Four Corners

The sophisticated corporate campaign to future-proof the Crown.

"What you get now is a very packaged royalty...It is a very professional operation in spin management, media management, media operations." Author

For almost two weeks Australia has felt the full force of a royal charm offensive. The visit by the newly minted Duke and Duchess of Sussex, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, has been a triumph for the Royal couple and the House of Windsor brand.

"I think the marriage...has injected a real shot of adrenaline into people's interest in the Royal Family." Tabloid royal correspondent

It's a world away from the scandalous 1990s when the Royal family was embroiled in a rolling series of crises, indiscretions and PR disasters leaving them out of fashion and out of step with the times. Some were even talking about the end of the monarchy itself.

"All bets were off with the Royals in the nineties. Spectacular own goals, things that 50 years earlier would have had discreet veils drawn over them: Camillagate, Squidgygate, Tampaxgate, all those terrible, terrible, gruesome little scandals." Author

On Monday Four Corners charts how the Royals have rebuilt their reputation and changed the way they manage "The Firm".

"From those ashes, a lot of lessons have been learned. There's obviously had to be more deliberate management about how people behave, what they're saying, what they're wearing." Global advertising consultant

"It was the Royal family accepting that things needed to change if they were to survive. Survival is the name of the game for the Royal family." Author

The program reveals a highly controlled operation with spin doctors and media management at the forefront.

"You don't see it but... what we see and read about the Royal family is pretty much controlled by them." Former Private Secretary to the Royal household

The Royals are increasingly bypassing traditional media and finding new ways to get their message out by joining the ranks of social media "influencers". Those combined efforts have resulted in one of the most spectacular rebranding exercises in modern times.

"In many ways, they've brought innovation. They're brand innovators to the Royal family." Global advertising consultant

This new image has helped divert attention away from questions over the funding and financial interests of the Royal household.

"We don't know where the money is invested. We don't know where it's spent. We don't know what the income is. We only know what they tell us." Former UK MP

As the palace prepares for the next generation to take the throne, Four Corners examines the very corporate campaign to future-proof the Crown.

Windsor Inc, reported by Louise Milligan and presented by Sarah Ferguson.

Fear and race on the streets of Melbourne.

"They're portraying us right now like we're demons." Young Sudanese man

For more than two years, the media has been reporting that Melbourne is in the grip of a crimewave, overrun by African street gangs responsible for a wave of violence and theft.

"We need to call it for what it is, of course this is African gang violence... people are scared to go out to restaurants of a night-time because they're followed home by these gangs." Peter Dutton, Federal Home Affairs Minister

Images of brawling Sudanese teens and hooded armed robbers have spread terror and stoked a growing anger towards those "of African appearance".

"You get stared at. Imagine someone's looking through you or looking ... someone's eyes are just burning into the side of your head. That's what it feels like." Young Sudanese man

Some residents say they are living in fear, the Sudanese community feels under siege and police are being accused of political correctness and inaction.

"They do all these criminal acts and you see on the news that they get away with it. Why do they get away with it?" Resident

Amongst the claims and counter claims, Four Corners reporter Sophie McNeill has spent weeks on the ground to get to the truth about "African" crime.

"We're seeing headlines and reporting that exacerbates the problem. Reporting on things that we're not necessarily seeing." Senior Victoria Police officer

With unprecedented access to the police and the state's chief Judge, the program separates perception from reality.

"I think it's really important that the public be properly informed about what we're doing. It's their right to be properly informed." Chief Judge

Crime and Panic, reported by Sophie McNeill and presented by Sarah Ferguson.

The inside story of the ABC's corporate meltdown.

On Monday, Four Corners investigates the corporate crisis that engulfed the ABC and brought down both the Managing Director and the Chair in the space of one brutal week.

Reporter Sarah Ferguson, in interviews with the two key individuals at the centre of this tumultuous episode, investigates the tensions and allegations that have rocked the national broadcaster - from the appointment of a "change agent" to reinvent the corporation, to the assertion of political interference at the highest levels.

Former MD, Michelle Guthrie speaks for the first time about her sacking and the breakdown of her relationship with the ABC Board. Former Chair Justin Milne gives a frank account of the power struggle behind the scenes.

In the seven weeks since the ABC's corporate meltdown there has been plenty of speculation but little detail about the events that unfolded behind closed doors at the national broadcaster.

Now Four Corners tells the inside story of the crisis that shocked the organisation and left the public confused and concerned.

Bitter End, reported and presented by Sarah Ferguson. (Season Final)