Mediaweek vs Mumbrella: The gloves come off

Vinyl Group CEO Josh Simons and Mumbrella publisher Tim Burrowes have sat down for a rare face-to-face conversation about AI, publishing and the trade media rivalry that has become a story of its own.

For those not in the know, Mediaweek and Mumbrella have spent years covering Australia’s media industry while becoming one of its juiciest stories.

The long-standing rivalry escalated after Burrowes’ return to Mumbrella, pitting the publication against Vinyl Group-owned Mediaweek in an increasingly public corporate and editorial contest.

More recently, the argy-bargy has centred on Vinyl Media’s plans to use AI to dramatically scale its publishing output. The debate has since come down to AI, publishing, AI publishing and, somehow, the word “bombastic”.

So, naturally, we put them in a room together.

Recorded at Mumbrella HQ in Sydney, the conversation tackles the public clash, the commercial realities of modern publishing and whether AI represents journalism’s next chapter or simply a faster way to produce more stuff.

It is frank, occasionally fiery and, against the odds, remarkably civil.

Consider it a media peace summit, with microphones.

Listen to the full conversation now wherever you get your podcasts.