An activist-led campaign calling for advertisers to withdraw support for Kyle Sandilands has escalated further, with the group also urging Seven Network to end his contract on Australian Idol, amid ongoing pressure over his role on the program and renewed scrutiny following a series of disputes involving the broadcaster and former radio partner Jackie O Henderson.
The group behind the campaign, Mad F***ing Witches (MFW), has for years encouraged supporters to contact advertisers and sponsors associated with Sandilands’ media platforms, including those linked to the Seven Network.
Sandilands returned as a main judge for the 2026 season of Australian Idol on Channel 7, continuing his role alongside Marcia Hines and Amy Shark.
Speaking to B&T, MFW founder Jennie Hill said the group believes Sandilands should be removed from mainstream media.
“Based on his continual behaviour while he was on breakfast radio and his failure to apologise or make amends for that behaviour, Kyle Sandilands isn’t a fit person to be part of the Australian mainstream media in any capacity, so we want Channel 7 to cancel or not renew his contract for 2027. If they don’t, we will probably re-start this campaign when Idol broadcasts again next year,” she said.
It comes after Sandilands and Henderson have appeared in several headlines recently after their 25-year radio partnership imploded following an on-air argument in February, leading to both being sacked by ARN, the termination of their $200 million contract, and resulting in separate, massive legal battles against the network.
Hill told B&T the campaign reflects frustration with what the group sees as long-term regulatory and industry inaction.
“Australia’s formal broadcasting complaint and regulatory processes have been wholly inadequate in reining in Kyle’s behaviour for more than 20 years, so MFW has had no choice but to do their jobs for them,” she said.
“The media should also have played a far bigger part in censuring their own rogue elements, so MFW have also been forced to do their jobs for them. In both instances, the necessity for MFW’s work clearly demonstrates the negligence of those other agencies, which should both have rendered the need for our campaigns obsolete long ago.”
The renewed activist push has coincided with increased focus on advertisers associated with Australian Idol.
The group has urged supporters to escalate complaints to brands and use curated advertiser lists to pressure companies into withdrawing commercial support for the program, arguing that continued sponsorship effectively endorses Sandilands’ on-screen role.
In a Facebook post on Friday, MFW also referenced Sandilands’ ongoing legal dispute with ARN Media, quoting court filings that state he is “depriving him of the remaining $85m he would have earned,” and referring to “humiliation and loss of reputation because of the suggestion that his conduct justified the termination of his contract.”
Responding to the claims, the group wrote: “OMG. Give us a f***ing break, Kyle, will ya?” and added: “To feel humiliation, a person has to have feelings,” and “To suffer a loss of reputation, a person has to have anything of a f***ing reputation to lose.”
The post also referenced reporting involving Henderson, including claims that listeners previously complained she appeared to be in an “abusive relationship” with Sandilands during their long-running partnership, while noting broader debate around the interpretation of that dynamic.
MFW further argued that Sandilands, Henderson and ARN Media had “spent a lot of years glorying in and earning ‘squillions’ off Kyle’s despicable punch-down bullshit.”
They also wrote individuals can be “caught up in abusive relationships” and may only later recognise harm, suggesting ongoing disagreement over whether Henderson was a “victim” or “co-conspirator” in the on-air dynamic.
Hill defended the group’s tone and tactics, arguing criticism of its language is used to deflect from its message.
“Our claims are credible and fair (as anyone who reads a fraction of Kyle’s on-air radio content would confirm). In addition, criticising our language rather than our message uses the far-too-common trope of dismissing activists if the way those activists (particularly women and people in minority groups) present themselves isn’t perfectly demure and likeable,” she said.
“We deliberately use provocative framing at times to show that the people in power who attack our communication style rather than our important (but never degrading or oppressive) messages are hypocritical, since attacking us for those characteristics while dismissing Kyle Sandilands’ far greater transgressions perfectly demonstrates the double standards at play.”
Seven Network has not signalled any change to Sandilands’ role on Australian Idol and declined to comment when approached by B&T on Monday.
