The new rule Channel 10 newsreaders and presenters must follow
Last year, CBS bought Channel 10 after it was placed into voluntary administration and now, the American media giant has made a request of all newsreaders and presenters who work for the network.
The network's talent, including those with years of experience such as Sandra Sully, must undergo voice coaching – a move that CBS believes will give Channel 10 a more grandiose sound.
The announcement, which is understood to have offended TV veterans, was made this month by Channel 10's chief content officer Beverley McGarvey and newly appointed director of news Ross Dagan, reported The Daily Telegraph.
Channel 10’s experienced newsreaders and presenters include Sully, Natarsha Belling, Hugh Riminton and Tim Bailey.
A spokesman from the network said that ongoing voice coaching was “industry standard”, however, executives from Nine and Seven said it was only for newcomers, not seasoned newsreaders.
“It would be considered very insulting to suggest top talent needed to be retrained,” a Channel 7 source told The Daily Telegraph.
A Nine source said experienced newsreaders were “absolutely not” required to do coaching.
However, voice coach Melissa Agnew said undergoing training wasn’t a criticism of talent.
"The best voices in the country do not shun voice training,” she said.
“There seems to be a misconception that to work with a voice coach is a remedial thing, and it’s certainly not.”
Despite having almost three decades of broadcast experience, Sully saw the benefits of the forced training.
“It’s easy to slip into sloppy patterns,” she said.
“All broadcast journos are encouraged to do voice work and I’ve done that on and off from day dot.”
Channel 10 said in a statement: “We think it is important to invest in our team.”
Earlier this month, Ten chief executive officer Paul Anderson revealed that the network would “more closely align with CBS across all platforms”.
Since the takeover, the network has secured a $100 million deal to take the rights to Melbourne Cup from rival network Seven.
Channel 10 has also ended its relationship with outsourced sales group Multi Channel Network.