I am choosing to share with you today that part of my life that I have not spoken about before: that I am gay.

In a year where he celebrates 10 years as the lead newsreader on one of Australia's most successful news teams ever, Peter Hitchener from Nine's Melbourne News today announced that he was gay.

In a wide ranging interview in the Sunday Herald Sun newspaper, the 62 year old veteran, decided it was time to share this personal news.

"It is not something that has ever come up before. I have never been asked about it before. There is never a right time, or an easy time, to talk about these personal issues, but this is the right time to say it and to move on," Hitchener said to the Herald Sun journalist Fiona Byrne.

"I am a single person and given that we are on private issues of private life, I am choosing to share with you today that part of my life that I have not spoken about before: that I am gay.

"That is part of who I am and with that disclosure, or acknowledgment, I just also need to say I am still the person I was yesterday. I am still the same person and I remain committed to my job and my family and my service and so on." 

The announcement comes as Hitchener also celebrates 35 years at Channel 9, 20 of those years as the understudy for the top job in Melbourne and 10 as the lead anchor.

For the first time in almost 30 years Seven News won the nightly news battle last year in Melbourne by one week, this year Nine and Hitchener have bounced back taking all but one of the six weeks so far this year and Hitchener believes last years loss made them pick up their game.

The story of Hitchener being gay has never been a huge secret within media circles in Melbourne or for that matter within the general public, and is not expected to see any sort of backlash towards the veteran or his news service. But it was strange that the Sunday Herald Sun seemed to bury the massive story some 500 words into the article in today's sunday paper.

It will be interesting to see if any of his rivals or indeed other media outlets take this story on in the next few days. Or also, whether it leads to other high profile media people to follow the lead and declare they are gay as well.

Channel 9’s director of news in Melbourne, Michael Venus, said he fully supported Hitchener’s decision to speak about his personal life.

"I am acutely aware of how difficult a decision this has been for Peter. Indeed I know he has agonised over it for a very long time," Venus said.

"But it is a decision which has our full support and in no way diminishes his standing as one of Australia’s pre-eminent broadcasters.

"And why would it? His professionalism and credibility is without peer. He is an enormously popular and much-loved public figure who continues to do an outstanding job.

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