Business of Media
Fox and friends confront billion-dollar US lawsuits over election fraud claims
In the months following the 2020 US presidential election, rightwing TV news in America was a wild west, an apparently lawless free-for-all where conspiracy theories about voting machines, ballot-stuffed suitcases and dead Venezuelan leaders were repeated to viewers around the clock, reports The Guardian’s Adam Gabbatt.
There seemed to be little consequence for peddling the most outrageous ideas on primetime.
But now, unfortunately for Fox News, One America News Network (OAN), and Newsmax, it turns out that this brave, new world wasn’t free from legal jurisdiction – with the three networks now facing billion-dollar lawsuits as a result of their baseless accusations.
HBO Max “ceasing” original programming efforts in parts of Europe
With the merged Warner Bros. Discovery targeting profitable streaming subscriber growth and $3 billion in cost savings, the company is adjusting its programming strategy for streaming service HBO Max in parts of Europe, reports The Hollywood Reporter’s Georg Szalai.
The entertainment conglomerate will no longer produce originals for HBO Max in the Nordics, the Netherlands, Central Europe and Turkey, the company said Monday, as first reported by Variety. Among the originals in these regions have been the likes of Danish family drama Kamikaze.
The streamer will also remove “a limited amount of original programming” to allow it to free up licensing deals.
Jarryd Hayne fan Mina Greiss received ‘threats and abuse’ after Channel Seven articles
Channel Seven will head to court to fight a defamation charge after it published articles claiming a man spat at an alleged sexual assault victim outside a NSW courthouse, reports News Corp’s Adelaide Lang.
Mina Greiss is suing Channel Seven over two articles and a tweet that he alleged have damaged his reputation and resulted in threats and abuse.
The publications claimed the 38-year-old spat at a woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by former NRL star Jarryd Hayne in 2018.
In the articles, Greiss is criticised as a “grub” who committed a “vile act” against the woman.
On Monday, the Federal Court was told that Greiss was outside Newcastle District Court “to support” Hayne during his sentencing on May 6, 2021.
Agencies
PHD Australia appointed to Celebrity Cruises media account in Australia and New Zealand
PHD Australia has been appointed to the Celebrity Cruises media account following a pitch. The agency will be responsible for all offline and online media activity in Australia and New Zealand, effective immediately.
Celebrity Cruises is an international cruise line, with a focus on redefining luxury cruise travel and delivering unrivalled experiences for modern travellers.
The luxury cruise and travel brand has been voted one of Australia’s highest rated and best premium cruise brands in the country.
PHD will work closely with Celebrity, as it looks to continue a strong return to growth, as travel restrictions lessen.
Clemenger Group names Jim Curtis as national chief creative officer
Clemenger Group has appointed Jim Curtis as the national chief creative officer for Clemenger BBDO.
In the role, Curtis will lead the creative discipline across both Melbourne and Sydney agencies.
The newly appointed CCO will focus on applying the agency’s creative thinking to create new opportunities and solve business-critical challenges for clients across Australia.
The national role will also see Curtis bring together “the brightest creative minds to drive client growth, without barriers or borders.”
Before the promotion, Curtis was the executive creative director at Clemenger BBDO Melbourne.
In the role, he lead several award-winning campaigns since joining in 2020 and was ranked Australia’s number one creative leader by advertising, design and digital marketing award program, One Show in 2022.
Vistar Media names Sandra Scott as sales and partnerships director for NZ
Vistar Media has named Sandra Scott as sales and partnership director for New Zealand.
The newly appointed sales and partnership director for New Zealand commences her role this month.
Scott steps into the role following a two-year stint as a Sydney-based account director at Vistar Media, where she developed the programmatic DOOH category and drove demand-side revenues across the ANZ markets.
Scott brings to the role over 15 years of media sales and team management experience across print, digital, SaaS and DOOH in the UK and Australia, following roles at Time Inc UK, Fairfax (now Nine Entertainment) and Bonzai.
In the role, she will lead demand-side operations for Vistar Media in New Zealand, helping to support the growth of DOOH.
WhiteGREY appoints Olivia Kaufman as managing partner
WhiteGREY has announced the appointment of Olivia Kaufman to the newly created role of managing partner.
Kaufman joins the creative technology agency after more than two years as group account director of The General Store.
The newly appointed managing partner will lead the Scentre Group and Glaxo SmithKline business across the agency.
Prior to The General Store, she was the group account director/new business director at creative agency ODD, stretching across from New York, London to Sydney.
With a strong focus in the retail space, she earned her stripes working for iconic retail brands including Tesco F&F, Old Navy, Freedom Furniture, Seafolly, and also brings extensive FMCG experience having worked on Pepsi Co, Diageo and brands in the P&G portfolio to the agency.
Involved Media to lead media strategy for Wollongong 2022
Independent media agency, Involved Media, is partnering with the organising committee for Wollongong 2022 UCI Road World Championships.
Involved Media will be responsible for media strategy, planning and buying in the lead-up to the event, which will be held from 18 to 25 September.
The appointment by Wollongong 2022 follows a string of client wins by Involved Media over the past 18 months, including Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, NordicTrack, Crayola, Hitachi ABB Power Grids, and Releaf Group.
More than 1,000 of the top international cyclists from over 70 nations will compete in Wollongong for a gold medal and the coveted rainbow jersey. It is one of the top five annual sporting events in the world and is watched by more than 300 million viewers around the globe.
The 2022 UCI Road World Championships will be an Olympic-scale sport and community celebration that aims to bring people together, champion the benefits of life with a bicycle, and showcase the qualities that make Wollongong a wonderful place to live and visit.
Television
Kelsey Grammer teases Frasier reboot
Kelsey Grammer has confirmed that the production team are “in the final stages of the final script for the first episode of the Frasier reboot and it looks pretty good,” reports TV Tonight.
He added: “I’ve had a couple of runs through it, and I cried, so you know, I’m happy.”
A reboot was confirmed in early 2021.
Sports Media
Nathan Brown makes his move to replace Tony Jones as Sunday Footy Show host
Nathan Brown is dialling up the heat on Sunday Footy Show host Tony Jones, reports News Corp’s Jackie Epstein.
Filling in for TJ while he’s reporting and presenting from Wimbledon, Brown hasn’t put a foot wrong since taking over the hot seat two weeks ago.
He will hand back the reins when TJ returns but he’s making no secret of his desire to host his own show. He’s even started a legitimate petition to “Keep TJ at Wimbledon” which so far has gathered over 600 signatures on change.org.
Alex de Minaur snubbed by Channel Nine
Channel Nine has made the stunning call to abandon Australia’s No.1 men’s tennis player Alex de Minaur in favour of controversial star Nick Kyrgios, reports News Corp’s Todd Balym.
In a scheduling nightmare for the Australian television broadcasters, the fourth round clash for the duo overlapped on Monday night.
It left Nine with the brutal call to leave de Minaur’s tense fourth-round clash with Christian Garin after the third set to show Kyrgios’s own round-of-16 match.
It means not only did the world No.40 Kyrgios get priority access to Wimbledon’s famed centre court, he was preferred by Nine as the ratings draw card despite the network having invested more than two-and-a-half hours of airtime on the world No.27’s battle taking place on court two.