Anna Coren for TT

In something of an anti-climax, Seven has gone and announced Anna Coren as the permanent host for Today Tonight.

This follows unclear noises from Seven over summer about whether Coren would inherit the gig.

Hopes for a male host have been dashed. I would have liked TT to have a point of difference from ACA. The game certainly would have fired up if Seven had bounced back with a big-gun name like Ray, Jana or another heavyweight.

Coren said, “It’s a great privilege to take over such a successful programme. We have some terrific people working with us – people as determined as I am – to consolidate Today Tonight’s premier position. We won’t be resting on our laurels.”

Coren has several years behind her in journalism. She joined Seven in 2003 after four years as a journalist at Nine and three years with Seven and Nine affiliates in New South Wales. She has been a journalist for ten years – graduating with a Communications degree from Charles Sturt University in 1996.

With a journalistic background, Coren should have more capacity to front hostile interviews, something the very presentable Naomi could never quite pull off. But now we will have two female journos both fronting public affairs shows that include bra, diet and celebrity stories.

In Coren’s favour, she has managed some significant wins over the past week, including beating ACA when they had exclusives with the shark survivor.

Maybe Seven is hoping the transition is so seamless nobody will really notice the difference and the show can stay in front?