Today hosts Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon face pressure to bring the show’s ratings up
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After losing to Channel Seven’s Sunrise last year, the executives at Channel Nine reportedly told Today’s hosts Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon to “shape up or ship out”, following the breakfast show’s kick-off for 2022.
Reports have indicated that the executives were planning to throw “everything but the kitchen sink” at the show to improve their ratings, thus some changes should be expected.
According to the report, Scherri-Lee Biggs will be taking over the permanent role of weather presenter, after her impressive run as a substitute. They are also looking to assign entertainment reporter Brooke Boney as a ‘roving reporter’ as well.
Today hosts Karl Stefanovic and Allison Langdon were told to “shape up or ship out”. Credit: Nine.
But according to the insider, it’s not all ‘bad news’ for the network. Even though Sunrise, fronted by David Koch and Natalie Barr, won the ratings battle last year, Today still had a pretty successful 2021, and even “claimed wins on the east coast in some markets”.
“They will definitely provide strong competition this year,” said the source.
A report from TV Tonight has confirmed that the ratings for Nine's Today show have greatly improved over the last year, given that more and more Aussies have tuned in for daily news coverage (and stayed for the light-hearted and hilarious moments between the team) even after the hectic year of lockdowns, border closures, and a network hacking.
Steven Burling, Channel Nine’s Director of Morning Television, said: “It’s been a challenging year as the pandemic and repeated lockdowns have taken their toll on Australians of all ages.”
“During this time of crisis more and more viewers have made Today their breakfast program of choice for their daily news updates, and some much-needed laughs along the way.”
“For Karl, Ally, Alex, Brooke and Tim (as well as the wider production team) it’s been a privilege to be welcomed into our audience’s homes, each and every day.”
According to the statistics provided by Channel Nine, Today show was the “only breakfast show in Australia to grow its audience year on year in total people across the five (major cities)”, and was the top-rated breakfast show in 2021 for all key demographics in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane.
Looks like this year is looking to be a pretty big year for the Today show and Channel Nine in general! Do you wake up with Today?
Karl Stefanovic is known for his on-air antics. If you’re keen for a laugh, check out a couple of them below!
Credit: TODAY
Credit: Comedy Oz