Business of Media
Former reporter Jim Middleton joins Canberra lobbyist Counsel House
Claire March’s new lobbying shop Counsel House has a new cross-bench specialist – just in time for the beginning of the 46th parliament, all column.
The new recruit is ABC grandee and one-time Sky presenter Jim Middleton, who after more than 40 years in journalism was for the last 18 months a senior adviser to South Australian independent senator Tim Storer.
Middleton’s mission: to navigate Counsel House’s clients through the quirks of the cross bench in Canberra.
Chris Bowen launched the former Labor staffer March’s firm on the final day of the last parliament, back when a Labor government looked to be weeks away.
TEG appoints new head of digital and new head of communications
TEG has announced two senior appointments to the ticketing, live entertainment and data analytics business.
The first sees Chris Johnston joining as general manager TEG Digital.
Johnston, who starts with the organisation this week, will lead TEG Digital and Ticketek’s marketing operations, which is currently overseen by Karen Chapple who leaves the business after six years.
The company said Chapple had made a significant contribution during her time with TEG, including the establishment of BOOST, TEG Digital’s in-house agency. To support a transition, Chapple will finish at TEG on July 9.
Speaking of Chapple’s contribution, TEG CEO Geoff Jones said: “Karen has done a wonderful job during her six years with the organisation and leaves an enviable legacy at TEG. I wish her every success in the future.”
Chris Johnston joins TEG from Slingshot Media Ventures where he was Head of Digital & Data. Prior to Slingshot, he was at Carat Australia as Head of Digital and Direct for Woolworths Limited and previously worked for McCann Erickson as a General Manager.
Also joining TEG is Dominic White who is the head of communications and corporate affairs.
White brings to the role over 20 years’ experience in media and communications both in Australia and the United Kingdom.
He was previously head of communications and content at TV industry marketing and research body ThinkTV, owned by Nine, Seven West Media, Network Ten and Foxtel/MCN. Prior to that he spent 20 years in journalism, most recently as the media & marketing editor for The Australian Financial Review. Before moving to Australia in 2008, he was communications editor for London’s The Daily Telegraph.
White said: “I’m delighted to be joining TEG, which is an Australian company batting well above its weight at home and on the global stage.
“I was amazed to discover that on top of its thrilling local content slate TEG’s current and recent overseas shows include Hugh Jackman at The O2 in London, The Rolling Stones exhibition in Tokyo, Paw Patrol in the Netherlands and WWE in Singapore.
“It’s part of a multi-layered and developing Australian success story and I’m looking forward to working with Geoff and the TEG team to help them tell it,” said White.
Television
Chip Le Grand: Tom Gleeson proves offence a funny old thing
The funniest thing about Tom Gleeson’s Gold Logie acceptance speech was the po-faced expressions of television personalities who didn’t get the joke, reports The Australian’s Tom Gleeson.
Gleeson says we shouldn’t judge them too harshly. As he points out, the ceremony had been running for hours by the time he got on stage. “Are people really that annoyed or are they tired and just want it to end?” he asks.
Yet, in his tongue-in-cheek way, Gleeson understands a truism about Australian society, one reality TV has been ruthlessly exploiting for years: given the choice, we’d rather take the mickey out of a celebrity than put one on a pedestal.
“I felt I was on pretty good ground,’’ Gleeson tells The Australian. “I thought I was potentially offending people inside that room but I couldn’t really imagine anyone at home being offended.”
Previous Gold Logie winner and comedian Steve Vizard sees Gleeson as part of a great tradition of piss-takers, including Graham Kennedy, Bert Newton, Andrew Denton, Shaun Micallef and Garry McDonald, who lampooned the television industry 43 years ago when he won a Gold Logie as Norman Gunston. Gleeson sees himself in the same way.
“The amount of montages I have had to sit through about Graham Kennedy and how wonderfully irreverent he was and he had a go at everyone – I’ve seen so many of those it makes me want to vomit,’’ he says. “Contemporary comedians do the same thing and people are worried about people’s feelings being hurt. With hindsight and distance, people look back and think these were the great moments in TV. Then you go into the Logies like last night and throw bombs in all directions and people go ‘That’s a bit much’.”
Where to now for the Logies, after Tom Gleeson’s disruptive win
A television popularity contest is one thing, and a chook raffle is something else. And in the wake of Tom Gleeson‘s comedic, near-pyrrhic Gold Logie victory at the 2019 Logie Awards on Sunday night, many are worried the former is at risk of turning into the latter, writes The Sydney Morning Herald’s Michael Idato.
For the past six decades supremacy in the Australian television industry has been measured by the little golden man known as a Logie. It is a peculiar way to frame the perception of excellence, as the Gold Logie recipient has always been determined by the less lustrous process of a public vote. Like Brexit, but with Lisa McCune.
“I’m in a terrible spot because I like it and I hate it at the same time,” Gleeson said in his acceptance speech on Sunday, the final straight on a bruising race in which he sarcastically attacked the event and his rival nominees.
The morning after, neither TV Week, the magazine behind the event, nor the networks, were commenting. Some sources said, however, that there was a great deal of hand-wringing taking place behind the scenes.
TV Week issued a statement to media saying they would consult “as we always do, with the networks to look at what we can do to make sure we honour what’s happening on TV.
“We are always looking at what we can do to keep things fresh,” the statement said. “We look forward to an even stronger 2020.”
What Gleeson’s Gold Logie win says about Australian TV
Did Tom Gleeson just stick the heart paddles on the Logies and add a few years to its life? asks News Corp’s Cameron Adams.
It sure seems so.
His winning the Gold Logie on Sunday night has given the award show, which has been kicked around like a dog for years, some truly amazing publicity that no amount of red carpet hype could buy.
Of course, Gleeson won it by sticking the boot in himself, running a parody campaign which backfired (or succeeded depending on how you see it) when his name was read out at the bitter, bitter end of the epic broadcast. Even he looked shocked to learn that he’d actually pulled it off.
However, that sabotage campaign stirred up a passion for the Logies that hasn’t been displayed publicly in years.
Radio
2GB reviews options in discussions with afternoon host Chris Smith
Macquarie Media is in ongoing talks with host Chris Smith about the prospect of paying out the veteran broadcaster’s contract, with a resolution expected before Wednesday, reports The Australian’s Leo Shanahan.
The Australian reports lawyers for Smith and his radio station 2GB are discussing the possibility of paying out the 18 months owing on his contract, rather than Smith moving to a night time radio spot currently occupied by Steve Price.
It is understood the veteran broadcaster is resolute that he will not move to a 8pm to midnight shift, citing his young children and loyalty to the station.
But he is still holding out hope 2GB will reverse its decision, in which case he would stay.
Smith’s contract is understood to be worth around $300,000, meaning Macquarie would have to stump up close to half a million dollars for him to depart without further legal action.
Breakfast radio host banned from driving for 12 months after crash
Adelaide breakfast radio host Jodie Oddy has been banned from driving for 12 months after crashing into a tree while more than five times the blood-alcohol limit, reports News Corp’s Steve Rice.
Oddy did not appear in the Victor Harbor Magistrates Court on Monday but, through her lawyer, pleaded guilty to one count each of driving with excess blood alcohol and driving without due care.
The 43-year-old was behind the wheel of a Land Rover that crashed into a tree on Mill Tce at Middleton, just after 5pm on December 9 last year.
Oddy, of St Peters in Adelaide, was taken to South Coast District Hospital, where she returned a blood-alcohol reading of 0.256 – more than five times the limit.
Character references, including from her Mix 102.3 breakfast radio show co-presenter Mark Soderstrom, were tendered to the court.
Magistrate Susan O’Connor said Oddy, who is now pregnant and expecting her fourth child in September, was a “successful woman of good character”.
“I accept that she is well thought of and what I’m dealing with is a situation, an episode, which was entirely out of character and, since that time, she has been extremely remorseful and extremely embarrassed,” O’Connor said.
In a statement to The Advertiser, Oddy said there was no excuse for the crash and that she took full responsibility.
Sports Media
FFA to downsize as club owners take control of A-League
A-League owners are expected to pour in $10 million a year to promote the league and sign marquee players and could sell a chunk of the league to outside investors after clinching a deal with Football Federation Australia to privatise the competition, reports The Australian’s John Stensholt.
The deal will result in a much diminished FFA and is set to cause exits of executives such as chief executive David Gallop, who may leave the governing body before his contract ends in November next year.
A-League owners will establish a new body to run professional soccer in Australia under new management while FFA will look after the national teams and development pathways, though it will maintain a 20 per cent share of the A-League and receive annual payments of at least $4.5m from the independent league.
Agreements still have to be struck as to how the league and FFA will split the proceeds of the existing six-year $346m broadcast deal it has with Fox Sports and A-League major sponsor Hyundai, with figures between 82-90 per cent of all commercial deals understood to be demanded by clubs.