Media Roundup: Nine's new hire, Karvelas' gender bias claim, Kmart's big revamp, Reality tops TV spend and new 007 rumours fly

Companies

Nine appoints Brian Gallagher as Commercial Director – Audio

Nine has announced the appointment of Brian Gallagher as Commercial Director – Audio to drive the next phase of growth for Nine Radio’s commercial offering.

Gallagher, who has worked as Chief Sales Officer at Southern Cross Austereo, Chief Executive Officer at Ignite Media Brands, is currently the Chairperson of Boomtown.

His new appointment is part of a refreshed sales structure that will come into effect from July 1, 2025.

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Aldi walks back Telstra coverage claims amid reseller scrutiny

Aldi has quietly dropped Telstra’s bold mobile coverage claims from its marketing, after revelations that the telco's long-touted 98.8% population reach was based on pricey external antennas, not everyday mobile use.

According to Jared Lynch who writes in The Australian, the supermarket’s mobile offering piggybacks on Telstra’s network and had echoed the same figures, until fresh scrutiny raised eyebrows.

The move came after Telstra admitted to its wholesale customers, including Aldi and Belong, that its network stats were measured using high-end equipment most Aussies don’t own.

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Journalism

Karvelas challenges gender balance at Nationals Presser

ABC’s Patricia Karvelas stirred things up at a Nationals press conference, calling out the lack of female voices during the Q&A.

Cutting in mid-question, Karvelas flagged that "a lot of blokes" had been doing the talking and asked for her turn at the mic.

As Oscar Godsell writes on Sky News Australia, Karvelas, who fronts Afternoon Briefing and Q+A, raised eyebrows with the move, especially after she redirected her question to Nationals leader David Littleproud, bypassing the only female politician present, Senator Bridget McKenzie.

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'The Post' fires up printing independence in WA

Perth’s beloved Post newspaper has officially cut ties with Seven West Media’s printing operations, unveiling its own high-speed press and reclaiming full control of its weekly production.

As Paul Garvey writes in The Australian, the move comes two years after WA’s last independent printer shut down, briefly leaving The Post at the mercy of its commercial rival.

Editor Bret Christian said plans for the press were hatched the very day the old printer closed.

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Retail

Kmart revamps store layout to lure Gen Z and Alpha

Kmart is shaking up its store layout, trialling a fresh format that puts fashion and beauty front and centre in a bid to charm Gen Z and Gen Alpha into lifelong loyalty.

As Jessica Yun reports in The Sydney Morning Herald, it’s the first major move under new managing director Aleks Spaseska, who wants to double the business within a decade.

The updated layout focuses on styling women’s apparel by full outfits, not just separating tops from bottoms, aiming to inspire more add-to-cart moments.

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The Reject Shop edges closer to Dollarama takeover

The Reject Shop is one step closer to being snapped up by Canadian discount heavyweight Dollarama, with the Federal Court greenlighting a shareholder vote on the proposed $259 million deal.

As Sarah Perillo reports in The Daily Telegraph, a final decision will be made at a special meeting next month.

If the deal goes through, the Montreal-based chain wants to nearly double The Reject Shop’s store count to 700 over the next ten years.

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Business

Optus profit rebounds as Rue focuses on cost control

Optus has staged a sharp profit turnaround, posting an underlying net profit of $136 million for the year to March 31, up from just $19 million the year prior.

According to Jenny Wiggins in The Australian Financial Review, the dramatic lift comes off the back of a painful $582 million enterprise write-down in 2023 that dragged down earnings.

New chief executive Stephen Rue, who joined in November after leading NBN Co, says the focus now is on disciplined cost management to drive margins higher.

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Radio

Digital growth keeps radio revenues tuning up

Radio is still hitting the right notes, with Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) reporting $262.1 million in total revenue for Q1 2025.

As Sarah Patterson writes in Radio Today, that’s a 1.2 percent lift year-on-year, showing the medium remains resilient, even as listening habits evolve.

The standout performer? Digital audio, which jumped 32.7 percent to $22.9 million.

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Entertainment

Aaron Taylor-Johnson fuels James Bond casting rumours with Omega deal

The James Bond chatter just got louder, with Aaron Taylor-Johnson dropping a subtle hint he might be the next 007.

As Beth Allcock writes on news.com.au, while names like Stuart Martin have surfaced, it’s the Marvel actor’s fresh partnership with Omega that’s raising eyebrows.

Omega has been the official watch brand of Bond since GoldenEye in 1995, so Taylor-Johnson signing on as a global ambassador is no small detail.

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