According to Inside Mail, one of the early ideas raised under the SCA / SWM merger when the radio arm had more control, was their suggestion to remove local 6pm news bulletins in favour of a single, national 6pm bulletin.
Whilst this would save costs, it would come at the price of local relevance and viewers, and the plan was reportedly only shut down when Kerry Stokes reshuffled the board and put his foot down.
SCA would have just shut the news division down if they had a chance.
These people really have no idea. De Callie would have been all in favour of this.
Sydney has come together in an extraordinary show of support for sick children and their families, with over $4.9 million raised to support the 2026 Sydney Sick Kids Appeal.
The result contributes to Sydney Childrenâs Hospitals Foundationâs (SCHF) yearly fundraising efforts. Schools, workplaces, families and communities united to fund lifeâchanging treatment research and support for children at the Sydney Childrenâs Hospital, Randwick and The Childrenâs Hospital at Westmead, with last nightâs Gold Dinner lifting the grand total to $75.5 million.
7NEWS Sydney continued its decade-long long-standing partnership with SCHF, supporting coverage across broadcast, digital and social platforms to help amplify the voices of patients, families and frontline staff throughout the Appeal.
Across Sydney Sick Kids Day, many familiar Seven faces joined in celebrations, including 7NEWS Sydney co-anchors Angela Cox and Angie Asimus, 7NEWS sports anchor Mel McLaughlin, Sunrise weatherman Sam Mac and Better Homes & Gardensâ Charlie Albone and Juliet Love.
2DayFM Breakfast hosts Nath Roye and Emma Chow, as well as Triple M Sydney Breakfast hosts Beau Ryan, Cat Lynch and Aaron âWoodsyâ Woods, lent their support, helping shine a light on the stories at the heart of the Appeal.
This year also marks a major milestone with SCHF celebrating 40 years of supporting childrenâs health. Over four decades, the Foundation has played a vital role in funding life-saving treatment, world-class care, groundbreaking research and essential support services for families across the state.
7NEWS Sydney co-anchor and SCHF Ambassador Mark Ferguson said the result reflected the strength and generosity of the community.
âEvery year, thousands of children across NSW spend days, weeks and often months in hospital, missing out on school, milestones and everyday life.
âFunds raised through the Appeal provide critical, unrestricted support, allowing our hospitals to respond where need is greatest, from urgent care and equipment, to research and programs that improve the patient and family experience.
âThis Appeal is always a reminder of just how much people care, and the response from the community has been incredible.â
The Hon Kristina Keneally AO, CEO of SCHF, said the milestone reflects the extraordinary generosity shown during the Sydney Sick Kids Appeal, and across the Foundationâs work year-round.
"The generosity we see across this community is extraordinary â people showing up, stepping forward and backing sick kids and their families in ways that truly change lives.
âEvery dollar raised, every event delivered, and every partnership formed is helping Sydney Childrenâs Hospitals Network deliver the best possible care to sick kids and their families, including earlier diagnoses, smarter treatments and better experiences for families when they need it most.â
The result provided strong momentum for last nightâs Gold Dinner, hosted by Sevenâs Dr Chris Brown, where supporters and partners came together at Sydneyâs Hordern Pavilion to build on the total and continue driving impact for children and families.
The long-standing partnership between SCHF and 7NEWS Sydney reflects a shared commitment to ensuring these stories are seen and heard, connecting the community to the real experiences inside hospitals and inspiring ongoing support for one of the stateâs most important causes.
Some caps
As Australiaâs population surges past 28 million people, the nation must confront urgent questions about how big we should become, and whether weâre ready for what comes next.
Weâre not having enough babies, weâre not ready to care for the retirees we have, and no one in Canberra can settle the migration debate.
Starting this Sunday at 6.00pm on Seven and 7plus, an exclusive five-part 7NEWS series, Australia Next: Population Pressure , takes on the population questions that this generation needs to get right.
From record-low fertility rates to the strain on services in booming communities and the rising cost of an ageing nation, 7NEWS travels across Australia to the places where the population is growing fastest and ageing quickest, to examine whatâs at stake.
Led by National News Desk Director Hugh Whitfeld, the series brings together 7NEWS reporters across every state to deliver a comprehensive look at one of the defining issues facing the country: population.
The series begins with âThe Baby Droughtâ, exploring why Australia has quietly stopped having enough children. Then throughout the week, 7NEWS will break down the biggest population challenges facing the nation, including:
- A migration debate long dominated by politics, but not resolved;
- Rapidly-expanding communities under pressure, from packed schools to overstretched services;
- The question of whether Australia can sustain future growth while protecting food production; and
- The âage waveâ as fewer workers support a larger retiree population.
Hugh Whitfeld said: âItâs not just the experts telling us something must change, itâs everyday Aussies. The economic conditions must improve so more people have more confidence to have children.
âAnd immigration settings must be right to make sure all Australians get to share in the wealth this country can offer,â he said.
âThese are the issues every family is talking about. Weâre going to find some real answers."
A range of leading voices feature across the week, including population expert at ANU, Liz Allen and co-founder of The Demographics Group, Simon Kuestenmacher, alongside insights from business leader and finance expert David Koch.
Liz Allen said: âBy 2054, it is expected that the number of deaths will outnumber the number of births. We then have a situation where the economy could really take a beating.
âWe will have to learn to do more with less, and that means living standards could go backwards.
âWithout immigration, Australiaâs demographic future looks very uncertain.â
7news Melb could be delayed tonight. 4th quarter is only just starting at 5:30pm and all other quarters so far went 34mins. So news could be a few mins late
And given they have another AFL game at 7pm they probably wonât be able to go overtime like the past few times the AFL finished late
4th quarter went 30.5mins and the news started at 6:01pm
The Age reports some staff in the networkâs television newsroom have been informed their roles will be affected this week
One of the worst things about mass layoffs is 6-12 months down the track it is often the most experienced and accomplished people that are left without a job. The younger people they trained up often get a new job and are surprised that the people that trained/mentored them are left without work.
What you donât know is in 15-20years you will be one of them at a future layoff. The time to have done something about the risk was years ago when you saw the experienced people unable to get a new job. You canât do anything about it once the Outlook invite to a meeting with the GM and HR lands.
More broadly across the network there are definitely some inefficiencies where roles could easily be cut or merged.
A couple that come to mind:
Why canât they just say, hi, your sacked , bye.
There are also the useless â national deskâ titles that reporters got from De Cecile that can be dropped. A demotion to just a âreporterâ no doubt who see a cut in pay.
I wonder if some old guards like Ann Sanders, Mike Smithson and Rick Ardon could be ushered towards retirement.
Doesnât Melbourne only have double headers on weekends?
Some seriously talented journalists across 7 News have been shown the exit today. Itâs another sad day for the industry. Itâs not my place to say who, but Iâm sure the names will come out over the next couple of days.
Youâre an anonymous poster on an anonymous website, a little hint at-least, cmon!
That doesnât mean anything reading the news is only one part of the role they can and do other stuff as well so there is not necessary an increase in costs having two news readers. Personally I would return to just Fergo hosting solo because the change hasnât made significant changes to the ratings and Angula Cox would still be employed just not hosting the 6pm news.
From the Herald Sun
Itâs understood some of those in the firing line in Melbourne are on-air talent and casuals. With a number of reporters currently on maternity leave complicating the situation, the main question marks circle around the big star talent.
While there have been jungle drums around long term anchor Peter Mitchellâs contract and reduced hours, there have been repeated assurances the veteran is safe.
This leaves speculation around fellow anchors Mike Amor and Karina Carvalho. Carvalho was a much-hyped hire by former Seven boss Anthony De Ceglie when she came across from the ABC in July 2024. But itâs understood those in the firing line are unlikely to include the high-profile presenters. The potential redundancies was certainly a topic of conversation among guests at the media wedding of the year between Seven reporter Laura Turner and former Channel 9 cameraman Dan McPherson.
Speaking from my own experience, redundancies are tough. Iâve seen a lot of good people come and go over the years because of large-scale job cuts, and itâs never easy for anyone involved. I just hope those affected have good people around them and know theyâve got support during what can be a really difficult time.
If I am being SUPER SUPER brutal but realsitic⌠Could potentially loose some big names like;
Ann Sanders, replaced on air by a mix of Natarsha, Sally and Angie.
Karina Carvalho, not replaced on air.
Mike Smithson, replaced on air by Sarah Cumming.
Rick Ardon or Susannah Carr, not replaced on air and the other to read solo
Madelaine Collignon or Nick Hose, the other to read solo. Or Daniel Gibson, with the 6.30 news replaced by truncated Sydney bulletin.
Move GWN Production to Perth and have someone there read it.
Regional weather presenters, Livio, Kiah and Kirstie could all be let go and a mix of reporters could pull double duty to do the weather. Weekend weather presenters in the capitals could also be rethought.
