Respected Broadcaster & Newspaper Columnist

Fans of Mike’s sharp wit and satirical humour tune in to Sydney’s 2UE breakfast radio, and, until his departure from the Sydney Morning Herald, poured over his weekly column. He is one of Australia's best known in the business, leading a varied and colourful journalistic career that saw him reporting from the four corners of the globe. Author of best-selling satirical novel Off The Air, Mike’s controversial and entertaining style has won him some of the industry’s highest accolades.

Mike Carlton is one of Australia’s best known broadcasters and newspaper columnists. In a journalistic career of 40 years, he has been a news reporter and editor, foreign correspondent, TV current affairs reporter and anchor, radio current affairs anchor, humorist and satirist. Mike Carlton currently co-hosts the daily breakfast program on Sydney radio station 2UE with Peter FitzSimons and writes a Saturday column as a left-wing pundit for The Sydney Morning Herald.

Carlton in recent times has been noted for his criticism of conservative public figures such as Prime Minister John Howard, Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and radio personality Alan Jones, and for his criticism of conservative governments, including the US's Bush administration.

His foreign experience ranges from assignments as a war correspondent in Viet Nam in the 60’s and 70’s, through reporting in Asia, Africa, Europe and the US. For three years in the late 60’s he was the ABC’s bureau chief in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Mike Carlton returned to Australia to become a reporter on the trail-blazing This Day Tonight current affairs program on ABC television, and then later worked for the Nine Network’s A Current Affair.

Moving to commercial radio in the 1980’s, Mike Carlton pioneered the News talk format on the breakfast program on 2GB in Sydney, where he top-rated for 4 years. In the early 90’s he hosted a breakfast news talk show on London’s LBC 97.3 FM which won major awards in the UK and at the New York Radio Festival.

That London experience led him to write a satirical noel Off The Air, which made the Australian best-seller lists in 1998. His regular column for the Saturday edition of The Sydney Morning Herald is a reader “must” for its sharp wit and often controversial views of current events.

Mike Carlton brings a broad, unmatched experience to his 2UE breakfast program from 5.30am to 9am each weekday - unmatched for news, talk, information, humour and downright great entertainment.