ARN Appoints Ex-TikTok Executive as First Director of Video and Social

Australian Radio Network (ARN) has appointed Ollie Wards as its first Director of Video and Social, a newly created role that marks the company's push to evolve from a radio broadcaster into a broader entertainment company.

The appointment was announced on April 21, 2026. Wards will report directly to Kerri Elstub, ARN's Chief Content Officer.

Wards Brings Platform and Public Broadcasting Experience

Wards joins ARN from TikTok, where he spent five and a half years as Director of Music for Australia and New Zealand. Before TikTok, he spent a decade as Content Director at triple j, the Australian public broadcaster.

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In his new role, Wards will lead ARN's digital video and social content strategy. His responsibilities include scaling video content across the iHeart platform, building partnerships with major platforms, developing new content formats, and creating new revenue streams.

Elstub described Wards as "one of the most respected digital and content leaders in the country, with a sharp instinct for what audiences connect with and how culture moves across platforms."

Wards said he is "excited to be driving video and social for iHeart and some of Australia's most loved personalities and brands, plus building some new ones."

Appointment Follows Difficult Financial Year

The hire comes after a challenging FY25 for ARN. Revenue fell 10% to US$285 million, EBITDA dropped 23% to US$47.5 million, and net profit after tax declined 32% to US$17.9 million.

CEO Michael Stephenson, who took the role in January 2026, has framed the company's future around entertainment rather than audio alone. "We made a stance and shared our bold vision for what I believe the future of ARN can be, and that is to be an entertainment company," Stephenson said.

Wards' appointment is the third senior content leadership hire under Stephenson. Within his first eight weeks as CEO, Stephenson appointed Elstub as Chief Content Officer and Dave Cameron as Director of Content for Metro Radio before adding Wards as the video and social specialist.

Prior Collaboration Underpins the Hire

Wards and ARN have an existing working relationship. While at TikTok, Wards co-launched TikTok Trending with iHeart, a station that became Australia's top-ranked station for listeners under 30.

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That track record informed Stephenson's talent search. "I was always of the view that I needed someone who was a pure play content leader. Someone who had cross-platform experience, and they're not easy people to find," Stephenson said.

iHeart Video Expansion Planned for Coming Months

ARN confirmed the iHeart platform will expand its video offering in the coming months. The expansion includes video ad insertion and video podcasts distributed via Apple Podcasts and YouTube.

The move is supported by audience behavior data. 77% of podcast consumers now switch between audio and video formats, giving ARN a commercial rationale for investing in video podcast infrastructure.

ARN also confirmed the Australian launch of Ruby, a branded content studio originally developed by iHeartMedia in the US. The studio targets 20 to 30 minutes of consumer engagement per branded content piece, compared to an average of three seconds for a standard Instagram or TikTok ad.

Elstub said video will play "an increasingly important role in how our content is created, experienced and shared" as ARN continues its transition toward a full entertainment company.