Controversial Sydney broadcaster Alan Jones has been found guilty of racial vilification and ordered to pay $10,000 to a Muslim community leader.

The ruling, by the Civil and Administrative Tribunal NSW, comes almost a decade after Jones read out a letter from a listener on 2GB referring to Lebanese men as “vermin” who “infest our shores”.

This led to complaint from Keysar Trad, who at the time was the head of the Lebanese Muslim Association.

While the tribunal did not accept (nor reject) Mr Trad’s assertion that the letter was written by Mr Jones or a member of his production staff, it ruled that there was “no doubt that Mr Jones endorsed the views of the correspondent”.

It said the broadcast “used contemptuous and hateful language”.

“He portrayed Lebanese males as criminals and as not only ungrateful, but as posing a threat to the Australian community,” the tribunal said.

“The words, in context, urged or stimulated listeners to hatred or, at least, serious contempt of Lebanese males.”

It rejected the suggestion that the broadcast served any public interest purpose, ruling that it was “gratuitously insulting and offensive”.

“It is simply not reasonable to malign and denigrate Lebanese males in general in the context of discussing a particular incident involving a small [group] of Lebanese men.”

The broadcast followed a segment on A Current Affair depicting offensive behaviour by young men at Brighton-Le-Sands and in Hickson Road near The Rocks, including mocking Anzac Day.

Mr Jones told his audience that “these people announced themselves as Lebanese Muslims”, although he and 2GB later acknowledged that “no one on the A Current Affair program referred to the Lebanese males as Muslims”.

The tribunal said there was no doubt that Mr Jones’ broadcast would have influenced the views of a significant portion of his audience.

“Mr Jones is one of the most powerful and influential radio presenters in Australia. It can be inferred that an ordinary member of his audience respected and tended to agree with his views.”

While 2GB said that Jones had received training, which covered racial vilification, the tribunal remained sceptical.

“The evidence is very general and does not satisfy us that Mr Jones has received professional training in relation to what does and does not amount to racial vilification,” it said.

Mr Trad said the broadcast had made him fearful for his safety, as well as that of his family and Muslim community members, particularly women.

But the tribunal said the effect on Mr Trad was “not a matter of him being targeted personally, but because of his membership of the Lebanese community”.

“Given that the evidence reflects a relatively mild level of loss and damage, a low award of $10,000 is appropriate.”