Business of Media
The takeover battle that could reshape Hollywood
Over its 98-year history, the Paramount Pictures studio lot has survived the arrival of talking pictures, bankruptcy, the Depression, the rise of TV. and a range of different owners, report The Financial Times’ Christoper Grimes, Anna Nicolaou, and James Fontanella-Khan.
The question now is whether the 26-hectare property on Melrose Avenue – the last major studio left in Los Angeles’ Hollywood district – can survive the streaming era.
The Redstone family, which has controlled Paramount since 1994, is considering a sale of the company behind Sunset Boulevard, The Godfather, Chinatown and Titanic. The fate of the studio could rest on which of the two bidders – one backed by the movie-loving son of a tech billionaire, the other by a leading private equity firm – comes out on top.
Being generous might be most self-serving thing that a brand can do
It’s international award season in the world of advertising and marketing. While some would declare that awards in advertising are an evergreen sport, right now is when three very prominent shows own the calendar and are judged in relatively quick succession, even with some brutal overlap, write Special’s Julian Schreiber and Tom Martin.
We’re talking about the American One Show, the British D&AD and the more worldly Cannes International Festival of Creativity. These are the staples that pretty much every marketing creative wants to win and then beyond winning, be involved in judging.
Prince Harry fails in bid to name Rupert Murdoch in phone-hacking case
Prince Harry has failed in his legal bid to name Rupert Murdoch in allegations of extensive cover-up of wrongdoing at Murdoch’s newspapers, reports The Guardian’s Alexandra Topping.
The Duke of Sussex is locked in a legal battle with News Group Newspapers (NGN), the publisher of the Sun, which he has accused of phone hacking, unlawful information gathering, landline tapping and the covering up of widespread wrongdoing.
The case brought by Harry and other high-profile individuals, including the Labour peer Doreen Lawrence, is due to go to trial in January 2025. In March, Harry’s lawyers tried to update parts of their case after the release of more information.
News Brands
Nine staff open up on newsroom ‘cockroach’: ‘rattled and disappointed’ over victory laps for Wickie
Senior current and former Channel 9 employees have spoken out against a culture they claim allowed the network’s former news boss Darren Wick to behave inappropriately and get away with it for many years, reports News Corp’s Jonathon Moran.
Speaking on the basis of anonymity, household names from TV and those working behind the scenes have detailed extraordinary allegations about what went on in one of Australia’s biggest newsrooms.
Nine declines to comment as headlines surround former news boss
Nine has declined to comment on gathering headlines this week surrounding the departure of Nine News boss Darren Wick in March, reports TV Tonight.
The Australian, Daily Telegraph and SKY News this week reported the news boss had been the subject of a recent complaint from a female staff member, related to an incident which allegedly occurred some years ago.
The reports suggest the matter was discussed at Board level.
Television
Dr Chris Brown’s move from Ten to Seven is not the misstep many predicted
It’s unlikely that many people who enrol in veterinary school have the thought in their head that, if all goes well and they provide top-notch care for the animals in their charge, they might one day be paid a huge amount of money to host a home renovation show. But Dr Chris Brown has yet again shown us all that dreams do come true, and in the good doctor’s case, the stranger the dream, the better, reports Nine Publishing’s Ben Pobjie.
Dr Chris seems an odd choice at first glance for the frontman role on Dream Home, but then he seemed an odd choice to host I’m A Celebrity... with Julia Morris, and he hit that one out of the park to such an extent that Seven came a-poaching and lured him away. The fact is, as this latest take on the seemingly inexhaustible reno genre proves, he’s kind of a good choice for any job.
Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil joins cast of Neighbours
Former Miss Universe Australia Maria Thattil has an exciting new career venture, nabbing a guest role on Neighbours, reports News Corp’s Belinda Palmada.
Speaking to news.com.au, the 31-year-old media personality, who grew up watching the Aussie soap, said she was “very grateful” to be joining the cast.
“It’s really incredible, especially when you’ve grown up watching it,” she said.
Sports Media
Wayne Carey missing from podcast world after NSW AFL Hall of Fame controversy
Wayne Carey has gone missing from the podcasting world in the aftermath of his NSW AFL Hall of Fame ban. Carey has been heard each Monday on his The Truth Hurts podcast alongside co-host Tony Sheahan but has yet to surface this month since the situation unfolded, reports News Corp’s Jackie Epstein.
He posted on X on May 13 that he had taken the past two weeks “to reflect, recalibrate and re-energise for the future”, adding that he’d see fans next week bigger and better.
But he was absent again on Monday this week with suggestions that an impasse with the podcast’s production company remains unresolved.