Samantha Armytage’s highly anticipated return to the Channel Nine Today show definitely has not been the massive ratings boon that television executives desperately hoped for.
“Has the audience had enough?”: Growing criticism puts Samantha Armytage under pressure
The popular breakfast television program has significantly delayed finding a permanent new morning host after Karl Stefanovic was abruptly punted from his role earlier this year.
With the usual daily co-host Sarah Abo currently away on extended maternity leave, the iconic breakfast television chairs have unfortunately been left completely empty recently.
Desperate to boost their morning viewership, Channel Nine finally called in the big guns by surprisingly bringing Sam in to actively delight their morning viewers.
Temporary morning hosts Tom Steinfort and Armytage have certainly tried their absolute best, but unfortunately, the daily ratings have shockingly continued to completely freefall.
According to the latest television numbers, Channel Seven competitor Sunrise has successfully widened its massive ratings gap over the struggling Today show program.
On some specific days over the past busy month, the Sunrise broadcast has incredibly exceeded the Today show by over two hundred thousand dedicated morning viewers.
Sunrise has proudly averaged a strong national television audience of exactly four hundred and thirty-eight thousand viewers continuously over the entire past month.
In stark contrast, the struggling Today show has only managed to command the attention of an average of three hundred and four thousand daily viewers.
This disappointing ratings news unfortunately follows a frustrating series of minor setbacks for the forty-nine-year-old television presenter during her temporary guest hosting slot.
Sam actually had to take necessary time off the Today show after she unfortunately fractured her ankle while simply taking out the household rubbish.
She honestly admitted she wished she had a sexy story for everyone, but she was simply taking the rubbish out over the weekend one morning.
She explained she completely missed the bottom step and unfortunately twisted her ankle while wearing practical runners rather than dangerous high heels that specific morning.
The painful accident caused her to completely tear all the ligaments entirely away from the bone, and even tear part of the bone completely away.
Meanwhile, Sam’s extensive television career continues to stall unexpectedly after The Golden Bachelor Australia officially suffered yet another frustrating scheduling pushback this week.
The hit romantic dating series has reportedly been delayed for a highly unusual third time and is now expected to finally premiere next March.
While network insiders are actively insisting the unexpected delay is all part of a master plan, some others firmly believe there could be another reason.
Many industry observers believe there could be a far more intriguing reason directly behind the massive scheduling move, specifically regarding Armytage’s own television future.
According to a report from the Daily Telegraph, sources very close to television production claim the highly anticipated reality show has actually exceeded expectations.
Because the new reality show has performed so well during development, network executives have been prompted to carefully rethink its entire upcoming launch strategy.
Rather than hastily rushing the new series directly onto television screens, producers are reportedly said to be incredibly keen to give the new franchise time.
They want to provide the absolute strongest possible start by strategically positioning it during a significantly more competitive viewing period early next year.
However, not absolutely everyone working within the Australian television industry is currently buying that specific positive explanation for the show’s massive scheduling delay today.
Industry whispers quietly suggest the massive delay may actually have less to do with programming strategy and significantly more to do with Armytage’s rumoured return.
The former Sunrise television star has reportedly emerged as a highly serious contender for a major permanent hosting role directly on the Today show.
This exciting new development has sparked massive speculation that network executives may be carefully and strategically managing all her upcoming on-screen television commitments.
If Armytage actually does end up permanently joining the Today show long-term, officially postponing The Golden Bachelor until March would certainly make absolute sense.
Television industry insiders claim network bosses may be incredibly hesitant to have Armytage constantly appearing every single morning on a major daily breakfast program.
They believe appearing every morning while also simultaneously fronting a prime-time reality dating show in the evening could easily cause massive viewer fatigue.
This is considered particularly risky during the extremely crucial early stages of successfully establishing a brand new morning hosting role for the veteran presenter.