Nine’s Ben Fordham breached broadcast rules with Uber deal

Nine’s top rating breakfast host Ben Fordham has been pinged by the media watchdog for failing to properly disclose an on-air commercial deal with ride-share giant Uber.

Fordham, the public face of 2GB, breached the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s (ACMA) broadcasting rules after making favourable remarks about Uber on August 3 last year, but did not disclose a personal commercial deal.

2GB’s Ben Fordham breached broadcasting rules for failing to disclose a commercial agreement with Uber.

During a segment with financial commentator Peter Switzer, Fordham said he had taken up a “side hustle”, taking his first customer as an Uber driver.

“I said I was going to become an Uber driver … guess what I’ve done this week?” Fordham said, while discussing statistics about Australians taking up second jobs.

Melbourne’s 3AW, a sister station to 2GB, also breached the rules when its afternoons presenter Jacqui Felgate made favourable remarks about German car manufacturer BMW without disclosing a commercial agreement she has with Berwick BMW.

The ACMA ordered both stations to take remedial action, including formal training on disclosing commercial relationships for its presenters, producers and sales staff.

The Sydney network must also commission an external audit into its compliance processes, after having previously breached the rules in 2021.

A Nine spokesperson said the company accepts the findings by ACMA, but criticised the broadcasting code for failing to capture sports and entertainment shows, as well as programs on the ABC.

“Nine Radio fully endorses the standard and consistently seeks to comply with it completely,” the spokesperson said.

“It only applies to commercial radio programs whose substantive purpose is ‘to provide interviews, analysis, commentary or discussion, including open‑line discussion with listeners, about current social, economic or political issues’.

“Only Nine’s radio stations are obliged to make the appropriate disclosures.”

The ACMA said 2GB and 3AW both failed to publish details on their websites of commercial agreements made by their current affairs presenters, as is required by the commercial disclosure rules. If they do not comply, ACMA might seek civil penalties, the authority said.

Breaches of this kind have potential to erode the public’s trust in current affairs programming, said ACMA member Creina Chapman.

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

Details published on 2GB’s website said Fordham had an obligation to feature in and assist in the preparation of video, radio and print advertisements for Uber Australia under his agreement.

Fordham has since been directed by Nine to terminate his commercial arrangement with Uber.

The results of the fifth radio ratings survey for the year were also published on Friday, with Fordham retaining his No.1 breakfast spot despite dropping share from 17 per cent to 15.6 per cent overall.

Sydney’s 2GB again topped its market, with a 13.3 per cent share, down from 14 per cent.

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