NBC 5 launches new prime access show, “Tonight With Lou Canellis”
Joins other NBC-owned stations in expanding local programming
With Access Hollywood ending Friday, NBC-owned WMAQ-TV (NBC 5) made official on Wednesday news that was speculated for weeks – the station was launcing a new, weeknight local prime access (6:30 p.m.) show on Monday – and it features the newly-hired Lou Canellis.
Titled Tonight With Lou Canellis with an auto manufacturer as its main sponsor, the show plans to not only tackle sports, but other topics such as the news of the day and inviting former athletes, coaches, celebrities, and others for discussions. The show also plans remote editions from Chicago’s biggest cultural, entertainment, and sporting events. For example, if the Cubs or White Sox make the playoffs, a remote edition could take place from outside their respective ballparks.
Former Bears coach Dave Wannstedt will appear on the show on Mondays to recap the previous day’s game, and Thursday to preview the upcoming game. Canellis, who was hired last January as the station’s main sports anchor after a long stint at Fox 32, will also appear with Wannstedt on Sports Sunday, starting this week. With those Sunday duties, 104.3 The Score’s Laurence Holmes will host on Fridays.
The program plans to have Canellis open with a monologue; a rapid rundown of the day’s stories, answer viewers’ questions through social media; breaking news coverage (if applicable); expert analysis on upcoming matchups; Chicago trivia; and more.
“Chicago isn’t just my hometown, it’s the only home I’ve ever known,” said Canellis in a sfatement. “I was born here, raised here, went to high school and college here, and spent my entire sports broadcasting career here, so the opportunity to host a show that celebrates the people, stories and experiences that make this city so great is truly a dream come true.”
“Lou has built a special connection with Chicago audiences through his authenticity, passion, and deep love for this city,” added NBCUniversal Local Chicago President and General Manager Kevin Cross. “Whether it’s sports, entertainment, culture, or the people who shape our community, Lou brings a perspective that resonates deeply with Chicago viewers. We’re excited to build a show around his passion for our city and his ability to connect with audiences every night.”
Excluding two months in the summer of 1991 and for a short period in the spring of 2020 when the station ran local news, Tonight With Lou Canellis marks the first time NBC 5 has had local programming in the prime access slot since the Big 3 networks were forced to give up a half-hour to stations due to the FCC’s Prime Time Access Rule, which took effect in September 1971 and was repealed 25 years later. WMAQ has always aired syndicated programming at 6:30 p.m. (including an ill-fated “checkerboard” sitcom block in 1987) and has aired Access Hollywood since September 1996. Both WBBM-TV (from 1973-87) and WLS-TV (from 1971-84) once aired hour-long 6 p.m. newscasts.
Tonight With Lou Canellis will air opposite not only syndicated staples Wheel Of Fortune, Entertainment Tonight, and Family Feud, but also other local programming including local news and The Point on WGN-TV and The Chicago Report on Fox Chicago Plus (WPWR-TV.) Lou Canellis’ show will also be available to stream on NBC 5’s platforms.
The new show is a part of NBC 5’s revamped lineup with Access and The Kelly Clarkson Show leaving syndication. NBC 5 is expanding its midday 11 a.m. newscast to a full hour, pushing Chicago Today to noon, where it was a fifteen-minute Monday-Thursday show at 11:45 a.m. and half-hour on Fridays at 11:30 a.m., is now a half-hour all week long. At 12:30 p.m. is Hollywood Reel Time, an entertainment news show produced by sister station KNBC Los Angeles, and NBC News Daily at 1 p.m. Syndicated Dateline reruns filled out the rest of the daytime schedule at 2 p.m. and 3 p.m., respectively, replacing Clarkson in the latter time slot.
NBC 5 is following a pattern set by other NBC-owned stations after sister company NBCUniversal Syndication Studios announced it was no longer producing any first-run programming by adding more local shows and adding more editions of Dateline. As far as prime access is concerned, New York’s WNBC is airing a repeat of its New York Live at 7:30 p.m.; KNBC is adding the aforementioned Hollywood Reel Time; WTVJ Miami is adding local show South Florida Live; KXAS Dallas-Fort Worth is adding local news at 6:30 p.m. (and 3 p.m.) and WCAU Philadelphia is also adding a 7:30 p.m. news show.