Lisa Wilkinson opens up on her memories of bullying

The Bottom Line (airing Saturday 3 May at 4.00pm). In this personal and inspiring tell-all, Wilkinson reveals to host Alex Malley (Chief Executive of CPA Australia) that being a target of bullying at an early age forced her to give up her dreams of becoming a ballerina. “You want to disappear, you don’t want to stand out from the crowd, you don’t want to be good at anything because that just makes you more of a target…it was made clear to me that ballet was very uncool and so I gave it up…” Wilkinson, who grew up in Campbelltown in Sydney’s western suburbs, tells Malley that whilst giving in to the pressures of bullying is still her biggest regret, the defining moment also serves as a great reminder for her in her day-to-day approach to life and work. “I made a promise to myself that I would never let anyone else decide who I am…the slate was wiped clean and this was my version of me that was going out into the world.” Three decades on, Wilkinson’s career has traversed the Australian media landscape, culminating in her highly successful partnership with Karl Stefanovic as co-hosts of the Nine Network’s popular TODAY show. Wilkinson tells Malley about her extraordinary journey, including her appointment as Dolly magazine’s editor at just twenty-one years old. “The magazine circulation was sort of waning a bit and I just said, ‘guys you’ve got to understand Bay City Rollers aren’t hot anymore. We’ve got to do a giant tear out poster of Meat Loaf….” At 25, Wilkinson was headhunted by Kerry Packer to edit ACP’s Cleo magazine, a role she held for 10 years. Later she became Cleo’s International Editor-in-Chief, running editions in New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Today, Wilkinson is often celebrated as being a role model for young women. She was the second woman to deliver the annual Andrew Ollie lecture in 2013, addressing the challenges faced in the media by women. “The thing I’m most proud of in my career is teaching young journalists the ropes and then just watching them fly. There is no greater joy.” Lisa Wilkinson shares her insights with Alex Malley on The Bottom Line – airing on Saturday 3 May at 4pm on Channel Nine.]]>