WIN axes NBN News weekend bulletins as Northern NSW schedule shake-up revealed
WIN Corporation has confirmed major changes to NBN News in Northern NSW, including the end of locally produced weekend bulletins, following the completion of its acquisition of NBN Television from Nine Entertainment.
From Saturday 27 June 2026, local weekend editions of NBN News will be replaced by Nine News at 6:00pm on both Saturday and Sunday nights.
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The broadcaster has also confirmed weekday local bulletins will move to an earlier timeslot from Monday 29 June 2026, with the half-hour local news service beginning at 5:30pm, followed by Nine News at 6:00pm.
According to WIN, the revised schedule will provide viewers with “an extended 90 minutes of local, national and international news coverage each weeknight”.
However, the changes also reduce the length of the locally produced weekday bulletin from one hour to 30 minutes.
A spokesperson for WIN Television confirmed to TV Blackbox that studio production will remain at NBN’s existing Newcastle studios.
TV Blackbox understands the new 5:30pm bulletin will be pre-recorded rather than broadcast live to air, using production methods similar to those already used in other WIN News regional markets.
WIN is not publicly confirming details of any job redundancies at this stage.
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The changes have reportedly sparked concern among staff, with the Newcastle Herald reporting fears over potential job losses and reduced local news coverage across the region.
WIN Network Chief Executive Andrew Lancaster said the broadcaster remained committed to regional journalism despite the programming overhaul.
“Regional communities value strong local journalism and local storytelling, and that remains central to our strategy for NBN,”
“The changes to our weeknight bulletins are designed to deliver more local content, more local stories and a stronger connection to the communities we serve across Northern New South Wales”.
The updated schedule will also see quiz show Tipping Point move to a 4:30pm start time, aligning NBN’s programming with other regional WIN Network markets.
NBN News has operated for decades as a dedicated regional news service for Northern NSW with its news bulletin’s being a consistent ratings winner in the 6pm timeslot.
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