Nine names Fiona Dear as Director of News and Current Affairs

By Staff Writers in Media News on

To continue reading this article...

Log in or create an Influencing account

More Media News

Lizzies Winners 2026 John Costello Best Business Technology Journalist, Joseph Brookes

By Will McLennan in Media News on
InnovationAus’ Joseph Brookes believes his winning entries at this year’s Lizzies were good examples of reporting that goes beyond the news cycle.  Brookes was awarded John Costello Best Business Technology Journalist at the Samsung Australian IT Journalism Awards.  “[The entries] are the amalgamation of relationships that you build up with people, sources and the experts you speak to. It’s always going on in the background,” Brookes told Influencing.  Brookes' winning entries included “‘Failure on top of failure’: Welfare systems on the brink,” “Australia’s Top Secret cloud and the battle for sovereignty,” and “Ed Santow’s decade of wrestling with AI ethics.” Brookes said the award meant a lot.  “You look around at people like Cam Wilson at Crikey, Josh Taylor at The Guardian, my colleague, Justin Hendry – they do incredible reporting. So to have a place

Lizzies Winners 2026: Len Rust Best Business Technology Media - iTnews

By Will McLennan in Media News on
iTnews has taken out the inaugural Len Rust Best Business Technology Media category at this year’s Samsung Australian IT Journalism Awards.  iTnews Associate Editor Andrew Colley accepting Len Rust Best Busines The publication won for work that included an item penned by Editor-In-Chief Ry Crozier titled, “How NAB unwound Teradata's 'tentacles' to decommission it.” Associate Editor Andrew Colley wrote “BoM never planned to end reliance on 'legacy' site,” while Freelance Journalist Juha Saarinen wrote “Melbourne dev finds gift card PINs can be brute-forced.” Former Associate Editor Eleanor Dickinson penned “Defence vacates Global Switch a year ahead of lease expiry.” Accepting the award on behalf of the publication, Colley told the Lizzies crowd, “I don’t know what to say. This really belongs to the [iTnews] team. I’ve been at [iTnews] for six months and I’ve been really impresse

Epitome: The quiet expansion of Australia’s surveillance state

By Nigel Bowen, Will McLennan in Media News on
Tuesday, 28 April, 2026 | There’s a type of tech story that’s time-consuming to put together and that rarely makes the front pages. These stories are about the quiet expansion of systems that government agencies use to collect and analyse citizens’ data. For obvious reasons, neither national governments nor intelligence agencies are keen to highlight just how extensively your personal data is monitored. But the occasional FOI request from a media outlet is successful, which inevitably results in more disturbing news about just how much information the powers-that-be have on everybody. That’s certainly the case with two recent articles from Crikey’s Cam Wilson and Bernard Keane. Wilson’s piece, Calls, messages, police records: How Palantir helped an intelligence agency analyse 42 million data points on Australians, starts by examining a Palantir training manual obtained through FOI. It shows how analysts can ingest and connect phone calls, SMS, met

Upfront: CFMEU setback, girl missing, tech giants tax shift

By Staff Writers in Media News on
This morning's The Age CFMEU clean-up suffers major setback as administrator quits The federal government’s effort to clean up the scandal-plagued CFMEU has been hit by a major setback after appointed administrator Mark Irving resigned from the role. The departure comes amid deepening allegations of corruption, organised crime links, internal turmoil and pressure for tougher action against union officials and builders accused of paying bribes. Incoming administrator Michael Crosby now faces immediate pressure to restore credibility to the process, investigate alleged misconduct and show that the government’s intervention can deliver meaningful reform in one of Australia’s most politically sensitive unions. Five-year-old girl missing after alleged abduction in Alice Springs Police are continuing a major search for five-year-old Sharon Granites, who was allegedly taken from her bed at an Alice Springs town camp. Authorities have identified a man in connection

The human side of reporting hard stories

By Pavithra in Media News on
Journalism is often seen as a profession rooted in facts and objectivity. But for those reporting on the ground, especially in moments of crisis and loss, the job comes with an emotional weight that doesn’t always end with the story. Repeated exposure to grief, violence, and human suffering can leave a lasting impact. For many journalists, certain moments, a face, a conversation, a scene, stay long after the assignment is over, shaping how they see both their work and the world around them. Ranjeet Jadhav, an environment journalist and assistant editor at Mid-Day, credits one story with redirecting his career. “I didn’t start out with a fixed plan to cover wildlife. Like many journalists, I was drawn to storytelling and being on the ground, understanding people and situations. But what really shifted things for me was the story of a leopard named Ajoba. He had been radio-collared by renowned biologist Dr. Vidya Athreya, and his journey was remarkable; he travelle

Assam mourns veteran journalist Nitya Bora

By Staff Writer in Media News on
Photo caption: Assam’s eminent litterateur Dr Hiren Gohain, paid tribute to his close friend Nitya Bora during a memorial meet held on Sunday in Guwahati   The media fraternity in Assam is in deep shock following the passing of veteran journalist Nitya Bora on April 22 after a prolonged illness. He was 83. A former editor of the Assamese daily Asomiya Pratidin, Bora had suffered a cardiac arrest six months ago and had been ailing since. He was admitted to a hospital in Jorhat last week, where he had been staying with his daughter and her family. He is survived by his daughter; his wife had predeceased him. Several media organisations and journalist bodies paid tribute to Bora’s contributions to Assamese journalism. Durba Ghosh, President of the Assam Women Journalists Forum, remembered him as a “very good journalist and editor” whose essays and columns were thought‑provoking and widely read. In an official note, Khagen Kalita (President) and Amarendra Deka (Gener

Senior Kerala journalist arrested in harassment case, removed as ICJ Director

By Meena R. Prashant, Pavithra A in Media News on
    A senior Kerala journalist has been removed from his role as director of the Institute of Communication and Journalism (ICJ) after being arrested in connection with a sexual harassment case. The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) said it acted immediately following the registration of the case. V E Balakrishnan, 68, was taken into custody based on a complaint filed by a young woman journalist. According to the police, the incident occurred on April 18 during a train journey, where he allegedly misbehaved with her.  Another journalist from Thiruvananthapuram, who said they were in direct contact with the complainant, told Influencing, “According to the victim, the accused allegedly appeared to be under the influence of drugs. When the alleged sexual harassment occurred, she raised an alarm and called for the TTR on the train.” Railway police registered a case under Section 75(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which pertains to sexual harassment, and he has

Media news latest

Upfront: CFMEU setback, girl missing, tech giants tax shift
In today's front page news: CFMEU clean-up suffers setback, Five-year-old girl missing, Tech giants shift $14bn, Coalition to double fuel reserves, Marathon barrier broken ... Show more

Upfront: Trump gunfire chaos, Snow 2.0 cost blow out, Wife killer stays
In Front Page News Today: Gunfire chaos at Trump gala puts political violence back in the spotlight, Snowy 2.0 blows out to $42bn, NDIS reforms ... Show more

Catalano alleges Herald Sun privacy invasion
Embattled media proprieter Antony Catalano has put his lawyers onto The Herald Sun claiming his privacy was breached while attending a rehab facility alongside a News Corp reporter, The Age has reported. ... Show more

Marcoms news latest

PR veterans Zonnios and Hunt launch new consultancy
PR experts Nick Zonnios and Lauren Hunt have teamed up to launch Zonnios&Hunt, a communications consultancy designed to streamline brand storytelling with a sharp, strategy-first approach, Mumbrella reported. ... Show more

Moët Hennessy appoints Nausicaa Charrier as Marketing Director for ANZ
Moët Hennessy Australia New Zealand has appointed Nausicaa Charrier as its marketing director, Mumbrella reported.  ... Show more

Sling & Stone founder to step down as CEO
Sling & Stone founder and CEO Vuki Vujasinovic will step down on January 1 after leading the agency for over a decade. ... Show more