Seven announces departure of news, current affairs boss
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The news: Seven West Media has announced the departure of its director of news and current affairs, Craig McPherson, following a tumultuous period of scandal at the network.
The context: Anthony De Ceglie, the editor-in-chief of The West Australian and Seven’s new digital newspaper The Nightly — among several other publishing assets — will succeed McPherson on the Seven executive team from 30 April.
McPherson was the executive responsible for overseeing 7NEWS, Sunrise, The Morning Show, 7NEWS Spotlight, The Latest and 7NEWS.com.au.
The network’s Weekend Sunrise program drew scrutiny earlier this month after naming the wrong man as the perpetrator of stabbings in Sydney’s Westfield Bondi Junction, adding to the volley of scandal that had plagued the network’s Spotlight program in the weeks prior.
De Ceglie was on Monday appointed director of news and current affairs and editor-in-chief at Seven. He will be responsible for 7NEWS, Sunrise, The Morning Show and 7NEWS Spotlight, along with the network’s news site, 7NEWS.com.au.
Seven named Chris Dore, former editor-in-chief of The Australian, as acting editor of The West Australian and the company’s other newspapers until De Ceglie’s successor is announced.
Seven's shares were down 2.22% to $0.22 at 11:58am AEST and has fallen 43.59% over the past 12 months.
What they said: “Anthony brings a compelling vision to the director of news and current affairs and editor-in-chief of Seven West Media role. His absolute focus on news gathering and storytelling will underpin his approach, while his knowledge of digital and his innovative mindset will be just what SWM needs as we continue to build a better media business,” Seven managing director and chief executive Jeff Howard said in a statement Monday.
“This appointment reflects our ambition to think differently about the future of media in Australia. I look forward to working with Anthony in his new role.”
The source: Seven West Media
