Navy's showcase program to all ships and shore establishments, Scuttlebutt, will now go to an even wider audience with the official merger between Scuttlebutt and Defence Watch.

The new Defence Watch is a 30-minute program produced in Canberra by the Directorate of Digital Media.

The program is screened six times per month on both Optus and Foxtel (Sky News Channel 14) with the aim to showcase Defence to a viewing audience of approximately 1.5 million households throughout Australian and New Zealand.

LSPH Brad Cone has taken on the role of producer, with an experienced cameraman and editor now in place.

The program is presented by PO Paul Mason, with a small team of professional journalists in support.

In addition to it's air-time, a double issue of Defence Watch is currently duplicated and distributed internally to the Royal Australian Navy every two months, with future distribution to Army and Airforce.

Defence Watch will still maintain an internal focus, disseminating information to Navy (CN's message) as required.

With the potential to move to a commercial network in the future, the outlook for Defence Watch remains very positive.

An e-mail address has been established for all enquiries and story suggestions at:

DefenceWatch@defence.gov.au

Further information (if required)