T Dog’s Media Notepad: “Supergirl” could fly to CW

With the upfronts a little over a week away, reports are surfacing on not if Supergirl is coming back next season but where: The Wrap is reporting Warner Bros. Television is discussing a plan to move the freshman drama from CBS to The CW next year, where CBS and Warner Bros. have a 50/50 interest. There are concerns if the […]

“American Idol” exits a winner

As yours truly hinted before, American Idol’s “finale” may not be the finale after all – it’s going on a long hiatus. Idol exited a winner Thursday night, finishing up with 13.3 million viewers from 8 p.m.-10:06 p.m. EST. In the adults 18-49 demo, the program earned a 3.0 rating. In Nielsen’s 56 overnight markets, Idol dominated with a 9.6 […]

T Dog’s Think Tank: Stump the Trump

Chicago is still recovering from the effects of Hurricane Donald Trump as he blew through town on March 11 and created a storm of protests – including inside the UIC Pavilion where he was supposed to speak. Instead, the rally was canceled before he even spoke as the Pavilion was declared a disaster area with fighting and chaos not seen […]

CBS Radio up for sale

It’s an end of an era. CBS Corp. announced on Tuesday it was exploring several options of its radio station group, including a sale. The stations could be spun-off, swapped, or sold outright. CBS owns several radio/TV combos in most large markets, including Chicago, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Boston, Dallas, Atlanta, Minneapolis, Detroit, Sacramento, and Baltimore. In […]

Major shakeup at ABC sends Paul Lee out the door

Channing Dungey becomes ABC Entertainment president; First African-American woman to run a major network When it comes to CBS, you always hear the tagline “We’re America’s Most Watched Network”. When it comes to ABC, it’s always “We’re always in third or fourth place”. And it’s the sinking fortunes that led to ABC Entertainment President Paul Lee’s departure. The alphabet network and the phrase […]

Don’t pass GO: “Monopoly” canceled

Also: CBS cancels Angel In Hell As first reported by Broadcasting & Cable, Scientific Games announced Tuesday it is ceasing production of Monopoly Millionaires Club. The syndicated game show, hosted by Mike & Molly’s Billy Gardell and shown locally on WGN-TV, was cut from an hour in its abbreviated first season to a half-hour this season. According to the article, […]

More affiliation musicial chairs: WNCN snatches CBS affiliation from WRAL in Raleigh-Durham

Another long-term affiliation relationship has bit the dust. This time, it’s Raleigh-Durham, N.C., known as “The Triangle” as the relationship between WRAL (Channel 5) and CBS is ending after 30 years after the network struck a long-term affiliation deal with crosstown rival WNCN (Channel 17), an NBC affiliate owned by Media General. WRAL turned around and quickly signed a deal with NBC. […]

Tribune, CW relationship in fragile condition

          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 […]

Boston’s WHDH loses NBC affiliation

In market’s fourth affiliation change, NBCUniversal to move affiliation to WNEU-TV WHDH owner Ed Ansin promises fight Politicians question move In a bold move, Comcast Corp. announced Thursday it is launching a new NBC-owned and-operated station in Boston, the nation’s eighth-largest market approximately a year from now. NBC plans to move its affiliation to Telemundo affiliate WNEU-TV (Channel 60), a […]

“The Wiz Live” scores with critics, fans

Dusting off an old New York area- electronic store slogan from the 1990’s, Nobody Beats The Wiz – at least when it comes to entertainment programming. And that was more than true Thursday night when as the NBC live presentation of the Broadway Musical drew strong ratings – even opposite a special edition of Thursday Night Football. In metered overnight […]

T Dog’s Media Notepad: Bears-Packers score in ratings

Bears surprise; ABC 7 dominates November ratings; another new game show planned; Tom Joyner’s future On paper, it looked like another game against the Packers where the Bears would get blown out and the ratings would take a hit, given what happened last year. Turns out it wasn’t the case. Led by Jay Cutler, the Chicago Bears stunned their Green […]

“Star Trek” returns – for a price

                The legendary series returns to the airwaves – but on CBS’ SVOD service The Starship Enterprise is back in business. But if want you get on board, it’s going to cost you. CBS announced Monday it was rebooting Star Trek, which would be the seventh television incarnation of the franchise. But there […]

T Dog’s Think Tank: According to message board posters, “Everything Isn’t Awesome”

Constant whining about radio, TV threatens to undermine business Before social media, message boards and comment sections were basically a way to post your thoughts about a particular issue and to connect with others. But these days, message boards and comment section sections are often breeding grounds for stupidity and for people to start arguments for the sake of starting arguments. […]

Think Tank Express: Colbert makes his CBS debut

Stephen Colbert – yes, the real Stephen Colbert – finally made his long-awaited hosting debut last night on The Late Show, only the third time a comedian has hosted under this title. Colbert is no longer chained to his “Stephen Colbert” character he played on his Comedy Central show. While judging a program by one episode doesn’t do it justice, […]

Letterman’s send-off packs them in

Letterman’s finale episode draws more than 13 million viewers, largest since 1994 (Editor’s Note – all videos associated with this post were removed from YouTube as of June 15. The article has since been re-edited. -T.H.) The final Late Show With David Letterman on CBS Wednesday night sent tons of viewers through the entrances – and scored its highest ratings in over […]