Business of Media
Nine Entertainment keeps its Costello quotient
There are some in the Nine Entertainment group (that includes the Financial Review) who’ve suffered a fair bit of whiplash this calendar year. Its long-term chairman Peter Costello departed after his 10-pin bowling effort in Canberra Airport. Mike Sneesby’s no longer the CEO either, reports The AFR’s Mark Di Stefano.
So consider us surprised on Thursday when a Costello was called on at Nine’s AGM in North Sydney. That would be anti-gambling advocate Tim Costello – Peter’s big brother – who gave both barrels to Nine’s board and acting CEO Matt Stanton. Nine’s unwillingness to stop taking bookmaker-funded ads went to “culture and values”.
“Parents are desperately worried they’ll have to explain to 10-year-olds what a multi is,” he said. “No other generation of parent has ever had to do that.”
Interesting Tim never pulled that at any of the eight annual meetings that his brother has chaired in the past. And not to say he wouldn’t! Tim’s integrity on this stuff is renowned. He texted: “A Nine AGM needs at least one Costello!!”
Maybe next year Nine can get its Melbourne TV reporter Seb Costello (Peter’s son) to ask a question. These Costellos are everywhere.
Nine hit with protest vote on executive pay at fiery AGM
Catherine West, who took over as chairman of Nine Entertainment Co after the sudden resignation of former treasurer Peter Costello in June, faced investors at the annual general meeting in Sydney on Thursday, reports The AFR’s Sam Buckingham-Jones.
The meeting, held at Nine’s studios and streamed online, heard shareholder questions about the TV network running gambling advertising, reducing expenses, spinning out Stan as a separate company, whether a lucrative commercial agreement with Google would continue, and the future of Nine’s 60 per cent stake in property platform Domain.
West, who joined Nine’s board in 2016, was asked about an external review of Nine’s culture that found half of the company’s employees had seen or experienced abuses of power, bullying and discrimination.
“I wish I had known, and we really did look for it,” she said, adding that a new complaints system had been put in place.
Government policy failure lets overseas streamers ‘eat our lunch’: Seven’s Kerry Stokes
Seven West chairman Kerry Stokes has accused the federal government of failing to regulate overseas streaming platforms and social media giants that have been able to “eat its lunch”, while traditional media companies decline, report The Australian’s Joseph Lam.
The billionaire also criticised the ABC, which he said had carried out an “egregious and unfair assault on our business” in a recent Four Corners program that claimed the company had a toxic culture and instilled fear into journalists who were afraid to speak up. That had later come back to bite the national broadcaster, which now faces its own allegations of “racism, misogyny and bullying”, he said.
Stokes said overseas streaming services were of little benefit to the Australian economy. “Unlike them, we pay our taxes, we look after our people, and we follow strict broadcasting rules in this country,” he said.
“Unfortunately the federal government has failed to grip a legislative environment that allows Australia unvetted and guaranteed access to free sports broadcast programming.”
Google boss congratulates Trump on ‘decisive victory’ as tech stocks soar
Google chief executive Sundar Pichai has congratulated US President-elect Donald Trump, saying “we are in a golden age of American innovation”, as big tech emerges as one of the biggest winners from Republicans regaining the White House, report The Australian’s Jared Lynch and Glenda Korporaal.
But tech experts warn that Trump’s deregulation agenda, particularly on artificial intelligence, could create a new “wild west” as companies race to seize competitive advantages without guardrails.
Trump’s plans to impose tariffs on foreign tech hardware to spur US manufacturing could also make products more expensive for Australians.
News brands
Nine News Queensland boss Amanda Paterson depart
The off-camera drama has continued at Nine with the shock announcement of the immediate departure of the Queensland news director, reports News Corp’s Andreas Nicola.
Brisbane staff were called into a snap Zoom style town hall meeting by management on Thursday and were told it would be Queensland News Director Amanda Paterson’s final day with the company.
The meeting was called by Nine’s TV news boss Fiona Dear. She would not reveal why Paterson was leaving but said it was a “private matter”.
It is understood Paterson went into a meeting in the morning and was in the office most the day before disappearing not long before the news was delivered to staff in the town hall.
Sources from Nine said Dear told staff she hoped they could appreciate why she couldn’t say a lot about Paterson’s shock departure.
After the meeting an email was sent to staff by Dear.
“While we formalise and internal and external recruitment process to replace the role, Kate Donnison has agreed to step in on a short-term basis until QTQ EP Brendan Hockings returns from the US and his annual leave,” she wrote. “Brendan will then act in the role until we finalise the recruitment process to ensure stability in leadership during this time.”
Paterson’s temporary replacement Kate Donnison is the A Current Affair Queensland bureau chief.
Radio: Ray Hadley quits
How Samantha Maiden spoiled Ray Hadley’s retirement announcement
2GB host Ray Hadley has revealed he is retiring from his top-rating program, declaring it’s time for “someone else to do that job”, reports news.com.au’s Samantha Maiden.
Just after 9:30am Hadley, 70, announced he was bringing forward his announcement after the bombshell news broke on news.com.au just after 9am. So December 13 will be my last day broadcasting,” he said.
“It’s been a hell of a ride from a young bloke who wanted to call the races. But the time has come for someone else to do the job.
“Apparently the story has broken somewhere. There’s always a leak somewhere, so I may as well do it now, earlier than I anticipated,” he said. “Sometimes you can’t keep things secret, and I suppose in the media, that’s what happens.
[The news was broken by Samantha Maiden.]
“I’ve achieved far more than I ever thought I would. My children, Dan, Laura, Emma and Sarah, have made sacrifices over the years for me to realise my ambitions.
“Seven years ago, I had no grandchildren. Now I have seven. Over three years ago, I married the most amazing woman, Sophie, for over 18 years she’s been my colleague now, she’s the most supportive, calming loving wife anyone could ask for. And she deserves a break.”
See also: Ray Hadley retires after 4 decades as one of Australia’s most loved broadcasters
2GB’s Ray Hadley made one phone call before retirement announcement
Before his nine o’clock morning radio show started on Thursday, veteran 2GB broadcaster Ray Hadley made a phone call to Ray “Rabs” Warren, the man once known as the “voice of rugby league”, reports The AFR’s Sam Buckingham-Jones.
Hadley told Warren he would be retiring from radio after 43 years behind the microphone, 5000 episodes of his morning show and commentating on 35 NRL grand finals and thousands of club games.
“It means we both called 99 [State of] Origin matches, a record I love sharing with my dear friend,” Hadley told his listeners. “It didn’t seem right I’d call 100 when Rabs called 99 … old mate, we’re stuck on 99.”
Hadley, now 70, grew audibly emotional as he said he would leave his daily three-hour show on December 13. For the past 20 years, he has won his timeslot in Sydney’s fierce radio wars.
Ben Fordham, Mark Levy, Jason Morrison possible successors for Ray Hadley
With Ray Hadley set to step down from 2GB’s morning slot next month, Sydney’s top-rated morning show is about to face one of its biggest transitions yet, reports News Corp’s Brenden Wood.
The question now reverberating across the radio landscape is: Who will step up to fill Hadley’s shoes?
The 2GB morning slot, which currently sits slightly ahead of WSFM, KIIS and Smooth FM in the fiercely competitive morning shift, is a coveted position in Australian radio. Hadley’s departure leaves a major gap, and speculation is running high about who will be his successor.
One strong contender is Ben Fordham, 2GB’s breakfast show host. Fordham, known for his engaging style and connection with Sydney listeners, is rumoured to be eyeing the morning shift, which could allow him to reach an even broader daytime audience across several states.
Such a move would likely prompt a reshuffle across the line-up, potentially bringing Clinton Maynard from overnights to drive, while Chris O’Keefe, another established voice, could move into the breakfast slot.
Ray-liable Hadley’s exit a defining moment for Nine’s radio business
Nine Entertainment must now fill a Ray Hadley-sized hole in its radio line-up, reports Nine Publishing’s Calum Jones.
It’s a move Nine may not be ready for but may have considered given the broadcaster is now 70 and has spent more than four decades in radio. He leaves in December with two lucrative years on his contract, rumoured to be in the region of $7 million as Nine’s top-paid star.
The early word from inside the Nine camp is there is no immediate or obvious replacement lying in wait, which wasn’t the case when controversial shock jock Alan Jones stepped down in late 2020.
Hadley is one of the last remaining shock jocks on Australian airwaves following the recent resignations of Neil Mitchell and John Laws. A lack of obvious candidates may offer Nine the chance to look deeper inside its stable and offer audiences a fresh voice.
Hadley’s departure comes at a difficult time. Nine is under financial pressure from a weak advertising market. It’s wrestling with the handling of a damning cultural review that stemmed from a harassment and bullying scandal. And it recently lost its chair and CEO.
How and why the veteran broadcaster Ray Hadley decided to leave 2GB
In a restaurant behind the Arc de Triomphe, midway through the Paris Olympics, talkback radio king Ray Hadley dropped his bombshell retirement plans to his unsuspecting boss, report News Corp’s Peter Jenkins and Jonathon Moran.
Nine Radio chief Tom Malone had invited Hadley for a meal. It was early August, the swimming events which Hadley had called at his seventh Games were coming to an end.
As Malone was to learn, so too was Hadley’s stellar four-decade career in radio, two years before the planned expiry of his multimillion-dollar contract.
“Tom said ‘is everything going OK?’ and I said ‘yeah, but we might need to have a talk about a replacement’,” Hadley recalled of their conversation at the Atelier du Marche restaurant. He said ‘you’ve got two years to go’.
“I said, ‘I don’t think I’m going to last two years’.
“Tom said ‘have a think about it when you come back’, so I thought about it and went to him last week.”
The 70-year-old father of four and grandfather to seven admitted the pre-dawn starts to prepare for a show that remains unbeaten in a record 160 consecutive surveys, were becoming “a bit of a battle”.
Malone will now accelerate the search for a replacement, with Hadley announcing on-air on Thursday that he was signing off from the 2GB airwaves on December 13.
The Daily Telegraph reports Ben Fordham will remain as breakfast host and Hadley’s morning slot would likely be filled by an internal candidate from a list including Chris O’Keefe, Mark Levy and Luke Grant.
Sandilands and Fordham feud on air: ‘I’ll throw this water in your face, bitch’
Kyle Sandilands threw a drink at Ben Fordham as the two radio rivals had a mini-dust up during a live interview, reports news.com.au’s Andrew Bucklow.
Sandilands and Fordham were guests on John Laws’ 2SM radio show on Wednesday, joining the legendary broadcaster in his studio for one of his final shows before he retires.
The trio had been chatting about various topics for 15 minutes when talked turned to the US election.
After Sandilands gave his opinion on Trump’s strong performance, Fordham said sarcastically, “Of all the experts on American politics, what an honour for John Laws to have Kyle Sandilands commenting on it this morning.”
The comment sparked an immediate reaction from the KIIS FM host. “I’ll throw this water in your face, bitch,” Sandilands said. “I don’t care who you think you are.”
“Well go on, do it!” Fordham challenged him.
The 2GB breakfast host started to have another crack, saying, “You talk tough to the paparazzi …” but he was cut off when Sandilands picked up a tall glass of water and threw it over his face and chest.
“Oh my lord!” a shocked Fordham said.
Triple M Adelaide Rush Hour hosts Andrew Jarman, Bernie Vince and Greg Blewett say goodbye
Triple M Adelaide’s outgoing Rush Hour co-hosts Andrew Jarman, Bernie Vince and Greg Blewett have lamented the show’s demise as they bid a final farewell to listeners, reports News Corp’s Antimo Iannella.
The trio presented the final edition of the local drivetime program today, and said they were signing off with “heavy hearts” ahead of the station’s move to a syndicated national show next year.
Vince thanked his colleagues and said co-hosting Rush Hour was “most fun” he’s ever had in his life.
“It’s going to be sad. We had a great thing going and I know it’s not our decision, it’s not even a local decision – it’s way above our heads – but I want to thank you for the fun and everything you’ve taught me along the way,” said the former Crow and new SAFM breakfast show host.
Jarman, who has been on-air at Triple M for over two decades, said he was feeling “very content, very relaxed and very excited” on their farewell Rush Hour program, which featured special guests including Sam Pang, Sam Newman and Crows veteran Taylor Walker.
Manager of ABC Classic and Jazz Kat McGuffie to depart the ABC
Manager of ABC Classic and Jazz, Kat McGuffie, has announced she will leave the ABC later this month after more than a decade working at the networks.
McGuffie joined the ABC in 2013 as live music producer for ABC Classic, first in Adelaide and then Melbourne. She held roles at ABC Classic as content director and executive producer before taking on the manager role of ABC Classic and Jazz in 2022.
During her time with the ABC, McGuffie has led content initiatives aimed at finding new audiences for classical music including producing Clarke’s Classics which won an ARIA Award for Best Comedy release and The Classic Road Trip which took listeners on a 5000km journey from Darwin across regional Australia, concluding at the childhood home of Sir Don Bradman co-hosted by Greta Bradman and Russell Torrance.
McGuffie said: “It has been an absolute privilege working with the talented teams at ABC Classic and Jazz to serve listeners and represent the distinctive Australian classical and jazz industries. I’ll miss the ABC greatly, but after a decade, it’s time to further my work in engaging and developing audiences beyond the ABC.”
Director of audio Ben Latimer said: “I’d like to thank Kat for her contributions to the ABC and the classical and jazz music industry.
“In her time with the ABC, Kat has consistently been a passionate advocate for classical music in Australia and has supported the industry to grow and develop new talent to continue to drive quality and innovation.”
Television
Countdown 50: Ted Emery on wild times, fights with Molly, & Robert Palmer pinching ideas
Six years after he joined ABC as a stage hand in the 1970s, after serving in Vietnam, Ted Emery was tasked with directing and producing Countdown, reports TV Tonight.
“It was my first ever television show. I shit myself! I had diarrhoea for a week!” he laughs.
Legendary TV director Emery had never helmed a show when he was thrust into the Countdown chair. But from such chaos came ground-breaking television and the soundtrack of a generation.
It was 1977 and the ABC show had been on air since November 8th 1974, initially on Friday nights, before it soon moved to Sundays and became destination viewing for teens across Australia.
It was a golden era: colour television, King of Pop awards, Spunky magazine, Brashs music stores, 3XY & 2SM, Chokito rolls, Big M, Polly Waffles and Sunny Boys.
ABC’s music show, led by Go-Set journalist Ian ‘Molly’ Meldrum as its talent co-ordinator had made stars of Australian and international music acts. Teens across Australia would religiously tune in at 6pm Sundays to find out what singles to buy the next day in record stores.
Emery had worked his way from an ABC stagehand in Ripponlea studios, Elsternwick, to floor managing and, unexpectedly, to the director’s chair.
“Because of the way the ABC worked, they didn’t care whether it was Divine Service or Market to Market or Light Entertainment, you spent time everywhere – which wasn’t a bad idea,” he tells TV Tonight.