The announcement in the Weekend Australian on Saturday about the appointment of Cameron Stewart as the paper’s Associate Editor was the culmination of a furious bidding war for Stewart, one of the paper’s star reporters. It was triggered by a big offer from new Age editor Andrew Jaspan, which was gazumped by The Australian. No wonder Stewart was smiling in the picture in Saturday’s Oz.

Japan hasn’t been having much luck in his search for high-profile new recruits. Stewart’s decision to stay put at the Oz comes after Jaspan failed to lure Andrew Bolt – arguably Victoria’s most influential opinion columnist – away from the Herald Sun with a whopping $300,000 offer. Back then, Crikey boldly predicted “an emerging talent war between The Age and the Herald Sun” but so far it’s been an absolute fizzer. The search continues…