Multiple sources have confirmed to Mediaweek that Southern Cross Austereo’s (SCA) recent newsroom redundancies are directly connected to the introduction of a new AI-assisted model.
The development follows the company’s merger announcement with Seven West Media (SWM) earlier this month, however the cuts and restructure are not linked to the merger.
In a statement to Mediaweek, an SCA spokesperson said the company is “evolving the way we gather and prepare news bulletins to better serve audiences across Australia, now and into the future.”
While the company maintains the goal is efficiency, sources said the new model integrates AI at the scripting and collation stages of news bulletin production – speeding up workflows but reducing the need for staff.
“I’m not entirely across all the mechanisms,” one insider said, “but the new system will make it quicker for journalists to put together their bulletins.”
When asked if the restructure was directly related to the recent redundancies, the insider offered a pointed and simple “yes”.
Local coverage concerns
When the newsroom cuts first surfaced, industry figures voiced concerns that SCA could be at risk of breaching its local content requirements under the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).
The regulator requires regional broadcasters to produce at least 62.5 minutes of original local content each week – the equivalent of one full-time journalist’s output.
“If an audit was done, they wouldn’t be genuine local bulletins,” one source told Mediaweek. “No way could they be meeting 62.5 minutes like that.”
At the time, SCA strongly rejected that claim, calling it “factually incorrect” and insisting that “the amount of bulletins in regional areas will actually increase under the changes.”
According to sources, the integration of AI now appears to be a key part of how the company plans to maintain those targets with a smaller team.
In a statement to Mediaweek, an SCA spokesperson confirmed the company “is evolving the way we manage our news operations to better serve audiences across Australia, now and into the future.”
“As part of this change, we’ve developed a proprietary software platform in-house to help our journalists gather information and draft bulletins. While the platform includes some AI capabilities, it is a newsroom tool designed to support our journalists in their day-to-day work.
“All bulletins continue to be fact-checked, edited, and read by journalists based in our provincial and metro hubs across the country. This new approach allows us to increase the number of regional bulletins we deliver each day and strengthen local news coverage.”
Not the first rodeo
This isn’t the first time AI has entered the radio sphere in Australia.
Earlier this year, Mediaweek reported backlash over the Australian Radio Network’s (ARN) use of an AI-generated radio host named ‘Thy,’ modelled on an employee.
The persona ran four-hour segments without disclosure, and critics called it “tokenistic,” particularly given the racial and representation implications.
ARN defended the trial as an exploration of new technology, but the episode underlines how broadcasters are already testing the boundaries of AI in voice, scripting, and identity.