Samantha Armytage
Samantha Armytage (born 4 September 1976)[1] is an Australian journalist and television presenter.
Samantha Armytage | |
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Samantha Armytage | |
Born | Bolaro Station, Adaminaby, New South Wales, Australia | 4 September 1976
Education | Rosebay School, Sydney Charles Sturt University, Bathurst |
Occupation | Journalist and TV presenter |
Years active | 1999−present |
Employer | Seven Network |
Notable credit(s) | Seven 4.30 News presenter (2006–2012) Weekend Sunrise co-host (2007–2013) Sunrise co-host (2013–present) |
Armytage became a co-host of Sunrise alongside David Koch in 2013. She has previously co-hosted Weekend Sunrise and presented Seven 4.30 News.
Career
Armytage began her media career at WIN Television in Canberra in 1999, as a news reporter and presenter in Canberra.[2] Following this she joined Sky News Australia in 2002 where she was chief political reporter.
In 2003, Armytage joined the Seven Network after being noticed by the network executives while covering the 2003 Canberra Bushfires.
In December 2004, Armytage landed her first major presenting role, filling-in as presenter on Seven News Sydney over the Summer non-ratings period. Following the non-ratings period she had stints presenting Seven Morning News, the national late news updates, and filling in as presenter of Seven News Sydney. Throughout 2005 and 2006, Armytage was a regular fill-in presenter for Chris Bath on Seven News Sydney.
In October 2006, Armytage replaced Mike Amor as presenter of Seven 4.30 News. She had replaced Rebecca Maddern as presenter when the network moved production from Melbourne to Sydney.
In June 2007, Armytage was appointed co-host of Weekend Sunrise alongside Andrew O'Keefe, replacing Lisa Wilkinson who moved to Today on the Nine Network.
In 2011, Armytage was a contestant on Dancing With The Stars and continued to file reports for Sunday Night, while also being a regular fill-in presenter on Sunrise, Today Tonight and The Morning Show.
In June 2013, Armytage was announced as the replacement for Sunrise co-host Melissa Doyle; she began her position that September.[3]
In 2014, Armytage presented the makeover reality show Bringing Sexy Back, which was cancelled after one season due to low ratings.
In 2017, Armytage joined News Corp Australia lifestyle magazine Stellar as a columnist. [4].
In June 2020, Armytage requested a reduced workload on Sunrise to a four-day week. [5].
Controversy
In March 2015, Armytage was accused of racism in an on-air interview, after congratulating a woman for looking whiter than her twin. After an online petition was signed by over 2,000 people calling for her to apologise, she did so.[6]
In February 2016, a Sex and The City themed skit on Sunrise with actress Kristen Davis backfired on Armytage. Davis had appeared on the show to discuss her work with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, but later on Twitter expressed her annoyance that Sunrise focused on her role in Sex and The City. After the incident, Armytage, who was meant to MC and conduct an interview with Davis at a UN event in Sydney, was asked not to host or attend the event.[7][8]
In March 2018, Armytage hosted a segment on Sunrise focusing on Aboriginal adoption, during which she incorrectly claimed that Aboriginal children could not be fostered by White people and stated that "Post-Stolen Generation, there's been a huge move to leave Aboriginal children where they are, even if they're being neglected in their own families." Protests were held outside the Sunrise studio in Martin Place in response to the segment.[9][10] In September 2018, the Australian Communications and Media Authority ruled that the segment had breached the Commercial Television Industry Code of Practice, as it contained inaccurate statements and "strong negative generalisations about Indigenous people as a group".[11]
Personal life
Samantha is a direct descendant of George Armytage, a pioneer British settler in Australia.[12] Armytage was raised on a property near Adaminaby, where her father was the manager. She attended boarding school in Sydney starting from Year Nine.[13]
In June 2020, Armytage announced her engagement to partner, Richard Lavender. [14]
References
- "Samantha Armytage gets candid about dating, haters and turning 40".
- Samantha Armytage - Weekend Sunrise co-host (Seven Network, retrieved 25 July 2013)
- Queensland viewers warm to new Sunrise team of David Koch and Samantha Armytage by Geoff Shearer (The Courier-Mail, 11 July 2013)
- https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/subscribe/news/1/?sourceCode=DTWEB_WRE170_a_GGL&dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.dailytelegraph.com.au%2Flifestyle%2Fstellar%2Fsam-armytage-i-have-an-announcement-to-make
- https://tvtonight.com.au/2020/06/natalie-barr-to-host-sunrise-2-days-a-week.html
- Salemme, Nadia (28 April 2015). "Sunrise co-host Samantha Armytage accused of racism in on-air interview with UK twins". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 19 March 2018.
- "Armytage axed from hosting gig". NewsComAu. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
- "Samantha Armytage replaced as host of UNHCR lunch with Kristin Davis". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
- Davidson, Helen (16 March 2018). "Sunrise hides Indigenous protest outside studio with stock footage". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 17 March 2018.
- Schipp, Debbie (16 March 2018). "The protest Sunrise didn't want you to see". News.com.au. Archived from the original on 17 March 2018.
- "Channel Seven in breach for Sunrise segment on Indigenous children". Australian Communications and Media Authority. 4 September 2018.
- "Everything you need to know about Samantha Armytage". Yahoo!. 2 June 2020. Archived from the original on 20 June 2020.
- Doherty, Megan. "Sunny side of life for Armytage". Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 16 March 2018.
- "Armytage announces engagement with diamond ring". NewsComAu. 21 June 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Samantha Armytage. |
Sources
- Funny side of life for popular TV host, smh.com.au
- Russell Crowe and Samantha Armytage flirt their way through Channel 7 set, dailytelegraph.com.au
- Lessons of television breakfast chemistry, news.com.au
- "Fitzy and Wippa's 'naked prank' on Sunrise host Samantha Armytage slammed as 'offensive'", couriermail.com.au
External links
- "7 News presenter profile". Archived from the original on 2 December 2011.
- Weekend Sunrise profile
- Seven News website
- Sunrise website
- Samantha Armytage on IMDb
Media offices | ||
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Preceded by Melissa Doyle |
Sunrise Co-host with David Koch August 2013 – present |
Succeeded by Incumbent From 2020, Natalie Barr co-hosts with Koch on Mondays |
Preceded by Lisa Wilkinson |
Weekend Sunrise Co-host with Andrew O'Keefe 24 June 2007 – 11 August 2013 |
Succeeded by Monique Wright |
Preceded by Mike Amor |
Seven 4.30 News Monday - Wednesday Presenter October 2006 – December 2012 |
Succeeded by Rebecca Maddern |