Brief biography of Bob Wurth

Queensland writer Bob Wurth's interest in the Asia-Pacific region goes back to 1970-72 when he lived in Port Moresby, travelling on assignment as a journalist throughout Papua New Guinea. He returned to Sydney in 1972, but travelled to Papua New Guinea frequently thereafter.

Bob Wurth was a foreign correspondent for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation based in Singapore between 1981 and 1985. He reported for ABC radio and television on major events in Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Thailand, Pakistan and India. His assignments included the assassination of Benigno Aquino at Manila Airport in 1983 and Indira Gandhi in New Delhi in 1984.

He was ABC Manager for Asia in 1984 and 1985 and acted in that position in 1988. He later became Manager for Queensland for ABC radio and television, before taking up writing on a full-time basis in 1999. He had also worked as an ABC broadcast news consultant to the South African Broadcasting Corporation, in the lead up to that country's first democratic election, undertaking a major review of the SABC public information services. He also worked as a trainer-consultant to the National Broadcasting Corporation in Papua New Guinea.

He is the author of four books to date:
Justice in the Philippines, Father Brian Gore, the church, the state and the military, ABC Books, 1985.
Saving Australia, Curtin's secret peace with Japan, Lothian Books, 2006.
1942, Australia's greatest peril, Pan Macmillan, 2008.

His fourth book, Capturing Asia was published by ABC Books in 2010 and covers the life story of Phua Tin Tua, a Chinese Singaporean cameraman awarded the Order of Australia medal, and Phua's coverage of major events in Asia with ABC correspondents over almost four decades.

In 2008, Bob Wurth donated his papers relating to his research for his book Saving Australia, Curtin's secret peace with Japan to the JCPML.