In 2024, the media landscape was shaped by a whirlwind of transformative moments, dramatic controversies, and cultural reckonings that left an indelible mark on the industry. From shocking announcements and retirements to legal battles, corporate shake-ups, and unprecedented government interventions, this year was a defining one for Australian media and beyond.
Amid redundancies, strikes, cultural changes and declining revenues, the media industry was forced to confront its changing dynamics in the digital age.
So let’s dive into the big moments that shaped the year that was in the media world!
Ray Hadley
After dominating the airwaves for over two decades, veteran radio presenter Ray Hadley shocked the country when he announced he’s stepping down from his ratings-crushing 2GB morning show.
Sharing the news live on air, Hadley revealed that his time on the mic has been more successful than he could have ever dreamed. The man who has been a constant in Australian households is now looking forward to spending more quality time with his four children, seven grandchildren, and, of course, his amazing wife Sophie, who “deserves a break too.”
Hadley’s journey in radio began in 1981, and he’s built a career that’s hard to top. From calling Rugby League games to becoming the most decorated host in Australian Commercial Radio history, Ray’s voice has been a staple for millions. He’s racked up 160 consecutive ratings wins and commentated at three Rugby World Cups and seven Olympics, cementing his place as an icon in Australian sports broadcasting.
Beyond sports, he made waves in country music with his long-running countdown show and even received a Medal of the Order of Australia for his charitable efforts.
Only a week after announcing his retirement, Hadley ended his 20-year ratings streak, coming in second to WSFM.
In an address following the ratings release, he made it very clear that the ratings were in no way in his mind when he announced his retirement.
“Looks like my timing was good, I’d hate to have come here today, in light of being beaten for the first time in 20 years and say ‘oh by the way, I’m bailing on December 13’. So there is some common sense, even though it wasn’t done for those reasons,” Hadley said.
Hadley’s final day on air will be tomorrow.
Alan Jones
It was late last year that former radio presenter and Wallabies coach Alan Jones was accused of indecently assaulting young men – using his position of power to grope or inappropriately touch them without consent.
After almost a year, the case went silent, and it was beginning to look like nothing would come of the allegations, but on November 18, Jones was arrested at his luxury Circular Quay apartment.
The arrest is the accumulation of a nine-month-long investigation into the former 2GB presenter. Strike Force Bonnefin, run by the State Crime Command’s child abuse and sex crimes squad, was established following a lengthy investigation by the Herald and The Age in December 2023, which alleged that the 83-year-old had used his position of power, first as a teacher and later as the country’s top-rating radio broadcaster, to allegedly prey on a number of young men.
Jones was arrested by a team of specialist detectives and taken to Day Street police station where he was charged with 24 offences against eight separate victims. The following day he was hit with two more counts of an act of indecency relating to an alleged ninth victim. The alleged ninth victim was discovered during the process of the investigation.
The NSW Police Assistant Commissioner, Michael Fitzgerald, told the media that the youngest of media the youngest of Jones’ alleged victims was 17 at the time the offence allegedly occurred.
Jones, who vehemently denies all accusations made against him, was granted conditional bail.
This still remains a very much developing case that B&T will be following closely as it continues to evolve.
Bruce Lehrmann
The Bruce Lehrmann vs Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson case has been going on so long that it is not news to anyone but in 2024, the defamation trial came to a head with a decision finally being handed down.
For some background, in case you some how managed to miss this one, in March 2019, Brittany Higgins and Bruce Lehrmann, working for then-Defence Minister Linda Reynolds, were involved in an after-hours security breach at Parliament House, leading to Lehrmann’s eventual termination.
Days later, Higgins accused Lehrmann of rape, but initially dropped the complaint. In 2021, Higgins revisited her allegations, which led to Lehrmann being charged with sexual assault. The subsequent criminal trial in 2022 ended in a mistrial, and the case was dropped due to concerns about Higgins’ health. Lehrmann later sued Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson for defamation, with a trial beginning in 2023.
In his 300-page verdict, Justice Michael Lee described the trial as an “omnishambles,” highlighting that both Bruce Lehrmann and Brittany Higgins were, at times, unreliable witnesses. He found that Lehrmann had lied about not providing material to Channel Seven, undermining his credibility, while Higgins made some unsubstantiated claims that damaged her overall credibility, though he considered her recollections of the alleged assault to be credible.
Ultimately, he sided with Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson, declaring that, on the balance of probabilites, Lehrmann did rape Higgins, despite his continued denial of the allegations.
Following the verdict, the media industry widely shifted its stance, openly labelling Lehrmann a “liar” and a “rapist,” with the #MeToo movement expressing solidarity with Higgins.
Lehrmann now faces financial and legal challenges, including potential costs for the defamation trial and a separate committal hearing for a new rape case.
Higgins and her partner have relocated to France to avoid media scrutiny, while Wilkinson, though criticised for her role in the case, continues to stand by her actions. Network Ten defended its reporting as a “triumph for truth,” despite criticism of its handling of the interview with Higgins.
Lehremann is currently seeking to appeal the courts ruling, B&T are closely following this matter.
John Singleton
It was a big year for Aussie media mogul John Singleton and it all kicked off in January when he splashed a casual 16 million on a new home in the Central Coast of NSW. The 2.75-hectare house, Panamuna Pavilion, was initially on the market in 2020 for $10 million according to RealEstate.com.au.
The plan was for Singleton to share the lavish pad with his seventh wife Sarah Warry, whom he met less than a year ago after she introduced herself at his Railway Hotel in Gosford. But that took a dark turn in March when it was revealed that the pair were splitting.
Singleton, 82, married Sarah Warry, 44, in July last year.
“Everyone was right and we were wrong”, he said at the time. “It is not the first time I have made a mistake and won’t be the last. I know I am half mad but mostly the other half makes up for it. Sometimes not,” the former adman told the Sunday Telegraph, though he said he has no regrets.
If you didn’t think all of that was enough drama to last a lifetime, Singleton pushed it a little bit further in April, publishing a full-page ad in The Australian to support Ben Roberts-Smith, a Victoria Cross recipient and former SAS soldier, who lost a defamation case against The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and The Canberra Times over war crime allegations.
In the ad, titled “An apology to Ben Roberts-Smith. From a coward,” Singleton expresses gratitude for Roberts-Smith’s bravery, stating, “Ben Roberts-Smith, we thank you. We, the great majority envy your courage, strength, commitment and the torture you must now endure. We are in your debt.”
He also criticised the media for using an “illegal” leak to target Roberts-Smith, a man he describes as “big, tough, impressive” and not one to show a public exterior.
Singleton’s ad, which cost over $100,000, also acknowledged Kerry Stokes, chairman of Seven West Media, for reportedly covering Roberts-Smith’s legal fees.
Advertising industry leaders criticised the ad as an “awful stain on our industry” and called it out for using “racist language”.
Rupert Murdoch
Mid-year Rupert Murdoch became embroiled in a legal dispute with three of his children—James, Elisabeth, and Prudence—over the future control of his media empire.
The 93-year-old mogul pushed to modify the terms of the family trust to ensure that his eldest son, Lachlan Murdoch, retains sole control over the family’s vast media holdings, including Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, and The Australian after his death.
The family’s four eldest children were originally designated to inherit equal control of the empire, but Rupert argued that Lachlan’s more conservative political stance is crucial for maintaining the value of the right-wing media properties.
Just a few days ago, a Nevada commissioner ruled against Rupert’s bid, stating that the changes to the irrevocable trust were made in “bad faith” and accusing him of orchestrating a “carefully crafted charade” to cement Lachlan’s control.
The ruling has raised concerns about the empire’s future direction, as Lachlan’s siblings, particularly James, have expressed more moderate views. James, in particular, has spoken out against climate change denialism and criticised U.S. media after the January 6 insurrection.
The court’s decision could pave the way for a shift in leadership within the Murdoch empire, potentially steering it in a more moderate direction with James, Elisabeth, and Prudence at the helm. However, Rupert’s legal team has signalled an intent to appeal the ruling.
Kyle and Jackie O
It’s been a turbulant year for radio’s most untouchable duo with Kyle & Jackie O’s launch into the Melbourne market proving anything but successful. In fact, the move has done very little to distrupt the market with 3AW still dominating the breakfast time slot.
It was a rough year for Jackie as well on a personal level, finally coming clean to a secret she had been holding close to her chest for a number of years. The 49-year-old even confessed live on air that she had been battling an addiction to alcohol, sleeping pills and painkillers. It was her best friend and manager, Gemma O’Neill that finally insisted she go to rehab and Jackie confessed “I wasn’t pissed off until I got there and then I thought ‘I’m really pissed off now’”.
Jackie said that she simply didn’t believe that she had a problem or needed to be in rehab because her problem wasn’t with “hard drugs”. But after a few days she quickly realised that addiction is the “same disease” for anyone who struggles with it, no matter the substance.
“I realised it wasn’t an over-reaction because I really did need to address all the underlying issues because the problem never would have been solved,” she told News.com.au.
“Just using willpower never would have been enough”.
Now clean for two years, she confessed that she now realises just how badly she was suffering. “It was a vicious cycle. As soon as you come out of it and feel good, you’re back and doing it all over again,” she said.
“Every day it was so hard to get out bed. I felt really tired and hungover,” she said.
Anthony Albanese
While Albanese is not exactly what you’d call a media personality, he has certainly done a lot this year to disrupt the media landscape. The most significant story however was a proposed bill to ban children under 16 from accessing social media platforms.
The Albanese government’s proposed changes include sweeping reforms to shield children under 16 from the perceived harms of social media, citing growing concerns about the mental health effects on young Australians. Under the new laws, platforms such as X, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, and Reddit would be required to block under-16s from creating accounts, while educational platforms like YouTube would be exempt.
An inquiry into the government’s proposed laws 24 hours and was inundated with around 15,000 submissions. Major social media and tech platforms raised major concerns raised over human rights, privacy risks, a rushed inquiry and vague definitions.
In a historic moment last month, the Australian government passed the proposed legislation meaning that anyone under the age of 16 will be blocked from using platforms including TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook.
Culture Review
In October a scathing independent review by consultancy Intersection into Nine Entertainment identified systemic cultural issues. The review highlighted widespread problems of abuse of power, bullying, discrimination, harassment, and sexual harassment within the TV News & Current Affairs division.
Key findings revealed that 62 per cent of employees reported abuses of power, while 57 per cent experienced bullying, discrimination, or harassment, contributing to a toxic workplace culture marked by gender inequality, power imbalances, and a lack of accountability. High performers were overburdened, while poor performers faced no consequences. Although sexual harassment rates were below industry averages, 30 per cent of employees reported such incidents, often linked to alcohol-fueled social events.
In response, Nine’s Board has endorsed an Action Plan based on the review’s 22 recommendations, introducing initiatives across four priority areas: People and Culture, Leadership, Policy and Governance, and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI). Key measures include trauma-informed training, a new wellbeing provider, a Human Resources Information System (HRIS), leadership accountability tied to cultural outcomes, an external complaints hotline, and a comprehensive Code of Conduct review. The company is also formalizing a five-year DEI strategy and Reconciliation Action Plan.
With over 60 per cent of recommendations already underway, Nine’s leadership, led by acting CEO Matt Stanton, is committed to transparency and accountability through regular progress updates. The company aims to not only transform its internal culture but also influence broader industry standards.
Redundancies
The media industry faced widespread struggles as companies grappled with economic pressures, technological shifts, and internal challenges. Major players like Nine, Seven, and News Corp have all announced significant redundancies over the course of the year.
These cuts, driven by declining ad revenues, the collapse of major content deals like Meta’s, and increased operational costs, have forced companies to reassess their structures and make difficult decisions.
Cultural and organisational challenges further complicate the situation. Meanwhile, staff strikes and union actions, such as those by the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance, have added to the operational strain, with employees demanding fair wages and improved conditions amidst ongoing cutbacks. These issues underscore the tension between cost-saving measures and maintaining a healthy, productive workplace.
Beyond internal struggles, media companies are also contending with a fragmented audience landscape and rapid shifts to digital platforms. While investments in streaming and digital content continue, revenues from traditional advertising and linear television are declining. Companies like Seven and Paramount Global have seen sharp profit declines, leading to aggressive cost-cutting strategies, including senior leadership changes. The challenges highlight the media industry’s urgent need to balance financial sustainability, cultural transformation, and the demands of a digital-first future.
