It was confirmed this morning that long-time Today Show host Karl Stefanovic was terminated by Channel Nine. Stefanovic — who has worked at Nine for 26 years and hosted Today for almost 21 of those years — had parted ways with the broadcaster effective immediately after both parties had agreed it was no longer tenable for him to host Today while running an independent podcast.
Nine released a statement reporting that “while Karl and Nine had previously agreed he would leave Today at the end of this year, they have subsequently decided he will leave the Network immediately.”
Stefanovic confirmed the news this morning in a video uploaded to his independent podcast, The Karl Stefanovic Show’s YouTube channel.
In the video, Stefanovic offered an emotional farewell to his free-to-air audience and colleagues before defending the editorial direction of his podcast.
“I didn’t get the chance to thank my free-to-air audience for 21 great years, so thank you for riding the ups and downs. You have my thanks, and you have all of my love,” he said.
Addressing his Today Show colleagues directly, Stefanovic singled out co-host Sarah Abo: “Sares, look after everyone for me. I know they’ll miss me desperately, especially Halos and Isaac and Abby and Timmy.”
Karl’s Today Show colleagues address his sudden departure
On air this morning, his Today colleagues reacted to the news of his sudden departure. His co-host, Sarah Abo was fighting back tears as she made the announcement.
“Karl has, of course, woken up with Today for 21 years, so we know this is a huge change for our viewers and of course for us, not just here but behind the scenes because there is a big team that puts this show together for you every day,” she said.
“He is our mate, and he is our colleague, and it goes without saying that Karl’s presence will be missed. Two decades is a long time.” She added that it had been a “tough, tough day”.
“I think everyone here who has worked with Karl for any period of time knows just how hard he works, and this show has always been foremost in his mind, and obviously, there are other projects he’s got going on at the moment, and that’s his focus now,” she said.
“We’ve spoken to a lot of people over the past few days who have varying emotions. They’re upset, they’re angry, they’re sad this is all happening, and we all wish that it wasn’t ending like this, and we could say goodbye to you, Karl, our friend, in a different way.”
Richard Wilkins also expressed his love for his long-time colleague and friend, “A quarter of a century, I think it is, Karl and I have been brothers in arms on this on a daily basis, but we’ll retain our friendship,” he said. “I wish him and his beautiful family nothing but the best, and every success for the future… We love you, mate.”
Today Newsreader Jayne Azzopardi promised that despite the sudden and upsetting news, the show will go on, as it always has. “But we are going to continue giving you the stories that matter every day because we all love this show, everyone behind the scenes, as Sarah said, loves this show, and it’s why we all get out of bed every morning, so please stay with us,” she said.
Stefanovic’s termination comes after he had British far-right activist Tommy Robinson — whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon — on his podcast. The interview sparked crisis meetings at Nine and was wiped from YouTube within 24 hours of publication.
Robinson was a member of the neo-Nazi-adjacent British National Party (BNP) in the early 2000s and has a lengthy criminal record. The activist helped found the English Defence League, an anti-Islam movement that’s organised street demonstrations across Britain. He has convictions for assault, mortgage fraud, using a false passport and contempt of court, when he was jailed in October 2024 after he ignored a court order not to repeat lies about a Syrian refugee, who sued him for libel and won.
Lead Image: The Today Show
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