At least two of those staff have signed non-disclosure agreements, and several have left the business. The investigation into Mr Foo’s conduct began in April last year, and interviews were conducted by Stan’s human resources team and its general counsel, Emren Kara, over two days.

Mr Foo did not respond to requests for comment. People close to Mr Foo said his departure had been his decision, and it could not be likened to Wick’s exit. In a statement, Nine said: “[Mr Sneesby] played no part in – and had no visibility into – the process that led to Adrian Foo’s departure from Stan given their longstanding friendship.”

Stan did not respond to questions on Monday or Tuesday.

‘More work needs to be done’

Two sources who spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the sensitive nature of the issue, said the investigation was not resolved because Mr Foo left the business. Mr Foo, who had been at Stan since 2016, moved to QMS, the outdoor media company owned by Quadrant Private Equity, last year.

Nine is a major client of QMS, and Stan runs advertising campaigns for its content on the company’s outdoor displays.

On Monday, Mr Sneesby emailed Nine staff conceding “more work needs to be done” to make the company’s workplace safer after details of Mr Wick’s conduct were made public. He announced an independent review of behaviour in newsrooms, and set up an external complaint line for staff.

“It will be handled by an external firm and provide findings and advice on how we behave and how we can implement better systems and processes for the future,” he wrote, adding he could also be contacted directly by staff.

Mr Wick stepped down in March this year after an unexplained, month-long absence. His email to staff said he stepped down after taking time off and after “many long beach walks”. But it emerged that he had been accused of behaving in a drunken and lecherous way for more than a decade.

Nine’s leadership team held a crisis meeting last week to discuss the situation. Nine’s board is also expected to meet this week. Mr Wick’s replacement, Fiona Dear, addressed staff with Mr Sneesby on Monday.

Mr Wick narrowly escaped jail in 2021 after being caught drink-driving from a staff function with a blood-alcohol level four times over the legal limit. After time in rehab, he had been sober, Nine insiders said. But Nine received a formal complaint in January this year relating to a historical incident.

The Herald reported that only three executives were aware of the complaint, one of whom was Mr Sneesby. Several women, the Herald reported, had left Nine’s television newsroom. One said she felt Mr Wick was “untouchable” because little had been done about his conduct.

Mr Wick ran Nine’s national news division, current affairs programs such as 60 Minutes and A Current Affair, and oversaw the popular Today show.

Mr Wick is the latest high-profile media executive to depart after allegations of inappropriate behaviour. Over the past 18 months, several senior editors at News Corp Australia have left after allegations were levelled against them.