Mumbrellacast

It’s results season, and this week Nine, SCA, and ARN all reported the various fortunes of their companies. The night before they announced their financial results -- and the very next business day after the retirement of chair Kerry Stokes -- SCA's board decided to dump boss Jeff Howard, who used to run Seven, and was very briefly CEO and managing director of the newly merged Seven/SCA. The timing of this decision sent quite a message to the market. Former SCA boss John Kelly (back when they were "all about audio") is now interim CEO of the company's TV and audio divisions, and decided to use the SCA investor call as a gentle audition to shareholders for the top role. He looks in with a good shot. After all, it was very clear which of the two companies involved in the Seven/SCA merger is doing the heavy lifting in financial terms, and it's not the one that screens three hours of Home and Away each week ...

Hundreds of thousands of hateful comments are sitting on the Facebook feeds of Australian news publishers, according to a scan from a social media startup that is using multiple AI models to understand comment intent and context. “Conversational intelligence” company Sence scanned 4.8m comments on 114 publisher pages and found virulent racism and violent threats among around 400,000 harmful comments attached to news stories. The New Zealand operation — which has signed up The All Blacks, NZME and Radio New Zealand in its home market — is now pushing into Australia and is using the scan as an illustration of the extent of the problem.

Apple has shaken the world of podcasting again this week (let's not forget the "pod" part of the word comes from the iPod) with the announcement that it is adding videos to its podcasting platform, with an option for listeners to toggle between video and audio-only. Youtube is the top platform for podcasts in the world, and Spotify has been focusing on video-led podcasts of late. Yet, CRA's Podcast Ranker -- the"only official measurement system" for podcasts -- doesn't count video plays in its count, meaning it's leaving a lot of the audience out of the equation. Eleanor Dickinson wrote about this topic, speaking to Karl Stefanovic's podcast producer Keshnee Kemp and Spotify ANZ head of podcast Prithi Dey. We discuss the topic further on the show. Also discussed is Joe Aston's investigative commentary publication Rampart which, he disclosed to Tim, is making “multiples” of $500,000 in revenue after its first year, and was profitable by month two. It's an example of a thriving media company in a market that has seen so many others fail of late. (You can listen to that full interview here.) Is it good business sense for a business publication to sue its own subscribers? That's what Todd Scott, the owner and publisher of New Zealand premium finance masthead NBR is doing, taking some of its biggest customers to court if they don't ensure their employees all have their own logins. Scott reckons he's make “hundreds of thousands of dollars” from publicly shaming these companies -- so it appears to be good business sense, indeed. And finally, Tim chats to newly minted Ooh Media CEO James Taylor about whether his out-of-home business is being undervalued by the market.

Former Australian Financial Review columnist Joe Aston sat down with Mumbrella's Tim Burrowes for an Unmakers Edition of the Mumbrellacast. The pair covered a lot of ground, including a probing discussion on the economics of Aston's operation, his interview guest list, the character of former Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, and his plans to expand beyond "the Joe Aston Show".

12 February 2026 In this week's Mumbrellacast, our hosts discuss the spray ACMA chair Nerida O'Loughlin copped from Sarah Hanson-Young over the media watchdog's lack of regulation regarding the Kyle and Jackie O show's continued infringes; the merging of WPP's creative agencies; NZ retailer The Warehouse's eight-week advertising blackout; and Hal's conversation with The Guardian Australia's Liz Wynn on the publication's move to require its most dedicated users to log-in to the site to access its news. Join Hal Crawford, Nathan Jolly, Eleanor Dickinson, Tim Burrowes and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

4 February 2026 Thanks to Earmax Media for sponsoring this episode. Click the link HERE to see podcast advertising campaigns that really work, or email hello@earmaxmedia.com directly. Be sure to check out Tim's chat with the team at Earmax — Andy Maxwell and Ralph van Dijk — HERE. In today's Mumbrellacast, our team reviews new advertising work for Coopers, Mirvac, Westpac, Bupa and Colorbond; discusses a spate of closures in Australian print media; and Eleanor interviews ex-Clemenger BBDO talent, Vinne Schifferstein, who co-opened a new AI agency, MC&V. Join Hal Crawford, Eleanor Dickinson, Tim Burrowes and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

30 January 2026 We are interrupting our normal schedule to bring you an emergency Mumbrellacast, after both Nine and Nova delivered major news to end the working week. Join Nathan Jolly, Tim Burrowes, Hal Crawford and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

28 January 2026 For this week’s Mumbrellacast, we have a live recording from the Perth edition of the Compass roadshow, where we heard from the cream of the Western Australian media and marketing community. At The Globe, Tim Burrowes moderated a panel where Block Branding co-founder and creative strategy director Mark Braddock; Social Meteor managing director Luke Whelan; chief marketing and growth officer at HIF Australia Kristina Green; and marketing consultant Alice Manners discussed ChatGPT's impact on the world, whether bravery still exists in marketing, and the reliance on gambling advertising dollars in the media.

21 January 2026 In this week's Mumbrellacast, we head to Adelaide for the Compass event, where four of the city's leading lights in the marketing and media world talk about recent changes in government policy, the struggles of running an agency, and how Adelaide is a bellwether for the rest of the industry. From the surrounds of the wonderfully named Elephant British Pub, Tim Burrowes moderates an all-star panel that features Sean O’Brien, managing director at Nine Adelaide, Katheryn Korczak, co-owner of Nation Creative, Michael Healy, CMO of the Royal Automobile Association, and Adele Gibb, managing director at Carat.

This week’s Mumbrellacast is a live recording from our Compass Melbourne event, where a panel of media and marketing insiders discuss the challenges of the year ahead. The panel — Thinkerbell's chief executive officer, Margie Reid; Southern Cross Austereo's head of marketing, Naomi Gorringe; Atomic 212's chief strategy officer, Asier Carazo; and Mondelez International's vice president, marketing ANZ, Ben Wicks — talk about the opportunities and challenges around the encroachment of AI, how to capitalise on a viral moment, the gaps in diversity hiring, and the perils of attracting younger generations to an unsteady industry.

7 January 2026 This week’s Mumbrellacast is a live recording from our Compass Brisbane event, where a panel of media and marketing insiders speak about the compounding challenges — and opportunities — in the industry. The panel — Andrew Kolb, head of strategy at VML; Kirsty Lucas, senior vice president of marketing and partnerships at Brisbane Airport; Remy Brassac, co-founder of Rumble and Rumbletown Ventures; Kelly Healy, general manager of News Corp Australia; and Eliott Bledsoe, arts marketing consultant — discussed doing more with less, the negative impact AI will (and is) having on journalism's future, the advertising industry's undervaluation, and how the upcoming Brisbane 2032 Olympic Games will be the sector's "north star".

31 December 2025 This week’s Mumbrellacast is a live recording from our Compass Sydney event, where a panel of media and marketing insiders talk about a tough 2025 – and look ahead with optimism. The panel — Christina Aventi, chief strategy officer at BMF; Bel Harper, chief product and marketing officer at Ooh Media; Anita Ayres, head of brand and marketing at Teachers Mutual Bank; and Clare Pickens, chief executive officer at Leo Burnett — discussed the toughest challenges they faced in the year, how "value-based compensation" should be quantified now that AI is destroying hour-based billing, the controversial conversations the industry should be having, and reasons to remain optimistic (there's even a poem recommendation).

24 December 2025 This week’s Mumbrellacast is a live recording from our Compass Hobart event, where a panel of media and marketing insiders talk about an industry in flux. The panel — Amr Elsayed, head of digital business at Kings Digital; Danika Porter, senior marketing leader and former head of brand and marketing at Federal Group; Clive Dickens, managing director at Meliora; and Craig Herbert, editor of The Hobart Mercury at News Australia — discussed workforce challenges such as the redundancy crisis and shrinking marketing teams, and cultural issues including workplace support for women, mental health and neurodiversity.

17 December 2025 In this week's Mumbrellacast, our hosts discuss the latest leader movements at ARN; Christian O'Connell's introduction to Sydney; the media coverage of the Bondi Beach terrorist attack; and the biggest developments in AI this year. Join Nathan Jolly, Tim Burrowes, Cat McGinn and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

10 December 2025 Thanks to Earmax Media for sponsoring this episode, click the link HERE to see their maximum impact podcast advertising campaigns or email them directly at hello@earmaxmedia.com. On this week's Mumbrellacast, the hosts discuss the newly arrived social media ban for teens, communications minister Anika Wells' expense account, AI assistants having a bad week, the media fight surrounding Warner Brothers Discovery, and Mumbrella turning 17. Join Nathan Jolly, Tim Burrowes and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

3 December 2025 Thanks to Earmax Media for sponsoring this episode, click the link HERE to see the latest maximum impact podcast advertising campaigns or email them directly at hello@earmaxmedia.com. On this week's Mumbrellacast Tim Burrowes, Hal Crawford, Nathan Jolly and host Abe Udy unpack the 2026 upfront presentations, which started with SBS, wrapped with ABC, and saw ARN get involved for the first time.

26 November 2025 Thanks to Earmax Media for sponsoring this episode, click the link HERE to see maximum impact podcast advertising campaigns or email them directly at hello@earmaxmedia.com. In the latest episode of the Mumbrellacast, the hosts discuss the final radio ratings survey of the year; Mutinex declaring that it will only work with technology platforms that uphold “transparency, independence, and the best interest of the advertiser"; Roblox's CEO David Baszucki and his trainwreck interview with a New York Times podcast; and the latest developments in the merger of IPG and Omnicom. Join Hal Crawford, Tim Burrowes, Nathan Jolly, Eleanor Dickinson and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

19 November 2025 This week, radio industry body CRA launched its unified audio ID for buying and selling ad inventory across podcasts and radio. We also discuss the fallout between Nielsen and its long-time leader in this part of the world, Monique Perry, who has been sacked and is now suing the analytics company for unfair dismissal. Elsewhere, we chat to IAB's global CEO Anthony Katsur, and look at which Australian reality TV shows got the biggest audiences for their finales in 2025. Join Nathan Jolly, Eleanor Dickinson, Tim Burrowes and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.

17 November 2025 In this special episode of the Mumbrellacast, Tim Burrowes sits down with Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) boss, Lizzie Young, to discuss CRA's Audio ID launch, expensive legal battle with the music industry, and more.

12 November 2025 It's Wednesday evening, which means it's time to pour yourself a glass of warm popcorn, fire up your wireless, and settle into another episode of the Mumbrellacast. After splashing out an estimated $1.5 million on its first-ever upfront presentation late last month to tout the future of its 'entertainment' company, this morning ARN provided the market with a sobering financial update, forecasting a full-year earnings drop of between 25% and 27%. On Monday morning, Amanda Laing, the newly minted boss of Nine's streaming and broadcast arm, informed nervous staffers that approximately 50 roles in her division will be made redundant -- some people will be redeployed elsewhere, but contractual roles will not be renewed, and some empty positions slated to be filled will remain empty. Elsewhere, on the Mumbrellacast, we discuss how M+C Saatchi's future has suddenly become unsteady, and it's all because of pesky activist investor Harwood Capital, which recently increased its stake in M+C Saatchi from 3.6% to 4%. This week also saw the relaunch of Big Brother, which started in 2001 on Ten, was revamped by Nine in 2012, then resuscitated by Seven in 2020. As they say, fourth time's a charm, and Ten have stripped the show back to its essence: chaotic live TV with every chance of nudity, bawdy language, unbridled fighting, and housemate boredom. Join Nathan Jolly, Eleanor Dickinson, Tim Burrowes and Abe Udy for a look at everything under Australia's media and marketing umbrella.