 Reshuffle ... Ten news anchors Ron Wilson and Sandra Sully have been moved to earlier timeslots. Picture: Adam Ward |
CHANNEL Ten`s news team has been thrown into chaos, with hosts Ron Wilson and Sandra Sully shunted into new timeslots.
The reshuffle has led to speculation Ten may cut some of its news progams to save costs after a bad year for the business.
Wilson, Ten News at Five anchor and veteran of almost 30 years, was moved from the 5pm bulletin to 6am, clashing with his second job as 2GB breakfast newsreader on the Alan Jones show.
Wilson will be replaced by popular 6am anchor Bill Woods, while Sandra Sully was wrenched from the late news to 5pm to take over from a holidaying Deborah Knight.
That immediately led to rumours the late night and 6am news bulletins would be dumped in a cost-cutting exercise - leaving one or more of the newsreaders on the outer.
Ten`s head of news Jim Carroll denied plans to dump the early and late news, but confirmed Sully would continue to head the 5pm bulletin when Knight goes on maternity leave in February.
While Carroll tried to smooth waters, his newsroom was spreading oil and fire.
"They say it`s just a reshuffle but you only have to look at the share price to realise what`s going on," a source said.
"People are running around like headless chooks."
Ten`s share price has more than halved this year, going from $2.98 a year ago to $1.15 yesterday following a drop among its key ratings demographics.
Meanwhile, Ten`s executive chairman Nick Falloon was recently awarded a $2.4 million annual pay rise to $5.8 million.
Last night Wilson confirmed he had been told he would move to 6am, but said he was "delighted" because that`s where he first started at Ten on Good Morning Australia in the 1980s. |
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