Karl Stefanovic pulls out of radio show tomorrow amid Robinson controversy

Presenter Karl Stefanovic has pulled out of his scheduled appearance on his new radio show with Eddie McGuire on Friday amid a furore over his sympathetic interview with UK right-wing extremist Tommy Robinson.

Stefanovic and McGuire were scheduled to host an episode of their show The Long Weekend, which was to stream on radio station Gold and Nine’s platforms.

Sources familiar with the matter said there were conversations between Stefanovic and ARN about his future with the radio network, which only settled its lawsuit with former host Kyle Sandilands this month.

McGuire will front the show tomorrow alone. Asked whether Stefanovic would be on the show, McGuire said he was “still not sure” but “probably not at this stage”.

“I’m trying to get to the bottom of things myself.”

Another source confirmed Stefanovic would not be appearing. The Nine star is expected to depart his post hosting the Today breakfast program after his interview with the far-right UK figure.

In the interview, Stefanovic praised Robinson’s “tenacity” and “courage” for “trying to stand up for what you believe is right”.

Speaking at an event at Parliament House on Thursday, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese weighed in on the matter.

“I don’t want to get into a debate about Nine at the moment but, you know, look at what’s happened,” he said.

“You go down that road and you get further and further out on the edges of what is mainstream political debate in this country and … I think that that can have, you know, an impact.”

A spokeswoman for ARN reiterated the company’s statement from Wednesday, emphasising that Stefanovic had a limited association with the company around the weekly show.

“His external media activities, including his podcast, are undertaken in a personal capacity and are entirely separate from the network, which we have no control over,” she said. “They do not represent ARN’s views, editorial standards or programming.”

More to come.