Russel Howcroft and Nine Radio boss Tom Malone on why media’s the most ruthless of Howcroft’s career, advertiser age bias and the inside account of Alan Jones’ final curtain
Russel Howcroft says media is the most ruthless industry, consulting the most influential but advertising the smartest. Nine Radio’s new boss Tom Malone, meanwhile, spills the beans on how Howcroft left PwC to join 3AW’s breakfast slot and the overhaul he’s unleashed at Nine Radio to skew younger and address advertiser bias against older, lucrative audiences in radio. Malone says it’s a 10 year plan of regeneration, so no freak-outs when the first radio ratings since COVID land later this month. He tells a very different story around Alan Jones and his exit from 2GB and argues advertisers need to drop 25-54 demos and follow the money to higher-spending 35-65 year olds – can commonsense prevail?
Read Paul McIntyre’s Deep Dive article (5 min. read):