Following last year's PR disaster, which saw the show and its network, Channel Nine, come under fire for letting host Lisa Wilkinson walk away over a pay-equality dispute, the popular breakfast show has struggled to find its feet - making numerous changes in the battle for ratings.
'Channel Nine is determined to prove Today can still bring in strong ratings without Lisa,' says a TV insider.
'It's not only about their bottom line, but also about their pride.'
After Channel Nine's recent announcement that Peter Stefanovic and Allison Langdon would be fronting the show's weekend offering, fuming fans were quick to voice their complaints - with many revealing that while they preferred Peter over his brother Karl, who hosts the weekday edition, the idea of watching Stefanovic's seven days a week was on the nose.
'How many bloody Stefanovics are going to hit our screens?' commented one viewer, while another added: 'Peter has as much personality as his brother. Zero.'
Many were also left disgruntled over the treatment of Deborah Knight, who publicly lost out to Georgie Gardiner for the weekday gig next to Karl, only to be removed from her position as the weekend host, too.
'This is show business and tough decisions will always need to be made,' says a source. 'No job is guaranteed, especially if the ratings start to slide.'
Recent reports claim that Karl, who is believed to be paid $2 million a year, will be lucky to last one more year in the coveted Today job, thanks to his strained relationship with new co-host Georgie Gardiner.
The current mood among the Today team is not one of stability, with departed host Lisa Wilkinson ominously revealing last year that she was constantly paranoid she was going to get fired.
'I come in every day thinking, any day now someone is going to pat me on the shoulder and say: 'OK, you've had enough fun time now, time to pass the baton to the next one,'' she said.
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