The Media Notepad: NBC Sports Chicago says goodbye with special programming
Also: So long My50…again; “Wheel”, “Drew” off to strong ratings start; ABC 7 promotes Nwosu to marketing position
While NBC Sports’ other RSNs are preparing for the future, NBC Sports Chicago is ending its 20-year run Monday – but not quietly as the station plans to air over 36 hours of live and past content Sunday, celebrating its time on the air.
After airing its final live sporting event Sunday (White Sox vs. Tigers at 2 p.m. Sunday), and the final White Sox Postgame Live, the RSN plans to run its 20th anniversary retrospective NBC Sports Chicago: Celebrating 20 Years, game show Beer Money, Inside Look, and the championship parades and rallies of the Cubs, Blackhawks, and White Sox – during a better time in Chicago sports and for the city itself.
Monday from 5:30 to 7 p.m., NBC Sports Chicago will air two days from the first day as Comcast SportsNet Chicago from October 1, 2004 – Chicago Tribune Live and SportsNite.
After an encore airing of 20 Years, NBC Sports Chicago signs off for good Monday at 11:59 p.m.
The next day, the new Chicago Sports Network featuring the three former NBC Sports Chicago will launch on DirecTV and WJYS Channels 62.2 and 62.3., but won’t be available on Comcast (Xfinity) and Astound (RCN) cable systems at launch.
For the second time, “My 50” isn’t yours anymore.
On Monday, Fox-owned WPWR rebranded from “My50” to “Fox Chicago +”, an extension of sister station WFLD’s former branding. The move follows other Fox-owned My Network TV stations, which have de-emphasized the “My” branding over the last few years as the programming service faded into the background.
Ironically, Fox did not go with “Fox 32 +” but the Fox Chicago branding, which WFLD used from 1997 to 2012. Fox bought then-UPN affiliate WPWR in 2002 from Newsweb a year after the company purchased the Chris-Craft/United station group, comprised mostly of UPN affiliates. My Network TV was formed by Fox in 2006 as a replacement for UPN after it merged with The WB to form The CW and aired original programming (such as short-lived English “telenovelas” Desire and Fashion Place) for three years before converting to a syndicated programming service in 2009. WPWR rebranded as My50 for the first time in the summer of 2006.
The move was anticipated after former KMSP/WFTC Minneapolis-St Paul GM Sheila Oliver succeeded the retiring Dennis Welsh as GM of WFLD/WPWR last year as she oversaw the rebranding of WFTC from “My29” to “Fox 9 +”. Other Fox MNT stations have added either a plus sign or “more” to their brand, such as KDFI Dallas (More 27); KCOP Los Angeles (Fox 11 +, a sister station to KTTV); and WDCA Washington D.C. (Fox 5 +, a sister station to WTTG.)
With the WPWR conversion, only two Fox stations with “My” in their name are left: WWOR New York (My 9) and KTXH Houston (My 20 Vision). This comes as stations de-emphasize channel numbers, reflecting changes in viewers’ consumption of linear TV. For example, YouTube TV doesn’t identify channel number positions to locate stations.
It’s the second time WPWR dropped the “My50” branding; WPWR became “CW 50” when the station became a CW affiliate in 2016 after WGN-TV dropped the network. WPWR reverted to “My 50” in 2019 after The CW left for WCIU. The CW has since returned to WGN-TV.
Fox Chicago + added new programming this fall, including Sony’s GMFB Overtime (weekdays at 11 a.m.); NBCUniversal Syndication Studios’ Suits (weekdays at noon and Sundays from 3-6 p.m.); Warner Bros.’ True Crime News (weekdays at 1 p.m.); Trifecta’s Crime Expose with Nancy O’Dell (weekdays at 1:30 p.m. with a second run on WFLD at 10:30 p.m.); and added Debmar-Mercury’s Family Feud in primetime.
Several My Network TV affiliates – including those owned by Fox, have gradually shifted programming later into the night over the years. WPWR moved the two-hour block of off-network dramas from NBCUniversal from 10 p.m. to 11 p.m. on September 9. As of today, the “My50” tag on this site is retired and replaced by “Fox Chicago Plus”. The WPWR tag remains unchanged.
The start of the syndication season on September 9 yielded strong sampling for the season premieres of CBS Media Ventures’ Wheel Of Fortune and The Drew Barrymore Show.
Ryan Seacrest’s ascension into the host role boosted the show’s ratings with the 42nd season premiere drawing 9.63 million viewers, the biggest audience for a new season of shows since 2015 and was up from the 41st season premiere when Pat Sajak was hosting.
Household ratings were up 21 percent year-to-year. For the week, Seacrest seems to have settled into the role as host quite well, as viewers approved. Wheel is renewed through 2028 on local stations, while Vanna White’s contract was renewed through 2026. Wheel airs weeknights at 6:30 p.m. on ABC 7.
The news was also good for Drew Barrymore, whose fifth-season premiere week was up 20 percent in households and 15 percent in total viewers, drawing 1.26 million eyeballs. Female demos were up 32 percent from the fourth-season premiere week among women 18-49 and up 17 percent among women 25-54. Drew finished second among all syndicated daytime talk shows, behind Disney’s Live With Kelly and Mark.
Drew was recently renewed for a sixth season, through 2026. In Chicago, CBS 2 carries Drew weekdays at 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. and on The U at 12:30 a.m. and 1 a.m.
ABC-owned WLS-TV – branded as ABC 7 – has named Nneka Nwosu the new VP of marketing.
“Nneka is an inspirational leader whose creativity and strategic vision make her an ideal choice for this role,” ABC 7 GM John Idler said. “We are excited about her next chapter at our station and look forward to seeing her impact on ABC7’s marketing efforts.”
Nwosu joined ABC 7 in 2022 from sister affiliate station WCVB Boston, where she was the executive producer of the long-running weeknight local newsmagazine show Chronicle. Since arriving in Chicago, Nwosu was the station’s assistant news director and oversaw the I-Team investigative unit. Nwosu also produced the station’s special programming, including a retrospective on Chicago’s first Black mayor Harold Washington, and created a streaming series for ABC’s owned stations called Facing The Facts, focusing on data-driven stories through the lens of race and culture.
Nwosu succeeds David Lee, who moved to VP of Brand and Marketing at WCBS-TV New York City.
Maybe I’m the only one it bothers, but I’m getting so tired of any streaming service or TV station referring to itself as something “+” as it seems to be everywhere and very much overused now. I cannot believe marketing executives cannot come up with better names for their products. Is there really such a lack of creativity in the media these days. It’s also about as annoying as when people refer to something as “2.0”. I’m actually surprised that neither major candidate for U.S. President hasn’t put the “+” after their names to raise awareness to their White House dreams, hopes and aspirations.