Duncan Greive: media commentator on Simon Dallow stepping down as TVNZ's 6pm news presenter

There's hope for a smooth transition at TVNZ as its shakes up the flagship 6pm news bulletin.

Presenter Simon Dallow's stepping down this month after almost two decades - to be replaced by weekend newsreader Melissa Stokes.

Media commentator Duncan Greive says TVNZ's made the safe choice, given it's not reaching a lot of new viewers.

"If you look at the ratings for ThreeNews, there's not a lot there, they've gone down a bit."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now, Simon dallow has finally confirmed the rumors and the
speculation he is leaving the job. He'll be out of
the job at the end of November. The weekend news
reader Melissa Stokes will replace him. TV and Z has
called it the end of an era. Duncan Greeve is
a media commentator and founder of the spin off High
Duncan Simon is very good at his job, wasn't he?

Speaker 2 (00:20):
He was, and for a very long time too.

Speaker 1 (00:23):
But is it really that long? I mean, Judy Bailey
did it for twenty years. I mean that's just kind
of how long you expect it to be, don't you.

Speaker 3 (00:29):
I don't know.

Speaker 2 (00:30):
In media in this era, eighteen years feels like a
good shirst.

Speaker 1 (00:33):
Yeah, I suppose it does. Melissa Stokes is an interesting choice.
I thought she is the continuity candidate, right, the safe option,
which feels to me a little bit more like hanging
on to your existing viewers rather than trying to win
over new viewers. Do you think.

Speaker 3 (00:48):
I think that's exactly what it is, and I think
that's why it's the correct decision, because there aren't that
many other new viewers to be fought for. If you
look at the ratings for three News there it's pretty.

Speaker 2 (01:05):
There's not a lot there.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
Got they've gone down a bit, but it almost feels
more like attrition from you know, six pm. Then it
does transfer to TV and Z. So you know, the
the six pm news for TV and Z is how
the night starts. It's it both in and of itself
in terms of the revenue it unlocks for the rest
of the evening is absolutely critical infrastructure, probably the single

(01:29):
most important program in New Zealand media from a total
revenue perspective.

Speaker 2 (01:35):
So you just don't want to scare the horses.

Speaker 1 (01:36):
How many of you as are left over at TV
three I.

Speaker 3 (01:40):
Think there's The numbers for three News are typically around
one hundred and sixty thousand, which isn't it not bad?
It's still still a decent type of people. But TV
and z's news product is off and over six hundred thousand,
and you know if all they want to do is
keep that number as high as possible for as long
as possible. Yeah, while they sort of try and figure

(02:01):
out digital.

Speaker 1 (02:03):
Is it true that if you add together the viewers
who watch it on Telly versus the viewers who watch
it online, you end up with a number over a million.

Speaker 3 (02:12):
I mean, I think that there's some sort of creative
accounting involved in that if you look at the sort
of average viewership, but it's not quite true. But if
it's the title people who watch some of it across platforms,
it might well be. I'll probably have someone from TV
and Z Coms on the phone to me after this,
But I think it all depends on how you count it.

Speaker 1 (02:33):
What do you think because they've got, they've obviously got
you can watch it on Telly, then you can watch
it on TV and Z plus. Do you think they're
also adding what you watch on one news, dot co,
dot nz? Is that also being added in potentially?

Speaker 3 (02:46):
But I think it's more just did you watch some
of the news, not all of the news? Did you
catch a segment of the news even on TV and
Z Plus, then you're a viewer potentially.

Speaker 1 (02:57):
Yeah. But I mean if you're going onto TV and
Z plus and actually tapping the news, then you genuinely
are of you aren't you like you're hunting something out?

Speaker 3 (03:04):
Yeah, But they also have it broken down into segment,
so you might just watch one three minute segment as
a sixty minute comet.

Speaker 1 (03:12):
Duncan that makes a lot of sense, because I thought
a million people sitting down to watch the news is
absolute bollocks, and it is. It's bollocks. No, not that
many people are watching.

Speaker 3 (03:21):
The news, No, I mean even six hundred thousand is
a pretty extraordinary number as a percentage of our population.
You know, there aren't many news products in around the
world which have that kind of present penetration. Sorry, so
they're doing well, that's why they want. You know, melissa'stokes
very good news reader. But you know, you could have
got creative, You could have gone and promoted someone from

(03:41):
outside of the stable or from.

Speaker 1 (03:43):
Things that would have been the baller move wouldn't move.

Speaker 3 (03:46):
We're pretty aggressive, aggressive one. But I'm sure that they
would have done a good sort of robust test and
run some kind of you know, focus grouping with viewers.
But I think they liked their candidate. And Melissa's such
a familiar face that you know, because she does weekends,
because she does till Again Sundays. You know, this is
my understanding. It's the most viewed bulletin of the week anyway,

(04:08):
so you kind of you just want to keep the thing.

Speaker 1 (04:11):
Guy, Yeah, I suppose that's true. Duncan always always enjoy
chatting to you. Thank you so much. Duncan Grief, co
founder of the Spinoff or Spinoff founder actually a media commentated.

Speaker 2 (04:20):
For more from Hither Duplessy Allen Drive.

Speaker 1 (04:23):
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