Australian media trailblazer Vaughan Hinton died in August this year at the age of 91, with reports of his passing only recently becoming public.
The legendary newsman passed away in the small Victorian town of Monbulk in the Yarra Ranges, after a long health battle.
He was a jack-of-all-trades who worked as a journalist, presenter, producer and writer across his celebrate five-decade long career.
Hinton was born in Toowoomba, Queensland in 1933 and began his esteemed career in the mid-fifties as a journalist at a regional newspaper.
The media personality always had a strong interest in promoting social justice issues.
In 1977 he joined ABC Radio as a presenter, where he could speak on a range of issues that were important to him.
Australian media trailblazer Vaughan Hinton (pictured) died in August this year at the age of 91, with reports of his passing only recently becoming public
As an early advocate of Australia’s LGBTQ community, Hinton was integral in ensuring Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras was broadcast on the ABC and helped it first go to air in 1994.
He also worked on the program as an executive producer and it was an enormous success, with his colleagues at the network later congratulating him on attracting a then-record 2.5million viewers.
The passionate broadcaster continued to work with the ABC across the 80s and in 1986 was appointed the networks executive producer for all significant national events and Indigenous affairs.
The following year he created the long-running ABC lifestyle program Compass, in which spirituality, ethics and values were openly discussed.
The program continues to run to this day and is currently hosted by Indira Naidoo.
He was also a TV presenter on the critically acclaimed 70s ABC series Man in Question, in which he interviewed high-profile personalities and asked them hard-hitting questions.
Hinton also helmed two critically acclaimed shows which explored the lives of Indigenous people.
The programs – The First Australians and Blackout – featured Aboriginal people discussing relevant issues.
The legendary newsman passed away in the small Victorian town of Monbulk in the Yarra Ranges, after a long health battle
He was a jack-of-all-trades who worked as a journalist, presenter, producer and writer across his celebrate five-decade long career
He semi-retired in 1997 but continued to work on small projects up until 2003, when he relocated to regional Victoria with his family.
Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore paid tribute to Hinton in a public meeting.
‘Vaughan wrote his life has been defined by walking through doors which did not reveal what was behind them,’ Moore said.
‘What has been revealed about us as Australians through his many programs is his legacy.’
In recognition of his long services to Australian media, he was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in 2004.
He outlived his wife Elizabeth by several years.
Hinton is survived by his long-term partner Kym, daughters Nicola and Caroline, and several children and great-grandchildren.
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