Solua Middleton appointed ABC Head of Indigenous Audio, Dan Bourchier the new General Manager of NITV

The ABC and SBS have made two key appointments to their Indigenous leadership teams. Dan Bourchier departs the public broadcaster to return to SBS as NITV‘s new General Manager. Solua Middleton, the Chair of the Bonner Committee, who played a key role in shaping the ABC’s Listen Loudly, Act Strongly anti-racism initiative, has been appointed Head of Indigenous Audio.

Dan (main image) who grew up on Warumungu Country, NT, with family connections in Victoria, will drive continued audience and community impact for NITV, overseeing broadcast and digital strategy and leading day-to-day operations with on-air roles and public outreach. This new role follows the announcement of Tanya Denning-Orman’s appointment as SBS Director, First Nations, to lead a network-wide strategy to increase Indigenous content, culture and leadership.

Dan said:

“This feels like coming home. NITV gave me my start in television back in 2010 as a political reporter, and returning now as General Manager is a privilege. NITV has always been an incubator of talented journalists and storytellers and is today investing more than ever in original First Nations programming, working with the First Nations media sector across the country.

I’m excited to work alongside such incredible people – a team that continues to blaze a trail in truth-telling the stories that reflect the depth, diversity and strength of our communities. Together, we’ll build on NITV’s proud legacy and take it even more powerfully into the future.”

Dan too was a Chair of the Bonner Committee, the ABC’s primary advisory body on issues relating to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander staff, content and communities as well as a senior news anchor for the ABC News Channel since 2024.

Solua Middleton

A proud Torres Strait Islander woman, Solua has 25 years of experience in the media industry, including 15 years with the ABC where she is co-executive producer of ABC News Story Lab’s Deep Time project. She was previously co-executive producer of the ABC’s national project Right Wrongs, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Referendum, an ABC radio and ABC Open producer and features writer. She too has worked at NITV.

Solua said:

“I’m really excited to be joining the Audio division as their inaugural Head of Indigenous Audio and working with Ben Latimer and the division’s leadership team. I see a real potential to strengthen our connection and service to Indigenous audiences and explore new ideas to build on the highly respected work of our flagship programs Speaking Out and Awaye! I’ve been passionately telling Indigenous stories for several decades and am looking forward to continuing to amplify those stories for all Australians.”

ABC Director Audio Ben Latimer said:

“This is a landmark appointment for the ABC Audio division and a vital step in strengthening our First Nations storytelling. Solua is a tireless advocate and supporter of colleagues and the broader Indigenous community. She will play a key strategic and creative role leading the development and delivery of Indigenous content and partnerships across ABC Audio. We’re thrilled to welcome her to the team.”

The Head of Indigenous Audio role is newly created with Solua starting on November 3. Dan commence as General Manager of NITV on September 29.