Sam’s Back

Called by Kerry Packer “the world’s best television executive,” NZ-born Sam Chisholm is back helming Packer’s Channel Nine. In the 90s he turned UK’s BSkyB into a cash cow for Rupert Murdoch. The Auckland born King’s College old boy moved to Australia in his early 20s. The gruff Chisholm is equally known for his medical fortitude, having had a double-lung transplant as a result of a rare respiratory condition. Chisholm and Nine have been Australia’s top media story this year. “Television is the most perishable commodity – we have no stock, we have no plant, we have no factory – this is a creative business … You’re always trying to anticipate what your constituency wants and try to provide them with that. It’s the ultimate service industry. If viewers don’t like it – zap! They vote every day on what we do and if they don’t like it they’re quick to tell us.”