'The pressure was massive': Sylvia Jeffreys says the 'silent majority' wanted Karl Stefanovic to STAY on the Today show but Nine executives caved in to pressure from trolls By Monique Friedlander For Daily Mail Australia Published: 00:50 BST, 5 June 2019 | Updated: 00:50 BST, 5 June 2019 Viewcomments Sylvia Jeffreys has blamed online trolls for the axing of former Today show host Karl Stefanovic. Appearing on The Kyle And Jackie O Show this Wednesday, the presenter, 33, admitted she was surprised by Nine bosses' decision to fire Karl and that the 'silent majority' of viewers actually wanted him to stay. 'It's funny isn't it? As you guys would know, the people who troll on social media do not reflect the greater population,' she responded when asked why so many viewers had come out in favour of Karl after he was fired. 'And then quite often, when big changes are made, then the silent majority comes out and starts having their say,' she said. 'I don't know what that decision [to fire Karl] was based on exactly, but it's a tough one,' she added. Elsewhere in the interview, Sylvia spoke about the outside pressures that led to Karl's axing, admitting that 'something had to give'. 'The pressure was massive': Sylvia Jeffreys says the 'silent majority' wanted Karl Stefanovic to STAY on the Today show but Nine executives caved in to pressure from trolls 'When big changes are made, then the silent majority comes out and starts having their say': Appearing on The Kyle And Jackie O Show this Wednesday, the presenter (left) admitted she was surprised by Nine bosses' decision to fire Karl (right) and that the 'silent majority' of viewers actually wanted him to stay 'I think externally the pressure was massive,' she confessed. Karl's 14-year stint on the Today show came to an end in December last year following a blaze of poor ratings and negative headlines. The start of the program's downward spiral can be traced back to September 2016, when it emerged Karl had separated from his wife and the mother of his three children, Cassandra Thorburn. Downfall: Karl's 14-year stint on the Today show came to an end in December last year following a blaze of poor ratings and negative headlines A few months after the split, Karl began dating former-model-turned-shoe-designer Jasmine Yarbrough, who is 10 years his junior. Media experts believed Karl's relationship with Jasmine resulted in female viewers turning their backs on the TV star, leading to plummeting ratings. 'Here you have his ex-wife who supported him and raised his kids and she's left out in the cold while he is off with his younger girlfriend in various exotic locations on holidays every other week,' media analyst Steve Allen told The Daily Telegraph last year. 'Basically now people think he is an a***hole': Media experts believed Karl's relationship with Jasmine Yarbrough (right) resulted in female viewers turning their backs on the TV star, leading to plummeting ratings 'Basically now people think he is an a***hole', Allen bluntly said. Behind-the-scene tensions with Lisa's replacement, veteran journalist Georgie Gardner, also didn't help Karl's public image at the start of 2018. The animosity between the two presenters reached an apex when the so-called 'Ubergate' scandal made headlines. Tensions: Behind-the-scene tensions with Lisa's replacement, veteran journalist Georgie Gardner (pictured), also didn't help Karl's public image at the start of 2018 Read more: Share or comment on this article: All rights reserved for this news site dailymail and under his responsibility