The Daily Aus

The Daily Aus
Format	Social media ; newsletters ; podcasts ;
Founder(s)	Sam Koslowski; Zara Seidler;
Editor	Billi FitzSimons
Staff writers	15 (as of November 2023)
Founded	2017
Headquarters	Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
Readership	500,000+
Website	thedailyaus.com.au

Last updated September 22, 2024

The Daily Aus (TDA) is an Australian social media-based news outlet founded in 2017. They post news stories and explainer articles on their Instagram account, which has over 500,000 followers,^[1] and also release a daily email newsletter and podcast episode. In total, they reach almost two million Australians per month. Their editorial focus is on issues relevant to young Australians, as 85% of its audience is under 35 years old. As of November 2023, the company has 15 employees.

Publishing and audience

The Daily Aus primarily posts news content to its Instagram and TikTok accounts and its website.^[2] Every weekday morning, the publication also sends out an email newsletter and releases a new podcast episode.^[1] Their news content is "bite-sized" and "easily digestible", written in plain English, with its stories catered specifically towards a young Gen Z audience.^[1]^[3] The outlet reports that 85% of its audience is under the age of 35, and 70% cite The Daily Aus as their primary news source.^[4]

Key people

You should be able to scroll on social media, see a photo of a coffee, a brand you like, and then a little, digestible explainer of ours about interest rates before going back to what you’re doing more knowledgeably.

Sam Koslowski^[5]

The Daily Aus was founded by Sam Koslowski and Zara Seidler in 2017.^[5] Seidler graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Sydney and worked as a news producer at Sky News and as a government officer.^[1]^[6] Koslowski worked as a corporate lawyer at a law firm, and was previously a social media journalist at Fox Sports Australia. In February 2021, they both quit their jobs to work at the company full-time.^[7] In 2020, the two entrepreneurs appeared in Forbes ' 30 Under 30 list for Media, Marketing & Advertising.^[4]

In March 2022, The Daily Aus appointed its first official editor, Billi FitzSimons – the daughter of Lisa Wilkinson and Peter FitzSimons.^[8] As of July 2023, the company has 13 employees.^[9]

History and growth

In 2020, The Daily Aus rapidly grew its Instagram following through its coverage of four key events: COVID-19 lockdowns and restrictions in Australia, the Black Summer bushfires, the George Floyd protests and the US presidential election.^[10] The founders attributed their growth in readership to young audiences "going to Instagram for the basic information before they go out to more sophisticated news sources for further reading."^[10] From July 2021, The Daily Aus built its online following from 100,000 to 270,000 in five months.^[7]

In April 2022, the news outlet partnered with the iHeart Podcast Network to handle the production of their two podcasts, The Daily Aus and No Silly Questions.^[11]

The publication received $1.2 million in seed funding, led by former Nine CEO David Gyngell, in June 2022.^[12]

In June 2023, amidst the online presale for the Australian leg of Taylor Swift's Eras Tour, The Daily Aus advertised a giveaway of four tickets to a random follower of their page. In a few hours, their account gained 20,000 followers. However, Frontier Touring, who was running the presale, later sent a cease and desist to the publication as tickets were not to be used as competition prizes. The Daily Aus was forced to remove their original post and issued an apology to readers that afternoon.^[13]

In September 2023, the news outlet announced they would be releasing their first book, No Silly Questions, via Penguin Random House.^[3] The publishing house had acquired rights to a book from the news outlet in November 2021.^[14]

In the lead-up to the 2023 Australian Indigenous voice referendum, The Daily Aus partnered with outdoor advertising company JCDecaux to promote an online information hub set up by the news outlet to answer common questions about the proposed alteration to the constitution.^[15]

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References

1 2 3 4 "From an arts degree to co-founder of The Daily Aus". University of Sydney. 13 July 2022. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
↑ Samios, Zoe (26 June 2022). "'Level up': The Daily Aus plots UK expansion after $1.2m capital raise" . The Sydney Morning Herald . Retrieved 24 March 2023.
1 2 Abelsohn, Jessica (14 September 2023). "There are no silly questions". The Australian Jewish News . Retrieved 4 October 2023.
1 2 Abouchar, Chantel; Grove, Patrick; Lee, Janice (24 March 2023). "The Daily Aus". Forbes . Retrieved 24 March 2023.
1 2 McGuire, Amelia (4 October 2021). "The 'speed bump' news publication trusted by Australia's youth". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
↑ Peppin, Hayley (15 October 2021). "We speak to Zara Seidler, co-founder of The Daily Aus". Harper's Bazaar . Retrieved 24 March 2023.
1 2 Schofield, Laura (10 November 2021). "The Daily Aus build youth appetite for news". Newsworthy. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
↑ Buaya, Alisha (25 March 2022). "Billi FitzSimons on making her mark with The Daily Aus and her response to critics". Mediaweek. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
↑ "About us". The Daily Aus. 21 July 2023. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
1 2 Skelly, Katie (1 March 2021). "The Daily Aus Founders Say 4 Major Events In 2020 Changed How We Consume News". The Latch. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
↑ "Youth news outlet The Daily Aus partners with iHeartPodcast Network". Mediaweek . 29 April 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
↑ Thomsen, Simon (27 June 2022). "Generation Instagram startup The Daily Aus banks $1.2 million from Canva execs and former Nine boss David Gyngell". Startup Daily. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
↑ Towell, Noel (30 June 2023). "Fan fury as news site's Tay-Tay ticket giveaway ends in tears". The Age. Retrieved 4 October 2023.
↑ "PRH acquires Daily Aus guide 'Break the News'". Books+Publishing. Retrieved 21 July 2023.
↑ Jolly, Nathan (11 September 2023). "'Be a voice, not an echo': JCDecaux and The Daily Aus launch OOH campaign". Mumbrella . Retrieved 4 October 2023.