Fox 32 promotes Cassie Carlson to lead sports anchor

She replaces Lou Caneills in the role and becomes the face of Bears coverage Northwest-suburban Palatine native Cassie Carlson has been promoted by Fox-owned WFLD-TV (Fox 32) to lead sports anchor, succeeding the since-departed Lou Canellis in the role. She will also become the face of Chicago Bears coverage, as the station is the team’s official partner.  In a statement, […]

Cubs, White Sox announce media deals

Marquee lands on Prime Video and Hulu + Live TV; the White Sox to air ten games in The U this season With the baseball season officially starting in a week, Chicago’s baseball teams have announced additional ways fans can tune in.  The Cubs’ Marquee Sports announced Wednesday it has struck a deal with Disney’s Hulu + Live TV virtual […]

It’s official: Lou Canellis joins NBC 5 as main sports anchor

He starts this coming Sunday  Lou Canellis has officially made the leap from Fox-owned WFLD, where he spent seventeen years as the main sports anchor, to NBC-owned WMAQ-TV where he will start on February 1.  Caneills will anchor the sports segments from Monday through Thursday at 5 p.m., 6 p.m., and 10 p.m., and will host the station’s long-running Sports […]

Fox Chicago duopoly announces management change with Glenn Berk named new SVP/GM

From WITI Milwaukee, he replaces retiring Sheila Oliver As first reported by TVNewsCheck Thursday, Glenn Berk has been named Senior Vice-President and General Manager of Fox-owned WFLD and WPWR, branded respectively as Fox 32 and Fox Chicago Plus. He succeeds Sheila Oliver, who announced her retirement yesterday. The move takes place on June 30th.  Berk comes from Fox-owned sister station WITI […]

Fox-owned stations launch “Battleground”

Plans to make digital initiative a daily TV show by August In an unusual way of launching a TV show, Fox Television Stations announced Tuesday it is launching Battleground, a new series tracking the 2024 Presidential Election, which is expected to be the most contested in history.  The show will focus on seven battleground “swing” states, hence the name: Arizona, […]

The Media Notepad: WLIT takes early Chirstmas ratings lead

WGN-TV hires new traffic reporter; NBC Sports Chicago adding alternative Blackhawks telecasts; New Orleans Pelicans latest Bally team to seek an over-the-air TV deal  The PPM ratings survey for November was released this week and to no one’s surprise, iHeartMedia’s 93.9 The Lite is ahead of the competition. WLIT took first place from Hubbard’s The Drive as the Gold AC […]

WGN-TV’s Tom Skilling announces retirement

Last day on the air February 28 Longtime WGN-TV meteorologist Tom Skilling announced on the station’s 5 p.m. newscast his retirement after 47 years broadcasting the weather. His last day on the air is February 28 of next year.  “There’s no formula for this. I am going to retire at the end of February after a marvelous 45 years at […]

25 years ago: The deal heard around the world

25 years ago this week, Fox’s Rupert Murdoch changed the TV world by inking a deal to trigger the biggest affiliation switch in history.  It goes back to what happened on December 17, 1993. The networks were complaining about paying too much for sports – the NFL in particular – as the packages were losing money and looking to pay […]

Fox, Ion to hook up?

          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 […]

T Dog’s Media Notepad: Landecker heads to the Radio Hall Of Fame

St. Louis, Milwaukee stations may be spun off by Sinclair sale while John Oliver takes on the company Philadelphia radio station takes a shot a Taylor Swift; changes formats Chicago radio legend John “Records” Landecker is getting a tremendous honor: an induction into the National Radio Hall Of Fame – on the first ballot. Landecker is being inducted into the […]

When Trump had a game show

Trump had a game show? It’s true. His name headlined a flop in 1990-91  These days, real estate mogul Donald Trump is grabbing headlines as a Republican Presidential Candidate – for better or worse, but 25 years ago Trump had his own game show. Yes, he actually had a game show – well, his name was slapped on one. Here […]

T Dog’s Grab Bag: Ramonski Luv out at Soul 106.3

WBBM news woes continue; CBS criticized for Mentalist reruns to replace Letterman; former Chicago FM call letters find a new home – As first reported by Robert Feder Wednesday, Soul 106.3 (WSRB) evening radio personality Ramonski Luv was released by the station after only a few months on the air. Luv, whose real name is Ramon Wade, was paired with […]

WMAQ pulls off 10 p.m. news upset

Beat WLS-TV in key news demo for the first time in nearly 20 years Dispute in 10 p.m. news race in Milwaukee The last time WMAQ won the 10 p.m. news race in adults 25-54 demo, Ron Magers and Carol Marin were still anchoring, ER was the hottest show on television, and Jay Leno was hosting the Tonight Show. Nineteen […]