Business of Media
Lachlan Murdoch’s lawyers say Crikey is directing ‘ridicule and hatred’ at him, court case hears
Lawyers for Lachlan Murdoch have told a Sydney judge the company which owns Crikey has been “directing ridicule and hatred” towards him and “publicly claiming martyrdom” as a date is set for his defamation trial, reports the ABC’s Jamie McKinnell.
As the matter came before Justice Michael Wigney for the first time, barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC, for Murdoch, took issue with the “conduct” of her opponents over the past month.
She said the CEO of Private Media had this week published a video purporting to explain their defence.
“It would appear how the respondents are portraying the proceedings and are portraying what is, in fact, in issue is very different to what the pleaded issues are,” she said.
“That has had a number of effects, including the no doubt increase in subscriptions and money paid to a GoFundMe account that has been set up, but also directing ridicule and hatred towards my client.”
Rift widens over $50m Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism prize
Billionaire Judith Neilson’s claim that she was blindsided by a proposal by senior figures at her journalism institute to create a $50m award in her name conflicts with notes from the philanthropic organisation’s board meetings, reports News Corp’s James Madden.
In June, four independent directors of the Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism resigned en masse following the decision by the 76-year-old billionaire to scrap the proposed “Judith Neilson Prize”.
Last month, Neilson offered her first public comments on the turmoil at her institute, telling The Australian Financial Review that plans for the prize had been developed without her knowledge.
But Neilson’s claims that she was kept in the dark about the development of the award appear to be at odds with notes from JNI board meetings and finance committee hearings held last year, and earlier this year.
Documents obtained by The Australian show that on August 12 last year, JNI’s then executive director Mark Ryan, briefed the institute’s finance committee on the development of the award, telling them that Mrs Neilson was fully informed on its progress.
Two journalists arrested in Iran after covering death of woman accused of not wearing hijab properly
Iranian police have arrested at least two women journalists involved in publishing the story of Mehsa Amini who died after being arrested and allegedly beaten for wearing a hijab incorrectly, reports Press Gazette.
Nilufar Hamidi, a journalist for Sharq newspaper and website, is one of those who have been arrested. She had published the picture of Amini’s family behind the door of her room in Kasri Hospital in Tehran.
It is unclear what charges she faces but she was apparently arrested on Thursday morning at her home in Tehran.
Also arrested was photographer Yalda Meiri, according to a statement by the Committee for the Protection of Journalists. Her family confirmed the news of her arrest and transfer to prison.
She was apparently seized on Monday while covering the protests against the death of Amini in the centre of Tehran and on Hijab Street.
Women and Gen Z drive Don’t Worry Darling box office
Never underestimate the interest in ogling a cute guy on a big screen, reports The New York Times’ Brooks Barnes.
Harry Styles, the white-hot musician, sex symbol and fledgling movie star, powered the critically drubbed and controversy-entangled Don’t Worry Darling to a solid $19.2 million in estimated ticket sales at North American cinemas over the weekend. That No. 1 total was propped up by more than $3 million in preview screenings from earlier in the week.
Women made up 66 percent of the audience, according to Warner Bros., the studio behind the $35 million film, with an unusually large 52 percent of ticket buyers under the age of 25.
Don’t Worry Darling, an R-rated romantic mystery co-starring Florence Pugh and directed by Olivia Wilde, who also acted in it, received a B-minus grade from moviegoers in CinemaScore exit polls. It played in 4,113 theaters in the United States and Canada.
News Brands
New business publication to target aspirational eyeballs
Private Media has signed a deal to launch a new Australian-focused tech and business publication even as the company fights a potentially expensive defamation battle against Lachlan Murdoch, reports Nine Publishing’s Mark Di Stefano.
The media company helmed by Eric Beecher has signed a four-year contract with US-based Mansueto Ventures to publish Inc. Australia.
Under the arrangement Private Media will publish the news and journalism of Inc. online alongside its Smart Company brand in Australia.
Inc. focuses on news and content about tech companies and start-ups. It also publishes the so-called Inc. 5000 – a ranking of the top 5000 private companies according to revenue growth.
There will be competition in the space as first-time magazine publisher Michael Lane launches Forbes Australia, targeting a similar audience of aspirational, tech-minded people. Both are licensing US mastheads to publish in Australia, with Forbes Australia planning to print several magazine issues each year.
See Also: Forbes Australia: Bringing the behemoth brand Down Under
Television
The Heartbreak High reboot is a global hit. It also sends Australia a message
Heartbreak High was the most watched television show on Netflix in Australia by Thursday – barely a week after its debut – and the streaming giant says it made the top ten list in 45 other countries, reports Nine Publishing’s Colin Kruger.
On Sunday, Netflix confirmed that Heartbreak High is also now in its top ten most viewed television shows globally.
Paul Muller, chief executive of the Australia New Zealand Screen Association (ANZSA), which represents Netflix, said it shows that the streaming platforms are putting quality Australian content at the core of their offering, and warned this could suffer with heavy-handed local content regulation.
“Streaming services are making fantastic local shows, and being successful with that in Australia and around the world,” Muller said.
“Heartbreak High is actually an example of something that is Australian as it can be, based on an Australian IP (Intellectual property). Every writer, every actor in it, everyone is Australian.”
Netflix reveals premiere date for season five of The Crown
Despite questions over whether Netflix would delay the release of the upcoming season of The Crown, the streamer has confirmed the series is coming in six weeks, reports News Corp’s Wenlei Ma.
The fifth season of The Crown will premiere on November 9, Netflix revealed during its annual Tudum fan event.
Peter Morgan’s glossy royal drama will release all 10 episodes at once, just in time for royal watchers to inhale another instalment of Windsor antics.
The fifth season is set to be one of The Crown’s most eye-popping, set during the early 1990s and focused on the cataclysmic breakdown of Charles and Diana’s tumultuous marriage.
UK broadcasters battle monarchy over control of Queen’s memorial footage
British television channels are in a battle with the monarchy over who controls the historic record of Queen Elizabeth II’s commemorations, after Buckingham Palace insisted broadcasters could only retain an hour of footage for future use, reports The Guardian’s Jim Waterson.
The BBC, ITV and Sky News have been given until Monday to produce a 60-minute compilation of clips they would like to keep from ceremonial events held across the 10 days of mourning for the Queen. The royal household will then consider whether to veto any proposed inclusions.
Once the process is complete, the vast majority of other footage from ceremonial events will then be taken out of circulation. Any news outlets wishing to use unapproved pieces of footage would have to apply to the royal family on a case-by-case basis, even for material that has already been broadcast to tens of millions of people.
Podcasts
Adnan Syed, Chris Dawson: Have true-crime podcasts really changed the course of history?
At first glance, Adnan Syed’s release this week after 23 years in a US jail for the murder of his high-school girlfriend reflects the power of the true-crime podcast, reports Nine Publishing’s Kerrie O’Brien.
The crime for which Syed was convicted in 2000 was documented in the podcast Serial, one of the first of its kind to gain international attention. Doubt was cast over his guilt by several people interviewed in the series, as well as by some of the evidence used against him, including mobile phone tower location references.
Jarryd Bartle, a former criminal defence lawyer and current associate lecturer at RMIT, says the question of whether true-crime coverage can lead to justice outcomes is complicated. He and his colleagues have examined a variety of true-crime entertainment to assess their impact, including podcasts and documentaries. “When you look at what’s out there compared to what has translated to an actual justice outcome, there have actually been very few cases that have had that kind of impact,” he says.
“We do ourselves a disservice by just thinking all you need to get a good outcome is a whole bunch of publicity.”
Sports Media
One-sided grand final hurts ratings, as Seven boss James Warburton eyes prime time finale
Seven boss James Warburton has renewed his push for a night-time AFL grand final, following the network’s disappointing ratings result for Saturday’s decider, report News Corp’s James Madden and Sophie Elsworth.
The match, which ended in a thumping 81-point win for the Geelong Cats over the Sydney Swans, was broadcast live on Seven and drew a national television audience of just 2.96 million (with an additional 95,000 viewers tuning in on 7plus), making it the second-lowest-rating AFL grand final in the past two decades.
The ratings for Saturday’s grand final only marginally eclipsed the national TV audience for the 2019 decider, which was a similarly lopsided affair, with Richmond crushing GWS by 89 points. That match drew a national audience of 2.4 million.