Decision stuns industry – but it had to be done In a stunning and unprecedented move , ABC pulled the plug on the revival of the 1988-97 sitcom Roseanne – because of tweets sent by the namesake’s star, making racist and anti-Semitic statements. The series was to return this fall for its eleventh season. The tweet Roseanne Barr wrote Tuesday […]
Also: New host of Check Please is a familiar name; Chicago radio still playing R. Kelly’s music; Peoria public radio in trouble; CBC cancels arts show who visited Chicago In a mind-numbing move, ABC announced Wednesday it was expanding Good Morning America to three hours. Only problem is… the extension is airing at Noon Chicago time, 1 p.m. Eastern time […]
Radio legend calls it a career – or more likely, someone called it a career for him In what looks like the end of the line for one of Chicago’ most iconic radio personalities, Cumulus-owned WLS-FM has released Dick Biondi from his contract. As first reported by Robert Feder, the 85-year old broadcasting legend was off the air for a […]
Smackdown returns to broadcast TV AND Friday nights Further signaling a shift away from scripted fare, Fox is expected to land rights to WWE Smackdown, taking over the rights in October 2019. In addition, the series would return to Friday nights. Fox reportedly is paying one billion dollars in a five-year deal lasting through 2024. Fox pounced after NBCUniversal passed […]
WLIT brings back former morning personality As you may be aware, television is all awash in “reboots” of classic TV shows these days. Now radio is doing the same with former personalities. But this reboot a lot of Chicago radio listeners will like. As first reported by Robert Feder, iHeartMedia-owned WLIT-FM – known as The Lite 93.9, announced it was […]
Network expands to a sixth night with its all-drama lineup The CW recently unveiled its 2018-19 lineup before its upfront presentation on Thursday and features five new shows – two of them debuting this fall. The big news is The CW’s return to Sunday nights for the first time since 2009, as reported here in February. The night kicks off […]
Murphy Brown, Magnum P.I. lead eight new programs for next season CBS unveiled its 2018-19 lineup with the ongoing battle between CBS and Viacom as a backdrop. As you know by now, the two companies are at a tug-of-war over a proposed merger with CBS suing majority shareholder National Amusements over control. CBS CEO Les Moonves was absent at CBS’ […]
Makes aggressive changes; brings comedies back to Friday nights ABC released its 2018-19 schedule Tuesday morning in advance of its upfront presentation on Tuesday, and there are some numerous changes. For one, long-running series Once Upon A Time, Scandal and The Middle have retired and Agents of SHIELD was picked up at the last-minute only to get burned off next […]
Tim Allen? Vicki Lawrence? The once edgy Fox brand is history as the network retools to attract older audiences Fox announced its 2018-19 schedule and it is a radical departure from what it was in years past. In the 1990s, Fox was synonymous with “hip, edgy programming” with The Simpsons, Beverly Hills 90210, In Living Color, and Melrose Place dominating […]
Nine new shows overall; three to debut this fall In advance of its upfront presentation on Monday, NBC unveiled its 2018-19 schedule and announced nine new series – three of them premiering this fall. Highlights include Dick Wolf’s trio of “Chicago” shows: Midnight Texas gets a promotion from a summer series to a fall pickup; and Brooklyn Nine-Nine is being […]
Fox and NBC save shows; why do the networks cancel all these shows in a three-day window? The Bubble didn’t just burst on Friday for several on-the-fence shows…it exploded. According to TV Line, a total of nineteen shows were canceled in twenty-four hours’ time between Thursday and Friday – not unusual for this time of year as the major networks […]
But Rick and Morty gets a major pickup With the upfronts next week, the major networks are jockeying for position and clearing out the deadwood to make room for new shows. In the past, the Thursday and Friday before the upfronts see numerous show cancellations, and this year is no different. On Thursday, Fox shook up its comedy lineup by […]
Fox re-purchases three stations; Chicago’s WPWR could switch owners as a result Exactly a year after Sinclair Broadcasting announced its purchase of Tribune Media, the Hunt Valley, Md. company announced Wednesdaya the sale of seven Fox affiliates from the deal to 21st Century Fox. Of the seven, three Fox are re-purchasing: KDVR in Denver; WJW in Cleveland; and KSTU in […]
The original is still the best: WBBM-AM (Newsradio 78) celebrated fifty years in the all-news format this week, with the anniversary of the switch taking place May 6. Believe it or not at one time, WBBM was known for something other than news: the station launched in 1924 , with the calls standing for World’s Best Battery Maker as the […]
Backlash over comments made by the Hip-Hop star about slavery and over Trump have some wondering what to do Urban radio programmers are waiting to see what effect Kanye West’s recent comments would have on their stations with one outlet – Detroit’s WMGC-FM (known as 105.1 The Bounce) taking action and pulling his music. The Classic Hip-Hop station became the […]