There’s a reason most of the employees retrenched by Network 10 on Tuesday are well-known presenters: their salaries are relatively high. Thanks to the unusual position the television industry now finds itself in – with ratings up but revenue down due to a pandemic-driven slump in advertising – something had to give.
For 10’s 5pm news, this will result in Brisbane and Perth bulletins being hosted by Sandra Sully in Sydney and Adelaide bulletins being anchored by Melbourne newsreader Jennifer Keyte. For morning program Studio 10, it means a likely shift to the traditional two-host format of rival shows on Seven and Nine. (Nine is the owner of this masthead.)
Natarsha Belling (second from left) and Kerri-Anne Kennerley (far right) are leaving Studio 10.Credit:Network 10
While the departure of Kerri-Anne Kennerley and Natarsha Belling from Studio 10 is confirmed, everything else is still being sorted out. Network 10 sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of ongoing negotiations with newly-redundant staff, say that Sarah Harris, Angela Bishop and Narelda Jacobs will feature heavily in the revamped program, though their roles may change. Denise Drysdale and Joe Hildebrand, currently listed as hosts on Studio 10’s website, will become regular contributors.
“The simple fact is that a show like Studio 10 doesn’t survive unless it’s making money,” says the program’s former executive producer Rob McKnight, now the co-editor of TV Blackbox. “It’s not just about ratings, it’s about cost versus ratings and the revenue that’s coming in.”
Ben Willee, general manager and media director of the Spinach advertising agency, puts it bluntly.
“The television market has been smashed [by COVID-19],” he says. “Studio 10 is clearly an expensive show to make because it’s got a lot of high-profile talent but their ability to supplement with revenue from advertorials is limited because they’re in an off-peak time slot.”
There’ll always be a bit of backlash when you change a TV program.
Media analyst Ian Warner
So far this year, Studio 10, which airs between 8am and midday, has averaged 81,000 viewers nationally, well behind Nine’s Today Extra on 176,000 and Seven’s top-rating The Morning Show on 267,000.
These averages might appear small but it’s not unusual for The Morning Show alone to accumulate two million viewers who watch in short bursts during the course of a week. And the older, predominantly female audiences of mid-morning programs are attractive to certain sponsors, who may buy a mix of 30-second commercials and in-program advertorials.
“Health, wellness, beauty, personal care and home care all appeal to those viewers,” Willee says. “Advertisers might focus on the sexy younger demographics but the older demographics often have a higher disposable income.”
Sydney weather presenter Tim Bailey is among those retrenched by 10.Credit:Network 10
As McKnight points out, a young person may watch an advertorial only to scour the internet for a cheaper deal on the same product; older viewers tend to pick up the phone and buy it on the spot. At one point, he says, advertorials on The Morning Show could be sold for $15,000 each.
Ian Warner, a partner and analyst at Moonlighting Media, says that any change to a program such as Studio 10 is not without risk. “You and I might not care about celebrities,” he says. “But if little old Doris sees Kerri-Anne Kennerley at Westfield Shoppingtown and gets her autograph, it’ll make her week.”
McKnight fears that a two-host arrangement could make it harder for Studio 10 to maintain a point of difference. “It was basically a variety show in the morning,” he says. “It even broke barriers by doing a breast exam live on air with a naked model [to show viewers how to check for lumps].”
Still, Warner believes that changing the line-up of a TV show is easier than replacing a radio host.
“If [former ABC Melbourne Radio presenter] Jon Faine went to a different station, his audience would go with him,” Warner says. “There’ll always be a bit of backlash when you change a TV program but in the long run, people tend to maintain their viewing habits.”
On Wednesday morning, Kennerley discussed her imminent departure (likely to occur in the second week of September, according to sources) with her co-hosts on Studio 10.
“I’m back on the lazy Susan of television,” said the veteran presenter, who has also worked for Seven, Nine and Foxtel. “If you are being run out of town [then] make it look like a parade … companies do these sort of cuts to make the business better [but] I am very, very sad because I will miss you guys and miss the audience.”
Michael Lallo is a senior culture writer at The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.
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2020-08-12 05:05:00Z
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