TEN sacks Head of Publicity
TEN has sacked its network Head of Publicity, Jo'an Papadopoulos, who has been with the network for a decade.
- Published by David Knox
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- Filed under News
TEN has sacked its network Head of Publicity, Jo’an Papadopoulos, after she returned from an overseas holiday, The Australian reports.
Papadopoulos has worked for the network for a decade, and was appointed Head of Publicity in 2006. She is well-regarded in the industry, having worked closely with former Chief Programming Officer David Mott who resigned last week.
Last year a number of publicists departed TEN including in Perth and Adelaide under Lachlan Murdoch’s cost review, whilst the department has since come under the portfolio of director of corporate and public communications Neil Shoebridge.
In July a TEN memo indicated, “Publicity will continue to work closely with Programming. The reporting change has been made to streamline communication about Network TEN, and introduce greater consistency and a clearer strategic focus in how we present our programs and talent to the market.”
Jo’an Papadopoulos is understood to be negotiating a financial settlement with the network.
41 Responses
Word from inside TEN is since the cleanout began last year there has been a never ending downward spiral of moral and an unwillingness to have a go…… not like the days gone by.
No decisions are being made in the right mindset as everyone thinks that their next move will be their last!
Mr Murdoch, with every person that is moved along, there is less people to blame for your incompetence in all things TV
By the way ,heaps of poeple still ,and will continue to watch TEN/11/ONE , I dont see any issues with there progams ,as they come and go , as on every free to air channel, so whats the problem?
@krispy, IWS has already had a version screened in the UK??? From everything I’ve read, the format is Australian and is not being produced under license. What was the show called when it was on in the UK? I’d be interested in reading about it. Was the prize a part in a Broadway show?
a sad day for TV. Jo is one of the best in the business – TEN publicity always got the best coverage, put on the best events and had killer program launches… their programming was unreal, their marketing was always innovative and now it’s just a train-wreck… since the new owners and CEO started it’s just turned to crap.
“Publicity will continue to work closely with Programming”. Well, gee, that’s good to know.
Actually Moops I Will Survive is a format that was extremely successful in the UK.
Let’s face it, programming is a little bit of voodoo. Think Seven ever expected Dancing with the Stars to be anywhere near as successful as it has been over the years? No chance!
I am trying to envisage what Ten is going to look like in the not to distant future.I am sorry if these comments seem a bit political, but I am not good at inserting the snide swipes and innuendo’s In, like the pro’s. So after Everybody has been sacked or those who have just left out of sheer frustration and disappointment with their Mega Rich Puppet Masters Influences, and with what seems to be a vested interest in a change of government at the next election.(not that this is restricted just one network). I am having flashes of shows like the Project, Breakfast, All news reports, Meet the Press, The Bolt report, and the New Regional Show of a Sunday(forgot the name, if that even matters). Where I see all those who will be the only ones still there, appearing together around the well worn round desk.(I told there is a hole in the middle for ease of B/S removal. Namely. Rinehart, Murdock,Bolt,Henry and Hughes,(sorry Kath but when push comes to shove Henry will look after Henry). All sitting in an Automated Robotic Camera Studio with the pre-programmed lighting changes for each different Anti Government Rant, just with a different name for each show.
Of course there will guests such as Mr Abbott(Ten’s/Henry’s New Best Friend) along with many of the usual line up of Hacks,Hasbeens and other Political Hangers-on that are already frequent guests around the vested interests circuit. I think it is close to “Passed the point of No Return” for the Ten Network, simply because much damage has been done and all I ask is why??? What ever happened to the Being Fair Honest and Consistent Principles. and Giving Loyalty to Get Loyalty? I suppose if you continually chase Finicky Viewers you will always get Finicky Ratings
A reminder to keep comments succinct.
to clarify: when I said “this is a good place to start” i meant the publicity dept. not Papadopoulos as an individual. there was no personal attack, i’m sure she is a great person, i made a critical comment of the publicity department because i have thought for a long time that they are doing a bad job. people are allowed to disagree, that is just my opinion.
@The Moops. i think the fact that Masterchef is the most recent example you can come up with just further proves my point. MC was launched 4.5 years ago now.
I’m thinking a lot of Ten’s current programming would actually work if the schedule was different. Ten are going to take a hit for a while, some people will lose their jobs. At the end of the day, it’s only ever middle- management that gets pushed out. Never the guys at the top.
TEN is in dire straights…..the emergency button needs to activated….nobody is watching TEN regardless of the shows or personalities that are employed there…I refrain from watching Channel TEN for the sole reason that it is Channel TEN….
In other news, TEN has announced a new reality series “Channel Interrupted”. It follows the management of a TV station, exposing their self-destructive tendencies.
The Project from day one should have been a late night thing. 9.30 or 10.30 show. Imagine how much fun it would be with those guys letting it rip about the news of the day.
It would be hilarious and controversial. It would get a great following.
I worked with Jo at Ten for many years. There’s simply no-one better in the business. Journos loved her, staff adored her and management (at least those who actually have some understanding of the industry) respected her.
She steered the network through some very sticky situations but that clearly counts for nothing under the new regime. Even in recent months she did a fantastic job of generating publicity for a bunch of crap shows.
Lachlan Murdoch invested into ch 10 and I guess wanted to be the media giant like his father, he failed and everyone has tried to pick up the pieces but it just isn’t working, ch 11 should have been launched as a news channel leaving ch 10 as the channel that most younger people watch.
Junior Masterchef should have returned. toasted tv and more childrens programs should have been a bigger focus. keeping video hits would have been a good idea and keeping neighbours on ten and moving the circle and the project to eleven with 6pm with George Negus, which was a winner just wasn’t given the right chance, 7pm weeknights after the project followed at 730 by an encore screening of the circle. the network needs to put together some strong ideas for 2013, overhaul breakfast, maybe move it to a more open setting like sunrise, relaunch the circle in a mid morning midday timeslot. re-brand 10 and 11 and focus on the shows we love and stop looking for the next big talent show.
create a network that is a bitch on thursday nights, give us some decent movies on friday and saturday nights. make the weekend mornings about music again. give us the simpsons at 6 neighbours at 630 and the project at 7. you’ve had your fun trying to make ten like 7 and 9 now give us back the channel we love. Seriously!!!!!
Ten has always had loads of publicity, probably far more than their ratings deserve. I would’ve thought this would be rewarded? Seems very odd. I would’ve thought publicity was one of their strong points. Think of all the big hits Ten have had the last 10 years and publicity was key for all of them. She obviously knows a thing or two about pumping up a show.
Another case of shooting the messenger.
@Mr J, what absolute rubbish, Masterchef has been a television phenomenon brilliantly launched by Ten, as was Australian Idol and Big Brother. May I suggest doing some research before making such broad brush comments.
@andeh, totally agree. Don’t Tell the Bride and EDN (though with a tweaked format) would have been a success on Seven as they have a bit of a Midas touch with these sorts of show (this year’s AGT notwithstanding). Class of…. would also have been a hit for Seven, I’m sure. Not so sure about IWS, to me that is a specialty cable TV show type offering, it should never have been commissioned as a prime time weeknight offering.
What happened yesterday? Anyway, I thought the buzz around say Masterchef was quite powerful .
Is being sacked a sign of being well regarded by Ten? I usually think of ‘redundancy’ more fitting to that kind of esteem.
With all that said, Ten is still, by a long shot my favourite FTA channel.
I think the problem with ten at the moment runs much deeper than programming or marketing. Ads for I will survive were everywhere, ditto EDN. Both shows would likely be a hit on channel 7 (and puberty blues and dont tell the bride even more so)
The problem is, no-one is watching Ten, and people can’t be convinced to change the channel. In theory, with a younger skewing audience, they should have had the best upshoot from multichannel environment, and I can’t figure out why they didn’t.
Perhaps the problem lays from 6-7pm. If there was a well watched show here, it could set them up for the night. I don’t know. But moving the project at the moment wouldn’t achieve anything – whatever they replaced it with would rate less than it.
Totally agree David Knox…and Kas! Channel Ten appears to be falling apart, bit by bit. The fact that she worked closely with David Mott, her sacking now seems suss to me.
While we are on the subject of ch10…….have they got much in the pipeline. Obviously the current new shows have failed ratings wise, just wondered if there is anything lined up in the near future to rescue them.
Heads were always gonna roll after recent disasters. Not a good time to be at ch10 and who would want to go and work there? seriously?
Good move, heads have to roll, and this is a good place to start. This department has no idea how to generate buzz for a show. A show has not launched successfully on ten for years.
That’s just not true. I had hoped after yesterday people might have been more considered in their comments, especially when being anonymous. The story indicated she is well regarded. People can only work with the resources they are given.
TEN must be a really fun workplace at the moment – Not.