What did David Koch (TV Presenter) say about Janette Howard?

Sunrise Breakfast show host, David Koch came under severe backlash after he told a joke on air on December 4, 2006, about then prime minister John Howard’s wife, Janette Howard, and then Opposition Leader Kim Beazley.

He was required to apologize publicly to John Howard by Severn Chair Kerry Stokes.

Koch was also heavily criticized for making inappropriate comments about breastfeeding. He was heavily condemned by media consultant Mia Freedman.

Before becoming a host, Koch was trained as an accountant and started as a cadet on the business pages of The Australian newspaper before joining BRW Magazine in the early 1980s.

He launched Personal Investment magazines in New Zealand and the UK and produced Britain’s first “rich list” which started in Money Magazine which he had bought for Fairfax in the ’80s.

Koch also launched Pinstripe Media in 2007, KBB Digital in 2013, and Ausbiz in 2020 in partnership with Kylie Merrit.

He joined Sunrise as a co-host in 2002 along with Natalie Barr on weekdays. He was initially hired to replace Chris Reason who stepped down after a cancer diagnosis at the end of 2002. His position became permanent, and he and the original host Melissa Doyle hosted the program over a period till Sunrise became the leading breakfast show in Australia.