Detroit’s WWJ-TV re-enters the new game – sort of

CBS-owned WWJ-TV in Detroit is returning to the news business. This is not a April Fool’s joke. Really. WWJ, which has been out of the news business since 2002, is hooking with the Detroit Free Press to produce a new morning newscast airing from 5 to 7 a.m. with cut-ins during The Early Show (you mean its no longer called […]

T Dog’s Groovy Grab Bag

– Station swap: Raycom and Local TV are trading stations with each other and maybe one to be named later… Raycom has traded CBS affiliate WTVR in Richmond, Va. to Local TV for Fox affiliate WBRC-TV in Birmingham. Raycom, which is based in Alabama, will now have a presence in most of the state. Earlier, the Justice Department rejected Raycom’s […]

Detroit’s papers to cut back on delivery

Detroit’s two main newspapers (The Free Press and News) are scaling back their delivery due to the worsening economic conditions. Beginning in March, both papers will be delivering to homes only three days a week, while being exclusively on newsstands and retail outlets the other four in a slimmed-down version. Both papers are refocusing on their respective online sites, with […]

T Dog’s Groovy Grab Bag – The X Edition

– CBS X’s out The Ex List – Yeah, the lead in this show is hot. And I mean very hot. But that alone won’t bring the viewers to the set. CBS dropped The Ex List from its Friday after four episodes, and is being replaced by NCIS repeats. But man, I wish I was on her “Ex List”… Somebody, […]

Denver, St. Louis stations combine operations

Local TV and Tribune Broadcasting have agreed to combine operations and certain programming under a plan to reduce overhead expenses with their respective TV stations in St. Louis and Denver, in which is being called a “virtual duopoly”. St. Louis’ KPLR (CW) and KTVI (Fox) are combining operations in their market, as is Denver’s KDVR (Fox) and KWGN (CW.) KPLR […]

XETV hops on The CW train

Fox affiliate XETV is becoming a former Fox affiliate on August 1, when it joins The CW. The station plans to re-brand itself as San Diego 6 effective on that date as well . The moves after Tribune made a deal to switch the affiliation of its KSWB-TV from CW to Fox last March. Fox was looking for a new […]

Fox sells eight TV stations to Oak Hill

News Corp. had made good on its promise to sell eight of its Fox TV stations, and it did to the newly-formed Local TV group headed by private equity firm Oak Hill Partners for $1.1 billion. The proceeds from the sale gives News Corp. the cash it needs to purchase the Wall Street Journal. In a separate development, Tribune and […]

Hearst-Argyle not happy with NBC’s performance

Hearst-Argyle (and probably a lot of station groups) aren’t happy with NBC’s primetime performance. David Barrett, the CEO of the station group, says he’s “disappointed” in the performance of the network, and its been a earnings drag on the company’s ten NBC affiliates. But don’t look too much into this. It’s not likely Hearst-Argyle will break with NBC anytime soon. […]

Local station roundup

Let’s see what’s going on in local markets around the country: -According to Nielsen, KETC-TV in St. Louis was the nation’s highest-rated public TV station in October, even outperforming WTTW in Chicago. The station’s total-day ratings were up 8 percent from a year ago and up 39 percent in primetime. It’s same to assume that this station outdraws Sinclair’s weak-kneed […]