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For type 2 diabetes, focusing on when you eat – not what – can help control blood sugar

<div class="theconversation-article-body"> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/evelyn-parr-441878">Evelyn Parr</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/brooke-devlin-2237174">Brooke Devlin</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a></em></p> <p>Type 2 diabetes affects <a href="https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/diabetes/diabetes/contents/how-common-is-diabetes/type-2-diabetes">1.2 million Australians</a> and accounts for <a href="https://www.diabetesaustralia.com.au/about-diabetes/type-2-diabetes/">85-90%</a> of all diabetes cases. This chronic condition is characterised by high blood glucose (sugar) levels, which carry serious <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(17)30058-2/abstract">health</a> risks. <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/nrendo.2017.151">Complications</a> include heart disease, kidney failure and vision problems.</p> <p>Diet is an important way people living with type 2 diabetes manage blood glucose, alongside exercise and medication. But while we know individualised, professional dietary advice improves blood glucose, it can be <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0168822717317588">complex</a> and is not always <a href="https://www.publish.csiro.au/py/PY13021">accessible</a>.</p> <p><a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168822724008039">Our new study</a> looked at the impact of time-restricted eating – focusing on when you eat, rather than what or how much – on blood glucose levels.</p> <p>We found it had similar results to individualised advice from an accredited practising dietitian. But there were added benefits, because it was simple, achievable, easy to stick to – and motivated people to make other positive changes.</p> <h2>What is time-restricted eating?</h2> <p>Time-restricted eating, also known as <a href="https://www.annualreviews.org/content/journals/10.1146/annurev-nutr-082018-124320">the 16:8 diet</a>, became popular for weight loss around 2015. Studies have since shown it is also an <a href="https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2811116">effective way</a> for people with type 2 diabetes to manage blood glucose.</p> <p>Time-restricted eating involves limiting when you eat each day, rather than focusing on what you eat. You restrict eating to a window during daylight hours, for example between 11am and 7pm, and then fast for the remaining hours. This can sometimes naturally lead to also eating less.</p> <p>Giving your body a break from constantly digesting food in this way helps align eating with natural <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jne.12886">circadian rhythms</a>. This <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/jnc.15246">can help</a> regulate metabolism and improve overall health.</p> <p>For people with type 2 diabetes, there may be specific benefits. They often have their <a href="https://doi.org/10.2337/dc12-2127">highest blood glucose</a> reading in the morning. Delaying breakfast to mid-morning means there is time for physical activity to occur to help reduce glucose levels and prepare the body for the first meal.</p> <h2>How we got here</h2> <p>We ran an <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/11/3228">initial study</a> in 2018 to see whether following time-restricted eating was achievable for people with type 2 diabetes. We found participants could easily stick to this eating pattern over four weeks, for an average of five days a week.</p> <p>Importantly, they also had improvements in blood glucose, spending less time with high levels. <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/12/2/505">Our previous research</a> suggests the reduced time between meals may play a role in how the hormone insulin is able to reduce glucose concentrations.</p> <p><a href="https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.39337">Other studies</a> have confirmed these findings, which have <a href="https://doi.org/10.1186/s12986-021-00613-9">also shown</a> notable improvements in HbA1c. This is a <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK304271/">marker</a> in the blood that represents concentrations of blood glucose over an average of three months. It is the <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.4137/BMI.S38440">primary clinical tool</a> used for diabetes.</p> <p>However, these studies provided intensive support to participants through weekly or fortnightly meetings with researchers.</p> <p>While we know this level of support <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/0802295">increases</a> how likely people are to stick to the plan and improves outcomes, it is not readily available to everyday Australians living with type 2 diabetes.</p> <h2>What we did</h2> <p>In our <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168822724008039">new study</a>, we compared time-restricted eating directly with advice from an <a href="https://dietitiansaustralia.org.au/working-dietetics/standards-and-scope/role-accredited-practising-dietitian">accredited practising dietitian</a>, to test whether results were similar across six months.</p> <p>We recruited 52 people with type 2 diabetes who were currently managing their diabetes with up to two oral medications. There were 22 women and 30 men, aged between 35 and 65.</p> <p>Participants were randomly divided into two groups: diet and time-restricted eating. In both groups, participants received four consultations across the first four months. During the next two months they managed diet alone, without consultation, and we continued to measure the impact on blood glucose.</p> <p>In the diet group, consultations focused on changing their diet to control blood glucose, including improving diet quality (for example, eating more vegetables and limiting alcohol).</p> <p>In the time-restricted eating group, advice focused on how to limit eating to a nine-hour window between 10am and 7pm.</p> <p>Over six months, we measured each participant’s blood glucose levels every two months using the HbA1c test. Each fortnight, we also asked participants about their experience of making dietary changes (to what or when they ate).</p> <h2>What we found</h2> <p>We found time-restricted eating was as effective as the diet intervention.</p> <p>Both groups had reduced blood glucose levels, with the greatest improvements occurring after the first two months. Although it wasn’t an objective of the study, some participants in each group also lost weight (5-10kg).</p> <p>When surveyed, participants in the time-restricted eating group said they had adjusted well and were able to follow the restricted eating window. Many told us they had family support and enjoyed earlier mealtimes together. Some also found they slept better.</p> <p>After two months, people in the time-restricted group were looking for more dietary advice to further improve their health.</p> <p>Those in the diet group were less likely to stick to their plan. Despite similar health outcomes, time-restricted eating seems to be a simpler initial approach than making complex dietary changes.</p> <h2>Is time-restricted eating achievable?</h2> <p>The main barriers to following time-restricted eating are social occasions, caring for others and work schedules. These factors may prevent people eating within the window.</p> <p>However, there are many benefits. The message is simple, focusing on when to eat as the main diet change. This may make time-restricted eating more translatable to people from a wider variety of socio-cultural backgrounds, as the types of foods they eat don’t need to change, just the timing.</p> <p>Many people don’t have access to more individualised support from a dietitian, and receive nutrition advice from their GP. This makes time-restricted eating an alternative – and equally effective – strategy for people with type 2 diabetes.</p> <p>People should still try to stick to <a href="https://www.eatforhealth.gov.au/guidelines/guidelines">dietary guidelines</a> and prioritise vegetables, fruit, wholegrains, lean meat and healthy fats.</p> <p>But our study showed time-restricted eating may also serve as stepping stone for people with type 2 diabetes to take control of their health, as people became more interested in making diet and other positive changes.</p> <p>Time-restricted eating might not be appropriate for everyone, especially people on medications which don’t recommend fasting. Before trying this dietary change, it’s best speak to the healthcare professional who helps you manage diabetes.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/241472/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/evelyn-parr-441878">Evelyn Parr</a>, Research Fellow in Exercise Metabolism and Nutrition, Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-catholic-university-747">Australian Catholic University</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/brooke-devlin-2237174">Brooke Devlin</a>, Lecturer in Nutrition and Dietetics, School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-queensland-805">The University of Queensland</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/for-type-2-diabetes-focusing-on-when-you-eat-not-what-can-help-control-blood-sugar-241472">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Body

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"Heavy heart": Susie O'Neill breaks down as she resigns live on air

<p>Olympic swimmer turned radio host Susie O'Neill has broken down live on air as she announced her resignation from her role with the Brisbane Nova breakfast show.</p> <p>The 51-year-old tearfully told her co-hosts David 'Luttsy' Lutteral and Ashley Bradnam that she would be taking a step back from radio after 10 years with the network. </p> <p>"I do this with a heavy heart, the decision wasn't easy. It's hard for me to articulate exactly why I'm leaving," Susie began.</p> <p>"Turning 50 last year, I realised I'm at a whole new stage in my life. The next chapter will see me pursue other goals, both professionally and personally."</p> <p>Susie added that she was already contemplating what her next career moves would be, as she reassured listeners that she would stay on the air for another six weeks, with her final show being on November 28th.</p> <p>"I want to get back to the grassroots of sport and involve myself in the wider community. It's going to be an emotional final day, saying goodbye to everyone," she said.</p> <p>"Whatever this next chapter brings, my Nova family won't be far away."</p> <p>She went on to thank both of her co-hosts a she reflected on her time on the show, saying, "Thanks to Ash and Luttsy for bringing me into your world and life a bit over 10 years ago now, when I pretty much had nothing going on in my life to be honest."</p> <p>"I joked that it saved my life at the time. You were both so supportive of me. I was horrible at radio and I’d be upset and say, 'I can’t do it' and you would say, 'no, just keep going, just keep going'."</p> <p>Co-host Luttsy was quick to pay tribute to Susie, saying, "It's been an incredible adventure becoming great mates with you. Can't wait to see your next chapter."</p> <p>Before joining the world of radio in 2023 as a sports broadcaster, Susie rose to fame at the age of just 14, joining the Olympic team and going on to score 35 Australian titles and retiring after the 2000 Sydney Olympics. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Nova</em></p>

Music

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The surprising unknown road rule that is costing drivers

<p dir="ltr">A woman has issued a warning to Aussie drivers after being threatened with a hefty fine for a common car decoration. </p> <p dir="ltr">Janelle McEvoy, a young woman from Perth, took to TikTok to recall the moment she learned that she could be facing a fine for having an air freshener hanging from her car’s rear view mirror. </p> <p dir="ltr">“I randomly got breath tested on the way to an event this morning and the police officer told me when I get home I need to remove this hanging from my car to avoid the $100 fine and the demerit point,” she said in her TikTok video, which has since had nearly 2 million views. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Doesn’t everyone have one of these hanging from their car? Where is it supposed to go?”</p> <p dir="ltr">Thousands of people flocked to the comments on the video to share their surprise over the obscure road rule, with one person writing, “The way my jaw dropped when you showed what it was cause I bought the exact same thing not too long ago.”</p> <p dir="ltr">Another added, “That’s crazy, I have like four air fresheners and two crystal chains hanging from my car.”</p> <p dir="ltr">The rule, which varies between states, can carry fines and possibly the loss of demerit points, if a police officer deems that the driver’s vision is obstructed from whatever is hanging from the mirror.</p> <p dir="ltr">In NSW, drivers without a clear view of the road can be fined $410 fine and have three demerit points issued.</p> <p dir="ltr">In other Aussie states, the fine for obstructed vision can range between $100 and $361. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p>

Money & Banking

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Joel Creasey announces exciting personal news on air

<p>Radio host Joel Creasey has shared the exciting news that he and his partner are now engaged after being together for seven years.</p> <p>Creasey announced the news on his Instagram, also sharing the news with his co-hosts of the <em>Ricki-Lee, Tim and Joel radio show</em> on Nova, recalling how his boyfriend, Jack Stratton-Smith, had surprised him with the proposal on their final night in Monopoli, southern Italy.</p> <p>“Well, you asked what happened on my trip to Italy … I did get engaged to the love of my life after seven and a half years,” Creasey told his co-hosts and listeners on Monday.</p> <p>“He finally popped the question! It was very last-minute, it was the day before we left, actually … It was just on a little rooftop and we had a couple of friends there, and I had no idea. I genuinely had no idea.”</p> <p>He added, “We had many a drink that night and it was very special.”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DAiEIlBBnRf/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DAiEIlBBnRf/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Joel Creasey (@joelcreasey)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The engagement ring reportedly took a year and a half to make, and was inspired by Creasey's favourite musical Wicked.</p> <p>Creasey explained that the news of his engagement had surprised many people for an unexpected reason.</p> <p>He said, “We’ve been together for ages, a lot of people were like, ‘I thought you were already married!’”</p> <p>Joel and Jack started dating in 2017 after they met at an Adele concert.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram </em></p>

Relationships

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Tony Armstrong announces his "retirement" live on air

<p>After three years on the <em>ABC News Breakfast</em> couch, Tony Armstrong is leaving the show. </p> <p>Sharing the news on-air on Tuesday, he announced his last day on the program would be Friday October 4th. </p> <p>“I’ve been pretty nervous about doing this,” Armstrong began, before going on to say he had “retired from News Breakfast.”</p> <p>“I just want to thank Brekky and the broader ABC News team for welcoming me in with open arms and helping me grow over the past few years,” he added. “[It] feels like I’ve been on a bit of a rocket ship.”</p> <p>Armstrong continued, “I’m going to miss the couch. Not the alarm, but I’ll miss the couch. And, yeah, I’ve had such a ball. I’m going to miss everyone but, um, yeah. You’ll still see me around.”</p> <p>Co-host Michael Rowland paid tribute to Armstrong, saying, “I am so sorry three years of talking sport and swapping gags with Tony is about to end.”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/DARo4oeTuZC/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/DARo4oeTuZC/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Tony Armstrong (@tonaaayy)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>“He is an engaging colleague and a good friend. In fact, there’s no one I would rather sit through an earthquake with. We did. Google it.”</p> <p>Armstrong also shared the news to his Instagram followers, writing, "Plenty more people to thank and I’ll do that next week, but that’s it for me at NBK. Looking forward to whatever comes next! Thanks to these amazing on-air teammates for making the mornings SOMEWHAT bearable."</p> <p>Armstrong, a proud Gamilaroi man, will remain with the public broadcaster, where he’s set to host a new series which will air next year, while his replacement on the News Breakfast program has yet to be announced. </p> <p><em>Image credits ABC</em></p>

TV

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Drunk couple forces emergency landing after mid-air meltdown

<p>A Ryanair flight to Ibiza had to be diverted after a drunk couple allegedly assaulted cabin crew and other passengers. </p> <p>The plane, carrying holiday-makers from Manchester to Ibiza had to make an emergency landing in Toulouse, where police hauled the intoxicated passengers off the plane. </p> <p>A British traveller on the flight, who asked to remain anonymous, recalled the man "swigging duty free vodka" on the first hour of the flight, before he started arguing with a male cabin crew member and punched him in the face. </p> <p>As they tried to restrain him, the intoxicated man assaulted another passenger and spat at a woman, hurling verbal abuse at her. </p> <p>“He was kicking off with everyone, he was out of control,” the witness said.</p> <p>Flight attendants reportedly warned him that the flight would have to be diverted if he didn't calm down, but he replied: “I don’t give a f***.” </p> <p>The altercation lasted for about 40 minutes until Flight FR2626 had to land in Toulouse, and 12 police officers took him away in custody. </p> <p>Video of the attack showed the man shouting and swearing at the police, before assaulting another traveller as he was being escorted off the flight. </p> <p>After he left the plane, his partner started harassing another traveller, hitting him and calling him a "paedo". </p> <p>In another video, police were filmed physically restraining the woman, before removing her from the plane. </p> <p>The flight spent just over an hour and a half on the tarmac at the Toulouse-Blagnac Airport before continuing its journey to Ibiza.</p> <p>Just last week Ryanair chief executive Michael O’Leary called for flyers to be limited to two drinks at airports to crack down on disorderly behaviour on flights. </p> <p>“We don’t want to begrudge people having a drink," he said. </p> <p>“But we don’t allow people to drink-drive, yet we keep putting them up in aircraft at 33,000ft.</p> <p>“In the old days, people who drank too much would eventually fall over or fall asleep. But now those passengers are also on tablets and powder.</p> <p>“It’s the mix. You get much more aggressive behaviour that becomes very difficult to manage.”</p> <p>The airline has started carrying out hand luggage checks to stop passengers on flights to Ibiza and the Greek islands from smuggling duty-free alcohol on-board. </p> <p>A Ryanair spokesperson has apologised for the incident saying:  “This flight from Manchester to Ibiza diverted to Toulouse after a small group of passengers became disruptive in-flight." </p> <p>“The crew called ahead for police assistance, who met the aircraft upon landing at Toulouse and offloaded two passengers before this flight continued to Ibiza.</p> <p>“We sincerely apologise to passengers for any inconvenience caused as a result of these unruly passengers’ behaviour, which was beyond Ryanair’s control. This is now a matter for local police.”</p> <p><em>Image: news.com.au</em></p>

Travel Trouble

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“Hypocrite”: Hughesy's on-air clash with Greens leader

<p>Dave “Hughesy” Hughes had a fiery debate with Australian Greens Leader Adam Bandt about veganism on-air on<em> </em>The Fox’s <em>Fifi, Fev &amp; Nick</em>. </p> <p>Before Bandt appeared on the show, a clip played of Hughesy, who is a vegan, calling for the leader to "quit the party" after learning the Greens leader wasn't a vegan. </p> <p>He questioned how Bandt could advocate for climate action without adopting a plant-based lifestyle, and the Greens leader was brought onto the show to explain his stance. </p> <p>“So you are not a vegan?” Hughesy asked the politician. </p> <p>“I’m not….” replied Bandt. “I applaud those who are, I applaud those who have made the shift. I’ve been thinking about it …”</p> <p>Hughesy then loudly interjected “ … URGH, THINKING ABOUT IT?”</p> <p>The Greens leader replied: “I don’t have a good drop-dead reason, but I’ve been thinking about it, and I can probably give you three justifications for it.</p> <p>"Firstly, we’ve made big changes at home and basically only eat meat for special occasions, the rest of the time we’re vegan or vegetarian at home.”</p> <p>“…. THERE’S ONE WAY, ADAM, THERE’S ONE WAY …” the presenter yelled in response. </p> <p>Hughesy's co-star Fev then tried to make light of the situation and asked him:  “What are you doing Dave?"</p> <p>"Adam is doing the version of Leonardo DiCaprio and his private jet flying around the world while banging on about climate change, but you flew to Brisbane on the weekend,” he continued suggesting that Hughesy too was being a hypocrite by getting on a flight recently. </p> <p>“But I don’t bang on about it,” exclaimed Hughesy.</p> <p>“Adam is the leader of the Greens … it’s hypocritical! C’mon, you can do it, Adam, you can become a vegan! Be the change you want to see in the world, buddy!”</p> <p>Hughesy adopted the vegan lifestyle for his own health, but he has previously revealed that it comes with its challenges and his family were also not that enthusiastic about the change. </p> <p><em>Image: news.com.au/ Fifi, Fev &amp; Nick</em></p>

Food & Wine

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Sunrise star announces cancer diagnosis live on air

<p>In a heartfelt and emotional moment, <em>Sunrise</em> star Edwina Bartholomew, 41, revealed on live television that she has been diagnosed with chronic myeloid leukaemia. The popular news presenter made the announcement during an 8am segment on Seven’s breakfast program on Friday, telling viewers she is determined to stay positive despite the shock diagnosis.</p> <p>Bartholomew, who has been a familiar face on Australian television for years, took a moment at the end of the bulletin to share her personal news. “I have been diagnosed with cancer," she said. "That’s a shock to say and hard to say. It is a really good kind. It is called chronic myeloid leukaemia. It can be treated with a daily tablet. If I can take care of myself I will be completely fine,” she said, her voice breaking as she fought back tears.</p> <p>The news presenter revealed that she first received the diagnosis in July but chose to go public now for two main reasons. Firstly, she wanted to share the moment with her audience, who have followed her through many of life’s major milestones. “Many of you have been in similar situations or much, much worse and come out the other side stronger... and more resilient. That’s exactly what I plan to do,” she said.</p> <p>Secondly, Bartholomew explained that she hoped her story would encourage others to prioritise their health, especially after turning 40. She shared that she had undergone a series of routine tests earlier in the year after a series of health checks, including a skin check inspired by her colleague <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/nat-barr-shares-scary-cancer-diagnosis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nat Barr’s skin cancer scare</a>.</p> <p>“One of those tests came back with levels out of whack,” Bartholomew said, explaining how her cancer was detected.</p> <p>Despite the emotional moment, Bartholomew confirmed to viewers that her prognosis is positive. “I’m feeling very positive and lucky,” she said, adding that her treatment plan involves a daily medication that allows her to manage the condition effectively.</p> <p>Her announcement was followed by a supportive group hug from her fellow <em>Sunrise </em>team members.</p> <p>Bartholomew’s revelation comes just months after her co-star Nat Barr <a href="https://www.oversixty.com.au/health/caring/nat-barr-shares-scary-cancer-diagnosis" target="_blank" rel="noopener">opened up about her own battle with skin cancer</a>. Barr had undergone treatment earlier this year after discovering a small cancerous spot on her nose. Fortunately, Barr caught it early and required minimal treatment.</p> <p>In addition to her TV career, Bartholomew is a dedicated mother of two children, Molly, 4, and Thomas, 2, whom she shares with her husband, Neil Varcoe. The couple has been deeply involved in a passion project, renovating a historic hotel, The Victoria 1846, in Carcoar, NSW, with plans to open it as a boutique hotel in 2025.</p> <p>Their project has been a labour of love, with Varcoe leaving his job last year to focus on the hotel restoration full-time, leading the couple to live separately during the week. Bartholomew has also shared insights into her husband’s battle with chronic fatigue syndrome, which had taken a toll on their lives in recent years.</p> <p>Despite the challenges, Bartholomew has remained optimistic, continuing her professional and personal commitments, including signing on as an ambassador for Witchery’s White Shirt Campaign, which raises funds for ovarian cancer research.</p> <p><em>Images: Sunrise</em></p>

Caring

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Air traffic controller found asleep on the job

<p>An air traffic controller has been found asleep on the job, with the incident prompting calls for better fatigue management, according to Australia's transport watchdog. </p> <p>The report by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) dates back to December 2022, when the Airservices Australia controller was found lying across two chairs with a blanket covering them at 5am.</p> <p>The controller had worked multiple night shifts with reduced extended rest periods, "which likely reduced their ability to obtain restorative sleep", the report claimed. </p> <p>ATSB chief commissioner Angus Mitchell said the controller had increased their chances of falling asleep "by lying across two chairs, not moving, and not undertaking activities to maintain mental alertness".</p> <p>When a colleague discovered the snoozing worker, there was no traffic in the Cairns airspace they were responsible for managing, which was usual for that time of day, and there were no scheduled flights until after their shift.</p> <p>However, the report highlighted the possible problems the incident pay have caused, saying if the traffic controller was woken up by a radio broadcast, they may have experienced "sleep inertia", with the risk of delayed communications, or incorrect instructions or actions.</p> <p>"There were no negative consequences from this occurrence, but it does highlight areas for improvement in work scheduling and fatigue risk management," said Mitchell .</p> <p>Since the incident, Airservices Australia has increased its overall number of air traffic controllers, and has also drawn up new guidelines and training about fatigue risk assessment.</p> <p>"Fatigue remains one of the most relevant ongoing concerns for safe transport, despite increased awareness across the transport sector," said Mitchell.</p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p>

Travel Trouble

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Aussie mum with no licence or car fined thousands for traffic offences

<p>An Aussie mum has copped thousands of dollars worth of traffic fines, despite not owning a car or holding a valid driver's licence. </p> <p>Victorian woman Tamara, 32, claims that she has received 16 different infringement notices this year alone in relation to 14 different licence plate numbers, and none of them are hers. </p> <p>The incorrect fines have been sent to her from as far back as 2022. </p> <p>Several of the alleged offences captured on road safety cameras show bearded men behind the wheel. </p> <p>"Clearly, I don't have a beard. The person in the picture is a male. Anyone with eyes can see it's not me," she told A Current Affair. </p> <p>The saga has badly impacted her mental health and she has called on both the police and road officials in the state to overhaul the system to prevent other people from ending up in the same situation as her. </p> <p>The mum fears that her identity or her expired licence number may have been compromised during Optus' mass data breach two years ago.</p> <p>"I am not the driver. I don't drive a vehicle, I don't even have a licence. I have no idea what to think actually because it is unexplainable."</p> <p>"It doesn't make any sense and it shouldn't make any sense in anyone's eyes. It doesn't add up and it's clearly fraudulent."</p> <p>Lawyer Justin Lawrence agrees with the 32-year-old and said that she is entitled to challenge the fines. </p> <p>"There is a system glitch there somewhere and she's entitled to challenge those fines. The system relies on the information that it has. If the information is inaccurate, then the system can't work," he said.</p> <p>Tamara has made a formal complaint to Victoria Police in a bid to clear her name, and they are now working with Fines Victoria to "investigate the circumstances around these incidents and resolve these matters". </p> <p>"Members of the public who believe they have been falsely nominated for a traffic infringement should contact Fines Victoria," a statement from the police read. </p> <p><em>Images: A Current Affair/ Nine</em></p>

Legal

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Today entertainment reporter announces special news on air

<p><em>Today</em> entertainment reporter Renee Bargh has shared a special announcement during a live cross. </p> <p>Just days after officially being welcomed to the Channel Nine morning show panel, Bargh announced some heartwarming family news with her co-hosts. </p> <p>Bargh revealed she and partner, Andrew Lange, are expecting baby number two, a little sister for their one-year-old son, Tide.</p> <p>"Renee is here with some entertainment and other happy news - congratulations," a beaming Sarah Abo shared.</p> <p>"Yes baby number two, very excited, feeling great, everything's fine," Renee laughed at the prospect of soon having two babies under two.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-ziXZ3RVG7/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-ziXZ3RVG7/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Renée- Claire Bargh (@reneebargh)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>Renee was on hosting duties at the TV Week Logies on Sunday night, sharing an Instagram post of her in full glam cradling her baby bump. </p> <p>"Baby girl's first red carpet," she captioned a video posted to her Instagram account.</p> <p>Her post was flooded with comments of well wishes and congratulations from her famous colleagues and friends. </p> <p>After announcing her happy news, Renee took to her Instagram stories to reflect on the first months of her pregnancy, including what foods she's been craving, how her support system have rallied around her and her battle with extreme morning sickness. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Today </em></p>

TV

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Larry Emdur gets tattooed live on air

<p>Larry Emdur has stayed true to his promise and tattooed the initials of the other Gold Logie nominees on his bum, live on <em>The Morning Show</em>. </p> <p>After being nominated for the coveted award, Emdur said last Thursday that he would get the <a href="https://oversixty.com.au/entertainment/tv/larry-emdur-s-crazy-pledge-ahead-of-logies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tattoo</a>, saying: “I’m so confident I won’t win, I’ll happily get all the nominees’ name initials tattooed on my a*** on the show (The Morning Show) on Monday.”</p> <p>Emdur was up against Tony Armstrong, Andy Lee, Sonia Kruger, Robert Irwin, Julia Morris, and Asher Keddie for the highly-coveted award, but beat them all out to take home the accolade.</p> <p>On Monday, Emdur followed through with the outrageous promise, lazing on a massage bench in the studio.</p> <p>“Kylie, I can’t see what’s happening!” Larry said.</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-1Q0KCvfpU/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-1Q0KCvfpU/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by The Morning Show On 7 (@morningshowon7)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The design included the outline of a Logie, with the initials of all the other nominees in the plaque. </p> <p>Larry debuted the tattoo live on air after trying to keep cool during the tattoo process. </p> <p>During an interview on <em>Sunrise</em> earlier that morning, Emdur told Nat and Shirvo it was the “dumbest promise he was ever made” after his win, laughing off the challenge as he confirmed he would be going through with the ink. </p> <p>Reflecting on his Gold Logie speech, Larry said it was a “surreal” moment in his career.</p> <p>“I knew I needed to thank my work family and my family family — I knew I wanted to thank the other nominees,” Emdur said.</p> <p>“It was so surreal. I was standing up there just looking down at all these famous people. I was thinking it was really a moment.</p> <p>“I was so humbled, thrilled and honoured … you just go wow, all of TV is in this room. Everything I worked for and everything I wanted to be part of.”</p> <p><em>Image credits: The Morning Show</em></p>

TV

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Does free-to-air TV really need gambling ads to survive?

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/andrew-hughes-2728">Andrew Hughes</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university-877">Australian National University</a></em></p> <p>If anything is a sure bet right now, it’s corporate Australia’s willingness to use some variation of the “for society’s good” argument.</p> <p>The most recent example of this is the claim being made, including by federal minister <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/article/2024/aug/13/gambling-ad-ban-labor-bill-shorten-tv-media-advertising-revenue">Bill Shorten</a>, that an outright ban on gambling advertising would be disastrous for free-to-air TV.</p> <p>To be clear, Labor still supports new restrictions on gambling advertisements, including hourly caps and bans during kids’ TV and during and around sports broadcasts.</p> <p>But it has rejected the idea of a total ban, prompting a <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/labor-mps-say-total-ban-is-the-only-way-on-gambling-ads-20240812-p5k1q0.html">backlash</a> extending as far as some of its own backbench MPs.</p> <p>Speaking on ABC’s Q&A on Monday night, Shorten said Australia’s free-to-air TV broadcasters were in “diabolical trouble”, with many needing gambling ad revenue “in order just to stay afloat”.</p> <p>“I’m not convinced that complete prohibition works,” he said.</p> <p>So would our commercial TV networks really fall over tomorrow without gambling ad revenue? Or is something else at play?</p> <h2>Who is buying ads in Australia?</h2> <p>Let’s start by building a bigger picture of where advertising spend more broadly comes from in Australia. Global analytics firm Nielsen regularly compiles <a href="https://www.nielsen.com/news-center/2024/top-20-categories-by-ad-spend-for-2023-revealed-in-latest-nielsen-ad-intel-report/#:%7E:text=Retail%20topped%20the%20list%20with,significant%20investment%20of%20%24596m.">top 20</a> lists of both the categories and individual companies spending the most on ads here.</p> <p>In 2023 the top category, retail, accounted for A$2.56 billion in advertising spend. Gambling and gaming, in contrast, represented just $239 million, less than a tenth of this figure.</p> <p>Harvey Norman topped the list of <a href="https://www.nielsen.com/news-center/2024/australias-top-20-highest-spending-advertisers-of-2023-revealed-in-latest-nielsen-ad-intel-report/">individual companies</a> in 2023. The first we see of any gambling brand is Sportsbet, which came in at 16th.</p> <p>For gambling companies, it’s fair to assume the lion’s share of this goes to TV. <a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/publications/2023-10/report/gambling-advertising-australia-placement-and-spending">Research</a> by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) found 68% of gambling companies’ ad spend went to free-to-air TV markets.</p> <p>As for the remainder, 9% went to radio, 15% to social media and 8% to other online platforms.</p> <h2>How much is actually getting spent?</h2> <p>But how do we estimate the gambling industry’s total annual advertising spend? There are certainly a lot of numbers getting thrown around.</p> <p>One <a href="https://www.afr.com/companies/media-and-marketing/tv-networks-to-demand-fee-relief-as-40m-wagering-hole-opens-up-20240804-p5jzav">source</a> put it at $300.5 million for 2022.</p> <p>More recently, ACMA published detailed figures for the period between May 2022 and April 2023 which put it at just over <a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/publications/2023-10/report/gambling-advertising-australia-placement-and-spending">$238 million</a>, with $162 million of this going to free-to-air TV networks.</p> <p>But the way advertising is classified – what defines an advertisement – can sometimes differ between agencies. Then there is the <a href="https://www.acma.gov.au/check-if-gambling-operator-legal#register-licensed-gambling">number of brands operating</a>, which is constantly changing.</p> <p>In a market with so many competitors, any new entrant needs to spend big on advertising just to capture enough market share to be viable.</p> <p>This is why I argue that the actual figure for financial year 2023 may be slightly higher than ACMA’s widely quoted figure, accounting for the big ad spend of new entrants that may have fallen outside the time window assessed.</p> <p>Based on average company ad spend as a percentage of revenue and the size of the gambling industry, I estimate it could be higher, in the ballpark of $275 million.</p> <h2>How much is that to the networks?</h2> <p>This exercise is all about putting these figures in context.</p> <p>Channel Seven, for example, brought in <a href="https://www.sevenwestmedia.com.au/assets/Uploads/Final-2023-Annual-Report.pdf">$1.5 billion in revenue in 2023</a>. Even if it had received the gambling industry’s entire ad spend at my higher estimate of $275 million, this would still only account for less than 20% of its annual turnover.</p> <p>If that money all went to TV ads, Channel Seven’s stated 38.5% share of television advertising revenue would put its revenue from the estimated sports betting advertising at about $106 million in this example, around 7% of its total annual revenue.</p> <p>Losing most of that would hurt, but wouldn’t mortally threaten the business.</p> <p>A total ban would most likely be <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2024-08-13/peta-murphy-left-online-gambling-legacy-why-isn-t-labor-adopting/104217328">phased in</a> over a number of years, not enacted overnight.</p> <p>Australia’s free-to-air networks would adapt, restrategise, and find and develop new markets to replace that revenue. Their management teams are far too smart to just shrug their shoulders and take a revenue hit on the corporate chin.</p> <h2>Networks have had plenty of time to adapt</h2> <p>Just a refresher. LinkedIn is now more than 20 years old. Facebook is 20. YouTube is 19. X (formerly known as Twitter) is 18. TikTok is seven.</p> <p>If free-to-air TV’s business model is so glacial it can’t function in the digital age, it probably doesn’t deserve to be operating in the big leagues.</p> <p>Digital is here and has been for a while now. The media industry has borne the brunt of this change, but has also had the most time to adapt to the disruptors, who are now more established oligopolies and duopolies than “cool start-ups” out of Silicon Valley.</p> <p>The argument that we need to protect sports gambling ads to protect the big media brands – has little to no basis. It’s a worn out argument we’ve seen time and time again – <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-the-push-to-end-tobacco-advertising-in-the-1970s-could-be-used-to-curb-gambling-ads-today-200915">big tobacco</a>, I’m looking at you.</p> <p>Protecting the interests of corporate Australia at the cost of society itself is a gamble none of us should be prepared to take.<!-- Below is The Conversation's page counter tag. Please DO NOT REMOVE. --><img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/236686/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /><!-- End of code. If you don't see any code above, please get new code from the Advanced tab after you click the republish button. The page counter does not collect any personal data. More info: https://theconversation.com/republishing-guidelines --></p> <p><em><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/andrew-hughes-2728">Andrew Hughes</a>, Lecturer, Research School of Management, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/australian-national-university-877">Australian National University</a></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Shutterstock </em></p> <p><em>This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/does-free-to-air-tv-really-need-gambling-ads-to-survive-236686">original article</a>.</em></p> </div>

Money & Banking

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Bombshell allegations of "toxic" Channel Seven workplace aired

<p>Allegations of a "soul crushing" and "degrading" workplace at Channel Seven have been aired by ABC's <em>Four Corners</em>, with current and former staff members lifting the lid on the "toxic" and "sexist" culture. </p> <p>The ABC program spoke to more than 200 people from Channel Seven for the bombshell expose in which staff made allegations of a “boys club” where women were forced to work harder than men.</p> <p>One female journalist claims she was told to handover her hard-won stories to male journalists while another said she had to work late while her male colleagues went out and got drunk.</p> <p>As a result of the culture at Seven, one woman allegedly was left feeling suicidal over the work conditions and threw herself in front of a car outside the network’s Brisbane office after allegedly working extremely long hours for not much more than minimum wage.</p> <p>The woman had tried to resign from her job, but claims the network wouldn't accept her resignation and was kept on for another six months. </p> <p>“The only way I can describe it is I felt like I had a noose around my neck,” the young woman told Four Corners.</p> <p>One of the woman’s colleagues received a call from her in which she was “wailing, hysterical, incredibly emotional”, and in notes taken of the incident, they wrote, “Couldn’t understand what she was saying apart from ‘they won’t let me go’, ‘i’ve f**ked up my career’, ‘I want to be hit by a car’.”</p> <p>The woman attempted suicide and mercifully, the car didn't hit her. She was taken to the hospital in an ambulance and never returned to Channel Seven. </p> <p>Another woman, who is suing Channel Seven for sexual discrimination, said she was left feeling suicidal after working on the network’s <em>Spotlight</em> program.</p> <p>She claims she was forced to work 10-12 hour days, seven days a week and was once forced to use her own money to finish a story, leaving her with no money for rent while she waited for expenses to be reimbursed.</p> <p>“[It was] incredibly stressful,” she said.</p> <p>The woman then fell ill with a serious respiratory illness, and doctors told her she needed some time away from work to rest and recover. </p> <p>“I just started sobbing because the pressure of going home and not going back to the office and what the retribution would be if I did that was so great,” she says.</p> <p>“[The doctor] said, ‘If you don’t go home now, you’re going to be in bed with pneumonia for six weeks … I’ll call an ambulance to your office if I have to.’”</p> <p>The journalist claims that the network wanted her to keep working at home.</p> <p>“I got to the point where I was suicidal, and I remember in one particularly dark moment where I’d worked all weekend,” she says.</p> <p>“I rang Lifeline, and I made a doctor’s appointment because I knew I was so close to taking my own life. And I had a child that I couldn’t do that to because I was a single parent.”</p> <p>One Seven employee, Olivia Babb, told <em>Four Corners</em> of the unsustainable salaries within the network, revealing how many of her colleagues have been forced to take up second jobs to make ends meet. </p> <p>On top of her fears of becoming homeless due to the minimum wages, Olivia also claims  she was “harassed and bullied” during her time at Seven.</p> <p>“It is one of the most degrading, soul-crushing places you can work,” the former reporter said.</p> <p>Solicitor Josh Bornstein, who has multiple clients taking legal action against Seven, said there was “enormous hostility to women”.</p> <p>In a statement after <em>Four Corners</em> aired, Seven West Media said it was “clearly concerned about allegations of poor behaviour and mistreatment of employees”.</p> <p><em><strong>Need to talk to someone? Don't go it alone. Call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or <a href="https://www.lifeline.org.au/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">lifeline.org.au</a></strong></em></p> <p><em>Image credits: Four Corners</em></p>

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Beloved breakfast radio show pulled off air

<p>Sydney's 104.1 2DayFM has announced the end of the beloved Hughesy, Ed and Erin breakfast show after three years. </p> <p>The breakfast hosts Dave Hughes, Ed Kavalee and Erin Molan shared a statement last night announcing their departure. </p> <p>"We've loved our time together on 2DayFM Breakfast, however, due to some of our families living in different cities we are unable to commit to 2025, so with a heavy heart we are moving aside so 2DayFM can find the team to take them forward in Breakfast," the co-hosts said.</p> <p>"We are so grateful to Sydney for their support, and to double the number of listeners in three years is something we are immensely proud of, and we will miss each and every one of them."</p> <p>The trio first started working on the morning radio show together in January 2021. </p> <p>Southern Cross Austereo has announced that an interim replacement has been made, with Jimmy Smith and Nath Roye from the Hit Network <em>Jimmy & Nath Show</em> will temporarily move from evenings to cover the empty breakfast timeslot. </p> <p>SCA's Chief Content Officer, Dave Cameron  said changes were coming to the breakfast show in 2025.</p> <p>“As we look to 2025, we are preparing for a change for the 2DayFM Sydney Breakfast show and will make further announcements in due course,” he said.</p> <p>He then thanked Hughesy, Ed and Erin for their "unwavering dedication" in making the show "a fun way to wake up Sydney each morning".</p> <p><em>Image: Instagram/ 2Day FM</em></p>

Music

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Chaos as The Project pulled from air to evacuate

<p>Channel 10's <em>The Project </em>was suddenly pulled from air after a fire alarm sounded, forcing presenters and crew to evacuate the building, just before 7pm on Wednesday night. </p> <p>The show was replaced with an episode of <em>Dog House</em>, and at 6:50pm the show's X account notified viewers of the matter, saying: “We are being evacuated… we think we will back soon?”.</p> <p>A few minutes later they shared a follow up post:  “Due to a fire alarm in the studio, The Project has had to evacuate the building.”</p> <p>“You can see what’s happening Facebook and Instagram Live ... or watch an episode of the Dog House,” it read.</p> <p>The Project later posted a video of the hosts going outside as they joked and made light of the situation. </p> <p>“Guys, we get it you are so obsessed with us and were wondering where we went as the Dog House came on,” the caption read.</p> <p>“And to be honest we couldn’t tell you either as the fire alarm was going off and we just followed our boss.”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-FSiekK_yK/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/C-FSiekK_yK/?utm_source=ig_embed&utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by The Project (@theprojecttv)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p>The show returned on-air at 7:09pm, with host Waleed Aly saying: “What’s that, where did we go? Oh nowhere, we didn’t even know."</p> <p>“We all needed to go to the bathroom, at once. </p> <p>“No, there was a fire alert in our building and we had to leave.”</p> <p>Sarah Harris cut in jokingly saying they didn't only have to leave but had to "run". </p> <p>A Fire and Rescue Victorian spokesperson said that they had responded to a false alarm after a smoke detector malfunctioned. </p> <p><em>Images: Instagram/ The Project</em></p>

TV

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Flight cancelled after crew member loses it at passenger

<p>An Air Canada flight heading from Morocco to Montreal was cancelled on Friday after a flight attendant lost it at a passenger who reportedly requested a blanket. </p> <p>Viral footage of the incident showed a female flight attendant yelling: “You will behave or we will get off!” at a female passenger. </p> <p>“I’ll tell the captain right away. Yes or no?”</p> <p>When a passenger asked the flight attendant to call the captain, she refused and said: “I don’t want no bullying against my crew”.</p> <p>She then stormed up the aisle before she turned around and yelled: “Everyone behave! Be quiet … or you’re getting off.”</p> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Stress levels are quite high in the sky these days : An Air Canada flight from Casablanca (CMN) to Montreal (YUL) was canceled due to the inappropriate behavior of a flight attendant on July 26, 2024.</p> <p>The Airbus A330-343 aircraft (C-GHLM) did the taxi aiming a departure while… <a href="https://t.co/h3s4fbGF5A">pic.twitter.com/h3s4fbGF5A</a></p> <p>— FL360aero (@fl360aero) <a href="https://twitter.com/fl360aero/status/1817249195960455420?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 27, 2024</a></p></blockquote> <p>According to <em>CTV News</em>, the meltdown occurred after the passenger asked for a blanket. </p> <p>In a statement to the publication, Air Canada said the flight had been rescheduled for Saturday with a different crew. </p> <p>“We are taking this incident very seriously. It is under review, and we will take appropriate action,” the statement read.</p> <p>“It is under review, and we will take appropriate action. We apologise to our customers and deeply regret that their experience today fell far short of what they have come to expect when flying with Air Canada.”</p> <p>The airline has also offered compensation to all passengers affected by the delay. </p> <p><em>Images: X </em></p> <p> </p>

Travel Trouble

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Axed weatherman's blunt farewell message live on-air

<p>Weatherman Paul Burt has lashed out at Channel 7 in an awkward final report after he was axed by the network. </p> <p>The veteran weatherman was recently cut by Seven after almost three decades in the industry as part of a cost-cutting move, and he took aim at the network in his final sign off on Saturday. </p> <p>“Hello everybody yes it is my last weather for the network tonight,” he began. </p> <p>“Let’s get straight into it everyone because it’s the most important thing is your Sunday and not me.”</p> <p>He then detailed the weather outlook before presenter Samantha Heathwood farewelled him.</p> <p>Burt then thanked viewers for their "trust, loyalty, and support" and thanked his family before unleashing on the network. </p> <p>“If I’d had the opportunity I wouldn’t have wanted to go this way,” Burt said. “It’s what happens when you get sacked”.</p> <p>The network then cut to footage for Burt, who has been at Seven since 2013, presenting various segments over the years, including him delivering the weather from a helicopter during floods. </p> <p>In an interview with <em>The Australian</em>, Burt revealed that he had only been given  “55 seconds to say my goodbyes”. </p> <p>“I really don’t understand it, why people are being treated this way,” Burt said.</p> <p>“It was a shock, I was told to come in and have a meeting which I did and I was told my contract was not being renewed. It was rather embarrassing for my wife and children. They found out before I could even tell them. Obviously things get leaked.</p> <p>“Some of the decisions made lately are quite harsh. I’ve lost a lot of friends who have been made redundant or got the sack.”</p> <p>Burt wasn't the only one made redundant in the network's cost-cutting move. Veterans including Robert Ovadia, Sharyn Ghidella,  Andrew Frampton and seasoned Melbourne crime reporter Cameron Baud have all gone.</p> <p><em>Images: Channel 7</em></p>

TV

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Kyle Sandilands loses licence live on air

<p>Kyle Sandilands has been left reeling after being told, while live on-air, that he has lost his NSW drivers licence. </p> <p>The radio host was told by his KIISFM manager about the unfortunate licence loss, while Sandilands and his co-host Jackie O were discussing speeding fines. </p> <p>After telling Jackie that speeding fines don’t bother him, Kyle was left red-faced when Bruno Bouchet chimed in to say the 53-year-old recently received a new penalty notice.</p> <p>“I don’t have enough points! I’m on the razor’s edge!” Kyle admitted, adding that he has “No points” left on his licence.</p> <p>“Both Kyle and I are. We can’t afford to lose anything!” Jackie added.</p> <p>When newsreader Brooklyn Ross asked if it meant Kyle had lost his licence, Bruno confirmed that he had.</p> <p>“He finds out live on air that he’s lost his license. But you know what? It’s only the sixth time,” Jackie O laughs, before Kyle corrects her, “The ninth time.”</p> <p>Kyle was still in disbelief over the penalty notice, even after being handed photographic evidence of him speeding in a Sydney tunnel. </p> <p>“So, on my speed sign recognition, it said 90km. But on the sign in the tunnel, it said 80km,” he began pleading his case.</p> <p>“And I remember Chris Minns, the Premier of New South Wales, sitting with me saying, ‘We’re kicking it [the speed limit] up to 90km’. And I thought that some d**khead hasn’t updated the sign.”</p> <p>When Jackie asked why he didn’t just follow the speed sign, Kyle replied: “I believed the tech in my vehicle and the Premier of New South Wales.”</p> <p><em>Image credits: KIISFM </em></p>

Legal

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ABC host quits live on air

<p>After five years hosting <em>ABC News Breakfast</em>, Lisa Millar has announced she will be leaving the show to her audience live on air. </p> <p>The TV presenter and journalist joined the program in 2018 and became the permanent co-host alongside Michael Rowland the following year.</p> <p>Millar told her loyal viewers that her last show would be on Friday August 23rd, but she would be continuing her other work with ABC. </p> <p>The 55-year-old narrates the Logie-nominated reality series <em>Muster Dogs</em>, is a guest presenter on <em>Back Roads</em>, and co-hosts the podcast <em>The Newsreader</em>.</p> <p>“What a blast the past five years has been, whether it was interviewing prime ministers and global thought leaders or getting karaoke encouragement from my childhood idol Gladys Knight,” she said on Wednesday morning. </p> <p>“In 35 years of journalism I’ve never done anything so exciting, unpredictable, and fun. It’s only worked because of the awesome team in front of the cameras and behind the scenes who kept me laughing.”</p> <p>She went on to thank loyal viewers for spending the mornings with her over the years, saying she "loved sharing breakfast" with people around Australia. </p> <p>“I’m excited to hit the road and discover more of the incredible stories that make up the remarkable tapestry of our culture,” she continued. “There are so many adventures ahead, whether it be with <em>Back Roads</em>, <em>Muster Dogs</em>, or new projects we’re cooking up. What a privilege it is to be a part of that future.”</p> <p>Many colleagues and viewers alike shared their well wishes, as fellow ABC presenter Leigh Sales shared a heartfelt post following Lisa's announcement saying that her departure is a “huge loss” for <em>ABC News Breakfast</em>.</p> <p>“But what a win for the ABC to be getting more of her work on <em>Back Roads</em> and <em>Muster Dogs</em>,” she shared. “The one thing I know after 25 years working with this woman is whatever she delivers is done with quality, warmth and integrity.</p> <p>“You get a colleague like Lisa working alongside you once in a lifetime and Michael Rowland and the team have benefited hugely from having her there for five years. I’m proud of the amazing job she’s done and can’t wait for the next chapter!”</p> <p><em>Image credits: ABC</em></p>

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