COMMSEC INVEST RETURNS TO SIMPLIFY THE SHAREMARKET FOR NEW INVESTORS IN SEASON TWO

LiSTNR and CommSec, Australia’s award-winning online broker with over 25 years of industry leading experience, are excited to announce the return of CommSec Invest: The Share Market Simplified launching today, Wednesday, January 22.

Designed for Australians ready to kick-start their investment journey, the podcast offers a relatable and practical introduction to the share market. Across an eight-episode, bite-sized series, CommSec Invest breaks down the complexities of investing into engaging and easy-to-digest insights, empowering listeners with the knowledge they need to take charge of their financial futures.

Hosted by acclaimed author and presenter Jamila Rizvi, the second season of the podcast builds on investment principles, delving into topics such as the economic landscape shaping investment opportunities, the importance of diversification, and leveraging news and data for informed decision-making. Each episode features insights from CommSec’s Tom Piotrowski and Steven Daghlian, alongside candid reflections from investors navigating their own financial journeys.

Todd Stevens, Senior Executive Producer – Branded Podcasts, LiSTNR, said: “These new episodes take the basics from season one and crank them up a notch to help listeners level up their share market game.  It’s learning. It’s lunacy.  And it goes where your average finance podcast wouldn’t dare!

“It might sound like the setup to a dull joke – “an economist, a market analyst, and an investor walk into a podcast studio” – but dull wasn’t on the agenda. From Steve Daghlian’s bad karaoke to Tom Piotrowski’s body rolling at Club ASX, the episodes are a wild mix of market smarts and laughs. Learning to invest in the share market has never been so entertaining,” Stevens continued.

As a trusted leader in finance, CommSec continues to empower investors by making complex concepts accessible and actionable. With CommSec Invest: The Share Market Simplified, listeners are guided step-by-step to demystify investing and take control of their financial futures.

Season 2 of CommSec Invest is available on LiSTNR, with new episodes dropping weekly.

About LiSTNR:

LiSTNR is a curated and personalised, free app offering radio, podcasts, music, and sport, creating a new audio destination for all Australians. Featuring a fun and intuitive onboarding process, LiSTNR delivers an audio destination that is built for individual listeners’ routines and preferences. Highly personalised, it provides listeners a new world of audio entertainment, with their own daily feed of audio and easy discovery of new content through curated recommendations. Available across a large array of devices including both iOS and Android, CarPlay and Android Auto, Google Assistant and Alexa and Android TV, LiSTNR enables a fantastic listening experience, anytime and anywhere. Open your Ears to a new world of audio – download the free app today. LiSTNR.com

Mark ‘MG’ Geyer joins 2GB

Mark 'MG' Geyer joins 2GB

2GB Content Manager, Luke Davis, said: “We’re so excited to welcome Mark Geyer to the 2GB and Nine Radio family! ‘MG’ is a league legend, an experienced media personality, a business owner, a voice of Western Sydney, and never short of an opinion. We’re looking forward to his unique insights each day on Sydney Now and across the NRL season – further-strengthening our top-rating Continuous Call Team line-up as we enter our 39th year on air.”

triple j celebrates 50 years

triple j and Double J celebrated the 50th anniversary of triple j on Sunday, January 19, with a special 12-hour rebroadcast of the first day of the station that started it all – 2JJ, Double Jay Rock

In 1975, a new radio station called 2JJ launched in Sydney, bringing music, culture, news and comedy to young Australians like never before. Beaming out across the city was the commercially banned Skyhooks song ‘You Just Like Me ‘Cos I’m Good In Bed’, with Holger Brockmann behind the mic as the first presenter on 2JJ. The station’s bold spirit and innovative approach would redefine the rules of Australian radio, and in 1989, triple j would go on to become the national network we know today. Watch Double Jay’s first moments on air here.

Half a century later, triple j is as passionate as ever about championing local artists and delivering fresh music, events and content for young Australians. Join us as we celebrate across 2025 with the next instalment of the One Night Stand, coming soon to a regional Australian town, and as we take Like A Version on an international tour. Plus we’ve got some big plans to celebrate the best Australian music from triple j’s history. That’s just a taste of what’s to follow later this year.

Get Ready for SCA in 2025: New Shows, Top Talent & Teams, Emerging Stars and Exciting Opportunities

SCA has revealed an ambitious 2025 programming slate alongside dynamic advertising and technology initiatives

Monday, January 20, 2025 – SCA is gearing up for a huge 2025 with investment in new talent and local shows, complementing an already strong stable of established programs, and a suite of new tech and advertising initiatives which will connect brands with the Audiences That Matter (25-54).

New and Refreshed Programming in 2025:

Delivering localism in breakfast, SCA will launch new and refreshed breakfast shows in Sydney,  Melbourne and Adelaide markets where audiences have resoundingly voted in favour of local content. In addition, Triple M Drive will evolve in 2025 and Nights will have a new look on the Hit Network.

Mick Molloy is returning to his Melbourne home town with Mick in the Morning with Roo, Titus & Rosiejoined by Nick Riewoldt, Titus O’Reily and Rosie Walton on 105.1 Triple M. With Molloy back on home turf and Nick Riewoldt bringing his expertise as a respected AFL figure – stepping out in his first full time radio job – this new breakfast show will deliver local content, plenty of Melbourne flavour and homegrown personalities.

Sydney audiences can look forward to a brand-new show, Triple M Breakfast with Beau, Tarsh & Woodsy (Beau Ryan, Natarsha Belling and Aaron Woods). These local voices are no strangers to Sydney audiences, and will deliver a dynamic mix of mischief, cheekiness, lively sports banter and plenty of laughs.

New duo Xav Ellis and Katie Lamb will return to breakfast on 92.9 Triple M in 2025 as Triple M Breakfast with Xav & Katie. Kicking off in October 2024, former AFL player Xavier Ellis is joined by Katie Lamb, who won over listeners as part of Perth’s Triple M Rush Hour.

2025 will see an evolution of Triple M Drive, with The Rush Hour with JB & Billy (James Brayshaw and Billy Brownless) extending even further into Adelaide, Perth and regional stations across South Australia and Western Australia from 4pm – 6pm. The Marty Sheargold Show (Marty Sheargold) will be heard nationally from 3pm – 4pm, and continue the laughs throughout the afternoon in Sydney, Brisbane, Gold Coast and regional markets across New South Wales and Queensland.

On the Hit Network,2DayFM Breakfast is set to deliver a fresh sound to Sydneysiders with the talented and loveable Jimmy & Nath (Jimmy Smith and Nathan Roye) confirmed as hosts, joined by accomplished Sydney radio presenter Emma Chow.

Adelaide also got a head start with SA FMs new Breakfast show, Bernie & Emma G (Bernie Vince and Emma Georgiadis), which kicked off in November. In 2025, they will return to bring a fresh new level of energy and cheekiness to Adelaide Breakfast.

While in the evenings from 13 January, things will heat up Monday to Thursday (7pm – 10pm) and Saturdays (3pm – 5pm) with the new The Hot Hits with Nic & Loren (Nic Kelly and Loren Barry), giving listeners access to their new favourite music, the best and biggest hits, special guests and the latest music news. On Fridays (7pm – 10pm) and Saturdays (5pm – 8pm), The Lucy & Nikki Show (Lucy Jackson and Nikki Westcott) will also continue with their unique take on love and life, and of course plenty of laughs.

Hit and Triple M’s returning shows in 2025:

SCA’s new and refreshed shows and talent complement a stable of strong and respected established programs throughout the network in Breakfast and Drive:

SCA has been a dominant player in the Melbourne market and 2024 was no exception with perennially popular Fifi, Fev & Nick (Fifi Box, Brendan Fevola and Nick Cody) growing audience share across the year. The team will return to The Fox in 2025, bringing local stories and banter to the Breakfast slot, and offering listeners access to Melbourne’s biggest party.

The SCA duopoly dominates Brisbane, with B105 and Triple M the top two stations in market. Brisbane’s #1 Breakfast show, B105’s Stav, Abby & Matt (Stav Davidson, Abby Coleman and Matt Acton), after securing the top spot in 7 out of 8 surveys in 2024 and committing to the breakfast audience with long term contacts.

Triple M Breakfast with Marto, Margaux & Dan (Greg ‘Marto’ Martin, Margaux Parker and Dan Anstey) returns to entertain Brisbane listeners in 2024.

Adelaide’s #1 FM Breakfast show, Triple M Breakfast with Roo, Ditts & Loz (Mark Ricciuto, Chris Dittmar and Laura O’Callaghan) will return after a string of survey wins across the board.

Nationally, Hit Network listeners will be treated to the hilarious and heartwarming Carrie & Tommy (Carrrie Bickmore and Tommy Little) for the Drive home from 3pm to 6pm.

SCA’s Chief Content Officer, Dave Cameron, said: “It’s fair to say, we’re pretty pumped and feeling hugely optimistic about our 2025 metro lineups, a combination of existing powerhouse local shows and talent, alongside some fresh strong new voices making their mark on each city.

“We have a firm conviction that local breakfast shows with local personalities creating locally focussed content in each of our metro markets will deliver the start to the day that listeners have ultimately demanded.

“Alongside our powerhouse established talent including Fifi Box, Carrie Bickmore, Tommy Little, Mick Molloy, Abby Coleman, Brendan ‘Fev’ Fevola, Marty Sheargold and others, we are also relentless and hungry on leading the charge of bringing new exciting voices into the industry. Beau Ryan, Bernie Vince, Emma G, Katie Lamb, Liesel Jones, Jimmy and Nath, Nick Riewoldt and many others will step up to headline shows and continue to evolve this incredibly buoyant industry.

Highly entertaining, brand safe, family friendly shows will continue to drive audiences and client integration even higher in 2025.”

2025 Tech & Innovation 

SCA is also the home of LiSTNR – Australia’s leading audio hub with people’s favourite podcasts, music and radio streaming. In 2025 LiSTNR will continue to invest in premium original Australian made podcasts across Society and Culture, Health and Wellbeing, Comedy, Crime, News, Factual – investigative docu-series, and music docu-series, and Sport. Together with its international partner titles from Wondery and Sirius XM, and its domestic partner DM podcasts, deliver some of Australia’s most popular podcasts including Hamish & Andy, The Briefing, It’s A Lot with Abbie Chatfield, Happy Hour with Lucy & Nikki, The Howie GamesSecrets We Keep, Crime Junkie, SmartlessKICPODMorbid and The Mel Robbins Podcast as  well as new signing The Imperfects who join LiSTNR in February.

LiSTNR will continue to develop new podcast formats and partnerships to match the changing needs of both audiences and advertisers alike.

The tech platform also offers advertisers the LiSTNR AdTech Hub, an exclusive new advertising technology which offers market-leading commercial opportunities in digital audio. The suite of ad products leverages LiSTNR’s owned and operated model with its engaged known user base of 2.1 million listeners. It will create more effective advertising via the most personalised experiences and frictionless transactions which drive results.

In 2025, SCA will also have new audio tools for driving planning and effectiveness, including Audology, a web-based regional and metro audience tool. The simple-to-use tool takes fewer than five minutes for an audience run, and is a third-party Gold-standard industry tool which has all surveyed markets, including GfK data.

The SCA Boomtown Indexer is a media-first insights tool, used to understand audience sentiment and purchase intentions. The web-based consumer insights tool provides buyergraphic and category-specific indices of SCA’s audience versus the general population. It can be filtered to state, SCA Network and demographic.

Seb Rennie, SCA’s Chief Commercial Officer, said: “2025 is gearing up to be another exciting year in audio with Aussies spending more and more time with their favourite content be it radio, streaming or podcasts. SCA’s total audio ecosystem is the largest and most advanced in Australia and presents awesome opportunities for brands to continue to connect with highly engaged audiences in new and innovative ways.”

SCA’s Total Audio ecosystem in 2025 is simple and ubiquitous and will reach the Audiences That Matter. SCA audiences across the Hit Network, Triple M and LiSTNR will be able to access their favourite shows, the country’s most-popular personalities, exciting emerging talent, and a world-class podcasts and streaming library; while advertisers will benefit from insights which make their dollars work harder as the audio evolution continues.

About SCA

Southern Cross Austereo (SCA) is one of Australia’s leading media companies and the home of LiSTNR, the Hit and Triple M networks and regional television stations, reaching more than 95% of the Australian population. The LiSTNR digital audio app hosts a library of free and compelling digital audio content available anytime, anywhere. It houses SCA’s 99 FM, AM and DAB+ radio stations, including AFL, NRL and international cricket coverage, 27 music genre stations, and over 600 podcasts from leading Australian and global creators, plus local news and information. With more than two million signed-in users, LiSTNR has something to entertain, inform, and inspire all Australians and helps advertisers to connect with highly engaged and addressable audiences. The LiSTNR digital audio sales network reaches over 8 million people a month. SCA owns 99 radio stations across FM, AM, and DAB+ radio under the Triple M and Hit network brands and provides national sales representation for 56 regional radio stations, with 8.8 million listeners across the Hit and Triple M networks nationally.

SCA broadcasts 96 free to air TV signals across regional Australia and represents or has a joint venture with 39 TV stations, reaching 3.6 million people a week. SCA broadcasts Network 10 programs in regional Queensland, southern NSW, and Victoria and provides national advertising sales representation for Network 10 programming in all Australian states and territories. SCA also broadcasts and provides sales representation for Seven Network programming in Tasmania, Darwin, and Remote Central and Eastern Australia and for Seven and Nine Network programming in Spencer Gulf and Broken Hill. SCA also features Sky News Regional in regional Queensland, southern NSW, and Victoria and sales representation in northern NSW, Griffith and Mount Gambier. SCA provides Australian sales representation for global open audio platform SoundCloud and Sonos Radio.

www.southerncrossaustereo.com.au.

BREAKFAST WILL HAVE A FRESH SOUND ON 2DAYFMWITH JIMMY & NATH CONFIRMED AS HOSTS, JOINED BY EMMA CHOW

2DayFM Breakfast is set to deliver a fresh sound to Sydneysiders in 2025, with the talented and loveable Jimmy & Nath (Jimmy Smith and Nathan Roye) confirmed as hosts, joined by accomplished Sydney radio presenter Emma Chow, starting Monday, 20 January.

After a five-month stint filling in on 2DayFM Breakfast in late 2024, Jimmy & Nath — radio natives who have proven themselves as two of the most talented rising stars within the Hit Network — have earned a permanent breakfast spot in 2025.

Best mates on and off the mic, Jimmy & Nath have spent nearly a decade living intertwined lives,  hustling from regional radio roles to metro Weekend and Night shows to become “overnight successes!” After years of doing the hard yards and sharpening their skills across multiple networks and shows — including four and a half years as Hobart’s Hit100.9 breakfast team, where they took the show to #1 — they returned to Sydney in 2022 to host the Hit Network’s national Weekend Breakfast show, followed by their recent stint as hosts of national Nights. Now, they’re ready to bring their unmistakable talent, energy and chemistry to 2DayFM Breakfast in 2025.

Jimmy said: “When Nath and I met 10 years ago, we said we’d love to do Sydney breakfast… but we never imagined we’d actually get the job! For us, it’s about entertaining people and putting a smile on their faces. You never know what someone is going through, and we want to be a show that brings joy to people. That’s why we do what we do.

“We’re also thrilled to welcome Emma into the Jimmy & Nath family. She’s an amazing broadcaster` and we’re just as excited that her two kids now have two funcles (fun uncles).”

Nath said: “Growing up in the Sutherland shire in Sydney, 2DayFM was always on in the car – blaring loud enough so Mum wouldn’t have to hear me whinging about not having fancy lunches like the other kids. 2DayFM has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember.

“Jimmy and I are best mates who adore radio, and after more than 10 years together, it’s weird to say we are doing 2DayFM breakfast in Sydney – something we used to joke about. This isn’t a flash-in-the-pan show, it’s one that we’ve been building for years, and we can’t wait to kick off the next chapter of our careers with 2Day brekky.

“Plus we’re lucky to welcome Em, a fantastic radio presenter who will play an instrumental role in the Jimmy & Nath show’s future! We definitely misbehave more than her kids, which she has now contractually accepted. Hopefully in 2025 parents will be turning 2DayFM up across Sydney to block out their kids’ backseat rants – just like my mum did.”

Joining Jimmy & Nath is Emma Chow, a respected Sydney radio broadcaster who has been entertaining audiences as part of the iconic Mike E & Emma show on Edge 96.1 for over a decade before joining 2DayFM as hosts of Mornings in 2024. Known for her relatable and honest style, Emma will provide a sharp take on entertainment news.

Emma Chow said: “To say this is a dream come true is an understatement! I set my alarm to listen to 2DayFM breakfast every morning before school when I was a kid, so this all feels very surreal. I love Sydney, and I can’t wait to bring my ‘I’m not a regular Mum, I’m a cool Mum’ (I think?) energy to Jimmy & Nath. Let’s do this!”

Dave Cameron, SCA Chief Content Officer said: “We’ve been excited to hear Jimmy & Nath bring much-needed energy and a creative buzz to Breakfast, that Sydneysiders deserve, during their past five months filling in on 2DayFM Breakfast. Now with the addition of Emma Chow’s energy and spark – who is already familiar to Sydney Breakfast listeners – this show is an exciting confirmation for 2DayFM Breakfast moving forward. There has already been strong interest from our commercial clients who are hungry to be a part of this brand safe, fun and vibrant new way for Sydney audiences to wake up. We’re really pumped about the new shape and approach that 2DayFM is beginning to take this year to do something different in Sydney.”

Together, Jimmy, Nath, and Emma are poised to reignite 2DayFM Breakfast, delivering laughter, entertainment, and everything listeners need to start their day in 2025—and beyond! Jimmy & Nath will be heard Monday to Friday from 6am to 9am on 2DayFM and can be streamed on LiSTNR.

Mike Etheridge from the Mike E & Emma show will continue to play a key role at SCA in 2025, with further details to be announced.

About the Hit Network:

The Hit Network is Australia’s biggest radio network broadcasting across metro and regional markets with a unique collection of 50 FM and DAB+ stations. The Hit Network targets people aged 25 – 54, skews female and features a mood focused, ‘feel great’ pop music format alongside the most entertaining local breakfast and national drive shows. It is home to popular personalities including Carrie Bickmore, Tommy Little, Fifi Box, Brendan Fevola, Nick Cody, Abby Coleman, Matty Acton, Stav Davidson and many more.

The Hit Network entertains more than six million Aussie radio listeners across B105, 2Day, The Fox, SAFM, Mix94.5, Sea FM, 41 Hit stations plus DAB+ stations including Oldskool 90s Hits, Buddha Hits, Oldskool 80s Hits, RnB Fridays Radio and Dance Hits. All Hit Network’s content is also available live or on demand on the LiSTNR app.

Latest CBF Grant Round Now Open

The Community Broadcasting Foundation (CBF) has announced the opening of applications for Round 1 of its 2025/26 grants. This is a fantastic opportunity for community broadcasters to secure funding to support and grow their initiatives. Here’s what’s available:

Grant Categories

  1. Content Grants
    Designed to promote the creation of compelling media that increases and diversifies voices. These grants encourage innovative storytelling, inclusion, and representation in media.
  2. Specialist Radio Programming Grants
    Supporting stations producing programming tailored to specific communities, such as multicultural, ethnic, or First Nations communities.
  3. Development & Operations Grants
    Helping stations build resilience, expand partnerships, and adapt to change. These grants focus on strengthening stations’ operational capabilities and fostering sustainability.

Key Details

  • Applications Close: 4 March 2025 at 2PM AEDT
  • Where to Apply: Visit the CBF website to learn more and start your application
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Clinton Maynard to host 2GB Drive

Clinton Maynard to host 2GB Drive

He has covered some of the biggest stories of recent years, including the COVID pandemic (attending more than 180 press conferences), the funeral of Queen Elizabeth ll, the Boxing Day Tsunami, Shapelle Corby’s sentence, the arrest of the Bali Nine, the rescue of the Beaconsfield Miners, the Olympic Games, as well as countless floods, fires and protests.

Clinton Maynard said, “When I was 15, I walked into 2GB’s studio as a work experience kid in love with talk radio and spent a week with the Drive Show. To be appointed to present that same show, three decades later, is a dream come true. I can’t wait to talk about what matters to our Sydney listeners every day and have a few laughs along the way.”

2GB Content Manager, Luke Davis said, “Clinton Maynard is a talk radio specialist. He has dedicated his life and career to the medium and knows how to tell a story, entertain and connect with audiences. As we enter this new era of 2GB Drive, and a federal election year, there is no one better placed to dissect the issues that matter to Sydneysiders on their drive home than Clinton Maynard. He’s ready and raring to go.”

Maynard joined the 2UE newsroom as a cadet journalist in 1997 and went on to become a crime reporter, political reporter and eventually the News Director and Content Director at the station.

As a presenter, he has hosted news talk programs on 2UE, Macquarie Sports Radio and 2GB, where most recently he has been the Weekday Overnights host and the regular fill-in presenter on 2GB Drive.

Sydney Now with Clinton Maynard will launch on Monday 27 January 2025.

AUSTRALIAN PODCAST RANKER – DECEMBER

The official Australian Podcast Ranker has been released by Commercial Radio and Audio (CRA) and Triton Digital. Below are the top five charts for December. The complete charts can be viewed here.

Following the addition of Guardian Media Group last month, CRA is pleased to announce December welcomed the inclusion of the BBC into the Australian Podcast Ranker. They join an impressive roster of publishers, including the ABC, Mamamia and others.

Furthermore, year-on-year (YOY) downloads for CY2024 have increased by 4% compared to CY2023, highlighting sustained growth in the podcasting sector, supported by the evolving roster of participating publishers.

Australian Podcast Ranker top five podcasts December 2024
      Podcast Producer Monthly Listeners
1 ABC News Top Stories Australian Broadcasting Corporation 691,318
2 Casefile True Crime Audioboom 559,884
3 Mamamia Out Loud Mamamia 537,179
4 Shameless Shameless Media 496,386
5 Hamish & Andy LiSTNR (SCA) 473,900

 

Australian Podcast Ranker top five genres December 2024
     Genre Monthly Listeners
1 Society & Culture 4,413,845
2 News 3,844,414
3 True Crime 3,594,496
4 Comedy 2,720,492
5 Sports 2,058,450

 

Australian Podcast Ranker top five podcast publishers December 2024
     Publisher Monthly Listeners
1 ARN/iHeart 3,844,703
2 LiSTNR (SCA) 2,480,572
3 Australian Broadcasting Corporation 2,359,382
4 SiriusXM Podcast Network 2,018,705
5 Audioboom 1,692,232

 

Top five sales representatives by monthly listeners December 2024
    Sales representatives Publishers represented Listeners
1 ARN / iHeart ARN / iHeartMedia / Audioboom / AdLarge Media / Sport Social Podcast Network / The Athletic / The Investors Podcast Network / All Ears English / Sony Music / Clubby Sports / NZME /TED / Johns Media/BBC 6,460,601
2 LiSTNR (SCA) LiSTNR (SCA) / Schwartz Media / SiriusXM Podcast Network / audiochuck / Wondery / DM Podcasts / NBCUniversal News Group 6,367,224
3 NOVA Entertainment NOVA Entertainment / News Corp Australia /Podshape 2,215,250
4 News Corp Australia News Corp Australia 1,554,916
5 Mamamia Mamamia 1,259,169

ABC News Top Stories top podcast in December

ABC News Top Stories was the most listened to podcast in Australia in December according to the Triton podcast ranker.

This is the first time an ABC podcast has topped the list since we joined Triton in November 2023.

ABC News Top Stories is a news update created specifically for digital audiences, explaining the key stories of the moment in under two minutes.

ABC Director News Justin Stevens said: “I’m delighted to see ABC News Top Stories resonating so strongly with audiences.

“ABC News Top Stories is designed to give audiences the news they need, whenever they want it, in short and insightful sessions.

“The ongoing engagement across the quiet summer period demonstrates how well we are adapting our news offering to meet the changing needs of our audience.”

Also in December, the ABC maintained the No. 3 podcast publisher and had more titles in the top 200 than any other publisher, with 27 titles making the list.

The full Triton Australian Podcast Ranker can be found here.

Audiences can enjoy all the ABC’s podcasts for free and ad free on ABC listen.

The Australian Podcast Ranker is a regular monthly snapshot of Australia’s most popular podcasts. The Ranker has been reporting podcast listening in Australia since 2019 and includes a wide cross section of Australian podcast publishers, from both radio and non-radio backgrounds.

 

Hamish Macdonald joins 702 ABC Radio Sydney in 2025

Award winning journalist Hamish Macdonald will present the Mornings program on 702 ABC Radio Sydney in 2025 leading a group of incoming talent across the station this year.

Hamish will present the Mornings program from Monday to Thursday from Monday 20 January.

“First and foremost I’d like to pay tribute to the hard work and dedication of Sarah Macdonald. I know these are big shoes to fill.” Hamish said.

“I’m looking forward to putting my head down, getting to work from Monday and serving the wonderful 702 audience in what will be a huge year of news for Sydney.”

Leading audiences into the weekend will be journalist and presenter Kathryn Robinson who will present Mornings every Friday from Friday 31 January.

Audience favourite Dom Knight will host Friday Drive and Saturday Mornings. On Sunday Mornings renowned science and technology journalist and presenter Rae Johnston will bring audiences a mix of lifestyle, gardening, information and conversation.

Other new voices on the network this year are Chris Bath who will start her new role presenting Monday to Thursday Drive and Charlie Pickering who will present Thank God It’s Friday!.

New 702 ABC Radio Sydney Manager Katrina Palmer joined the team this month and said “I’m excited to be starting with such a fantastic line up.”

“ABC Radio Sydney is deeply connected to audiences across Australia’s largest city, breaking news and sharing stories from across the region every day.

“In 2025 we will build on these connections in new and meaningful ways and I’m eager to get started from ABC Radio Sydney’s new home in Parramatta.”

About Hamish Macdonald

Hamish Macdonald is an award-winning journalist who has covered wars, disasters, and major world events. He presents Take Me To Your Leader and co-hosts Global Roaming on ABC Radio National and The Project on Channel Ten.

Hamish has won numerous awards including a Walkley for current affairs journalism. In 2024 he won the EU-Qantas Journalism Prize and the Elizabeth O’Neill Journalism Award. He was also previously named Young Journalist of the Year by Britain’s Royal Television Society.

Overseas, Hamish has covered conflicts in Afghanistan, Libya and Ukraine, the nuclear disaster in Japan, uprisings in Hong Kong and Egypt, the London bombings and the rise of ISIS in Iraq.

He has featured regularly on the ABC since 2016, hosting Radio National Breakfast, Black Summer bushfire coverage, Q&A, Australian of the Year and reporting for Foreign Correspondent.

In 2016 he became a Nieman Fellow at Harvard University. Hamish is Patron of the Bobby Goldsmith Foundation and Ambassador for Dementia Australia.

About Kathryn Robinson

Kathryn Robinson is an Australian journalist and presenter who has presented Ten’s Meet the PressTen Late News and Ten Evening News and was news presenter on 6PM with George Negus.

She was a fill in presenter on The Project  and a regular Friday night panellist on the program.

Since 2015 Kathryn has been a part of the ABC News team presenting on the ABC NEWS Channel. She hosted The Business for two years, presented ABC Weekend BreakfastThe Drum and One Plus One and filled in as presenter on Radio National Drive.

About Rae Johnston

Rae Johnston is a multi-award-winning journalist. A Wiradyuri and Greek woman who was born and raised on Darug and Gundungurra Country in the Blue Mountains of NSW.

Rae is a leading commentator on all things science, technology, video games and geek culture. She is the creator and presenter of Weird Tech podcast and will also present ABC Radio National’s Download This Show in 2025.

She is also a presenter on Back Roads on ABC TV and Going Places With Ernie Dingo on NITV.

Rae serves on the boards of both the Telstra Foundation and Swinburne University of Technology.

About Dom Knight

Dom Knight is a comedy writer and broadcaster who was one of the founding members of The Chaser when it began as a satirical newspaper in a small terrace house over the road from Sydney Uni. He later worked on most of the team’s ABC TV projects.

Dom’s first radio experience came in The Chaser team’s early years, hosting late night shows on a commercial music station. More recently, he’s hosted several comedy podcasts and radio shows with his Chaser colleagues.

From 2012 to 2016 Dom presented Evenings on ABC Radio Sydney, and in recent years he has filled in across the station, including on Drive this week.

Dom is also the author of nine books, most recently The Dictionary of Terrible Ideas for ABC Books.