Extract from The Guardian
Sky News Australia plays it straight during the day. But signing Bolt
to front a show every weeknight makes clear it is after views not news
in the evening
Andrew Bolt on the set of The Bolt Report on Channel Ten. Bolt is joining Sky News for a five-nights-a-week show in prime-time.
Photograph: Channel Ten
Hours before Malcolm Turnbull said he would call an early election unless the Senate passed his industrial relations laws, Andrew Bolt was revealed as Sky News Australia’s star recruit
to “lead discussion” during the election. It is not hard to see that
Bolt’s appointment will push the channel even further in the direction
of Rupert Murdoch’s Fox News, which delivers an unremitting and
sometimes fearsome diet of rightwing opinion into most homes in the US.
The timing of Bolt’s appointment was not lost on some with a cynical frame of mind who thought he might have arrived just in time to do his best to cruel Labor’s chances at the polling booth. But the truth is Sky has been keen to get Bolt on board ever since News Corp chose to stop funding his low-rating political opinion show, The Bolt Report, on Channel Ten.
The pay TV channel, under pressure from ABC’s News 24, which has significantly higher ratings and is free, is keen to offer a point of difference. And whatever you think of Bolt, he certainly attracts attention.
The Bolt Report, which the Herald Sun columnist presented on Sunday mornings on Ten for five years, will be transformed into a looser format that will air live every weeknight on Sky at 7pm from May. That’s five hours of Bolt on his soapbox each week – talking about everything from global warming and the Greens to the stolen generations and free speech.
The Bolt Report timeslot puts him up against the ABC’s main news bulletin at 7pm, which is Sky’s main competitor in the space. To compete against the highly resourced public news program Sky could only go one way, and that was to be provocative.
According to OzTAM ratings figures Sky News averages 12,000 viewers nationally between 6pm and midnight, peaking between 8pm and 10pm at 18,000. For comparison, ABC News at 7pm averages 1m nationally.
Although Bolt was beaten by the ABC’s Insiders in his old slot on Ten, he had significantly more viewers than he can expect in his new home.
Of course Sky is no stranger to conservative commentary or to giving Murdoch’s favourite commentators a voice. Now one third-owned by Murdoch’s Sky Europe, with the rest owned by Nine and Seven, Sky has always had a close connection to News Corp and its journalists. They even have purpose-built studios in the newsrooms at the Australian and the Daily Telegraph.
But over the past 20 years Sky has built its reputation on straight news reporting throughout the day, strong breaking news coverage and endless political analysis from talking heads in Canberra. The main presenters such as David Speers, Kieran Gilbert and David Lipson have all been thorough professionals and you would be hard-pressed to detect a political leaning among them. Similarly the newsreaders are all straight down the middle. Sky News in the UK manages to maintain a neutral line through all its coverage – indeed, is required to by broadcasting rules.
But the evenings on Sky News Australia are a different prospect altogether, suggesting something of an identity crisis. After Speers comes off air, you can be fairly sure you’ll catch a rant about the inner-city elites, Fairfax, the ABC or the Labor party.
Paul Murray’s right-leaning PM Live show runs at 9pm every weeknight and you’re likely to see News Corp journalists such as Miranda Devine, Sharri Markson, Tim Blair and Rita Panahi on his panel, or listen to him in furious agreement with Cory Bernardi.
The Australian’s associate editor, Chris Kenny, also has his own show every Friday and Sunday on which he pontificates about his favourite topics – climate change, the Greens and the ABC – and he too usually has guests who agree with much of what he says.
Sky management would say the channel is no Fox News and boasts a smorgasbord of talent from across the political spectrum, including the former Labor premiers Kristina Keneally and Peter Beattie and the former Labor numbers man Graham Richardson.
Then there’s PVO – Peter van Onselen – a soft-right commentator who presents and analyses the news for much of the afternoon.
“Great news, this has the potential to become The O’Reilly Factor of Australia,” wrote one of Bolt’s fans on his blog about the news.
“Perfect fit Andrew,” said another. “Once a week was always insufficient at 10 and Sky offers the best resources to present The Bolt Report. Congratulations and look forward to the relaunch in May.”
But Bolt and Sky had better not start celebrating too soon if commenters are any indication. Many of them bemoaned the fact that they don’t have and can’t afford to get pay TV.
A sample: “No Foxtel so is there [an] option to watch online instead?”
“Please advise availability of reception as cannot afford Foxtel ...!”
“PS, how do we pick up Sky News on the net?”
The timing of Bolt’s appointment was not lost on some with a cynical frame of mind who thought he might have arrived just in time to do his best to cruel Labor’s chances at the polling booth. But the truth is Sky has been keen to get Bolt on board ever since News Corp chose to stop funding his low-rating political opinion show, The Bolt Report, on Channel Ten.
The pay TV channel, under pressure from ABC’s News 24, which has significantly higher ratings and is free, is keen to offer a point of difference. And whatever you think of Bolt, he certainly attracts attention.
The Bolt Report, which the Herald Sun columnist presented on Sunday mornings on Ten for five years, will be transformed into a looser format that will air live every weeknight on Sky at 7pm from May. That’s five hours of Bolt on his soapbox each week – talking about everything from global warming and the Greens to the stolen generations and free speech.
The Bolt Report timeslot puts him up against the ABC’s main news bulletin at 7pm, which is Sky’s main competitor in the space. To compete against the highly resourced public news program Sky could only go one way, and that was to be provocative.
According to OzTAM ratings figures Sky News averages 12,000 viewers nationally between 6pm and midnight, peaking between 8pm and 10pm at 18,000. For comparison, ABC News at 7pm averages 1m nationally.
Although Bolt was beaten by the ABC’s Insiders in his old slot on Ten, he had significantly more viewers than he can expect in his new home.
Of course Sky is no stranger to conservative commentary or to giving Murdoch’s favourite commentators a voice. Now one third-owned by Murdoch’s Sky Europe, with the rest owned by Nine and Seven, Sky has always had a close connection to News Corp and its journalists. They even have purpose-built studios in the newsrooms at the Australian and the Daily Telegraph.
But over the past 20 years Sky has built its reputation on straight news reporting throughout the day, strong breaking news coverage and endless political analysis from talking heads in Canberra. The main presenters such as David Speers, Kieran Gilbert and David Lipson have all been thorough professionals and you would be hard-pressed to detect a political leaning among them. Similarly the newsreaders are all straight down the middle. Sky News in the UK manages to maintain a neutral line through all its coverage – indeed, is required to by broadcasting rules.
But the evenings on Sky News Australia are a different prospect altogether, suggesting something of an identity crisis. After Speers comes off air, you can be fairly sure you’ll catch a rant about the inner-city elites, Fairfax, the ABC or the Labor party.
Paul Murray’s right-leaning PM Live show runs at 9pm every weeknight and you’re likely to see News Corp journalists such as Miranda Devine, Sharri Markson, Tim Blair and Rita Panahi on his panel, or listen to him in furious agreement with Cory Bernardi.
The Australian’s associate editor, Chris Kenny, also has his own show every Friday and Sunday on which he pontificates about his favourite topics – climate change, the Greens and the ABC – and he too usually has guests who agree with much of what he says.
Sky management would say the channel is no Fox News and boasts a smorgasbord of talent from across the political spectrum, including the former Labor premiers Kristina Keneally and Peter Beattie and the former Labor numbers man Graham Richardson.
Then there’s PVO – Peter van Onselen – a soft-right commentator who presents and analyses the news for much of the afternoon.
“Great news, this has the potential to become The O’Reilly Factor of Australia,” wrote one of Bolt’s fans on his blog about the news.
“Perfect fit Andrew,” said another. “Once a week was always insufficient at 10 and Sky offers the best resources to present The Bolt Report. Congratulations and look forward to the relaunch in May.”
But Bolt and Sky had better not start celebrating too soon if commenters are any indication. Many of them bemoaned the fact that they don’t have and can’t afford to get pay TV.
A sample: “No Foxtel so is there [an] option to watch online instead?”
“Please advise availability of reception as cannot afford Foxtel ...!”
“PS, how do we pick up Sky News on the net?”
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