ARN, Australia’s leading audio company, and Global, one of the world’s leading Media & Entertainment groups, have announced a new, long-term podcast partnership. From today, ARN’s iHeart is the exclusive advertising sales representative for Global’s premium podcast slate in Australia.

Global’s portfolio of chart-topping original podcasts includes The News Agents, hosted by Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall, its companion show The News Agents USA, The Sports Agents, hosted by two of the UK’s most respected and popular sports broadcasters Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman, and the award-winning My Therapist Ghosted Me with Vogue Williams and Joanne McNally.

The partnership will also expand the availability of iHeart’s Australian podcasts, which will now be available on Global Player, Global’s entertainment app, providing expats and British listeners access to some of Australia’s most popular shows including, comedy podcast The Christian O’Connell Show, popular true-crime series The Lady Vanishes, and Life Uncut with Australian broadcasters Brittany Hockley and Laura Byrne.

As Australia’s #1 podcast publisher, ARN’s iHeart reaches over 7 million listeners every month with a diverse catalogue of local and international titles. Known for high-quality storytelling and premium audio experiences, iHeart is a trusted destination for both audiences and brands.

Corey Layton, ARN’s Head of Digital Audio, said: “Global and ARN share a passion for delivering world-class audio experiences across both markets. We’re excited to bring shows like My Therapist Ghosted Me and The News Agents to Australian advertisers while collaborating to support our shared ambitions.”

This announcement builds on Global’s existing partnership with iHeartMedia and coincides with their joint headline sponsorship of The Podcast Show London this week.

Katie Bowden, Managing Director of Commercial Audio at Global said: “Today marks another exciting new chapter for podcasts here at Global. Both Global and ARN see the potential to grow the commercial podcasting market across the world and connect with listeners everywhere through high-quality, premium podcasts and storytelling. We’re excited to be on this journey with ARN and iHeart and their impressive network of advertising partners.”

Fridayz Live is back in 2025 with its biggest, boldest, and most dazzling lineup yet. Headlining the nation’s ultimate party is global music icon Mariah Carey, making her long-awaited return to Australian stages for the first time in over a decade. Joining her is none other than Mr. Worldwide himself Pitbull, along with international heavyweights Wiz Khalifa, Lil Jon, Eve, Tinie Tempah, and Jordin Sparks, promising an unforgettable night of iconic hits and high energy.

Once again, The Hit Network and the Mushroom Group have joined forces to deliver the eighth Fridayz Live, touring across Australia this October. With its powerhouse roster and signature party atmosphere, it’s firmly established as the must-see tour of the summer.

The first Fridayz Live in 2016 featured Nelly, TLC and Blu Cantrell, among others, bringing the iconic Hit Network RnB Fridays feature to life in stadiums around Australia. Since then, Fridayz Live has brought some of the world’s biggest stars to Australian audiences, including Janet Jackson, Usher, Black Eyed Peas, Craig David, 50 Cent, Salt-n-Pepa and many more. 

On joining Fridayz Live and coming back to Australia, Mariah Carey said: “I missed you terribly, certainly the fans, and the people, the beautiful land and the animals, you know, it’s Australia, c’mon!”

Head of Hit Metro Content, Amanda Lee, said: “It’s fitting that in RnB Fridays 10th year, we’re bringing the biggest RnB superstars, Mariah Carey, Pitbull, Wiz Khalifa and more, to Australia, this is going to be an unforgettable tour. Our partnership with Mushroom Group continues to strengthen and I’m so pleased we get to bring our audiences this amazing lineup and continue to celebrate RnB Fridays.”

Mushroom Group CEO Matt Gudinski, said: “Fridayz Live has well and truly made its mark on our live entertainment scene, drawing over six hundred thousand fans across six massive tours, featuring some of the world’s most iconic artists. Throughout the journey we’ve built a long and proud partnership with The Hit Network and we’re thrilled to team up once again as we raise the bar in 2025 with our biggest Fridayz Live line-up yet.”

Fridayz Live tour dates and venues:

Brisbane 

Friday October 17th – Brisbane Showgrounds 

Sydney

Saturday October 18th – ENGIE Stadium

Perth

Friday October 24th – Langley Park

Melbourne

Saturday October 25th – Marvel Stadium

Fridayz Live is back! 7 Global Superstars sharing the stage for 1 night, presales begin from May 26th – general public tickets on sale June 2nd, visit fridayz.live for more.

Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) has reported total radio revenue of $262.1 million for Q1 2025, up 1.2% year-on-year (YOY), powered by surging digital audio adoption and anchored by the enduring strength of broadcast radio.  

Across the quarter total revenues held firm while digital revenues rose 32.7% from $17.2m in Q1 2024 to $22.9m in Q1 2025. 

For the quarter, metro broadcast radio remained stable overall with a flat year-on-year result of $147 million. Regional broadcast radio revenue saw a slight and isolated 3% dip to $92.2 million, driven by a one-off event – Cyclone Alfred. The cyclone caused short-term disruption to local businesses and trading activity across parts of Queensland and NSW in March, leading to a temporary drop in direct advertising in the affected regions.  

Despite this and other macro-economic conditions, the remainder of H1 is tracking to maintain the industry’s overall position of growth. 

“Our audiences have never been higher, and with advertisers recognising our ability to deliver unrivalled reach, results and relevance we are seeing strong demand across our total addressable market of metro and regional radio, digital streaming and podcasting,” said Lizzie Young, CEO of CRA.  

“The power of audio to get brands heard effectively and efficiently, and it’s flexibility to deliver against a range of different objectives, is powerful and translates directly to real results,” Young added.  

Source: CRA revenue results were compiled by media analytics firm Milton Data. Broadcast revenue includes metro and regional advertising, while digital audio encompasses streaming and podcasting

ABC podcast Expanse Series 3: Spies in the Outback, hosted by Alice Springs journalist Alex Barwick, has won the top gong at the New York Festivals Radio Awards.

Announced today at the gala ceremony, Spies in the Outback won gold and Expanse Series 4 Uncropped is a finalist in the documentary / history category. 

The prestigious Awards celebrate creative storytellers from across the globe and recognise exceptional quality in broadcast audio content. The Grand Jury chose the podcast series from a field of thousands of entries across six continents.

The story starts in the Cold War era and examines the secretive US/Australian defence base Pine Gap, hidden in Barwick’s back yard of Alice Springs. 

Barwick, who pitched the winning audio concept to the ABC, has been a reporter in the region for 17 years. She says she wanted to tell a story from regional Australia that would capture the imagination of a global audience.

“Working with an incredible team – Piia Wirsu, Grant Wolter and Elsa Silberstein, and led by our Executive Producer Blythe Moore, we were able to explore just how significant Pine Gap is in the Australia/US defence relationship,” Barwick says.

“It was important to tell the history of Pine Gap and how it’s shaped my town with care, while also examining what role it may have played in past and present global conflicts.”

EP Blythe Moore: “The ABC’s strength and its point of difference is that we have boots on the ground in some of the most remote and far-flung places in Australia.

“We couldn’t have told this story for a global audience without Alex’s extensive experience reporting for ABC Alice Springs, her incredible local contacts and connection to the community, and her doggedness to understand what is going on at Pine Gap. That’s what took this investigation to a whole other level.” 

ARN, Australia’s leading audio company, and Global, one of the world’s leading Media & Entertainment groups, have announced a new, long-term podcast partnership. From today, ARN’s iHeart is the exclusive advertising sales representative for Global’s premium podcast slate in Australia.

Global’s portfolio of chart-topping original podcasts includes The News Agents, hosted by Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel and Lewis Goodall, its companion show The News Agents USA, The Sports Agents, hosted by two of the UK’s most respected and popular sports broadcasters Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman, and the award-winning My Therapist Ghosted Me with Vogue Williams and Joanne McNally.

The partnership will also expand the availability of iHeart’s Australian podcasts, which will now be available on Global Player, Global’s entertainment app, providing expats and British listeners access to some of Australia’s most popular shows including, comedy podcast The Christian O’Connell Show, popular true-crime series The Lady Vanishes, and Life Uncut with Australian broadcasters Brittany Hockley and Laura Byrne.

As Australia’s #1 podcast publisher, ARN’s iHeart reaches over 7 million listeners every month with a diverse catalogue of local and international titles. Known for high-quality storytelling and premium audio experiences, iHeart is a trusted destination for both audiences and brands.

Corey Layton, ARN’s Head of Digital Audio, said: “Global and ARN share a passion for delivering world-class audio experiences across both markets. We’re excited to bring shows like My Therapist Ghosted Me and The News Agents to Australian advertisers while collaborating to support our shared ambitions.”

This announcement builds on Global’s existing partnership with iHeartMedia and coincides with their joint headline sponsorship of The Podcast Show London this week.

Katie Bowden, Managing Director of Commercial Audio at Global said: “Today marks another exciting new chapter for podcasts here at Global. Both Global and ARN see the potential to grow the commercial podcasting market across the world and connect with listeners everywhere through high-quality, premium podcasts and storytelling. We’re excited to be on this journey with ARN and iHeart and their impressive network of advertising partners.”

Fridayz Live is back in 2025 with its biggest, boldest, and most dazzling lineup yet. Headlining the nation’s ultimate party is global music icon Mariah Carey, making her long-awaited return to Australian stages for the first time in over a decade. Joining her is none other than Mr. Worldwide himself Pitbull, along with international heavyweights Wiz Khalifa, Lil Jon, Eve, Tinie Tempah, and Jordin Sparks, promising an unforgettable night of iconic hits and high energy.

Once again, The Hit Network and the Mushroom Group have joined forces to deliver the eighth Fridayz Live, touring across Australia this October. With its powerhouse roster and signature party atmosphere, it’s firmly established as the must-see tour of the summer.

The first Fridayz Live in 2016 featured Nelly, TLC and Blu Cantrell, among others, bringing the iconic Hit Network RnB Fridays feature to life in stadiums around Australia. Since then, Fridayz Live has brought some of the world’s biggest stars to Australian audiences, including Janet Jackson, Usher, Black Eyed Peas, Craig David, 50 Cent, Salt-n-Pepa and many more. 

On joining Fridayz Live and coming back to Australia, Mariah Carey said: “I missed you terribly, certainly the fans, and the people, the beautiful land and the animals, you know, it’s Australia, c’mon!”

Head of Hit Metro Content, Amanda Lee, said: “It’s fitting that in RnB Fridays 10th year, we’re bringing the biggest RnB superstars, Mariah Carey, Pitbull, Wiz Khalifa and more, to Australia, this is going to be an unforgettable tour. Our partnership with Mushroom Group continues to strengthen and I’m so pleased we get to bring our audiences this amazing lineup and continue to celebrate RnB Fridays.”

Mushroom Group CEO Matt Gudinski, said: “Fridayz Live has well and truly made its mark on our live entertainment scene, drawing over six hundred thousand fans across six massive tours, featuring some of the world’s most iconic artists. Throughout the journey we’ve built a long and proud partnership with The Hit Network and we’re thrilled to team up once again as we raise the bar in 2025 with our biggest Fridayz Live line-up yet.”

Fridayz Live tour dates and venues:

Brisbane 

Friday October 17th – Brisbane Showgrounds 

Sydney

Saturday October 18th – ENGIE Stadium

Perth

Friday October 24th – Langley Park

Melbourne

Saturday October 25th – Marvel Stadium

Fridayz Live is back! 7 Global Superstars sharing the stage for 1 night, presales begin from May 26th – general public tickets on sale June 2nd, visit fridayz.live for more.

• Friendly, fast paced environment
• Support our teams as they support community broadcasting in Australia
• Three days per week able to be worked remotely (flexible hours) 

The organisation 

The Community Broadcasting Association of Australia (CBAA) is a leading member based, for purpose organisation. We provide programs and services that strengthen over 400 community radio and independent media organisations.

With over five million listeners each week, community radio plays a vital role in providing a voice for multicultural, First Nations and other underrepresented groups, as well as supporting independent and emerging musicians, and communities not adequately serviced by other media services.

Our office is conveniently located close to Redfern Station and Waterloo Metro. 

The role 

Reporting to the Head of Finance, you’ll actively support our Finance Team and provide financial services support activities across CBAA.  You will have the opportunity to use a variety of business systems and processes as we continue our digital transformation. We can offer flexibility around the timing of days worked and spread of hours all of which may be worked remotely.

Responsibilities: 

• Accounts payable, accounts receivable and bank reconciliation 

• Debtors follow up 

• Collation of Excel based revenue schedules 

• Entry of member financial data into Salesforce 

• Assist the Finance Team with more complex accounting tasks 
  

Your success profile will include: 

• Experience in a similar role or in a customer service role 

• Certificate IV in Accounting, Bookkeeping, or Business Administration or higher 

• Proven ability to work effectively in a team environment and to collaborate across departments 

• Demonstrated written and verbal communication skills 

• Excellent numeracy and analytical skills 

• Working knowledge of Microsoft Office 365 tools (Outlook, Word, Excel, SharePoint and Teams) 

• Experience using Xero or equivalent small business systems 

• Comfortable using and learning new technologies  

• Eligibility to work in Australia on a permanent basis 

• If working hybrid or remote, a fast and stable internet connection 

• Ability to work Sydney office hours 
  

Application Process 

We are committed to improving outcomes for our communities. We value diversity and inclusion.  We actively seek and welcome applications from people with diverse backgrounds and with lived experience in the communities we  serve (including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, people with a disability, culturally and linguistically diverse people, the LGBTQIA+ community and people of diverse genders and faiths). 

To apply, submit your resume (max three pages) and a cover letter (max two pages) addressing the requirements and reason for application to the Head of Finance, Community Broadcasting Association at jobs@cbaa.org.au.  Successful applicants will be contacted for interview.

Please note that there is no formal closing date for this role. Early applications are encouraged, and suitable candidates may be shortlisted for interview as applications are received. For enquiries about this role, please email jobs@cbaa.org.au. 

Commercial Radio & Audio (CRA) has reported total radio revenue of $262.1 million for Q1 2025, up 1.2% year-on-year (YOY), powered by surging digital audio adoption and anchored by the enduring strength of broadcast radio.  

Across the quarter total revenues held firm while digital revenues rose 32.7% from $17.2m in Q1 2024 to $22.9m in Q1 2025. 

For the quarter, metro broadcast radio remained stable overall with a flat year-on-year result of $147 million. Regional broadcast radio revenue saw a slight and isolated 3% dip to $92.2 million, driven by a one-off event – Cyclone Alfred. The cyclone caused short-term disruption to local businesses and trading activity across parts of Queensland and NSW in March, leading to a temporary drop in direct advertising in the affected regions.  

Despite this and other macro-economic conditions, the remainder of H1 is tracking to maintain the industry’s overall position of growth. 

“Our audiences have never been higher, and with advertisers recognising our ability to deliver unrivalled reach, results and relevance we are seeing strong demand across our total addressable market of metro and regional radio, digital streaming and podcasting,” said Lizzie Young, CEO of CRA.  

“The power of audio to get brands heard effectively and efficiently, and it’s flexibility to deliver against a range of different objectives, is powerful and translates directly to real results,” Young added.  

Source: CRA revenue results were compiled by media analytics firm Milton Data. Broadcast revenue includes metro and regional advertising, while digital audio encompasses streaming and podcasting.

The powerful investigative podcast The Ultimate Sacrifice, from 9News Queensland and 9Podcasts, has won the prestigious Gold Award for Best Narrative Documentary Podcast at the internationally recognised New York Festival Radio Awards.

Presented by 9News Queensland’s Melissa Downes, with Jessica Lodge executive producer, sound design and editing by Adam Buncher, technical production by Matt White, and creative direction by Sam Stove, The Ultimate Sacrifice explored the harrowing events of Australia’s first Christian terrorist attack, an ambush that led to the murder of two young police officers and an innocent civilian.

This gripping series delved into the complexities of religious extremism, the trauma of frontline responders, and the evolving investigation, culminating in revelations from a live Coronial Inquest. This made it one of the first Coronial Inquests to be documented and covered in real-time podcast format in Australia.

Following the landmark success of their internationally acclaimed podcast debut Hannah’s Story, The Ultimate Sacrifice podcast marks the second smash hit from Melissa Downes, Jessica Lodge and Adam Buncher.

In a joint statement, Downes and Lodge said: “On behalf of the team, we are incredibly proud and humbled to have had the opportunity to tell this story.

“In a media landscape that often moves quickly and forgets too soon, we poured our time and care into crafting a detailed, emotionally sensitive and comprehensive account. To see this being recognised on a global stage is an incredible honor.”

Managing Director of Nine Radio, Tom Malone said: “This international recognition for The Ultimate Sacrifice is a powerful reminder of how podcasting can bring critical stories to life. Melissa, Jessica and the team have delivered an extraordinary investigation, not only breaking new ground as one of the first podcasts to follow a Coronial Inquest in real-time, but doing so with exceptional care and integrity.

“Once again, the collaboration between 9News and 9Podcasts proves to be a force, combining world-class journalism with the storytelling power of audio to deliver impact that truly resonates.”

Following in the footsteps of Hannah’s Story, which supported Sue & Lloyd Clarke’s campaign for Hannah’s Law and is now being used in domestic violence training programs across the country, The Ultimate Sacrifice continues the team’s mission to share stories that not only inform but create lasting change. The Ultimate Sacrifice soared to the top of the Spotify charts in Australia, holding the #1 spot for over a month, and has 1.6 million downloads and counting.

Nine today announces that Brian Gallagher has been appointed Commercial Director – Audio, leading the organisation’s revamped sales function for Nine Radio as part of a new commercial structure to take place from July 1.

This investment in the sales structure allows Nine to both play to its strengths of scale and reach across platforms, while providing greater capability to unlock more advertising opportunities in what talk radio does best – live, local and deeper brand connections with listeners.

The audio sales teams will form an integral part of Nine’s overall sales approach and the unrivalled commercial offering across Total TV, Total Publishing and Total Audio to ensure clients reach the widest and most diverse audience in Australia.

Nine’s Chief Sales Officer, Matt James said, “This change to our sales structure builds on our capability to deliver campaigns that can suit clients big or small, national or local, to engage and grow connections with our audiences. Whether it be a multi-platform campaign or more local, immediate and radio specific, it’s the best of both worlds for brands.”

Brian Gallagher said, “The market for audio advertising has never been more dynamic, driven by audiences embracing our content across multiple platforms. I look forward to our refreshed commercial approach delivering effective audio advertising to a much broader suite of advertisers.”

Nine Radio’s Managing Director, Tom Malone said, “This is a vote of confidence in the potential growth opportunities that radio presents for Nine. This investment will help drive greater commercial returns from our unique audience offering and enable our teams to elevate our focus on direct sales. Brian is Australia’s leading Radio and Audio sales executive and is the perfect choice to deepen the collaboration of our Sales division alongside our Content and Operations teams.”

Brian has previously held C-Suite roles including Chief Sales Officer at Southern Cross Austereo, Chief Executive Officer at Ignite Media Brands and is the Chairperson of Boomtown.