Breakfast looking like Campbell’s jam
You couldn’t call it marvellous but John Campbell’s first week at the Breakfast desk is certainly showing some positive signs.
The former Campbell Live host
returned to his first fulltime television presenting role in four years this week, joining Hayley Holt on the morning news programme, as Jack Tame moves on to host TVNZ’s weekly political series Q+A.
On Monday, 29,000 viewers aged 25-54 tuned in to watch the duo. By Tuesday, that had risen to
35,000. Wednesday and Thursday pulled in 28,000 and
26,000 viewers respectively. By comparison, Duncan Garner and The AM Show saw
24,000 viewers join them on Monday, dropping to 21,000 on Tuesday. Wednesday lifted slightly to 22,000 viewers before Thursday lifted again to 27,000.
It’s early days still but the numbers will be met with cautious optimism at TVNZ, where
Breakfast’s declining audience has been an ongoing concern.
“We’ve seen strong ratings for the show this week, some great feedback from viewers and the team are really enjoying working together,” said a TVNZ spokesperson, who confirmed
Breakfast remains strategically important to the network.
“Breakfast is many New Zealanders’ first news source of the day. It delivers overnight headlines from around the world right into people’s living rooms and it connects viewers to stories from around the country. It sets up TVNZ’s news and current affairs offering for the day.”
Breakfast and The AM Show have been locked in a fierce ratings battle for the past two years, with The AM Show closing the gap significantly on TVNZ.
The morning news programmes are now neck and neck for average audience aged 25-54, with Breakfast averaging 26,000 viewers, to The AM Show’s 24,000.
A spokesperson for MediaWorks said consistency was the key to the team’s success over the past two years.
“Duncan, Mark [Richardson] and Amanda [Gillies] deliver a consistent performance every day with chemistry and cohesion between the trio that is hard to find. The word consistent says it all really — we are very happy with their performance and the results of The AM Show.”
Both networks have seen morning viewership decline in the past 12 months but TVNZ is under greater pressure due to its higher production costs.
Insiders suggest Campbell was moved to Breakfast to justify his significant salary cost, well above the average reporter’s salary.
There is also speculation that Campbell’s Breakfast stint may be a temporary measure, with a possible move to prime time in the future. Last year, in an interview with canvas magazine, Campbell was asked if he would ever do a
7pm show again.
“My answer is absolutely no, but that’s my answer in October of
2018. In this business, you never say never, but it’s not what I came to TVNZ to do.”
Many commentators have questioned Campbell’s move to Breakfast, which is traditionally lighter fare than the serious news Campbell likes to tackle.
Reviewing Campbell’s performance this week, Herald
critic Karl Puschmann praised the presenter’s “easy bants with the team” but felt he needed to lighten up a bit.
Campbell spent 24 years with MediaWorks, including a decade as the host of Campbell Live,
before the show was axed in 2015.
In March, he partnered with Hilary Barry to lead the breaking news coverage of the Christchurch terrorist attacks, earning widespread praise for his compassionate reporting.