7NEWS Melbourne has secured its position as the leading news service in the city, celebrating victory in the 6pm TV news battle for the second consecutive year.
Guided by anchor Peter Mitchell, meteorologist Jane Bunn, and sports anchor Tim Watson, the Seven Network program has triumphed in all 22 weeks of the official 40-week ratings survey year so far in 2023, a feat putting them in an unassailable position.
The team’s commitment to excellence and tireless work across the entire day has resulted in an average of 268,000 viewers for their 6pm slot, 14 per cent more than Channel 9’s bulletin hosted by Peter Hitchener. The success no doubt causing questions to be asked by Channel 9 executives as to what has gone wrong with their once-dominant bulletin.
7NEWS Melbourne’s landslide victory accounts for all 30 calendar weeks of 2023, and 65 of the previous 72 weeks.
Peter Mitchell, the face of 7NEWS Melbourne, expressed gratitude for his role, stating,
“We never take any of this for granted and we strive for consistency every day.”
“It is my job to put the icing on the cake at 6pm, and to bring our viewers the results of our team’s hard work. For me, that remains an enormous privilege.”
The 7NEWS team, led by director Shaun Menegola, has placed special emphasis on building a bulletin tailor-made for Victorians, focusing on local issues, particularly given the recent challenging times.
Contributions from esteemed journalists including Sharnelle Vella, Cassie Zervos, Paul Dowsley, and sports journalists Tom Browne and Mitch Cleary have further strengthened the news offering, with the latter duo’s exclusive AFL reports resonating with Melbourne’s sports-loving audience.
Menegola and Seven’s Network Director of News and Public Affairs, Craig McPherson, both praised the effort of not only the on-air talent but the entire team, including those working diligently behind the scenes.
“We’re very proud of what 7NEWS Melbourne delivers every night to the people of that great city and its surrounds,”
“With Peter, Tim, Jane, Rebecca, Mike and Abbey we have a very special on-air Melbourne team. We constantly strive for quality and excellence at every point in every day, all driven by our relentless Melbourne News chief Shaun Menegola.”
