‘I don’t regret it’: Jessica Rowe reflects on brutal Today breakfast TV drama

She faced intense scrutiny at the height of Australia’s breakfast TV war. Now, Jesscia Rowe reveals how she really felt during her scandal-plagued stint on Today.

She faced intense scrutiny at the height of Australia’s breakfast TV war.

Now, Jesscia Rowe has revealed the “stomach churning” reality of her scandal-plagued stint as the co-host of Today.

“I look back on that time and I can feel my stomach churning … it’s so visceral,” Rowe told Stellar’s podcast, Something to Talk About, of her tenure co-hosting Nine’s breakfast TV show alongside Karl Stefanovic in 2006 and 2007.

“It was the pits. But at the same time I don’t regret it,” Rowe said.

“And because I’m a huge believer in grabbing opportunities, we only have one shot at life. “And when amazing things come your way, you’ve got to give it a crack. So I was determined to give it my best shot.”

‘I don’t regret it.’ Jessica Rowe has opened up about her stint as the co-host of Today. Picture: Daniel Nadel for Stellar

‘All I could deal with was each day.’ Former Today colleagues Karl Stefanovic and Jessica Rowe.

“And when you begin something, you don’t know what’s going to happen. So I think for me, I had no idea how that year was going to unfold – and to continue to unfold. So all I could deal with was each day or each headline”

During Rowe’s headline-making time on Today, she was the subject of intense scrutiny and constant media backlash that focused on everything from her journalistic credentials to her chemistry with co-host Stefanovic – and even the way she laughed.

“That, to me, is very much having the last laugh: being true to who I am and the essence of who I am and how I laugh. I snort. When I laugh, I often laugh loudly. And that can irritate some people, but I don’t care,” Rowe said, during her interview on Something to Talk About.

“I remember early on when I was doing the Today show, one of my bosses telling me that, you know, there have been some issues with your laugh.

Jessica Rowe is on the cover of this Sunday’s Stellar. Picture: Stellar

The TV presenter and journalist has written a book titled, Mum Jokes. Picture: Daniel Nadel for Stellar

“We need you to pull that back. And I made the mistake of listening to him. And when I did that, I felt smaller and diminished and less of who I was. And I’ll never, ever let someone do that to me again.

“And I think that is so important for all of us. Stay true to who you are, celebrate your quirkiness, your uniqueness and craziness, and be unapologetic about it.”

Reflecting on her career, Rowe added: “Sometimes people underestimate me. They think, Oh, she’s so nice and oh, isn’t she sweet?”

“Yes, I am all those things,” she said. “But I’m also resilient and I’m strong. Let’s not confuse that with, oh, she’s a pushover.

“So that’s what I really dug into: yep, I’m going to show up. I’m going to do my job, OK? “You might not like it. You might not like me, which I kept hearing. I really had to shut-out all that noise, and it wasn’t easy.”

Hear the full interview with Jessica Rowe in the new episode of Stellar’s podcast, Something to Talk About.

Originally published as ‘I don’t regret it’: Jessica Rowe reflects on brutal Today breakfast TV drama