What’s old is new again

Editor’s Note: The link provided in this story may require registration. Fox-owned WFLD is changing the name of its 7-9 a.m morning show back to Good Day Chicago, the original name of the morning newscast which launched in June 1993. After a slow ratings start, the show changed to Fox Thing In the Morning in January 1994 when Bob Sirott […]

Chicago’s weather wars

An article in Crain’s Chicago Business this week details the ongoing weather wars between Chicago’s television news operations. Competitors are taking aim at each other, particularly at Fox-owned WFLD-TV and new meteorologist Amy Freeze. The weathermen at other local stations are taking their shots at her and her station, with one weatherman saying that WFLD’s breaking into regular programming for […]

Look, here’s how you do a newscast….

Guess who gave advice recently to the staff at Fox News Chicago? None other than Shepard Smith of Fox News, who, in a meeting with several news staffers, anchors, producers, and managers, completely ripped the station’s efforts, notably the station’s new 10 p.m. newscast, The Ten. Smith said that the newscast should have more music, move at a faster pace, […]

"The Office" sold to TBS and Fox

My Name Is Earl also goes to TBS NBC Universal sold its (somewhat) popular sitcom The Office to TBS and to several Fox-owned television outlets today. Fox stations will clear the show in ten markets, including WFLD/WPWR in Chicago. TBS will air repurposed episodes this fall and will strip the program in 2009. TBS adds the show to its stable […]

The Ten’s ratings problem exposing problems at another station

WFLD-TV’s new 10 p.m. newscast called The Ten is clearly struggling in the ratings – but the program is skewing younger, and is exposing problems at crosstown rival WBBM-TV with their 10 p.m. newscast. According to an article in the Sun-Times today, The Fox-owned station’s newscast has surprisingly beat the CBS-owned station’s late newscast in the household ratings on some […]

WFLD to launch 10 p.m. newscast (updated)

In a move that’s been rumored for the last several months, Fox-owned WFLD-TV will launch a 10 p.m. newscast on April 9. The move replaces the late-night airing of The Simpsons. Repeats of the program will remain in the 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. time slots, for now. Bart & Co. has held the 10 p.m. time slot for a […]

Avalanche of boobs

Robert Feder’s column in the Sun-Times this morning featured letters about yesterday’s column. But none of them was on Montel Willams DVD project, Upscale Chicago, or even Felicia Middlebrooks’ contract extension. It was the last item that trigged the outrage — a one sentence mention about WFLD-TV morning show anchor Tamron Hall breast implants. Here comes the Avalanche of hate […]