Channel 10 declares war on critics

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HE BACHELOR AUSTRALIA launched its lowest figures on record last week (image – 10)

For some time now, Channel 10 has gained a reputation for having a glass jaw. Writers of various publications that cover the media will often joke about being “again” in the bad ten books and how they will punish those who criticize.

As a media editor for one of Australia’s biggest news sites told me:

“What you heard is true: They block people from making stories they don’t like. They won’t respond to emails and won’t even send press releases. They block your access to the screening room.

It’s a movement designed to intimidate writers who want access to stories, talent for interviews, and TV show previews.

People to whom TV Blackbox has spoken have spoken on strict condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

One of them, a seasoned media editor for a major newspaper, didn’t hesitate:

“10 is quite malicious

But this person’s criticism isn’t directed at the PR team of 10, which is good enough to deal with, it’s the top executives:

“(They have) very thin skin. They can serve it but cannot take it ”

Unfortunately for 10, this tactic only serves to attract further criticism because these writers feel they have nothing to lose.

As a well-known journalist tells me:

“They don’t understand the basics – if they keep you in the tent they have some level of control, once they kick you out all bets are void.”

You might think it’s fair enough that 10 cuts off access, but it’s a network struggling to find its place in a crowded marketplace and in need of positive stories.

As the author of a great news site puts it:

“You go ahead and you get out of it. There are amazing TV commercials who understand how digital media works; I love working with them.

This means that these advertisers are more likely to have good angles around their products as negative stories continue to pour in regarding 10.

Everything is fair in love and war I guess.

So juvenile and unprofessional, this network needs new leadership.

Mibenge Nsenduluka (@ MibengeNsendul1) July 25, 2021

That’s not to say that Seven and Nine don’t yell and scream if they think you did the wrong thing on their part, but in my experience you can usually agree to disagree or do adjustments if you think they’re right.

Nine and Seven have never blocked access to their resources since the launch of this post.

Unsurprisingly, TV Blackbox faces the wrath of the 10 (again) after testing their claims that they are under 50. Undisputed.

In a lengthy post, I looked at the data to see if their claims of dominance in the Under 50 demo were correct – they were not.

Recently, the network has sought to differentiate itself from Nine and Seven by calling itself a “network with integrity”. When a company brags about its integrity and continues to deceive the market with false claims, it is a worthy story in my opinion.

Although I knew the claim was wrong in their clear ratings, I was happy to give 10 the benefit of the doubt when they told me their claim was based on all brands under the 10 umbrella. ViacomCBS.

Unfortunately, that also turned out to be a lie.

As my story shows, even when you add all the other brands like MTV, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr, etc., the claims still don’t add up.

Shortly after this story was published, 10 cut us off from all press releases, guidebook information, and website access.

It was not unexpected.

As TV Tonight’s David Knox said in his last newsletter after hearing about the 10 ban against us:

“Eliminating other key media from preview access isn’t a good strategy when Free to Air needs all the eyes it can get. I know that feeling. ”

David has also fallen victim to 10’s pettiness over the years.

Despite many 10 positive articles or reviews, we have found that as soon as we “get out of line,” in their eyes 10 is very quick to take access away. We have faced legal threats in addition to the usual emails and phone calls with public relations, even when their legal complaints have no basis.

There is no doubt that the 10 leadership team is under pressure. As noted above, the network even comes third in its chosen Under-50 demo and is the only commercial network to decline year after year in this demo.

None of its shows have pulled this year, including MasterChef which has dropped significantly from last year. The Bachelor had its lowest ever launch last week and on Saturday the mainstream recorded its lowest share on record at just 3.3%.

What parent company ViacomCBS does with 10 struggles is guesswork. In August, we should have 10 financial performance indications when ViacomCBS releases its financial data to the market.

Last year, it was revealed that $ 10 million was lost in 2019, but a senior network official claims the company is now profitable, but no figures were revealed to TV Blackbox.

What seems to be missing is a clear strategy for moving forward. When false claims are made to advertisers about under 50 dominance, it smacks of desperation, especially when advertiser buyers can see through it.

The folks at TV Blackbox are very diverse with their own opinions, but we call things when we see them – both negative and positive.

In the same week that I took them to task on the Under 50 complaints, I also praised the commissioning of The Cheap Seats. Our team gave rave reviews on the production values ​​of Survivor and publicly praised the team for the good evaluation results like the MasterChef final.

But none of this is taken into account.

Thus, we will continue to report 10 ViacomCBS without fear or favor. We will congratulate them when they are successful, but we will also provide feedback when they do not.

One thing TV Blackbox won’t do is be intimidated by bullies. We don’t rely on the 10 ‘drops’ for stories, we have sources within the industry so nothing will really change from our perspective.

The only thing that will change is that the promotion of its products by 10 will be very limited in the 1.6 million monthly pageviews that we deliver.

You’d think they’d take whatever promotions they could get … but apparently not.

Good luck Channel 10… with that kind of strategy, you’re going to need it.

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