HBO to end boxing telecasts after 45 years

Move marks latest shift for premium service (Editor’s Note: This post has been updated.) After a few years on the ropes, HBO’s boxing franchise is down for the count. HBO announced Thursday it was ending boxing telecasts on the network after 45 years, with the cancellations of World Championship Boxing, Boxing After Dark, and The Fight Game.  The move isn’t […]

Thursday ratings roundup: NFL wins, but cable news is the real winner

Kavanaugh-Ford hearings draw 20 million viewers in daytime; cable news networks benefit The big ratings story yesterday didn’t take place in primetime. Live coverage of The Kavanaugh hearings at the Senate Judiciary Committee drew an average of 20.4 million viewers across six networks Thursday between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m. according to Nielsen. The cable news networks drew the biggest […]

Tamron Hall’s new show gains ABC O&O clearances

ABC 7 to carry local show in unspecified time period In an expected move, Disney/ABC’s new Tamron Hall daytime talk show strip has found a home on the eight ABC-owned-and-operated stations, covering 23 percent of the country. In addition to ABC 7 here (WLS-TV), other clearances include WABC in New York, KABC in Los Angeles, WPVI in Philadelphia, and KTRK […]

Wednesday night ratings roundup: Cubs outdraw NBC’s “Chicago” shows in Chicago

Broadcast networks continue to struggle; Empire top-rated 18-49 show of night nationally Wednesday night, NBC’s Chicago shows returned with their season premieres. But it was the Chicago Cubs who beat the Chicago-based dramas on their own home turf. Fueled by their chase for the NL Central championship, the Cubs game from Wrigley Field topped all prime-time programs in viewership in […]

Monday night ratings roundup: “Manifest” rocks, “Magnum” tanks

Big Bang, Young Sheldon erode from last year’s premieres (Note: All numbers are in the adult 18-49 demo, unless noted.) The 2018-19 television season began in earnest yesterday and for the major broadcast networks, provided a mixed bag of results. The surprise of the night came from NBC’s new drama Manifest, who premiered with a 2.2 rating/9 share, and drew […]

Hawk Harrelson’s final broadcast draws low viewership

But broadcast television is the winner, thanks to baseball, Bears, Tiger Despite a sunny Sunday afternoon, television turned out to be the biggest winner as viewers headed through the entrances to watch football, baseball, and Tiger Woods as homes using television (HUT) levels went through the roof. Big events certainly helped goose the numbers: in the Chicago area, you had […]

Emmys hit ratings pit

Emmys prove futile draw; so does MNF featuring Bears The Emmys were handing out trophies last night, but it won’t get one for Best Ratings Performance. According to Nielsen, last night’s Emmy Awards – airing on NBC this year on Monday because of Sunday Night Football – earned a 7.4 household rating in the metered markets, down from the 8.2 […]

Fall syndication preview: CrimeTime all the time

Only two new shows in syndication this fall (Editor’s Note: This post has been updated. See below.) If you love the true crime genre, you are going to be happy with what’s going to air on local stations this fall. In fact, their are just two new shows: CBS Television’s Face The Truth and Debmar-Mercury’s Caught In Providence, featuring an […]

Van Dyke trial has Chicago, local media on edge

LaQuan McDonald trial has city on edge; local media is ready to cover with CLTV airing live proceedings September 5th began the biggest trial the city has seen in decades. Police officer Jason Van Dyke is being tried for the murder of LaQuan McDonald, videotaped in October 2014 and wasn’t released until a year later, when it was shown worldwide. […]

Bears-Packers season opener a big hit – locally

Chicago, Milwaukee viewers tune in but national ratings hit a ten-year low The excitement surrounding the changes the Chicago Bears have made this off-season – hiring Matt Nagy as the new  head coach and the blockbuster trade acquiring linebacker Khalil Mack in a trade with the Oakland Raiders paid off in the local ratings in the first game of the […]

CBS Chairman Les Moonves out due to sexual harassment allegations

Huge change means uncertainty at Black Rock The end has come for one of media’s most known media executives due to sexual harassment complaints. Les Moonves was officially forced out as Chairman, President, and CEO of CBS Corporation after 23 years with the company as a sexual harassment scandal surrounding him continues to grow. The move came as a second […]