The addition of Andrew Bolt's new show to Sunday mornings is a major departure from regular Ten fare. Its current Sunday mornings consist of Meet the Press at the ungodly hour of 8:00am and then music videos to fill out the remaining hours.
This change of philosophy has come out of nowhere from the point of view of most observers, and could be put down to the
addition and influence of Gina Rinehart to the Ten Network Holdings board.
Certainly, sources from within the company say that the pursuit of Bolt had
Rinehart's tick of approval.
The mining magnate and climate change denier being able to directly influence what programming can and should air on the network is one thing.
But to influence the news department and the hiring of a columnist with no hosting experience and a journalistic background plagued with scandal, outrageous articles and trips to the courts is something else.
The hiring of Andrew Bolt could be seen as a push against the Prime Minister's carbon tax proposal, which both Bolt and Rinehart fiercely oppose.
Could Rinehart's main interest in Ten be its news department, and the ability to dictate the stories that air and the personalities that deliver them: all to push her own interests?
As Rinehart's mining company Hancock Prospecting said last year after buying into Ten: "Our company group is interested in making an investment towards the media business given its importance to the nation's future and has selected Channel 10 for this investment."
If this is what Rinehart had in mind, then
we are heading into worrying times
for the network and the state of news in this country. The hiring of Bolt could just be the start of other changes -
with a Murdoch and a Magnate on the board, are diverse opinions welcome at Ten anymore?
After
Bolt's fierce tirade
on what was possibly his last appearance on the
ABC's Insiders
, how could he have been seen a stable host of a political television program?
Shows in the vein of what we can expect from Bolt are big ratings hits in the United States: particularly on
Rupert Murdoch's Fox News Channel
, where cable kings Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity eat up ten hours of primetime television each week combined.
Hannity in particular parrots talking points almost straight out of the Republican strategy book. Attacking the left on topics such as patriotism and, oh yes, climate change.
Is this the kind of programming Australians will warm to, especially at 10am on a Sunday morning?
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