No mention on Business Sunday yesterday of last Sunday’s little error: the one where “Business Editor”, Ross Greenwood forecast that David Murray, the Commonwealth Bank chief, had the top job at Telstra. Oops. The CBA and Murray denying any move (or any meeting with Prime Minister Howard) twice, once on Monday, once on Tuesday.

So yesterday Ross interviewed Roger Corbett, the Woolies CEO over the Foodland deals in New Zealand and Australia. Unfortunately it was one of those matey, first name efforts that revealed nothing.

Of interest to viewers would have been the sort of cost savings Woolies could expect in NZ, but Greenwood was much more interested in appearing to “get on” with Roger than to ask any probing questions. It was the Roger and Ross Show and Roger was responsible for possibly the most inane comment of the year: “I will retire and when that time comes, I will retire,” he said.

On Inside Business, Roger shaped up with Alan Kohler and the contrast was telling. A crisper, more focused, better researched effort from the host, compared with the shallow approach from Business Sunday. No comparison really.

It got more publicity in the Monday morning press, the stuff of life for those Sunday morning chat shows.

Business Sunday attracted a lot more viewers nationally, 152,000 (up around 10,000 on a week before), Inside Business 104,800. Business Sunday easily won Sydney, but Inside Business won Melbourne, a good result.

On Sunday there was a searching examination of the Jehovah’s Witnesses religious sect and its hiding of child abusers within its ranks.

Sunday did the original story three years ago and yesterday’s effort wasn’t so much a follow up but another quite chilling examination of why many religions can’t understand the terrible nature of child abusers and seek to absolve them (and themselves).

Davis and Ross Coulthart provide Sunday with the credibility it carries with their tough-minded reports. That’s why Sunday remains head and shoulders above the other Sunday morning programs and competition like 60 Minutes and Four Corners. It’s the content of stories, not the management of the program that’s important.

Sunday was watched by 347,800, down 30,000 on a week earlier. The ABC’s Insiders was watched by 169,000 people and Weekend Sunrise 222,000 on Seven.