Unmade: media and marketing analysis

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today we talk to Christian O’Connell, host of Melbourne’s top FM breakfast show. And further down, a slight recovery on the Unmade Index.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives; * Your own copy of Media Unmade.‘Radio needs to change. It has to build a different model’ Why Christian O’Connell is ready to be networkedIn today’s podcast we talk to Christian O’Connell, who arrived from the UK six years ago and took his show on Gold 104.3 to Melbourne’s number one breakfast show.The conversation was based around the launch of O’Connell’s mentoring service, Finding Fire, but it was also a well timed opportunity to subtly remind a market distracted by the arrival of the Kyle and Jackie O Show into Melbourne that he’s the biggest voice in the FM market.Gold’s owner ARN Media has been trying to mastermind a takeover and breakup of rival Southern Cross Austereo. Most likely that would have seen O’Connell move across to a national metro breakfast show on Triple M.If a deal doesn’t happen - and there’s nothing currently on the table although it’s likely to return - O’Connell might instead see his show networked into Sydney on ARN’s WSFM, with Jonesy & Amanda - Brendan Jones and Amanda Keller - potentially making way by switching into a national drive slot.In the conversation, O’Connell makes clear that he has been talking to ARN’s management, including CEO Ciaran Davis and chief content officer Duncan Campbell, about taking his live show into other markets.“I want the show to be more widely available,” he tells Unmade’s Tim Burrowes. “That’s my drive for the next couple of years. I did a national show in the UK for 12 years and I loved it. So here, I want the show to be more available. I do something different and I think that’s of value.”And O’Connell is talking about more than a “best bits” package. “The magic of radio for me is live. I always has been. There’s nothing better than when you hear a radio show and in the moment something opens up.”The conversation also focuses on how O’Connell has developed as a leader of his team, including lifting them up when The Fox’s Fifi, Fev & Nick show briefly overtook them in the ratings.But O’Connell insists that being number one is not what matters to him. “If I was to design a show to be number one, it would be really bland. It would be like The Fox. It would be made of blandishments. I have to make a radio show that is about my values.”He also says that he deliberately resisted listening to the much talked about boundary-pushing first hour of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson’s Kiis show into Melbourne, warning that rival shows are letting themselves be distracted by the arrival“You’ve got to be really careful that you don’t let other shows and their mindsets bleed into your own. I’m hearing other shows that are doing that now. They’re changing in the wrong way.”O’Connell also reveals that he still hankers after a return to talking about sport on the radio. In the UK he hosted the long running BBC sport-comedy show Fighting Talk. “One of the things I’d love to do is a version like that. That show was the most fun I’ve ever had in radio. It was a whole hour of opinions, arguments. Sports is entertainment and it should be treated like that.”Meanwhile, O’Connell sees the networking of big shows like his and the Kyle & Jackie O Show as the direction the radio industry is taking. “It’s very clear what Ciaran’s direction is, what he wants to do. It’s very clear what I want to do. Radio here is ready for the next evolution.“Kyle coming into Melbourne is the start of it. Radio needs to change. It has to build a different model.”Unmade Index improvesThe Unmade Index improved from Tuesday’s all time low, bouncing back by 1.28% to 466.5 points yesterday.Nine recovered by 1.52% to a market cap of $2.1bn while IVE Group was up 2.57%.The only stocks to fall were ooh Mediua, down by 0.74%, and Sports Entertainment group, off 7.14%This week’s episode was edited by Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday.We’ll be back with more tomorrowHave a great day.ToodlepipTim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. In today’s audio-led edition: We look back on media’s most brutal week for a decade, and reflect on how things will play out in this new financial year. Plus, we round up the latest on how AI is changing the media and marketing worldStart the financial year by upgrading to an Unmade membership. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn and REmade conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event;* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeWhat now for Australia’s media companies?; Meltwater unveils AI-PR play; Music companies and voiceover artists prepare for warWe start the new financial year by looking back at the final week of the last one. We assess what was perhaps the TV industry’s worst week, and we consider how that will reverberate into FY25.Plus, we dive into the latest AI issues including the challenges for those who make their living as voiceover artists and the music industry. We also discuss Meltwater’s new AI-driven media monitoring tool, which launched today.Further reading:* Unmade: F*****g crazy week* The Australian: Mike Sneesby heads to Greece, as Nine’s newsrooms crumble* The Hollywood Reporter: Toys ‘R’ Us Debuts First Video Ad Using Sora, OpenAI’s Text-to-Video Tool* The Guardian: Cheap AI voice clones may wipe out jobs of 5,000 Australian actors* The Verge: The RIAA versus AI, explained* Meltwater: Meltwater unveils new Meltwater Copilot built in collaboration with MicrosoftToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes, Abe Udy and Cat McGinnEditing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Time to leave you to start your week. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today, we talk to one of adland’s most experienced media executives Michael Anderson as he takes on the new challenge of chairing the ASX-listed research house Pureprofile.Also in this post, the decapitation of most of Seven West Media’s leadership team spooks the Unmade Index.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the best three days to do it. Save 40% forever, with Unmade’s EOFY sale. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadePureprofile chair Michael Anderson prepares for the AI gold rush: ‘This is going to be the most disruptive technology the planet’s ever seen’In today’s interview we talk to former Austereo boss Michael Anderson as he returns to the fray as chair of Pureprofile.Anderson is one of Australian media’s most storied executives, having run Austereo when it was at the height of its powers before being taken over by Southern Cross Media. Anderson went on to be a board member of Fairfax Media and Ooh Media before taking on the thankless job of CEO of New Zealand’s Mediaworks.The conversation - recorded the same day Anderson chaired his first Pureprofile board meeting - ranges across what generative AI-driven synthetic data means for the company (he argues it could be an opportunity); what his board needs to do to persuade the stock market to value the company more highly; and whether a company as small as Pureprofile still belongs on the ASX.Anderson also reflects on the tough media landscape and the lessons that the decline of Mediaworks and its axing of Newshub has for Australian networks. “The value of having news as you lead into prime time became so expensive that the value equation collapsed. I could easily see that trajectory occurring at some point in the future in Australia.”He also discusses how advertisers have abruptly turned their backs on Australia’s broadcasters: “This has been coming for a long time and seems to have taken forever to get here. And then all of a sudden is really happening quickly."“Given that we're as close to an economic recession as we're going to get, if not tip over, there doesn't seem to be any let up to what media is experiencing in advertising in the short to medium term, which means it could actually be quite a sustained structural shift.”Anderson also discussed what happened to the merged Southern Cross Austereo after he left, including the defection of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson to ARN when SCA boss Rhys Holleran decided not to offer them a long term contract. Having paid $740m for Austereo, the whole company has now declined to less than a $150m valuation. Says Anderson: “They've done a lot of things that that have contributed to that - so some of that has been management failure, board failure. Losing Kyle and Jackie O would be one of those things you'd put into the basket of going ‘that was unnecessary’.”Red day on the Unmade IndexThe Unmade Index saw a hefty decline yesterday as the share market reacted to Seven West Media’s moves to remove most of its top management tier. The index fell by 2.88% to 473.1 points, almost at its all time low. Seven’s nearest rival Nine declined 4.18% to a market capitalisation below $2.2bn for the first time since the Covid crisis. Outdoor company Ooh Media fell 4.51%. ARN Media lost another 0.77%.Today’s podcast was edited by the excellent people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. In today’s audio-led edition: Which door will the SCA management choose? And, to very few people’s surprise, the AI companies do not appear to be playing fair when crawling publishing content.Have you considered becoming a paying member of Unmade to get the full picture? Only our paying members receive our members-only Tuesday analysis; get access to our archive where all our content is paywalled after two months; get their own copy of Media Unmade; and receive discounts on all our events. Become a member today.Will it be The Cat’s week?If The Australian is correct, this may be the week where the board of Southern Cross Austereo makes up its mind about whether it wants to get into bed with Antony Catalano’s Australian Community Media.As we discuss in the podcast, the choice boils down to two alternative paths - the pureplay audio future visualised by SCA’s management where the company’s Listnr investment begins to pay for itself; or an attempt to become a multi-platform regional powerhouse.Also today, there’s growing evidence that AI companies are scraping news sites without permission. Meanwhile, local publishers with traffic built around SEO are becoming increasingly alarmed by Google’s AI Overviews product which threatens to cost them clicks by giving a full answer on the page.Further reading:* The Australian: Southern Cross ‘heavily engaged’ on ACM merger bid* Australian Financial Review: Publishers fear this new Google AI feature will kill their traffic* Reuters: Exclusive: Multiple AI companies bypassing web standard to scrape publisher sites, licensing firm says* Unmade: Is it blackmail?* Unmade: Domain becomes biggest part of Nine’s worthToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyEditing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Time to leave you to start your week. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today, we talk to the creator of Australian media’s most enduring youth media brand, Pedestrian TV cofounder Chris Wirasinha, as he begins to scale up his new venture Linkby. And also in this post, the Unmade Index wipeout has stretched into another week, particularly for audio stocks.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media Unmade‘It felt like everybody was getting paid but us’ Linkby’s Chris Wirasinha on helping publishers monetise their linksIn today’s episode of The Unmakers we talk to Chris Wirasinha about his latest venture in the publishing world, Linkby.Like several entrepreneurs who came out of the media and marketing world, Wirasinha has spotted a more scalable tech opportunity as a supplier to his old ecosystem. Just as Matt Farrugia and Henry Innis broke out of WPP to start media mix modelling system Mutinex, and Ben Gunn and Nathan Powell left Nine to start influencer platform Fabulate, Wirasinha is doing the same thing in the space between affiliate marketing and PR.This week, Linkby announced its third round of venture capital funding - a $4m Series A round, to grow its teams in the US, UK and Australia.Linkby provides a new way for publishers to be paid by brands for links in editorial content.During the conversation with Unmade’s Tim Burrowes, Wirasinha reveals that Linkby is seeing $30m of marketing spend pass through its pipes, meaning that based on its 30% commission, the company is hitting annualised revenue approaching $10m.As well as discussing the Linkby model, why he came together with his Linkby cofounders and the factors behind choosing a VC-funded path, Wirasinha reflects on how he and Oscar Martin achieved a big number exit from Pedestrian, and the current state of the media market. Hear more about how the founders of Pedestrian TV exited to Nine:Nine lifts the Unmade IndexA better performance by Nine helped lift the whole Unmade Index on Wednesday, despite another tough day for several stocks.Nine lifted by 1.8%, taking its market capitalisation back above $2.2bn. The Unmade Index followed, rising by 0.76% to 476.2 points.It was a bad day for the major audio stocks, with Southern Cross Austereo falling below a $150m market cap for the first time in its history after losing another 3.85%. ARN Media lost nearly 1.5%. Both stocks have lost more than 20% of their valuation over the last month alone.Meanwhile, Seven West Media lost 2.9% to return to its lowest point since 2020.Today’s podcast was edited by the excellent people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. Today: Why are women turning away from news?; The dawn of synthetic data - good news for marketers, bad news for research companies?; and comedian Mark Humphries joins Seven NewsIt’s a great day to become a paying member of Unmade. You get:* Member-only pricing for next week’s HumAIn conference* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeUpgrade todayRobots replace focus groups; why are women avoiding news?; Mark Humphries joins Seven NewsThis morning’s episode was recorded in a quiet corner at this morning’s launch of University of Canberra’s 2024 Digital News Report. We examine the report’s findings, hot off the press.Plus, in another busy week for AI, the moment when it overtakes humans comes closer, and synthetic data becomes a real threat for research companiesAnd in a smart move, Seven News hires comedian Mark Humphries.Further Reading:* UoC News & Media Research Centre - Reports* Unmade - Digital News Report 2023: What compels Australians to pay for news?* The Australian: Media Diary: Channel 7 hires comedian Mark Humphries to liven up its 6pm news bulletin* Marketing Week: Synthetic data is as good as real* Situational Awareness: The decade ahead* AI Whistleblowers open letter Today’s episode featured Tim Burrowes in Canberra, Abe Udy in Devonport and Cat McGinn in the UK.Time to leave you to start your week.Editing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Toodlepip…Tim Burrowestim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today, we talk digital advertising fraud with a man who knows where the bodies are buried. And further down in this post, the Unmade Index wipeout continues with Seven West Media’s growing debt load yesterday overtaking its shrinking market capitalisation.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives; * Your own copy of Media Unmade‘It’s not easy to pick a worse time’: DoubleVerify’s Jack Smith on fraud in the advertising chainToday’s conversation features the man who’s been labelled the “godfather of digital advertising”, DoubleVerify’s global chief innovation officer Jack Smith.Before joining brand safety service DoubleVerify four years ago, Smith was global chief product officer for the investment arm of WPP’s GroupM. In 2007, he founded Media Innovation Group - now part of WPP’s Xaxis which can claim to have been the first large scale agency trading desk.The conversation with Unmade’s Tim Burrowes kicks off focusing on a new scheme - “FM Scam” discovered by the DoubleVerify Fraud Lab, in which scammers were using software to imitate smart speakers, or hijacking those out in the world. As a result, advertisers were being charged for audio ads without human listeners.As well as outlining the new audio scam, Smith discusses the other places where brands are seeing their budgets targeted by fraudsters.He points to connected TV as the scammers’ current big target because it attracts high CPMs. “It’s definitely CTV,” he says. “The amount you can charge on connected TV is much higher. Pound-for-pound that’s the place where fraudsters are moving to.”The wide ranging conversation also covers Made For Advertising sites; the Forbes scandal; principal media - where agencies resell media to their own clients; Smith’s scepticism about whether the finding from the Association of National Advertisers in the US that 64% of ad dollars are leaking out of the chain is as bad as that; and whether advertisers should simply focus their dollars on the walled gardens of social media.Is it a losing battle to stop digital advertising fraud? “The scale of programatic advertising is so much bigger today. It’s not easy to pick a worse time.”Further reading:Unmade Index fall accelerates as Seven’s debt load outweighs its market capitalisationThe market wipeout of Australia’s ASX-listed media and marketing stocks accelerated on. Wednesday, with the Unmade Index, which was already at a record low, losing another 1.54%.The Unmade Index landed on 472.2 points, representing a loss of nearly 53% of its value since the index started at 1000 points at the beginning of 2022.The fall was worse than the wider ASX All Ordinaries which lost 0.5%.Seven West Media passed the threshold where its net debt - $257m when it last updated the market in February - is now larger than its market capitalisation which dropped by 2.9% to $254m yesterday.Meanwhile, Southern Cross Austereo stocks (down 0.7%) dropped to a new all-time low as the company’s market capitalisation fell below $170m for the first time.Ooh Media (down 1.1%) hit its lowest point since November last year. IVE Group (down 1.8%) was its lowest since last October.Enero (down 2.8%) fell to its lowest point since last June.Pureprofile, which hit a low point since 2020 on Tuesday, recovered by 11.1% yesterday.How we covered the wipeout yesterday:Today’s podcast was edited by the excellent people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio led edition of Unmade. Today, we share the closing session of last week’s HumAIn conference, where we invited six people from within the media and marketing industry to debate whether generative AI will be an extinction level event for media. And further down, yet more decline on the Unmade Index as Antony Catalo buys a bigger SCA stake.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s six-state Compass event in November;* Weekly member-only content;* Access to our paywalled archives - everything gets locked down after two months;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeFrom dinosaurs to chickens - is news media evolving to obsolescence in the face of generative AI?Today audio-led edition of Unmade shares a highlight from last week’s HumAIn conference where we invited six pAnelists to debate the proposition: “Generative AI will be news media’s extinction level event”.As is traditional for such debates, the participants were invited to impress our audience with the rhetoric and the quality of their arguments on the understanding that these might not be their sincerely held views. They had just four minutes each.The six panelists were:For: Karen Powell, founder & CEO, of B2B marketing agency Omnipresence. Karen argued that the news media industry should face the fact that, like town criers, news media is about to become obsolete;Against: Scott Purcell, cofounder, men’s lifestyle site Man of Many argued that AI is an opportunity for publishers;For: Anita Ayres, a fractional CMO, with Tumbleturn Marketing Advisory. Anita suggested that the cycle of disruption will be as disruptive to media as the arrival of the internetAgainst: Tom Robinson, CEO of Edelman Australia. Tom argued that AI is at its peak in the hype cycle, and that people will prevail;For: John Cucka, Head of Kantar Analytics. John pointed out that dinosaurs once ruled the earth, and are now transformed to chickens;Against: Ross Dawson, futurist, keynote speaker, entrepreneur, podcaster, and author. Ross argued that there was a reason why the mammals out-evolved the dinosaurs.At the end of the event, the pro-humanity team, arguing against the proposition, romped to victory based on the votes of an optimistic audience.The panel was moderated by Tim Burrowes while the conference was curated by Cat McGinn.Unmade Index slips as the broadcasters take a spanking and the Cat tightens his grasp on SCAThe Unmade Index slipped another 0.25% yesterday, to 489.9 points, as most stocks dipped.Last night, the ASX was informed that the Antony Catalano-led investment vehicle 19 Cashews, has upped its stake in Southern Cross Austereo to 14.4%. Catalano wants to fold most of his Australian Community Media mastheads into SCA in exchange for a larger slice of the company. Prior to the announcement, SCA slipped by 0.67%Meanwhile ARN Media, which still hopes to land its own takeover of SCA slipped by 5%.Seven West Media shed 2.63% to return to its low point of 18.5c per share. Nine lost 0.35%Vinyl Group - which on Wednesday made the surprise announcement that Luke Girgis, co-founder of its Brag Media acquisition - was unexpectedly departing, lost 8.3%.Today’s podcast was edited by the excellent people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow. Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. In today’s audio-led edition: A big week in radio; what News Corp’s boss will tell the Press Club meet the newest retail media network; and Paramount’s ownership battle comes clearewrIf you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeA first signal on The Kyle & Jackie O Show; Skydance closes on Paramount; and journos’ AI fearsIn today’s conversation, we explore what to look out for in tomorrow’s radio ratings (and explain why there will be limited clues about the launch of The Kyle & Jackie O Show into Melbourne); we discuss what News Corp’s executive chairman Michael Miler will say in his Press Club address; a new survey reveals journalists’ fears for their jobs over AI; and Australian Venue Co joins the retail media goldrush.Further reading:* Unmade: The defederalisation of News Corp* The Australian: Big tech not above the law: Miller* The Australian: Media and Arts union calls for urgent action on AI dangers* AVC Experience+: Meet 15m consumers in their cultural comfort zone* Puck: Paramount sage reaches finaleToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyEditing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Time to leave you to start your week. We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio led edition of Unmade. Today, we talk to the newly arrived regional CEO of media mix modelling firm Mutinex, Mat Baxter, along with one of its cofounders, Henry Innis.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s six-state Compass event in November;* Weekly member-only content;* Access to our paywalled archives - everything gets locked down after two months;* Your own copy of Media Unmade‘I wouldn’t call it ego; I’d call it highly opinionated’: Mutinex founder Henry Innis on working with Mat Baxter In the nearly two decades I’ve been covering the Australian media and marketing beat, perhaps the biggest trouble magnet has been Mat Baxter. For a journalist writing about an industry where people complain that executives lack the personality and substance they used to, trouble magnet is a positive, by the way.Baxter was one of a trio who irritated the establishment by blowing up the orthodoxy around media planning with the creation of Naked Communications.He then raced up within the big agency world as chief strategy officer at Mediacom. It was a time when the agency won lots of business as Baxter worked alongside the giant collared (and giant egoed) Toby Jenner, who these days is global CEO of Wavemaker.The pairing of the two big personalities only lasted 18 months before Baxter moved over to UM where he repeated the trick of turning the agency into a business-winning machine, working for IPG Mediabrands boss Henry Tajer.When Tajer was promoted to global boss, Baxter joined the entourage. He moved to a global role in New York, and when Tajer’s time running IPG quickly blew up, Baxter moved upwards, as global CEO of Initiative.He then went on to take charge of IPG’s agency Huge, where his efforts to reengineer it became one of the foci of Michael farmer’s book Madison Avenue makeover.Since Baxter announced his return to Australia, the industry has been keen to know what he would do next, with the possibility of him joining Mutinex in the frame for many weeks before it became official.Unmade first featured Mutinex in an episode of The Unmakers two years ago. At that point cofounders Henry Innis and Matt Farrugia had not long evolved to talking about themselves as a software-as-a-service platform, rather than a consultancy or agency. And they were still called Mutiny before a name change forced by a collision of global ambitions and trademark considerations.Since then, the company has grown to a six figure valuation, and you wouldn’t bet against it becoming a billion dollar unicorn if it stays on track. They are mostly describing themselves as Mutinex Growth OS, as they position themselves as the operating system, or dashboard, of media mix modelling.Notably in today’s podcast conversation, featuring Baxter and Innis, Baxter uses the Growth OS brand far more than he does the name Mutinex. (Another rebrand in prospect?)After this month’s announcement of Baxter as CEO for APAC, the single question that came up most in industry gossip was whether there is room for the egos of Baxter and Innis in the same organisation. They tackled that question during the podcast conversation.Innis argues that in a high growth organisation, it’s possible to channel that dynamic outwards. Baxter says his role is to act as a “whisperer” to Innis and Farrugia.Since Baxter’s appointment, the duo have been accused of hubris. In an interview with Media Week, Innis declared “There will be no other tech company shipping product as quickly as us within six months,” adding: “Good luck to anybody else.”In their B&T chat Innis compared his relationship with Baxter to that of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg with the executive who commercialised the platform, Sheryl Sandberg.For those covering the industry, the unfiltered, opinionated nature of Innis and Baxter’s personalities is no bad thing - not least when the digital supply chain is so murky. Asked whether Baxter is ready to be a cop on the beat, the first part of his answer: “Of course.”Take a listen.When Unmade first talked to Mutinex:Index drops further below 500Having dropped below 500 points for the first time on Tuesday - meaning a halving of the value of Australia’s media and marketing businesses over the last two-and-a-bit years - the Unmade Index lost some more ground yesterday, dropping another 0.65% to 495.1 points.Southern Cross Austereo had the worst of it, losing nearly 5% as the market contemplates a slow radio advertising market, the flatering ARN Media takeover bid and an alternative propsal from Australian Community Media looking to bring it into the local newspaper market. The only stock to rise yesterday was Domain, up 1.4% Today’s podcast was edited by the excellent people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow. With Nine’s CEO on the precipice, News Corp restructuring and ACM proprietor Antony Catalano in the hunt for Southern Cross Austereo, there’s a lot happening in media this week.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. In today’s audio-led edition: Nine’s scandal over behaviour of its ex-news boss threatens to engulf CEO Mike Sneesby; winners start to emerge in the News Corp restructure; and is Cam Blackley’s Bureau of Everything the next stage of agency evolution?If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn (tomorrow) and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeTough questions about how much Nine management knew about news boss Darren Wick’s behaviourNine’s CEO Mike Sneesby has returned early from holiday to deal with an escalating crisis over the company’s handling of complaints about the alleged behaviour of former director of news and current affairs Darren Wick towards women who worked for him.In a key development today, The Australian reports: “It’s understood multiple non-disclosure agreements have been signed by female staff at Nine over interactions they had with Wick in recent years.” The claim about Nine using NDAs is not verified.This followed the weekend’s reporting by the Sydney Morning Herald - owned by Nine - that Wicks “has been accused of engaging in drunken, lecherous behaviour in what furious staff say was “an open secret” for more than a decade.”For legal reasons, Unmade should point out that it does not claim that the allegations being made about Wick are true; only that they are being reported.Also today, former M&C Saatchi executives Cam Blackley and Em Taylor have launched a new creative offering, Bureau of Everything.And the executive winners in the forthcoming News Corp shakeup are starting to emerge. Reportedly, Nicholas Gray will head up the prestige division; Mark Reinke will lead metro and sport; and Pippa Leary will get the free division.And what the hell were Canva thinking with their rap battle?Further reading:* Australian Financial Review: Canva, in the US, lifts the lid on its plan to win over Wall Street* Daily Telegraph: Nine’s sordid ‘cover-up’: ex news director’s alleged inappropriate behaviour kept secret* Sky News: Channel Nine star's HR complaint against Darren Wick over inappropriate behaviour was leaked directly to former news boss* Sydney Morning Herald: Former Nine News boss Darren Wick accused by staff of drunken, lecherous behaviour* Capital Brief: Nine CEO touches down as scandal over former exec intensifies* The Australian: Seven West news boss Anthony De Ceglie urges staff to ignore the TV ratings* The Australian: Advertising guns launch office offering ‘end to end’ strategy and creativity* Australian Financial Review: Winners and losrers emerge as News Corp’s major restructure takes shapeToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyEditing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Time to leave you to start your week. We’ll be back with more tomorrow with a special post for our paying members explaining all the issues around today’s developments in the SCA takeover battle.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today, as Mamamia’s new CEO Natalie Harvey steps up, she joins co-founder Jason Lavigne to discuss where the independent publisher goes from here. And further down in the post, the Unmade Index falls to a record low.Producing independent analysis of the media and marketing industry that goes beyond press releases takes time and resources. If you like what we do, you can support us by becoming a paying member. Upgrade today.Mamamia hits scale as Harvey takes the helmFor the best part of a decade, Natalie Harvey was one the best known faces of the business of TV advertising, rising to national sales director of Seven West Media. Earlier this year, she moved away from television to join Australia’s largest (depending how you measure it) independent publishing house, Mamamia.This month Harvey stepped up from chief revenue officer to CEO. Jason Lavigne, who co-founded the business with his partner Mia Freedman more than 15 years ago, moves in to the new role of executive chairman.In today’s podcast interview, Lavigne and Harvey discuss how the business has developed from a single blog to a 150-staff organisation with a powerful publishing platform, Australia’s eighth biggest podcast publisher (ahead of the likes of Nine and Nova) and a thriving agency, Squad, which includes clients beyond its advertising roster. Along with growing subscriber revenue, short form video is Mamamia’s latest development area.During the conversation, Lavigne signals a route to the “highly profitable” company hitting revenues of $50m (it’s not there yet), and addresses the obvious question of whether his change of role is a prelude to an exit (he claims only 15% of his work is done).Meanwhile, Harvey makes the point that her move to Mamamia was about her own development and not a vote against TV in which she remains “a staunch believer”They also discuss how Mamamia has becoming increasingly purpose-driven, around its mission of making the world a better place for women and girls.The company is also leaning into AI, including “Sam” its new artificial voice available to create and articulate scripts for brands featuring in its podcasts. The podcast features Sam in action.Mamamia may be slightly less vulnerable than some publishers to the likely loss of traffic if Facebook is designated under the News Media Bargaining Code and removes news links from its platform. However, Lavigne concedes it will have an effect. During the conversation, he argues that the potential solution is for more effective taxation of platform revenue before the profits end up offshore.How we assessed Mamamia three years ago:It isn’t too late to get a ticket to next week’s HumAIn - our half-day deep dive into how AI is changing the media and marketing world. Check out the program here.Index slips by another 3%The Unmade Index slipped to another record low on Wednesday, losing 2.77% to land on 506.2 points.The fall in share prices was specific to the media and marketing sector, with the wider ASX All Ordinaries finishing almost flat yesterday.Much of the weight on the index came from the biggest locally listed stock (excluding News Corp which is dual listed in the US and Australia) Nine, which slumped by nearly 4%.Fellow TV company Seven West Media lost 2.4%, and Southern Cross Austereo lost more than 3%.Today’s podcast was edited by our favourite people at Abe’s Audio.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow. I’ll be keeping an eye on the ASX today. It’s tipped to open down. There’s a very real possibility that todayis the day where we hit the milsetone of The Unmade Index falling below 500 points, a loss of 50% sine it began. If so, I’ll be reflecting on that threshold.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. Today: ARN refuses to let its Southern Cross Austereo takeover bid die; and ChatGPT starts talking back - why that matters to the marketing world.It’s a great day to become a paying member of Unmade. You get:* Member-only pricing for next week’s HumAIn conference * A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media UnmadeUpgrade todayThe all-seeing, all-talking AIIn the space of two days, the pace of change in AI accelerated again. OpenAI unveiled its upgraded ChatGPT4o - complete with “multi modal” abilities to listen and look. And Google launched a whole series of updates to its Gemini AI system. In today’s edition of Start the Week, Cat McGinn, curator of Unmade’s HumAIn conferece explains what it all means for the marketing world. We then bring ChatGPT in on the conference call.Also today, ARN Media refuses to give up on its battle to take control of Southern Cross Austereo.Further reading:* Unmade: A baller move from OpenAI, but who will end up paying for all this ‘free’ technology?;* Guardian: CEO of world’s biggest ad firm targeted by deepfake scam* Bloomberg: Apple Set to Unveil AI Strategy at June 10 Developers Conference* HumAIn: Full program* The Australian: ARN Media forges ahead with potential takeover plans of Southern Cross Austereo* Australian Financial Review: ARN Media’s M&A record holds out for elusive winToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes, Abe Udy and Cat McGinn (plus a cameo from ChatGPT-4o).Time to leave you to start your week.Editing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Toodlepip…Tim Burrowestim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade, in which we talk to the industry veteran in charge of delivering News Corp’s advertising revenues, Louise Barrett. Further down, a good day on the Unmade index for Australia’s TV players.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn (May 28) and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives;* Your own copy of Media Unmade.Is it time for the news industry to revive the ida of a local premium content exchange? Louise Barrett thinks soThis week saw News Corp run it’s D_Coded sessions, the news company’s version of Upfronts, with a digital focus.Among the new offerings shared with marketers and media agency executives were ways of making more of News Corp’s large logged in audience. Google’s long-delayed, but now imminent, deprecation of third party cookies on Chrome may work to the benefit of publishers and media companies with big opted-in audiences.For News Corp that includes adding to the capabilities of its Intent Connect data offering, and the introduction of its ecommerce play Shoppable ScrollX.Barrett’s conversation with Unmade’s Tim Burrowes also uncovered the information that the idea of a cross industry premium content exchange is back on the agenda. News Corp’s MD of client product Pippa Leary previously worked on setting up the APEX Advertising exchange which was a joint venture of Nine and Fairfax Media before those companies merged.With increasing client concerns about programatic fraud and low quality Made For Advertising (MFA) sites, a premium content exchange potentially offers marketers the ability to reach a higher quality audience programatically.In the UK, the Ozone Project, owned by news publishers including News UK, Reach, Guardian News & Media and Telegraph Media Group is well established. Barrett reveals that she and her colleague Leary held talks with Ozone during a UK visit. “I’m a big supporter of pulling something like this together. There are discussions happening. It’s a very strong ambition,” she says.Also under consideration is the idea of setting up an academy aimed at educating new media agency staff about the strengths of print publications.Good day on the index for TV and outdoor, as SCA tries to slam to the door on ARN.A solid trading day for Seven West Media, Nine and Ooh Media helped lift the Unmade Index by 0.62% to 536.8 points on WednesdayNine rose by nearly 1% to return close to a market capitalisation of $2.5bn; SWM surged by more than 2.5% and Ooh lifted by 1.85%Yesterday afternoon also saw Southern Cross Austereo attempt to slam the door on ARN Media’s takeover bid. The SCA board issued a statement saying the updated bid was unattractive for shareholders and would be costly to execute.Today’s podcast was edited by Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, editing and production.Time to leave you to your Thursday. We’ll be back with more tomorrow Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmade This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our audio-led Monday scene-setter for the week ahead.Today: ARN Media fights to save its Southern Cross Austereo takeover as Anchorage Capital Partners gets cold feet; a crucial week in Parliament for TV sports rights; and is Open AI about to launch its Google challenger? Producing independent analysis of the media and marketing industry that goes beyond press releases takes time and resources. If you like what we do, you can support us by becoming a paying member. Upgrade todayCan ARN Media save its collapsing Southern Cross Austereo takeover bid?In a series of dramatic developments over the last 24 hours, ARN Media’s takeover bid for Southern Cross Austereo appears close to collapse.ARN’s bid partner Anchorage has been spooked by declining revenues and has pulled the plug. Instead, ARN this morning told the ASX it has come up with a new, even more complicated, plan to go it alone before relisting a new version of SCA on the stock exchange.In today’s podcast, Unmade’s Tim Burrowes explains what happened over the weekend, why Anchorage got cold feet, and how ARN is proposing to save the deal.We also discuss what may be another huge move by OpenAI, with reports that it will launch a competitor to Google’s search, later today.And we preview a key week for the TV industry in Parliament, with sports rights and due prominence legislation on the agenda tomorrow.Further reading:* Unmade: Is the SCA takeover about to die of old age?* ASX - ARN Media: Update on Non-Binding Indicative Proposal to Acquire SCA* ASX - SCA: Withdrawal of Consortium’s Proposal* Reuters: OpenAI plans to announce Google search competitor on Monday, sources say* Australian Financial Review: Showtime! Media CEOs’ last stand with Foxtel over future of TV* Australian Financial Review: Greg Hywood - New laws risk the end of free sports on tv* Unmade: TV gets a win* Unmade: Maybe for the last time, the free TV machine wins on anti-siphoningToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyEditing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Time to leave you to start your week. We’ll be back with more tomorrow with a special post for our paying members explaining all the issues around today’s developments in the SCA takeover battle.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today we’ve an episode of our series focusing on industry startups, The Unmakers. We talk to the co-founders of fast growing influencer platform Fabulate. And further down, mixed fortunes on the Unmade Index.If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an Unmade membership, this is the perfect time. Your membership includes:* Member-only pricing for our HumAIn (May 28) and REmade (October 1) conferences;* A complimentary invitation to Unmade’s Compass event (November);* Member-only content and our paywalled archives; * Your own copy of Media UnmadeBen Gunn and Nathan Powell on Fabulate’s five year push into the technology of influencer marketingA noticeable trend in adland is that nobody is making it big by starting another media company or advertising agency.However, those working inside the legacy players have been perfectly placed to understand the problems of brands and publishers, and work out how to solve them. The technology based solutions have the ability to scale globally in a way that media offerings and agencies do not.Recent examples include media mix modelling platform Mutinex, started by WPP staffers Henry Innis and Matt Farrugia; micro influencer platform Tribe started by then 2Day FM presenter Jules Lund, and retail media platform Zitcha, which span out of media agency Hatched.A further example which deserves a higher profile is Fabulate, whose founders include former Nine staffers Ben Gunn and Nathan Powell, along with Toby Kennett. Today’s podcast focuses on the Fabulate story.Five years on, Fabulate barely counts as a start up any more. It employs more than 50 staff and manages campaigns to the value of millions of dollars. In the conversation, chief revenue officer Gunn and content and strategy boss Powell are cagier about revealing the platform’s own direct revenue, but they drop some hints.In March, Fabulate was named best influencer marketing technology service by AiMCO (the Australian Influencer Marketing Council).With its roots in text-based branded content, Fabulate is now deeply in the short form video influencer space, including TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube. The platform connects influencers to brands and manages workflow for marketing campaigns. It is also planning to gear up around LinkedIn influencers.Along with being integrated into IPG Mediabrands’s Kinesso social offering, Fabulate is working with almost all Australia’s influencer agencies, as well as major PR agencies including Edelman.The wide ranging conversation - which is part of Unmade’s ongoing The Unmakers series - covers Fabulate’s first five years, an overview of the fast changing influencer sector, and insights into where the company goes next.Previous episodes of The Unmakers:Unmade Index flat as TV networks look upThe Unmade Index battled itself into equilibrium on Wednesday, with broad falls across most of the list counterbalanced by improvements from Nine and Seven West Media.With the index moving up by just 0.2 points to 546.1, Nine did much of the heavy lifting, rising by 1.3%, while Seven was up 2.5%.Meanwhile Ooh Media, IVE Group, ARN Media and Southern Cross Austereo all slumped.Today’s podcast was edited by Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, editing and production.Time to leave you to your Thursday.We’ll be taking a one-day publishing break tomorrow.I’m in Sydney today at the Australian Associational of National Advertisers Reset conference (one question I’m considering: is the “growth” theme of the event in keeping with the mood music around sustainability? Your thoughts please.)And tomorrow afternoon I’m jumping on QF1 to London for Advertising Week Europe. It looks as though the upgrade gods have not smiled upon me. Saturday’s Best of the Week will be brought to you from deep in the bowels of the cheap seats.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our audio-led Monday scene-setter for the week ahead.Today: Nine under pressure from investors as questions are asked about CEO Mike Sneesby’s behaviour to staffer; SXSW lineup unveiledToday:Nine boss Mike Sneesby gets ready to front the Macquarie investor conference, as The Australian reports that he puts pressure on one of his journalists over coverage of Stan. And SXSW revleas its first speakers for October’s Sydney event - it’s AI-a-gogo.Further reading:* Unmade: How news is becoming a collective industry* Capital Brief: Nine facing pressure to cut TV costs amid ad market rout* Unmade: Rock bottom delayed* The Australian: Did Nine chief Mike Sneesby break an unwritten rule?* SXSW: SXSW Sydney reveals first look at 2024 speakers and sessionsToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyTime to leave you to start your week.Editing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Toodlepip…Tim Burrowestim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to an audio-led edition of Unmade. Today we’ve an episode of our series focusing on industry startups, The Unmakers. We talk to the latest entrant into the increasingly competitive marketing mix modelling sector, Jordan Taylor-Bartels, the co-founder of Prophet.In today’s episode of The Unmakers, we talk to Jordan Taylor-Bartels about Prophet, the analytics platform he’s been quietly building for the last three years, before finally publicly launching it in March.There were several industry investors attached to the launch, including Australian Community Media proprietor Antony Catalano, and ex-Dentsu (now Bastion) executive Cheuk Chiang. To add to the spice, Chiang was an early investor in media mix modelling platform Mutinex, although he parted ways early in the project.Although recently an owner of indie media agency Magic, much of Taylor-Bartels career has been spent outside of media, including at a couple of Elon Musk companies in the US. At the start of his career, Taylor-Bartels studied media and journalism at RMIT and created his own culture magazine, Helmet.In today’s conversation, Taylor-Bartels explains his approach to simplifying the variabilities of marketing, talks through the launch team and plots a path for where Prophet grows from here.Today’s podcast was edited by Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, editing and production.We’ll be back with more tomorrow.Have a great day.Toodlepip…Tim BurrowesPublisher - Unmadetim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our audio-led Monday scene-setter for the week ahead.Today: Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson smash onto the Melbourne airwaves, and go full bore from the first talk break; Cosmo magazine is coming back; and the coming war between Australia and the digital giantsHave you considered becoming a paying member of Unmade to get the full picture? Only our paying members receive our members-only Tuesday analysis; get access to our archive where all our content is paywalled after two months; get their own copy of Media Unmade; and receive discounts on all our events. Become a member today!Melbourne makes up its mind about the K+J ShowKyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson exploded onto the Melbourne airwaves this morning with a family-unfriendly half hour opening talk break that kept the bleeper operator busy (we include a small excerpt in today’s podcast). Introducing the team behind the Sydney-based Kyle & Jackie O Show to the Kiis Melbourne audience, Sandilands and Henderson ranged through topics including sex acts, sexual preferences and sexually transmitted diseases.There were also moments of dead air where local feeds failed to fill the ad break, for the digital audio stream at least, as ARN grappled with the technicalities of a live national show with local inserts.And ARN pulled a switcheroo on Fox FM, upgrading the prize in their secret sound contest to $200,000 Also today, we examine Australian’s increasingly fractious relationship with the digital behemoths including Google, TikTok, Facebook and Twitter.And Cosmo is returning.Further reading:* New York Times: Congress Passed a Bill That Could Ban TikTok. Now Comes the Hard Part* Capital Brief: Leadership vacuum at TikTok Australia as US ban looms* Australian Financial Review: Small player Twitter* Australian Financial Review: Facebook shifts more than $1.1b offshore as local profits rise 36pc* Australian Financial Review: Google hides its total revenue from Australia in new accountsToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyTime to leave you to start your week.Editing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Toodlepip…Tim Burrowestim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe

Welcome to Start the Week, our Monday scene-setter for the week ahead. Today: TikTok piles the pressure on the television industry as US legislators put the squeeze on the short form video platform; the TV revenue slump still hasn’t hit bottom; how consumers are making brand compromises in the cost of living crunch.Today:* The US House of Representatives voted over the weekend to force the Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or be banned. That means the law could be on Joe Biden’s desk for signing within days if the Senate votes on it this week. If ByteDance refuses to sell, will Australia ban TikTok too?;* Seven had one of the worst weeks in the company’s history. Analysts describe it as a “one trick pony”, and that TV trick is no longer working;* Hard-up consumers are disguising their Aldi tomato sauce in big brand bottles;* The ABC has upped its marketing spend, but is $6m a quarter enough?Further reading:* The Guardian: US House passes bill that could lead to total TikTok ban* Australian Financial Review: TV networks have lost 83pc of young viewers to TikTok, YouTube* Unmade: If a TV network puts a roof over a rapist’s head, employs a war criminal and pays a creep it might just have a culture problem* The Australian: Bleak outlook for Seven West Media shares, says analyst* The Australian: Seven launch internal investigation over incorrectly naming the wrong Bondi killer on Weekend Sunrise* Unmade: Born to be mild: New Seven boss’s first staff memo* The Australian: Consumer brand loyalty declines in hard times, research finds* The Australian: ABC’s spending on advertising, marketing and promotions has soared, new data showsToday’s episode features Tim Burrowes and Abe UdyTime to leave you to start your week.Editing was courtesy of Abe’s Audio, the people to talk to about voiceovers, sound design and podcast production.Toodlepip…Tim Burrowestim@unmade.media This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.unmade.media/subscribe