Mark Ferguson replaces Chris Bath at Seven News
Mark Ferguson takes the anchor chair at Seven News in Sydney, with Chris Bath moved to Fridays and Saturdays.
- Published by David Knox
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Seven has announced Mark Ferguson will read Seven News Sydney bulletin from tonight.
Chris Bath will now read only on Fridays and Saturdays.
The move comes after Seven has been trailing Nine News in the Sydney market, but Chris Bath told The Australian she welcomed the switch.
“For me juggling two prime time shows has always been hard and with Sunday Night now expanding, something had to give,” she said.
“There was no way I could juggle that and see my family. I’ve been with Sunday Night since day one, it’s my show and we are all very proud of how well it has done. It was a no-brainer.
“The figures are in black and white,” Bath said. “We won with Rossco (Ian Ross), and then I won the next three years. I had a good crack at it, that’s all I can do.”
Seven CEO Tim Worner said: “The appointment of Chris to this new role will see the development of the next phrase of her distinguished career. Sunday Night is the flagship program from our News and Public Affairs division, hosted by Chris since the first edition five years ago. Chris is a big part of the success of the program and is perfectly placed to lead Sunday Night into its expanded series in 2014.
“It’s a mark of the depth of skill and ability inside the Seven News team that we have a news reader of the calibre of Mark Ferguson to take up the reins from Chris. Mark’s news gathering experience at home and abroad perfectly qualify him for this new role.”
It remains unclear what expansion Sunday Night will undergo, but the show has been ‘seasonal’ at Seven, making way for Reality shows.
Network Director of News Rob Raschke added: “Chris Bath is peerless when it comes to covering breaking news, and she will continue to play a central role in this for the network.
“Mark is an immensely experienced journalist and presenter who has covered some of the biggest stories in the world. He’s held in very high regard by those who work with him and those who compete against him.”
The move comes at a time of ongoing change within Seven News amid speculation Today Tonight is rife for the axe.
Nine chief David Gyngell told The Australian: “Today Tonight has been cancelled and, if it is not by now it will be, and that’s not a stupid thing,” he said.
“People will criticise Seven for dropping Today Tonight but they will be just as committed to news coverage as before.”
Seven has a one hour News bulletin tonight but Today Tonight returns tomorrow.
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- Tagged with Nine News, Seven News, Sunday Night, Today Tonight
42 Responses
Why should it matter who reads the autocue as long as they’re competent and present well? But the commercial networks insist on transforming their ‘news’ readers into ‘celebs’, and turning the content they read about into little more than a supporting act. The most distasteful part of the commercial TV ‘news’ circus is the way they market it, using other people’s trauma, misery and suffering to promote their ‘celeb’ reporters and autocue readers. They show little respect to the news they present nor to the people they present it to. Real news has been reduced to poor quality ‘Newstainment’ in the rush to be ‘First’ with what is often little more than gossip.
Newsreaders are something a lot of viewers are very fussy about. Seven have taken a massive risk with Ferguson and I believe ratings will further decline. He’s awfully beige. If Seven felt Bath had to go, which I certainly don’t believe, then they needed to bring in someone with a big status. Ron Wilson would have been a good choice.
Hate to play the gender card, but there have been three significant demotions for females at Seven recently. If media reports are true and things such as “sexiness”, “hair, make up and wardrobe were distracting” are true then I’m horrified.
It’s become quite messy at 7 . . .I was watching their news tonight but it became so boring after 6.30 and I don’t have time to watch filler stories (e.g., a story about a Sydney mansion for sale) so I switched to The Project to get the basic news headline. 7 had the perfect opportunity to have a point of difference by filling the 6.30 – 7pm timeslot with something interesting . . . but have just decided to follow 9. It’s disappointing, and as a long term 7 news viewer, I think it’s time to make a switch or just read the news online.
@ TVScene – Chris Bath was the only thing holding Sydney news together, and just take a look at what happened to her (after ten years as a lead anchor, including 6-7 of those as number one).
Peter Mitchell is on the way out, it’s just a matter of when.
I prefer 7 news to 9 any time, don’t like Peter Overton so don’t watch him, but don’t mind Chris or Mark reading the news, both have a sense of humor which is sometimes needed with so much gloom and doom around these days and they can keep some stories very light hearted.
@SNNWMD – No way in hell that Seven would replace Peter Mitchell with Bec Maddern. Bec is not as well regarded as she thinks she is sometimes. Peter Mitchell is the only thing holding Seven News Melbourne together. It’s those around Mitch that disappoint.
But how do you know how well regarded Rebecca Maddern “thinks she is?” I’ve always found her to be well regarded by those I have spoken to.
Love Fergo – the only good looking man on the Seven network and a proper journalist. I’m not sure seven can brag about being good at Current Affairs, The Sunday show wheels out interviews with people like Julie Andrews and stories about Anzacs, they are always going to bloody Kakoka. As for TT, I would rather poke my eyes out with a stick than watch another story on a houso and sunrise has always been naff.
Clearly Chris Bath is not working but Mark Ferguson is definitely not the answer. Couldn’t stand him as a newsreader at 9.
Chris Bath has been keeping a lots of balls in the air …for sometime now…both professional and personal…I imagine it would suit her….
I went back to TEN news last year…and like it best…but I am not a regular news watcher…
Also use to watch 60Minutes regularly…years ago….I now find Sunday Night a better program..but again…really only watch when there are stories I am interested in…
@ David Knox….January 27, 2014 at 1:12 pm..
He he…You may be right!
Mark Freguson failed at Nine because he does not have the special something that Peter Overton had who replaced him and has made the Sydney news his own.
I agree that Chris Reason would have been the better option.
I don’t get why they just don’t team them up or have 2 presenters. In Melbourne i think it would be good to have Peter Mitchell and Jennifer Keyte present together.
A bad move 7.
Maybe they’re trying to fix things as best they can before Mr Meakin arrives at TEN?
Right decision to give Chris Bath the chop, although they choose the wrong replacement. Chris Reason would be the best man for the job not Mark. Seven are competing against Peter Overton on Nine, perhaps even a Chris Reason and Mel Doyle double header would be the best option to take Nine on. But if I was Peter Mitchell in Melbourne I would be worried, Bec Maddern could be taking your Nightly News spot.
@carolemorrissey
Sunday Night is one of the few shining lights in Seven’s news and current affairs programs. It has some of the best stories each and every year and easily beats the stories shown on 60 Minutes.
I keep thinking though if they cut Bathie from Sydney why haven’t they cut Mitchell from Melbourne yet? He fumbles so much with the news and is so uncomfortable yet somehow he still has his job? Sure he is a good person but his newsreading skills suck. Makes no sense for me.
“Sunday Night is an ok show, but it will never be 60 Minutes, it is just a cheap imitation of it.”
“Sunday Night” is a first-class public affairs program and certainly one of the Seven Network’s best. It features stories covered by Australia’s most esteemed correspondents including Ross Coulthart and Mike Willesee.
60 Minutes on the other hand is unreserved debris. Whichever newspaper columnist labelled it as cheque book journalism is right on the money because quite frankly that’s what it is.
Of course she wouldn’t be smiling on the next pay day !!
Sunday Night is an ok show, but it will never be 60 Minutes, it is just a cheap imitation of it.
It’s funny, late last year they were bragging about what a good team Chris Bath & Jim Wilson were with the news & sport, now they are dumping her & maybe him too. I always liked Mark Ferguson when I lived in Sydney when he was doing 9 news, then he switched to 7 just when I moved to the Gold Coast.
Maybe if they get enough complaints they will reinstate her after 4 days?
These network statements are getting more and more laughable. It doesn’t even look like SN is returning until for a few months as 7s Sunday lineup appears to be MKR at 6:30, Tricked at 7:30. So the fact she is happy about a demotion in one job in order to commit to hosting a show that isn’t on air makes no sense. Even sillier than Grant Denyer and Dave Huges respective press explanations.
But if Sydney is anything like Melbourne, the readers take so many weeks off, so many fill ins that you can barely notice who is the weekday and who the weekend reader is. I doubt the general public would realise the change if this announcement was never made.
He might close the gap slightly but he won’t be number 1. Peter Overton is just too good.
Sorry Seven, but after twenty years of dedicated loyalty I think I’m done with the trash you now label as news. Let me know when you’ve got your act together (and when Mark Ferguson is gone!) and I might think about returning.
As it should be. Never really understood why 9 got rid of him in the first place.
The statement from Seven reads very similar to when Melissa Doyle was boned from Sunrise – a load of hogwash. The most coveted role for a journalist is the main news bulletin. Chris Bath has been used as the scapegoat for terrible production and choice of content which has seen a drop in ratings. Have Seven forgotten Mark Ferguson was overlooked for the top job at Nine because he didn’t resonate with audiences. Seven News is imploding.
For the first moment in time ever, The Sunday Telegraph was in point of fact honest. There was an article claiming Mark Ferguson would be promoted in yesterday’s edition of the newspaper. It also claimed Jim Wilson would be replaced in lieu of Ryan Phelan.
Now on to David Gyngell’s annotations which I have no respect or regard for- he’s the last person that should be commenting on Seven’s news ratings woes. A Current Affair is a mockery. The only time I will ever mull over what comes out of his mouth is when his network has depth and consistency across all programming, something the network hasn’t had since the beginning of the last decade under the reign of David Leckie.
And so Ferguson comes to at Seven to where he left Nine.
Except he was first punted from weeknight news on Nine Sydney because he apparently couldn’t build/retain audience.
Wow really? I don’t like Mark. Nothing against him but I think he is a boring everyday run of the mill newsreader. They should have put Mel Doyle in instead. I guess this change was coming though.