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Top management changes at well-known enterprises are significant, almost always, for a splashy headline and not much more. Three in one day, however, is too convenient. And so, as we near the new moon of June, vampires, werewolves and bats look for safety from the short, dark night.
The day (Thursday June 11) began with CNBC breaking the story of mad scrambling at the House of Murdoch. In keeping with the mythology, Rupert Murdoch (The Elder) is elevating himself while levitating son James (The Younger) to CEO of 21st Century Fox and son Lachlan (The Other) to co-executive chairman. Daughter Elisabeth (The Smart One) remains in hiding. (See more about Rupert Murdoch , 21st Century Fox and News Corporation here)
By noon news broke that FIFA communications director Walter de Gregorio had been spun out of a job for his “joke” on a Swiss-German public TV talk show. “Who’s driving?” was the set-up line about scandal-ridden FIFA executives in a car. His job-killing punchline: “The police.” He also told the show host he was “underpaid.” So it goes. (See more about sports and media here)
At the end of the day, the Twitter-storm erupted as Twitter CEO Dick Costolo “stepped down” to be replaced by co-founder and board chairman Jack Dorsey while the board sifts through a pile of CVs for a new headmaster. Shareholders and investors have grown temperamental as company growth rates dipped into single digits. In new media land, this is a disaster. (See more about social media here)
Untangling this web reveals a few immutable truths. We’ll let you know when we get there.
The government of Romania introduced this week an emergency ordinance creating an audiovisual fund to provide critical funding to the nation’s broadcasters. Alas, we’ve heard of these schemes before - notably in France and Spain. The €15 million fund distributed between now and the end of 2016 will be financed through the State budget and administered by media regulator National Audiovisual Council (CNA).
The first draft of the emergency ordinance specified funding through a tax on “distributors of broadcasting services” - meaning cable companies and telecoms, reported mediafax.ro (June 11). The tax part was quickly dropped after loud and immediate howling from cable companies and telecoms. The CNA voted to endorse the plan “to support operators in the audiovisual field that produce and disseminate information, cultural and educational shows,” said the Ministry of Information Society statement. (See more about media in Romania here)
Romanian media organizations - Center for Independent Journalism, Active Watch and Convention of Media Organizations - called the emergency ordinance establishing the fund “inadvisable” and asked the government to step back. “By its very nature, State aid creates a selective competitive advantage and distorts free competition,” said the joint statement. They also suggested a bit of electioneering. “The imposition of such a measure during the electoral season raises major question marks regarding the government’s intentions and erodes the credibility of broadcasters receiving such aid.”
How the funds might be distributed is one hot potato. “We ourselves are not going to develop that criteria alone,” said CNA deputy chairman Rasvan Popescu. “In cases of State aid we must cooperate with the Competition Council and Ministry of Finance. A Finance Ministry spokesperson said they “will get an opinion from the Competition Council” on the plan.
Swift and decisive was reaction to Turkey’s parliamentary elections last weekend. The country’s politically divided media outlets were either overjoyed or confused, depending on proximity to the conservative Justice and Development Party (AKP) of President Recep Tayyi Erdogan. The AKP lost the parliamentary majority it has held since 2002.
The Istanbul stock exchange traders voted bonuses to Dogan Holding, the conglomerate principally owning newspapers and broadcast outlets long at odds editorially with President Erdogan, reported BGNNews.com (June 8) and Bloomberg (June 9). Shares in publishing and advertising subsidiary Hürriyet Gazetecilik bolted more than 10%. Publisher Taraf Gazetecilik traded 10% higher. (See more about media in Turkey here)
By contrast share prices of State-owned banks and property management companies have been trading significantly lower along with truck maker Katmerciler, known for the TOMA armored water cannons deployed by authorities against protestors in recent years.
Media outlets reliably aligned with the AKP, as election results became obvious, appeared to punish well-known columnists and commentators. Sabah newspaper columnist Sevilay Yükselir was fired (June 8) after criticizing the AKP and endorsing the Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP) on the Friday before the elections, reported Todays Zaman (June 9). Sabah and television broadcaster ATV were acquired by Kalyon Grubu in 2013, the construction conglomerate known as contractor for the Taksim Gezi Park redevelopment project, protests of which led to extensive deployment of the notorious aforementioned TOMA water cannons. (See more about elections and media here)
Ciner Media Group announced an overhaul of news and talk programs on Show TV, releasing reliably pro-AKP show host Melh Altinok. “First election results in the central media started to arrive,” he announced on Twitter (June 8). “Our program on Show TV banned. Congrats!” Evening news anchor Ece Üner and 25 others were terminated through the week. Show TV was officially acquired last week by Cinar Media Group after a controversial bankruptcy court seizure.
Radio listening data in eastern Ukraine has been suspended and the region will not be included in forthcoming publication of national audience estimates. The joint industry Radio Committee, which organizes support for the surveys, said the action is temporary. Last year radio audience estimates for the Crimean Peninsula were also suspended.
“Due to the ATO (anti-terrorism operation) radio listening is atypical and broadcasting by Ukrainian radio stations is intermittent,” said Radio Committee coordinator Vitaliy Gorduzenko, quoted by Telekritika (June 9). Data collection in 14 cities within the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts has been put on hold “to preserve the credibility of the research and to prevent possible manipulation.” GfK Ukraine produces the twice annual radio surveys of listeners in cities with populations greater than 50,000. (See more about media in Ukraine here)
The Radio Committee - comprising broadcasters, ad agencies and advertisers - decided in May to release radio listening data only to paying subscribers.
Enterprises of a certain scale undergo wholesale organizational changes with great reluctance. Internal shifts, however, can be constant: why else have an HR department the size of a small planet? Add-in shareholder anxiety from the incessant digital trumpets and chief executives either turn up the music or find themselves singing someone else’s tune.
Very big media house RTL Group, over recent months, has made requisite investments in digital content (StyleHaul), digital platforms (BroadbandTV) and automated ad-sales systems (SpotXchange). Much of that is in North America, the best place to find digital money. Turning all that into corporate marching orders, co-CEO’s Anke Schäferkordt and Guillaume de Posch have created RTL Digital Hub, not quite a division and more than just a committee, to “maximize the value” of all the digital parts within the company. (See RTL Group presser here)
Named to lead Digital Hub and “scan the market for further investments in the online video space” is Marcel Reichart, who happens to be executive vice president of digital development at Bertelsmann GmbH, principal shareholder of RTL Group. He is “effective immediately” the RTL/Bertelsmann digital guru. The RTL Group presser stressed synergies and “entrepreneurial spirit.”
If all goes according to plan Greek public broadcaster ERT will officially return to the airwaves this week with most radio and television channels once offered as ERT before the infamous lock-out two years ago. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras made reopening ERT and rehiring fired employees a major election campaign pledge. He announced the return of ERT in May, details remaining vague until last week.
PM Tsipras reappointed Lambis Tagmatarchis as ERT CEO and named entertainer Dionysis Tsaknis president. Other management positions, referred to as coordinators, have been filled temporarily until the new ERT board redrafts the organigram. More important politically is the disposition of fired employees who, if they show up for work, will be shoulder to shoulder with the NERIT employees. (See more about media in Greece here)
Workers dismantled the NERIT lettering from the Athens headquarters building, reported typologies.gr (June 8), to show ERT. Mr. Tsaknis said opening day - June 11 - will be a “festive event.”
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