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“Sad day” as industry extends support to 10 staff

An outpouring on social media after 10 makes cuts to talent & staff in News.

Natarsha Belling, Tim Bailey and Kerri-Anne Kennerley are amongst the profile names departing Network 10 in a savage round of cuts to the News department.

Also confirmed to depart are Brisbane newsreader Georgina Lewis and weather presenter Josh Holt; Adelaide newsreader Rebecca Morse, weather presenter Kate Freebairn and sports anchor Will Goodings; Perth newsreader Monika Kos and weather presenter Michael Schultz; and Melbourne weather presenter Mike Larkan.

But there are also crew who have been made redundant -around 25 roles in total are rumoured.

https://twitter.com/Joe_Hildebrand/status/1293107716458610688

Studio 10 presenter Joe Hildebrand is understood to have been offered a part time role on and is in talks. Sarah Harris, Angela Bishop, Denise Drysdale, Denise Scott, Narelda Jacobs and Jonathan Coleman are remaining.

It’s unclear if other changes could yet be made at Studio 10, while The Project was not touched.

10 News boss Ross Dagan described it as a “Very sad day” during a staff meeting today.

Indeed, journalists, producers and industry colleagues have extended their support to those impacted via social media.

https://twitter.com/hamishNews/status/1293039370253946882

45 Responses

  1. Worst decisions to be made.
    This was reflected back in May 2014, where they axed Early News along with Morning News, Wake Up and Late News after 6 months on air. Operations & Engineering, Overseas Bureaux were cut.

  2. Sad that Kerri-Anne Kennerley and Natarsha Belling aren’t going to be on Studio 10. They are fun to watch. And I can’t believe Tim Bailey has been axed. I like watching him do the weather and I used to watch on Totally Wild.

  3. Tend to agree with many that there is an abundance of news style shows on air. How much do we really need. Is there a need for SBS to broadcast news?? ABC24 has got it covered so why bother?? Sky news is available as well. Maybe 10 has gotten it right.

  4. So sad. Monika Kos was a fine addition to the 10 Perth newsroom after being so unceremoniously dumped by 7 last year. I guess there is hope Narelda Jacobs could return to our screens presenting our news from ‘over east’ but still, this is devastating all round.

  5. Gee unless you’re Sandra Sully you’d never feel secure in your job if you work at ch 10. They seem to go on a sacking spree every couple of years. A very sad time for all. Natasha Belling & Tim Bailey. Wow what a shock. Tim Bailey’s been there since forever.

  6. Yep too much FTA TV news when we have so many other sources to get news from. This is where the Project could improve by cutting out the duplication’s in news updates & actual stories & interviews. They’re stretched way too thin, when they do get a decent guest they get 5 mins interview if lucky then always have to cut to an ad break, it usually feels rushed, except on Sunday Project sit downs with Lisa Wilkinson.
    Back to cuts, I agree with everyone that Natarsha is great but in relation to Studio 10 she is the news reader first & foremost, she pretty much fills in & guests as a presenter. So i think that’s why Narelda has been retained instead. I also agree another network should snap Natarsha up if Ten cannot use her skills as a news reader.

  7. Wow. Crazy decision making. Any leading network has to have a rating news service and to get that you have to invest in your news department. I thought they might have slowly been investing in news. Thinking maybe a breakfast news might be in the cards in the new year But clearly not. No local weekend new and now this means there is less credibility. Their weekend news is a joke and hence why it rates so poorly. Clearly they are not like CBS US and take their news seriously. Natasha and bailey are exactly what the today show needs and should be snapped up fast!

    1. yes i’ve wondered for a long time why Ten bother wasting money & resources on their weekend news. They’re up against 9 News at 5, and many people preferring to watch the 7 or 9 news at 6pm, or ABC/SBS later, so unless they’re going to do something different to draw audiences in then they’re fighting a losing battle…& even then the viewers are spread thin across so many news services…

    1. maybe, but how well does the Project rate compared to Studio 10 in their timeslots though? No use making cuts to the show that is the better earner is there?

      1. I am surprised that studio has not been axed .Does not get great numbers with such a big cast. Guess you would have to talk to Ten accountant about which shows make any money. May be it does not always reflect the show that rates makes more money then a show with less numbers. ??

        1. yes true, ratings wouldn’t always translate to $. Thinking about it, Studio 10 could still earn more than the news (irrespective of their expenses like paying hosts) because they feature those ‘infomercial’ type advertising spots throughout. I usually try & switch to mute or channel surf when they come on but tis easy to just leave them running & i did even ring & enquire about one of the items, realized i could get it & similar items wayyyy cheaper elsewhere though.

    1. Joe talks over people alot & wastes too much time telling stupid, unfunny & sometimes insensitive jokes. When he talks about things he actually knows about, like politics, he is informative & he clearly has talent in that field, it is wasted on a chat/magazine style show like Studio 10.
      I can’t help but thinking KAK going might be partly because she has been involved in quite a few controversies on the show over the years, not all of which lead to better ratings.

  8. Id love to know how much money is wasted on the judges of masked singer for example but hard working staff who work all year are fired… cut the rubbish pay ten!!

    How dare they let go Natarsha belling!!!

  9. Studio 10 has had too many cooks for sometime and can get very noisy with everyone talking over everyone else, especially KAK and Hilderbrand. I wonder if Natarsha and Kerrie-Anne had the bigger pay packets so get the chop. Or did they jump?

    Can’t fathom why they would keep Narelda over Natarsha but then I don’t know how the show has lasted without Ita.

    I wonder if it’ll last another year.

    1. Or they just pulled the plug on Studio 10 altogether?? It would rate less than the local news bulletins. I like the show but it’s been given lots of chances.

      1. Morning shows like Studio 10/the morning show etc work on a different business model, a large chunk of their production costs come from the ‘advertorials’ in the actual shows themselves, not just from ad revenue in the breaks, so although they dont rate too well, the shows are pretty much ‘pre paid’. I would assume ( just guessing) that more than a few of those advertises wouldnt be overly happy with KAKs outbursts – and because they pay for the lights to stay on ,the network has to take note of them ( No shade on KAK)

  10. Such an outpouring of grief! Reinforces that US owners don’t care about local stories or our local industry. The Australian identity is further threatened by these losses!

  11. Its sad but not suprising. Feel for all of those who have lost their jobs today. Free to air TV will continue to die a slow death as the years go by I think… 2020 is not a great year as it is!

    I have to say cant believe they would keep narelda over natarsha. Tarah would great as a newsreader on today or 9 morning news ect. Hope she gets snapped up quickly!!! A huge loss for 10.

  12. Whilst it’s terribly sad for those who lost their jobs today the saturation of news shows across the networks has reached a saturation point and it was only a matter of time before the axe-man turned up and the era of shows full of people talking about news also seems to be finally reaching an end, too many talking heads sprouting opinions, real and unreal, at a time when more than ever we just need the facts. I do hope all (most) find new jobs somewhere soon. And whilst I’m at it Sunrise i’ve stopped watchin because of your god awful Covid red wall of doom, sheesh…..

    1. Agreed. This is such a bad set of news. Tim has been with Ten for decades and is still a vibrant presence and welcome guest into loungerooms. And Natarsha is a valuable player – a reader, a panelist, a host. This doesn’t make sense. Unless they are all too expensive and considered dispensable.

    2. Tim celebrated 25 years with 10 just 3 years ago 2017 😞
      I agree also …Tarsh is so versatile… I cannot deal with all this on top of Covid.

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