Nova taps Seven executive for digital commercial director
Nova has appointed Evadne Janeke as its new digital commercial director.
Janeke was previously Seven West Media’s head of commercial product and digital operations, and has worked in senior positions at News Corp, Pacific Magazines, and agency OMD Australia.
In her new role, Janeke will lead digital sales, commercial product, data, and digital solutions across the network’s streaming, podcast and retail platforms.
Evadne will report to (Nova’s chief commercial officer, Nicole) Bence, and replaces Michelle Golding, who was recently appointed Nova’s director of digital strategy, capabilities, and data.
I’m surprised this one flew under the radar on here today?
Michael Stephenson to become CEO of ARN
Michael Stephenson will become the next CEO of radio network ARN, replacing Ciaran Davis in January 2026.
Stephenson, currently chief operating officer at ARN, moved to the radio network from Nine in late December, 2024.
He comes from a sales background, having held the top sales job at Nine and Ninemsn. He has also worked in sales at Seven and 10.
Upon Stephenson’s initial appointment in December, Davis praised his “leadership style and extensive experience”, saying it makes him “the ideal candidate to join our executive team”. Davis said Stephenson will “play a key role in advancing our strategic priorities and generating exceptional value for our clients and our shareholders.”
Davis will step down on January 15, and will also leave his role on the board of ARN Media as managing director.
Can’t say I’m disappointed. Ciaran has overseen the disastrous contract and attempted rollout of K&J and the botched takeover of SCA. They need someone who can rethink the whole strategy they’ve pursued the last few years, it’s been diabolical.
Interesting rumour going on according to ChannelNews:
On a sidenote, if this above merger were to proceed, along with the Seven/SCA merger going ahead, then you could see one of the commercial radio stations on the Central Coast of NSW being sold off to meet ACMA’s No. of Voices test, as both of the mergers would see the Gosford RA1 licence area fall below the minimum number of 4 voices. At present, the licence area has 5 voices: SCA, Nova, Seven, Nine & Ten.
With that in mind, I could see either ARN or the Super Radio Network acquiring either Star 104.5 or Hit 101.3 (Sea FM)/107.7 Triple M (2GO).
Why will Nine be interested in buying Nova, even though it is fielding offers for its four talk stations?
Because Seven pinched SCA and ARN is a hot pile of slop
Probably because it’s talk stations don’t make much money compared with Nova and Smooth.
Game Changers Radio podcast mentioned how NewsCorp would be a suitable buyer for Nine Radio assets… so Nine should approach NovaEnt if they still want to remain in the audio industry.
Vinyl Group really are running this publication into the ground. Will frankly be surprised if Mediaweek still exists in 12 months time.
https://mumbrella.com.au/mediaweek-editor-dan-barrett-departs-after-five-months-903811
Exactly, him and Duncan, whose court appearances should’ve triggered contract clause that he’d brought the company into disrepute.
You know what many are like on here, they can give you a content analysis of 2SM talk topics or Nova playlist but miss the significance of the big changes.
I can’t see little Kerry out for long, he’s Wayne Bennett of Seven, always back to save the day.
Game Changers may have been somewhat successful at programming 25 years ago, yet strategic business advisors they sure are not.
Their failure to acknowledge the risk and subsequent financial albatross of the K&J deal for ARN is one of many examples of them better off sticking to their knitting.
Exactly. And they’re about to double down on augmenting their content via AI slop to compensate for the redundancy or otherwise of living brains.
I enjoyed reading Dan’s take on his departure, very much the same commentary of Ange’s sacking from his UK football team.
Buying Nova wouldn’t really give Nine much regional presence, which I’d imagine is something they’d want in order to not only expand their station network but also make the broader company more attractive to a potential acquirer.
SCA may well be a long shot at this point, and ARN might carry too much “baggage” to be an appealing target. But even if this deal were structured as a straight swap, Murdoch would still come out ahead — he’d likely want to exclude FiveAA from the sale, adding Adelaide to his existing network of 2GB, 3AW, 4BC, and 6PR.
Hatherly joins Mediaweek with more than two decades of experience across Australia’s leading broadcasters, including Foxtel, the ABC, and the Seven Network, and has also created original programming for Network 10.
Most recently, he produced and directed high-profile national and international investigations and feature stories for Seven Network’s acclaimed 7NEWS Spotlight.
Hatherly succeeds Frances Sheen, Head of Content, who has overseen significant developments at Mediaweek during her tenure, including re-establishing the brand’s editorial direction and building a strong foundation for future growth.
Supporting Hatherly is Natasha Lee, who now leads Mediaweek’s newsroom and daily editorial operations as Media Editor.
Following Dan Barrett’s departure, she oversees coverage, manages contributors, and ensures reporting remains timely, relevant, and authoritative.
She is joined by newly appointed Junior Writer, Vihaan Mathur, alongside experienced contributors Makayla Muskat (ex-Ad News) and Lauren McNamara (ex-Mumbrella).
Laughable. Goodbye Mediaweek.
Richard Hunwick has been promoted to chief sales officer from his role as director of sales, total audio.
Ben Campbell has been promoted to the role of chief digital and technology officer.