Sky News | General Discussion

I'm surprised that the changes are getting such a positive response... do the viewers really want more appointment-to-view? Especially at 2pm on weekdays, I would assume that most people are 'dipping in' whilst on the move, commuting, perhaps before/after the school run or from your office desk when things are starting to wind up for the day? I must be wrong though?!

I agree the current afternoon slot is different to the rest though, the presentation, type of guests etc so I can see some logic into it, just not convinced on the name ('Show' reminds me of 'The Vanessa Show' which ran on Channel 5 in that slot) and the need for a 6pm news given BBC/ITV dominance at that hour. I'm suprised 'All Out Politics' is not mentioned though, the old Boulton & Co format seemed to be more newsy despite the name and was a good 'bridge' between hard news 9-12 and Afternoon Live 2-5. It's current 10am slot means there is no 'proper news' at 10am on weekdays in the UK - really odd?

One thing I certainly agree with everyone on though, is weekday Sunrise. The studio is not appropriate for that slot, 4 hours is way too long and it all seems very forced, in other formats each contributor seems to know their place i.e. the lead anchor, the funny one, the headlines journalist, the weather but Sunrise is very awkward to watch at times. And how many paper reviews could you want in one day? I entirely endorse JKO8's comments above - the morning news-led format is missing in the UK, bar the Today programme, and I think it would be successful. If it was styled into a 'here's the news agenda for today, with our experts and sources live', I think it would be well-received.

Fine with more appointment to view stuff. Makes sense in an age when you can ask a speaker in your living room for the news, or open an app on your phone. I hope in time it means an end to repeat 15 minute news blocks.

But whatever they do with these new shows they need to make it not so bland, boring, and outdated.

There's no reason to watch very long. That they don't even bother to have presenters say anything during the 'coming up' bits makes you wonder whether they're too fussed. No wonder the typical viewer only watches for 10 minutes; it's lifeless.

The journalism is better than ever, and that's great - I enjoy reading it online or on the app - but unless something big is happening, there's really not much reason to watch the TV channel.

Sorry to be pedantic but they quietly (pun intended) got rid of the silent coming up bits a year ago or so and it's been years now since the 'in 15 minutes, every 15 minutes' segments. I get the point you're making though.

I do think some are getting a bit ahead of themselves - all we know at the minutes are the change in schedule and the new show names.
Ironically if anything this move is a step back to what we had just over 2 years ago - Kay was still 2-5pm back then with Jeremy doing the 5-6.30pm shift with the only difference we currently know of being that the bulletins are 'branded'.

We don't know if there'll necessarily be a new look/presentation style for the shows (or at least within the confines of the current 'look'). I do hope at the very least they don't just stick Mark in the overnight studio or worse in front of that corridor in that glass box - I know the atrium backdrops used to be criticised but the corridor backdrop they use during Colin/Jayne's shift really makes the channel look small-time.

Let's wait and see before we all start getting excited is what I'd suggest - I mean we were looking forward to the Sunrise studio and look at the reaction it got.

The fact they are bringing Mark Austin to HQ as a presenter is a huge boost for the brand IMO. Let's face it, for the last few years, ever since Eamonn and Jeremy left, the whole channel has been The Kay Burley Show. She's the only recognizable face there and the only one whose hours had certain uniqueness.

It will be good to have a male equal to Kay now.

Whilst I in no way wish to criticise the journalism, which I think is better than ever, I do think that the presentation of Sky News at the moment is very bland and lifeless. It feels like they're just plodding on. I happen to have been watching a fair bit of European TV lately; comparing many of their news channels/programmes to what we get here, the difference in standards is like night and day. Take the set for TF1 that was introduced just a week ago: something like that would have been perfect for the Sunrise set, IMO. You can see a tour of said set below:



I do think that British presentation across the board is currently in a very sorry state - seeing how it's done on the continent has really opened my eyes as to how dull things currently are here. But maybe that's a discussion for another time...

Pedantry accepted

(like I say, I hardly ever watch now, and like most people certainly don't make it to 15 minutes in)

It's more that whenever I turn it on it's just not very stimulating/gripping.

It doesn't need to turn into Good Morning America or CNN Domestic (now a disgrace) .. but it does need to do a lot better than "person sits behind desk reading out stories against bland/empty backdrop repeatedly for hours"

And those papers reviews...

Totally agree with those criticising the look of Sky News in general - while it does the job (and is better than some looks Sky had in the late Noughties) it's very bland and inoffensive. I get that Sky want the focus to be on the news above all but that doesn't mean the look, music and presentation has to be plain and dull.

You compare the way BFM and FranceInfo look to how Sky News looks and the difference is night and day. And for all CNN Internationals's faults, the actual look/graphics and music of the international shows are all pretty good even if much of the time the presenter is just in front of a screen.
And Al Jazeera too is an example of how presentation if done well can be just be fairly simple and not differ hugely hour-to-hour but still feel fresh even after several years.

There's a medium ground between Sky's current look and say 2005 when you had desks rotating while the 'Voice of God' spoke and presenters running from desk to desk or walking down the stairs for the sake of it.

While I get your point. Dermot Murnaghan is there and is a bigger name than Kay given he's presented on both ITV and BBC for several years. And similarly the likes of Gillian Joseph, Anna Jones, Anna Botting, Stephen Dixon, Colin Brazier etc. have all been around as long as/longer than Eamonn Holmes.

It's definitely good for Sky to have a big name like Mark Austin presenting but I don't think the presenting line-up was as big an issue as the presentation/look necessarily. Certainly the line-up has been better than I feared it would be when several of the experienced anchors left in 2016 and we suddenly got loads of newbies - the likes of Tom and Niall (and Claudia Liza when she was still on Sky) stepped up to the plate and it's been good that they've had Emma Crosby presenting too every so often.

I assume Ian King Live and Sky News Tonight are staying?

Have to say that having Mark Austin back on that slot is a very good move, they needed a proper voice to replace JT and they have finally got it, and it gives Kay Burley back that 2pm to 5pm slot where she really excels.

Most of the newbies have worked out well, Tom has adapted well, Niall has really come on, Gamal is quite versatile and can be used in a number of different roles across the news slots. Not sold on Sophy Ridge, Kimberley Leonard, Sam Naz or Jonathan Samuels mind.

It’s nice to see Sky News gaining an identity once again. I’m not entirely keen on ‘The Kay Burley Show’, it sounds more like a chat show than a news show. ‘Kay Burley Live’ would have been better.

As for Sunrise, the program has really struggled since Eamonn left. Breakfast covers the gentle mix of news and lighter content, whilst GMB has the louder, feisty debates alongside the showbiz stuff. As others have said, Sunrise could carve out the professional market with business updates. With Mark Austin joining the presenting team, I’d have suggested him for Sunrise instead. Whether Austin would want to do it is another matter.

The lazy back half hour paper filler is the most frustrating thing about the current Sunrise. Some of the guests aren't really qualified to discuss the topics and who really wants to hear Kevin Adams or Michelle Dewberry's opinions on anything?

The 9am hour is their strongest when they use that slot for debates or a long form interview.

I really hope this new schedule comes along with the long-awaited refresh of ToTH and other graphics.