Brian Edwards Dumped From National Radio
National Radio’s star broadcaster Brian Edwards has been dumped from his best rating show ‘Top of the Morning’ which plays on Saturday mornings.
Edwards’ show was the highest rating National Radio programme, apparently rating with an average audience of 173,000 compared with 151,000 for Morning Report and 98,000 for the Kim Hill show.
Edwards said he was called into RNZ CEO Dame Sharon Crosbie’s office to discuss his contract and told the show had been cancelled because it had become “dull and predictable”.
Edwards has been accused of having a conflict of interest as he was the chief media advisor for Prime Minister Helen Clark and he contracts himself out for media training.
Edwards said Crosbie offered him the opportunity to come up with another idea for another show but he doesn’t see the point.
Edwards is rumoured to be payed around $100,000 for his show.
Crosbie told The Dominion: “Yesterday I met with Brian Edwards to discuss aspects of Saturda Morning’s programme and explained that we want to review the whole of our weekend’s programming.
“We are still in discussion with Dr Edwards about this. Radio New Zealand is determined to maintain and build on its weekend audiences.”
Dr Edwards said he was surprised and saddened by the termination of the show.
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