Not the best of weekends to be watching TV. Seven can claim bragging rights in the metros by a solid margin, but in the regions, it won by a country kilometre or daylight. Ten was third and the ABC fourth in the metros, but in the regions that was reversed and the ABC was a clear third. Ten’s offerings remain well and truly on the nose in regional Australia on most nights, even in summer. The Big Bash cricket though should change that when it starts shortly. Nine is running Gotham in summer — an admission that the Batman prequel has died in Australia and won’t see primetime in 2015, unless the network is in a tough position. But nothing stood out last night. Bones and Castle didn’t really worry viewers on Seven. Tonight will be more of the same.
Test cricket starts tomorrow on Nine and it will be in the rare position of being a major news story — not just a sports yarn at the start of the summer snooze in Australia. Let’s hope the Nine Network doesn’t go overboard with the soppy stuff at the start. We know Phillip Hughes’ death remains a big part of our lives and especially of the Australian test team. Understated will be best — the old adage, less is more will apply here, from the graphics, to the camera work, the commentators and their comments and questions.
Network channel share:
- Seven (32.2%)
- Nine (25.9%)
- Ten (18.7%)
- ABC (15.1%)
- SBS (8.1%)
Network main channels:
- Seven (22.5%)
- Nine (18.6%)
- Ten (10.9%)
- ABC (10.6%)
- SBS ONE (5.8%)
Top digital channels:
- 7TWO (5.6%)
- 7mate, Eleven (4.7%)
- GO (4.1%)
- Gem (3.2%)
- Sunday Night: Summer (Seven) — 1.668 million
- Seven News — 1.629 million
- Nine News — 1.532 million
- 60 Minutes (Nine) — 1.057 million
- ABC News — 1.056 million
- Bones (Seven) — 1.023 million
- Coastwatch episode 2 (Seven) — 1.002 million
- V8 Supercars Race 1 (Seven) — 856,000
- Antiques Roadshow (ABC) — 840,000
Top metro programs:
- Nine News — 1.125 million
- Sunday Night – Summer (Seven) — 1.102 million
- Seven News — 1.048 million
Losers: Summer is now upon us: Insiders has gone to pasture, Bolt probably to Sky News and oblivion so far as the TV audience is concerned. Only sport and the occasional news and current affairs show-summer edition will be on air to tempt us. So it’s the digitals for repeats of golden oldies, a bit of streaming, books, shopping etc.Metro news and current affairs:
- Nine News — 1.125 million
- Sunday Night – Summer (Seven) — 1.102 million
- Seven News — 1.048 million
- 60 Minutes (Nine) — 709,000
- ABC News – 658,000
- Ten Eyewitness News — 476,000
- SBS World News — 148,000
Morning TV:
- Insiders (ABC 235,000, 102,000 on News 24) — 337,000
- Weekend Sunrise (Seven) – 291,000
- Weekend Today (Nine) – 285,000
- Offsiders (ABC) — 148,000
- The Bolt Report repeat (Ten) — 127,000
- The Bolt Report (Ten) — 115,000
Top five pay TV channels:
- Fox 8 (3.0%)
- TV1 (2.3%)
- LifeStyle (2.0%)
- UKTV (1.8%)
- Fox Classics (1.7%)
Top five pay TV programs:
- Jack Ryan Shadow Recruit (Foxtel Movies Premiere) — 92,000
- A League: Melbourne V Brisbane (Fox Sports 4) — 77,000
- Tora Tora Tora (Fox Classics) — 64,000,000
- Pawn Stars (A&E) — 61,000
- Pawn Stars (A&E) — 61,000
*Data © OzTAM Pty Limited 2013. The data may not be reproduced, published or communicated (electronically or in hard copy) in whole or in part, without the prior written consent of OzTAM. (All shares on the basis of combined overnight 6pm to midnight all people.) and network reports.
It’s worth mentioning the botch-up during the year’s final of Insiders on News24. Roughly ten minutes before the end, just as the contenders for the Matt Price Award were going to air, the scene suddenly shifted to the ABC news desk where we were told the Prime Minister was making a statement in Sydney.
Good grief, thought I, we must have declared war! But no. Some bright spark in charge at News24 had switched us to Abbott prattling & coughing his arduous way through an announcement that he was having a rethink on his guaranteed-never-to-get-up Paid Parental Leave scheme. There were no details, no further information came forth during several minutes of journos’ questions.
This is a scheme which requires policy to be clarified & spelt out in detail before a Bill can even be presented to the Parliament in two month’s time – let alone be passed by both houses. And for this non-event announcement the ABC cut into ‘Insiders’ at a crucial point in the last minutes of the final programme for 2014.
Far from realising the mistake & returning to Insiders the audience then had to endure an excruciatingly dull interview with someone representing parents who couldn’t say anything pertinent because there was no substance in Abbott’s speech to which to respond.
Who made this appalling decision to interrupt Insiders? It was scarcely a news story – it was about a PM rethinking a foolhardy plan, about which he can do nothing until February 2015. Is this an example of the new definition of ‘breaking news’ & the woeful urge to get a scoop at all costs?