'Kochie saying what he's told to again': Mark Beretta's alarming social media activity hints at Sunrise rift with David Koch after tense Karl Stefanovic podcast. The telling 'likes' he never thought we'd see

Mark Beretta has gone on a social media spree 'liking' vicious comments about his former Sunrise colleague, David 'Kochie' Koch.

Beretta, who was a much-loved sports journalist and later presenter for the top-rating breakfast television show for 22 years, departed Channel 7 in December last year.

Last week, he launched his podcast venture, Beretts' Best, alongside inaugural guests Koch and, controversially, their onetime Channel Nine arch-rival and recently ousted Today host Karl Stefanovic. 

Beretta, 60, posted an excerpt of the podcast to Instagram on Sunday, in which Koch gently questioned Stefanovic over his choice to interview hard-right activist Tommy Robinson - a decision which saw Stefanovic dumped from Today months ahead of his contract ending.

Koch - who hosted Sunrise for 21 years, from 2002 to 2023 - asked Stefanovic if he would interview Robinson again, in hindsight, which Stefanovic confirmed he would.

Koch said, 'But [Robinson] does make stuff up... freedom of speech comes with accountability, doesn't it? The privilege of freedom of speech means you don't make s**t up. It's being held to account, and there are really important guardrails around it.'

Throughout the clip, Beretta could be seen nodding benignly as Koch and Stefanovic aired their opposing views.

But after posting the clip to his podcast's Instagram, Beretta appeared to make his feelings clearer - 'liking' several negative comments about Koch from his personal account.

Many viewers flooded the comments section criticising Koch for how he covered the Covid-19 pandemic.

Among those liked by Beretta was, 'Like pushing jabs... hey Kochie?'

Others read, 'Koch is a gatekeeper. Not to be trusted', 'Oh shut up Kochie, mainstream media do the same', 'Kochie saying what he's told to again', and 'Kochie, where was your accountability during Covid?'

It should be noted that Beretta liked other comments unrelated to Koch, including one critical of Stefanovic relating to his divorce from ex-wife Cassandra Thorburn.

However, the majority of liked comments were directed towards Koch.

The Daily Mail contacted Beretta through his agent for comment. We did not receive a response by the time of publication, though Beretta appears to have since unliked several of the comments we identified.

It remains unclear whether Beretta's social media activity reflects his private feelings towards Koch and Stefanovic, or was simply designed to drive engagement for his podcast.

Throughout their long tenure on Sunrise, Koch and Beretta appeared to be close mates.

When Beretta departed Sunrise last year, Koch, 70, posted a farewell tribute.    

'To my great mate @markberetta all the best for the next chapter. What a ride,' he said.

'We had so many laughs and adventures on @sunriseon7 it was an absolute privilege to work with you. 

'You didn't just cover sport, you immersed yourself in it and received such enormous respect from athletes and administrators for your support. Well played.'

Last week, Beretta described Koch and Stefanovic as 'two very good fellas' in a promotional post for his debut podcast.

He described them as 'masters of their craft and trailblazers who changed Australian TV and how it engages with its audience. This was a fun chat and a great way to kick things off for Beretts' Best'.

During the interview, Stefanovic gave new insight into his axing from the Today show in June, revealing his celebrity accountant broke the news to him over the phone.

'I was at Heathrow Airport and I got a call from Anthony Bell [celebrity accountant] who said, 'Mate, they're pulling up stumps and you're being terminated,'' he said.

'For me, that's very final. I've got a lot to think about. I remember sitting down and just going, 'That's just a lot to take in.'

'Then I rang my wife who was really upset... I may be accused of being naive, but I don't do things to deliberately upset people.'

He added: 'The effects of my decision-making have a multitude of effects on other people. Mainly the people closest to me, that's the most difficult to navigate.'

Stefanovic went on to address the farewell video he filmed for fans while sitting in a London park after learning he was fired from Nine Network.

'By that point, I was relieved. I was ready to go. I was ready to leave the show. It wasn't in the way I wanted, but in the end, I was excited about the future,' he said.

'Even with that stuff, and whatever criticism happens, that's me and that's how I'm going to handle stuff. I'm never going to pretend to be anything else.'

Stefanovic said he had mentally checked out of his role as Today host months before he was axed, having lost his 'buzz' for the job after covering the Bondi shootings.

Despite the media-focused nature of Beretta's first podcast episode, it's understood it will largely highlight sports-related stories going forward.

This week, Beretta - who is holidaying in Turkey - sits down with Olympic swimming champion Michael Klim.

Beretta, who had been with the 7 Network for 30 years before stepping back, broke down in tears live on air when he announced to viewers that he was leaving, explaining a series of personal situations had driven the decision.

'After 30 years working with the Seven Network and after a lot of long nights and thinking about it, the time is right for me to step away from Sunrise,' he said.

'Working in this job and in sport has been my dream; it has given me the most extraordinary experiences and memories I could ever have wished for.'

'Losing Dad to cancer two months ago, and Mum now fighting against the disease, has made me see the world a little differently.'

'Family time has become even more important. And I want to do more to help the great work of Tour de Cure in finding treatments and cures for cancer.'