Media Insider: MediaWorks radio stations primed for sale; Radio boss working from home after complaint; Top all-female podcast loses a voice

Now industry sources have confirmed MediaWorks is being primed for sale, with Australian private equity owner Quadrant an unlikely long-term investor in the media firm.

Quadrant sold MediaWorks’ sister media company, outdoor advertising firm QMS, to Australia’s Nine Entertainment three weeks ago.

MediaWorks (which was split off from QMS in New Zealand last year) was not part of the Nine deal, and it remains under Quadrant’s ownership with Australian businessman Barclay Nettlefold as its chair.

Potential new owners include Sky TV or TradeMe/Stuff, although there would likely be major shareholder and/or financial hurdles and questions with those two options.

Similarly, NZME, which owns most of the other commercial radio stations in New Zealand, would undoubtedly like to be in the mix for some of the music brands, but would likely face an uphill battle with the Commerce Commission.

Media Insider understands a number of advisers - including banks - are starting to eye a possible sale.

“We haven’t actually made any decisions to offload it at this stage,” Nettlefold told Media Insider this week.

“We’ve spent a lot of time over the last several years restructuring the business. It’s shown good growth, and we’re very encouraged by where it’s going at the moment.

“But certainly, it’s the only media asset that we’ve got sitting within the group now.”

For now, he reiterated it was business as usual: “That’s what we’re doing at the moment, just really focusing on making sure the business is strong.

“I’m still the chairman, and I’m spending half my time working with Wendy on the business at the moment,” he said, referring to MediaWorks’ chief executive Wendy Palmer, who has led the company’s turnaround since 2023.

Nettlefold said there had “certainly” been “a few inquiries” to Quadrant about its plans for the firm.

“When there’s a structural change to an organisation in a country where we’ve separated out outdoor and sold that off, and now radio is standing there with its digital content in isolation ... people want to know what our plan is with it.”

So, is it for sale?

“Look, in a throwaway line … we’re private equity-owned with myself; everything’s available at the right price, but at this stage it’s business as usual.”

Another strong factor in favour of a sale is the Government’s confirmed plans around the renewal of radio frequencies after 2031. Possible new investors now know their frequencies would be safe for at least another 20 years, with a likely ballpark outlay, for the MediaWorks frequencies, likely to be around $15 million over that time, according to industry sources.

Asked if he was talking to potential investors such as Sky TV, Nettlefold said:“We’re not talking to anybody at this stage, but certainly certain advisers have reached out to Quadrant and myself in relation to what our plans are.

“But there’s no process being run.”

He said advisers, such as banks, were keen to understand Quadrant’s position.

“We’re just trying to make sure that we hit the first quarter with 5 to 6% [revenue] growth, and Wendy’s doing that, so we’ll keep driving forward at this stage. That’s off the back of last year’s growth, too.”

He said the business had been through a successful restructure, from its executive through to radio hosts. “I think we’ve really got a good mix now on the DJ side and locked all of them in. They’re all working very well together.”

He did not regret that the company had ditched Today FM and the news business.

“I don’t think you can be a champion of everything in a market that size. You’ve got to be strong in one area or the other unless you’ve got real scale. If you’ve got real scale, different, but if you don’t have scale, it’d be a very hard road forward.

“And the other station [NZME’s Newstalk ZB] is too strong.”

With a commercial audience share of 54%, Nettlefold said MediaWorks was a “great asset”.

“It’s a growing business, it’s been around for a long time, and I think we’ve really put a lot more value back into the MediaWorks brand, per se, from where it was five to six years ago.”

He also said MediaWorks’ debts had been cleared. “It’s a fully cleared asset. The debt’s totally separated from the New Zealand business at this stage.”

A senior MediaWorks leader is working from home while an inquiry is underway into a workplace exchange involving another staff member.

The senior leader is understood to be defending their position, but they said they could not comment.

“I am employed by MediaWorks – I am working remotely at the moment. I am at home, on the tools and working. I would be happy to leave it there at this stage.”

An advertising sales worker is understood to have made a complaint about the exchange.

The staff member said: “I am working through things internally at the moment. I’m really impressed with how everyone is working through this at the moment. I don’t want to say anything until the process is followed through.

“I’ve known [the leader] for a long time, and I respect [them]. I would rather work through the process from a professional standpoint. I can’t say anything, and I don’t want to jeopardise anything.”

It is understood that there are hopes that the matter will be resolved amicably.

MediaWorks said it could not comment.

Two of the three women behind one of New Zealand’s most popular podcasts have reunited with another female personality to launch a new venture.

Former The Girls Uninterrupted hosts Brodie Kane and Gracie Hitchcock will launch the Let Her Finish podcast, with radio host Tegan Yorwarth, in March.

It comes after Kane, Hitchcock and Caitlin Marett farewelled their listeners – rather abruptly and in tears – after seven years and more than 300 episodes in December.

Kane told Media Insider at the time that “we’re going our separate ways, us girls”.

The decision also coincided with the end of her company’s distribution deal with media firm Stuff. Since then, Kane has taken her podcast work to MediaWorks.

“Formerly known as The Girls Uninterrupted, the fan-favourite series is evolving," MediaWorks reported this week. “It’s back with a bold new name, a (semi) new line-up, and a whole lot more to say.”

The Let Her Finish brand has taken over The Girls Uninterrupted Instagram page, along with its 30,200 followers.

But with the announcement of the new podcast, many of the former show’s listeners had just one question: Where’s Caitlin?

“Feel for Caitlin. She was always so wise and funny. Will miss her input,” said one follower.

Another simply posted the hashtag, #teamcaitlin.

“Guess this is why Caitlin looked so angry …” said another, referring to the announcement of the end of The Girls Uninterrupted in December.

“Caitlin didn’t want to leave her listeners. Hopefully the truth will come out,” said a fourth.

When asked in December about the end of The Girls Uninterrupted, Marett told Media Insider by text message: “Thanks for reaching out but I’m not going to make any comment on this at this stage.”

She told her podcast listeners at the time: “I am really, really gutted and really sad that this is ending.”

She did not wish to comment again yesterday.

Hitchcock told Media Insider in December that she was not in a position to chat over the phone, asking for questions to be emailed to her. She did not respond to those and also did not answer a follow-up message this week.

Kane, meanwhile, declined to address questions about why Marett was not involved in the latest podcast.

“I’m really excited about the launch of Let Her Finish!” she said in a text. “I don’t have anything further to comment than what’s already been said, but thank you for clocking in.”

With the trio staying quiet, Media Insider can only speculate on some of the factors at play.

Marett is based in the South Island, so it’s feasible that the new grouping wanted to be all together in the same location in Auckland, for the best possible rapport.

Marett was formerly associated with radio station ZM, which is owned by NZME and is a rival radio station to MediaWorks’ suite of music brands. Yorwarth, on the other hand, is a host of MediaWorks’ Mai FM.

Followers were suspicious late last year about the abrupt break-up of The Girls Uninterrupted.

“There’s nothing in it other than the timing of the partnership with Stuff was coming to an end. It made sense to wind up,” Kane said at the time.

“As far as Brodie Kane Media, I’m always looking at ways to evolve and figure things out as a staff member of one. That’s what I’m just going to be looking to do for 2026.”

She said at the time that The Girls Uninterrupted had been a labour of love.

“It’s been a huge, amazing seven years, working with just two incredible women and navigating everything that we’ve navigated together.

“It’s been an absolute pleasure and privilege to work with both of them. We’ve had so much fun.”

She said she loved the two other women unconditionally. “They have been very dear friends to me.”

She said at the time she could not speak about their own plans.

This week, I sat down with The Front Page podcast host Chelsea Daniels to discuss the life and times of fraud-accused TV producer Alex Breingan.

It’s certainly been an intriguing case to investigate over the past two years, with further inquiries underway.

It has it all: allegations of fraud, Hollywood A-listers, millions of dollars owed to creditors, and questions over Breingan’s access to the Government’s Screen Production Rebate scheme.

Breingan, who now lives in Los Angeles, denies the fraud charges.

Questions remain over whether he will return voluntarily to New Zealand or if Interpol will need to help extradite him.

You can listen to or watch the podcast here.

A long-running small New Zealand appliance firm, which pulled off one of the best advertising and marketing stunts of 2025, has shut up shop.

East Tāmaki-based Appliance Outlet used the partial logos of Noel Leeming, JB HiFi and Harvey Norman in a cheeky outdoor advertising campaign last year.

“It was basically the economy,” said owner Russ Clements, reflecting on the closure of the business that he has owned for the past six years and which has been operating for almost 15 years.

He said thecompany had not been profitable in the past 18 months. “I’m a CA [certified accountant] by trade, so it’s been quite hard watching the numbers go down.”

While there had been talk of a rebounding economy, “we certainly hadn’t seen it directly”.

“I think there’s a bit more of a positive outlook out there, but it doesn’t really amount to much if people aren’t actually coming to throw it in your direction.”

He’d also received lots of positive feedback around last year’s marketing campaign and the publicity for it, but that had not translated to enough sales.

“It’s like, ‘I’m glad you enjoyed it, but how about you buy something?’

“Particularly around Christmas, Black Friday, all that sort of stuff, the big boys just keep kind of stripping prices and having massive advertising spend.

“You can’t really keep up with it, and people are driving ... they have been very price-conscious. It’s just got to the stage where we were like, ‘Oh, we can’t really keep doing this anymore.’”

The business employed about 15 staff.

“We have been very careful to make sure that we help them as much as we can. Pretty much most of the team have got roles elsewhere.”

The NZ Herald’s longstanding Auckland Council reporter, Bernard Orsman, is retiring after 36 years at the masthead.

“Bernard is a first-class rounds reporter with a nose for scoops and a contact book thicker than the Yellow Pages,” his editor, Lane Nichols, told staff this week.

“He is also someone who cares deeply about his craft and has always had his readers at front of mind, ferreting out and documenting important developments that impact the city and its residents.”

Orsman also worked in the press gallery for the Herald, a masthead he joined in 1990.

The 65-year-old was typically succinct about his own departure, saying he was leaving a job he loves on his own terms. “I’ve done my dash.”

His final day is March 13.

A familiar face has jumped onboard to be editor of Air NZ’s inflight magazine, Kia Ora.

Jacqui Loates-Haver will return as editor of the magazine that she previously piloted from 2017 to 2020.

Are Media said that, during that time, she had led Kia Ora to its highest-ever readership levels, “delivering the strongest commercial performance to date and cementing the magazine’s position as a premium storytelling platform that connects deeply with both domestic and international audiences”.

Loates-Haver is replacing Virginia Larson, who is stepping down after an “outstanding” five years leading the team, said Are Media general manager Stuart Dick.

“We’re delighted to have Jacqui leading Kia Ora into a new era. She knows the brand intimately and has a proven track record of editorial excellence and commercial success.”

Loates-Haver, currently at Stuff, starts in late March.

Editor-at-Large Shayne Currie is one of New Zealand’s most experienced senior journalists and media leaders. He has held executive and senior editorial roles at NZME, including Managing Editor, NZ Herald Editor and Herald on Sunday Editor and has a small shareholding in NZME.