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10 News First returning to one hour, plus late news bulletin returns, in 2024.

Changes to 10 News schedule are confirmed for 2024 as part of expected programming changes to early evenings.

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10 News First will revert to a 60 minute bulletin in 2024 and reintroduce a late night news bulletin.

A Network 10 spokesperson told TV Tonight, “News staff at Network 10 have been informed that there will be greater focus on News in 2024.

“10 News First will return to a one-hour bulletin from 5pm to 6pm weeknights and Network 10 will welcome back a late news bulletin which will be available as a digital offering first on 10 Play then broadcast on 10.

“Network 10 will continue to produce 90 minutes of news nightly. Additional exciting programming changes will be announced later in October.”

There are understood to be no job losses and no planned changes to weekend News.

The moves, confirmed ahead of the network’s 2024 Upfront in late October, are part of a larger vision around the early evening schedule with industry rumours of a Deal or No Deal game show (currently casting) and the return of Neighbours to late afternoons.

10 has already tweaked that scheduling with the local soap pushed to a 4pm slot from today, as The Bold & the Beautiful resumes its 4:30pm home.

Early evening changes are doubtless designed to feed bigger viewing audiences into The Project at 6:30pm and subsequently 7:30 entertainment from an improved standing start.

10 News First, which boldly launched as a 5pm bulletin under its previous Eyewitness News banner in 1992, was extended to 90 minutes in 2019 following the end of Pointless.

10 rolls out its Upfronts from October 24.

27 Responses

  1. So glad 10 is bringing back late night news. I wonder if it will be Sandra Sully? I still remember watching her and the horrible night announcing the tragedy of 9/11.

  2. Here’s one out of left field, how about a late night news show and call it Coast to Coast with Sam Pang. Throw the PC hand book out the window and just make us laugh!!

    1. The Cheap Seats is sort of similar terrain and has been working well for 10. I don’t know that audiences all want to throw away the PC handbook tho Pang has shown an ability to strike a balance. Some time ago I suggested Roy & HG return with the Newsworld show Clive Robertson did, but even that suggestion is going back a few years now.

      1. Takes me back to the great days of Graham Kennedy’s night news – but really comedy show, and yes then Clive Robertson was so good. Sam Pang and Roy and HG I agree would both be so good.

  3. For me the problem with late night news is the scheduled time each evening. It moves around to much and you just can’t know when it’s going to start.

  5. Ten news at 5 doesn’t work. Unfortunately (in theory, it should). They would not be able to compete against 7&9 at 6. Or ABC at 7. They almost need to rouge at 630. The 630-7 on 7&9 is mainly fluff and repeats off the top of the hour.

    430 bold
    5 neighbours (and then scrap the repeat on peach to bulk up numbers)
    530 deal or no deal
    630 news
    7 reality
    8 the project or a new version (I’ve often said think the one show in the uk, more casual, entertainment, basically scrap the news element)
    830 usual entertainment programming

  6. I don’t understand the people saying 10 should put their news up against 7 and 9. People don’t look to channel 10 for their news that’s why so many times when there’s big world stories 10 have decided to go the way of alternative programming to compete.

  7. People say 90 mins of news is too long. The 30 mins after 6pm was simply a repeat of main stories from 5pm-6pm. Very few would watch the whole 90 mins anyway. The small numbers of viewers available to watch at 5pm would not watch the 6pm 30 mins edition. They would switch to 7 or 9 probably. Ten have tried the game show at 6pm before. Twice or was it three times? Family Feud, Celebrity (something) and Pointless. Why try It again? Clearly it does not work.
    The nightly News on 9 & 7 gets the most nightly viewers between 6-7pm. Ten have to invest in their news and move it back to 6-7pm to where the viewers are. Make it creditable. They have “experience” in Sydney and Melb to build on. A big Game show works at 5.30pm. Win 5.30pm and viewers will stay for the news, and stay after the news. This has been proven for decades. Anything other than this has not worked. And finally move The Project to late night to be “the late news” show, when people want a mix of news and entertainment.

    1. News Updates across the industry have often been pre-recorded. I once had a network in turmoil because I asked why their news was stale in an Update and they indicated the presenter had recorded it earlier that night. Didn’t go down well.

  10. I would prefer that channel 10 rename it’s 10 News. Bring back state based bulletins. Deal or No Deal from 6pm to 7pm. CBS has The Price Is Right. I’m surprised channel 10 hasn’t done Australian Version. I’m not sure about The project maybe shift it to weekends only. Also bring back The Panel.

  11. The late news bulletin want work 10 needs to move 10News first at 5pm because it’s not working anymore deal or no deal want work at 6pm it should be on at 5:30pm weeknights the project needs to be cancelled as it’s not working anymore the ratings are way low 10 should put neighbours on at 6pm on Network 10 they just want listen to viewers

    Network Ten just don’t care what viewers say what they should do if they listen to viewers it might work

    Who ever is running 10 doesn’t no what they are doing CBS needs to start running it I still definitely think Channel 10 should consider moving 10news first to 6:30pm neighbours on at 6 pm, deal or no deal at 5:30pm because it’s not going to work at 6 o’clock I can tell you that now because people watch news at 6pm and I want to see Channel 10 succeed and become a better network, because I like channel 10 and it should become the entertainment network again

  12. It will still be 10 News at 5 for Adelaide done out of Melbourne won’t it? No thanks. Plus these days we don’t need News rammed down our throat, especially late at night. We can get it in our hands when we want or when it is actually happening.

  13. I am very happy late news is back…..it was that news that was on top of 9/11….we need to know breaking news when the other side of the world is waking up…I am chatting with many US friends at that time of night….so of interest to me……..And hour nightly news…no difference for me…when weather guy comes on at 6PM…I switch to 9.

  14. Channel 10 must compete with the big boys and girls in the room and air a 1 hour news bulletin at 6pm.
    ABC don’t have to worry because they have a safety net at 7pm.

    7,9 and 10 News are all fairly similar, with workers often moving from one bulletin to another –
    the secret is finding the newsreader that most resonates with viewers.

    And if one doesn’t work, you try another .. and another .. –
    You persist – you do not give up because one or two didn’t work.

    As long as they don’t have a competing 1 hour news bulleting between 6pm -7pm, they can at best hope for third place in that timeslot-
    whether it be The Project, Deal Or No Deal, cat videos .. or even a reboot of TVTV hosted by David Knox!

  15. Ten needs to openly commit to reinstating a standalone local news service sourced and presented in Queensland at upfronts, no matter the costs involved in doing so, including ramped up resources outside the SE corner.

    Sydney-based Brisbane news is slowly losing favour with those in Brisbane: much like it has likely done already in regional QLD.

  16. I am sick to death of this constant need for news all the time. Now channel ten is going to have a late night news program. How about they put heir heads together and come up with something entertaining, even a late night talk show is preferable to news.

  17. I will be in the minority, I never watched the news at 5 but i would tune in to watch Ten News from 6.00 just for that half-hour summary before The Project. I prefer that to the hour of news that both 7 and 9 have at 6.00.

    If Ten decides to go back to having game shows at 6.00 I might give that a miss.

  18. Not surprised that the 90 minutes news will be dropped back to 60 minutes. As 90 minutes of straight news is a bit too much.

    As for The Late News returning? Good news. But how early will the pre-recorded version air on 10Play? And will it be “hours late” once it airs on 10’s main channel?

  19. About time we see news cut down by 30 mins. 90 min bulletin is too long. They did this back in 2011 when they bumped George Negus current affairs show to 6:30pm before axing the show.
    As much as I don’t watch late news, it’s good to see 10 reintroduce late night bulletins. They axed late news in 2011 (a day before 10 walked off the AFL) and returned late news in mid 2012 as a news magazine style before ending it in 2014.

    1. Reshowing a 1 hour News late at night costs nothing. What hasn’t Ten tried? Serious News and Current Affairs and that ended up with them creating the Project as a desperate replacement. They’ve also tried Yasmin Getting Married, a Dancing contest, Pointless, Soap operas. How about Deal or No Deal, it’s either that or funny cat videos.

    1. Totally, long overdue change! It may have made sense during peak pandemic to push it out, but not now.

      I wonder who will anchor the late news broadcast?

      1. I feel this is a very good move as the 90 minute news service was unsustainable and Ten will do better offering an alternative to news in the 6.00pm slot for those not interested in Seven and Nine’s news services at that time. They will probably not dominate the timeslot but will do better than the 110,000 to 130,000 that half hour currently gets for them.

        If it proves to be a game show then so be it but I would prefer Neighbours in that slot or some other scripted material.

        The Project remains a brutally poor show and needs to be cancelled as well but baby steps are welcomed.

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