The Morrison government warned Nine Entertainment Co it might need to register under the recently introduced foreign influence transparency scheme after A Current Affair aired explosive footage of former One Nation Queensland leader Steve Dickson visiting a strip club.

In a letter to Nine chief executive Hugh Marks, an official from the Attorney-General's Department said the company may have to register the segment broadcast earlier this year because it was linked to Qatari state-funded network Al Jazeera.

One Nation candidate Steve Dickson resigned after footage of him inside a US strip club during Al Jazeera's undercover sting emerged. Credit:ninevms

The correspondence was revealed on Tuesday as part of a parliamentary inquiry into press freedom after a public hearing in Sydney saw media executives, including from Nine, News Corp and the ABC, push for changes in the laws.

The footage aired by Nine in March showed Mr Dickson visiting a strip club in the United States, groping a woman and making derogatory comments. He resigned shortly after the footage went to air.