Channel Seven news boss Anthony De Ceglie is expected to become the first CEO of the NRL‘s Perth Bears team.
It was confirmed last week the Bears would join the national competition in 2027 and the NRL is preparing to appoint a seven-person board, a coach and the CEO – a role which De Ceglie, 39, is reportedly the frontrunner.
The Fremantle-born journalist, considered Seven Network chairman Kerry Stokes’ right-hand man, was the former editor-in-chief of The West Australian newspaper before he took on the top editorial role for Seven West Media in April 2024.
As director of news and current affairs and editor-in-chief, De Ceglie is responsible for 7NEWS, Sunrise, The Morning Show, Spotlight and the online news website in addition to the WA newspapers.
During his first 12 months he introduced national online newspaper The Nightly and improved The West Australian’s performance, but news ratings struggled as he introduced horoscope readings and a satire segment to Seven’s news bulletins.
The 6.57pm News, as the satire slot hosted by comedian Mark Humphries was dubbed, was an attempt to bring in a younger audience but was axed over the summer ratings break, as was the astrology segment hosted by Natasha Weber.
De Ceglie’s appointment followed a period of upheaval at Seven sparked by the Spotlight scandal, in which the news program was accused of offering cocaine and sex workers to Bruce Lehrmann to secure an exclusive interview.
His first few months were spent cutting costs at the network which involved slashing about 150 jobs, including popular newsreader Sharyn Ghidella and the Sydney and Melbourne news directors.
This is a breaking story. more to come.
Seven West Media director of news and current affairs Anthony De Ceglie (pictured) is rumoured to be taking on the CEO job for the NRL’s newest team, the Perth Bears
