Opinion
- What's in a name?
  
  In this guest post, Moensie Rossier wonders about the power of names for brands and marketers.
  
  Brands have been having a bit of fun with names lately, not to mention a fair bit of success. Interbrand just named a headhunting firm Cloak & Dagger. And ‘Share a Coke’ showed how much power there is in a name.
  
  The Coke campaign effectively short-circuited the usual mechanics of communication. It undoubtedly stroked people’s egos. But, I believe, its success stems from the fact that it directly and automatically affected people’s behaviour, rather than doing so indirectly by shaping attitudes.
- Best ads from Super Bowl 2012
  
  The Super Bowl is all done and a team from North America won. But as well as some sort of sporting event, it’s the world’s biggest advertising showcase. See the best of them right here… and please tell us what you think.
- How to debunk media myths
  
  In this post, UWS’s Ullrich Ecker, John Cook and Stephen Lewandowsky argue that cognitive science can help PRs form strategies in managing media misreporting.
  
  A growing cohort of commentators has bemoaned the descent of contemporary political “debate” into a largely fact-free zone.
- How about simply focusing on what consumers want?
  
  In this guest post, Peter Mountford argues that brands should think more about what is really going on for consumers
  
  Who here is hoping their favourite brand of toilet paper is going to be organizing a flash mob on their way home from work today?
- What the Optus web copyright victory means
  
  In this analysis first published on The Conversation, RMIT’s Marita Shelly examines the implications of Telstra’s defeat over the online rights to the AFL broadcast deal
  
  This week’s Federal Court ruling that Optus customers are able to view sporting matches minutes after they are streamed live without breaching copyright is a landmark decision that alters our understanding of copyright law, and has significant implications for the AFL’s broadcasting rights deal.
- Does Gina Rinehart’s bite of a chunk of Fairfax make her an oligarch?
  
  In an article that first appeared in The Conversation, Mark Rolfe wonders whether the mining magnate’s move could turn Fairfax into something resembling America’s Fox network.
  
  Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart has moved to increase her stake in Fairfax Media, owner of The Age, Sydney Morning Herald and a number of radio stations. Rinehart has already shown her desire to play a role in public life, campaigning against former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s aborted mining tax. She has also demonstrated a willingness to make media investments to ensure her pro-business worldview is promulgated.
  
  What does this latest move by Rinehart mean?
- Gillard's Australia Day crisis
  
  PM Julia Gillard’s media adviser Tony Hodges has been forced to resign over the Australia Day tent embassy debacle.
  
  It came after it emerged he had revealed opposition leader Tony Abbott’s whereabouts, leading to both politicians being rescued by police in ugly scenes.
  
  Mumbrella editor Tim Burrowes and advertising practitioner Jane Caro debate the topic on Weekend Sunrise’s masters of Spin segment:
- The biggest cock-up I made in business
  
  In this guest post, Chris Savage urges agency staff to live the brand.
  
  I still shudder when I think about how incredibly stupid I was when I made the biggest stuff up of my career. And then, 18 years later, I did it again. Do not make this mistake with your clients. Ever.
- Hey Groupon. Thanks for fucking up email
  
  In this guest post, Daniel Monheit warns that group deal overload is devaluing email marketing
  
  Email marketing used to be fabulous. Back in the heady days of 2010, brands would work hard to build up well qualified databases, upon which they’d bestow carefully crafted correspondence filled with information, offers and incentives. The recipients, of course would be delighted: “Oh look! An email! From one of my favourite brands! And it’s 40 cents off at Woolies this week!”.
- The staggering sway of Harold Mitchell
  
  The Power Index today names Aegis Media chairman Harold Mitchell as the most powerful person in Melbourne. Andrew Crook profiles him.
  
  Harold Mitchell takes pride in dispensing with the niceties. When The Power Index visited his South Melbourne private office before Christmas, fresh remains were scattered all over the boardroom table.
- Share a Coke with… the moronic masses
  
  The most-read story on Mumbrella last year, with not far off 100,000 page views, was a fairly humdrum yarn about the launch of Coca-Cola’s name-on-a-bottle campaign.
  
  The headline, “Coca-Cola puts people’s names on bottles in ‘Share a Coke’ campaign”, though hated by any self-respecting sub-editor, was loved by Google. And in rushed what can be politely described as the public.
- Assumptions kill creativity
  
  In this guest post, Gual Barwell disagrees that the sales success of the Old Spice social media campaign was overstated.
  
  Yesterday’s post from Cathie McGinn suggested the Old Spice campaign failed to connect with consumers. Based on the facts and figures, I disagree.
  
  What Old Spice and Wieden + Kennedy has done and done phenomenally well is to create a franchise.
- The SMH's readers (are wrong) editor
  
  We are now about five months into the reign of Australia’s first readers’ editor. And I don’t think it is working.
  
  It struck me at the time of Judy Prisk’s appointment to the Sydney Morning Herald that the fact that her boss was editor-in-chief Peter Fray was not going to be ideal if she was going to be the independent voice of the reader.
- The emperor's new fragrance: Old Spice’s campaign failure
  
  In this guest post, Cathie McGinn slays a sacred cow of 21st century marketing – the highly awarded Old Spice campaign.
  
  One of the biggest myths of recent times (by which I mean a story of great heroism and triumph we’d all like to believe but deep down know to be untrue) is the Old Spice social media campaign. It’s been much lauded and awarded as an example of outstanding content, a creative and collaborative way of connecting with consumers and driving a record increase in sales.
- How reliable are radio ratings?
  
  In this guest posting, Jason ‘Jabba’ Davis wonders how accurate radio ratings can be, since the data is collated from handwritten diaries.
  
  So, the radio ratings season gets underway tomorrow. After a well-earned break, Australia’s commercial radio stations will renew their obsession with figures to see how many of us are listening. Are they winning or losing the ratings war?
  
  The much feared radio survey is the only way to measure the success or failure of a station’s playlist, talent, promotions or even good old Black Thunder crosses. With six-figure salaries riding on the make-or-break nature of ratings, just how accurate are Australia’s radio survey results?

Andrew Denton: Logies are living in the past

Former Logies host Andrew Denton has called for Australian TV awards to stop living in the past.

In an interview with Mumbrella, the former Enough Rope presenter said: “With due respect to the late and the living Graham Kennedy and Bert Newton, “I’m sick to fucking death of hearing them eulogised every Logies. They were 30 years ago. They were great. We’ve said they were great every year for 30 years. We’ve had so much fantastic talent since then. When are we going to pass the torch?”

Denton hosted the Logies in 1999 and 2000 and has been nominated for Logies himself on several occasions. He no longer appears on screen but is one of the driving forces at Zapruder’s Other Films, the company behind The Gruen Transfer, 30 Seconds, Hungry Beast and the forthcoming AFP.

You can see more of Mumbrella’s interview with Denton and collaborator Anita Jacoby in this week’s Mumbo Report.

September 7th, 2010 at 11:32 am

Comments

ANON333
7 Sep 10
11:37 am

Well said..

Anonymous
7 Sep 10
11:41 am

well said

Knew Media
7 Sep 10
11:49 am

Love your work Denton!

Circuit Rider
7 Sep 10
11:57 am

Andrew Denton is spot on. Graham Kennedy and Bert Newton, excellent in their day as entertainer… but the trouble is that is all. 20 to 1 just continues the tradition of dumbing the population down with trivia sold as entertainment. It makes the media impotent.

What about celebrating the contribution of the people (such as Andrew Denton) who provide programming with depth that build the social and intellectual capital of Australia through the media?

Morning Copy
7 Sep 10
12:39 pm

Couldn’t agree more. How many times do we have to see those tired old clips?

T
7 Sep 10
1:20 pm

People actually watch the Logies?

Burhan Goktas
7 Sep 10
1:21 pm

I’ve never liked the self indulgent pat on the back logies and probably never will. It’s just tacky.

Bluegum
7 Sep 10
1:29 pm

If someone could come up with a celebration and acknowledgement of the talent we have on TV – and there is much of it, I would watch and applaud. But those tired old Logies embarrass themselves – eek, corny jokes, weepy acceptances and most of the presenters and award winners are half pissed or out of it.

jurimi
7 Sep 10
1:49 pm

Newton looks embalmed so close enough to dead. TV Week itself is terribly dull and parochial which alas reflects the state of Australian telly.

C.
7 Sep 10
2:21 pm

While the Logies are owned and run by a magazine publisher who’s primary objective is to boost circulation and increase ad revenue, it will be impossible for the Logies to truly celebrate the successes of the television industry it is supposed to represent. Surely no one is surprised by that….

Tom
7 Sep 10
10:03 pm

C – spot on. TV Week and Ch.9 will never allow it to rise above mediocrity. The sad truth.

Jack High
8 Sep 10
9:53 am

What are the Logies?

Angela White
8 Sep 10
1:07 pm

Andrew,

Austraila so needs you. Totally agree.

Marty
8 Sep 10
4:31 pm

Graham Kennedy was the reason I watched late night TV in the 1970′s.

Bert Newton is one of the main reasons I haven’t watched Channel 9 for over 20 years!!!!

Are’nt the Logies just a vested commercial interest attached mainly to the commercial channels? I don’t watch the Logies mainly because of that ugly moonface!?*%$#@)}” Sorry Bert, but get a life….

Mal Jago
8 Sep 10
4:42 pm

Home page SMH, well done Tim thats a scoop.

Steve Roberts
8 Sep 10
6:39 pm

Andrew’s credability took a HUGE hit when he interviewed that English guy who said that if you can’t prove it with science, then it is not true.
Denton’s stupid replies/comments/questions
absolutely proved to me and many others that he is full of BS

Ed
8 Sep 10
7:32 pm

With due respect to Denton, who is well qualified to pass judgement on the Logies, maybe he should give his mate Wil Anderson a nudge to step up and host the Logies instead of gutlessly bagging them under the table via his Twitter account. If some of the Gen X comedians had the balls to step out of the warm bubble of FM radio and pre-recorded, heavily edited panel shows and onto the much tougher Logies stage, then maybe the Logies wouldn’t have to refer to the past as much. It’s hypocritical of the talent out there to publicly bag a show that they aren’t willing to themselves improve.

Tim
8 Sep 10
8:05 pm

Nice work Tim, I’m sure you’ve already seen this story picked up by Fairfax http://www.theage.com.au/enter.....150i7.html

Rick
9 Sep 10
12:11 pm

“I suspect by the end of this year, truth will be that the most watched thing on Australian television won’t be MasterChef, it will be from Hungry Beast and it will be the spoof we did on Avatar.” – Andrew Denton

So Hungry Beast has a crack at the “recut trailer” concept which has already been an established YouTube staple for several years. Except the Hungry Beast version has all the wit and freshness of “Scary Movie 5″ or a rerun of The Naked Gun.

Denton’s well within his rights to defend freshness on Australian TV – especially fresh comedy, but he’s brave to hold Hungry Beast up as an example.

To me at least, Hungry Beast is an example of what happens when a 50 year old man with near total control over an entire broadcasting network is given free reign to create a show with no clear brief of objective – in the end we get a sort of ham-fisted version of A Current Affair mixed with odd bits of reheated Chaser.

Is that fresh?

jamal nazreddin
9 Sep 10
1:33 pm

I agree with Rick in saying Denton’s can’t talk about fossils.

He used to be edgy 20 years ago. But his schmucky sentiment and intellectual shallowness is scary when he attempts to interview anyone who isn’t beholden to him.
Richard Dawkins was seething at Dent’s stupidity and almost stopped the interview three times.

His wife is worse.