David Koch: TV is a bubble, it isn’t real
HE is the co-host of Australia’s No. 1 breakfast television show, but David Koch concedes TV life is “a bubble” and “a bit of a bulls**t job”.
Confidential
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HE is the co-host of Australia’s No. 1 breakfast television show, but David Koch concedes TV life is “a bubble” and “a bit of a bulls. t job.”
Koch, who has fronted Channel 7’s Sunrise for 16 years, said roles outside television, including family, a financial advice business with wife Libby, and his Port Adelaide Football Club presidency, help him keep it real.
“Because theSunrise job came to me late in life, it hasn’t shaped me at all, and I think that’s a good thing,” Koch, 62, said. “I don’t have any friends in media, and Lib and I don’t socialise in media circles.
“We know TV is a bubble, a bubble that is a bit of a bulls. t job,” Koch added. “You don’t save people’s lives, you’re not creating a business. So we keep it in perspective.”
Asked if he feels performance and ratings pressure, Koch said: “You do … but I never trusted TV for a living. I’ve always had my family business. I was asked to fill in for three months 16 years ago, so Sunrise is a hobby that’s almost got out of control.
“I’ve got a terrific life. Everybody says: ‘You do so much, isn’t it stressful?’ Give me a break. I’m doing everything I love. I’m president of an AFL club that I’m passionate about, and I’m trying to make a difference.
“Sunrise makes a difference every day, and I try to help small businesses and people with their personal finances. I’ve had a real job in my past unlike a lot of people in TV. What you see is what you get.”
Koch said he will return to Sunrise in 2019 “as long as people will have me. I’m there if the viewers say yes, and if the bosses say yes. I’d love to do it. It’s a privilege.”
Last month, Koch said Sunrise consistently dominated the ratings against Nine’s Today because it doesn’t chase attention. “We’re quite ordinary people,” Koch said of the Sunrise team.
“We don’t go out and chase compliments or headlines.”
Today co-host Karl Stefanovic has become a headline magnet since splitting with wife Cassandra and finding new love with shoe designer Jasmine Yarbrough.