Peter Costello departs Nine
Nine chairman Peter Costello sent packing after two minutes of madness at Canberra Airport
When Peter Costello jetted into Canberra Airport about 1.30pm on Thursday, he didn’t know he was headed into a media storm that would ultimately send him packing from the chairmanship at Nine, reports The Australian’s Sophie Elsworrth.
After flying from Melbourne via a Virgin Australia flight, the 66-year-old travelled down the terminal escalator with his jacket and mobile phone in one hand and suitcase in the other.
But it was the sort of entry he didn’t expect – being approached by journalist Liam Mendes from The Australian, who with his cameras and mobile phone videoing Costello’s arrival, started quizzing him about the troubled media company.
See Also: Peter Costello stands down as Nine chairman
Costello departure won’t end questions hanging over Nine
Peter Costello’s departure as Nine Entertainment chairman is unlikely to offer much respite to new successor Catherine West or the chief executive of the $2.2 billion media group, Mike Sneesby, reports Nine Publishing’s James Thomson.
Even if Sneesby and West can navigate the cultural crisis engulfing Nine’s television newsroom without losing more skin, they will face a long list of big strategic questions due to the brutal combination of cyclical pressure from a weakening economy, and structural pressures from the relentless spread of digital competition.
Who is Nine’s new chair Catherine West?
Nine’s new chair, Catherine West, will not only have to take over from her larger-than-life predecessor, Peter Costello, in managing the review of the company’s culture but also steer it through a period of steady decline in the media sector, reports Nine Publishing’s Calum Jaspan.
West, who spent 17 years as a legal director for Rupert Murdoch’s Sky UK and was the deputy chair at Nine, was appointed as Costello’s successor on Sunday afternoon, days after the former treasurer’s altercation with a journalist at Canberra Airport.
West, a lawyer by trade, is a relatively unknown entity in Australian media with little operational media experience. She does hold director roles on ASX-listed Peter Warren Automotive Holdings and Monash IVF, and was recently made chair of the National Institute of Dramatic Art (NIDA). She is also on NIDA’s Foundation Trust alongside Nine’s director of communications and public relations, Victoria Buchan.
News Brands
Bruce Gordon, 95, bulks up interest in Nine
Bruce Gordon increased his interest in Nine Entertainment to more than 25 per cent, giving the billionaire businessman outsize influence just hours before a board meeting that resulted in the resignation of the company’s chairman Peter Costello, reports Nine Publishing’s Sam Buckingham-Jones.
Gordon, the owner of regional broadcaster WIN Corporation, owns 14.9 per cent of Nine’s shares and is by far its biggest shareholder. Media ownership restrictions prevent the 95-year-old businessman from increasing his shareholding in Nine further.
However, Gordon, through his private investment vehicle, has grown his economic stake in the broadcasting and publishing giant to 25.1 per cent, according to a notice lodged with the market by Nine on Friday morning.
Channel Seven reporter Robert Ovadia denies allegations of ‘inappropriate behaviour’ after network announces investigation
Channel Seven has launched an internal investigation into allegations of “inappropriate behaviour” by senior journalist Robert Ovadia, reports the ABC’s Ethan Rix.
A network spokesperson confirmed Ovadia was on leave and said “Seven is conducting an investigation into allegations of inappropriate behaviour by Robert Ovadia”.
In a statement to the ABC, Ovadia said he would defend the “malicious” allegations.
“Seven has told me no current or former colleague has made any complaint against me,” he said.
Business of Media
Apple debuts new ‘Apple Intelligence’ AI features at WWDC 2024
Tim Cook, the Apple CEO, announced a series of generative artificial intelligence products and services on Monday during his keynote speech at the company’s annual developer conference, WWDC, including a deal with ChatGPT-maker OpenAI, report The Guardian’s Kari Paul and Nick Robins-Early.
The new tools mark a major shift toward AI for Apple, which has seen slowing global sales over the past year and integrated fewer AI features into its consumer-facing products than competitors.
“It has to understand you and be grounded in your personal context like your routine, your relationships, your communications and more. It’s beyond artificial intelligence. It’s personal intelligence,” said Cook. “Introducing Apple Intelligence.”
ABC boss Steve Ahern, who hired former host Antoinette Lattouf, quits the broadcaster after Gaza saga
The ABC radio boss responsible for the appointment of Antoinette Lattouf to act as a fill-in host in December has quit, reports The Australian’s Sophie Elsworth and James Madden.
Spies told Diary that Steve Ahern, who was acting head of the ABC’s Capital City Networks when the saga erupted, recently announced his resignation, six months after he gave approval for Lattouf to fill in for mornings host Sarah Macdonald.
Michael Mosley found dead on Greek island, Clare Bailey Mosley pays tribute to ‘wonderful, funny, kind and brilliant’ husband
The wife of British TV presenter Michael Mosley says it is “devastating to have lost him” after her husband’s body was found on the Greek island of Symi, reports the ABC’s Georgie Hewson.
Dr Mosley’s body was discovered on Sunday morning, local time, on day five of an extensive search on air, land and sea after he went missing on a walk during a holiday on Wednesday.
“It’s devastating to have lost Michael, my wonderful, funny, kind and brilliant husband,” Clare Bailey Mosley said in a statement.