Danielle Laidley is no stranger to the media. As a player in the West Coast Eagles’ inaugural team and then after being traded to North Melbourne Football Club, Dani experienced two very different levels of media interest in AFL players. Then as coach of North Melbourne, Dani experienced some of the toughest scrutiny from sports media and fans. And in 2020, she experienced the voracity of the media when Victoria Police leaked images of Dani to the media and revealed to the public that Dani was undergoing a gender transition, having suffered gender dysphoria throughout her life. The coverage was frenzied and prolonged.
This week, Nic Hayes is joined by Danielle Laidley who shares her experience in the media across her career, and what she’s doing in the media now that she’s taken back the narrative, working in transgender advocacy and as a regular sports columnist. Dani and Nic discuss:
What it’s like to be in the cut and thrust of weekly games and media spotlight as an AFL player and coach, riding the waves of speculation and interest in North Melbourne moving to the Gold Coast, her teammate Wayne Carey, and the scrutiny following lost games among many other fascinating moments in her career
How she flew under the radar in Melbourne after being traded from West Coast to North Melbourne
How writing a book and filming documentary Revealed – Danielle Laidley: Two Tribes in partnership with Eddie McGuire all came about
Dani’s pick for top five NMFC players and her pick for the GOAT – “you could kick the ball anywhere, and he’ll mark it”
The Experts Podcast is hosted by media professional and commentator, Nic Hayes. The Experts Podcast pulls back the curtain on media and helps you to get a better understanding of how media works. We speak to the country’s leading journalists, hosts, anchors and producers, who are setting the national news agenda as well as some of the most prominent experts who appear in media around the country. The Experts Podcast, powered by Media Stable.
