On Monday, June 27, the half-hour program pulled just 44 viewers in Sydney, in what was believed to be one of the lowest figures in Australian TV history. But it has seen no improvement, breaking the grim record last Tuesday with an audience of just 43 in Perth, according to The Australian’s Media Diary column.The bulletin, led by Natasha Exelby and Lachlan Kennedy, averaged 17,000 viewers a day across the five major capital cities in its first week, according to OzTAM. This fell to just 15,000 in week two.Now in its third week, bosses are persevering with 10 News First: Breakfast, insisting that they’re “happy” with the show.Speaking toThe Australian’s Media Diary, a spokesperson said the network is looking forward to “increasing engagement as viewers become more familiar with the timeslot” after the program’s second week on air.This latest comment echoes an earlier response from a Ten spokeswoman given to news.com.au after reports of the show’s dire premiere week.“Network 10 is happy with the launch of the 10 News First: Breakfast,” she said. “It has lifted the 2022 timeslot average by 13 per cent in its first week.”The new program fills a 30-minute slot previously held by Studio 10, which now kicks off at 8.30am.Breakfast TV is a notoriously ruthless market, with strong ratings central to success. Currently, Seven’s Sunrise and Nine’s Today both air from 5.30am with loyal viewers spanning decades, while ABC News Breakfast has emerged to compete with them in recent years.10 News First: Breakfast marks Ten’s second attempt at a breakfast-marketed program, after the now-defunct Wake Up aired in 2013 with Exelby, Natarsha Belling and James Mathison on-board as co-hosts.It was axed after six months on-air.The disappointing results come at a tumultuous time for Ten.From plummeting ratings threatening The Project, a dismal last season of The Bachelor and an up-and-down season of MasterChef, the network has been fighting for viewers across the board this year.
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