Permanent Part-Time: Antoinette Lattouf talks working on The Briefing
It was announced this week that Antoinette Lattouf is joining LiSTNR’s daily news podcast, The Briefing as a regular and permanent host, after being a guest host since August of last year.
Podcast Week‘s Trent Thomas caught up with Lattouf to talk about making her role on The Briefing permanent and the state of news in 2022.
The move comes with Lattouf stepping away from her role at Network 10 this week, a move she said is due to her wanting to take on more original content projects.
“I’m focusing my efforts on more original content development, and working across different media brands, and different mediums. I have my book coming out in May, I’m developing some podcasts myself, some television shows, and I’ve taken the plunge to be a bit of an independent content creator. And having a relationship with LiSTNR and Southern Cross Austereo fits really nicely into that.”
Antoinette Lattouf
Lattouf said that the only downside of the role was the early morning start, and joked that they will need to hook up coffee to her veins. She said the main appeal that made it worth the early alarms was working with Tom Tilley, Jan Fran, Katrina Blowers, and Jamila Rizvi.
“My children usually don’t even get me up that early, I ignore them where possible. It did have to be a pretty attractive option, a product and a podcast I believe in. But more importantly the team, Tom, Jan, Katrina, and Jamila. They’re all doing the hustle that I’m now doing, they all work across books, television, and podcasts. And I really think that’s the way of the future for many journalists.”
Lattouf won’t have to get too used to the early alarms with the gig being for only one day a week to start.
“Thankfully at the moment, it’s just the one. It may increase to a few more, but we’ll just see how I go and see how some of these other exciting projects develop. Once it becomes three days, it becomes a real lifestyle change.”
Lattouf has previously worked on a range of news and current affairs at the ABC, SBS, 10 and Triple J, and written opinion pieces for The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian, Women’s Agenda and Mamamia, and said that amidst rapid change in the industry podcasting is now a vital medium.
“When I was at university studying communications Twitter, 24-hour news, digital streaming and podcasts weren’t part of the curriculum. It’s not what we studied. I’ve been part of the media at a time where it has changed at the most rapid pace ever. Audiences have changed. I think it’s important to respond to how people consume news. It’s often on their phones, it’s on-demand. I just want to be part of the future of news consumption.
“A podcast like The Briefing allows more time to explore the why and to hear more personal stories and different perspectives and spend a bit more time fleshing that out. That’s something I’m really looking forward to. Those human stories are so powerful, the stories behind the numbers and the headlines. And thankfully, with The Briefing, you can do more than just the headlines.”
Antoinette Lattouf
Podcasts are one of the most popular mediums in the industry at the moment, partially due to the low cost of entry, but Lattouf said that not many shows have the cut-through of The Briefing.
“During the pandemic, consumers did two things, they became sourdough baking experts, and they created a podcast at home. There are a lot of podcasts on the market, but not that many have cut through. Not that many audiences continue to grow at the rate that The Briefing’s are growing. Podcasts are a super important part of the media pie, but you’ve got to do it well.”
Lattouf’s first book, How to Lose Friends and Influence White People, will be published by Penguin Random House in May 2022.
New data reveals Australia’s biggest podcast advertisers
New data from podcast publisher ARN’s iHeartPodcast Network and Magellan AI has revealed the top 15 brands advertising across the entire Australian podcast landscape.
Amazon, eBay, Monday.com and BINGE have been identified as some of Australia’s top spenders on podcast advertising.
Using the latest in artificial intelligence technology, the report is based on analysing thousands of episodes from 400+ of the most popular podcasts in Australia in Q4 2021 to determine which brands are spending the most.
Overall, spending on Australian podcast advertising increased by 14% from Q3 2021, with genres including Society & Culture, True Crime and News securing the most spend.
The Q4 list features brands from a broad range of categories across banking, automobile, FMCG, entertainment and online retail outlets, demonstrating that podcasts are a growth sector for advertisers.
Canstar announces new podcast with Effie Zahos
Canstar has announced the launch of its debut podcast series, Real Money with Effie Zahos.
The podcast, hosted by Canstar’s editor-at-large Effie Zahos, features real stories from real Australians who have overcome sticky financial situations.
From shopping addiction to financial deceit, the podcast tackles a range of money issues through interviews with guest speakers, exploring the lessons learned from their experiences and how listeners can avoid falling into the same pitfalls.
Each podcast episode will also include practical tips listeners can apply to their own finances. Over the season, Zahos will be joined by experts including behavioural psychologists, financial counsellors and representatives from the ACCC and Centre for Women’s Economic Safety.
Zahos said: “There are certain money topics or financial mistakes that are still considered “taboo”, and we may not feel comfortable discussing them. But one of the benefits of talking about money is that you learn from others’ experiences – and that’s what this podcast is all about.
“Sometimes managing money isn’t as straightforward as it seems, and Real Money with Effie Zahos was created as a judgement-free space to help people feel less alone when it comes to their finances.
“On the debut season of Real Money with Effie Zahos, you’ll hear authentic stories from the people who experienced it first hand. A spending addict reveals her lightbulb moment, a gambling addict recounts ending up in jail, a scorned partner unravels her ex’s superannuation secret and a scam victim talks about losing $165,000 online.
“We are incredibly grateful to our guests for graciously agreeing to share their stories. We can’t wait to share the podcast with you, and hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we’ve enjoyed making it.”
[Listen to Real Money with Effie Zahos here]
Gus Worland partners with Shaw and Partners Financial Services for new pod
Gus Worland has teamed up with Shaw and Partners Financial Services to host the podcast Not An Overnight Success that digs deep to find out how some of Australia’s most accomplished people in business, entertainment and sport got to where they are today.
Worland sits down with guests such as Hugh Jackman, Layne Beachley, Mark Bouris, Karl Stefanovic, Freddy Fitler and Peter Costello and more to talk about their journey to success.
At the end of each episode, Worland and Shaw and Partners Financial Services give each guest $10,000 to donate to a chosen charity.
Worland said: “I wanted to do this podcast because I realised, having worked in media for the last 15 years, I am surrounded by incredibly successful people, but I have no idea how they got to such heights. We assume many are overnight successes, but we don’t see their rejections, self-doubt and most importantly, their perseverance. This podcast is a conversation between friends and an insight into what goes into a success story.”
[Listen to not an overnight success here]
