Is this the end of free-to-air TV? A veteran weighs in

Fitz: I can't believe he said that!
Meakin: He did say that, and when Kerry Packer saw it, he was outraged, and we were promptly summoned into his offices in Park Street, and bawled out for discussing virginity in prime time. We defended it, and the argument turned on him not wanting eight minutes of that rubbish on his channel. I said, 'It wasn't eight minutes, Mr Packer'. He said, 'Well, how much was it?' I said, 'It was five minutes, 29 seconds'. He insisted it was eight and took a bet that he was right, and when an executive emerged from the next office with a stopwatch, and it was 5 minutes and 29 seconds, I won. So Kerry gave me a $10 note because I'd won the bet, and we were given a lift back to Channel Nine in his chauffeur-driven Mercedes. And that was Packer; he used to sound off on a number of occasions, and ring up to object to a story, but if you held your ground he'd generally back you, and mutter 'over-ruled again'.
Fitz: At Mike Willesee 's funeral you told a great story of the A Current Affair host standing his ground against Packer?
Meakin: Yes, we ran a promo for a story which covered the infamous 'Goanna' allegations about Packer being involved in organised crime – for which he was subsequently completely exonerated – but straight after the promo went to air, we got a furious phone call from his legal adviser – one Malcolm Turnbull – threatening to sack everyone if the story went ahead. So I advised Mr Willesee that we'd had this call, and what Kerry and Malcolm were threatening. And Willesee said, 'Tell Kerry, if he doesn't like the story, he can sue himself'. We ran the story.
Fitz: All right, well back to the present day, and this week has seen major news shows The Project, which you were heavily involved with, and the ABC's Q&A bite the dust. As a serious question, and you're better qualified than anybody to answer, what is going on?
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Meakin: No show – or very few shows – last forever. I mean, Four Corners and 60 Minutes have been around forever, and probably will be around forever, but everything else seems to have a shelf life, and that's been the case since, since [Christ] played fullback for Jerusalem. Television programs are like restaurants. For a long while, you can't get in because there's such a waiting list, and then all of a sudden people are over it, and no one comes there any more. So you can't necessarily read too much into it.
Fitz: Sure. But as one who loved Q&A, and whose wife was on The Project, I've followed it closely. We can all see that the ratings of these shows have fallen off a cliff in the last few years. Why?
Meakin: Because audiences for most TV shows have fallen off a cliff. People aren't into free-to-air television the way they used to be.
Fitz: This is my point. You and I have children who have certainly heard of free-to-air television but never liked the sound of it, and there's now whole swaths of the population that simply don't watch FTA television at all. Is that what we are witnessing? Are these major programs being axed the death-throes of free-to-air television?
Meakin: That's overstating it. But you know, times are certainly very tough, and really tough for the people who've lost their jobs. And I particularly feel for those I worked with at The Project because they're friends, and in some cases they're finer professionals than many I've worked with at some of the most high-flying programs in Australian TV history.
Fitz: Hopefully, most of them will find their way to the new investigative show Ten has announced, 10 News +. Do you have confidence that it will work?
Meakin: Well, I applaud them for trying. I think whether it works or not is going to depend on the level it's resourced and, as you know, Channel 10 does not have the reputation of throwing money around. They're not in a position to throw money around. But if it's well resourced, fine. As for the investigative angle, that can be very costly ...
Fitz: [ Wryly. ] I've heard it said.
Meakin: But it can be very powerful. I know that some people have been arguing that The Project 's reputation was damaged by the Brittany Higgins interview. Well, I reckon if they – and we – had done more investigative news stories like that, the program would still be there. Against that, while I love investigative journalism, it's hard to raise a business argument for it when it can cost so much money to pursue – and then defend.
Fitz: Way back when I got to know you in the early '90s at the Nine Network, the dictum for news was, 'If it bleeds, it leads'. These days, particularly with radio and TV, it seems to me to be, 'If it hates, it rates'.
Meakin: I don't know about that. That's not a saying I've ever espoused.
Fitz: I know you never did! I just invented it, to summate a lot of what seems to rate well in this age of social media, and for stuff to go viral, which seems to be the constant end game.
Meakin: Oh well, they used to say 'Divide the nation and multiply the ratings', so there's nothing new under the sun, and yes, there are certainly a lot of people here generating conflict, but that's not just in the radio studio or on television.
I mean, a lot of it is coming from places like the White House, where from Trump and Musk just about everything that comes out of their mouth is mendacious. And instead of some of the media doing its job to call out the lies, they put them to air unchallenged, which sees a lot of people believing them. And then when the media does tell the truth, Trump calls them all 'fake news', whereupon his followers then hate the media – and instead go to the sources which can reinforce their prejudice.
Fitz: That is indeed the age we're in. What can the serious media do about it?
Meakin: At the risk of sounding like an old fart, we of the media have got to keep jealously guarding what little reputation we have left, and deliver the news straight, unbiased and as honestly as we possibly can – and hope that the people will come back, as that is precisely what is needed now, and everyone is starting to recognise it.
Fitz: Which brings us to the demise of Q&A, which seemed to me to be a textbook example of how you take a seriously successful show and drive it into the ground, changing formats, changing timeslots, changing hosts every year or two – or even less – and playing it safe with too-often dull guests. Do you agree?
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Meakin: I found it 'worthy'. And when you call a program worthy, it's both a compliment and an insult – but the bottom line is that not enough people found it worthy in a good way. But the first thing to say is the show's been around for 18 years and has had a bloody good innings. But a lot of questions, in my view, sounded very stilted and rehearsed. When it truly worked, there were people in authority answering tough questions. That's not happening any more. And I note here, the ABC's explanation for it being cancelled: 'It's time to rethink how audiences want to interact and to evolve how we can engage with the public, to include as many Australians as possible in national conversations.' Well, there's a bureaucratic gob-full if ever I heard one!
Fitz: What would Kerry Packer do, if he had control of programs like The Project and Q&A in this situation?
Meakin: Kerry, God bless him, wasn't blessed with patience. And he didn't like being beaten. So I suspect he would have sacked an executive producer or two and demanded changes to the format before pulling the pin. Fixing a failing program isn't easy. The causes are inevitably a matter of debate. The solutions can be cruel and may not work. So it's often easier to wield the axe.
Fitz: When Q&A debuted in 2008 it was one of the first to harness Twitter, so the audience could make commentary on it in real time, building a live buzz and with it an audience that would start to tune in. These days, social media seems to be having the opposite effect?
Meakin: Well, I think social media has made it very hard for people to be opinionated on television. And what's the point of making a stand or expressing an opinion honestly held when, within seconds, half the population is going to want to decapitate you?
Fitz: You do what I do. You don't read 99.9 per cent of it, and you pity the poor bastards with such tiny lives that they have nothing better to do with their time than emit anonymous toxic farts in the Twitter wind.
Meakin: That's what Waleed did – declined to read any social media at all – and right now, he doesn't seem to have a gig. But he is too good not to have one soon. It will go on. There will always be a need for media people like him. They just need the right format and platform.

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Australia concerned over escalation as US strikes Iran

Australia has expressed concerns tensions in the Middle East could evolve into a broader conflict after the US joined Israel's offensive and attacked Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump revealed the US had struck three nuclear sites in Iran on Sunday through social media posts, explicitly aligning himself with Israel's campaign. Prior to Mr Trump's announcement, Australian officials across the political spectrum had grown concerned about the rapidly intensifying situation. "We are worried about the prospect for escalation here and this entering into some wider kind of conflict," Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Sky News on Sunday. "We've been urging dialogue and diplomacy and we continue to do that now." At least 430 people have been killed and another 3500 injured in Iran according to Iranian media outlet Nour News, while local Israeli authorities have reported 24 civilian deaths and almost 1300 injuries. Though he hoped Iran would negotiate and surrender its nuclear program, opposition spokesman for home affairs Andrew Hastie predicted a strike would occur, mere minutes before the US president made his announcement. "I suspect diplomacy is probably going to fail here and we're going to see a strike of some sort," he told ABC's Insiders. "The next two weeks is going to be tough for innocent people in Israel and Iran who are caught in the middle of this war. "Iran needs to come to the table, or it's going to be a settlement by force and more people will die." The federal government has repeatedly insisted Australia is not a central player in the conflict, which was triggered in mid June when the Israeli military launched attacks on Iran in what it claimed was a bid to wipe out Iran's nuclear program. Australia has deployed defence assets to the region to assist in evacuation efforts, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong repeatedly maintaining they are not there to engage in combat. Mr Hastie, a former Special Air Service Regiment troop commander during the war in Afghanistan, said he would be reluctant to send in troops and called for Australia to more clearly define its alliance with the US. "I think we need to talk about operationalising the alliance - building guardrails for combat operations and of course, defining our sovereignty," he said. "We're not just a vassal state, we're an ally and a partner." Mr Marles maintained Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program was "most definitely a threat" to the peace and stability of the world, while also expressing concern about the conflict's escalation. "We recognise Israel's right to defend itself and we very much acknowledge the risk that the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program represents," he said. But now that it appears the dominoes have begun to fall, the world could soon have to reckon with the consequences, Mr Hastie warned. "I think it's very dangerous and risky," he said. "We could see regime change, we could see a collapse of the Iranian regime, we'd see large scale migration and refugees across the world but particularly Europe." About 2600 Australians in Iran are seeking assisted departures from the region, alongside about 1200 in Israel as the government urges travellers not to venture to either nation. Staff from the Department of Foreign Affairs have evacuated the Tehran embassy and are helping Australians leave through the border in Azerbaijan. Some Australians have already left through land crossings but the government is also poised to help citizens leave once the airspace over both nations re-opens. With Reuters Australia has expressed concerns tensions in the Middle East could evolve into a broader conflict after the US joined Israel's offensive and attacked Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump revealed the US had struck three nuclear sites in Iran on Sunday through social media posts, explicitly aligning himself with Israel's campaign. Prior to Mr Trump's announcement, Australian officials across the political spectrum had grown concerned about the rapidly intensifying situation. "We are worried about the prospect for escalation here and this entering into some wider kind of conflict," Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Sky News on Sunday. "We've been urging dialogue and diplomacy and we continue to do that now." At least 430 people have been killed and another 3500 injured in Iran according to Iranian media outlet Nour News, while local Israeli authorities have reported 24 civilian deaths and almost 1300 injuries. Though he hoped Iran would negotiate and surrender its nuclear program, opposition spokesman for home affairs Andrew Hastie predicted a strike would occur, mere minutes before the US president made his announcement. "I suspect diplomacy is probably going to fail here and we're going to see a strike of some sort," he told ABC's Insiders. "The next two weeks is going to be tough for innocent people in Israel and Iran who are caught in the middle of this war. "Iran needs to come to the table, or it's going to be a settlement by force and more people will die." The federal government has repeatedly insisted Australia is not a central player in the conflict, which was triggered in mid June when the Israeli military launched attacks on Iran in what it claimed was a bid to wipe out Iran's nuclear program. Australia has deployed defence assets to the region to assist in evacuation efforts, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong repeatedly maintaining they are not there to engage in combat. Mr Hastie, a former Special Air Service Regiment troop commander during the war in Afghanistan, said he would be reluctant to send in troops and called for Australia to more clearly define its alliance with the US. "I think we need to talk about operationalising the alliance - building guardrails for combat operations and of course, defining our sovereignty," he said. "We're not just a vassal state, we're an ally and a partner." Mr Marles maintained Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program was "most definitely a threat" to the peace and stability of the world, while also expressing concern about the conflict's escalation. "We recognise Israel's right to defend itself and we very much acknowledge the risk that the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program represents," he said. But now that it appears the dominoes have begun to fall, the world could soon have to reckon with the consequences, Mr Hastie warned. "I think it's very dangerous and risky," he said. "We could see regime change, we could see a collapse of the Iranian regime, we'd see large scale migration and refugees across the world but particularly Europe." About 2600 Australians in Iran are seeking assisted departures from the region, alongside about 1200 in Israel as the government urges travellers not to venture to either nation. Staff from the Department of Foreign Affairs have evacuated the Tehran embassy and are helping Australians leave through the border in Azerbaijan. Some Australians have already left through land crossings but the government is also poised to help citizens leave once the airspace over both nations re-opens. With Reuters Australia has expressed concerns tensions in the Middle East could evolve into a broader conflict after the US joined Israel's offensive and attacked Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump revealed the US had struck three nuclear sites in Iran on Sunday through social media posts, explicitly aligning himself with Israel's campaign. Prior to Mr Trump's announcement, Australian officials across the political spectrum had grown concerned about the rapidly intensifying situation. "We are worried about the prospect for escalation here and this entering into some wider kind of conflict," Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Sky News on Sunday. "We've been urging dialogue and diplomacy and we continue to do that now." At least 430 people have been killed and another 3500 injured in Iran according to Iranian media outlet Nour News, while local Israeli authorities have reported 24 civilian deaths and almost 1300 injuries. Though he hoped Iran would negotiate and surrender its nuclear program, opposition spokesman for home affairs Andrew Hastie predicted a strike would occur, mere minutes before the US president made his announcement. "I suspect diplomacy is probably going to fail here and we're going to see a strike of some sort," he told ABC's Insiders. "The next two weeks is going to be tough for innocent people in Israel and Iran who are caught in the middle of this war. "Iran needs to come to the table, or it's going to be a settlement by force and more people will die." The federal government has repeatedly insisted Australia is not a central player in the conflict, which was triggered in mid June when the Israeli military launched attacks on Iran in what it claimed was a bid to wipe out Iran's nuclear program. Australia has deployed defence assets to the region to assist in evacuation efforts, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong repeatedly maintaining they are not there to engage in combat. Mr Hastie, a former Special Air Service Regiment troop commander during the war in Afghanistan, said he would be reluctant to send in troops and called for Australia to more clearly define its alliance with the US. "I think we need to talk about operationalising the alliance - building guardrails for combat operations and of course, defining our sovereignty," he said. "We're not just a vassal state, we're an ally and a partner." Mr Marles maintained Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program was "most definitely a threat" to the peace and stability of the world, while also expressing concern about the conflict's escalation. "We recognise Israel's right to defend itself and we very much acknowledge the risk that the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program represents," he said. But now that it appears the dominoes have begun to fall, the world could soon have to reckon with the consequences, Mr Hastie warned. "I think it's very dangerous and risky," he said. "We could see regime change, we could see a collapse of the Iranian regime, we'd see large scale migration and refugees across the world but particularly Europe." About 2600 Australians in Iran are seeking assisted departures from the region, alongside about 1200 in Israel as the government urges travellers not to venture to either nation. Staff from the Department of Foreign Affairs have evacuated the Tehran embassy and are helping Australians leave through the border in Azerbaijan. Some Australians have already left through land crossings but the government is also poised to help citizens leave once the airspace over both nations re-opens. With Reuters Australia has expressed concerns tensions in the Middle East could evolve into a broader conflict after the US joined Israel's offensive and attacked Iranian nuclear sites. President Donald Trump revealed the US had struck three nuclear sites in Iran on Sunday through social media posts, explicitly aligning himself with Israel's campaign. Prior to Mr Trump's announcement, Australian officials across the political spectrum had grown concerned about the rapidly intensifying situation. "We are worried about the prospect for escalation here and this entering into some wider kind of conflict," Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles told Sky News on Sunday. "We've been urging dialogue and diplomacy and we continue to do that now." At least 430 people have been killed and another 3500 injured in Iran according to Iranian media outlet Nour News, while local Israeli authorities have reported 24 civilian deaths and almost 1300 injuries. Though he hoped Iran would negotiate and surrender its nuclear program, opposition spokesman for home affairs Andrew Hastie predicted a strike would occur, mere minutes before the US president made his announcement. "I suspect diplomacy is probably going to fail here and we're going to see a strike of some sort," he told ABC's Insiders. "The next two weeks is going to be tough for innocent people in Israel and Iran who are caught in the middle of this war. "Iran needs to come to the table, or it's going to be a settlement by force and more people will die." The federal government has repeatedly insisted Australia is not a central player in the conflict, which was triggered in mid June when the Israeli military launched attacks on Iran in what it claimed was a bid to wipe out Iran's nuclear program. Australia has deployed defence assets to the region to assist in evacuation efforts, with Foreign Minister Penny Wong repeatedly maintaining they are not there to engage in combat. Mr Hastie, a former Special Air Service Regiment troop commander during the war in Afghanistan, said he would be reluctant to send in troops and called for Australia to more clearly define its alliance with the US. "I think we need to talk about operationalising the alliance - building guardrails for combat operations and of course, defining our sovereignty," he said. "We're not just a vassal state, we're an ally and a partner." Mr Marles maintained Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile program was "most definitely a threat" to the peace and stability of the world, while also expressing concern about the conflict's escalation. "We recognise Israel's right to defend itself and we very much acknowledge the risk that the Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program represents," he said. But now that it appears the dominoes have begun to fall, the world could soon have to reckon with the consequences, Mr Hastie warned. "I think it's very dangerous and risky," he said. "We could see regime change, we could see a collapse of the Iranian regime, we'd see large scale migration and refugees across the world but particularly Europe." About 2600 Australians in Iran are seeking assisted departures from the region, alongside about 1200 in Israel as the government urges travellers not to venture to either nation. Staff from the Department of Foreign Affairs have evacuated the Tehran embassy and are helping Australians leave through the border in Azerbaijan. Some Australians have already left through land crossings but the government is also poised to help citizens leave once the airspace over both nations re-opens. With Reuters

Courier-Mail

10 hours ago

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Channel 9 reporter Hannah Sinclair weds partner in lavish Bali wedding

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News.com.au

12 hours ago

• News.com.au

The Project co-host Waleed Aly: ‘I thought about Peter Dutton'

In the wake of Waleed Aly's emotional departure from The Project, he has opened up on how he feels about the show's cancellation, working with Carrie Bickmore and Peter Helliar — and what comes next. 'The word jungle has been mentioned,' Aly told Stellar. 'Obviously I can't tell the future, but I have no intention of doing that. There are lots of other things I'll have to think about as well. 'That's actually been the strangest thing. Even in my private life, people are kind of like, 'Hey, do you want to do this?' And I'm like, 'I don't know. I actually have no idea…' Because I don't know if I'm available in July next year.' Aly, who has co-hosted the news program for a decade alongside the likes of Bickmore, Helliar, Tommy Little and Lisa Wilkinson, also spoke about the moment he learnt The Project would wrap its nearly 16-year run on Network 10 from Friday June 27. 'I only knew, for less than a week before it was public. So it was all fairly sudden,' he said. 'The hardest day was definitely the day it was announced, because that's when you are in the room with all your colleagues. 'People that you've worked with, in some cases, for more than a decade. People at really difficult stages in their lives. They've just bought a home, or they're just about to have a baby or whatever. 'This is not a unique experience to us. This is something that happens across lots of industries and in lots of workplaces, and it's sad every time.' Looking back on his time on the show, Aly told Stellar it was 'a gift' to work with Bickmore and Helliar particularly, who were at the desk with him from 2015 through 2022. During their co-hosting years together, Aly and Bickmore each won a Gold Logie and Helliar was nominated, and many have argued the show was at its apex during that time. Aly's take? 'I will leave it to others to judge when the golden age was.' As for critics of the show who have delighted in its demise and long speculated the show was on its last legs, Aly has taken their glee at its axing in his stride, saying that sort of reaction 'happens in a lot of places' and cites the political world. 'I get that because those things are a contest,' he told Stellar. 'I remember thinking about when Peter Dutton lost his seat, and how that would be so hard, because not only does he lose his job, but he loses it in a really public way and in a way that is partisan, so that there'll be a whole lot of people that are delighted about it or whatever.'