Seven need to stay consistent and ride the game show wave out.
If Tipping Point is still increasing its lead towards the end of the year, Seven may need to look at alternative option to replace The Chace.
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I agree. Fergo is not the problem.
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If it’s just Annette Sharp hearing these whispers, then I’ll take this rumours with a grain of salt.
For some years, the game-shows lead-in has helped Seven News with pretty good wins. The last few months, the ratings gap between Seven and Nine News have narrowed. But I don’t think there should be any panic from Seven… yet. Wait until the end of the year.
Agree that Fergo isn’t the problem. Fergo, Usher and Cox are a good trio for Sydney.
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I wouldn’t be surprised if the new 7News boss looked to make a splash by shaking things up. Returning Sydney to a double header Monday-Friday could be a good reset, keep Fergo on for weekends and some human interest stories during the week. Depends what QScores say though.
I think they need to do something with Mel McLaughlan too. She’s still not a great presenter and remains a weak link in the lineup.
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Agreed, I’ve always thought she was an overrated presenter, even back in the 10 days.
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There is no obvious replacement though with the same credentials as Mel. She might not be the most confident presenter but she’s clearly passionate about sport and I see no reason to move her on. I fear major presenter overhauls can do more harm than good.
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This proved true after Roscoe retired at the end of 2009, at which point the masses started to make the switch back to Nine News, where Peter Overton had just finished (or was about to finish) what was a tough first year for him at the helm.
The previous presenter overhaul was when all the on-air presenters except Nick McArdle were replaced during the early months of the Ian Ross era. Though in the case of Ann Sanders, she was shifted to weekends, replacing Chris Bath who moved to the morning news in 2004. The two would of course swap positions in 2006.
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Surely with him gone, the likelihood of the change is even greater. With the former head of news in Brisbane now in charge of Sydney, you can see how he might prefer a dual header format. Perhaps this provides further insight into The Latest change last year too.
Isn’t that why he walked from Nine?
You can say that about Melbourne and Perth. But Ferguson has never won a year in Sydney. He’s had 10 of them.
Include four when he was suddenly parachuted into the hot seat at Nine at just 38 when Jim Waley was sacked in January 2005, despite him winning two years after Hendo retired.
If they want a double header on weeknights, why couldn’t Angela join Fergo?
Usher could stay on weekends.
Chris Reason presenting 5pm national news today.
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They have new news directors in Sydney and nationally who will want to make an impact after not winning a ratings year in the most lucrative market in the country in 13 years. 2024 is shaping up to be one of the most definitive losses in sometime for Seven News in Sydney, and with major marquee events on Nine yet to even air for the year yet (Origin, Finals, and Olympics), it will only get worse.
I think the article isn’t too far off the mark.
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Because Michael is better than Mark?
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Sydney has always been a Nine-loyal market, but I think it also extends beyond more than those upcoming marquee events you’ve mentioned.
Nine has had the domestic rugby league broadcasting rights since 1992, which has allowed them to dominate in the Sydney market not just at 6:00pm, but also overall, apart from that 2004-09 period during which Ian Ross was the anchor on Seven News which helped to boost Seven’s fortunes in the market, leaving Nine to play second fiddle.
Being the league broadcaster has also allowed Nine exclusive access to other areas of the sport that other networks cannot. The same will also apply for the Paris Olympics.
Saturday 11 May and Sunday 12 May -
Theo Doropoulos presenting sport in Melbourne tonight.
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Not so sure about that. I find Ferguson has a very smooth delivery whereas Usher stumbles over some words and has some odd changes in his tone of voice.
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They could bring back Jim Wilson to present weeknight sport (and possibly lure back Chris Bath to read weekends).
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First time on the 6:00pm bulletin since moving to Melbourne
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Same thing for Peter Michell. Your argument falls apart in Victoria where Nine has had a similar run of almost as much success apart from a few hiccups, despite going against the FTA AFL broadcaster. The sport arguably has more rusted on fans than the NRL so the feat they have pulled off is as good as Sydney, or better.
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Because Ange and Mush have spent years working together across The Latest and weekends. Fergo has mostly worked solo over the years. It would be an easier switch to keep a team with chemistry together than to try and create it in primetime
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