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WA rules out importing radioactive waste from Malaysia

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Original article by Paul Garvey
The Australian – Page: Online : 6-May-19

Western Australian Mines Minister Bill Johnston says the WA government will not allow mine waste from overseas to be imported into the state. Lynas currently processes rare earth from its Mount Weld mine in WA at a plant in Malaysia, but some local critics of the plant have called for the waste that it produces, which is slightly radioactive, to be shipped back to Australia. Lynas is currently the subject of a $1.5 billion takeover bid from Wesfarmers, which Lynas has rejected.

CORPORATES
WESTERN AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF MINES, INDUSTRY REGULATION AND SAFETY, LYNAS CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX LYC, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES

Ita Buttrose names David Anderson as managing director of the ABC

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Original article by
abc.net.au – Page: Online : 3-May-19

ABC chair Ita Buttrose announced on 3 May that David Anderson had been appointed as its MD. Anderson had been acting in the role since September, following the sacking of Michelle Guthrie. Buttrose said that the ABC board was unanimous in its choice of Anderson, with his appointment having followed an extensive local and national search. Anderson, who has been with the ABC for almost three decades, said it was "a privilege to be appointed to the role". His appointment is for five years.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

How Twitter drip-fed Watergate

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Original article by Aaron Patrick
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 36 : 3-May-19

The ‘Watergate’ saga that has embroiled Energy Minister Angus Taylor has arguably changed the rules when it comes to news reporting in Australia. The story was sparked by an anonymous Twitter account in early April, which implied that Taylor had benefited from the sale of water rights to the federal government by Eastern Australia Agriculture in 2017. The rights related to two Queensland cotton farms; Taylor had advised Eastern Australia Agriculture on the purchase of these farms a decade earlier. Although journalists have historically relied on anonymous sources, it is extremely rare for them to use sources that they cannot identify.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND ENERGY, EASTERN AUSTRALIA AGRICULTURE PTY LTD, TWITTER INCORPORATED

Revealed: Neilson’s $100 million news agenda tops the bill

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Original article by Lisa Murray
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 3-May-19

The Judith Neilson Journalism Institute has provided funding for a range of initiatives since it was founded, while its longer-term goals include producing podcasts and documentaries in partnership with established media companies. The institute was founded by philanthropist Judith Neilson, who is also its patron. Neilson says she has no input into the day-to-day operations of the institute, whose board includes former ABC chairman Jim Spigelman, Free TV Australia CEO Bridget Fair and Paul Kelly, the editor-at-large of ‘The Australian’.

CORPORATES
JUDITH NEILSON JOURNALISM INSTITUTE, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, FREE TV AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, WHITE RABBIT GALLERY LIMITED, WALKLEY FOUNDATION FOR JOURNALISM

Kidman bid not a replacement for Lynas, says Wesfarmers chief

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Original article by Patrick Hatch, Darren Gray
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: Online : 3-May-19

Shares in Kidman Resources rose 45 per cent to close at $1.87 on 2 May after conglomerate Wesfarmers made a $776 million takeover bid for the lithium miner. Kidman’s main asset is a 50 per cent stake in a Western Australian lithium project, and joint venture partner SQM supports Wesfarmers’ bid. Wesfarmers CEO Rob Scott says that despite the Kidman bid, its takeover bid for rare earths producer Lynas Corporation remains on the table.

CORPORATES
KIDMAN RESOURCES LIMITED – ASX KDR, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, SOCIEDAD QUIMICA Y MINERA SA, LYNAS CORPORATION LIMITED – ASX LYC, WESTERN AREAS LIMITED – ASX WSA

Return to radio: Trioli to replace Faine

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 2 : 2-May-19

ABC TV presenter Virginia Trioli says it was "impossible" for her to reject an offer to succeed Jon Faine as the host of the public broadcaster’s morning radio program in Melbourne. Trioli has been co-host of the ABC’s ‘News Breakfast’ show since 2008, having previously been a radio presenter. There had been speculation that she could replace Tony Jones as host of ‘Q&A’. A spokeswoman for the ABC says no announcements are pending with regard to other unfilled air-on roles at the broadcaster.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, RADIO NATIONAL, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Nine close to selling Fairfax events business

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Original article by Carrie LaFrenz
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 2-May-19

Nine Entertainment Company is slated to receive final bids for Fairfax Media’s events business within days. Nine CEO Hugh Marks expects a deal to offload the business to be completed shortly. However, he has cautioned that Nine is unlikely to secure a deal to sell Fairfax’s New Zealand division by the end of June. Nine recently secured a deal to sell Fairfax’s portfolio of regional newspapers for $125m. Marks has reiterated Nine’s previous guidance for earnings growth of at least 10 per cent in 2018-19.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED, STUFF LIMITED, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, METRO MEDIA PUBLISHING PTY LTD, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, WALT DISNEY COMPANY

Catalano swoops on Nine’s regional papers

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Original article by John Stensholt, Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 19 & 24 : 1-May-19

Nine Entertainment Company has sold its portfolio of regional newspapers to former Domain Holdings CEO Antony Catalano. He will pay $125m for the assets in partnership with Alex Waislitz’s Thorney Investment Group. Catalano forecasts that the Australian Community Media business will post EBITDA of around $42m in 2018-19 and about $50m in 2019-20. The Media Entertainment & Arts Alliance has urged ACM’s new owners to commit to maintaining quality journalism in regional communities. Nine also intends to sell Fairfax Media’s events business and its New Zealand assets.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNITY MEDIA, THORNEY INVESTMENT GROUP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, DOMAIN HOLDINGS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX DHA, MEDIA, ENTERTAINMENT AND ARTS ALLIANCE, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED, STUFF LIMITED, MORNINGSTAR PTY LTD

Parties locked in close contest for second week: ALP 51% cf. L-NP 49%

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For the second straight week the two major parties are locked in a tight contest with a slight edge to the ALP 51% cf. L-NP 49% on a two party preferred basis according to a face-to-face Roy Morgan Poll conducted over the weekend of April 27/28, 2019 with a representative cross-section of 826 Australian electors.

Primary Voting Intention

Both major parties managed to increase their primary votes this week at the expense of Pauline Hanson’s One Nation but there was no change to the close overall two-party preferred result ahead of tonight’s first Leaders’ Debate between Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Opposition Leader Bill Shorten in Perth.

The L-NP now has a primary vote of 39.5% (up 0.5%) and remains clearly ahead of the ALP on 36% (up 0.5%) while Greens support is unchanged on 9.5%. Support for One Nation is down 2% to 2.5% while support for Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party is unchanged on 2%. Support for Independents/Others is up 1% to 10.5%.

Roy Morgan Government Confidence

Roy Morgan Government Confidence has improved this week with 43% of electors saying Australia is now heading in the right direction, up 3% from a week earlier while 41.5% (up 0.5%) say Australia is heading in the wrong direction.

These results put Government Confidence marginally above the neutral level of 100 now at 101.5, up 3.5pts from a week ago.

Electors were asked: “At the Federal election for the House of Representatives on May 18 – which party will receive your first preference?? and “Generally speaking, do you feel that things in Australia are heading in the right direction or would you say things are seriously heading in the wrong direction?”

This Roy Morgan Poll on Federal voting intention and Roy Morgan Government Confidence was conducted via face-to-face interviewing last weekend. Roy Morgan interviewed 826 Australian electors aged 18+ on the weekends of April 27/28, 2019. 4.5% of electors can’t say who they support.

Visit the Roy Morgan Online Store to browse our range of Voter Profiles by electorate, detailed Voting Intention Demographics Reports and Most important Political Issue Reports (all 151 electorates ranked by an issue).

For comments or more information about Roy Morgan data, please contact:

Contact Office Mobile
Gary Morgan: +61 3 9224 5213 +61 411 129 094
Michele Levine: +61 3 9224 5215 +61 411 129 093

Breakfast shows have lost their sizzle factor

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 29-Apr-19

Ratings data from OzTAM shows that the Seven Network’s ‘Sunrise’ averaged 256,000 viewers in January 2019, compared with 357,000 in January 2012. The average audience for the Nine Network’s rival ‘Today’ has fallen from 319,000 to 206,000 over the same period. Although the ABC’s breakfast show has consistently gained market share since its launch, TV industry veteran Rob McKnight says a key reason why viewers are shunning ‘Sunrise’ and ‘Today’ is their reluctance to take risks as they did in the past.

CORPORATES
SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, OZTAM PTY LTD, AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED, IPG MEDIABRANDS, DENTSU AEGIS NETWORK