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Roundup: Biden campaign to resume, Andrew O’Keefe driving offence, Google's $23b deal

Jack Black cancels tour, scammers target Brisbane designer, Meta deal 'catastrophic', AI and business, Shaun Micallef and ABC, Chatfield on TV vs. social pay, Bella Thomson passes.

By Mediaweek AdminPublished Jul 17, 2024
6 min read
President Joe Biden and Kamala Harris

Business of Media

Biden campaign to resume advertising this week after Trump shooting

US President Joe Biden's 2024 presidential campaign will this week resume political advertising that it had suspended following the attempted assassination of Republican Donald Trump, two people familiar with the matter said, reports Reuters' Nandita Bose.

The Democratic president suspended ads and more bombastic political messaging in the aftermath of Saturday's shooting at a Trump political rally in Pennsylvania. Secret Service agents killed the shooter and his motive remains unclear. 

Biden, still trying to repair the damage from a halting debate performance last month, faces pressure from Democratic allies to maintain his verbal attacks on Trump to improve lacklustre polling in the most competitive election states.

 

[Read More] 

Jack Black cancels Tenacious D tour and ‘all future creative plans’ after Kyle Gass’ remark on Trump assassination attempt: ‘I was blindsided by what was Said’

Jack Black announced on social media that he’s canceling Tenacious D‘s current tour amid blowback against band partner Kyle Gass, who made a controversial comment at the band’s concert in Australia on July 14 related to the assassination attempt on Donald Trump. Black presented a cake to Gass on stage to celebrate the latter’s 64th birthday. When Black then asked Gass to make a wish, Gass responded: “don’t miss Trump next time,” reports The Brag's Zack Sharf.

“I was blindsided by what was said at the show on Sunday,” Black wrote in a follow-up statement. “I would never condone hate speech or encourage political violence in any form.”

“After much reflection, I no longer feel it is appropriate to continue the Tenacious D tour, and all future creative plans are on hold,” Black added. “I am grateful to the fans for their support and understanding.”

[Read More] 

Google deal for 'hot market' cyber firm Wiz would bolster cloud security

If Alphabet's Google is successful in its effort to buy cloud security company Wiz, it would bolster its cloud security offerings for large organisations, a hotspot for hackers, and help it take on cloud rivals Amazon.com and Microsoft, experts said, reports Reuters' Zeba Siddiqui. 

Alphabet is in advanced talks to acquire Wiz, a person familiar with the matter said on Sunday, in an up to $23 billion deal that would be Google's most expensive acquisition and provide it with cybersecurity products that defend against ransomware gangs wreaking havoc on large enterprises. 

"There is a hot market for cloud security," said Jerome Seguera, a senior intelligence analyst at the cybersecurity firm MalwareBytes, adding that Wiz gives customers "great visibility into their assets in a straightforward way."

[Read More] 

‘Shameless scammers’ rip off Brisbane designer’s pieces

A Brisbane fashion designer – whose clients include singer Robbie Williams, comedian Julia Morris and a string of A-listers and TV stars – is demanding META help him shut down “shameless scammers” advertising his garments online, reports News Corp's Kylie Lang.

Kristian Williams is fuming after professional images of eight of his artistic designs – including kaftans priced at $649 each – were posted by three accounts claiming to sell the garments for as little as $86 a pop.

“I was horrified when a customer brought this to my attention,” Williams said.

“These people advertising counterfeits have no idea how much hard work goes into what I do, I have put my heart and soul into these designs,” he said.

[Read More] 

Australian publishers say ‘catastrophic’ if Meta follows through on news ban

Several media publishers in Australia have revealed how “potentially catastrophic” it would be for their businesses if Meta removes all news from Facebook and Instagram in the country, reports The Press Gazette's Charlotte Tobitt.

Broadsheet Media, which publishes the culture and community news website Broadsheet and has 65 full-time employees, said it estimated it would lose up to 52% of its revenue if Meta no longer distributed news.

This would “make it nearly impossible for the business to survive,” it told the Australian Parliament’s Joint Select Committee on Social Media and Australian Society.

See also: 25% of Aussies use social media as main news source, despite Meta claims

[Read More] 

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It’s time for AI to start making money for businesses. Can it?

Corporate technology leaders across industries have been spending big on generative artificial intelligence over the past year. Now, they’re looking for returns to go beyond efficiency gains to actual dollars and cents, even as many admit it isn’t clear if and when they’ll start seeing them, reports News Corp's Isabelle Bousquette.

A survey by professional-services firm KPMG shows that revenue generation has overtaken productivity as the primary gauge businesses use to measure AI’s return on investment. KPMG surveyed 100 US-based C-suite and business leaders representing organisations with an annual revenue of $1 billion or more.

The shift in focus comes amid a period of AI-generated turbulence within IT organisations worldwide, marked by hiring slowdowns in some areas, shifting C-suite dynamics and investment in technology that many CIOs are finding to be a heavy lift to implement.

See also: ANZ behind in implementing generative AI solutions and pilots

[Read More]

News Brands

Opinion: Familiar as hell? Shaun Micallef’s new chat show not what the ABC needs

It was almost two years ago that the ABC announced Fran Kelly would host a new Friday night chat show, Frankly. In response to this news, I wrote an opinion column in this masthead with the title, “Fran Kelly is fine and familiar, but she’s not the future of the ABC,” reports Nine Publishing's Thomas Mitchell.

The piece sparked a conversation about ABC’s risk-averse nature and unwillingness to embrace and trust a younger generation of creatives. It also led to accusations from some senior ABC staff of ageism and sexism.

This brings me to ABC’s latest announcement: the new chat show Eve of Destruction, hosted by Shaun Micallef and set to premiere on August 14. Micallef, who left the ABC in 2022 after 10 years and 15 seasons of Mad As Hell, was the very first guest on the first episode of Frankly.

[Read More]

Television

Troubled TV star Andrew O’Keefe charged with driving offence

Embattled former TV star Andrew O’Keefe is back before the courts after he was allegedly busted behind the wheel on a suspended licence, reports The Daily Telegraph's Madeline Crittenden.

O’Keefe, 52, was charged on June 20 after police allegedly caught him driving a vehicle in the exclusive suburb of Bellevue Hill despite his licence being suspended.

“Following a vehicle stop on Victoria Road, Bellevue Hill by officers from Eastern Suburbs Highway Patrol about 1.30pm on June 20, police issued a 52-year-old man a Court Attendance Notice for the offence of drive while suspended,” a police spokesperson said.

[Read More]

Social Media

Abbie Chatfield talks about the pay difference between TV and social media

Qeensland TV personality Abbie Chatfield has unveiled the surprising truth about her earnings, revealing that her highest-paying gig isn’t what most people might think, reports News Corp's Georgia Clelland.

Chatfield, known for her roles as the host of FBoy Island Australia, and former judge of The Masked Singer Australia, candidly shared in a Tiktok video that despite the glamour and excitement of TV hosting, the pay “isn’t as much as you’d think,” with social media being the real cash cow.

“If you’re coming from social media and have a decent following, you have to want to do TV for wanting to do TV,” Chatfield revealed.

[Read More] 

TikTok star Bella Thomson dies, aged 10: ‘She was fearless’

Ten-year-old TikTok star Bella Thomson has died, her mum confirmed with a heartbreaking video, reports Seven West Media's Olivia Scott.

Known online as Bella Brave with more than 7 million followers, the little girl struggled with various health challenges during her short life, including Hirschsprung’s disease and severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID).

On July 10, her mum, Kyla, confirmed Bella was in hospital in Canada struggling with a lung infection, before announcing her daughter had passed away on July 14.

[Read More] 

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MEDIAWEEK MORNING REPORT

The leading media trade publication in Australia.

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