Chances are you’ve already Followed, Liked, Favourited, Bookmarked or read about these media gurus – if not, you should. B&T’s list of the 30 Most Powerful Women In Media has been announced, and together, these women reach tens of millions of Aussie readers and oversee billions of dollars in revenue – that’s a lot of consumers, spend, and influence. And, we are proud to say The Carousel’s founder Robyn Foyster was voted as one of the most powerful women in media.
Here is the esteemed list..
B&T’s 30 Most Powerful Women In Media
1 Edwina McCann – Vogue, Editor-in-chief
2 Nicole Sheffield – NewsLifeMedia, CEO
3 Rhiannon MacDonald – Mail Online, Managing Editor
4 Ita Buttrose – Co-host of Studio 10 (Network TEN), managing director of Chief Executive Women, Australian of the Year
5 Jodie Sangster – ADMA, CEO
6 Katie Rigg-Smith – Mindshare, CEO
7 Jo Pollard – Telstra, Group Managing Director, Media & Marketing
8 Jane Huxley – Pandora, Managing Director Australia and New Zealand
9 Maile Carnegie – Google Australia, Managing Director
10 Vittoria Shortt – Commonwealth Bank, Group Executive, Marketing and Strategy
11 Helen McCabe – Australian Women’s Weekly, Editor-in-chief
12 Jackie Frank – Pacific Mags, Group Publisher – Fashion & Health titles
13 Mia Freedman – MamaMia, Co-founder and Content Director
14 Olivia Wirth – Qantas, Group Executive, Brand, Marketing & Corporate Affairs
15 Tina Walsberger – Sydney Festival, Head of Marketing & Customer Service
16 Alice Manners – IAB Australia, CEO
17 Aimee Buchanan – OMD, Managing Director
18 Kathryn Carter – News Corp Australia, NSW Sales Director
19 Cathy O’Connor – NOVA Entertainment, CEO
20 Esther Carlsen – Xaxis Australia, General Manager
21 Deanne Weir – Chair of Hoodlum, Chair of WE Magazines Pty Ltd
22 Frances Anne-Keeler – Tourism Australia, Deputy CEO
23 Virginia Hyland – Hyland Media, Founder and Principal
24 Carolyn Bolacci – SIZMEK, Vice President, global accounts (APAC)
25 Marina Go – Bauer, General Manager, Hearst-Bauer Media, plus Chair of Wests Tigers
26 Robyn Foyster – TheCarousel.com, Publisher
27 Sunita Gloster – AANA, CEO
28 Chantal Walker – Foxtel, Director Customer & Loyalty Marketing
29 Ellie Rogers – Facebook, Head of Agency
30 Georgie Nichols – Carat, General Manager
Image: @NicoleSheffiel6 Edwina McCann, Vogue Editor-in-chief
B&T’s Power List includes Aussie CEOs, editors, innovators and high-achievers. The 30 stars were tallied from 300 women in media and include a diverse mix, from veterans to high profile flyers, innovators, quiet achievers and new talent. B&T’s editor in chief, David Hovenden says the list is voted on by peers. “We asked 300 leading women in media to vote for the top five women who they believed had excelled in their chosen fields,” he explains. “We believe the final 30 represent a pretty formidable list of women and there can be no doubting the credentials of Vogue’s Edwina McCann, who took the number one spot. We’ve had a great response to the Powerlist from everyone in the industry and we think it’s an important recognition for women who are the industry’s leaders and visionaries.”
Image: @sevvy2014 Nicole Sheffield, CEO NewsLifeMedia
The Women In Media Awards is only in its third year, but there are already notable changes comparatively in the line-up. “In that short time, the biggest change is the acknowledgement of a new generation of women,” explains David. “They’re young, dynamic, digital savvy and very often they’re the boss or the CEO of billion-dollar businesses and agencies. They’re heading-up fantastic media businesses – Pandora, Google, Facebook – that are barely five, 10 years-old and are now household names in this country.”
Some of the big guns run some of the largest media outlets in the country, and yet consumers may have never heard of them, while others have high profiles. Haven’t heard of Maile Carnegie? ‘Google’ her. “Maile Carnegie is an absolute case in point of the calibre of talent on the Powerlist,” says David. “As CEO of Google Australia she’s heading up arguably the most dynamic, disruptive and inventive company in human history.”
How about record breaking NewsLifeMedia CEO Nicole Sheffield? “Nicole has transformed a traditional magazine business into a multi-faceted, digitally focused media powerhouse,” explains David. Media agency gurus also fared well on the list – controlling much of the media spend in Australia and holding an enormous amount of power. “Katie Rigg-Smith, the CEO of Mindshare, would have to be one of the most dynamic and innovative bosses in agency-land handling the buying spends of clients with budgets in the many tens of millions.”
Image: @saxtonspeakers Ita Buttrose: Co-host of Studio 10 (Network TEN), managing director of Chief Executive Women, Australian of the Year
Media poster girl and former Australian of The Year, Ita Buttrose, made the list at number 4. Her career has spanned generations and includes editing CLEO magazine, of which the hit ABC TV series Paper Giants was based on, and now Ita is back in the hot seat as co-host for Channel 10’s Studio 10.
The Carousel’s Publisher, Robyn Foyster (a.k.a, my boss), deservedly makes the Power List after a shift from the uber glam glossy magazine print world to online. Robyn’s career spans all media, from her big break as a Fleet Street journalist to Hollywood-based entertainment reporter, Editor of Australia’s Number 1 magazine, New Idea, and then Publisher of women’s magazines including Harpers Bazaar, Cosmopolitan, Grazia and Madison at Bauer Media until 2013.
Robyn launched The Carousel.com in 2014, with the aim of being a one-stop lifestyle destination for Aussie women that’s informative, inspiring and entertaining. Robyn’s team included a host of her former magazine editors and experts writing for The Carousel’s key categories, including former Australian Women’s Weekly cooking guru Lyndey Milan on Food, Madison magazine former editor Lizzie Renkert on Homes, Nedahl Stelio (former Cleo editor) across Fashion, and Shop ‘Til You Drop’s Emma Markezic on Technology and Fashion. In just 18 months, Robyn has not only created a unique online lifestyle destination, but also launched The Carousel Productions – a content production house.
For the full list and more details, visit B&T