WFLD wins a Peabody, but still loses in the ratings race

WFLD continues to struggle at 9 p.m. with its local newscasts, despite the fact of a strong prime-time lead-in. The March numbers show the Fox-owned station continuing to lag behind WGN and the other stations in the market in households and key demos. According to Nielsen and numbers supplied by the Sun-Times, WFLD averaged a 3.1 household rating for its […]

The Grab Bag: Bill Gamble out at CBS Radio

…and other local media items of note – Chicago radio veteran Bill Gamble is out of  another radio job. He was canned as program director of CBS’ WCFS-FM (Fresh FM) and country WUSN-FM (US 99) on Tuesday, lasting a little over eight months. While US 99 continued to chug along nicely at the station, it was the troubles of Adult […]

Conan, Fox on the move

You’d think with recently disposed former NBC talk show host Conan O’ Brien possibly headed to Fox, you think the news would thrill affiliates, right? Well, think again. With news yesterday of Fox and O’Brien negotiating a deal to host a late-night talk show – something the network hasn’t had on a nightly basis since the debacle of Chevy Chase’s […]

Local Feburary "sweeps" good as Gold for WMAQ and WCIU

NBC-owned WMAQ-TV won the Gold when it came to Olympic ratings, but it was WLS-TV that grabbed the medal where it really counts: late news. And WCIU-TV came home with some Gold itself. The February “sweeps” period ended on Wednesday, but this ratings period won’t be as important because of the heavy skew of the Winter Olympics. Some stations (notably […]

Asking the questions: Why is WFLD struggling at 9 p.m.?

The T Dog Media Blog is “asking the questions”… why is Fox-owned WFLD squandering prime-time lead-ins from its parent network? Maybe they should find some answers. According to Nielsen and from Lewis Lazare’s column today, WFLD continues to lag behind its competitors in the month of January. Despite changes to the 9 p.m. newscast – notably adding Anna Davlantes as […]

T Dog’s Grab Bag… News and Notes

As of this writing, the “Groovy” is being dropped from “Grab Bag” title – but it is still newsworthy nonetheless:  …The Winter Television Critics Association press tour is currently taking place in Pasadena, Calif. Among the non-Jay Leno/Conan O’Brien items going on: – Simon Cowell made an appearance at TCA today to officially announce his departure from American Idol  to […]

Chicago ratings box

Here are some notable ratings items: – Lewis Lazare’s Sun-Times column noted ABC-owned WLS-TV’s continued ratings dominance in the month of December. According to the ratings “book”, WLS finished first at 10 p.m. in households, followed by CBS-owned WBBM-TV and NBC-owned WMAQ-TV, which continues to suffer from having Jay Leno as a news lead-in (though that may not be the […]

WBBM-TV 10 p.m. news soars in the ratings

Leno hampering NBC affiliates’ late news; other November “sweeps” notes ABC-owned WLS-TV dominated the ratings in households and key demos in the just concluded November “sweeps” period (do we still have those in this LPM era?) but it was the two other network O&Os who made headlines. NBC-owned WMAQ-TV slipped to third place in households at 10 p.m., behind a […]

T Dog’s Four Pack – Put ’em up

It’s a mid-week edition of T Dog’s Four Pack – the winners and losers of the past week: And to describe the contestants, they are split into two groups: Manny Pacquiao and Miguel Cotto.  If you follow boxing, you already know which one is the winner.(if you don’t, click the link.) Floating like Pacquiao – WBBM-TV brings back Bill Kurtis […]

T Dog’s Grab Bag: The syndication edition

It’s a syndication edition of T Dog’s Grab Bag. Reach in! Is this a sign Oprah’s relationship with CBS Television Distribution is over? Ms. Winfrey’s production company is developing a new talk show with designing expert Nate Berkus –  and Sony Pictures Television, the company that’s syndicating Dr. Oz. with Harpo Productions. Berkus has been on The Oprah Winfrey Show […]

Anna Davlantes moves to WFLD

In a coup for Fox-owned WFLD-TV, the station landed one of Chicago’s most popular news personalities. Anna Davlantes, who spent nearly a decade at NBC-owned WMAQ until leaving the station earlier this year, has now signed a multi-year deal with WFLD, where she will be handling contributing anchor and reporting duties. The move is a plus for the struggling station, […]

T Dog’s Four Pack – The Jay Leno edition (updated)

(This was supposed to been up Tuesday night, but somehow it didn’t get up here. – T.H.) UPDATED: See below. It’s a special Jay Leno Show edition of T Dog’s Four Pack – here are the highlights and lowlights from night one of the show, plus other relevant information ( I was flipping back and forth between Leno and Star […]

T Dog’s Four Pack – The Summit

There have been some conflicts in the media world lately. So let’s have a T Dog’s Four Pack Beer Summit – where we can hash out our differences and make the world a better place. Or not… A four pack worthy of Budwesier and Miller Genuine Draft – Mark Burhele’s Perfect Game. The first Chicago pitcher to throw a perfecto […]

WFLD dumps Mike Barz

Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 has dumped morning news anchor Mike Barz after just two years amid allegations he acted at a off-site party. The former WGN-TV morning sports anchor joined the station in 2007 from ABC’s Good Morning America, and fronted Good Day Chicago alongside Jan Jeffcoat. He was suspended from WFLD shortly after he joined the station, after allegations he […]