Why do Australian journalists try to discredit stories they don’t write?
In this edition of Media McKnight:
- Channel 10 confirms I’m a Celebrity axing
- Angus Ross returns to Seven in expanded MD role
- Kyle & Jackie O staff redundancies
- Stephen Colbert’s Late Show finale and the $40M question
- NBC reporter mocked for White House shooting reaction
- Behind the scenes of Eurovision’s world feed graphics system
SPECULATION… OR GOOD SOURCES?
Channel 10 has confirmed my exclusive reporting about the axing of I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, although the network says it is simply ‘resting’ the show.
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Here’s what I reported over a week before the announcement.
“Channel 10 has axed reality TV show I’m A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here, TV Blackbox can reveal”.
“The shock decision by parent company Paramount has left production company ITV scrambling to find a new home for the series, hosted by Robert Irwin and Julia Morris”.
Media outlets picked up on the story but called it ‘speculation’ and ‘rumour’.
It wasn’t.
It was reliable information from reliable sources.
As I made clear when I said:
“The sources from this story are trusted and have been correct every time it comes to stories about I’m A Celebrity. From the casting of Robert Irwin (which was broken here at TVBB) to cast announcements and changes in filming.”
At the time, 10 issued a statement, disputing the story, saying:
“Decisions regarding the 2027 program schedule including I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here! will be made in the coming weeks.”
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That’s fine, that’s what PR types do… but the thing that always gets me is how gullible journalists are.
They happily dismissed my reporting as ‘rumours’ or ‘speculation, despite me literally laying out my credentials on this topic.
I guess I must be the media’s answer to Nostradamus, considering how good I am at guessing what’s going to happen next!
Here’s the deal – when I speculate, I let you know I’m speculating.
When I tell you something is coming from trusted sources… that means the info is pretty reliable.
And it usually ends with me saying – McKnight was right.
ANGUS RISES FROM THE ASHES
The TV industry is buzzing with the triumphant return of Angus Ross to Channel Seven.
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Back in March the popular programmer was sacked after a successful 27 year run at the network.
Angus Ross (image – Seven)
There had been no scandal and no performance issues. In fact, the only thing Angus had done was bring success to the network, which remained number 1.
It was a bizarre decision.
As I reported at the time…
“Staff are shocked by the move and are now wondering if they are next.
TV Blackbox has heard some were even in tears.
Many are wondering if there is anyone with television experience left to run the network”.
Coming back to Seven, Angus has been given the new title of Managing Director, Television and Streaming, reporting to SCA Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Rohan Lund.
In the expanded role, he will be responsible for all television and streaming content teams, covering news, sport and entertainment across Seven and 7PLUS.
It’s a smart move that sees all those departments funnelling through him.
And hasn’t it been an interesting few months for Seven after its merger with Southern Cross Austereo.
For a while it looked like the radio side of the business had completely taken over, but the television arm has struck back in a power-play no-one saw coming.
Steve Jackson at The Oz has been following the movements of Bruce McWilliam, who has suddenly become Southern Cross media’s second biggest shareholder.
The legendary former Seven commercial director snaffled up 20 million shares in the newly merged media entity, which has set the cat amongst the pigeons.
Bruce McWilliam says the broadcaster remains undervalued despite the company’s declining market capitalisation. (image – Seven)
I’m a huge fan of Bruce.
He gets TV, he’s frank, and highly entertaining.
We need more people like Bruce in the industry – people who have a personality.
Media shouldn’t be beige.
Beige doesn’t rate.
With Bruce and Angus back, things are set to get VERY interesting.
REPORTER ATTACKED OVER GUNFIRE REACTION
Imagine this scenario…
You’re a reporter at The White House… one of the safest places in America.
There’s a strange noise – sounds like fireworks, but could be gunshots. In fact, it could be anything.
That’s how the scene played out for NBC News reporter Julie Tsirkin in a clip that’s gone viral, leading to her being mocked for her reaction.
You can see the clip in the video edition of this article in the player above.
NBC reporter Julie Tsirkin has been mocked for her reaction to gunshots at the White House (image – NBC)
As the noise fills the air, she looks to the sky before looking at someone off-camera and asking, “What is that?”
“Sounds like fireworks” replies a male voice.
The reporter is confused, not realising the reality of the situation.
A man had opened fire on officers at a checkpoint at the Whitehouse, before being shot dead by the Secret Service.
Her calm demeanour has led to headline like this in the New York Post:
“NBC reporter dragged for clueless on-camera reaction to shots fired at White House”.
With the copy going on to say:
“A clueless NBC reporter is being mocked on social media for her lackadaisical response to a crazed gunman opening fire outside the White House on Saturday night”.
She’s being mocked for not panicking – for trying to find out what was happening before jumping to conclusions.
Is this really what it’s come to?
Armchair critics criticising the behaviour of someone in a potentially dangerous situation?
She’s a journalist at the White House – one of the most protected places on Earth.
Upon hearing noises, she didn’t jump to conclusions; she tried to work out what was happening.
If she had panicked and it was fireworks, people would’ve laughed at her for that.
I just find it bizarre that anyone can have a go at this woman by having a reaction to something that we don’t know how we would react in any situation.
Why have a go at her just because it happened to be caught on camera?
This is a sad state of affairs.
KYLE TO THE RESCUE
The fallout continues after the axing of the Kyle and Jackie O show, with staff at the show being made redundant.
ARN has sacked Content Assistant Alfie Laguzza, audio producer Dean Royston and producer Eliza Brown.
News.com.au reports the three were called to a meeting with HR to be informed of the news.
And Mediaweek reports the censor on the show, Missy Balfour, has also been made redundant.
Until now, staff on the show have been looked after by ARN after the contracts of Kyle Sandilands and Jackie Henderson were terminated.
In fact, Intern Pete spoke about the team during my interview with him on McKnight Tonight recently.
“Yes, the two main hosts aren’t there, but there is this beautiful family that’s still happening and, and we’re all sticking together, you know?”
“You’re always thinking about yourself because, um, do I have a job where whatever this is? Um, and I was definitely worried”
Making the censor redundant makes sense.
Kyle and Jackie O is the only show that has a sensor with them gone, they don’t need one.
The show was a much bigger production than its rival breakfast shows, and while job losses are sad, it’s not unexpected.
Whatever show replaces K&J won’t need as many people on the production team.
OUT WITH A FIZZER
Stephen Colbert finished up his nightly talk show last week in what can only be described as a bizarre finale.
I’m a fan of Colbert’s – but this was just terrible.
Paramount says it cancelled the show because it was losing $40m per year, while many in the media believe it was because he had angered Donald Trump.
I believe it’s probably a bit of both.
I saw a behind-the-scenes video which talked about the suits he wears – custom-made Armani suits made in Italy.
And it turns out he has around a dozen tuxedos. Instead of using old ones for skits and events, new ones were made every time there was a requirement for him to be in one.
And then there’s this photo of the production team.
I mean, seriously – just how many people do you need to make an hour of television?
It’s insane.
Since the final episode, Colbert has popped up on community television, returning to host a special edition of Only In Monroe.
It was actually a fun idea.
I think the show could have pulled its budget back significantly without affecting the final product.
There seems to have been a LOT of fat on that show.
And sure, that was fine when broadcast TV was King, but now you need to be mean and lean to survive.
Seth Myers got the memo – he no longer has a band and his show has not suffered as a result.
The remaining hosts of Late Night will need to make some tough financial decisions if they want to keep their shows on air in the years ahead.
EUROVISION INSIGHT
Eurovision has come and gone for another year, but I found a video on YouTube that shows how they get each local market to sync up their graphics with local phone numbers.
Two audio feeds are provided that cue the graphics.
A video has been produced showing how graphics are changed automatically on Eurovision telecasts (image – tevebits)
One is a voice for manual operation, the other is tone that triggers the graphics on and off. It’s all very precise and means viewers at home would have no idea of what is happening.
And if you watch the video, you’ll notice that in the end credits, the BBC replaces sponsor logos with a generic graphic.
This is because it is a government broadcaster that can’t show advertising.
The whole thing is a technical marvel, and other videos show you how the cameras are programmed, so someone’s not actually there manually switching.
Media McKnight is published on YouTube every Tuesday at 8pm AEST nat YouTube.com/@McKnightTonight.
The article goes live on the TV Blackbox website every Wednesday morning.
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