In our column that takes you inside the world of media, we’ll look at why talkback radio is dying. Disney has made a shocking admission of how it is forcing customers to pay to watch adverts. Ted Lasso star hits out at fans over season 3 criticisms.
WATCH: A video version of this column is available in the player above
Alan Jones was charged
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Some big breaking news came out of Sydney on Monday, with former broadcasting heavyweight Alan Jones charged with indecent assault and sexual touching offences.
NSW Police announced they had charged Jones, 83, after investigating the claims spanning two decades.
Jones was charged with 24 crimes against eight victims.
“In March 2024, the State Crime Command’s Child Abuse Squad established Strike Force Bonnefin to investigate a number of alleged indecent assaults and incidents of sexual touching between 2001 and 2019,” the police said in a statement.
Jones was granted conditional bail and will appear at Downing Center Local Court on Wednesday.
He has been charged with 11 counts of aggravated indecent assault – victimization a felon while under authority, nine counts of assault with an act of indecency, two counts of touching another person sexually without consent and two counts of common assault.
Is talkback radio dying?
There was a shock of sorts in the radio sector last week when leading Sydney broadcaster Ray Hadley moved from first to third in Survey 7 after 160 consecutive survey wins. The news came a week after the veteran broadcaster announced his retirement, with his final broadcast scheduled for December 13.
Hadlee was number 1 since 2004, so what changed?
It cannot be denied that there has been a general change from the talkback format. ABC Radio has seen significant decline In recent years, that has included a 40 per cent decline in Melbourne and 35 per cent in Sydney between 2020 and 2023.
an internal review The situation recommended that “the performance of all presenters and hosts be assessed individually to address a significant decline in audiences”. Since then, the departures of Virginia Trioli, Patricia Karvelas, Sammy J, Richard Glover and others have continued.
Nine Radio was performing better with its stations in Sydney and Melbourne particularly dominating Breakfast and Morning. However, recently, the wheels have come off and Sydney has begun to falter, while Brisbane and Perth have faced significant troubles.
2GB’s share fell to 9.8 per cent in the latest survey period – its worst result in more than 20 years, trailing WSFM, KIIS and SmoothFM.
In Brisbane, 4BC has struggled with a series of presenter changes to breakfast and drive and the station now covers costs by broadcasting network programming from Sydney on weekends, leaving the 6am to 8am breakfast slot with Olympia Kvitowski. Is saving.
courier mail report Cost-saving measures will see the network move ahead with morning and afternoon slots from Sydney replacing local programming during the summer break.
*Disclosure: I have been an occasional fill-in host on 4BC and make a regular weekly presentation with John Stanley on 4BC Afternoons and 2GB Nights.
In Perth, executives took the bold decision to remove two local programs from 6PR’s schedule and move the remaining shows. Afternoon hosts Julie-Ann Sprague and The Nightshift’s Todd Johnston lost their jobs As part of the shake-up,
Despite these setbacks, talkback radio still has a loyal following and there is room for growth. Like all media, radio is in an evolutionary stage and the decisions being made now will affect its long-term future.
Let’s hope the people responsible get it right!
How streamers are trying to force you to watch ads
Disney+ executives have admitted to raising prices in an effort to force subscribers to their advertising tiers.
During an investor call last week, executives were asked about streaming margin and how it breaks down between subscriber growth and price growth. IndieWire reports CEO Bob Iger was very clear on the matter, saying, “It’s not just about raising pricing, it’s about moving consumers to the advertiser-supported side of the streaming platform”.
And then came the explosive entry.
He said, “The pricing that we did recently, the increased pricing, was really designed to move more people in the AVOD direction because we know that ARPU – and advertisers in streaming – are going to be in it.” “Interest has increased.”
ARPU means average revenue per user. Iger is basically saying that Disney+ makes more money when consumers are on plans that are part-subscription fee, part-advertising revenue.
Moments later, Iger admitted that he had given away too much in a hot-mic moment when he said, “I don’t know if I should have disclosed those AVOD numbers”.
You may have noticed that your subscription fees have been increasing on most of your streaming services recently – that’s because they want you to watch ads and they’re trying to charge prices above their ad-free tiers.
Just remember that you’re not tied into a contract, which means you can subscribe to one service for a month or two and then switch to another service. Make your money stretch further by making cuts and changes based on the show you want to watch.
Ted Lasso says it’s your fault
If, like me, you struggled with the third season of Ted Lasso, it’s our fault. Co-creator and star Jason Sudeikis has hit out at fans of the Apple TV+ series for failing to appreciate his vision.
“I will never understand people who will keep talking so shamelessly about something that, in my opinion, they clearly don’t understand,” Sudeikis says in his upcoming book. The untold story behind Ted Lasso, the show that won its way into our hearts.
“And God bless them for it; It’s not their fault. They don’t have imaginations and they’re not ready to experience what imagination feels like.”
Is he serious?
It is the height of arrogance for an artist to bemoan people who dare to criticize his work. The audience has the right to decide. I loved the first two seasons of Ted Lasso but the third lacked the magic of the previous seasons. I still enjoyed it – but not as much.
I guess I lack imagination?
Sometimes Jason, you just have to face criticism. Definitely stick to your work, but don’t attack the people/audience who made your show a hit in the first place.
Rob McKnight is co-owner tv blackbox,
Inside Media is published every Monday and Thursday afternoon.
