Highest-rated NBA contest since 1998 In terms of Cleveland media, the last time the city won a championship, WJW-TV was still a CBS affiliate, and the KYW call letters – now used for CBS’ TV and radio stations in Philadelphia – were owned by Westinghouse and used for its TV and radio properties here. And so the Cleveland Cavaliers – […]
Local news returns to ABC 7 at 11 a.m.; Dr. Oz returns for three more years; WGN-TV needs a new GM; and more. In a victory for local programming (and yet another defeat for syndicators), ABC-owned WLS-TV (ABC 7) announced Tuesday it was bringing back its 11 a.m. newscast after three years and moving current time slot occupant Windy City […]
A memo from a Fox 32 news producer about women wearing hats in live shots in winter lands him in hot water For once, it wasn’t WGN’s Morning News making headlines…but the other local morning news show – and not in a good way, of course. As first reported by Robert Feder, an e-mail memo circulated by WFLD-TV news producer […]
With corruption, high taxes, and gang violence, Chicago has become an international embarrassment and may never recover If you’ve read this blog for the last ten years, then you know yours truly doesn’t just write about the media business. I’ve also written about Chicago and its image problems. The latest international embarrassment came last week when a nine-year old was […]
Plus: WBBM-TV’s news ratings stink; Downtown Abbey heads into the final stretch; MundoFox to become MundoMax…eventually – ABC-owned WLS-TV reclaimed the top spot at 10 p.m. according to Nielsen, reclaiming the late news throne from NBC-owned WMAQ-TV. Despite the loss, WMAQ still gained viewers year-to-year at 10 in the all-important 25-54 demo. The biggest loser no doubt is CBS-owned WBBM, who […]
The 53rd annual gathering of the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) got underway at the Fontainbleau Resort in Miami on Tuesday as syndicators, producers, and content creators converged for the three day conference, which ends on Thursday. There were some programming announcements made at or just prior to NATPE’s start: – Disney-ABC Domestic Television announced updated clearance information for new Tyra […]
ABC, Scripps stations clear new diginet; ABC to keep LiveWell after all ABC and Scripps Broadcasting announced this weekend they are launching a brand new digital subchannel called LAFF, injunction with Katz Communications beginning on April 15, “tax day”. Details on what the planned comedy network would carry (hint: you can’t go wrong with Mystery Science Theater 3000 reruns) were […]
Could have implications for Chicago’s WPWR A brewing affiliation fight in Seattle could have implications for a local Chicago TV station. According to a story in Tuesday’s edition of the New York Post, Fox is expected to yank the affiliation from Tribune Media’s KCPQ in Seattle-Tacoma. As it was reported in local media circles over the last few weeks, Fox […]
Two Midwest media companies combine as media merger frenzy continues to sweep the nation In the latest media hookup, Milwaukee-based Journal Communications announced a merger with Cincinnati-based E.W. Scripps. With the merger, the newspaper division would be spun-off into a separate company. Once everything is said and done, Scripps would would own and operate 34 television stations in 24 markets, […]
– 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 […]
The media world spent Father’s Day mourning the loss of radio legend Casey Kasem, who died early Sunday morning from Lew Body’s disease and dementia, at the age of 82. Rather than focus on the last few months of his life – which featured a rather nasty battle of his care between members of his family, let’s talk about the […]
A man named Easterly is heading west to become WGN-TV’s new general manager. Tribune Broadcasting announced Monday the hiring of Greg Easterly as president and general manager of WGN-TV, moving over from the same capacity at WJW-TV in Cleveland effective April 14. Easterly is a seventeen-year veteran of the Cleveland Fox affiliate, with a news background. He spent the first […]
– WLS-TV returns to the top of the late news heap – American Idol continues to slide With the Olympics over and done with, normal viewing patterns have resumed – good news for ABC-owned WLS-TV, which saw its 10 p.m. news dominance temporarily usurped by NBC-owned WMAQ. In March, WLS returned to the top spot at 10 with a 9.0 […]
The reign and terror of Randy “Court Jester” Michaels in radio has finally come to an end. In a blockbuster move, Cumulus announced Friday morning it was taking over operations of Merlin Media’s two remaining stations immediately: classic rocker WLUP-FM (97.9) and Variety Hits WIQI-FM (101.1), which was once home to the failed “FM News” experiment. The deal also gives […]
FCC approves purchases; deals close It’s a Holiday Week edition of the Grab Bag – will it be presents or several lumps of coal? Let’s find out: Both Gannett and Tribune received presents in their stockings thanks to the FCC approving their deals on December 20. Gannett purchased Belo last summer, while Tribune announced their takeover of Local TV, LLC […]
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