Karl Stefanovic has been forced to withdraw from appearing on Fox League’s NRL 360 program after Channel 9 “intervened”, Jonathon Moran reports for the Daily Telegraph.
Stefanovic’s wildly successful podcast, The Karl Stefanovic Show, has 7.9 million full-episode views on YouTube and Spotify, meaning he could/should be considered a media vehicle in his own right.
But it seems that’s not how Nine sees it, apparently.
Moran writes that “After agreeing to appear on Fox League’s popular NRL 360 on Sunday night, Stefanovic was forced into a late withdrawal after Nine intervened.
“The appearance had already been promoted by Matty Johns, who teased the Today host as a special guest.”
Sources at The Daily Telegraph reportedly said Stefanovic agreed because he didn’t see any potential issues with conflict.
“Karl was asked if he could go on NRL 360, and immediately and innocently said ‘yes’,” a Nine source told the Daily Telegraph.
“He genuinely didn’t think it would be a problem because it’s not competing with Today, and he’s not talking politics or current affairs.
“It wasn’t a huge drama in the end, but the answer became ‘no’.”
Instead, Stefanovic was “redirected internally to appear on Nine’s own rugby league program, Freddy and the Eighth, as a replacement for Brad Fittler.”
The Karl Stefanovic Show.
The Daily Telegraph Cited “industry sources” who claim that the directive was from Nine’s director of morning TV, Steven “Burlo” Burling.
Moran proposes that “the situation raises broader questions about where networks now draw the line.”
Top image: Karl Stefanovic