2011 Current Affairs taste test
TV Tonight puts Today Tonight, A Current Affair and 6:30 with George Negus under the microscope. What stories are they tackling, and why is "Exclusive" now the most abused word in the biz?
- Published by David Knox
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- Filed under News
Twelve months ago TV Tonight took a close look at a week of stories on Today Tonight, A Current Affair and The 7PM Project.
The current affairs shows love to brand test products, so it’s time once again to taste test the shows themselves, this time substituting 7PM for 6:30 with George Negus.
All three shows are head to head in the same timeslot. But what kind of content are they offering? How do they differ? And why is the word “Exclusive” now the most abused word in the business?
Last week our national headlines were dominated by the Carbon Tax and News Corporation’s hacking scandal. Neither was touched by Today Tonight or A Current Affair, but both were dissected by 6:30 with George Negus on more than one occasion.
Today Tonight and A Current Affair are covering such similar terrain that a promo for the following night’s story is frequently spoiled by the competitor. The shows are dominated by consumer stories and tales that champion an Aussie battler (especially those hard done by bureaucracy or a shonky tradesman). 6:30 with George Negus leans towards stories behind daily headlines.
Muslims, shopping, diets and celebrity were tackled by all three shows, but with different editorial angles.
Both Today Tonight and A Current Affair included cross promotions for other shows: Australia’s Got Talent (three times on TT) and Top Design (ACA) -indeed Tracy Grimshaw introduced Top Design as a “blockbuster” before the first episode had even aired.
Both TT and ACA had lengthy first segments of 19 minutes before the first commercial break. Four stories had passed before the first ad. 6:30 averaged three stories of 14 minutes before its first ad.
The word “Exclusive” was used liberally. On Today Tonight it accompanied around half of their stories. A Current Affair also used it with regularity, but on almost every occasion it was hard to ascertain what defined an “Exclusive” on either show. Does it simply mean “our cameras were there and nobody else was?” Stories about car park fines, summer fashions and comparing pizzas were all “Exclusives.” ACA‘s Gaga interview, which certainly felt like an Exclusive, didn’t carry the word. Comparatively, 6:30 with George Negus didn’t use it once.
Today Tonight won every single night, with A Current Affair second and 6:30 with George Negus in last place. Significantly, the TT east-coast edition does not air in Adelaide and Perth which have state-based editions and hosts, but those figures are added to its national tally. On the east coast the battle between TT and ACA is tighter, with TT winning Sydney and Brisbane and ACA winning Melbourne. 6:30 trails them by a country mile. It also had a late-night replay which adds to its overall viewing audience but may also diminish the need to watch where it matters most.
TODAY TONIGHT
The show was hosted all week by Kylie Gillies while Matt White was on leave. But while both are confined to reading the autocue, it’s difficult to know what point of difference either brings to the show. It’s fair to ask how different the show might be were it hosted by Grant Denyer, Daniel MacPherson or a media work experience kid. TT‘s appeal is not in with its presenter but the topics that connect with its audience, many of whom are older viewers.
Sometimes the subjects are seamless. One story on Wednesday night began as a story on supermarket loyalty programmes and somehow segued into a brand comparison of breadloafs.
But for all its headline-grabbing and provocative stories, this is a show that knows its audience well. A viewer poll asking “Should Muslims in Australia be ruled by Islamic Sharia Law?” resulted in 96% of respondents voting “No.”
Interview with Executive Producer Craig McPherson: unavailable.
* branded as “Exclusive”
MONDAY
An increase in Islamic Sharia Law practiced in Australia
* Profile of 6yo US Pageant Princess Eden Wood
4 children orphaned after death of father struggle with housing situation
* Property hotspots around the country.
Centrelink sting: identity fraud
* Scratchie ticket that doesn’t pay out
TUESDAY
* Customer service at supermarkets: Coles, Woolworths, IGA, Aldi
* Appliances tested for power usage.
* Australia’s Got Talent contestant Jack Vigden has dental surgery
* Custody battle over frozen embyros
* Pizza wars: taste test between rival pizza chains
WEDNESDAY
Supermarkets offer competitions and loyalty programmes / Bread brand comparisons
* Profile of Australia’s Got Talent contestant Chooka Parker
* Asylum seekers in Malaysia still plan to travel to Australia
Home owners lose money through Rent-to-Buy scheme
THURSDAY
*ATM Security risk as hackers attack
* Teen mums.
Judge strips petrol station drive-off driver of license
Online car scams.
* Jack Vigden meets Perez Hilton
* Diet challenge: Neighbours test different diets.
FRIDAY
Scratchie buyers ripped off over printing errors
Billboard campaign for Islam
* Waiting list for public housing grows
* Summer fashion campaigns for Myer
Seniors travelling during retirement
Ratings average: 1.25m
A CURRENT AFFAIR
Several of the subjects tackled by TT were also covered by ACA, however Executive Producer Grant Williams points out some followed an ACA promo as a Spoiler.
ACA devoted Monday night entirely to having Lady Gaga in studio.
Unlike Today Tonight, Tracy Grimshaw remains the strongest attribute of ACA with her interviewing skills on display during the Gaga edition.
Interview with Executive Producer Grant Williams:
ACA‘s Point of Difference?
GW: “ACA offers big-event television. When it’s available to us, when the opportunity arises we embrace event television, the big interviews, the Nigel Brennans, the Lady Gagas etc. We are the only show on television, as Tracy recently pointed out, that conducts interviews that run 20-30 minutes long. 7:30 doesn’t run interviews as long as we do, when we embrace that scenario.”
Use of the word Exclusive?
GW: “We put Exclusive on what we genuinely believe to be an ACA-only story. Today Tonight puts Exclusive on everything. They copy everything we do and put Exclusive on it. So why wouldn’t I?”
Best Story of the week?
GW: “It was easily the Gaga special for different reasons. There were stories of more importance to the general audience but Gaga was certainly the outstanding event of the week.
“But you’re clearly not offering something to viewers over 55 if you’re going for a Gaga show. So you have to be prepared for some interesting ratings results when you take that course. When TT are leading with an anti-Muslim story and you’ve got Gaga then they’re going to have a lot of older viewers.”
* branded as “Exclusive.”
MONDAY:
A Gaga Affair. One on one interview and musical performance.
TUESDAY:
* Car park rage: private car park issuing fines
* Identity theftS
* Honeymoon killer Gabe Watson to be extradited
US fashion and food labels to open in Australia
Chicken price wars
Gaga: behind the scenes montage
WEDNESDAY:
$1M giveaway at Woolworths
* Fallout of a “cougar” romance gone wrong
Bread test
Top Design: behind the scenes
Royal Diets. Has Kate Middleton gone too far?
THURSDAY:
Convicted NZ man has visa cancelled but Australia won’t deport him
Qld flood victims in dispute with tradesman
Potato chips cooked with reduced saturated fat
Germ test. How infected is your home?
Budget skincream test
FRIDAY:
* Bad customer service in retail and restaurants
* Cult group The Family selling real estate and ousting animal lover
* Partygoers question safety at Thailand’s Full Moon Party
Real estate salesmen with entertaining marketing videos
Winter meat suggestions
Ratings average: 1.04m
6:30 WITH GEORGE NEGUS
Negus opens each episode perched on the end of his desk, with an opening editorial and laconic greeting. Across the week the show tackled the serious topics, both national and international. It frequently feels like Foreign Correspondent-lite, without enough light and shade. But there were live interviews, and I especially liked Negus having post-story conversations with reporters such as Hugh Riminton.
Like Tracy Grimshaw, Negus is a strong interviewer, however he is swift to add editorial opinion (try and stop him) which stylistically may divide the audience.
One of the areas the show could improve in is in its ability to communicate stories. Many of the reports feel like they belong in TEN News. They are dry, factual, and delivered by a dispassionate observer. Both TT and ACA reporters personalise their reports very well, hitting the emotional notes of a story, showing us their reactions. Storytelling on 6:30 remains inconsistent on this front, although Hamish McDonald and Hugh Riminton are clear assets.
The show also had two stories produced by international affiliates (including hiding their watermark).
Ratings for the show so far are tepid, but Executive Producer Tony Ritchie says the show has had to start from scratch after the exit of the Neighbours audience and is often within striking distance of ABC’s 7:30.
Interview with Executive Producer Tony Ritchie:
Point of Difference?
TR: “We’re trying for a broader take on the day’s news with more meat on the bones, and providing something more about an event of the day, or a person of the day.
“It’s a traditional news and current affairs programme, providing a greater take on the day’s news and major events, but we’re not limited to that.”
Use of the word Exclusive?
TR: “We don’t try to claim every story as an Exclusive. But we probably run a number of stories that are our own.
“If you’re going to call something an Exclusive you want to be sure that it’s an exclusive. You don’t want to demean the word. It’s a powerful word so you go out of your way on the stories that really matter.”
Best Story of the Week?
TR: “On Monday we did a story about contaminated soil brought to Australia under the guise of fertilizer with farmers left holding the can because there was no ownership. No-one would take responsibility.”
* no “Exclusives”
MONDAY:
Carbon Tax: selling the pitch
Negus discusses Tax with Hugh Riminton
Vox pops: Carbon Tax: good or bad?
Renewable energy industries. Will they benefit from Carbon Tax?
Christmas Island inquest into death of asylum seekers. Live cross.
Pilots strike looming. Live interview.
Farmers angry that fertilizer they had bought from China turns out to be dirt.
The rebuilding of flooded Grantham
TUESDAY:
Allegations that the Aust govt. is keeping Indonesian teenagers in adult prisons
Carbon tax: selling the spin
News Corp: Trouble continues in the UK
Warning labels on alcohol bottles
WA Mining Minister pushes for WA to secede from Federal Govt. (interview)
A woman in the US is living next door to her son’s killer
WEDNESDAY:
Carbon tax: Gillard / Abbott selling the spin in community. Interview with Hugh Riminton.
Italian government facing financial meltdown
Alcohol problems in Katharine.
News Corp under pressure.
Skin cancer. Call to increase sun screens to 50+
21yo Irish golfer Rory McIlroy. The next Tiger Woods?
Allan Jeans tribute
THURSDAY:
Department store marketing issues
Gillard: A shy girl?
Obesity in US children.
Christmas Island inquest. Update.
Murdoch: brief update
Cairo. What’s changed? (US)
Growing doubts over Peter Falconio case.
FRIDAY:
Losing the war on Heroin.
Interview with Hugh Riminton. Carbon tax update
USA: Hackers could be the next terrorists
Women in Afghanistan standing up for women’s rights
South Sudan’s rise to independence
Profile on Tom Jones (US)
Ratings average: 443,000 (6:30 edition)
BEST STORIES FOR EACH SHOW:
Today Tonight
James Thomas filed a story from Malaysia which looked at the lack of status for refugees ahead of the government’s “Malaysian solution.” Although it included some Channel 4 & SBS footage (which was acknowledged) the story was empathetic to their plight rather than depicting them as “queue-jumpers” (NB: 6:30 with George Negus had Hamish McDonald in Malaysia covering a similar story several weeks ago).
A Current Affair
A Gaga Affair: The rapport between Gaga and Tracy Grimshaw was evident, and whilst the veneer of Gaga made it difficult to warm to her, she made up for it with a lengthy live medley of 3 songs. This was heart-on-the-sleeve stuff and did more to connect her with a broad Australian audience than a single interview ever could. (NB: several acknowledgements and logos of media groups at the end).
6:30 with George Negus
Hamish McDonald files a follow-up to a previous story which claims the Australian government has been keeping Indonesian teenage asylum-seekers in adult prisons. This is a burning issue that should have received wider media attention.
41 Responses
Good report David.
I must comment that while TT & ACA both scrape the bottom of the barrel for stories and credibility of their reporting staff, at least TT more regularly seems to attempt stories with a bit more depth and current affairs values than does ACA.
Something I notice about each (TT & ACA) is the re-versioning or re-cycling of the same themes and stories (eg power costs; speed traffic cameras; dole bludgers etc) every few weeks – even sometimes weekly.
Personally, I feel a bit grubby after I watch ACA. There is something a bit sleazy about their stories, reporters and point-scoring against their opposition or things and people that are soft targets.
I don’t have quite (but not far off) the same reaction to TT.
While some are criticising the quotes in the article, it is worth pointing out that two Producers made time to talk to me while another didn’t for the second year running. Is it better to participate in an interview and get shot down in Comments, or just not participate at all? I guess everyone can make up their own mind on strategy here.
What’s wrong with 6:30? George Negus…. put a decent host on it and I would switch. That man is unwatchable and I can’t stand seeing and hearing him blunder through a two minute intro into a story. At least the other hosts can read their autocue, even if their stories are rubbish.
Interesting article. My favourite point of difference in the interviews –
Tony Ritchie (630): “If you’re going to call something an Exclusive you want to be sure that it’s an exclusive. You don’t want to demean the word.”
Grant Williams (ACA): “They copy everything we do and put Exclusive on it. So why wouldn’t I?””
Hilarious.
“Australia’s Got Talent contestant Jack Vigden has dental surgery” LOL
@franz chong: Neighbours is still there for the 79 per cent of households who have converted to digital TV, just go to Eleven.
ACA: “They copy everything we do and put Exclusive on it”… as opposed to taking a four minute interview from TT, airbrushing out the TT logo and then playing it on your program as your own? Pots and kettles.
Well by the sounds of it TT and ACA have alot of older viewers which explains their ratings.
However is that to say younger people are 6.30?
6:30 is a joke.What was Ten thinking getting rid of Homer and Bart Simpson and Neighbours for a 2.5 hour news/current affairs type bulletin.That Home Grown Soap was and still is for many of us an escapism from the crap that is A Current Affair and Today Tonight.
Total Trash & A Boring Affair.
David – Great Story. Clearly soooo many people know that ACA / TT are just junk. 6.30 is an important program which must stay on air. But at the same time – must improve at least 250K in viewers. How can this be done? What can be suggested here to improve the show. ACA and TT should not be able to win this competitive environment given the junk they offer. What needs to be done to 6.30 to improve it and keep it on air?
I dont care what people watch…their choice….but stop calling 7 and 9’s programs ‘current affairs’….they are lifestyle/magazine shows….
Great article, David. You poor bastard.
@Kaz – I think that comment just confirms that you have to be capable of deluding yourself in order to watch those programs.
@Jezza – that is the funniest comment you’ve written!
In defence of ACA and TT, as a long time viewer I have noticed the stories are not as good during school holiday periods so it is unfortunate you have chosen to review them at this time.
That was hard to read, let alone write, David.
Thanks for the comparison of the three commercial current affairs show, David. It really is an eye opener what the majority of Australians (unfortunately) watch.
6:30 is definitely the better out of the 3. There is room for smart programmes on TV. You just need to get the smart people to watch them.
“* Australia’s Got Talent contestant Jack Vigden has dental surgery”
Wow, hard-hitting journalism at its best.
When ‘Panic at Rock Island’ was filmed the producers needed a large number of zombies. Is it true that they used TT & ACA viewers with no make up required?
Well once again the tone has ben set for more ACA/TT bashing but it’s quite clear what people want to watch at 6.30pm.
Fantastic stuff David!!! I really enjoy when you do articles like this one.
Just goes to show what rubbish ACA and TT produces- best pizza or bread? This is journalism? Both those shows are a joke and as you pointed out neither covered the carbon tax or the phone hacking scandal. How then can they call themselves current affairs programs? Just rebrand yourselves already and say your light entertainment!
What would be really interesting is to cover them for a month and see the endless repeat of stories. They cry like little babies when they accuse each other of stealing stories, but they are just as guilty of doing the same stories over and over again. And to think, when Grimshaw took over all she promised we would see the end of bra stories and food stories. How deluded I was to believe her…
Looking at that, its clear we need 6.30 with George Negus, so i hope Ten keep it for the long haul. TT & ACA are dumbing down Australians and turning Australian media into something that resembles the British tabloids. And look what’s happening there. And the way they carry on with each other is just pathetic and childish. The ACA guy complains TT copies everything they do, and then says they claim everything as “exclusive” so why can’t we. What an idiot.
George’s intros and adlibs are a little odd. In the alcohol labels story he had a bottle of alcohol with him so he could point at the tiny warning, which was just odd. But that’s George. The show is great, reporters are great, stories are far more important the crap they dish out on the others.
I think we all know the main difference between TT/ACA and George Negus – the audience.
love them or hate them, TT and ACA are still ratings juggernauts. 630 is a failure.
David – you poor, poor man.
How scrambled must your brain must be after having to watch a week’s worth of that TT & ACA hor#eshit! The amazing detail of your report notwithstanding, surely your time would have been better spent doing……….. well, anything else?
David, what phone hacking has News Limited been involved in?
For me, 6.30 is the best show at this time. I don’t care what the ratings say. We now watch 6.30 every night. It is refreshing to get away from the other 2 shows. Especially TT with the constant self promotion of other 7 shows.
Thanks for the story David. Very interesting. As a matter of interest, what show do you watch at this time?