Also: Alyssa Donovan promoted to full-time to WGN-TV’s Weather Team; WBEZ continues its ratings freefall; Indianapolis station to air Fever games As hinted by Politico’s Shia Kapos last week, it was made official Tuesday: Paris Schutz is headed to Fox-owned WFLD (Fox 32) where he’ll be the chief political reporter and anchor his own half-hour weekly political show, essentially replacing […]
His departure leaves a void as linear usage declines and cord-cutting continues When Tom Skilling stepped down from his longtime role as meteorologist at WGN-TV Wednesday night, it marked the end of an era for Chicago’s longest-tenured television personality after 46 years on the air at the same station. But it also marked the end of an era for Chicago […]
Iconic meteorologist retires February 28; announces Demetrius Ivory as his successor and renames WGN Weather Center after him Nexstar’s WGN-TV announced Thursday it is going all out to celebrate Tom Skilling and his work at the station spanning 45 years. The celebration of course, coincides with February being a sweeps month – well, at least there’s still such a thing […]
A year dominated by labor strife, awful Chicago sports teams, and – oh yeah, Elon If you watched the WWE, you remember Vince McMahon playing himself as an arrogant CEO and billionaire, ruling over anything and everything – the ultimate heel. It’s a real-life trend we’re seeing as we close 2023. Led by billionaire Elon Musk, CEOs – whether they’re […]
Global Climate: Local Impact to take a look how climate change is affecting the Chicago area While most area TV stations and Amazon will be airing football on Black Friday, NBC 5 is taking a different approach to counterprogramming – airing a news special on how local authorities are responding to the global climate change crisis. Titled Global Climate: Local […]
Also: ABC’s stations team up with Nat Geo on another water special; Spectrum says they will drop more under performing channels; Houston’s Space City Home Network launches You heard of The Mod Squad, right? Now meet The Sven Squad. Just in time for Halloween, MeTV’s Svengoolie is adding cast members for the first time. Joining the horror movie host […]
Last day on the air February 28 Longtime WGN-TV meteorologist Tom Skilling announced on the station’s 5 p.m. newscast his retirement after 47 years broadcasting the weather. His last day on the air is February 28 of next year. “There’s no formula for this. I am going to retire at the end of February after a marvelous 45 years at […]
Was part of WGN’s dominant 9 p.m. anchor team in the 1990s Chicago’s journalism community – and viewers like myself – are mourning the loss of former WGN-TV anchor Allison Payne, a nine-time Emmy winner who helped lead the then Tribune-owned station to ratings dominance in the 1990s and 2000s. Payne died on September 1 at the age of 57 […]
Plus: L.A. Times, San Diego Union-Tribune sold; Mike Flannery gets his own Fox 32 news show; This week in Chicago bashing; White Sox snubbed again (Editor’s Note: Contains strong language. Reader discretion is advised.) The opening ceremonies of the 2018 Winter Olympics from South Korea dominated the ratings as expected for NBC, and even performed stronger than expected. According to […]
WGN morning show sports anchor gets his own show He may not own – or maybe even drive – his own car, but he now has his own TV show. Tribune Broadcasting’s WGN-TV announced last week the creation of a weekly late-night comedy show centered around WGN Morning Show sports anchor Pat Tomasulo. Titled Man Of The People, the series […]
Network, station group may split; CW considering OTT option Can this marriage be saved? In a possible blow to The CW, Tribune Broadcasting has reached an impasse with the network on a renewal deal, which could have ramifications for the TV industry. According to TV Newscheck, Tribune – owner of thirteen CW affiliates, is balking at […]
The White Sox may not have the worst record in MLB for 2015, but earned an even-worse honor. According to Sports Business Journal, the South Siders again finished dead last among all 29 U.S. teams, with a 0.8 live-plus-same day household rating on CSN Chicago, down 29 percent from 2014, where they finished 27th out of 27 teams excluding Houston […]
Expands to 10 p.m. to compete with Big Three Here we grow again: WGN-TV’s popular local newscasts are adding yet another half-hour – and this time, the Tribune Media-owned station is taking on the Big Three owned-and-operated stations with the launch of a local half-hour newscast at 10 p.m. beginning October 5. WGN’s current 9 p.m. anchor team – Mark Suppelsa, Micah […]
– How to get ahead by channeling the Xbox One and the PS4: CBS-owned WBBM-TV has unveiled its latest weapon in the weather war, with the look and feel of a video game – one you can play on the road. WBBM’s new toy is a new vehicle called The Mobile Weather Lab, and the Columbia Puslar 600 ultrasonic weather […]
Today’s Bag O’ Stuff includes new deals for Major League Baseball and Tom Skilling: – Fox and TBS have renewed their deals for Major League Baseball, but under some slightly different terms. Under the new deal, Fox retains the Saturday Game Of The Week, in addition to one League Championship Series a year (with Turner retaining the other half.) Fox […]