The CEO of ARN, the parent company behind The Kyle & Jackie O Show, has claimed the radio duo lost the network millions in ad revenue because of their controversial content.
Michael Stephenson, the chief executive of ARN, alluded to the ongoing legal battle around Kyle Sandilands and Jackie ‘O’ Henderson’s radio ousting at an annual meeting this week, saying the network lost advertising clients “because of issues relating to brand safety”.
In a swipe at The Kyle & Jackie O Show’s notoriously explicit content, Stephenson said “there were a number of advertisers who had concerns about the brand safety of some of our content, and as a result, it impacted our revenues through the period”.
Stephenson said ARN’s metro ad revenue fell overall by $28 million over the past year, and he attributed most of that ($22 million) to clients’ “brand safety” concerns around its content.
The remaining $6 million, Stephenson said, was due to a “tough advertising market”.
The CEO went on to say that he expected ad revenue to pick back up following the cancellation of The Kyle & Jackie O Show.
“Over time, we expect a significant percentage of the $26m of revenue that was lost last year because of brand safety concerns to return,” he said, per The Guardian.
It comes amid an ongoing legal stoush as both Sandilands and Henderson are suing ARN over wrongful termination following their axing in March.
ARN has claimed Sandilands’ behaviour during an on-air argument with Henderson in February amounted to “serious misconduct”. Meanwhile, the company claimed it terminated Henderson’s contract after she refused to work with her co-host over the on-air spat.
In the first radio ratings released since their departure last month, The Kyle & Jackie O Show’s listenership dropped by just one per cent in Sydney, and actually enjoyed a slight ratings bump in Melbourne.
KIIS FM has used a rotating roster of presenters in Sandilands and Henderson’s absence, with Mike E (Michael Etheridge) serving as the consistent morning show host.
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