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The Journal
17 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Journal
With Upfront the latest axing, how worried should we be about the future of evening news shows?
THE DECISION TO cancel RTÉ's Upfront with Katie Hannon has been met with genuine shock with those who've worked on the show for the past number of years. The audience-led current affairs programme has been running since January 2023 when it effectively took the slot previously played host to Claire Byrne Live. An interim eight-part series Monday Night Live plugged the three-month gap between the two permanent shows but Upfront with Katie Hannon has been there since. This week, an RTÉ spokesperson confirmed the show would not be continuing , a decision it said was taken 'due to the prioritising of people and financial resources'. Interestingly, the statement also hinted that there would not be a like-for-like replacement this time, with RTÉ saying it was looking to 'meet the needs of younger, underserved and underrepresented audiences'. RTÉ also provided a statement from Hannon, with the presenter outlining that she was 'disappointed' that the show would not be continuing and referenced that the show had actually grown its audience from the previous series, a fact acknowledged by RTÉ itself. This is what has surprised people, with those who put the show together feeling that the audience growth might have saved it from the chopping block as the broadcaster seeks to cut costs. Hannon will continue in various roles within RTÉ, including the Behind the Story podcast which she co-hosts with fellow journalists David McCullagh and Fran McNulty. The podcast addressed the axing of Upfront this week, with McNulty saying 'it was a surprise to us' and Hannon suggesting there were 'a few words' beyond disappointed she could use but that she would restrain herself. Hannon praised the 'brilliant team' behind the show and noted that it was a 'fairly challenging slot' in which they nonetheless managed to grow the audience. 'Everyone knows the way linear television is going, we had a fairly challenging slot, we didn't come on air until 10.35pm, but people were staying up to watch us and our audiences, our viewership figures, were on the up. Which, as I say, is completely against what's happening elsewhere in linear television. 'Our social media reach was flying as well,' Hannon added. 'So we were delighted with ourselves, but it wasn't to be.' Giving a touch more detail than what RTÉ had said publicly about financial resources, Hannon said the crew had essentially been told that the broadcaster can't provide the same output with less money. 'What we were told basically is that RTÉ news and Current Affairs can't continue to broadcast the same output with less people and less resources and that unfortunately is where we landed.' she said. Hannon added that suggestions in the media that she is being lined up for Liveline are 'beyond my pay grade'. Advertisement 'It was made clear to me that this has absolutely nothing to do with any other decisions that are going to be taken about programmes, and who might present them elsewhere,' she said. Nightly news shows Even aside from the internal machinations of RTÉ, the axing Upfront comes on the back of similar cutbacks to evening news output both in Ireland and abroad. Virgin Media Television last year halved its weekly output of The Tonight Show, leading to the departures of hosts Claire Brock and Ciara Doherty . In the UK, the BBC's flagship Newsnight programme saw its running time cut in late 2023, changing from 40 minutes to a half hour. More than half of Newsnight's 60 jobs were axed as part of the move, which also saw the programme lean more on 'interview, debate and discussion' instead of the in-depth reporting which was the hallmark of the show. Despite the death knell being rung by commentators after that cut, the revamped Newsnight has proven to be a success for the BBC, with audiences rising by about a third compared to 2020 . TonightVMTV / X (Formerly Twitter) In Ireland, The Tonight Show on Virgin Media One now has a permanent new host in the shape of Kieran Cuddihy and has maintained its format and standard despite the reduction in output. Conor Tiernan, a DCU lecturer and former producer of current affairs programmes, also cites Newsnight as an example of how streamlining output can prove to be effective. 'Newsnight is actually a great example, it was dead in the water two years ago. The BBC pulled a lot of staff, stopped having a lot of correspondents and moved to a simpler format, a presenter talking to guests. A similar thing happened with Vincent Browne many years ago. When Vincent Browne was launched in 2007 or 2008, there were correspondents, there were long reports, it was all very resource-heavy. And then very quickly it moved to just Vincent Browne with guests, much cheaper. The viewing figures actually went up, because people wanted to see more of Vincent Browne. Returning to the axing of Upfront, Tiernan said the relentless shift of advertising revenues from linear TV to digital is the 'broader context' but that the specific slot of that programme was clearly a challenge too. Upfront went out on a Monday night. Monday night is an extremely difficult night to attract an audience. It's a very difficult night to attract guests and it's also difficult because of its position in the news cycle. 'Monday is generally quiet, you're either reviewing something that happened a while ago or previewing something that's about to happen. It's always been a very difficult night, that was a very particular problem for Upfront.' Tiernan also references the Liveline gig and whether that was a factor in this case but adds that, regardless of that question, it's also just a fact that Prime Time exists in the same space on two nights a week. With a third current affairs programme like Upfront it's hard to maintain a high quality threshold. These shows are meant to add value through analysis and original journalism, it's just very hard to do that three nights a week. 'That's what happened with The Tonight Show too, it's so difficult to keep it going all week, so they scaled it back to two, hoping that the quality of those two episodes would be higher. By cutting Upfront, it gives more space for Prime Time to be better.' In its statement confirming the cancellation of Upfront, RTÉ named more than 15 TV programmes across news and current affairs that it produces, adding that details of upcoming programming will be announced as part of the wider season launch in August. 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Sunday World
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Sunday World
RTÉ fuel rumours of Joe Duffy replacement after cancelling Upfront with Katie Hannon
The show which was broadcast on Monday nights at 10.35pm started in January 2023 as a replacement to the Claire Byrne Live show. This Friday will be Joe Duffy's final time on the airwaves. Katie Hannon's Monday night RTÉ show will not return in September, paving the way for her to possibly take over the Liveline gig. This Friday will be Joe Duffy's final time on the airwaves, after 27 years fronting the daily radio show and 37 years working with RTÉ. Speculation had put Hannon as one of the front-runners for the coveted gig, given that she has filled in for Duffy so much in recent times. RTÉ confirmed to the Sunday World that her current affairs show Upfront with Katie Hannon has come to an end and will not be returning in September after three seasons on-air. The statement added that Hannon will continue as one of the anchors of the popular Behind the Story podcast, which will launch daily later this year. This Friday will be Joe Duffy's final time on the airwaves. She will also present a new TV series in the lead-up to the presidential election in October. Katie Hannon said: "I'm very proud of what we achieved on Upfront. We managed to buck the international trend and actually grew our audience on linear television and our digital footprint. It was a privilege to work with our small team of talented and hardworking colleagues led by our editor Janet Traynor. "I also want to thank all of those who came into our studio and trusted us with their stories and contributed to the national conversation on the issues that matter to all of us. I'm disappointed that we won't be able to keep that conversation going." A spokeswoman for RTÉ said: 'The decision to wrap production has been made due to the prioritising of people and financial resources, as the organisation incurs significant change and becomes smaller. RTÉ broadcaster Katie Hannon. Photo: Gerry Mooney News in 90 Seconds - June 24th 'As part of the organisation's new direction strategy in the prioritising of digital content, it has recently launched a news podcast and 'Clarity', a new strand beginning to tackle increasing misinformation and disinformation challenges.' The show which was broadcast on Monday nights at 10.35pm started in January 2023 as a replacement to the Claire Byrne Live show. RTÉ News & Current Affairs presenter Katie Hannon will continue as one of the anchors of the popular Behind the Story Podcast, which is planned to launch daily later this year, and she will also present a new TV series in the lead up to the presidential election in October. Other employees will continue working with RTÉ News & Current Affairs - there are a number of internal vacancies and options for redeployment within the division. The programme which was broadcast on Monday nights at 10.35pm began in January 2023 and featured a weekly panel of four guests and an audience of up to 40 contributors. In its most recent series (Sept 24 - May 25), Upfront with Katie Hannon was watched by an average of 198,000 viewers, a 25.8pc audience share, up from an average of 168,000 and 23.7pc in series two (Sept 23 - May 24). Similarly, the series grew on the RTE Player attracting 269,000 streams in series three, from 209,000 in series two (Sept 23 - May 24). Clips from the programme have also generated over 3.3 million video views on Instagram. Across RTÉ's television services, News & Current Affairs coverage currently includes the One O'Clock News, Six One News, Nine O'Clock News, Prime Time, RTÉ Investigates, The Week in Politics, Nuacht, News with ISL, news2day, Nationwide, Leaders Questions, Fóram, European Parliament Report, Political Party Conferences, RTÉ News specials, Budget coverage, Election coverage and National Commemoration Events coverage. Details of all new programming will be announced as part of RTÉ's New Season launch in August.
Irish Independent
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
RTÉ cancels flagship current affairs show Upfront with Katie Hannon
This Friday will be Joe Duffy's final time on the airwaves, after 27 years fronting the daily radio show and 37 years working with RTÉ. Speculation had put Hannon as one of the front-runners for the coveted gig, given that she has filled in for Duffy so much in recent times. RTÉ confirmed to the Irish Independent that her current affairs show Upfront with Katie Hannon has come to an end and will not be returning in September after three seasons on-air. The statement added that Hannon will continue as one of the anchors of the popular Behind the Story podcast, which will launch daily later this year. She will also present a new TV series in the lead-up to the presidential election in October. Katie Hannon said: "I'm very proud of what we achieved on Upfront. We managed to buck the international trend and actually grew our audience on linear television and our digital footprint. It was a privilege to work with our small team of talented and hardworking colleagues led by our editor Janet Traynor. "I also want to thank all of those who came into our studio and trusted us with their stories and contributed to the national conversation on the issues that matter to all of us. I'm disappointed that we won't be able to keep that conversation going." A spokeswoman for RTÉ said: 'The decision to wrap production has been made due to the prioritising of people and financial resources, as the organisation incurs significant change and becomes smaller. 'As part of the organisation's new direction strategy in the prioritising of digital content, it has recently launched a news podcast and 'Clarity', a new strand beginning to tackle increasing misinformation and disinformation challenges.' The show which was broadcast on Monday nights at 10.35pm started in January 2023 as a replacement to the Claire Byrne Live show. ADVERTISEMENT RTÉ News & Current Affairs presenter Katie Hannon will continue as one of the anchors of the popular Behind the Story Podcast, which is planned to launch daily later this year, and she will also present a new TV series in the lead up to the presidential election in October. Other employees will continue working with RTÉ News & Current Affairs - there are a number of internal vacancies and options for redeployment within the division. The programme which was broadcast on Monday nights at 10.35pm began in January 2023 and featured a weekly panel of four guests and an audience of up to 40 contributors. In its most recent series (Sept 24 - May 25), Upfront with Katie Hannon was watched by an average of 198,000 viewers, a 25.8pc audience share, up from an average of 168,000 and 23.7pc in series two (Sept 23 - May 24). Similarly, the series grew on the RTE Player attracting 269,000 streams in series three, from 209,000 in series two (Sept 23 - May 24). Clips from the programme have also generated over 3.3 million video views on Instagram. Across RTÉ's television services, News & Current Affairs coverage currently includes the One O'Clock News, Six One News, Nine O'Clock News, Prime Time, RTÉ Investigates, The Week in Politics, Nuacht, News with ISL, news2day, Nationwide, Leaders Questions, Fóram, European Parliament Report, Political Party Conferences, RTÉ News specials, Budget coverage, Election coverage and National Commemoration Events coverage.
