Seven News Presenters and Reporters

I can’t imagine that Usher comes cheap. A prized recruit from Nine all those years back.

They were getting their money’s worth when he was also doing The Latest.

Fast forward to now and you have a very expensive newsreader fronting weekends only, alongside Angela Cox.

In a world where $ and cents are being counted and Cox being capable of reading solo, I wouldn’t be surprised if this story was true.

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New CEO Jeff Howard has done the rounds to every 7 station across the country over the past two weeks and I can say there’s uneasiness amongst staff. He’s made it pretty clear unavoidable cost cutting is on the horizon.

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Wouldn’t surprise me if the weekend team in Melbourne is reviewed next.

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Wouldn’t surprise me if all the double headers are being reviewed while they are at it (except Rick and Sue in Perth).

Melbourne can probably be justified by the fact that the weekend presenters cover the afternoon bulletin.

Adelaide they might wait till Mike Smithson retires (has been at SAS for 40 years), then move Will Goodings back onto weekends.

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Why move Mike Goodings back to weekends? He and Rosanna are going gangbusters in the ratings.

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So was Grame Goodings and Jess Adamson when they were presenting weekends but they were both axed for cost-cutting.

Seven hasn’t hesitated before to make cuts in a leading market like Adelaide.

Obviously Will shouldn’t be shafted for weekends, but given what Seven has done in the past, I wouldn’t be suprised.

*Will Goodings

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Had Mike Smithson on my brain! ahaha.

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IIRC, he moved to weekends following recovery from illness in 2004/05, at which point then-weekend presenter John Riddell was promoted to weeknights.

If you’re reviewing the double header and picking one over the other, why would they keep Angela over Michael when he fronts more of their programs? She only really has the 6pm News now whereas he still has Spotlight and Elections. Because she is cheaper to begin with?

Michael isn’t the main fill in for either of them, so they wouldn’t save him.

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I’m just guessing here… but if Michael just did Spotlight, he would have more time to report for that show (as well as presenting it), and 7 could perhaps let some of that show’s other reporters go. I suspect they’ll want to keep Angela for when Fergo eventually does call time.

No… but someone’s gotta be number 3, haven’t they? If he just focuses on Spotlight, presenting and filing reports, plus a few weeks a year filling in on Sunrise and/or 6pm, that’s a decent workload, surely?

I think that might work quite well actually… Mark and Ange on weeknights and weekends, respectively, with Mike filling in… if they’re clever they can schedule it so it’s only ever one of those three at 6. Would be great for consistency.

Yep, then he got sacked at the end of 2014 while winning weekends.

Whoever planted the story in the afternoon, seems to have achieved the desired result and no-one is talking about the morning report of Mark Ferguson being replaced anymore!

It’s still possible the article is both right and wrong, in that yes he’s leaving weekend news but not the network. Interesting to see what 7 does next

Includes this comment from a Seven spokesperson:

A Seven spokesperson said, “The claims are rubbish and couldn’t be further from the truth. They are damaging and misleading.”

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About time they gave him the flick!

Jacquelin Robson on afternoon news in Brisbane

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Well earlier yesterday there was another Daily Mail article claiming Mike and Angela were ‘in training’ to replace Fergo. So that paper is talking out of both sides of its mouth.

I know newsreaders are essentially public figures, but it can’t be nice to have your future employment speculated on an international newspaper.

Michael Usher is to leave Sydney’s News… to host Weekend Sunrise, the Morning News, Spotlight, the main fill-in on The Morning Show when Larry is away, the Carols in the Domain, the Election Coverage, and the return of The Daily Edition. … plus much much more.

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Said to be moving in to 7’s Eveleigh headquarters so he can be on call 24/7. The network is clearing the entire top floor or “penthouse” to become the “Usher suite”.

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Perth Now.

Wonder why there is fresh faces reporting for 7 in Perth recently!

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