Channel 10 is trialing an ‘experiment’ to improve 10News+.
TV Blackbox reported that an internal email outlined plans for the shake-up, which aims to prevent viewers switching over to Channel Nine or Seven bulletins at 6pm.
‘Next week, we’re going to experiment a touch, to try and hold people better over the 5pm/6pm changeover,’ Channel 10’s Vice President of News, Martin White, said in the email.
Under the proposed shake-up, the 5pm bulletin will no longer conclude with the presenter bidding viewers ‘goodnight’.
Instead, a graphic of the weather forecast will be shown with weather presenters delivering the final line of the bulletin before segueing straight into 10 News+ at 6pm.
‘No music, no goodbye, disclaimer along the bottom of the screen over the graphic,’ White added in the email.
Channel 10 is trialing an ‘experiment’ to improve 10News+
‘Then we go straight into the Plus opener – pics and VO, not on camera.’
It was also revealed that the change would be trialled for one week.
‘We’ll see what difference it makes next week before deciding what we’ll do next,’ the email continued.
Daily Mail has reached out to Channel 10 for comment.
The news comes after Channel 10 cancelled its afternoon bulletin back in December.
Hosted by veteran broadcaster Narelda Jacobs, the half-hour news program was launched with much hype at the start of 2024.
Staff were informed via email just before Christmas that the bulletin would not return in 2026, and were told that the move would have no impact on jobs at the network.
The internal memo also announced that Channel 10’s late bulletin, hosted by Ursula Heger, would be moved from 10.30pm to 9.30pm.
TV Blackboxreported that an internal email outlined plans for the shake-up, which aims to prevent viewers switching over to Channel Nine or Seven bulletins at 6pm (Pictured: Channel Nine news anchor Peter Overton)
The trial shake up is expected to take effect from next week (Pictured: 10 News Sydney anchor Sandra Sully)
White said in the memo that the changes were based on ‘research’ and making better use of ‘resources’.
In the email to staff, which was later obtained by Yahoo Lifestyle, White said cancelling the afternoon bulletin was ‘no reflection on the work our daytime team has done’.
‘This is based on putting more of our news and resources where – research tells us – there are more viewers,’ he said in the email.
‘We want our audience to see as much of your work as possible, on as many platforms as possible.’
White also used the email to farewell Chris Bath, who is leaving the network after a decade.
‘She will always be a valued member of the 10 family,’ he said.
After Bath’s departure, Georgie Tunny replaced her as host of the network’s weekend news bulletin.
