Morrow, a founding member of The Chaser and brains behind The Checkout consumer affairs show, has been locked in a long contract dispute and defamation action via his production companies The Checkout Pty Ltd and Giant Dwarf against producer Nick Murray and the Cordell Jigsaw production house.
Last week The Checkout and Giant Dwarf filed a contempt of court action against the ABC and want the court to declare that the ABC failed to comply with two subpoenas because it was “redacting documents in an impermissible manner”.
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Lots of weird stuff going on with Newsradio last night around the 2:00 am news. Lots of horrible sounds, then Phillip Clark’s Nightlife on Delay. They seemed to have got it sorted after about 2:30
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Daniel Browning is hosting The Art Show on RN this week, as part of NAIDOC Week.
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ABC strikes rich vein of gold at New York radio awards
ABC programs Stuff the British Stole and Earshot have won gold at the New York Festivals Radio Awards, which celebrate outstanding audio content from around the world.
The ABC Radio National (RN) series Stuff the British Stole , written and presented by Marc Fennell, claimed the gold medal for best history documentary at the annual awards, for its tales of treasures plundered by the British Empire.
The international plaudit came ahead of the premiere of Season 2 of the globe-trotting podcast on 20 October, which the ABC produced in partnership with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (Click here to listen to a trailer of Season 2).
RN program Earshot won two documentary awards – a gold medal in the health/medical category and bronze in the social issues category – for the intimate and heartfelt “Kangaroo cuddles – life inside a premmie baby unit”. The program, broadcast in January 2021, shared the anxiety and excitement felt by a mother whose baby spent three months in a neo-natal intensive care unit, along with other mothers she shared the experience with.
The ABC’s Background Briefing won a silver medal for Best Investigative Report for the story “How fracking could threaten Australia’s Paris target”, which investigated the true extent of Australia’s fracking emissions.
Cath Dwyer, Manager of RN, said the New York Festivals’ awards showed how compelling Australian content attracts listeners the world over. “The heady mix of humanity, history and current affairs in Stuff the British Stole, Earshot and Background Briefing highlights the ABC’s commitment to rich audio stories that touch the heart and mind,” she said.
“At a time when so many of us have been stuck at home, such evocative and empathetic storytelling enables us to travel the world and through time. Season 2 of Stuff the British Stole will take listeners even deeper into the stories of important objects that ended up in museums and cultural institutions across the UK.”
Marc Fennell said: “Two years ago I packed my microphone in a bag on a whim heading to London. I never expected that the result, Stuff the British Stole, would grow into what it has. From a Walkley Award nomination to being lauded by podcasting royalty Roman Mars and now winning a gold medal at the New York Festivals.
“Australia’s complex, emotional colonial history is shared with so many nations around the world. It seems only fitting that CBC Podcasts is partnering with us on Season 2.”
Winners of the 2021 New York Festivals Radio Awards were chosen from more than 30 countries by a panel of creative media professionals and content creators.
Fennell also won two gold medals for his podcast series Nut Jobs: Cracking California’s Strangest $10 million Dollar Heist – for Best Serialized Podcast and Best Narrative/Documentary Podcast.
Click here for the full list of winners.
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Fran Kelly’s stepping down from RN breakfast. Be interesting to see who may be in the mid to replace her.
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Fran Kelly departs ABC RN Breakfast after 17 years
Respected ABC Radio presenter Fran Kelly announced on-air today that she will leave RN Breakfast in December, after an unparalleled 17 years informing and engaging listeners around the country.
Since 2005, Fran has been the voice that Australians wake up to on Radio National. Under her stead, RN Breakfast has helped set the news agenda with authoritative analysis of major events and issues at home and abroad.
A former ABC TV 7.30 political editor and European correspondent for the ABC, Fran will continue to play a key role at the national broadcaster in 2022 and beyond, including in its federal election coverage and as co-host of popular political podcast The Party Room , along with other special projects to be announced next year.
Fran said choosing to leave her role as RN Breakfast presenter on 2 December was the hardest decision she has ever made. “I’ve been in this role for 17 years and I have loved every second of it. Each morning is an adrenalin-fuelled, non-stop live ride interviewing some of the greatest and most interesting minds in Australia and the world. I thrive on the thrill of both setting the day’s news agenda and engaging in the public discussions we have as a society.
“Presenting RN Breakfast is the best journalism job in the country and it is very hard to walk away from it. But Breakfast is a hard taskmaster – 17 years of early mornings is tough on the body and soul and I am choosing to leave now because I never want to give this job any less than 100 per cent.”
ABC Managing Director David Anderson thanked Fran for her dedication to ABC listeners and public broadcasting over close to two decades. “Fran is no doubt one of Australia’s most respected political journalists but she’s so much more than that,” he said.
“I admire her ability to engage Australians in important conversations across a wide brief, from breaking news and national crises through to sport, music and the arts. She’s fearless when it comes to the tough political issues but also incredibly empathetic when talking to people about their lives. Fran is duly respected and admired by so many and has played a pivotal role in supporting future generations of journalists and presenters, within and beyond the ABC.
“Fran’s trusted and authoritative voice represents what so many people love about the ABC and I am looking forward to seeing and hearing more of Fran on the ABC for years to come.”
Fran also paid special tribute to the RN Breakfast team. “One of the greatest joys of this job is my colleagues,” she said. “The RN Breakfast team is small, enthusiastic and deeply committed to bringing the audience the best possible coverage of the stories that matter each and every day. I have never worked with a group of such tireless, dedicated and creative journalists, who refuse to default to close enough being good enough. We are truly a team and I couldn’t do it without them.
“I love the ABC. It’s been my home for three decades and while I’m very sad to be leaving my beloved RN Breakfast and my listeners, I won’t be leaving the ABC. I will still be here on projects throughout the election and beyond and look forward to being able to meet my listeners in other roles over the next few years.”
RN Breakfast Executive Producer Marina Freri said: “Fran has been waking up at 3.30am for the past 17 years and has never once walked into the studio grumpy. She comes in humming a song and makes herself and the team a cup of coffee before tackling a dozen interviews. She fearlessly holds politicians and the powerful to account. But they don’t go ‘on RN Breakfast ’. They ‘talk to Fran’. She’s eponymous.”
The ABC will announce the new presenter of RN Breakfast later this year.
Fran – in her own words
“RN listeners are there for information and they are there to hear the questions they know the country needs answered. They are loyal and you can never give them too much information but they are also happy to follow the flow of the program – when you give them a new musician they appreciate it, when you tell them about a new play they love it, when you introduce them to a new scientist they applaud them. They are right there with you.
“Over the years, I have interviewed nine Australian Prime Ministers, a US president, a British Prime Minister and a plethora of world leaders. But some of my favourite interviews have not been political but are the human stories – for instance, speaking to Afghan women stuck inside their country, terrified as the Taliban move in. It’s the real people who stick with you and you know that if you’re close to tears then the audience will be too. Radio is such a powerful and personal medium.
“I am incredibly proud of the role the show has played in engaging Australians with the broader issues and in holding people to account. I am leaving RN Breakfast on a high, particularly given the important reporting job the program has done during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“My alarm goes off at 3.30am, so I would be lying if I did not say that I am looking forward to some sleep-ins. I am going to take a couple of months off and then reappear, energised and ready for some new projects.”
Fran the frontwoman – from new wave to the radio waves
Fran was a relatively late starter to journalism, having first studied arts at Adelaide University, where she majored in literature and the classics and also fronted several music groups – most notably, the all-female new wave band Toxic Shock.
Her other early roles included Activities Director at Flinders University, Entertainment Director at La Trobe University and booking gigs for little-known bands such as Simple Minds, Hunters & Collectors, Cold Chisel, Icehouse and INXS. Fran was also coordinator of the Women’s Arts Festival for the state of Victoria’s 150th anniversary celebrations, in 1984.
Her first foray into radio was in the mid-1980s on Melbourne community radio station Triple R’s Backchat program. In 1988, she got her break and moved to Sydney to start at the ABC as a journalist on triple j’s current affairs program The Drum.
Within a few years she was in Canberra, with a front-row seat to major political events such as the Hawke-Keating leadership struggle. Over the next decade or so, she worked in coveted roles including Chief Political Correspondent for ABC Radio’s AM and PM programs, Political Editor for RN Breakfast and Political Editor for ABC TV’s 7.30 Report .
Fran spent two years in London as the ABC’s Europe Correspondent, before returning to Australia to take up the role of RN Breakfast presenter in 2005. She is believed to be the longest-serving national breakfast radio host currently on air – certainly, the only one who once fronted an all-female new wave band.
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Any thoughts on who will replace Fran?
Leigh Sales might be ideal, but I’m guessing that would be a demotion for her. The position requires a high degree of political literacy. After all, RN’s listeners run the country.
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Would Patricia Karvelas be the natural frontrunner considering she currently does RN Drive?
If he was still working at the ABC, would have said Hamish McDonald would have gotten the gig considering how much he has filled in for Kelly over the years.
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Could see PK moving to breakfast. And David Speers doing RN Drive and the ABC News Channel 4pm. Maybe give PK a half hour political segment every morning at 9:30 on the news channel too.
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If that happened David Speer’s wouldn’t probably do Insiders anymore
Bell Shakespeare Company co-founder John Bell will deliver this year’s Boyer Lecture, titled Shakespeare: Soul of the Age, across four weekends in November. Part 1 will be shown on ABC TV tomorrow (November 6) at 12.30pm and broadcast on Radio National at 10am on Sunday (November 7).
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Patricia Karvelas appointed as host of RN Breakfast on ABC Radio
Multi-talented broadcaster Patricia Karvelas has been appointed as presenter of the agenda-setting RN Breakfast on ABC Radio.
Karvelas, who is well-known to Radio National listeners as the host of RN Drive, will move into the Breakfast slot in 2022, bringing her passion and expertise to early-morning audiences across the country.
Her appointment was announced on RN Breakfast this morning by presenter Fran Kelly, who finishes with the program this Thursday (2 December) after 17 years in the role.
Karvelas said: “It is an honour and privilege to step into what I have long considered the best job on radio, setting the national agenda every weekday morning and providing the conversations and interviews that will keep ABC audiences well informed of the issues that affect them. This is particularly important given we are entering an election year.
“I have huge shoes to fill coming after the remarkable Fran Kelly and I am humbled to be the nation’s morning broadcaster at this important time. Fran made the show an important part of the day for news, information and the conversations that help us understand each other. I want to continue that standard.
“I am passionate about getting to the truth and asking questions that I know listeners want asked, regardless of where they live in Australia. Whether it is holding those in power to account or talking about arts and culture or sport, I cannot wait to get behind the RN Breakfast mic and deliver for ABC listeners.”
Michael Carrington, ABC Director of Entertainment & Specialist, said: “I am delighted that PK will bring her insights and energy to RN Breakfast from next year. RN Breakfast is the program that Australians wake up to and PK has something to offer every listener, from political analysis to important and intriguing social and cultural issues from around the world. Her trusted voice will ensure that RN Breakfast continues to set the news agenda for years to come.”
Fran Kelly, who will continue to play a key role at the ABC in 2022, said: “Patricia is a natural fit for RN Breakfast. Her boundless energy and strong journalistic instincts, coupled with her personal warmth and extraordinary work ethic means she has what it takes to keep the program doing what it does best – driving the daily news agenda and bringing the audience along on a wild ride of politics, popular culture, social issues, science, sport and music. There’s no other program like it!
“Patricia and I have worked together on The Party Room podcast for the past five years and I can vouch firsthand for her passion for politics. I will exit on Thursday knowing my beloved RN Breakfast is in great hands.”
Karvelas is a highly respected journalist and presenter, radio and television host, podcaster and political analyst, who has worked across every medium in the Australian media landscape.
Along with RN Drive, which Karvelas has presented since 2015, for the past three years she has hosted Afternoon Briefing , which has grown to be one of the most popular programs on the ABC News Channel.
Karvelas and Kelly together host The Party Room political podcast, which examines the latest news and events from Parliament House in Canberra.
Karvelas has also filled in as host of The Drum and Insiders on ABC TV and frequently offers analysis and insights across a range of ABC radio and television programs . She has also worked as a reporter at triple j and producer in ABC Local Radio.
Outside the ABC, Karvelas has hosted and produced the program Karvelas on Sky News and worked in the Canberra Press Gallery as political correspondent for The Australian newspaper. She has also worked for The Sydney Morning Herald and SBS .
Karvelas lives in Melbourne with her partner and two young daughters.
She will continue to have a regular presence on the ABC News Channel. The new hosts of RN Drive and Afternoon Briefing will be announced in coming weeks.
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Last day for Fran Kelly
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According to the Telum Media guide, Cathy Van Extel and Hamish Macdonald will be sharing the RN Breakfast hosting duties over Summer until January 21st.
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Nick Tabakoff reports in The Australian that Sydney based 7.30 investigative reporter Andy Park is the winning candidate to take over Patricia Karvelas’ old drive shift. He beat out other candidates including The World Today host Sally Sara.
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