Today show boss in extraordinary 6.30am social media meltdown over rival Sunrise’s Facebook page
Lingering tensions between rival morning shows Sunrise and Today spilled onto social media on Wednesday over an innocent mistake by a Channel Seven employee.
Nine’s director of Morning Television, Steven Burling, made an extraordinary intervention on Sunrise’s Facebook page at 6.30am on Wednesday during a so-called ‘exclusive’ with Australian miner Arnold Dix.
Dix is being hailed as an international hero after leading the miraculous rescue of dozens of Indian workers trapped underground for 17 days.
A social media intern shared an interview with Dix on Sunrise’s Facebook page and accidentally labeled it “exclusive.” That wasn’t the case, as Today had already aired the same interview.
Burling quickly disclosed the error, writing on the post: “Hey Sunrise social media team. Please note that this interview was not exclusive nor did it first air this morning.
Nine’s director of Morning Television, Steven Burling (pictured), called out Sunrise on social media on Wednesday for an innocent mistake
Burling wrote on the post: “Hey Sunrise social media team. Please note that this interview was not exclusive nor did it first air this morning.”
“You can watch the entire 17-minute phone call here,” he added, before providing a link to the interview from the Today show.
The error only happened on Facebook, not on the television broadcast.
Channel Nine has been contacted for comment.
Burling previously served as executive producer for A Current Affair before replacing Mark Calvert as president of Morning Television in 2018.
A social media intern shared an interview with Arnold Dix on Sunrise’s Facebook page, labeling it “exclusive” — despite the fact that Today had already aired the same interview
He is more than qualified for the role, having worked alongside veteran journalist Richard Wilkins as Today’s entertainment producer in 2000.
In 2011, he joined 60 Minutes and eventually rose to chief of staff.
The outburst could have been caused by the official year-end ratings, which showed that Sunrise had beaten Today this year.
Channel Seven’s Sunrise and Nine’s Today have been locked in a ratings war for decades.
In September, the Sunrise team celebrated its dominance in the ratings after topping Today for 20 years in a row, once again winning the breakfast TV battle.
According to data from ratings agency OzTAM, Sunrise averages 367,000 daily viewers nationally, up from today’s 282,000.