Major Channel Seven stars and bosses flown to Queensland newsroom to deal with the network’s mass axings and ratings bloodbath
A number of prominent Channel Seven personalities have been relocated to their Queensland newsroom due to a wave of layoffs and troubles with ratings.
According to The Australian’s Media Diary, Michael Usher, the main host and presenter of Spotlight, along with Sarah Greenhalgh, a reporter for the same show, were dispatched to the studios situated at Mt Coot Tha.
Last Tuesday, the deputy news manager and Perth news director Ray Kuka arrived at the newsroom in the Sunshine State, and the director of news operations, Gemma Acton, has similarly traveled to Queensland.
‘Ray is Seven’s Mr Fix-It,’ one senior insider told Daily Mail Australia last week.
Following an exclusive report by Daily Mail Australia, it has been disclosed that Michael Coombes, Seven’s Queensland news director, who dismissed longtime presenter Sharyn Ghidella over the phone during a salon appointment, stepped down from the network.
On Friday, Coombes sent an email to his colleagues letting them know that he wouldn’t be coming back to Seven for a while as he was going on a much-needed vacation with his family.
There are many rumors circulating among the staff at Seven’s studios on Mount Coot-tha, suggesting that the news director in Brisbane may be facing trouble due to his handling of Ghidella’s exit, which has brought public embarrassment upon the network.
Daily Mail Australia discloses that Kerry Stokes, the wealthy proprietor of the broadcasting network, expressed strong personal disappointment over the manner in which a long-serving Seven star was handled, considering her unwavering dedication to the firm for 17 years.
Under pressure, Coombes found himself in a tight spot following Ghidella’s exit. As viewers flocked to her new show on Ten’s evening newscast, Seven’s Brisbane news ratings started to decline.
This week, speculations about his future with the network intensified as Seven’s prominent news personality, Kuka, arrived in Brisbane on Tuesday.
When we spotted him in the halls,” the senior source shared with Daily Mail Australia, “we immediately sensed that something wasn’t quite right.
‘He’s like “The Wolf” from Pulp Fiction – he cleans up messes – and it’s worked.
‘He’s only been in Brisbane a couple of days and already the ratings are on the way up again.’
Kuku, who is often situated in Perth, gained attention earlier this year when he unexpectedly crossed paths with the departing head of his network’s primary competitors, Michael Sneesby, at a luxurious hotel in Paris during the Olympic Games.
Since June 2023, Coombes has been managing both the Brisbane and Gold Coast newsrooms, as Neil Warren, his previous leader, shifted towards leading the Sydney office.
Warren departed from the company, too, as part of an extensive restructuring within Seven News spearheaded by the latest head of national news, Anthony De Ceglie.
Mr Coombes had been on leave for two weeks before confirming his departure on Friday but told colleagues his decision to quit the company was not linked to the newsroom’s recent scandals and had been in the works for ‘sometime’.
He informed seven team members via email that his official last day is on October 31st. However, he’s fortunate because he has accumulated quite a bit of vacation time, so he plans to stay on leave until then.
“There might be some speculation, but I want everyone to understand that my decision has nothing to do with any unfavorable assumptions being made. In essence, the time for this choice has come.
Coombes denied his holiday had been sudden or unexpected.
He mentioned that our family vacation to the Whitsundays wasn’t sudden or without explanation; instead, it had been meticulously organized well in advance, as he conveyed in his email.
“We’ve postponed that vacation not once, but twice due to several factors. Additionally, it marks my first extended rest in the past nine months.
Following closely on the news, Coombes is leaving, as reported by The Australian’s Media Diary, after learning that longtime presenter Tim Watson, who has been hosting the weeknight sports bulletin during Melbourne’s 6pm news for 13 years, has decided it’s time to retire.
Watson landed his commentary role with Seven in 1992 after retiring from AFL.
Rebecca Maddern is believed to be in talks to take over from Watson when he finishes up.
Newcomer Karina Carvalho, previously with ABC, is reportedly set to fill in for Maddern during her weekend responsibilities, thus presumably solving the team’s puzzle.
Ghidella refers to her transition to Ten as a return home, as she kicked off her urban news broadcasting journey with this network way back in 1980.
‘I wonder if my security tag still works,’ she joked in a video announcing the news.
‘Returning to 10 News First feels like coming home,’ the veteran broadcaster added in a statement.
In the ’90s, Network 10 provided me with my initial significant opportunity. Now, returning here to provide local news services for Queensland residents feels incredibly thrilling and more than just exciting.
At the age of 24, she was hired for the role of a field reporter and news presenter in the newsroom of Channel 10 Brisbane.
In 1992, Ghidella shifted her base to Sydney’s Nine Network, where she frequently read the news on the Today Show. Later, in 2007, she switched over to the Seven Network.
Since 2013, she has been anchoring the Brisbane edition of our network’s news bulletin. However, her tenure in that role came to an end last month, as she was let go after serving for 17 years.
Since Mr. De Ceglie assumed leadership, the newsrooms in Sydney, Melbourne, and Adelaide have all experienced changes in management, and new executive producers have been brought in for Sunrise, Weekend Sunrise, and Spotlight as well.
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2024-09-23 01:49