Karl Stefanovic is under fire over a podcast project that has become his biggest priority outside his Today show duties, with critics warning it may be damaging Channel 9’s credibility. The row sharpened after his latest guest, Pete Evans, triggered a fresh backlash from some listeners.
Stefanovic started the namesake podcast a few months ago and has now put out more than 50 episodes. In that time, the show has drawn a long list of political and media figures, including Pauline Hanson, Matt Canavan, Gerard Rennick, Barnaby Joyce, Clive Palmer, Jacinta Price, Tony Abbott and Bob Katter. Anthony Albanese is the only politician from the left to appear, while other guests have included Charlie Teo, Curtis Stone, Kyle Sandilands, an economist discussing the budget, farmers, Joe Brumm and Michael Maguire.
Media commentator Andrew Mercado said the pattern of bookings was doing real harm. “If he keeps doing that podcast with right-wing figures, he is actually damaging the credibility of [Today],” Mercado said, adding that the show was positioning Stefanovic as “the Joe Rogan of Australia, or Joe Bogan,” and that there’s “always” money to be made in “whipping up” the right-wing crowd.
That criticism lands because the podcast has mostly leaned into conservative voices, even as Stefanovic remains one of the faces of a mainstream breakfast program. Channel 9 has not publicly stepped in, but the overlap between the broadcaster’s morning show and a personal interview platform built around polarising guests is now the issue hanging over him.
Pete Evans made that problem impossible to ignore. Some listeners called it “gross” and “disappointing” to have him on the show, and Stefanovic personally apologised for contributing to the pile-on against him. Evans has been fined thousands of dollars for selling a $15,000 Biocharger device that claimed to address COVID-19, was dropped by his book publisher after sharing an image containing a symbol used by neo-Nazis, and encouraged people to stare into the sun without protection.
The question for Channel 9 is no longer whether Stefanovic’s podcast is a side project. It is now a public extension of his profile, one that is drawing attention precisely because it clashes so sharply with the credibility expected of Today. If the booking pattern stays the same, the criticism around him is likely to stay attached to the network too.
