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The Media Club with Matt Deegan

Rethink Audio
The Media Club with Matt Deegan
Latest episode

390 episodes

  • The Media Club with Matt Deegan

    Is The BBC In Jeopardy? Plus: Zeteo UK soft launch

    17/07/2026 | 43 mins.
    The BBC's annual report lands with a sharp rise in licence fee dodgers and a stark warning from new Director General Matt Brittin that the corporation is being held back by its own funding model. LBC's Iain Dale gives us his verdict on where Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy's plan to widen the licence fee to streamers goes next.

    ** WIN A £50 John Lewis voucher - simply fill in our listener survey, and help us shape the future of the show. You’ll be entered into a prize draw. Do it now. **

    Also on the show: a new name in British political journalism. Shehab Khan has left ITV News to become political editor of Zeteo UK, the British outpost of Mehdi Hasan's insurgent US operation. He tells us why.

    All that plus: as AI learns to remix the news into whatever shape you fancy, we ask what's left for journalists to do... Banijay and All3Media complete their merger to create an £8billion giant, and Edinburgh says goodbye to its TV Festival... and in the Audio Network Media Quiz, an annual tradition returns, as we play Play Your BBC Salaries Right.

    The Media Quiz is sponsored by Audio Network. Alex selects the music for us to score each episode and she and her team can do it for you too at https://audionetwork.com

    We record at Podshop Studios - for 25% off your first booking, use the code MEDIACLUB at podshoponline.co.uk

    Become a member for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter at themediaclub.com

    A Rethink Audio production, produced by Matt Hill with post-production from Podcast Discovery.

    What The Media Club has been reading this week:
    BBC Annual Report: licence payers fall fastest in years
    Nandy floats a streaming levy for BBC funding
    Zeteo UK unveiled with Shehab Khan as political editor
    Claude's 'liquid content' a serious challenge for news media
    Banijay and All3Media complete $8bn merger
    Edinburgh TV Festival's last schedule before Manchester move
    BBC's highest paid journos
    Iain Dale's memoir Have I Said Too Much? published
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • The Media Club with Matt Deegan

    The Mail's Big Win, Sky's Bigger Buy

    10/07/2026 | 52 mins.
    A High Court judge throws out Prince Harry’s privacy case against the Daily Mail's publisher, on every count. Guardian media editor Michael Savage sifts through the wreckage.
    Also on the show: Sky agrees a £1.6bn deal to buy ITV's channels and ITVX - reshaping British broadcasting overnight.

    Clive Dickens of The Meliora Company joins us for our now traditional, biannual AI roundup... and, in the Audio Network Media Quiz, we're heading back to Saturday mornings.

    The Media Quiz is sponsored by Audio Network. Alex selects the music for us to score each episode and she and her team can do it for you too at https://audionetwork.com

    We record at Podshop Studios - for 25% off your first booking, use the code MEDIACLUB at https://www.podshoponline.co.uk/services/podcast-studio

    Become a member for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter at https://themediaclub.com

    A Rethink Audio production, produced by Matt Hill with post-production from Podcast Discovery.

    What The Media Club has been reading this week:
    Prince Harry loses privacy case against the Daily Mail
    Paul Dacre's reaction to the verdict
    Sky agrees £1.6bn takeover of ITV's broadcasting arm
    What the Sky/ITV deal means for ITV News
    Is ITV Studios next in line for a takeover?
    Axel Springer promises AI transformation at Telegraph
    England's World Cup win breaks BBC viewing records
    Ludwig recommissioned for series three
    Matt Brittin to make Edinburgh TV Festival debut
    BBC told to review acquisitions after Scooby-Doo criticism
    Bluey gets its first audiobook collection
    Channel 4 orders Taskmaster family spin-off

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • The Media Club with Matt Deegan

    Sky Commits To Coronation Street; Radio 4 Commits To TikTok

    02/07/2026 | 39 mins.
    Sky puts its money where its mouth is, pledging billions to secure Coronation Street and Love Island as it closes in on a takeover of ITV's channels. But with Sky's own parent company announcing a split this week, what does it all mean for Sky News? TV critic and producer Steven D Wright weighs up the deal.

    Also on the show: Radio 4's Today programme is being told to put TikTok before its own airwaves. Is the nation's most trusted news alarm clock about to lose its edge? And with the Guardian announcing dozens of new digital jobs of its own, freelance media journalist Tara Conlan - who writes for the Guardian amongst others - on an industry that can't stop chasing the feed.

    All that plus: the Telegraph finally gets a permanent owner, the Culture Secretary takes aim at another media mega-merger... and, in the Audio Network Media Quiz, we open the boxes on the week's biggest deals.

    The Media Quiz is sponsored by Audio Network. Alex (who is a real person) selects the music for us to score each episode and she and her team can do it for you too at https://audionetwork.com

    We record at Podshop Studios - for 25% off your first booking, use the code MEDIACLUB at https://www.podshoponline.co.uk/services/podcast-studio

    Become a member for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter at
    https://themediaclub.com

    A Rethink Audio production, produced by Matt Hill with post-production from Podcast Discovery.

    What The Media Club has been reading this week:
    Sky's £2bn Pledge As It Preps ITV Takeover
    Comcast To Split Off NBCUniversal And Sky
    Today Programme Told To Prioritise TikTok Over Radio
    Guardian To Create 55 New Digital Jobs
    Trevor Nelson Takes A Break From Broadcasting
    Zoe Ball Bags Daily Show On Greatest Hits Radio
    Expectation Hires Mettlemouse's Katrina Grant
    Mill Media Wins Costly Source Protection Battle
    Telegraph Sale To Axel Springer Completes
    Nandy Minded To Refer Paramount/WBD Deal

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • The Media Club with Matt Deegan

    Are Freeview's days numbered?

    26/06/2026 | 44 mins.
    Are Freeview's days numbered? Sam Sharps, Chief Executive of The Connection Project, walks us through the Government's Media Green Paper.

    Also on the show: Fox is acquiring Roku for $22bn. Journalist Kate Bulkley on what Lachlan Murdoch is really buying.

    All that plus: the Edinburgh TV Festival becomes the Manchester TV Festival, Sky edges closer to buying ITV’s channels… and, in The Audio Network Media Quiz, we head into the laboratory.

    That’s all happening in this edition of The Media Club. Come on in!

    The Media Quiz is sponsored by Audio Network. Ben selects the music to score each episode and he and the team can do it for you too at audionetwork.com

    We record at Podshop Studios - for 25% off your first booking, use the code MEDIACLUB at podshoponline.co.uk/services/podcast-studio

    Become a member for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter at themediaclub.com

    A Rethink Audio production, produced by Matt Hill with post-production from Podcast Discovery.

    What The Media Club has been reading this week:

    Government green paper sets out plan to switch off terrestrial TV
    DTT switch-off plans raise concerns for radio
    Fox is buying Roku in a $22 billion deal
    Edinburgh TV Festival to move to Greater Manchester
    Time and Axios turn AI prominence into advertising revenue
    BBC to test news channel on YouTube
    Universal Ads launches in the UK
    Kyle Sandilands reaches settlement with ARN
    Piers Morgan backed by Liz Murdoch in $27m raise
    UK couple reacquire Lake FM in New York
    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
  • The Media Club with Matt Deegan

    Enter the Metrics: What Counts As A ‘Play’ These Days?

    19/06/2026 | 42 mins.
    When is a play, not a play? Or a download not a download? As Spotify updates its analytics, we take a look at how YouTube, Apple and others define what we monetise.
    Elsewhere, the BBC outlines where the axe will fall. Broadcast consultant Paul Robinson, a veteran of both the BBC and this podcast, tells us more.
    Also on the podcast: who’s training the next generation of content makers? Prince Taylor, Executive Producer of Latent Pictures, on whether high-end TV training is actually in good shape.
    All that plus: the Government bans social media for the under-sixteens - is this the moment kids’ platforms have been waiting for? And, in The Audio Network Media Quiz, three more media stories where reality is up for grabs.
    The Media Quiz is sponsored by Audio Network. Ben selects the music to score each episode and he and the team can do it for you too at audionetwork.com
    We record at Podshop Studios - for 25% off your first booking, use the code MEDIACLUB at podshoponline.co.uk/services/podcast-studio
    Become a member for FREE when you sign up for our newsletter at themediaclub.com
    A Rethink Audio production, produced by Matt Hill with post-production from Podcast Discovery.
    What The Media Club has been reading this week:
    BBC to cancel shows and review channels as it cuts content spend
    UK social media ban raises digital advertising questions
    Spotify redefines a ‘play’
    BBC launches 3D World Cup experience
    BBC made second Ashley Cain series despite alleged misconduct
    Tech platforms overtake news outlets as global news source
    Sara Cox sets BBC Radio 2 Breakfast Show date
    Roger Cook, investigative reporter, dies aged 83
    Rivals renewed for Season 3
    The Traitors stage show to have 5 different plots

    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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About The Media Club with Matt Deegan
Media news from the UK, looking at television production, streaming, radio, audio, journalism, the internet, publishers and more. Each week expert analysts and media practitioners join the host, media consultant Matt Deegan, to talk about the top media stories and work out what it means for the sector and the people in it.Recent experts have included Broadcast's Rebecca Cooney and Chris Curtis, The Guardian's Michael Savage, Deadline's Jake Kanter, the Press Gazette's Charlotte Tobitt, Ankler's Manori Ravindran, plus writers Tara Conlan, Scott Bryan, Jane Martinson, Jim Waterson and Boyd Hilton. Our industry practitioners have included Expectation's Peter Fincham, Gold Wala's Faraz Osman, Multitude's Will Wood, Nest's Derek Drennan, BBC Radio 3's Sam Jackson, Persephonica's Dino Sofos, City AM's Christian May, ITN's Lisa Campbell and Daily Mail's Jamie East.Find out more at https://www.themediaclub.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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