Latest news with #NetworkTen
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
The Project 'set to be AXED' as Network Ten prepares to launch new current affairs show to take its place
After years of sliding ratings, it appears the end is finally near for The Project, with new reporting claiming that Network Ten preparing to pull the plug on the once-flagship current affairs program. Industry insiders have revealed to TV Blackbox that a brand new current affairs show is in development to replace The Project, with a major format overhaul already in the works. Unlike its predecessor, the new program will reportedly air only four nights a week from Monday to Thursday - effectively scrapping the low-performing Friday night edition. The Sunday edition of The Project, which has aired since 2017, is also expected to be axed, leaving a noticeable gap in Ten's early evening lineup. Sources have revealed that the replacement program is being quietly prepared for a launch as early as July or August. It's a significant shift not only in tone but also in volume - with the new show to run just 30 minutes per episode, down from The Project's six-hour-per-week live broadcast format. That's a dramatic cut to Ten's primetime output, with some questioning how the network plans to fill the additional airtime and whether the savings from winding down the show's production - currently managed by Roving Enterprises – will be reinvested elsewhere. It comes amid a significant reshuffle at the network. As previously reported by Daily Mail Australia, Ten has poached several high-profile journalists from Channel Seven - including veteran reporter Denham Hitchcock, 7News Sydney's Bill Hogan, and award-winning former foreign correspondent Amelia Brace – to front its soon-to-be-launched investigative unit. Hitchcock confirmed the news on Instagram earlier this week, calling it a full-circle moment. 'Well here we go. I've switched channels. But also in a way – I've come full circle,' Hitchcock began. 'I grew up watching my father on Channel Ten News every night. I had a bunk bed with Eyewitness News stickers all over it – and can still sing the theme song.' He added: 'So I'm delighted to start work here today – joining the network to help with its plans for the future.' He also shared a throwback photo of his father, veteran Ten journalist Kevin Hitchcock, sporting a classic 1980s moustache and captioned it with some amusing words: 'Not sure I could pull one of those off – but there's still time.' The move comes just days after The Australian reported that Hitchcock, along with 7News Sydney's Bill Hogan and award-winning former foreign correspondent Amelia Brace, had all resigned from Seven to join Ten. The trio are believed to have signed on to front a new current affairs program backed by Ten's head of news, Martin White. Brace and Hitchcock left Seven's Sydney newsroom within hours of quitting and began work at Ten on Monday. Hogan is expected to start in three weeks. The departures fuel speculation that Ten is preparing to launch a prime-time news magazine show to take on Nine's 60 Minutes, Seven's Spotlight, and ABC's Four Corners. Industry sources say the new program will focus on long-form investigative stories and is currently assembling what's been described as a 'crack team' of reporters and producers. A Ten spokesperson confirmed the shake-up to Daily Mail Australia, saying: 'Following the continued growth and success of our news brand, 10 News, we are investing in an investigative unit that will work on long-form stories.' For Hitchcock, the move comes just three months after returning to Seven following a break from TV journalism to live on a catamaran with his wife Mari and their young children. He had originally helped launch Spotlight in 2019 and led the network's coverage of major crime and current affairs stories, including last year's Who Killed Marea? documentary on Sky News. Despite his short return to Seven, Hitchcock appears ready to dive back into serious reporting at Ten – and has called on viewers to help feed him stories. 'To everyone who keeps sending me stories to look into – keep them coming. I read every message,' he wrote. Ten's new current affairs program is expected to launch later this year. Hitchcock departs only three months after having returned to Seven after a couple of years off living on a catamaran with his young family. 'I'm back. It's time to wash some of the salt out - and get back to what I do best,' he wrote on social media.
West Australian
2 days ago
- Business
- West Australian
THE ECONOMIST: Streaming giants may be forced to spin off news brands as Trump effect takes hold
A recent Amercian episode of 60 Minutes began with items on medical-research funding, Islamist terrorism and Japan's population crisis. But its biggest story was delivered in the final 60 seconds. 'Our parent company, Paramount, is trying to complete a merger,' the correspondent, Scott Pelley, explained to the show's seven million or so viewers. 'The Trump administration must approve it. Paramount began to supervise our content in new ways.' The on-air allegation of editorial meddling exposes the rift that has opened between the famous news brand and its Hollywood owner. It also exemplifies a broader problem for media firms. As American politics has become polarised and, with Mr Trump's return, vindictive, news organisations that were once seen as crown jewels in their owners' portfolios are increasingly viewed as liabilities. Century-old film and TV company Paramount has struggled in the streaming era and agreed last year to be acquired by Skydance Media, run by tech heir David Ellison in a deal which also includes Network Ten in Australia. That deal has hit a problem in the form of a lawsuit from Mr Trump, who says that the US version of 60 Minutes misleadingly edited an interview last year with his opponent, Kamala Harris. The claim is paper-thin, but many at Paramount believe that unless the company admits fault, the government will block its life-saving merger with Skydance. That fear is all too plausible. The deal requires a nod from the Federal Communications Commission, a formerly easygoing regulator which has grown teeth under the new administration. Its Trump-appointed boss, Brendan Carr, has argued that the agency's power to block mergers on public-interest grounds covers matters as tenuous as a firm's diversity policies. Paramount is negotiating with Mr Carr and, in parallel, with Mr Trump's lawyers over the 60 Minutes case. It is not the only media firm to have become politically entangled by its news output. In Mr Trump's first term, antitrust authorities tried (but failed) to stop AT&T's acquisition of Time Warner, which at the time owned CNN, a persistent critic of the president. Last year Disney's ABC News paid Mr Trump $US15 million ($23m) to settle a defamation claim. Before his re-election Mr Trump argued that Comcast, a cable giant, should be investigated for treason over the 'one-sided and vicious' output of its NBC News and MSNBC channels. Mr Carr has launched a probe into its DEI policies. None of this has encouraged new media companies to add news to their output. Netflix, the all-conquering streamer, has marched into every genre, from live comedy to sport, but drawn the line at news. Apple TV+ ended its deal with a satirist, Jon Stewart, in 2023 after his political material became uncomfortable. Amazon produced an election-night show last year, but the only political content on its slate since then has been a $US40m documentary about the first lady, Melania Trump. What of the older media empires that already have legendary news brands? Some appear to be readying them for sale, as part of a broader separation of their streaming and so-called linear-TV assets. In November Comcast said it would spin off its cable-TV interests, including MSNBC. In December Warner Bros Discovery restructured to separate streaming from its linear assets, including CNN. Disney's boss, Bob Iger, has mused that linear networks like ABC 'may not be core to Disney', though he later rowed back. Rumours swirl that Fox News might be sold, given Rupert Murdoch's failure so far to win control of the family trust from his children. Even if media firms shed their news divisions, it is no guarantee of escape from Mr Trump's attention. The White House recently suggested to Warner Bros that the president's son, Donald Jr, might like a hunting show on the Discovery Channel, according to New York magazine. Mr Ellison, Paramount's would-be acquirer, may wonder what he is getting into.
News.com.au
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- News.com.au
Ex-Project star Em Rusciano slams show over segment: ‘Frankly dehumanising'
Former Project panellist Em Rusciano has publicly lambasted her former employer over what she branded a 'frankly dehumanising' segment which aired on the show recently. Rusciano, 46, was incensed with a segment about the overprescription of medication to treat ADHD – a condition she herself was diagnosed with four years ago. The Project hosts spoke to Professor Ian Hickie, co-director of the University of Sydney's Brain and Mind Centre, who claimed that 'we should really worry about inappropriate prescribing'. 'There's quite high figures and the figures have been going up, particularly in teenagers in Australia,' he warned. 'So, there's a real concern about the appropriateness – who's getting medications? Are they the kids in most need, and are they having the desired effect in educational and behavioural outcomes?' Rusciano, who was a regular panellist on the show between 2011 and 2022, took issue with his claims, posting an angry reaction to her 240,000-plus Instagram followers. 'Why does The Project continue to target the ND (neuro-divergent) community with these s***house, clickbait, and frankly dehumanising segments,' she wrote over a screenshot of the interview. 'Actually, get f***ed.' It's not the first time Rusciano has publicly criticised her former workplace. Back in 2023, amid a furore over a controversial Jesus joke by Reuben Kaye, she accused Network Ten of having 'thrown' their guest 'under the bus'. The queer comic, appearing as a guest on The Project in late February, spoke about the hate he had received for his sexuality and for dressing up in drag – particularly from the Christian community – before making the X-rated remark. 'I love Jesus, I love any man who can get nailed for three days straight and come back for more,' Kaye quipped on Tuesday night, prompting a stunned reaction from host Waleed Aly and a giggle from co-host Sarah Harris. The pair issued a grovelling on-air apology to their viewers the following day. But Rusciano took to Twitter in the aftermath to criticise the network for its handling of the issue. 'I find it pretty hard to believe that (Reuben Kaye)'s joke that stopped a nation wasn't script approved,' she tweeted. 'I've worked on The Project – VERY little is off the cuff! A tiny, tiny amount. They've flat out thrown him under the bus (in my opinion). Sorry, but someone had to say it.' Rusciano, 44, followed up with another tweet in support of Kaye. 'They honestly don't deserve him and his talent. I dunno if Australia deserves him! In the end, we always seem to champion the non-threatening and the mediocre.'
Daily Mail
28-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Em Rusciano slams her former employer The Project over 'dehumanising' ADHD story in scathing post: 'Get f***ed'
Em Rusciano has slammed her former employer The Project after the Network Ten show aired a segment about ADHD this week. The podcaster, 46, was diagnosed with the condition four years ago and took severe umbrage with a segment about the overprescription of ADHD medication. The piece featured Professor Ian Hickie, co-director of the University Of Sydney 's Brain, And Mind Centre who warned of the dangers of 'inappropriate' ADHD prescriptions. 'We should really worry about inappropriate prescribing,' he said. 'There's quite high figures and the figures have been going up, particularly in teenagers in Australia. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'So, there's a real concern about the appropriateness - who's getting medications? Are they the kids in most need? And, are they having the desired effect in educational and behavioral outcomes?' The segment did not sit well with Rusciano, who took to social media to voice her displeasure. She took to her Instagram story on Wednesday to reshare a comment she posted under The Project's post of the segment. Pulling no punches, Rusciano slammed the segment as 'dehumanising' while claiming The Project 'targets' neurodivergent people. 'Why does The Project continue to target the ND community with these s***house, clickbait, and frankly dehumanising segments,' she said. She then offered the Network Ten current affairs show a final line of invective with 'Actually, get f***ed.' Rusciano was a regular panelist on The Project, appearing on the show from 2011 to 2022. it's not the first time Rusciano has taken aim at at her former employers. In 2023, she criticised the show over gay comedian Reuben Kaye's off-colour joke about Jesus Christ. She accused The Project of throwing Kaye 'under the bus' by distancing itself from him and offering a sombre apology stressing how 'deeply and needlessly offensive' his joke was. 'I find it pretty hard to believe that Reuben Kaye's joke that stopped a nation wasn't script-approved,' Rusciano tweeted. Rusciano's latest salvo comes after she slammed another former employer, Triple M, following former host Marty Sheargold's comments about the Matildas. Sheargold was axed from the network after telling listeners 'there's something wrong with the Matildas' before comparing the team to 'Year 10 girls'. Following the embattled host's dumping, Rusciano took to her Instagram story to claim there is an inherent misogynist culture at the network. Rusciano, who worked on the Triple M Perth breakfast show for four years, claimed to have experienced misogyny at the station first-hand. 'Fun fact,' the former 2DayFM star wrote began the post. 'When I went into MMM to meet with [an employee] in 2012 about possibly doing some stuff with them, I was told: "Unless you have a c*** and b***s, I don't care about your opinion".' Rusciano then went on to say that it was a sentiment that was shared regularly with staff. 'I later found out that he would also say that at the weekly team meetings. In front of actual people. Some of whom did NOT have a c*** and or b***s,' she said. In an accompanying video, she said she was glad that Australian women were speaking out about Sheargold's vile comments about women in sport. 'I just feel like he hit on a collective issue - Don't mess with the Matildas, don't degrade women's sport,' she added. 'We've just had enough. We were looking for a tipping point and weirdly enough it's some bogan on Bogan FM. Let's go, girls.' Rusciano's strong words came after she took to social media in February to slam the country's entire commercial radio sector. 'When are the Aussie PR gals, gays and theys going to stop handing their biggest interviews to commercial radio hosts who clearly couldn't give a s**t?' Em ranted. 'You know, the ones who blame their producers for their lack of prep, make zero effort to be engaging or entertaining, and worst of all don't even cater to the demographic they are supposedly targeting?' The Melbourne-born star added she always had great interviews on her independently produced Emsolation podcast, and was frustrated that she had to fight hard to book talent.
Sydney Morning Herald
27-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Not as snobby as it might sound': Silvia Colloca on why cooking pasta al dente matters
Italian-Australian TV personality and cookbook author Silvia Colloca makes fresh pasta four days a week at the northern beaches Sydney home she shares with her husband, actor Richard Roxburgh, and their three children. But when she's eating out, it's almost the last thing she'd order – unless it meets her strict standards. 'It's imperative the pasta is not overcooked,' says Colloca, who will share a heaped helping of her cooking knowledge in the third series of Silvia's Italian Masterclass when it airs on Network Ten later this year. 'The concept of al dente [resistance to the tooth] matters to Italians and it matters to me. It's more important than you think and not as snobby as it might sound. 'It mostly applies to dry pasta,' she says. 'As a rule of thumb, if the packet says 11 minutes, take it out after 9 or 10 minutes because it continues to cook with the residual heat.'
