WNUA-FM to flip to Spanish-language format

After 22 years as a pioneering “Smooth Jazz” outlet, Clear Channel-owned WNUA-FM is changing formats to Spanish Pop, effective Friday at 9:55 a.m. The station is being branded as “Mega 95.5”. and is being made available online at Mega955.com. The move is being made as other stations across the country are dropping the Smooth Jazz format. On Tuesday, Clear Channel […]

This just in: Local news trumps reruns

KRON-TV San Francisco to dump Dr. Phil? It looks like these days viewers prefer the corruption, depression, politics, and crime to escapist fare. It what could be yet another blow to the syndication business, a story by Bloomberg News suggests local stations are dumping entertainment fare to air more local news especially in major markets. This comes as the fight […]

WHDH to Leno: Get lost

In a move that could put its fourteen-year NBC affiliation at risk, WHDH-TV in Boston has told NBC it plans not to run Jay Leno’s new weeknight show at 10 p.m. (ET) but instead run a prime-time newscast. Leno got the 10 p.m. time slot after losing his longtime 11:35 p.m. Tonight Show slot to Conan O’Brien. Leno leaves Tonight […]

Fox drops Saturday cartoons – for infomercials

Foxhas announced it is trading in Sonic the Hedgehog – for a bunch of people riding around in Hoveround chairs. In a move that ends children’s programming on Fox after 18 years, the network announced it is dropping the 4KidsTV block it had been airing on Saturday mornings. This comes after 4Kids sued Fox for a refund, alleging it owed […]

T Dog’s Groovy Grab Bag

Back to the future with KOFY Granite Broadcasting has decided to bring back the KOFY calls to Channel 20 in the Bay Area. The call letters were in use on the frequency between 1986 and 1998. The independent station, which serves the San Francisco-Oakland-San Jose market, was previously known as KBWB-TV, a holdover of when it was a WB affiliate. […]

WMAQ relaunches website

WMAQ-TV here in Chicago has become the first station in the NBC Local Media Group to re-launch its website. The site’s new name – NBCChicago.com – provides photos, improved traffic and weather information, separate sections for news, sports, and entertainment, as well as videos, blogs, and other goodies. Compare this right now to sis station WNBC-TV in New York. WMAQ’s […]

CW scores an upset with "90210" premiere

The CW scored its highest ratings ever with the two-hour premiere of 90210 Tuesday night, the anticipated sequel to Beverly Hills 90210, which ran on Fox for ten seasons (1990-2000.) Courtesy of PIFeedback.com, here are the results: – Households (3.9/6, #3); Adults 18-34 (3.0/9, #1); Women 18-34 (4.3/12, #1); Adults 18-49 (2.6/7, #1); Women 18-49 (3.6/9, #1); persons 12-34 (2.7/8, […]

KPLR shifts CW primetime to 8 p.m.

Tribune’s KPLR-TV in St. Louis is moving its half-hour 9 p.m. newscast to 7 p.m. and expanding it to a hour beginning on Sept. 8. This means CW primetime fare currently airing at 7 p.m. is shifting to 8 p.m., with KPLR taking the Mountain Time feed. For example, when 90210 airs in St. Louis (8 p.m. Central), it’ll air […]

Disney: Our stations are NOT for sale

Disney has denied a report from investment research firm Caris & Co. that it planned to sell its ten ABC O&Os, and would focus on distributing content. Disney owns TV stations in the largest markets, including WLS-TV in Chicago. All three major networks have sold stations in the past year, although in smaller markets such as Milwaukee, St. Louis, Kansas […]

Off-network sitcoms on rebound… or are they?

Is the off-network sitcom drought about to come to an end in syndication? It very well may be. But stations may have other ideas. This story from TVNewsday reports on the off-network sitcom drought this coming season and the number of sitcoms coming down the pike in September 2009. For the first time in recent memory, there are no fresh […]

WGN, WPIX, KDAF sign deal with LATV

Three Tribune-owned stations – WGN-TV in Chicago, WPIX-TV in New York, and KDAF-TV in Dallas have signed deals with bilingual digital network LATV. The Hispanic-targeted network is landing on one of the digital subchannels of each of the three stations. LATV replaces The Tube on these channels, which ceased operations last September. With the new adds, LATV now airs on […]

Larry Wert promoted (updated)

WMAQ-TV general manager Larry Wert has been promoted to president, Central and Western region, of the NBC Local Media Division. Among the stations Wert will be overseeing include WMAQ (which he’ll continue in his role as GM) and fellow NBC O&Os KNBC-TV Los Angeles, KXAS-TV Dallas, KNTV San Francisco/Oakland/San Jose, and KNSD-TV San Diego. NBC also named a new GM […]

More layoffs at CBS O&Os

Back to serious business: The causality list at CBS just keeps on coming. In addition to the cuts at WBBM-TV on Monday: – New York: WCBS-TV (which was home to “Black Wednesday” in 1996 when seven on-air personalities were laid off) dropped two correspondents, and canceled its Sports Sunday wrap-up show. – Dallas: More layoffs at KTVT/KTXA, where several more […]

More NATPE News

– Twentieth Television has renewed The Morning Show with Mike & Juliet for a second season the Fox O&O’s, including WFLD-TV in Chicago. The program has done on many stations, especially in southern markets such as Birmingham (WBRC) and Greensboro, N.C. (WGHP). Other pickups include San Francisco (KTVU), Seattle (KCPQ-TV), and Portland, Ore. (KPTV). – Mighty Oak’s Whacked Out Sports […]