Manning was credited with rejuvenating ABC's Four Corners program when it faced cancellation, leading it through a golden age as executive producer from 1985 to 1989. He was the driving force behind Chris Masters's 1987 story The Moonlight State, which revealed systemic corruption under Queensland premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen and led to the Fitzgerald inquiry and the jailing of police commissioner Terry Lewis.
In a statement, ABC managing director Hugh Marks described Manning as "one of the great names in ABC journalism and leadership," synonymous with "independence, integrity, courage and journalistic excellence." Marks said Manning's legacy endures in the journalists and leaders he mentored and in the standards he set for public interest journalism.
Last year, Manning received the Walkley Award for Outstanding Contribution to Journalism. Walkley Foundation CEO Shona Martyn said Manning was regarded by his peers as a "colossus of Australian investigative journalism," whose career spanned television, print and journalism education over more than 60 years. She praised his integrity, news instinct and determination to back his teams.
Manning's daughter, Thea Burke, said her father was "an incredible journalist, but he was an even better man." "He embodied joy, love and laughter and taught us the meaning of living a big and full life with those you love," she said.
Veteran journalist Chris Masters, who worked with Manning on The Moonlight State, called him a close friend and his most important mentor. Masters described Manning's "over-the-horizon radar" for sensing big stories, attributing it to a "terrific grounding in the news business" from newspapers like the Leichhardt Local and his "people oriented" personality. "He had a strong moral core as well," Masters said.