Though viewers are proud of their homegrown shows, their portrayal of Chicago often brings headaches While Chicago viewers tune in every week to see how their shows portray their city to the world, some are concerned about how they shape the perception of the city on the world stage. Chicago-based The Harris Poll CEO Will Johnson recently penned a piece […]
Also: Cubs PA announcer looking to become next talk show host; A new MeTV FM hire; the former Trump Country recently became an all-Taylor Swift station Just what we need – even more of Judy. As expected, repeats of Judy Sheindlin’s new Freevee court show Judy Justice is a firm go in syndication this fall with nearly 400 episodes never […]
Bold move as linear cable TV subscriptions continue to decline In a mind-boggling move, Dr. Phil McGraw announced Monday he is launching a new network. But instead of taking the streaming route, McGraw is launching Merit Street Media via traditional cable TV. Yes, you heard it right in the Year Of Our Lord 2023 – a new linear cable network […]
Comes at a time of uncertain future for local institution While all the hoopla was over WGN-TV celebrating its 75th year of broadcasting, let’s not forget there’s another station celebrating its 75th, too. ABC-owned WLS-TV, branded as ABC 7 since the 1990s, celebrated its 75th on September 17. Although there was no two-hour special to comminate the occasion like WGN’s, […]
Ray shifts focus to new venture Updated May 23, 2023. On September 18, 2006, The T Dog Media Blog was launched – coincidentally on the same day The Rachael Ray Show did. Now after seventeen seasons, it’s Rachael who’s calling it a career – at least in daytime television. “In my more than 20 plus years in television I have had […]
Calls it a career after 21 seasons Dr. Phil McGraw announced Tuesday evening that he’s leaving his successful syndicated talk show after 21 seasons to focus on other projects, including developing prime-time programming and forming a “strategic partnership” in the daypart. As first reported by Deadline, Dr. Phil is exiting as his contract with CBS Media Ventures ends after this […]
Oprah Winfrey to speak to local grads The coronavirus pandemic has wiped out graduation ceremonies all over the Chicago area, but they get to celebrate virtually – with an assist from Chicago’s local stations. In a very rare show of collaboration, Chicago TV stations are simulcasting a virtual celebration titled Grad 2020: For Chicago by Chicago, honoring the Chicago area’s […]
Move ends 95 years of local control I guess this is another way for the Trump administration and Republicans to stick it to Chicago. In another… all together now – partisan divided vote, the FCC approved the transaction of Nexstar Broadcasting, swallowing up Chicago-based Tribune Media for $6.4 billion. This gives Nexstar over 100 stations in 114 markets with a […]
ABC 7 to carry local show in unspecified time period In an expected move, Disney/ABC’s new Tamron Hall daytime talk show strip has found a home on the eight ABC-owned-and-operated stations, covering 23 percent of the country. In addition to ABC 7 here (WLS-TV), other clearances include WABC in New York, KABC in Los Angeles, WPVI in Philadelphia, and KTRK […]
News on Blackhawks; Bob’s Burgers, and Bethenny Frankel. Oh, and the soda tax is dead. Are you ready for some hockey? Chicagoans sure are. Thursday night’s home opener against the Stanley Cup-defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins drew a eye-opening 5.1 Nielsen household rating for the newly renamed NBC Sports Chicago channel (formerly CSN Chicago). The number is impressive given the amount […]
Or… close to it. Matheson part of four-week test in select markets, including Chicago Chicago native and Minneapolis radio personality Jason Matheson is getting a second shot at national stardom – with another four-week test – this time, including his hometown. The Jason Show, produced by Fox-owned KMSP in Minneapolis is getting tested in several markets for the next four […]
The latest news and um…notes: Todd Cavanah, sticking to….stuff not related to politics, a lackluster MTM tribute, and correction to make and more Todd Cavanah takes over programming duties at US99 WBBM-FM and WJMK-FM program director Todd Cavanah is adding another new position in his arsenal – program director of sister station WUSN-FM, according to Robert Feder. He succeeds Jeff […]
TV rank drops to fourth as market’s black population moves out Chicago may be home to the hottest show with TV’s number one show among African-Americans with Empire, set in New York City but filmed here. But when it comes to attracting and keeping blacks in the area, Chicago is in a deep freeze. A recent DMA (designated market area) report issued […]
Editor’s Note: This is an experiment yours truly is trying out for the next few weeks or so… in order to put more material on the website, I plan to write a daily media news analyazation piece between 200 and 400 words – a shorter version of the Think Tanks opinion pieces, which averages between 1000 and 1500 words. Even though […]
Lack of experience, awkwardness, and arrogance kept viewers away from former Real Housewives star’s daytime talker In a project that never should have seen the light of day, Warner Bros. (or Telepictures, or Lorimar, or whomever) decided last week to put former Real Housewives star Bethenny Frankel’s talk show out of its misery after just five months on the air. […]