Kyle Sandilands ‘wants to win’ Melbourne radio war and has agreed to tone down smut

A radio executive has revealed that Kyle Sandilands is doing everything he can behind the scenes in a bid to win Melbourne audiences over.

It’s been revealed that Kyle Sandilands has agreed to tone down his radio show because he’s desperate to “win Melbourne”.

While Sandilands has outwardly hit out at Melbourne audiences for The Kyle and Jackie O Show’s ratings disaster, it seems behind the scenes the radio shock jock is still hoping the city will eventually succumb to his charms.

ARN’s chief content officer Duncan Campbell has revealed that Sandilands has been entirely on board when it comes to toning down the show’s X-rated content if that’s what it takes to turn around their fortunes in Melbourne.

Kyle Sandilands and Jackie O have hit the Melbourne airwaves, but it’s been tougher to win over listeners that they may have hoped. Picture: Supplied.

“I mean, he has creative control of the show,” said Campbell in an interview with Mumbrella. “He agreed to do that, which was a real positive.

“And, I mean, he wants to win in Melbourne. There’s no doubt about that.”

“I think that’s detracted away from some of the really high quality content that show produces,” he said of the show’s more sexual content. “They’re fantastic with the interviews with celebrities and also, you know, people in general. It’s a fun show really overall. It’s a bit of a soap opera with all the ensemble cast there as well. So when you get engaged with the show, it becomes quite infectious. “We just have to get people re-engaged with that show. That’s our goal.”

Sandilands has agreed to tone down the sexual content of the show in a last ditch bid to win over the city. Picture: Supplied.

He went on to reveal that Sandilands and co-star Henderson will be visiting Melbourne on a more regular basis in a bid to make listeners in the city feel more included.

“There’s plans for them to be down there more often,” Campbell shared. “It’s a bit of a job still to do, but we’re determined to turn it around.

“I’m still convinced that show will be a successful show in Melbourne.”

He added: “We’re preparing to reset and help change perceptions next year with more marketing. And the goal there is to get the lapsed cume back, listening to the show again.”

It comes after Sandilands, who was ridiculed by a rival on social media on Thursday, revealed on-air that producers had attempted to brand the show with a new catchphrase.

Sandilands pushed back on the catchphrase “less filth more fun” which was supposed to help his show appeal to a wider range of listeners.

“When the management came up with this idea with our highly paid consultants I said it was the s***tiest idea I had ever heard in my life,” Sandilands told his listeners.

“They said ‘Nah, people in Melbourne think you are disgusting,’ and I said ‘I don’t give a s**t what people think, you get what you get, that’s it. We are not changing anything, we are not dialling anything down, I refused.

“Because they own the network they said, ‘Well, we are putting in the less filth more fun.’ So I ran with it.

“I did not want to say less filth more fun. I don’t like lying to people,” he added.