Veteran ABC Journalist Peter Ryan Passes Away at 64, Just One Month Into Retirement

Share and Follow

ABC journalist Peter Ryan OAM has died aged 64, just a month after retiring due to ill health.

The former ABC chief business and finance correspondent left the ABC in June before moving into palliative care for metastatic thyroid cancer.

Ryan was first diagnosed in 2014 following a distinguished career with the government broadcaster, including a period as ABC Washington bureau chief and head of TV news and current affairs in Melbourne.

ABC journalist Peter Ryan — Peter Ryan, ABC’s former chief business and finance correspondent, has died aged 64. (ABC)

In 2022, he was awarded the Order of Australia medal for his service to journalism.

“Peter leaves a significant legacy. Through his mentorship, friendship and professionalism he directly touched the lives of many at the ABC,” said ABC news director Justin Stevens.

“Through his journalism he had a profound impact on the lives of Australians and our society.

“It was a privilege to know him and work alongside him.”

Upon announcement of his retirement in late June, Treasurer Jim Chalmers described Ryan as an “absolute legend”.

“Every day as you wake up and you think about what’s happening in the economy, if you only needed to listen to one voice to be sure that you got its essential elements, it would be Peter’s,” Chalmers said.

Journalist Peter Ryan — In 2022, he was awarded the Order of Australia medal for his service to journalism. (ABC News: John Gunn)

Ryan began his career as a copy boy at the now-defunct Sydney Daily Mirror in 1980 at age 18.

It was a time, he once said, where people smoked in newsrooms and newspapers were still printed off hot metal.

Before his retirement, Ryan had some parting words of advice from his nearly half a century in journalism.

“One strong message I have is, never let anyone tell you the good old days were really that good – that’s a bit of a myth,” Ryan said.

“I’d like to thank the ABC for taking so many risks with me over the years, giving me my dream of a foreign posting in Washington and then into big editorial roles.

“But for me in the end it’s all about being a reporter out in the real world telling it as it is. I’m always chuffed when I hear people tell me you’re able to take complex issues and break them down into three good parts.

“When someone tells me that, that’s more important than a whole lot of awards.”

Ryan leaves behind his wife, Mary, and a daughter, Charlotte.