Erin Molan’s stinging one-word response to Sky dumping

Erin Molan has lifted the lid on the real reason she was axed from Sky as she speaks out about those revealing Insta bikini pictures.

Erin Molan has given a one-word answer to explain her dumping from Sky News.

As Sky News commentators moved swiftly over the weekend to shut down a false narrative Molan had been dumped because of her pro-Israel views, Molan was more straightforward.

“Budget,” she said flatly when asked by news.com.au.

It had previously been reported Molan was earning $150,000 a year for her Friday ‘Erin at 5’ show.

Molan also shot down another false claim her Instagram account had been an issue for Sky, who are said to have wanted her to promote a more modest image in line with her conservative TV persona.

“I was never asked by anyone to tone down anything – and nor would I,” she retorted, denying her bosses had voiced concerns.

Erin Molan has spoken about the reason she was being let go from Sky News.

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Molan claims to be weighing up three rival offers in the wake of her dumping, but refused to reveal the identity of her new professional suitors and would not address a rumour she is in talks with social media platform YouTube.

“They are confidential,” she said of the offers, before volunteering that they were from “two radio networks and one TV network”.

Molan confirmed her stint as a columnist for Sydney newspaper The Daily Telegraph came to an end the same day she lost her role as a Sky News presenter.

“It was all one contract,” Molan said.

Both outlets are owned by News Corp, the publisher of news.com.au.

Dave Hughes, Erin Molan and Ed Kavalee lost their 2DAYFM breakfast shot in August. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper

The presenter also lost her gig on Sydney commercial radio company SCA’s 2DAYFM in August when the company axed the Hughesy, Ed & Erin breakfast show due to poor ratings.

Molan was more expansive when the question as to whether her father, the late Liberal Party senator Jim Molan, had played a pivotal role in mentoring her through the transition from being a sports presenter at Nine Media to a political commentator on Sky News.

Erin and her father Jim Molan.

Erin Molan and Andrew Johns

Jim Molan died in January 2023, 13 months after his daughter joined Sky News.

Some are of the view Molan Sr was an invaluable professional mentor to his daughter.

But she said “he had zero involvement”, shutting down any suggestion the older statesman and ex-war vet helped her find her feet at Sky.

“Not at all. My best work in this space has been since he died. Unfortunately,” she added.

Molan, 41, made her name in Nine’s sports department as a news reader before being tapped in 2014 to co-host the network’s east coast The Footy Show alongside NRL legend Paul Vautin.

After Vautin was axed from the show in 2017, Molan continued as solo host but within a year Nine was forced to cancel the show due to ratings.

Erin Molan on Sky. Picture: Tim Hunter.

… and off Sky, plugging a cruise December 2023

Molan’s other key role at Nine was as presenter of Nine’s NRL coverage, a position that was overshadowed by tensions between Molan and the coverage’s lead analyst, Andrew Johns, an NRL “great”.

Just as she didn’t farewell viewers at Sky News on her final show, she also wasn’t available to farewell viewers when she left Nine in December 2021.

A substitute was called in to replace Molan at the last minute on the newsdesk for her weekend sports news reading shifts after word of her Nine departure leaked.

Originally published as Erin Molan’s stinging one-word response to Sky dumping