Joe Hockey has said his "feelings don't really matter" regarding his controversial interview with journalist Sarah Ferguson after an ABC-commissioned review found she breached the broadcaster's impartiality guidelines by not showing the Treasurer enough respect.
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While many of the nation's most senior journalists have strongly defended Ms Ferguson's celebrated interview, Mr Hockey said that it was up to others to judge whether it was fair.
Ms Ferguson's interview with Mr Hockey on budget night last year was nominated for a Walkley Award for journalistic excellence.
But in an audit of the broadcaster's budget coverage, former Australian Financial Review editor Colleen Ryan found that some of the interview's exchanges "do not meet the impartiality guidelines to treat the interviewee 'with civility and respect unless there is a compelling reason not to do so'".
While noting that the interview was "compelling" television and that Ms Ferguson treats all sides of politics the same way, Ms Ryan wrote that she found the interview "jarring", disrespectful and that it demonstrated how "perceptions of bias could be inflamed unnecessarily".
Ms Ryan's finding has been rejected by the ABC's director of news and criticised by some of the nation's top journalists.
Channel Nine political editor and press gallery veteran Laurie Oakes described the ruling as "stupid" and said Ms Ferguson's interview was "excellent".
7.30 host Leigh Sales said on Twitter: "I can only imagine how 'Who are you?' would be judged. Disturbing." This was a reference to Ms Sales' interview with Prime Minister Tony Abbott last week in which she asked him several times, "Who are you?"
Ms Sales noted that almost every political interview attracts a bias complaint.
Asked on Fairfax Radio on Tuesday whether he felt he was treated fairly in the interview, Mr Hockey said: "Well, I'll leave that to others."
Mr Hockey added: "My feelings don't really matter … I'll leave that to the ABC."
Ms Ferguson told Fairfax Media on Monday: "The interview speaks for itself." It is understood she argued internally that the interview was not unfair or unnecessarily disrespectful.
Ms Ryan found the ABC's budget coverage was "excellent" overall with only three out of 76 analysed items identified for criticism.
