Real reason why Paul Burt was sacked
A senior source from Channel Seven has revealed the real reason why Paul Burt was sacked, just days after he unleashed at his former employer live on-air.
An insider at the network reportedly told the Daily Mail that Burt, who worked at Seven for more than a decade, was sacked because focus group research found he was unpopular with audiences.
"Paul Burt was sacked after extensive audience research across the Queensland market that identified he was one of the least-liked presenters on-air, with the dreaded 'switch-off' factor," the source said.
The research had been conducted in the first quarter of 2024.
The source also told the Daily Mail that perceived audience appeal was an important consideration when deciding who would be let go from the program and "it's not like names were picked out of a hat."
"Networks spend a fortune on polling and focus groups to identify emerging talent and test long-serving presenters," they said.
"The audience decides who reads the news."
Burt did not accept the research, telling the Daily Mail: "I mean, these people are going to try and cover their backs."
"I think if they're looking at numbers like that, they might want to change the people who are giving them those numbers.
"Because I'm on the ground, I hear what people say and I understand what they want. I've been doing it now for 28 years."
Daily Mail also obtained a farewell email that Burt sent to his colleagues at the network on Monday afternoon.
"Hey everyone, never thought I'd be writing this email anytime soon, but here we go," the email reportedly began.
"First and foremost, I want to say thank you to everyone who I have worked directly with, you have all been incredibly awesome and do sensational jobs and deserve far more recognition than you get.
"Secondly, those who reached out to me after the news over the weekend and today to 'check in' on me and pass on your kind words, wow, it's been very humbling so thank you."
Burt also reportedly did not attend his farewell last Friday and had told management he would not be attending it.
"I'm not that kind of guy," he told the Daily Mail.
"I don't want there to be any hoo-ha. I don't need a cake. I'm not interested."
He also said that he did not wanted to cut into his work schedule on a busy Friday evening when he did about 10 live crosses to the newsroom.
"I don't want to give up my time to get back to the office when I'm on location," he said.
"I didn't want to stand there and get, 'Here's a cake, congratulations, goodbye and thank you for your time'. I never asked for it."
He also said: "Don't get me wrong, I really admire the network. I love the network. I truly do.
"Unfortunately, I just think at this point in time, things could have been handled a bit differently in certain sectors of the newsroom.
"If you have three of your best-selling items in a shop, do you get rid of those three and just deal with what's left over? As a business person, I don't think you do."
Seven West Media, which also owns the West Australian, is slashing 150 editorial staff in a round of redundancies, which has affected other big names like newsreader Sharyn Ghidella.
Images: Seven