Mediaweek’s Media Movers charts the biggest people moves in the industry over the past week.
Marty Sheargold
Triple M and broadcaster Marty Sheargold have mutually agreed to part ways. The announcement from the Southern Cross Austero (SCA) owned network comes after Sheargold faced a storm of criticism for controversial on-air remarks he made about the Matildas and women’s sport.
Sheargold made the remarks during a news bulletin on The Marty Sheargold Show on Monday afternoon off the back of a story about the Matildas’ recent defeats in the SheBelieves Cup.
From hosting a breakfast show on 2Day FM to taking the reins of her eponymous program on Sky News Australia and now hosting her own YouTube channel – Molan is always adapting to the shifting media landscape
The veteran broadcaster is now boldly stepping into uncharted territory with her new venture, 69 X Minutes. The project, inspired by a tweet from Elon Musk, represents a fresh, fearless approach to storytelling and content creation that’s already captured the attention of audiences around the world.
Erin Molan
The show was announced by both Molan and Mario Nawfal via sizzle reels on their social media accounts. Nawful is no stranger to utilising the platform for program creation. His, The Roundtable Show, is currently the largest show on X, and has played host to a range of guests including Hunter Biden and Musk. Nawfal is also the CEO of International Blockchain Consulting (IBC).
It’s the end of an era for at the ABC, with election aficionado Antony Green choosing to step away from the camera and focus his talents behind-the-scenes.
Green, who has spent more than three decades informing and entertaining Australians on election nights, has decided his on-air tenure as the ABC’s chief elections analyst will come to an end at this year’s federal poll.
Since his debut in 1991, Green has offered expert commentary on over 90 Australian elections – including 13 federal polls, numerous by-elections, local contests and even overseas events in the UK, New Zealand and Canada.
Nikki Clarkson
Victoria Racing Club (VRC) CEO Kylie Rogers has appointed Nikki Clarkson as Chief Marketing Officer. Clarkson brings over 25 years’ experience in brand management, digital strategy, content creation and media commercialisation, most recently serving as CMO at Southern Cross Austereo.
In her new role, Clarkson will lead VRC’s marketing, communications, content, digital, production and social media functions, driving brand growth and innovation across all Flemington assets year-round – most notably the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
Leo Australia has appointed as executive creative director in Melbourne, alongside the promotions of group creative directors Tommy Cehak and Tim Woolford to executive creative directors in Sydney.
Badger joins the Publicis Groupe agency from Ogilvy in Melbourne, bringing more than 20 years of experience to the role. She has worked with globally recognised brands across financial services, FMCG, automotive, retail, government and tourism sectors.
Since joining in 2023, Cehak and Woolford have crafted award-winning work for Diageo, Amazon, and DNSW, with projects like Bundaberg Rum’s “Wedding that Fans Built” and Johnnie Walker’s “In Her Boots” gaining international recognition at Cannes, Spikes, One Show, AWARD and D&AD.
Home and Away’s Lynne McGranger.
After more than 30 years on Australian television, Home and Away’s Lynne McGranger will conclude her role as Irene later this year. McGranger’s enduring portrayal has established Irene as a familiar presence in Summer Bay, making her departure a notable moment for the series.
Stephen Howard will leave Ovolo Hotels in April as the company’s group director of marketing and communications. He took to LinkedIn on Tuesday to share the news of his departure, calling his decision “a mix of emotions.”
During his seven years with the group, he was part of launching new properties, entering the international market, and rebranding to “Wonder. Full”.
Long-time Nine presenter Danika Mason will step into the role of sports presenter on The Today Show following the departure of Alex Cullen over a $50k gift controversy. Mason is already a familiar face for Nine viewers, thanks to her work 9News, The Sunday Footy Show, NRL on Nine, and Wide World of Sports.
The announcement was made during the show’s broadcast today, with Mason in Las Vegas with host Karl Stefanovic for the NRL.
Jason Pollock has been named News Editor for nextmedia‘s B2B technology channel. He previously spent nearly three years as a Senior Journalist at AdNews.
Justin Ladmore and Amy Dascanio
Enigma has promoted Justin Ladmore and Amy Dascanio. Ladmore will step up into the newly created role of chief media officer and partner from managing director, to lead growth, strategy, and the independent full-service agency’s connected creativity product, strengthening its integrated approach.
Dascanio moves into the role of general manager, charged with leading the 40-strong media team while working alongside managing directors Jack Mason and Joanna Lilley’s teams across Newcastle and Sydney offices.
Nick Wilson has joined Daily Mail Australia as a News Reporter. Prior to this, he worked as a Journalist covering accounting titles at Momentum Media. He welcomes pitches across general news and has a particular interest in stories related to politics, law, and the arts.
The Hallway has revealed new additions to the leadership team with the return of Dan Saunders as executive creative director and appointment of Phoebe Keogh as head of media and connections, and chief creative officer Simon Lee’s departure.
Saunders joins the agency having tenured as creative director at some of Australia’s biggest agencies including TBWA, DDB, and Dentsu, working on global brands, such as McDonald’s and Amazon, and international experience in the US and London.
Jules Hall, Phoebe Keogh, Dan Saunders
He previously spent two years at The Hallway creating famous and awarded work for brands like Boody, Smooth FM and Anytime Fitness. Whilst also picking up a Cannes Lion for The Cardboard Cake in 2024.
Keogh recently joined The Hallway after eight years with UM Australia where she was strategic lead for Menulog, ING and Chery Motors. She will overssee the continued growth of The Hallway’s connections department.
Luca Ittimani has been appointed Business and Economics Reporter at Guardian Australia, following the successful completion of a year-long cadetship with the publication.
PR consultancy Zonnios&Hunt has launched into market, offering a nimble and efficient solution to clients’ communications challenges with senior expertise driving the entire journey – from strategy through to execution.
Lauren Hunt and Nick Zonnios lead the company, having senior positions at Virgin Australia, Clemenger BBDO and CHEP Network, across a range of sectors, including finance, automotive, retail, travel, FMCG and more.
Toby Potter
Southern Cross Media Group Limited (SCA) has announced Toby Potter as its new chief financial officer and a member of the senior leadership team. The appointment was disclosed to the market ahead of SCA’s half-year results presentation on Thursday morning. Potter, who stepped in as acting CFO in December 2024, has been responsible for overseeing the company’s financial stewardship over recent months.
Lauren Day is set to begin her new role as ABC’s North America Correspondent in the coming months. She will relocate to Washington DC after spending nearly two years as South-East Asia Correspondent, based in Bangkok.
Sophie Smith has returned to Southern Cross Austereo, taking on the role of Casual Newsreader for The Fox and Triple M. Previously, she spent nine months with the network as a Radio Journalist, presenting sports bulletins during live NRL and AFL coverage, along with drive-time and weekend national news updates — all while freelancing and covering the Olympics for Nine.
TBWA Sydney has appointed Elektra O’Malley as managing director and Michael Hogg as chief strategy officer for the Group, which includes TBWA, Eleven, Fleishman Hillard, Fabric, +61 for Telstra and TBWA/Media Arts Lab.
She returns to Australia after over a decade in New York working at creative agencies including TBWA, Johannes Leonardo and Anomaly, partnering with iconic brands such as Diageo, Kraft Heinz, Amazon, Gap, Revlon, H&M, Adidas, and PepsiCo.
O’Malley’s most recent role was as head of account leadership at Anomaly NYC where she led business initiatives for Bud Light, Amazon Ads, and Ferrero Group. Under her leadership, ABI won Creative Marketer of the Year at Cannes for two consecutive years and launched two Super Bowl ads for Bud Light.
Stephen Hunt
UnLtd, the social impact organisation for the media, marketing, and advertising industry, has announced the departure of CEO Stephen Hunt, who will be stepping down at the end of February to pursue new opportunities.
Hunt joined UnLtd in May 2024 and has played a key role in shaping the organisation’s strategic direction during his tenure.
Samantha Jurman has joined ABC’s Sports team as a Producer / Reporter. She will continue her work as a News Producer and Sports Reporter at 10 News First Sydney, while also freelancing with Football NSW.
MultiConnexions has appointed Alastair Love as marketing director. Based in Melbourne, Love will drive the agency’s next phase of growth by forging strategic partnerships and expanding its presence in the Victorian market, with a targeted focus on government and corporate sectors.
The company says the move reinforces MultiConnexions’s commitment to delivering tailored marketing solutions in an increasingly competitive trade landscape.
Veronica Li, Ben Grace and Claudia Domingues
GroupM Australia & New Zealand have welcomed the appointments of Veronica Li, Ben Grace, and Claudia Domingues to its commerce team to drive transformation for clients across Wavemaker, EssenceMediacom, and Mindshare.
Li, Grace and Domingues joined after the holding group developed a robust Commerce offering encompassing Strategy, Activation, Creative, and Data & Technology. The offering leverages proprietary tools, partnerships, and processes to deliver GroupM agencies impactful commerce solutions with global scale, local nuance, and proven effectiveness.
DDB Group Melbourne has promoted deputy executive creative director Giles Watson to executive creative director. In his new role, he will lead the agency’s creative direction, continuing to bring his distinctive brand thinking and innovation to the agency’s client stable and working closely with chief creative officer Psembi Kinstan.
Watson joined DDB Group Melbourne in 2021 as a creative director and quickly built out the creative leadership team, boosting the agency’s creative thinking and craft.
Jennifer Snell
Australian fintech company Airwallex has appointed Jennifer Snell as director of marketing, ANZ. Snell brings more than 15 years of marketing experience to the role and will lead marketing initiatives throughout Australia and New Zealand.
Global brand and communications agency Jack Taylor has appointed Judy Turchin as chief executive officer. Turchin will lead the agency’s global operations, drive ongoing strategic growth in existing and new geographic markets, and develop new capabilities, diversifying and enhancing the agency’s scope of expertise and services.
She will work alongside Jon Bier, founder of Jack Taylor, to cultivate partnerships with mission-aligned brands and influential voices. Turchin joins the agency with more than 25 years of leadership experience spanning consumer health, wellness retail, real estate, and financial services.
Sebastian Revell has joined Emotive to lead the independent agency’s strategic offering. Revell will be part of the senior leadership team to help drive Emotive’s vision of creating ideas that change the way people feel. He is also charged with evolving the agency’s data, research and effectiveness capabilities to meet this ambition.
He joins from TBWA, where he was head of strategy. He was most recently leading the agency’s strategic direction on Tourism New Zealand, mycar Tyre & Auto, AWS and Apple. As well as overseeing the output of the strategy department’s cross-disciplinary team, including brand, creative, earned, social and connections strategy.
Katherine Chatfield editor of Woman’s Day
Are Media has announced a new editorial lead for Woman’s Day, appointing Katherine Chatfield, to drive the brand’s content strategy, audience growth, and digital expansion.
Taking the helm of Australia’s highest-selling weekly lifestyle brand, the new editor will oversee its evolution into a fully omnichannel powerhouse, strengthening its position as a trusted source for lifestyle content, celebrity news, and real-life stories.
Terri Owens, former senior GroupM executive, joins Fabulate in the new role of client service and operations director, overseeing client service and operations for the Australian influencer marketing platform.
Owens joins the company after almost a decade at GroupM, where she held senior roles, including head of business operations and general manager of product, data and technology and in 2024 was named on Campaign’s 2023 APAC Women to Watch List.
Marion Rae has taken on the role of Senior Reporter at The Energy, where she will cover the intersection of business and politics within the energy sector. Over the past 25 years, Marion has held various media and analyst roles, most recently serving as Future Economies Correspondent at Australian Associated Press.
Caitlyn Todoroski has joined Time Out Sydney as a Branded Content Writer. She comes to the role after completing the WIN News / Walkley Broadcast Scholarship at WIN News Illawarra in 2024.
Terri Owens