Business of Media
Elon Musk’s Twitter faces exodus of advertisers and executives
Twitter is facing an exodus of executives and skittish advertisers as Elon Musk and his advisers take control of the social media company, prepare to lay off employees and make changes to the product, report The New York Times’ Kate Conger, Tiffany Hsu, and Ryan Mac.
At least three top Twitter executives — including the chief customer officer, the head of people and diversity and an engineering executive — have departed the company in recent days, according to three people with knowledge of the matter and public statements. Two announced their departures on Twitter on Monday but did not say why they quit. More executives may leave in the coming days, the people said.
At the same time, advertisers — who provide about 90 percent of Twitter’s revenue — are increasingly grappling with Musk’s ownership of the platform. The billionaire, who is meeting advertising executives in New York this week, has spooked some advertisers because he has said he would loosen Twitter’s content rules, which could lead to a surge in misinformation and other toxic content.
As it weighs Murdoch-driven merger, Fox Corp. posts rise in revenue on record political advertising haul
Fox Corp. reported revenue in its fiscal first quarter of $3.19 billion, up 5 percent from the same quarter a year ago, owing to higher affiliate fees and a strong advertising environment, led by a record-shattering midterm elections advertising haul, reports The Hollywood Reporter’s Alex Weprin.
That being said, the company reported net income of $618 million, down from $708 million a year earlier.
The strong quarter came as the company is in talks to merge itself with the other major piece of the Murdoch family empire: News Corp., the owner of Dow Jones, The Wall Street Journal, and Australia’s Foxtel.
“The Special Committee has not made any determination at this time, and there can be no certainty that the company will engage in such a transaction,” Fox said in its quarterly report. Fox CEO Lachlan Murdoch said on the earnings call that he would not comment further on the proposal.
News Brands
ABC to set up ‘state of the art’ bureau, but taxpayers won’t pay an extra cent
Taxpayers won’t bear brunt of relocating 300 ABC staff to Western Sydney, the national broadcaster has told a parliamentary committee, reports News Corp’s Ellen Ransley.
The ABC plans to relocate 300 full time staff to Parramatta from the Ultimo headquarters over the coming two years to be closer to the stories to the fastest growing region in the country.
Managing Director of the ABC, David Anderson, told the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works on Tuesday that Australians would not be expected to pay for the relocation.
Instead, the broadcaster would cover its own costs by leasing out floors made vacant at the Ultimo headquarters by the move.
The cost will also be offset by selling the broadcasters’ property on Sydney’s north shore.
Television
Former UK health minister Matt Hancock suspended for joining I’m a Celebrity, Get Me Out of Here in Australia
The UK’s former health minister, who led the country’s COVID-19 response, has been suspended from the Conservative Party for joining the jungle reality TV show I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here filmed in Australia, reports the ABC.
Matt Hancock, who quit the senior political role after he was filmed kissing an aide in breach of COVID rules, will join pop singer Boy George, ex-England rugby player Mike Tindall and England women’s footballer Jill Scott.
The Conservative Party said it had withdrawn the whip, effectively suspending Hancock from the parliamentary party, after hearing he would be in Australia for filming while parliament was sitting.
Sports Media
Eddie McGuire’s off-air conversation accidentally played live in Melbourne Cup coverage
An off-air conversation with Eddie McGuire appears to have accidentally shown to some viewers watching Channel 10’s coverage of the Melbourne Cup, reports News Corp.
Twitter user Evan Davis shared a clip of an interaction between McGuire and Australian actor and host Rob Mills, which seemed to have been aired by accident.
Davis, who lives in the UK, said he was watching the network’s coverage of the Melbourne Cup on Sky Sports Racing.
“Sky Sports Racing are airing @Channel10AU’s #MelbourneCup coverage without ads. Just a static card,” he wrote.
“I guess this conversation between Eddie McGuire and Rob Mills only aired in the UK.”
In the video Mills appears on the screen, with McGuire’s voice being heard greeting him.
“How’s it all going?” Mills asks, to which the host replies “we’re on fire”.
Betr sidesteps disaster, beating the gambling ‘bros’
Coming into the last turn of the Melbourne Cup, race favourite Deauville Legend seemed poised to take the lead the from Knights Order, and in that moment Betr’s founder Matthew Tripp, his colleagues and investors must have felt sick, reports Nine Publishing’s Mark Di Stefano.
A win for Deauville Legend would have cost Tripp and his betting start-up tens of millions of dollars.
But roughie Gold Trip took to the front, Deauville Legend faded and one of the most daring marketing campaigns in recent memory dodged disaster.
Tripp’s Betr launched earlier this month, promising new customers long odds on sporting events and marquee races in the spring carnival. The centrepiece was a promotion that offered users odds of 100-to-1 on every runner in the Melbourne Cup, with a maximum bet of $10.
Part-owned by News Corp, the new outfit ran an aggressive marketing campaign for the promotion in October, placing ads across the country’s newspapers and websites.