Media Report returns to ABC Radio National after three years
ABC Radio National is to return to covering media issues with The Media Report returning three years after it was axed.
The show was previously hosted by Anthony Funnell until being dropped in January 2009.
New The Media Report host Aedy
In its new guise it will be presented by Richard Aedy, who currently presents Life Matters. Aedy will also present Sunday Profile for Local Radio and Radio National. A spokesman for the ABC told Mumbrella that the production team for The Media report has not yet been locked in.
The Media Report will be one of the few networked shows with a focus on the media. Media Watch, on ABC1, is the best known, while the TV network is also currently airing The Hamster Wheel, which is The Chaser’s examination of the media.
Meanwhile, Chaser frontman Julian Morrow will next year take the Friday drivetime slot on ABC Radio National. Waleed Aly will host the new Drive show Monday to Thursday.
Michael Mason, acting manager of Radio National, said: “An extended Breakfast, Drive with Waleed Aly and Friday night Drive with Julian Morrow enables RN to be live and responsive when our listeners want us to be. Australians want to be part of an intelligent dynamic conversation – even in peak hour.”
The broadcaster’s flasghip morning show Breakfast with Fran Kelly has been confirmed as now finishing half an hour later at 9am.
Other key hosts remain in place next year including Phillip Adams with Late Night Live, Geraldine Doogue with Saturday Extra, Robyn Williams with The Science Show and Norman Swan on The Health Report.
Peter Mares will take on Sunday Extra, which includes the program Background Briefing.
Mark Colvin will present his extended current affairs interviews in a new program called Friday Late.
The Religion & Ethics Report will be presented by Andrew West.
According to the ABC, new Sunday morning program, The Shortlist, presented by Cassie McCullagh & Jason Di Rosso, will “unpack new ideas, trends and obsessions with a smart, discursive and sometimes cheeky look at how we live today and the mood of the times”.
Mason said: “Radio National will never be a mass audience network, and we’re not interested in simply chasing more listeners.
We want to strengthen our role as the network for listeners who want a deeper understanding of the world.”
Syndicated US show This American Life remains in the schedule while Melvyn Bragg’s BBC Radio 4 program In Our Time will be aired by Radio National for the first time.
And two years after leaving triple J to become evening presenter at ABC 702, Robbie Buck will host daily show Afternoon Music from 3pm.
The new schedule begins on January 23.
2012 Highlights:
- Breakfast: Mon-Fri 6.00AM-9.00AM Fran Kelly
- Drive: Mon-Thurs 6.00PM Waleed Aly Fri 6.00PM Julian Morrow
- Life Matters: Mon-Fri 9.00AM Natasha Mitchell
- Afternoon Music: Mon-Fri 3.00PM Robbie Buck
- By Design: Sat 9.00AM Fenella Kernebone
- Big Ideas: Mon-Thu 8.00PM Paul Barclay
- The Body Sphere: Sun 5.00PM Amanda Smith
- The Media Report: Fri 5.30PM Richard Aedy
- Friday Late with Mark Colvin: Fri 10.00PM Mark Colvin
- Books & Arts (working title): Mon-Fri 10.00AM Michael Cathcart
- 360documentaries: Sun 10.00AM Kirsti Melville
- Outdoors (working title): Sun 6.30AM Joel Werner
- The Shortlist: Sun 11.00AM Cassie McCullagh & Jason Di Rosso
- Sunday Extra: (After Correspondents Report) Sun 7.00AM to 10.00AM Peter Mares
- Sunday Profile: Sun 12.30PM with Richard Aedy
- Weekend Afternoons: Sat and Sun from 2.00PM Sarah Kanowski
- Religion & Ethics: Wed 5.30PM Andrew West
- Music Deli: Fri 8.00PM Alice Keath
Tim Burrowes founded Mumbrella in 2008. He worked on Mumbrella until 2021. At various points he was editor, content director and editor-at-large.
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Brilliant news
both the show and choice of host!!
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Terrific to hear that the Media Report will be back – its absence left a big hole in the serious analysis of media in Australia. I do hope though, that Richard Aedy will keep some of his trademark self-deprecating humour, instead of becoming too sombre.
Also great that we’ll hear more of Fran – I’m often frustrated when she has to cut people off because of time constraints.
Hope the new drive programs will retain the 6pm timeslot’s talkback format – it’s the only time RN listeners get to voice their views in ‘real time’. Waleed Aly and Julian Morrow are great choices for hosts 🙂
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Awesome. I loved listening to the media report podcasts back in my uni days.
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The disappearance of Australia Talks is a huge loss. It has been a very important forum for Australians to properly discuss a huge range of topics with its 50 minutes time slot. Hopefully Big Ideas might allow a similar platform. Great that The Media Report is returning – the pity is that “someone” axed it 3 years ago but great that another “somone” has realised the error.
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Hooray!
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Why is Counterpoint allowed to run. As a program that declares itself to push a right-wing angle, it breaches the ABC requirement of politically neutrality.
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I find it very troubling that daily current affairs PM will be cut back to 30 minutes on RN. And as yet I haven’t heard whether AM will run at all. Also I’m extremely unhappy about Lucky Oceans’ The Daily Planet being replaced in afternoons. Why? This is the best music show in Australia and Lucky Oceans is an amazingly knowledgable and warm presenter. I know The Planet will run after 11pm and can be accessed online but I understand it will still be in the shortened 40 minute format. This is not sufficient length for such a show.
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And Counterpoint is a crock of …. It should be scrapped. The presenters pretend to be open-minded and light but the show’s content is only fit for a tea-party.
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