2GB host Ben Fordham and 3AW presenter Jacqui Felgate breached ACMA rules by failing to disclose their paid partnerships

Two of Nine Radio on-air radio hosts who failed to disclose paid partnerships have been found to breach the media regulator’s broadcasting rules.

A year-long investigation into Nine Radio’s top-rating broadcaster Ben Fordham and Melbourne 3AW host Jacqui Felgate found the pair both breached broadcasting rules by neglecting to disclose they held paid deals with companies they spruiked on air.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority on Tuesday published the findings into Nine Radio, led by managing director Tom Malone, which investigated a lucrative deal Fordham – one of the 2GB’s highest-paid stars – held with ride-sharing company Uber which he gave “favourable” coverage to on his program last August.

2GB host Ben Fordham has a commercial partnership with Uber. Picture: Supplied

Fordham aired a three-minute segment with business commentator Peter Switzer on August 3 last year when he said he had signed up to Uber to earn additional income, but he did not disclose, nor did the station’s online disclosure page, that he had a paid partnership with the company.

A separate investigation was also conducted into 3AW’s Felgate – who began as drive host this year – about her on-air conduct and found she gave “comments favourable to automotive manufacturer BMW” whom she had a commercial partnership with.

Her on-air comments spruiking BMW’s electric vehicles came to the attention of ACMA after The Australian exclusively revealed she held 12 paid partnerships, including with the car company, that were not revealed on the station’s online commercial disclosure page. ‘

Weeks later Felgate later took to the airwaves to blame a “genuine oversight” on the failure to disclose her dozen deals and subsequently all four of Nine’s radio stations – 2GB, 3AW, 4BC and 6PR, were all investigated by ACMA.

3AW radio presenter Jacqui Felgate is a BMW ambassador. Picture: Instagram.

2GB host Ray Hadley later lashed out at Felgate and said she must have been “wearing ear muffs” to the network’s commercial compliance meetings.

Under the broadcasting rules, commercial agreements must be disclosed for presenters headed up current affairs programs.

ACMA’s authority member Creina Chapman said the failure to do so breaches the trust of radio audiences.

“These kind of commercial disclosure breaches have the potential to erode the public’s trust in current affairs programming,” Ms Chapman said.

“Listeners deserve to know what commercial agreements are in place and how those deals might relate to what they are hearing on-air.”

Following the investigations into 2GB and 3AW, the media authority determined that all presenters, producers and sales staff must undertake formal training to ensure they abide by commercial partnerships.

2GB was also required to conduct an external audit of its process to ensure it meets by the commercial broadcasting disclosure rules.

A Nine Radio spokeswoman said following the findings it “consistently seeks to comply with it completely” but criticised the standard and said it does not apply to all stations, including the ABC.

“After being made aware of inadvertent breaches of the Standard, Nine’s radio stations moved quickly to update their commercial registers and adjust any third party agreements as required,” she said.

ACMA said if a licensee does not comply with broadcasting rules, it could be hit with civil penalties.

Originally published as 2GB host Ben Fordham and 3AW presenter Jacqui Felgate breached ACMA rules by failing to disclose their paid partnerships