Rebrand comes only a year after re-launching news channel Continuing a trend of station groups expanding their news footprint, Scripps announced Thursday the rebranding of their 24/7 news channel Newsy to Scripps News effective January 1. The name change comes as the company is merging its national news resources into a single national news division and approximately one year after […]
Replaces Bounce as digital network heads to Ion’s WCPX It’s not just an expansion – it’s now a boom. Yet another new multicast network was announced with the launch of MeTVPlus from Weigel Broadcasting, scheduled to debut May 15. As first reported by Robert Feder Monday, MeTV Plus features off-network dramas and sitcoms that hasn’t aired on MeTV in years, […]
Nexstar spin-offs a network from Antenna TV Usually in TV land, we have spin-offs of shows, some of the most successful being Gomer Pyle, USMC; Facts Of Life; Maude; Good Times; and Laverne & Shirley. Now for the first time, we have a spin-off of an entire channel. On September 1, Nexstar is launching Rewind TV, featuring 1980s and 1990s […]
More multicast networks announced from Scripps, Tegna Days after Scripps shut down several digital subchannels (now called “multicast networks”) related to their acquisition of Ion, the Cincinnati-based company announced Tuesday two new channels: Defy and the amply named Doozy (yes, Doozy.) Both are cleared in 75 percent of the country for a July 1 launch. Defy is targeted to male […]
Former Katz networks to take their place Get ready for a major shift in the digital channel world. Months after Scripps acquired Ion Networks, the company announced it was eliminating three digital subchannel networks: Ion Plus, ShopIon, and Qubo effective at the end of February. Those channels will be replaced by existing Katz channels, including Bounce, Grit, Laff, and Court […]
Chicago’s WCPX becomes a Scripps-owned station – but remains an Ion affiliate In a blockbuster move, Cincinnati-based Scripps Thursday announced the purchase of Ion, a network with more than 125 affiliates, including 62-owned stations. The deal includes Ion-owned Chicago’s WCPX – the former Christian station known as WCFC-TV from 1976 to 1998 when the ministry sold the station to Bud […]
Plus: Classic Hip-Hop loses ground as Soft AC makes a comeback; Tribune Media bidding heats up; another cable channel is in the works In a move widely anticipated, conservative talk show host and podcaster Ben Shapiro is joining WLS-AM’s weekday afternoon lineup. Beginning January 7, Shapiro has been slotted in the 2 to 5 p.m. slot replacing Steve Dahl, who […]
Only two new shows in syndication this fall (Editor’s Note: This post has been updated. See below.) If you love the true crime genre, you are going to be happy with what’s going to air on local stations this fall. In fact, their are just two new shows: CBS Television’s Face The Truth and Debmar-Mercury’s Caught In Providence, featuring an […]
Fox re-purchases three stations; Chicago’s WPWR could switch owners as a result Exactly a year after Sinclair Broadcasting announced its purchase of Tribune Media, the Hunt Valley, Md. company announced Wednesdaya the sale of seven Fox affiliates from the deal to 21st Century Fox. Of the seven, three Fox are re-purchasing: KDVR in Denver; WJW in Cleveland; and KSTU in […]
Also: – Weigel buys stations in three markets – NFL ratings for first week are mixed – Fall syndication update – T Dog Media celebrates annual anniversary for the 11th time as we enter season 12 Ratings for The Orville are finally in and to no one’s surprise, the series generated ample sampling. According to Nielsen, the debut of Seth […]
The move meant to send a message to Sinclair According to a report in Bloomberg, 21st Century Fox is reportedly in talks with Ion networks about a partnership which would let them operate a large number of Fox affiliates in several markets. Moreover, the move could strip Fox affiliates in many Sinclair markets, including those […]
Secrets of the company success: reruns, reruns and more reruns – oh, and the occasional original show There is a network that often draw more viewers than The CW and Telemundo in any given week – and yet, it has the lowest profile of any major network. And Ion likes it that way. Ion Media is one of the beneficiaries […]
A bunch of items in this week’s Grab Bag: – Is Robin Robinson on her way out at Fox-owned WFLD? Sure looks like it: According to a report surfacing a little over a week ago at Chicagoland Radio and Media, Robinson is expected to depart when her contract expires later this year. Robinson is the longest-tenured anchor at WFLD, being […]
The National Association of Television Programming Executive – or NATPE convention begins Monday in Miami and as always, there’s syndication news to report on. Here’s the latest: – CBS-owned WBBM-TV in Chicago and twelve other CBS markets have cleared TNT’s Leverage for weekend off-network syndication beginning next fall from Trifecta Entertainment, which acquires the syndication rights from executive producer Dean […]
Anderson Cooper’s new syndicated talk show began on Monday. Welcome to Life… After Oprah. Monday marked a new era in syndication as repeats of The Oprah Winfrey Show came to an end on Friday (her last original episode aired on May 25) as the broadcast business is without the queen of talk […]