what sort of a country are we when we send the Federal Police in to threaten, to frighten, to intimidate? I know how important the freedom of the press is. And I will defend it to the utmost."

It was a determination and viewpoint that Buttrose had inherited from her father – who worked his way up to being the assistant general manager of the ABC.

"I knew I wanted to be a journalist when I was 11 years old. My father was a journalist, editor and author who travelled the world. I was always very influenced by my father. He really was my hero," she said.

Before her father died, he had serious dementia. And while his health and memory declined, Buttrose was his carer.

For much of the last two decades, Buttrose has been a Dementia Australia Ambassador and dedicated many years to advocacy.

As she said: "If I have to raise my voice until I am hoarse, then so be it."

Ita today. Image: Getty.

Reflecting on what she's most proud of in her career, Buttrose said her time bringing attention and awareness to the AIDS epidemic stood out. She was the chairperson of the National Advisory Committee on AIDS (NACAIDS) from 1984 until 1988.

"Gay men died in large numbers. Many of my gay friends died. It was dreadful – an awful time," she said on Australian Story.

"People were terrified of getting AIDS. The World Health Organisation did say that we had run a really good campaign, and that our approach to HIV/AIDS had been excellent. All of us were very proud."

And now in her 80s, Buttrose said she has slowed down in work – but has no plans on retiring or stopping work altogether.

"Do I look like I feel the frailty of age? I don't think so. I think I accept there are some things I can't do, or shouldn't do. I have slowed down. But I don't wish to retire," she explained.

"I can't envisage my life without working. Maybe because I've been working since I'm 15. I am able to do what I want to do. If I want to go to the opera, I can go to the opera. If I want to go down and play with the grandchildren, I can do that. You know, I've got plenty of time to do things I want to do. My drum is still beating quite strongly."

Feature Image: Getty/ABC.

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