Naomi Robson

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**Naomi Robson**
Naomi Robson, hosting the Melbourne edition of Today Tonight in 1998
Born:	December 04, 1961 (age 45) California, USA
Occupation:	Seven Network Journalist
Website:	Today Tonight Profile

Naomi Robson (born 4 December 1961) is an Australian journalist who is best known as the former presenter of the east-coast edition of Today Tonight, an Australian public affairs program which screens weeknights on the Seven Network, from 1997 to 2006.

1 Early life
2 Television presenter
3 Controversy
4 Filmography
5 References
6 External links

[edit] Early life

Robson was born in California, USA. As a child she travelled around the world due to her father's work, spending most of her time between Australia and England. She eventually settled in Australia and studied a Bachelor of Arts at Melbourne's La Trobe University for two years, planning on majoring in archaeology and modern art. She eventually dropped out of university to pursue her passion for photojournalism.

Over the next few years she worked in numerous roles including assistant to photojournalists and copywriter for an advertising agency. She then took a working trip to London, during which time she worked as a journalist and as an editorial assistant for a magazine publishing house.After three years in London she returned to Australia, and in 1989 became an assistant editor as well as a feature writer for Personal Success magazine.

[edit] Television presenter

A year later she joined Seven News, initially as a general news reporter but in just three weeks she had been promoted to presenting news on Tonight Live fronted by comedian Steve Vizard. Over the years she presented Seven's Late News, Seven's weekend news bulletins and reported for current affairs program Real Life. She was also the summer host for the program.

Robson ventured to the USA in 1995, however shortly after she returned to Australia where she hosted Our Victoria, a travel show for the Victorian market, and co-hosted Seven's News At Five with Peter Ford in Melbourne. In 1997, Naomi became the host of the Melbourne version of Today Tonight. The programme was later extended to Sydney and Brisbane, with Robson as host. Figures from ratings research firm OzTAM show she had a nightly audience of more than one million people across the three capital cities.

Suggestions surfaced on November 22, 2006 that the 2006 Today Tonight season would be Robson's last. She confirmed this on November 27, saying she would pursue her career in other areas of television. She said "2006 hasn't been the easiest of years". She presented her last show on December 1, 2006.^[1] Her replacement was named six weeks later as Anna Coren.[1]

In January 2007, it was reported that Robson had persuaded Channel Seven executives to extend her contract with the network so that she could compete in sixth series of Dancing with the Stars. On March 13th 2007 Naomi was the 3rd celebrity to be voted off the program. Later in the year, Seven executive were reported in the press saying that Robson would be given her own "Oprah Winfrey" style programme where she would have an "opportunity to show off the caring side of her personality."^[2]

[edit] Controversy

In 2005, Robson was aired on Triple J Radio, yelling obscenities at her production crew, before the night's show went to air.^[3] She is reported to have sworn seven times in 34 seconds."^[3] Robson later apologised for the outburst.

On 29 March 2006, a relationship between Robson and a wanted drug dealer was revealed by the Australian media. The man, whose identity was suppressed by the Australian courts, was supposed to testify against drug baron Tony Mokbel when he fled the country. Robson had dated the man in 2000, unaware he was dealing drugs with Mokbel and corrupt police.^[4] During Today Tonight's broadcast on 9 March 2006, Robson claimed that Mokbel's associate was nothing more than a "casual acquaintance" and she didn't know of his true identity.^[5]

In May 2006, The Daily Telegraph alleged Naomi Robson had been labelled a "princess" by reporters covering the Beaconsfield mine collapse in Tasmania.^[6] The article claimed Robson had become the butt of jokes when a photo appeared in the Launceston Examiner, showing a media scrum as reporters scrambled to hear an update while Robson was visible in the background having her hair tended to. Claims were made in the story that a "makeup van" — a luxury campervan — pulled up outside at her hotel every morning. Robson denied the claim on Today Tonight the same day, commenting:

“

The story was simply made up. It turns out the Daily Telegraph reporter took the word of a nameless and faceless producer from a rival television network. And they call that journalism.^[7]

”

Robson was the subject of a stinging profile by Amanda Meade, media writer for The Australian. The 1300-word article quoted an unnamed "former Seven publicist" as saying she lacked the skills for live interviews and that "her sincerity factor was very low".^[8] Meade quoted Graeme Turner, the director of the Centre for Critical and Cultural Studies at the University of Queensland and author of Ending the Affair: The Decline of Television Current Affairs in Australia, as saying:

“

There's this cold, waspish, punishment-oriented, dominatrix in Robson that fits with the tabloid audience. They want to see these people [on the program] caned. And yet because she is relatively stylish and good-looking she doesn't come across as a harridan. There is a bit of matron in there.

”

The story was attacked by Today Tonight producer Neil Mooney in a letter in The Australian on 10 August 2006. Mooney described the story as "attempted character assassination ... based on fiction".

Robson’s personal style was again raised following the death of Steve Irwin. Robson hosted Today Tonight from outside Australia Zoo, wearing khaki with, at one point, a lizard on her arm. The choice of outfit caused viewers to complain, describing the move as "tacky" and "insensitive".^[9] Robson later said that the incident was perhaps her biggest mistake while presenting Today Tonight, and explained it had not been her idea to wear the shirt or the reptile, and she was not comfortable with it at the time.^[10]

On 14 September 2006 Robson and her crew were detained in Indonesia, after arriving in the country with tourist visas to film a story on a boy they believed was in danger of being killed by cannibals. They were later deported.^[11]^[12] A war of words erupted between the Nine Network and the Seven Network about the issue. Today Tonight ran a story on the day of the arrests accusing Nine's 60 Minutes programme of refusing to rescue the six-year-old. A series of allegations were made, including one that 60 Minutes refused to save the boy because it would cost too much. Seven's head of news and current affairs Peter Meakin played down his network's role in fanning the flames on 15 September following his Nine counterpart Gary Linnell's angry reply that Nine would be taking legal action on Seven's accusations.