Dailytele.com
The Nine Network has axed two of its high-profile nwes and current affairs programs, Nightline and Sunday, in dramatic changes to its line-up announced today.
In a statement, Nine said today the Sunday program would close on Sunday, August 3, and be replaced by a weekly hour-long news bulletin on Sundays from 8am.
Nine's late-night news program, Nightline, will finish tonight.
Nine said that instead it would schedule more newsbreak segments during the evening to provide viewers with regular updates.
Director of news and current affairs John Westacott said the decision to close ''''Sunday was difficult but inevitable''.
''There is no joy or feeling of professional achievement to end programs with such illustrious histories, '' he said.
''During its 27 years on air Sunday has been at the forefront of ground-breaking and award-winning television: much envied for its journalism bravery and professional diligence.''
“Its demise is very disappointing for all of us.
''But today's realities impose much tougher cost and performance benchmarks across the media industry than those of the past, and sadly there is not sufficient economic appeal for a loss-leader like Sunday, as good as it has been for Nine and television journalism.''
Putting a brave face on the major news cutbacks which will be seen as cost-cutting by a financially challenged free-to-air network, the statement quoted Mr Westacott as arguing the new Sunday news bulletin would provide wuality TV.
Mr Westacott was quoted as saying the new one-hour news program, Sunday Morning News, would be a high-quality, up-to-the-minute bulletin featuring the latest local and international stories, weekend sports results and and finance, together with Laurie Oakes' weekly landmark political interviews.
In the statement, Nine Network Chief Executive, Mr David Gyngell, said the Network was working to absorb the great majority of Sunday staff into senior roles in other news and current affairs programs. Likewise, the small Nightline unit would be appointed to key tasks in the new Sunday morning news service and other relevant positions.
“I am genuinely saddened by the decision we have had to make, a decision not taken lightly”, he said in the statement.
“This is all about concentrating and maximising our news resources to achieve the best possible results.
''I salute the Sunday program and its first-rate people, past and present, for the job they’ve done and the very significant mark they have made.
''And I look forward to many of them bringing that quality, passion and skill to other news programming.”
The spelling mistakes are not mine - cut and paste job
shit, there goes my weekend, straight to monday from saturday.
Nien are introducing a new day - Eddieday.
Wow, networks are getting more and more powerful aren't they?
But ACA is safe, right? RIGHT?!
No news is good news for Nine.
wuality probably isn't a spelling mistake, they just don't want to promise on delivering quality.
This is bad news. No more 40-minute segments about ballet company directors.
can this be blamed on Eddie?
I hope so.
sister is it you that fancies the Nightline dude?
No, that'd be Peter Lloyd.
no nightline either...does that leave channel 10 or all people and lateline?
Peter Hitchener you mean, I think.
i once heard the nightline dude say 'natasha, I want my midnight oil cd back' in between stories.
people being network
yeah, go me
is it hometime?
No, I mean Peter Lloyd fancies the nightline dude.
And I mean Peter Hitchener prolly does too.
no, not me. Peter Lloyd's alright but I don't develop crushes on journalists or newsreaders. too close....
Still The One...viewer.
september has a crush on Hendo from the abc but i've seen him in real life and know he's a real tanty thrower.
poor sunday.
vale
though i never watched you. I prefer to stay in bed on sunday mornings.
awesome. this leaves more room for series like 'living lohan' and 'e entertainment'.
I wanna marry Tony Jones.
You hope sveltes, but you know they'll just put on more motorsport. Then we'll have 4 channels playing motor sport...neat...
And so Channel Nine unceremoniously crushes its last remaining credible television show - thus completing its goal to create a station of vacuous dumbed now entertainment.
The most offensive thing is how little Channel Nine thinks of its audience.
nah, i was joking love.
i fucking hate that shit.
but, it's on an equal par with sport.
dumbed now....
er, dumbed down
^hehehe!
What a load of shit. We're talkin' Sunday morning television here - hardly prime time. Surely quality programming instead of economic performance could have been the winner just once.
And don't you hate the spin language? ...Sunday is described as a loss-leader ...is that a nice way of saying it didn't make any money but was good quality at the same time?
Why are commercial television executives so intent of feeding us shit?!! ...aaargh!!
Because the shit are the loss-losers.
Hahahha, that's so funny, I was hoping you would be right!
taps head, hears rattle
When wasn't this the case? Why watch it?
they dumbed it down, and it still wasnt dumb enough.
and ross greenwood! channel 9's kochie. with even less charisma.
john westacott, there's a man who should get a whole chapter in the second edition of the 'who killed channel 9?' book.
however, this now means we can watch andrew o'keefe on sunday sunrise...his voiceover of the pope's helicopter flight last weekend was comedy gold.
while i feel for the journo's who'll now be out of work....
did anyone actually watch this show?
and mike munro's 'taken early retirement'.
showing they're getting rid of some shit as well as the (once-)good...
watching his boofy police reporter style trying to host this is your life was always cringe-inducing.