Former Channel 10 presenter Joe Hildebrand has criticized his former employer after two senior executives urged staff to boycott Australia Day by working on the holiday.
Hildebrand, 46, who was the presenter of morning show Studio 10 from 2013 until his sacking in 2020, accused the TV station of signaling virtue when addressing the controversy on Channel Seven’s Sunrise on Tuesday.
Rather than demolish Australia Day – a national holiday supported by a majority of Australians – he said the network should donate to Indigenous charities instead.
Speaking to Sunrise presenter Monique Wright and News.com.au political reporter Samantha Maiden, Hildebrand also couldn’t resist attacking Channel 10’s shrinking workforce and endless layoffs.
Former Channel 10 presenter Joe Hildebrand (left, with Monique Wright, centre, and Samantha Maiden, right) has criticized his former employer after two senior executives urged staff to boycott Australia Day by working on the holiday
“I understand they’re going to allow Republicans to work on the Queen’s birthday and they’re going to allow Liberal voters to work on Labor Day, so some great initiatives are coming off,” he scoffed.
“I’d also like to hear about all these companies that have been group emailing their employees lately – and the good thing about Channel 10 is that every year there are fewer and fewer employees to group email to. emails – why not donate half of their profits to charities that actually help the indigenous people instead?’
He listed several charities doing great work for First Nations people, including the Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation, adding that improving literacy is “probably the most important thing you can do to end poverty between people to reduce the generations”.
Dripping with sarcasm, Hildebrand continued, “I’m pretty sure you’ll see them jump at the opportunity [donate to Indigenous charities]just as they took the opportunity to show how sensitive they are about Australia Day.
“By January 26th they will be pouncing on themselves to give away their money, all their profits – obviously the profits don’t go to Channel 10 – to these amazing charities that work so hard for so little money all the time.”
Rather than destroy Australia Day – a national holiday supported by a majority of Australians – Hildebrand said the network should donate to Indigenous charities instead
Hildebrand, 46, was the presenter of the morning show Studio 10 from 2013 until his sacking in 2020
Two top Channel 10 bosses have told staff the network will not be celebrating Australia Day and staff can come into work instead of taking the day off.
Beverley McGarvey, chief content officer of parent company Paramount ANZ, and Jarrod Villani, co-leader, referred to Australia Day as “May 26″ only in an email sent to all editorial and programming staff last week. January”.
The couple told staff it was “not a public holiday” for Indigenous people and said staff could choose to take the day off as a public holiday or work if they preferred.
“At Paramount ANZ we aim to create a safe workplace where cultural differences are valued, understood and respected,” the couple wrote in the email, reported The Australian’s Media Diary column.
Two top Channel 10 bosses have told staff the network will not be celebrating Australia Day and staff can come into work instead of taking the day off. (Pictured: The project hosts Waleed Aly and Sarah Harris)
“For our indigenous people, as an organization, we recognize that January 26 is not a public holiday.
“We are aware that there has been a tumultuous history, particularly around this date and the recognition of this date as Australia Day.”
opinion poll
Will you be celebrating Australia Day next year?
- Yes 1786 votes
- No 131 votes
The couple said staff could choose to work through the National Day if they don’t feel comfortable celebrating it and take another day off instead.
“We recognize that January 26 evokes different emotions among our employees across the organization, and we are receptive to employees who may not feel comfortable marking the day as a holiday,” the email reads .
The network’s chiefs insisted that those wanting to celebrate Australia Day “reflect and respect the different perspectives and viewpoints of all Australians”.
Channel 10 was previously praised for using traditional Indigenous names for capital cities during a weather report during NAIDOC week in July.
Network staff have been told they are welcome to work over the Australia Day holiday (pictured is news anchor Sandra Sully).
Instead of Sydney, the presenter read the forecast for Gadigal and for Melbourne, the city was referred to by its traditional name, Naarm.
The network first changed its weather map to include traditional names last year and was immediately praised for the choice by many Australians.
The celebration of Australia Day has been controversial in recent years, with many calling for the date to be changed in relation to Indigenous Australians.
Various councils across the country have boycotted the holiday, saying it does not align with their views.
January 26, 1788 was the day the First Fleet landed at Sydney Cove and Governor Arthur Phillip raised a Union Jack flag.
The date is becoming increasingly controversial, with many indigenous people marking it as a day of mourning, instead referring to it as “Day of the Invasion.”
Just last week Labor scrapped a controversial rule pushed through by former Prime Minister Scott Morrison that forced councils to hold naturalization ceremonies on January 26.
Councils can now hold naturalization ceremonies anytime between January 23-29.
The celebration of Australia Day has been controversial in recent years, with many calling for the date to be changed in relation to Indigenous Australians. (Pictured: young women celebrating Australia Day on the Gold Coast this year)
Merri-bek Council in north Melbourne recently announced that it would no longer hold naturalization ceremonies on January 26 and instead hold a mourning ceremony to recognize the experiences of Indigenous Australians.
“Just the idea that on this day we’re celebrating, having parties and welcoming new people to this country is quite shameful,” Councilman James Conlan said at a council meeting earlier this month.
“In a profoundly twisted irony…the Council asks First Nations elders to conduct their culturally significant welcoming ceremony on a day that marks their own disposition.”
Merri-bek Council is the third Melbourne council to drop Australia Day citizenship ceremonies, after Yarra and Darebin councils did the same in 2017.
These two councils are not permitted to hold citizenship ceremonies at any time of year by order of the then coalition federal government.
Melbourne City Council also voted in September to support the federal government in changing the date of Australia Day.
Citizenship ceremonies will continue to be held in the city on January 26, but the council will also support efforts to recognize First Nations perspectives of the day.
Sydney’s Inner West Council and Melbourne’s Moreland have also canceled their Australia Day events this year, while Byron Bay Council has moved its citizenship ceremony to 25 January.
Meanwhile, Channel 10 is struggling with ratings as questions are now being raised about the station’s viability.
Things are so bad that the network has been forced to cancel its annual Christmas party, it was first revealed by Chron Australia.
The ailing organization is now officially Australia’s fourth free-to-air network, having placed behind ABC in the ratings race.
Channel 10 has struggled with ratings as questions are now being raised about the channel’s viability. (Pictured: The Project presenter Hamish Macdonald)
10 just posted its lowest commercial share since OzTam ratings began with a network share of just 22.1 percent, well behind its rivals at Nine and Seven.
As Spin Doctors burgeons, the network has a younger audience than its competitors, with Nine and Seven both hitting 10 in total people and their main demographic under 50.
A series of failures only increased his suffering. Shows like The Real Love Boat, The Challenge Australia and The Traitors were all flops.
The Bachelor franchise hasn’t taken off in recent years, and the latest installment, The Bachelors, was deemed so bad by programming bosses that it was pushed back to January.
The Bachelor franchise hasn’t taken off in recent years, and the latest installment – The Bachelors – was deemed so bad by programming bosses that it was pushed back to January