It’s remarkable that the co-host of a program that has lost heavily this year to its bitter rival can generate so much publicity for a move from what is the current top-rating network, to the third-placed, free-to-air business that is still to emerge from bankruptcy and which on Sunday night recorded one of its lowest main channel shares for a Sunday night for years. But that’s what we see this Tuesday morning with the dying legacy newspapers feasting off the news in print, on radio and websites about the shock move by Nine’s Today co-host Lisa Wilkinson to move to the Ten network to become the highest paid woman on Australian TV.

There is a degree of irony in the co-host of a barely watched (compared to the evening news broadcasts and programs like The Block) TV program can generate the news splash as Wilkinson’s move has done this morning. The irony is further added to by the fact that Today’s ratings have gone backwards this year from last year’s wining effort in the five metro markets. That has been in part due to the resurgence at Sunrise and claims that Karl Stefanovic self-inflicted marital discord and then new relationship has somehow damaged his standing with viewers, especially female viewers. That is the tabloid gossip columnists’ view, no doubt after sampling the trolls on Facebook and Twitter. Sunrise co-host Sam Armytage has been badly trolled (by the Daily Mail for instance) for the past several years and while hurt personally, it has not had an impact on Sunrise’s ratings performance this year.

And besides, the gossips and tabloid writers fail to mention that the best-performing daytime TV program, Sunday to Saturday, in Australia is now the ABC’s Insiders on Sundays at 9am with more than half a million national viewers. I doubt there would be the same breathless journalism should its host, Barrie Cassidy, move to a rival network! Nor do they mention that another well-performing daytime program on TV is ABC TV’s Landline (Sunday’s at noon) with over 400,000 viewers nationally.

So for Nine, there goes all those stories about the special campaign its publicity and marketing people had planned to get her a gold Logie nomination next year. It also leaves Nine to find a new co-host for Today and will force the network to make the tough decision about whether to move co-host Karl Stefanovic to a new role — say at A Current Affair — or leave him in the chair at Today to help Wilkinson’s replacement settle in. It also leaves the impression, rightly or wrongly, that Nine will not pay female TV talent the same as their male stars.

Wilkinson moved a coupe of days after another round of stories started appearing in Sydney newspaper gossip sheets about how she was having difficulties negotiating with Nine and her demands for equal pay with Karl Stefanovic. It is not the first time there have been reports about her dissatisfaction with her pay with claims that she “could” move to another network. This time, after 10 years co-hosting Today, she has upped and moved to another network. It is also interesting that the Ten deal was done a day or so after it became clear Lachlan Murdoch and Bruce Gordon would not challenge the transfer of Ten shares to CBS – though two small shareholders are trying to mount a challenge.

When Wilkinson was first started with Stefanovic on Today in 2007, the program trailed Seven’s Sunrise by 160,000 metro viewers (in those days the only measure the media looked at). Last year, it overtook Sunrise rival in the major cities, though Sunrise remained No. 1 nationally. This year Today and Sunrise have both lost viewers and both have struggled to top the 300,000 metro audience Monday to Friday. But Today has shed more viewers than Sunrise in the metros and nationally and the Seven program had clearly beaten Today for 2017 in both the metros, the regions and nationally a month ago. Both programs have spent heavily on promotions — offering cash and/or cars, holidays and have spent heavily on stunt visits around Australia and internationally.

So far this year, Sunrise is ahead in the metros 289,000 to 280,000, while nationally Sunrise is the easy leader — 513,000 to 425,000.

Last year, Seven’s Sunrise averaged 319,000 metro viewers to Today’s 315,000 (including the Rio games). Excluding the two weeks of the Today beat Sunrise by 316,000 to 312,000 (which is what Nine had been trumpeting in late 2016 and early this year). Looking at the year-to-date figures for 2017 and Sunrise is down 23,000 (or 7.3%) on the figures Nine prefers. Today down 36,000 or more than 11%.

So in that respect Wilkinson is leaving Today at a good time — although its best year is now clearly behind it. Next month in Brisbane Wilkinson hosts the 2017 Walkley Awards for journalism. She is clearly more than just a breakfast show host so far as the industry is concerned. For Ten, her acquisition sends a message that there’s new management in charge looking to grow the business rather than shrink it. While Ten was talking about her joining the panel, that will be a stopgap until Ten builds a vehicle for her — a new current affairs program in prime time perhaps? Wilkinson will appear on Ten’s Studio 10 in the morning, no doubt a news broadcast or two as well as the panel. You don’t pay a lot of money to a person of her vintage and experience not to leave her on one and a bit programs, sharing the limelight with others.