MASS MEDIA – AUSTRALIA

Protect media freedom to protect the community

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Original article by Chris Merritt
The Australian – Page: 24 : 15-Nov-19

Law Council of Australia president Arthur Moses will use a speech on 15 November to urge the federal government to take action on the issue of media freedom. In addition to calling for better protection for journalists, Moses will argue the need for more safeguards for whistleblowers in the public service. Moses will contend that journalists need greater protection due to the important role they play in protecting the community from government abuse and misinformation.

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LAW COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, HOLDING REDLICH, AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, SKY NEWS, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

ABC cruelty story breached code

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 3 : 15-Nov-19

Racing New South Wales chairman Russell Balding claims that the ABC’s recent story on the horse racing industry breached a number of its editorial guidelines. Balding, who was MD of the ABC from 2002 to 2006, has written a letter of complaint to ABC MD David Anderson about the program, claiming that it contained a number of ‘significant factual inaccuracies and misrepresentations’. Once the ABC has responded to the letter, Racing NSW will be able to lodge a complaint with the Australian Communications & Media Authority.

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AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION, RACING NSW, AUSTRALIAN COMMUNICATIONS AND MEDIA AUTHORITY

Regulate digital platforms: Seven

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Original article by Zoe Samios
The Australian – Page: 19 : 14-Nov-19

Seven West Media expects the metropolitan TV market to record single-digit growth in advertising revenue in 2019-20. CEO James Warburton has told the group’s annual meeting that the advertising market is likely to remain weak during the December quarter, noting that Seven’s revenue share was 39 per cent in the first quarter. Meanwhile, chairman Kerry Stokes has called for greater regulation of digital giants such as Google and Facebook, including the implementation of all recommendations arising from the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission’s inquiry into digital platforms.

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SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, AUSTRALIAN COMPETITION AND CONSUMER COMMISSION, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, PRIME MEDIA GROUP LIMITED – ASX PRT, PACIFIC MAGAZINES PTY LTD, REDWAVE MEDIA LIMITED

Coalition flags press freedom law changes

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Original article by Rosie Lewis, Olivia Caisley
The Australian – Page: 6 : 14-Nov-19

Attorney-General Christian Porter and Communications Minister Paul Fletcher met with media industry executives to discuss the issue of press freedom on 13 November. News Corp Australasia’s executive chairman Michael Miller says the talks were "encouraging", and further meetings will be held after the parliamentary joint committee on intelligence and security hands down its report at the end of the month. Nine Entertainment CEO Hugh Marks and ABC MD David Anderson also attended the meeting.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. ATTORNEY-GENERAL’S DEPT, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF COMMUNICATIONS AND THE ARTS, NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Nine feels squeeze of ad market

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Original article by Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 17 & 24 : 13-Nov-19

Nine Entertainment Company has downgraded its underlying earnings growth forecast for 2019-20 due to challenging conditions in the advertising market. CEO Hugh Marks has told the group’s AGM that there was a 6.4 per cent decline in the metropolitan free-to-air TV advertising market in the first quarter, and the outlook has not improved in the second quarter. Meanwhile, Nine chairman Peter Costello has called for digital platforms to be subject to the same regulations as traditional media companies.

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NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, MACQUARIE MEDIA LIMITED – ASX MRN, 2GB, RADIO 4BC BRISBANE PTY LTD, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, STAN ENTERTAINMENT PTY LTD, WALT DISNEY COMPANY

AFP raid on journo’s home trespass

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Original article by Olivia Caisley
The Australian – Page: 7 : 13-Nov-19

The High Court has been told that a warrant to search a News Corp Australia journalist’s home was invalid as it did not state the exact nature of her alleged offence. The lawyer representing Annika Smethurst also alleged that the Australian Federal Police’s search warrant infringed the implied freedom of political communication. Stephen Lloyd SC said the AFP should be either forced to delete any files it had extracted from Smethurst’s mobile phone during the raid in June, or be subject to a court order preventing any use of those files.

CORPORATES
NEWS CORP AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, NATIONWIDE NEWS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE, HIGH COURT OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN SIGNALS DIRECTORATE

King Karl’s cut-price rescue bid

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Original article by Leo Shanahan, Lilly Vitorovich
The Australian – Page: 23 & 25 : 11-Nov-19

Clemenger BBDO Sydney CEO Peter Bosilkovski says the return of Karl Stefanovic should generate renewed interest in Nine’s ‘Today’ show, but he adds that the bold move may not necessarily result in a sustained ratings boost. Nine has confirmed that Stefanovic and Allison Langdon will co-host the breakfast show in 2020, a year after the former was sacked. Ratings have slumped in 2019, with new hosts Georgie Gardner and Deb Knight failing to resonate with viewers. Gardner responded to Stefanovic’s appointment by quitting the ‘Today’ show, effective immediately.

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NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, CLEMENGER BBDO (SYDNEY) PTY LTD, SPINACH ADVERTISING PTY LTD, IPG MEDIABRANDS, VIZEUM, OZTAM PTY LTD

Tennis Australia risked disaster if Ten won Open

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Original article by Liz Main
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 8-Nov-19

The Australian Securities & Investments Commission has launched legal action against former Tennis Australia board members Harold Mitchell and Stephen Healy. It alleges Mitchell went over the heads of other board members to ensure Seven secured a five-year deal in 2013 to cover the Australian Open, despite Network Ten putting in a competing offer, and it alleges Healy was complicit in the deal. Mitchell’s lawyer Neil Young QC suggested to former Tennis Australia executive Stephen Ayles during hearings on 7 November that if there was a risk that Ten could go into administration during the five years of a possible deal that it would be disastrous for Tennis Australia, to which Ayles agreed.

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AUSTRALIAN SECURITIES AND INVESTMENTS COMMISSION, TENNIS AUSTRALIA, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED, TEN NETWORK HOLDINGS LIMITED

Nine CEO calls in Karl, at a cut price

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Original article by Nick Tabakoff
The Australian – Page: 1 & 8 : 7-Nov-19

Nine Entertainment Company CEO Hugh Marks has flagged the possibility of Karl Stefanovic returning as co-host of the "Today" breakfast show in 2020. Stefanovic remains contracted to Nine for another year, on an annual salary of more than $2m, having been sacked from "Today" in late 2018. However, Marks says Stefanovic would have to agree to a significant pay cut if he were to return to the show he co-hosted for 14 years. The ratings for "Today" recently fell to a record low of 155,000 across the five major capital cities.

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, NINE NETWORK AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SEVEN WEST MEDIA LIMITED – ASX SWM, SEVEN NETWORK LIMITED

Melbourne Cup in turmoil as ratings and attendance plunge in 2019

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Original article by Roy Morgan
Media Update – Page: Online : 7-Nov-19

TV viewership of the Melbourne Cup has plunged in 2019, dropping by more than half-a-million viewers compared to 2018 (a drop of 28% in only one year) and down over 330,000 in Melbourne – the home of the race. In total 1.324 million Australians in the 5 Capital Cities tuned in to Network 10’s coverage of Australia’s most important horse race. Sydney viewing was down by over 100,000 and down by tens of thousands in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. As reported yesterday attendance at the Melbourne Cup was only 81,408, the lowest attendance for nearly a quarter of a century since 1995. In line with plunging attendance figures, TV viewership was down across the whole day including the Race, Presentation, Mounting Yard and other viewing segments. Attendance at the Melbourne Cup has now dropped for five years in a row and is a clear indicator of problems facing Australia’s Racing Industry which Roy Morgan shows has among the highest level of distrust of all sports.

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