WFLD scores with weather coverage on Saturday

While the attention over the last few days has been on former WFLD anchor Mark Suppelsa joining WGN-TV, Fox-owned WFLD-TV has some good news: Its’ coverage of Saturday’s wild weather throughout the Chicago area drew good ratings (for a Saturday) and praise from viewers. Tornadoes hit the south and southwest suburbs on Saturday evening, tearing a path from Wilmington to […]

WFLD expands Good Day Chicago (updated)

KRIV in Houston also expands its news by adding 5 and 5:30 p.m. newscasts As expected, Fox-owned WFLD-TV is expanding Good Day Chicago to 10 a.m. beginning on July 7, with the news show now five hours long. The extended hour will feature breaking news and weather, plus discussion of hot topics with local commentators and other segments. The newscast […]

Local May sweeps numbers, Part 1

Overall analysis: While the major networks lost steam in the recently concluded May sweeps, many local stations actually saw increases year-to-year in late news and in other time periods. Translation: Viewers are tuning out the prime-time shows on the major networks, but not local programming or local news on their affiliates. Boston: CBS-owned WBZ-TV pulled off a major upset by […]

More sweeps numbers

Philadelphia: Like WLS here in Chicago, ABC-owned WPVI-TV swept away its competition in households (demos were not available.) Fox-owned WTXF also scored with its 10 p.m. news, thanks to American Idol, and managed to tie CBS-owned KYW-TV in rating in late news. Yay for local content? NBC O&O WCAU-TV’s 10! news/talk show, finished dead last in its’ 2 p.m. time […]

WLS sweeps May, but WMAQ shines in demos at 10

Staying on the subject of local news, it was a good May book for all of Chicago’s news outlets -(second item) despite the fact the networks lost audience share due to the after-effects of the recent writer’s strike with something for everyone to crow about: ABC-owned WLS-TV’s newscasts won the May sweeps in households (second item) – however, NBC-owned WMAQ-TV […]

WFLD to add 9 a.m. newscast?

Fox-owned WFLD-TV is once again considering expanding its news operation – this time to extend Good Day Chicago to 10 a.m. This comes as more and more stations are expanding local content to stay relevant as more and more viewers are getting their content from places other than traditional media sources. And WFLD is not the only ones thinking about […]

Technology made simple

Fox-owned WFLD-TV has a new way you can track the station’s chopper: through Google Maps. Viewers can log on to the station’s website (MyFoxChicago.com) and track AirFox (the name of the station’s chopper) through a link (AirFoxLive.com), and see where the chopper is on Google Maps, using a live GPS track. On the map is a bubble where the chopper […]

WFLD gets Bears pre-season games and a whole lot more (updated)

Once again, the Chicago Bears have a new broadcast partner. And it’s with a Fox. This time, and for the first time, Fox-owned WFLD-TV will carry pre-season Bears games and is the new official television station of the team. WFLD outbid the previous carrier, NBC-owned WMAQ-TV. The move also means Spanish-language games broadcast over NBC’s WSNS-TV is also ending. WFLD’s […]

WPWR launches new public affairs show

WPWR also secures rights to Chicago Fire games Fox-owned WPWR-TV is launching a new public affairs show called Perspective, which will air Sundays at 12:30 p.m. beginning March 30. This marks the first new public-affairs program to air on WPWR under Fox’s ownership. Before Fox took over the station, WPWR ran public affairs programming such as Dimensions: Northwest Indiana and […]

"TMZ" gets new slot – and channel

Katie, Brian, and Charles: you met your match. Beginning Monday, Harvey Levin’s syndicated celebrity gossip paparazzi show TMZ will face off against network newscasts in Chicago with the show moving to 5:30 p.m. on Fox-owned WFLD-TV. The program currently airs on sister station WPWR-TV at 6:30 p.m. TMZ will continue to air at 11:35 p.m. on WFLD. Fox-owned stations in […]

Local stations’ sweeps numbers hit by writers’ strike

Affiliates – who depend on their network’s prime-time programs to draw viewers to their late newscasts – suffered ratings declines during the just-concluded February sweeps as the writer’s strike forced the networks into reruns and were forced to air less-appealing reality shows. Judging by the few markets available for review, NBC affiliates seemed to be affected less, thanks to a […]

WGN pulls upset in the mornings

The CW may be tanking, but Tribune’s WGN-TV is thriving – its morning show ranked number one in the daypart (second item), besting ABC-owned WLS-TV in the recently concluded February book from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. – though it tied WLS at 6 a.m. Meanwhile, not even the presence of American Idol and the Super Bowl has helped Fox-owned […]

Malcolm is no longer in the middle at KTLA

Vinnie Malcolm is out as vice president and general manager of Tribune-owned KTLA in Los Angeles in the first series of changes expected under new Tribune station group head Ed Wilson. Like many other CW affiliates (with WGN in Chicago the notable exception),KTLA has struggled in the ratings, with its newscasts ranked behind Fox-owned rival KTTV, with some viewers moving […]

"Everybody" loves you in HD

CBS Television Distribution’s Everybody Loves Raymond will soon get an upgrade to high-definition. Beginning March 17, all 210 episodes of Raymond will be available to air in high-definition. The program started shooting in high definition in 1999, so the series first three seasons are being converted to HD, with series creator Phillip Rosenthal supervising the process. The move is timed […]

Super Bowl Ratings Box

– The Giants-Patriots tilt was seen by 97.5 million viewers, making it the highest-rated Super Bowl of all-time, and only second to the 1983 finale of M*A*S*H. The game was up 5 percent from last year’s Colts-Bears Super Bowl. – Super Bowl XLII earned a 43.2 household rating and 65 share, and averaged a 37.6 among adults 18-49. – Fox-owned […]