Short series ends basketball and hockey seasons early. Also: updates on “Springer”, “CrimeWatch” Even without the Chicago Blackhawks and other big-market original six teams, the NHL Stanley Cup Final was a big hit for NBC. According to Nielsen, Game 5 of the Final with the Washington Capitals clinching their first-ever title over the first-ever Las Vegas Golden Knights drew a […]
Merger survives court challenge Tuesday’s federal court decision clearing the way for AT&T to acquire TimeWarner has implications not only for consumers and businesses, but the entire media landscape. Judge Richard Leon of the D.C. District Court ruled in favor of the two companies on Tuesday imposing no conditions after a long six-week trial. The merger was announced on a […]
Justin Kaufmann joins Steve Cochran in mornings; Patti Vasquez moves to evenings and adds Andrea Dalatris as co-host As the sale of Tribune Media to Sinclair Broadcasting is soon to close pending FCC and Justice Department approval, WGN-AM announced some lineup changes Wednesday, affecting its evening lineup and morning show. As first reported by Robert Feder, Justin Kaufmann is giving […]
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 […]
After nearly a decade, The CW is back in the Sunday night race Signaling they are not going anywhere, The CW announced Wednesday their intentions to return to programming Sunday nights after a nine-year hiatus. The expansion gives the network twelve hours a week to program, all in primetime beginning this fall. The move comes as The CW has received […]
WGN’s new weekly show lives up to hype – and then some Enjoy Man Of The People Chicago, because Lord knows what’s going to happen when new ownership takes over. The series premiered Saturday night at 10 p.m. over Tribune’s WGN-TV with the station’s morning sports anchor Pat Tomasulo. It was billed as the first series taped at the Bradley […]
With NATPE arriving this week, it’s nothing but slim pickings as veteran shows continue to have shows locked up Looking for something new in syndication for 2018? You might want to stop. With buyers and sellers descending to Miami this week for the 56th National Association of Television Programming Executives gathering, the syndicated marketplace for new shows is lackluster in […]
Also: Telemundo expands local and national news; Funny You Should Ask renewed through 2021; Fox interested in Sinclair stations You’d think an appearance on a national TV show would be a great thing for your local radio station, right? Well, in this case, it turned out to be a huge nightmare. Alpha Media’s WRXQ-FM in southwest suburban Coal City fired […]
Welcome to the 12th annual T Dog Media Turkey Awards – celebrating the worst in media, sports, and life in general. This year, 23 recipients (including three turkeys sharing an award) have the privilege of getting the Golden Gobblers – we have numerous politicians, sexual harassment predators, and woeful Chicago sports teams, making every night a Netflix or Hulu night. […]
WGN morning show sports anchor gets his own show He may not own – or maybe even drive – his own car, but he now has his own TV show. Tribune Broadcasting’s WGN-TV announced last week the creation of a weekly late-night comedy show centered around WGN Morning Show sports anchor Pat Tomasulo. Titled Man Of The People, the series […]
The two rivals are discussing, but would not include some Fox properties, including Fox News and Chicago’s WFLD-TV Itchy and Scratchy joining forces with Mickey Mouse? It could happen. As first reported by CNBC Monday, 21st Century Fox is considering selling part of their assets to the Walt Disney Company. The proposed deal would not include Fox Broadcasting, Fox O&Os, […]
Also: Sinclair passes on O’Reilly; Grim reaper closing in on WYCC; World Series a ratings hit; The Twilight Zone to be rebooted. Again. Given the huge number of items making news this week, it’s time for another edition of The Media Notepad: Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan is among those calling for the Sinclair-Tribune deal to be rejected. According to […]
Online news publication ceases operations; unionizing employees in New York could be reason Billionaire patriarch Joe Ricketts announced Thursday he was closing DNA Info and the “ist” online publications, effective immediately. Gone are DNA Info Chicago and is sister news site, DNA Info New York. Also gone are the related “ist” sites (Gothamist, LAist, Chicagoist, etc.) based in New York […]
Anthem protests, weak record doesn’t deter fans Also news on a former Bears star; NBC 5; FCC (Editor’s Note: An earlier draft of this post mistakenly featured a picture of Drew Brees for the first item. Apologies. -T.H.) While ratings for the NFL have declined nationally – allegedly due to anthem protests, that is not the case in Chicago – […]
Could be a liability for some local stations Bottom Line With Bill may be coming to a station near you. Reports are surfacing once again regarding Bill O’Reilly heading to Sinclair Broadcasting. According to NBC news’s Claire Atkinson, Sinclair is in talks with the former Fox News host as he could anchor a two-hour block on their stations – including those […]
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