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WIN TV cuts jobs in Ballarat, relocating news to Wollongong

Bush TV hit once more with around 30 jobs to go from WIN TV Ballarat as it relocates news to Wollongong.

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WIN TV has confirmed it is selling its Ballarat premises in Walker Street and relocating staff to Wollongong, in the latest blow to regional broadcasting.

TV Tonight understands traffic, sales and some journalists and cameramen will remain but around 30 jobs will go.

News presenter Bruce Roberts will relocate in order to continue presenting the bulletin from February.

A WIN statement said, “some roles will be affected by the move and our first priority will be to ensure that anyone in those affected roles has an opportunity to be redeployed.”

WIN Network CEO Andrew Lancaster said “If WIN is to continue to provide a local voice to regional communities via our 17 daily news bulletins, then we need to find more efficient ways to deliver that news. In this case it means utilising existing facilities.”

WIN’s Ballarat studios are on a prime piece of real estate in a sought after area of town with impressive views over Ballarat.

In August it was reported WIN was selling its Canberra headquarters in Kingston after 26 years.

Last week WIN swooped on Nine shares while the company continues to pressure the government for changes to the reach rule, citing its impact on regional broadcasting.

12 Responses

  1. Can someone please go and harass our current Prime Minister (a former communications minister under previous prime ministers) to talk to the radio, TV and print media businesses and change the media ownership rules in this country. On one hand I am totally against WIN News VIC regional bulletins being produced and broadcast out of Wollongong NSW. The Save Our Voices campaign has no real traction with anyone in the general public who knows their local WIN News is not produced in their area (unless you live in the Illawarra region of NSW, Hobart in TAS or the Sunshine Coast in QLD). On the other hand, something needs to be done to get the free-to-air regional channels to Live stream their channels with local advertising to their respective \markets (using the appropriate technology) so that the 7, 9 and 10 networks do not affect their regional affilliates businesses and profits. Media policies in this nation are so disjointed, compromised and messed up it is not funny anymore.

  2. “Now. From Wollongong, NSW – the news capital of Australia – in another state – just 1000km away – this is your local news. Win News Ballarat. With Bruce Roberts”

    Seriously though – Wollongong and Canberra are the new news capitals of Australia. How many bulletins does each city produce now?

    1. It’s little different to the current situation where three Ballarat based people speak between locally shot stories from hundreds of kms away from across Victoria. The three people could just as easily be in the Philippines – the quality of the localism wouldn’t decrease. If it meant more local stories being shot with the saved money, it would improve the bulletins. They might even be able to return the axed Mildura, Riverland, Mt Gambier and Mackay bulletins…

  3. So Bruce Gordon had a spare $200 odd million to but a stack of Nine NEC shares last week, but has no money to keep the Ballarat studios and jobs? Smacks of hypocrisy if you ask me and makes a total mockery of that silly “Save Our Voices” campaign?

  4. This is sad News. WIN Ballarat do a great local coverage for their 7pm news. Before it became WIN it use to be BTV 6 Ballarat. Besides the news they use to do a weekly Tonight Show, a Talent Show and a Saturday music show with Glenn Ridge. How times have changed.

    2. Was the error a typo? If so, this is a common error by people who don’t live/work in the area, and also know the correct pronunciations of Woonona (Wa-noon-a), Unanderra (You-nan-derra), Towradgi (Ta-rod-ji) etc. and amplifies that there’s no substitute for being ” local”. This is what we in Wollongong hate about Southern Cross/TEN’s so called ” news updates”.
      How many more bulletins can they squeeze out of their studio in Wollongong, and how much earlier do the need to start recording them?

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