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Breaking news keeps networks on their toes

Updated: How did TV networks handle the Labor Leadership spill especially when it wreaked havoc on primetime schedules?

spi4Wednesday night’s political spill was so vast that TV networks were in a race to keep up and the differences were fascinating to watch unfold.

Viewing from Melbourne I wasn’t able to see all the broadcasts during my channel-surfing but here’s a few observations.

SKY News did a great job, especially with David Speers landing the scoop of the day when Gillard told him she was calling the ballot for 7pm. Some observers suggested the one on one chat was a way of avoiding greater scrutiny. SKY didn’t let go of the coverage until after midnight including Paul Murray Live and NewsNight with Stan Grant.

spi1ABC News 24 also covered from the afternoon until late night. Leigh Sales hosted from around 7pm until 10:40 when Kevin Rudd made held his press conference and Tony Jones took over with Lateline.  It was all simulcast on ABC1 with other programming out the window. Adam Hills Tonight was finally screened on ABC2 at 9:30pm (if you missed it there’s a replay at 10pm Saturday ABC1).

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Nine held a news special from 6:30pm hosted by Peter Overton with Laurie Oakes. Nine was desperately hoping a result on the vote would come before State of Origin kick-off. In the end it switched coverage to GEM at around 7:45pm, missing the announcement on Nine by a matter of minutes.  When Chief Whip Chris Hayes gave the verdict, Nine had a Mal Meninga interview followed by a commercial break. Coverage on GEM continued until 8:30pm. One reader has suggested that while Rudd’s speech was live on ABC, SKY and Seven that Nine had a Big Bang Theory repeat.

spi5Seven began a news special at 6:50pm hosted by Chris Bath with Mark Riley. In Melbourne Seven oddly switched to Home and Away at 7:30pm with coverage continuing on 7TWO until Wimbledon began at 8:30pm.

However Today Tonight appeared to have major technical problems.

TEN extended its 5pm news until 6:30pm with Sandra Sully as host and The Project extended until 8pm, pushing back MasterChef and Offspring. Carrie Bickmore’s  gag about the possible leaks and events taking so long to unfold she was about to go and have her own leak was priceless. While Seven and Nine had sent the magic moment to multichannels in some cities, TEN was the only commercial network still broadcasting on the primary channel. But there was a catch. TEN had a commercial break when Chief Whip Chris Hayes announced the numbers that mattered. Timing….TEN Late News also covered the drama.

spi3SBS also had extended coverage although I’m unable to verify some of the details.

For my money the standout performers were David Speers (who was on air from arvo until 11:30pm) and Leigh Sales hosting rolling coverage for around 3.5 hours.

I also noticed a sprightly Barrie Cassidy on The Project on TEN then about half an hour later in the ABC studios. Speedy Gonzales…

One thing’s for sure …. today’s ratings numbers won’t reflect anything about what actually went to air.

28 Responses

  1. I watched ch 9 and switched to GEM when the football started, then switched to MasterChef at 8. I taped the Project and watched that back later. Then watched 10 late news after.

  2. I watched it on The Project and agree with you David, Carrie’s “leak/spill” joke was hilarious.
    I did switch around a bit but kept going back to them cos I felt like I was getting real opinions from people and not just boring journo lines.
    Barrie Cassidy and Natasha Stott Despoja were great on there too.

  3. On ABC’s telecast union leaders specifically rang Chris Uhlmann’s mobile phone and asked him to announce the State of Origin current score, because they couldn’t turn to the league 🙂 Leigh Sales duly updated the score.

  4. So why not? You review all the others. Plus you describe David Speers and Leigh Sales as the stand-outs without watching everything and everyone. Seems slightly unfair.

    1. It is what it is. I specifically mentioned I was not able to see all the broadcasts.

      With six channels and one pair of eyes it was an impossibility so I think your claim is slightly unfair. I’ve been upfront about what I viewed and wanted to reference SBS. They had live coverage when I saw World News Aus but I was not in a position to comment on the length of the show. Perhaps I should have not mentioned them at all like some other media?

  5. “SBS also had extended coverage although I’m unable to verify some of the details.” That’s not much of a serious or credible review.

    World News Australia ran for two hours. Presented by Ricardo Goncalves and Kathy Novak with Karen Middleton and Richard Davis live in Canberra.

    It carried Bill Shorten’s speech live. As well as the result announcement live. Plus the rest of the day’s news.

  6. Great coverage on ABC, however i’m a big fan of Adam Hills show & was not happy with the way they handled that rescheduling. With most shows it wouldn’t bother me too much because i can always get it from iview etc, but this is one of the few shows i look forward to watching live nowdays.

    It wasn’t until about 9pm they put an announcement on the bottom of the screen on ABC1 saying it would air after the breaking news. So it gets to around 10pm, i flick channels only to find its on ABC2 & halfway through already. I don’t recall there being any mention on the announcement of it being on ABC2. Besides that, why couldn’t they do it the other way around? continue coverage on ABC2 & 24 & Adam Hills on ABC1.

    I suppose its because they feel the need to cater to a minority of losers out there who still haven’t got their digital tv devices, even though, i say losers because the govt is providing free stbs to pensioners, so theres really no excuse.

  7. Sky News is also free on Foxtel for Xbox.
    It’s the only channel you can get without having to pay for a package.

    Last night was the first time i’ve given it a workout on there.

  8. Great overview David. I have turned to Sky first now, then ABC second. From that I all i needed and then some! Speers and Keiran Gilbert are a great team; comic relief from Richo and Kroger and Peter Van O. Leigh Sales was in her element too and i enjoyed Annabel Crabb, where I normally do not. Barrie Cassidy is the star out of all of this, calling it a fortnight ago. I smell a Walkley for him.

  9. Nine definitely did the right thing by not interrupting Origin. There were plenty of other options if people would rather watch the rolling coverage over the football. If they couldn’t go without the Nine news team they were on GEM anyway!

  10. Have to feel for Helen Kapalos. Leigh Sales was exceptional. Sandra Sully once again showed she is one of the best in the business when it comes to breaking news.

  11. I saw an ad for the SBS news during Borgen. It said Gillard called a vote and lost 45 to 57. 30 seconds told me all I need to know.

    And it only took me 5 minutes to read the newspapers this morning because they were just repeating that, padded out with journalists speculations and I told you sos.

  12. Sky news did a fantastic job at covering the event. Good job sky news. And then when I had enough of it I switched over to killer karaoke on comedy. A good way to finish off the evening.

  13. Nine would have been lambasted whatever way they did it but I thought they should have started the origin game on gem at 730 for pre match and then switch over at game time.

  14. ABC, Seven, Nine, Ten, on-line everywhere etc … does it really matter? Appreciate that they’re all trying to build, maintain or strengthen a ‘news’ brand, but because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should. Just like products in a shop, give people an alternative. Too often in these occasional scenarios of ‘breaking news’, common sense takes a back seat to ego and fear of upsetting a News Director.

  15. I stuck with TEN most of the night, who were eternally grateful this didn’t go down Tuesday night with their ‘Under the Dome’ premiere could have been at risk!

    All I can say is thank God for the multi channels but like you said David timing is everything when it comes to breaking news like this!

  16. Nine had a very difficult situation on their hands. Balancing their commitments to live sport and breaking news. What I think they should have done everywhere except in NSW and QLD is to continue coverage of the ballot until it concluded, even if that meant it went into the game itself. Victorians, South Australians and West Australians or the majority of them anyway probably care more about who is P.M, then who wins the state of origin. For the people in those states who really wanted to watch the origin, they could start the match on GEM. But alas, they had a make a very difficult decision very quickly.

  17. Thought the opening preamble in Borgen..’a prince never lacks legitimate reasons to break a promise’..from Machiavelli was as apt a commentary as any on yesterday’s circus.Don’t know if I felt sadder watching Birgitte Nyborg doing whatever necessary to hold on to power,including abandoning principle and family trust,or an Australian politic unfolding with never a thought to principle.We live in a rule of polls and the desperation for power.Lastly..one of Robert Kennedy’s favorite quotes ..speaking to political courage and principle were lines from Emerson..’they did not see and thousands of young men as hopeful now crowding to the barriers of their careers,do not yet see,that if a single man plant himself upon his convictions and there abide, the huge world will come round to him’…sadly Australian politics lacks those such men,and those such convictions.

  18. David Speers I think got another exclusive, pretty much saying about 5 minutes into the “vote” that the gillard cronies inside had texted him and said she didn’t have enough votes….

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