More news in The Project
The Project will devote the first fifteen minutes of its show to combat Seven and Nine's 6pm news bulletins.
- Published by David Knox
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The Project will devote more time to the day’s headlines, in a move to combat Seven and Nine’s 6pm news bulletins.
The first fifteen minutes of the show will tackle the day’s news.
From Sunday week the news-based show switches to 6pm as TEN culls its News back to one hour and reintroduces Reality formats to 7pm, beginning with The Biggest Loser.
”We’re under no illusions that it’s going to win the timeslot,” Chief Programming Officer David Mott has told The Age. ”But we’ll go for as many eyeballs as we can. The Project will reset our demographic from our 5pm news bulletin and lead into our franchises at 7pm, in the territory we once owned.”
In a separate interview he told the Herald Sun, “The Project is the perfect choice for a younger audience who still wants news, but not in the traditional sense.”
The move caught many by surprise.
Industry observers knew TEN could not leave its 6-6:30 timeslot untouched after last year’s moving feast. Switching Reality shows back to 7pm will give grief to Nine, especially given The Biggest Loser looks set to premiere before Excess Baggage. Nine had marked out the timeslot for Reality franchises across the year, but it’s likely to face the challenge aggressively.
ABC’s The Drum, currently being trialled at 6pm on ABC1, also has added competition.
But there are already rumblings from some disgruntled fans about the earlier starting time, with many noting they won’t be home by 6pm, and others forced to choose between The Project and Neighbours.
There are even rumours TEN could return Late News (Sandra Sully or nobody please), which would complicate life for SBS. It moved its World News Australia reports from 9:30 to 10:30 after TEN vacated the slot.
The next challenge for TEN is finding a female host happy enough to sit alongside the controversial Paul Henry on Breakfast. The longer it takes to announce the appointment, the more the rumours are gathering that Aussie female presenters are decidedly cool on the position.
Meanwhile The Circle looks set to return without confirmation of a new permanent co-host. The show is expected to draw upon its many guest presenters to join Yumi Stynes and Gorgi Coghlan next week.
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- Tagged with Excess Baggage, Neighbours, TEN News, The Biggest Loser, The Drum, The Project, World News Australia
33 Responses
Its 7 pm or nothing for me. Love the project but not at 6pm. Maybe ten can replay it at 10.30pm . I would watch it at that time
Interestingly the tweets from a reputable entertainment reporter regarding a meeting taking place yesterday re: the reinturn of Late News & who was to present it have been deleted. Hopefully this doesnt mean that it was merely rumour.
What everyone here talking ratings forget that tv is run by sales too. Sure The Project isnt a ratings winner based on the minmal numbers the public gets to see but if the sales department at Ten think its viable… which they clealry do… then thats all that matters. If people want to pay money to be in their ad breaks then they will be here.
Another one for the return of the Late news. As someone who works I rarely make it home for news between 6 and 7pm so would often watch late news. Usually because I was watching shows and would then leave the TV on while doing other bits and pieces after that show had finished.
For those complaining about not being home at 6, or wanting to watch Neighbours on eleven, come on, it’s 2012. Time to get a PVR for under $100.
News in the style of the project is the future. Unfortunately serious straight forward news and current affairs is not what audiences under 40 want. Negus proved that. I think the demographic ten is after will like this move rather than straight forward news on 7 and 9. but it will take time. They need to cover briefly sport and weather too. And yes please bring back the late news with Sandra. Do miss her!!!
It’ll be interesting to see how The Project goes compared with 6PM with George Negus because they are, for all intents and purposes, both national news programs. One wonders whether one will do any better than the other. Mottie and co certainly seem to love The Project with its massive (not) 10% increase on viewer numbers since Negus came off air.
And then there is Perth. Do you take off a successful program (Ten News at Six) and slot in a program that does hopelessly in the market. Or do you do a special one-market-only Ten News at Six and then cross to the second half of The Project at 6.30 in Perth?
Personally, I think they spend a lot of time talking about this “bold and irreverent” brand of Ten and how great it is with youth demos, but the fact is the last program on Ten to do well at 6 in that demographic was Eyewitness News.