Thursday July 19, 2018
Mediaweek TV
In the cable TV world MTV is a true pioneer. The Viacom-owned music TV channel has has many iterations over the years but for some time has been a mix of music videos, special music presentations and reality programming. Now, almost 30 years after MTV Unplugged first launched, the format is coming to Australia. To tell us about the first guest artists and to talk about MTV in the post-Netflix TV world is Simon Bates, Vice President, head of MTV Asia Pacific.
Digital ‘always front of mind’ at Adelaide’s only daily paper The Advertiser
By James Manning
Every morning at The Adelaide Advertiser is a busy one. The brand recently celebrated 160 years and in this time it has gone from being a newspaper to a 24/7 multimedia organisation.
Editor Matt Deighton told Mediaweek, “Adelaide was my home for 16 years before I went to Sydney and then Hobart.” Deighton was previously the editor of The Mercury in Tasmania. He returned to the South Australian capital in October 2017 to take on his current role as editor of The Adelaide Advertiser – the only daily newspaper in the city. “It wasn’t a hard decision to say yes. It’s nice to be home,” he said.
The Advertiser is a “much bigger beast” than The Mercury: it’s serving a bigger city, there is more staff and there are more moving parts to it.
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This is an excerpt from the full article, which appears on Mediaweek Premium. Read the full article here, or subscribe to Mediaweek Premium here.
Seven’s head of cricket David Barham on biggest pre-season challenge
By James Manning
• Biggest cricket contract yet to be awarded, where next commentators will come from
Barham understandably won’t talk about what might have gone wrong for Ten in that negotiating process. However, he did tell Mediaweek where to give the rights “was a big decision for Cricket Australia and they have made the decision they think is the best for cricket”.
After Seven was awarded Test cricket and some BBL matches, Barham was almost a free agent and Seven West Media CEO Tim Worner didn’t waste any time securing him to head its cricket coverage. “I didn’t have a lot of time to think about it because there was a looming deadline coming up and we had to start work and sign some talent quickly.”
Barham told Mediaweek Ten was good in that it released him from his contract to start immediately at Seven.
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This is an excerpt from the full article, which appears on Mediaweek Premium. Read the full article here, or subscribe to Mediaweek Premium here.
World Cup TV Ratings: SBS scores with 9.1 million viewers across 57 matches
France’s World Cup victory on SBS was watched by an average audience of 600,000 (498,000 Metro + 102,000 Reg) with a five-city Metro share of 65.7% early on Monday morning. The match reached 882,000 (Metro + Reg) Australians, peaking at 732,000 viewers (Metro + Reg).
SBS Director of Sport Ken Shipp said: “SBS has been the home of the World Cup for 32 years, and we’re incredibly proud to have delivered Australian audiences another month of elite football with expert analysis from SBS’s renowned team of on-air talent.
“Our expertise in broadcasting international sport of this calibre to Australians is unparalleled, and we’re pleased that audiences have responded so positively to our extensive multiplatform offering this year with an extraordinary 7.8 million live streams across digital and radio, and our coverage reaching a massive 9.1 million Australians on television.
“I must acknowledge the outstanding efforts of our team at SBS here in Australia and on the ground in Russia, including hosts Lucy Zelić and Craig Foster, in delivering four weeks of world class football coverage as part of what is arguably one of the great feats in sports broadcasting.”
Outgoing SBS CEO and Managing Director Michael Ebeid said: “The FIFA World Cup is a wonderful example of the inclusive ability of sport to unite diverse communities and we’re thrilled that so many Australians tuned in to SBS’s trusted coverage of the 2018 tournament in Russia.
“The past four weeks have truly showcased SBS as Australia’s spiritual home of football and we are proud to have brought Australians the most comprehensive multiplatform coverage of any sporting event we’ve delivered to date across television, radio and digital platforms.”
Football continues on SBS in the coming weeks and months with Chelsea in Perth live from 9pm AEST on Monday 23 July followed by the return of Premier League on August 11.
SBS also detailed its cross-platform numbers for the 2018 World Cup:
Television
SBS’s television coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup reached a total of 9.1 million Australians across 57 live matches, pre- and post-match analysis, match replays, FIFA World Cup Today daily highlights show and supporting programming across the months of June and July on SBS and SBS Viceland.
The most popular match on television was France v Australia, which saw the Socceroos defeated by the eventual tournament champions 2-1, on Saturday June 16 at 8pm, which reached 3.4 million (Metro + Reg) Australians with an average of 2.2 million viewers (1.7 million Metro + 488,000 Reg) and a peak minute of 2.7 million (Metro + Reg).
Radio
SBS Radio presented Australian audiences the world’s most multilingual coverage of the 2018 FIFA World Cup, delivering over 4.2 million live audio streams across all 64 matches in 12 languages including Arabic, Mandarin, Spanish, German, Japanese, French, Russian and Portuguese.
Radio commentary of the Final on Monday morning was available to listen in five languages; Croatian, Arabic, French, Mandarin, and English. Three matches were available in four languages and 24 matches were available in three languages.
Digital
SBS live streamed a total of 55 FIFA World Cup matches through SBS On Demand, The World Game online, and the official 2018 FIFA World Cup app. There were 3.6 million total live streams of matches across those platforms. The most popular match for streaming was the Denmark v Australia 1-1 draw on Thursday June 21 at midnight with 280,000 live streams.
On The World Game’s 2018 FIFA World Cup website, a massive 4.2 million unique browsers drove over 38 million page views throughout the month of competition.
Through an innovative partnership with Twitter, SBS presented an exclusive live highlights show each match day, #WorldGameLIVE, hosted by Lucy Zelić and Craig Foster from the studio in Red Square. The live show was a rousing success with a total of 1.5 million views across 23 live shows on Twitter.
Football fans could also watch matches from more angles than ever before through the 2018 FIFA World Cup app and could totally immerse themselves in the action in real time with live matches available to view in the 2018 FIFA World Cup VR app.
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Top Photo: Mile Jedinak during Socceroos vs Denmark (credit: Alizada Studios/ Shutterstock)
Nine’s reality cooking competition Family Food Fight to return
The network is promising an all-new look for the second season of the show. The first season of Family Food Fight aired on Nine in 2017.
Eight families from across the country will use their culinary skills to win the title of #1 Food Family for 2018 and take home the prize money of $100,000.
Chef and restaurateur Matt Moran, pastry chef Anna Polyviou and internationally renowned food writer and critic Tom Parker Bowles will return as judges. Former MasterChef contestant and Family Food Fight season one judge Hayden Quinn will not be returning to the show in 2018.
The program is an original format from Endemol Shine Australia and has been developed with Nine. The second season will be broadcast on multiple nights across several weeks later in 2018.
Nine’s head of content production and development Adrian Swift said: “After a passionate culinary showdown the Shahrouk sisters became Australia’s Number One Food Family in 2017. In season two we’ll be introducing a raft of different food challenges, from a celebrity dinner to catching fresh seafood, all sure to make temperatures rise and inspire even more home cooks around the country.”
Filming for ABC Me’s new comedy series Hardball begins
Filming has started on Northern Pictures’ first foray into live action drama, with the cameras rolling on the kids’ comedy series Hardball.
Set in Western Sydney, the 13 x half hour series started shooting on July 9. The upcoming ABC Me program is the brainchild of writing duo Guy Edmonds and Matt Zeremes and has been developed together with Northern Pictures’ head of kids and executive producer Catherine Nebauer.
She said: “Hardball came together very quickly, with everyone immediately responding to the fun and engaging scripts, and the endearing and quirky characters.
“Since setting up our Kids division three years ago, Northern Pictures has produced more than 215 hours of pre-school and factual content. Hardball is our first venture into the live action drama space, which is now a key focus for the company.”
The ACTF is the international distributor and its head of development and production Bernadette O’Mahony also serves as executive producer on the series.
Hardball centres around fish-out-of-water Mikey and his misfit mates Salwa and Jerry. Their goal is to make Mikey the sweetest-bestest-acest handball champ that Western Sydney’s ever seen.
Big Bash League 08: How, where and when matches will be broadcast
BBL games will be broadcast live across the Seven Network and Fox Sports this summer.
Cricket Australia has commented the eighth season of the KFC BBL will reach more fans across Australia than ever before, with Fox Sports and the Seven Network covering the Big Bash action.
Fox Sports will broadcast all 59 matches, including 16 matches exclusively, while Seven will broadcast 43 matches across the season on free-to-air television.
Fans will also be able to follow all the BBL action across Macquarie Sports Radio in Brisbane 882AM, Sydney 954AM, Melbourne 1278AM, and Perth DAB+ and SEN1116 Radio in Melbourne, while 6PR in Perth will broadcast all Perth Scorchers matches.
BBL|08 match broadcasts will also be available nationally via Macquarie Sports Radio, SEN1116, cricket.com.au and the Cricket Australia Live app.
A full list of broadcasters for each match can be seen below.
19/12: Brisbane Heat v Adelaide Strikers, Gabba, 7 & Fox
20/12: Melbourne Renegades v Perth Scorchers, Marvel Stadium, 7 & Fox
21/12: Sydney Thunder v Melbourne Stars, TBC, 7 & Fox
22/12: Sydney Sixers v Perth Scorchers, SCG, Fox
22/12: Brisbane Heat v Hobart Hurricanes, Metricon Stadium, Fox
23/12: Adelaide Strikers v Melbourne Renegades, Adelaide Oval, 7 & Fox
24/12: Hobart Hurricanes v Melbourne Stars, Blundstone Arena, Fox
24/12: Sydney Thunder v Sydney Sixers, Spotless Stadium, 7 & Fox
26/12: Perth Scorchers v Adelaide Strikers, Optus Stadium, 7 & Fox
27/12: Sydney Sixers v Melbourne Stars, SCG, 7 & Fox
28/12: Hobart Hurricanes v Sydney Thunder, Blundstone Arena, 7 & Fox
29/12: Melbourne Renegades v Sydney Sixers, Marvel Stadium, Fox
30/12: Hobart Hurricanes v Perth Scorchers, UTAS Stadium, 7 & Fox
31/12: Adelaide Strikers v Sydney Thunder, Adelaide Oval, 7 & Fox
1/1: Brisbane Heat v Sydney Sixers, Metricon Stadium, 7 & Fox
1/1: Melbourne Stars v Melbourne Renegades, MCG, 7 & Fox
2/1: Sydney Thunder v Perth Scorchers, Spotless Stadium, 7 & Fox
3/1: Melbourne Renegades v Adelaide Strikers, TBC, 7 & Fox
4/1: Hobart Hurricanes v Sydney Sixers, Blundstone Arena, 7 & Fox
5/1: Melbourne Stars v Sydney Thunder, Metricon Stadium, Fox
5/1: Perth Scorchers v Brisbane Heat, Optus Stadium, Fox
6/1: Adelaide Strikers v Sydney Sixers, Adelaide Oval, 7 & Fox
7/1: Melbourne Renegades v Hobart Hurricanes, Marvel Stadium, 7 & Fox
8/1: Sydney Thunder v Brisbane Heat, Spotless Stadium, 7 & Fox
9/1: Melbourne Stars v Perth Scorchers, MCG, 7 & Fox
10/1: Brisbane Heat v Melbourne Renegades, Gabba, 7 & Fox
11/1: Adelaide Strikers v Melbourne Stars, Adelaide Oval, Fox
13/1: Sydney Thunder v Adelaide Strikers, Spotless Stadium, Fox
13/1: Melbourne Renegades v Brisbane Heat, TBC, 7 & Fox
13/1: Perth Scorchers v Sydney Sixers, Optus Stadium, 7 & Fox
14/1: Melbourne Stars v Hobart Hurricanes, MCG, 7 & Fox
16/1: Sydney Sixers v Melbourne Renegades, SCG, 7 & Fox
17/1: Brisbane Heat v Sydney Thunder, Gabba, 7 & Fox
18/1: Perth Scorchers v Hobart Hurricanes, Optus Stadium, Fox
19/1: Melbourne Renegades v Melbourne Stars, Marvel Stadium, Fox
20/1: Sydney Sixers v Brisbane Heat, SCG, 7 & Fox
21/1: Adelaide Strikers v Hobart Hurricanes, Adelaide Oval, 7 & Fox
22/1: Sydney Thunder v Melbourne Renegades, Spotless Stadium, 7 & Fox
23/1: Melbourne Stars v Adelaide Strikers, TBC, 7 & Fox
23/1: Sydney Sixers v Hobart Hurricanes, SCG, 7 & Fox
24/1: Perth Scorchers v Sydney Thunder, Optus Stadium, 7 & Fox
27/1: Melbourne Stars v Brisbane Heat, MCG, 7 & Fox
28/1: Perth Scorchers v Melbourne Renegades, Optus Stadium, 7 & Fox
29/1: Hobart Hurricanes v Brisbane Heat, Blundstone Arena, Fox
29/1: Sydney Sixers v Adelaide Strikers, SCG, Fox
30/1: Melbourne Renegades v Sydney Thunder, Marvel Stadium, Fox
31/1: Hobart Hurricanes v Adelaide Strikers, UTAS Stadium, 7 & Fox
1/2: Brisbane Heat v Perth Scorchers, Gabba, 7 & Fox
2/2: Sydney Sixers v Sydney Thunder, SCG, Fox
3/2: Adelaide Strikers v Brisbane Heat, Adelaide Oval, Fox
3/2: Perth Scorchers v Melbourne Stars, Optus Stadium, 7 & Fox
7/2: Hobart Hurricanes v Melbourne Renegades, Blundstone Arena, 7 & Fox
8/2: Brisbane Heat v Melbourne Stars, Gabba, 7 & Fox
9/2: Adelaide Strikers v Perth Scorchers, Traeger Park, 7 & Fox
9/2: Sydney Thunder v Hobart Hurricanes, TBC, Fox
10/2: Melbourne Stars v Sydney Sixers, MCG, 7 & Fox
14/2: Semi-Final, TBC, 7 & Fox
15/2: Semi-Final, TBC, 7 & Fox
17/2: Final, TBC, 7 & Fox
Former Starcom exec Peter Toone joins Melbourne indie Rock Agency
Toone left Starcom at the end of 2017 after 11 years with the company.
Rock founder and MD Cam Lee said: “Pete is a great fit for our business. He brings a wealth of large agency experience obviously, but he’s also a great cultural fit for our team, which was key. It’s great to have him on board to help take the business to the next level.”
Peter Toone said: “They’ve built a great business over the past three years and are positioned for even greater success moving forward. I was impressed with their commitment to senior involvement with clients, and their willingness to adapt to current and future client demands without sacrificing the quality of delivery.”
Rock business partner Andy Lee said: “We were really excited to have Pete join the team. We think we have the right mix of talent and capability to make a real difference for our clients. It’s an exciting time at Rock.”
Photos: Miguel performs for Nova Red Room in Sydney
Nova Entertainment’s night announcer Ben Erbsland was the emcee for the program.
Miguel performed five songs during the event: Pineapple Skies, Simple Things, City of Angels, Sky Walker and Sure Thing.
After the set, the American singer mingled with guests at the bar and took photos. A fan asked Miguel to sign her arm so that she could get it tattooed.
Morrissey Management’s Lizzy Morrissey
Nova 96.9 music director Jodie Williams and night announcer Ben Erbsland
Sony Music’s Sophie Macarthur and Rowan Thiedeman
Nova Entertainment’s group executive and head of business innovation Fayad Tohme and head of HR Alana Howe
TV Ratings Analysis: Wednesday July 18
By James Manning
After two nights close to 700,000, Home And Away slipped to 652,000.
With the benefit of hindsight, The Single Wives looked more like a 9pm production and it subsequently attracted 9pm ratings in the 7.30pm slot – 375,000.
The channel had its lowest Wednesday share of the year and one of its smallest shares on any night. (However, it still wasn’t far away from a combined channel commercial share of 40%.)
Things didn’t get any better with episodes of the US sitcom Modern Family following with 318,000 and then 301,000.
A Current Affair was close to 800,000 with the show starting with mothers bringing up children on vegan diets.
It was BGT night then with two instalments of Britain’s Got Talent – the first ep did 416,000 across four markets (no Perth) followed by Britain’s Got More Talent on 206,000.
Music artists featured in the back half of The Project last night from musical minnows like Ruby Tuesday through to music monsters like Shawn Mendes, who was talking with Dave Thornton. The 7pm half of the program did 515,000 after audiences of 586,000 Monday and 506,000 Tuesday.
MasterChef featured a group challenge that would see one of the remaining six escape the pressure test tonight, thereby getting safe passage to finals week. Not surprisingly, the winner was Sashi, with 863,000 watching after 747,000 tuned in last week against Origin 3.
The US dramas followed – Instinct on 398,000 and then Madam Secretary on 143,000.
Comedy hot property Hannah Gadsby featured again last night in another TV interview with a Token Artists colleague – this time Charlie Pickering on The Weekly. And like Peter Helliar did on Tuesday night, an extended interview was available elsewhere – this time the extended Charlie chat was on iview. The Weekly also featured Millsy talking to Tom Gleeson and a special Brush With Fame tribute that featured a naked Tom Gleeson. The audience was 663,000, which got the episode into the top 10.
Earlier in the night the return of Anh’s Brush With Fame did 669,000 at 8pm and featured Terri Irwin.
At 9pm You Can’t Ask That featured reality TV stars with 505,000 watching.
Tonightly with Tom Ballard did 127,000 on its primary channel outing after 10pm.
Episode four of Robson Green’s Australian Adventure was on 268,000 at 7.30pm.
24 Hours In Emergency then did 242,000 followed by stage 11 of the Tour de France on 210,000.
Week 29 TV: Wednesday
| WEDNESDAY METRO | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven | Nine | Ten | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 13.9% | 7 | 15.5% | 9 | 16.3% | TEN | 15.0% | SBS One | 7.7% |
| ABC 2 | 2.7% | 7TWO | 3.5% | GO! | 3.9% | ONE | 3.2% | VICELAND | 1.5% |
| ABC ME | 0.5% | 7mate | 3.5% | GEM | 2.9% | ELEVEN | 2.3% | Food Net | 08% |
| ABC NEWS | 2.0% | 7flix | 2.5% | 9Life | 2.0% | NITV | 0.3% | ||
| TOTAL | 19.2% | 25.0% | 25.1% | 20.5% | 10.2% | ||||
| WEDNESDAY REGIONAL | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ABC | Seven Affiliates | Nine Affiliates | Ten Affiliates | SBS | |||||
| ABC | 11.6% | 7 | 14.6% | 9 | 15.5% | WIN | 12.3% | SBS One | 6.1% |
| ABC 2 | 4.0% | 7TWO | 5.3% | GO! | 4.5% | ONE | 3.8% | VICELAND | 1.4% |
| ABC ME | 1.2% | 7mate | 5.0% | GEM | 5.1% | ELEVEN | 2.5% | Food Net | 0.7% |
| ABC NEWS | 1.8% | 7flix | 2.4% | 9Life | 2.1% | NITV | 0.1% | ||
| TOTAL | 18.6% | 27.3% | 27.2% | 18.6% | 8.3% | ||||
| WEDNESDAY METRO ALL TV | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FTA | STV | ||||||||
| 84.3% | 15.7% | ||||||||
Wednesday fta
- Seven News Seven 1,007,000
- Nine News Nine 972,000
- Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 972,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 956,000
- MasterChef Australia Ten 863,000
- A Current Affair Nine 795,000
- Abc News ABC 712,000
- Anh’s Brush With Fame ABC 669,000
- The Weekly With Charlie Pickering ABC 663,000
- Home And Away Seven 652,000
- The Chase Australia Seven 623,000
- 7.30 ABC 606,000
- Hot Seat Nine 523,000
- The Project 7pm Ten 515,000
- You Can’t Ask That ABC 505,000
- Ten Eyewitness News First At Five Ten 420,000
- Britain’s Got Talent (R) Nine 416,000
- The Chase Australia-5pm Seven 399,000
- Instinct Ten 398,000
- The Single Wives Seven 375,000
Demo top fives
16-39 Top 5
- MasterChef Australia Ten 281,000
- The Project 7pm Ten 162,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 121,000
- Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 120,000
- Seven News Seven 119,000
18-49 Top 5
- MasterChef Australia Ten 418,000
- The Project 7pm Ten 250,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 235,000
- Nine News Nine 233,000
- Seven News Seven 228,000
25-54 Top 5
- MasterChef Australia Ten 451,000
- Nine News 6:30 Nine 309,000
- Nine News Nine 302,000
- Seven News Seven 291,000
- Seven News / Today Tonight Seven 288,000
Wednesday multichannel
- The Big Bang Theory TX2 9GO! 216,000
- The Big Bang Theory TX1 9GO! 203,000
- Hey Duggee-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 178,000
- Pj Masks-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 170,000
- Peppa Pig-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 169,000
- Peppa Pig-Pm ABCKIDS/COMEDY 167,000
- Noddy Toyland Detective-Pm ABCKIDS/COMEDY 163,000
- Wanda And The Alien-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 155,000
- The Hive-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 147,000
- Shaun The Sheep ABCKIDS/COMEDY 146,000
- Teacup Travels-Pm ABCKIDS/COMEDY 145,000
- Kazoops!-Pm ABCKIDS/COMEDY 143,000
- Andy’s Prehistoric Adventures ABCKIDS/COMEDY 143,000
- Dot.-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 142,000
- NCIS: Los Angeles E2 (R) ONE 142,000
- Ben And Holly’s Little Kingdom ABCKIDS/COMEDY 138,000
- Pawn Stars-Pm 7mate 137,000
- Dinosaur Train ABCKIDS/COMEDY 136,000
- Ben And Holly’s Little Kingdom-Am ABCKIDS/COMEDY 133,000
- Neighbours ELEVEN 130,000
Wednesday subscription tv
- Live: AFL 360 FOX FOOTY 86,000
- Selling Houses Australia LifeStyle Channel 84,000
- NCIS TVH!TS 71,000
- Criminal Minds TVH!TS 59,000
- The Bolt Report SKY NEWS LIVE 54,000
- Bones TVH!TS 53,000
- Selling Houses Australia LifeStyle Channel 52,000
- Paul Murray Live SKY NEWS LIVE 48,000
- George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces LifeStyle Channel 45,000
- CSI: Crime Scene Investigation TVH!TS 43,000
- Credlin SKY NEWS LIVE 42,000
- Family Guy FOX8 41,000
- Live: NRL 360 FOX LEAGUE 40,000
- The Big Bang Theory COMEDY CHANNEL 38,000
- Wentworth showcase 37,000
- Going In Style Foxtel Movies Premiere 37,000
- Jeopardy! FOX Classics 36,000
- Doc McStuffins Disney Junior 36,000
- Deadliest Catch Discovery Channel 36,000
- Claude Disney Junior 35,000
Shares all people, 6pm-midnight, Overnight (Live and AsLive), Audience numbers FTA metro, Sub TV national
Source: OzTAM and Regional TAM 2018. The Data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) without the prior written consent of OzTAM
Media News Roundup
Business Media
Competition makes Netflix’s future more uncertain than it has been
A shortfall of one million subscribers might seem minuscule to casual observers. But it touched on a number of latent concerns. With digital rivals like Apple jumping in to entertainment and entertainment foes like Disney pouncing on digital, Netflix’s fast-growing, big-spending ways suddenly don’t seem so ironclad. Investors wonder whether a maverick giant is about to be disrupted itself.
Disney will launch a service in 2019 meant to sell content directly to consumers. The company is close to completing its acquisition of 21st Century Fox that would give Disney access to units, like FX and film division Fox Searchlight (The Shape of Water) that are tailor-made for the high-end world of streaming, in which prestige and engagement matter.
As part of the deal, Disney also would take over majority control of the streaming service Hulu, fresh off that company’s emerging hit The Handmaid’s Tale, and strengthen its position against Netflix that way.
Meanwhile AT&T has been granted legal permission, pending appeal, to buy Time Warner, and in turn the chance to pour money into HBO to make the network an even stronger Netflix competitor.
News Brands
ACTU Congress in Brisbane locks out reporters from Shorten speech
“If you’re undecided on Shorten, come see him speak in front of a union crowd,” wrote Guardian columnist and playwright Van Badham shortly after 8pm, as her fellow journalists wished they could do just that. “This is why the bad guys are so afraid of him,” she had tweeted a few minutes earlier, showing the value of filtering information through partisans.
Entertainment
Sony Music reveals staff promotions across group to continue growth
Dan Nitschke has been promoted to general manager, media strategy and business development, ANZ & Asia.
Grant Donges has been promoted to general manager, communications and artist relations and vice president, TV Entertainment, Asia Pacific.
Dan Nitschke (L) & Grant Donges (R)
Kim Caley moves from national promotions to take on her promotion to senior director, marketing.
Rowan Thiedeman moves from Sony Music Melbourne to Sony Music Sydney head office to take on his promotion as director, national promotions.
Kim Caley (L) & Rowan Thiedma (R)
Tammy Hofbauer is promoted to senior manager, international artist promotions.
Kate Bonanno is promoted to director, radio and television events and promotional strategy.
Therese Ryan is promoted to director, national communications and artist relations, Asia.
Tammy Hofbauer (L) Kate Bonanno (M) Therese Ryan (R)
US music legend Seymour Stein leaving Warner Music after 42 years
By leaving WMG, Stein also is saying goodbye to Sire Records, the label he co-founded in 1967 as an independent before joining forces with Warner Bros. nine years later.
Led by Stein, Sire’s roster over the last half-century has been nothing short of legendary and has included Madonna, The Ramones, The Smiths, The Pretenders, The Cure, Ice-T, Depeche Mode, The Replacements, Uncle Tupelo, The Cult, Cyndi Lauper and k.d. lang, among others.
“I was very fortunate during my youth to learn from so many great indie label people, like Ahmet and Nesuhi Ertegun and Jerry Wexler at Atlantic, and my greatest mentor, Syd Nathan at King Records,” Stein said in his announcement. “I went on to work with so many other great indies around the world as Sire grew to become the legendary brand it is today. From the bottom of my heart, I want to thank all the amazing artists – far too many to name – who have called Sire home over the years.”
Publishing
iSubscribe’s '50 hour frenzy' magazine event with discounts, gifts
The deals include top sellers like Gardening Australia, Prevention and Australian Healthy Food Guide at substantial savings, some coming with bonus deals like a free book or a bonus issue.
Other sectors covered include titles from motoring tech and sport.
Kids titles being offered at a discount and with a bonus gift are K-Zone, Little Angel, Mania and Total Girl.
Helping promote the sector and the offers is Andrea Duvall, editor of Prevention magazine, who tells iSubscribe:
Here’s an interesting fact: a Swedish study has shown that reading can help reduce stress levels by as much as 68% (while reading your phone does not!) Losing yourself in the pages of a magazine is a wonderful escape! Whether it’s taking 20 minutes on the couch with a cup of tea, or grabbing a mag instead of your device on a train or bus journey, reading a magazine helps you escape from all the worries and stresses of your day. Prevention combines this relaxation with keeping you up to date with the latest health news and information. Plus, it doesn’t need to be plugged into Wi-Fi. (You can even read it in the bath!)
Audio
Tony Martin on his Sizzletown podcast project with producer Matt Dower
“It’s really just a hobby that’s gotten out of control,” says Martin.
“I worked out that each half-hour episode takes three days, although it’s all done piecemeal. Clearly this is an insane amount of work for something we’re doing for free, but that’s how much fun we’re having.”
Martin and Dower have created a bizarre little universe from the fictional Podworx studios in Richmond in inner Melbourne that seems to span the radio dial, from the quiet callers of Radio National to the enthusiastic bogans of Triple M – almost all voiced by Martin.
“Aside from Matt as himself and a cameo from our friend Lachy Hulme, all the voices are me. Although we do record a lot more than we use. Often a half-hour ramble is cut down to just the three minutes that were funny,” says Martin.
Television
Pilot Week: Judge Kyle taking part in TEN’s programming initiative
Kyle Sandilands confirmed on air yesterday that he has agreed to take part in a new TV show called Trial By Kyle.
He told his KIIS FM co-host Jackie O that the format is similar to Judge Judy, with Kyle hearing the various complaints and then making an adjudication.
Kyle suggested this week that Jackie O could have a part in the program, calling on her expertise when there are subjects dealing with either kids or celebrities.
Although many people remember the duo for their hosting of the final season of Big Brother, both have been involved in some of Australia’s most successful TV series. Kyle as a judge on Network Ten’s Big Brother and Seven’s The X Factor and Australia’s Got Talent. Most recently Kyle was an investor in the Go! series Meet The Hockers.
Jackie O was one of the judges on the biggest-ever reality TV hit in Australia, Seven’s Popstars, which was the forerunner for talent format like Idol.
Louise Rugendyke on the second season of War on Waste
Where the first series dived into food and clothing waste, the second series has plastics, e-waste and furniture in its sites, and all done with the perfect blend of seriousness and levity that host Craig Reucassel has made his speciality.
Of all the Chaser alumni, Reucassel is a natural fit for a role that requires him to dress as a hipster with a fake beard selling tap water, aka “Robinet”, in one scene and the next be distressed at the amount of plastic water bottles littering the banks of a river. He’s never smug or smarmy, and uses humour to bring people along, not shame or alienate them (although how he kept a straight face when one man told him that fluoride in tap water wasn’t safe was a miracle).
Elissa Blake talks to Rachel Griffiths about SBS’s Dead Lucky
Griffiths plays Detective Grace Gibbs in the new SBS crime thriller Dead Lucky, a cinematic crime thriller filmed in locations all over Sydney: the beach, the bush, the western suburbs, Chinatown and the Rocks. The story is character driven, with multiple perspectives and a strong focus on relationships.
Griffiths says Dead Lucky is very different in style and tone to the wave of Scandi noir crime thrillers, which she characterises as “emotionally flat”.
“In Australia we are more bombastic, we talk back and we are more reactive in our culture,” Griffiths says. “And as an actor I’m a bit more hyperactive and irreverent. I think this show is closer to something like Killing Eve, which is so energetic and has redefined the female super villain. We’re in a post-Scandi noir world now. I think the genre is a bit exhausted.”
Griffiths says she’s a crime drama fan and not much bothered whether the lead character is male or female. “I love True Detective every bit as much as I love Broadchurch. I just love compelling, rich, interesting central characters that can be straight, male, white, black, female, LGBT… anything they want to be as long as they are interesting. Being boring is the only true crime in true crime!”
Busy Marta Dusseldorp: Jack Irish, A Place To Call Home + Doll’s House
“It sounds twee, but I’ve learned so much from her,” Dusseldorp told InStyle magazine, which is on sale today.
“I think it’s my urge to delve into really difficult, complicated, unattractive emotions.”
In fact, the 45-year-old’s attraction to complex characters is steering her career.
This month Dusseldorp is also reprising her role in the new instalment of the mystery telemovie Jack Irish, while also making her eagerly awaited stage return in Melbourne Theatre Company’s production A Doll’s House, Part 2.
“She’s a survivor. I do tend to play survivors,” Dusseldorp reflects on her theatre return.
Ninja Warrior co-host Ben Fordham shoots down viewer complaints
Some fans of the Channel 9 show have vented online about the fact the Ninja Warrior course was changed for each of the six heats.
The top 20 competitors from each heat made it through to the semifinals, which begin airing on Sunday night. Some heats featured fairly simple obstacles but others were much tougher and way fewer competitors were able to complete the course.
So is the format of the show unfair to those Ninjas who had to tackle the tougher courses?
“It’s entirely fair because the competition is based around a very simple premise that the top 20 furthest, fastest proceed to the semifinals,” Ben Fordham told news.com.au.
“You’re competing against the course and you’re competing against your fellow Ninjas. And whoever achieves the best results goes through.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s the most impossible heat or the world’s easiest heat – only the top 20 will go through.”
Sports Media
Expanded Big Bash League to run longer than Indian Premier League
However, Cricket Australia denies it risks overkill after announcing a 2018-19 season schedule featuring 16 more games and a full home-and-away season for the first time.
A mid-February finish will see the eighth season of BBL extend beyond the school holiday timeslot and even go head to head with Test cricket, while running 13 days longer than it did last season.
In all, the vastly expanded BBL season will feature 59 matches – up from 43 last season – across 61 days with the first ball bowled at the Gabba on December 19. In comparison, this year’s eight-team Indian Premier League season mirrored the BBL’s slated home-and-away schedule but lasted just 50 days. Last season’s T20 Blast in England featured 18 teams, with each playing 14 round-robin games across 57 days in the school holidays.
Bolt Report: Reasons why Usain Bolt is an unlikely A-League starter
In sum, sports fans, this is not going to work. Bolt may, I guess, sign some kind of contract, turn up and make the turnstiles swing for a few weeks, just for the fun of seeing him play. But, actually pull his weight, be a bona fide member of the team, picked on ability alone, to help guide them to a Premiership?
It simply isn’t going to happen. And, for my money, it demeans the A-League if they even try, making a circus out of what is meant to be a premium sporting competition.
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