Network publicists are a funny lot. 'So nice to meet you,' they tell us. 'Phone us any time,' they tell us. 'We're always happy to take your call.’. That is, of course, until we call them about something they don't want to talk about (which, unsurprisingly, happens quite frequently at Inside Mail). And so it was with Nova last week after Kate Ritchie suffered a very public meltdown. We initially got in touch with Nova via email... but it seemed their server must have been down because our inquiries didn't just go unanswered - they went unacknowledged.

So we tried calling. Then texting. And nary a word was heard. Now, we have no dramas with Ritchie whatsoever. Quite the contrary - we're big fans. We're duty-bound to ask Nova: 'Is everything okay with Kate?' Unfortunately, Inside Mail has not received an answer. What's more, we 100 per cent believe in the former Home and Away star's right to privacy… in private. But when a headline brekky radio presenter... who is on more than a million dollars a year... and trades on her public profile... is seen rocking back and forth... and crying in a very public park... the engine of her car still idling...

Well, then, we're more than duty-bound to ask: 'Hey, guys, what's going on here? Is everything okay with Kate?'. Particularly, when a key public personality, who is on record addressing her alcohol dependency issues, is spotted stopping off at a bottle shop after calling in sick for her first week back at work. In the days after our scoop, Kate issued a statement acknowledging she was in a bad place and asking for privacy.

Her colleagues at Nova, as well as hosts at rival radio networks, also offered their sympathy and criticised us for publishing the story in the first place. While they are entitled to their opinions, it all feels very 'shoot the messenger'. Sure, let's totally ignore her issues and not report on it because we liked her as Sally Fletcher from Summer Bay. When Inside Mail reached out to Nova to ask about the well-being of headline brekky radio presenter Kate Ritchie, it seems their server must have been down...

Please. Sweeping things under the rug never causes any problems, does it?. Make no mistake, this is serious stuff and will be seen as a major drama for the top brass in at Nova. Now, while we're on the subject of Nova, we hear the Ritchie episode isn't the only drama that's been playing out among network executives. We hear there was all hell to pay after Inside Mail revealed its staffers had received a company-wide email last month advising them they need not celebrate Australia Day on January 26 if they felt uncomfortable doing so.

Instead, they were welcome to work through on the nation holiday and take another day of their choosing off instead. Turns out, this sort of namby-pampy nonsense doesn't quite fly with everyone at the network… and one key, very senior identity was particularly irate to hear about the internal email… and, worse yet, to hear about it from us. Read the full edition of INSIDE MAIL tomorrow, exclusively for Mail+ subscribers. Last week's column can be found here.