Apprentice winner and Orland Park native Bill Rancic will co-host In the Loop with iVillage, a reincarnated version of iVillageLive, a show that aired on the NBC O&O’s from Universal Studios in Orlando and flopped with viewers. The new version of the program will air live weekdays at 11 a.m. (CT) on WMAQ-TV here in Chicago from the NBC Tower. […]
The syndication business hopes that three new shows can break the losing streak the platform has had for the last few years. The most controversial of the three is Warner’s TMZ, the anti-celebrity website that has grown in popularity in the last few months. The trash-celeb show, reminiscent of Hard Copy, premieres Sept. 10 locally on Fox-owned WPWR-TV and WFLD-TV. […]
From WMAQ-TV’s (Channel 5) website this afternoon: CHICAGO — The National Weather Service in Chicago has issued a tornado warning for portions of Cook and DuPage counties. The warning is in effect until 4 p.m. CDT. At 3:09 p.m., NWS radar indicated strong rotation in a severe thunderstorm near Winfield, moving east at 50 mph. A second warning was issued […]
That’s what former Chicago Tribune television critic Steve Johnson said about WBBM-TV in the 1990s, for its tabloid-like newscasts. Today, the plan seems to be still pretty much intact. The CBS-owned turned in another pitiful performance in the recently concluded July sweeps according to Nielsen, with WFLD’s new 10 p.m. newscast tying it for third among adults 25-54 and finishing […]
One anchor sleeps with the mayor, she keeps her job; one anchor shows up at the Stebic house, she loses her job. Both employed by the same company. Something’s not connecting here. Then again, it is the world of television news, right?
Amy Jacobson, who was caught in the Stebic household two weeks ago tomorrow (thanks to a videotape shot by WBBM-TV) has settled with her former employers, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. She had four months to go on her contract. She also may be pursing legal action against WBBM, who videotaped her without consent. In that interview with the Sun-Times, […]
NBC Universal announced this morning that John Wallace will succeed Jay Ireland as president of the NBC-owned stations (Ireland took a position with GE Capital management. GE owns NBC Universal.) Wallace will report directly to NBC Universal President and CEO Jeff Zucker. NBC owns and operates ten English-language stations in New York (WNBC), Los Angeles (KNBC), Chicago (WMAQ), Philadelphia (WCAU), […]
From the blog that gave you “The NHL blows it again” and “Radio blows it again”, now we proudly present “Local media blows it again.” Yes, we now have a “blows it again” franchise. As you know by now, Amy Jacobson, a reporter for NBC-owned WMAQ-TV in Chicago was fired from her job after a video surfaced of her at […]
It’s worst enough the Chicago media has been angering everyone with the shenanigans over the Amy Jacobson- Craig Stebic controversy, and now ESPN has decided to join in, at least angering White Sox fans. In a SportsNation poll, ESPN asked viewers “Which sports team do you most associate with Chicago?” and listed were the Bulls, Cubs, Bears, and even the […]
The gloves are off in a battle over the videotape that cost a local television reporter her job. According to the Sun-Times’ Rob Feder, the general managers of the stations involved- Joe Ahern of CBS-owned WBBM-TV and Larry Wert of NBC-owned WMAQ-TV were involved in a shouting match over the phone Tuesday, regarding WBBM’s decision to air a “misleading and […]
Amy Jacobson made the media rounds today telling her side of the story, first to Robert Feder of the Chicago Sun-Times, who broke the story yesterday, and then went to WGN-AM, and talked with Spike O’Dell. Jacobson defended her actions, and criticized WBBM-TV for the way they edited the video that someone sent in to the station, to make it […]
It looks like the other shoe has dropped: WMAQ-TV has fired reporter Amy Jacobson, for her lapse of judgment and a breach of ethics after she appeared at a pool party at the home of Craig Stebic – the husband of Lisa Stebic, who has been missing for the last two months. Video of her was captured by someone who […]
What’s WMAQ-TV reporter Amy Jacobson doing at Craig Stebic’s house? Wearing that? It’s been a weird time in media lately (both locally and nationally), with firings, resignations, fake “deaths” and real deaths, and not-so-pleasant surprises. (It’s been enough to keep this blog busy, even though this weekend.) And it’s now getting weirder…. Amy Jacobson, a reporter for NBC-owned WMAQ-TV was […]
One thing Barely Today didn’t want to do is barely get viewers. As a result, NBC-owned WMAQ-TV has dropped the show and will expand its morning newscast to 4:30 a.m. starting Monday, where Barely Today previously aired. The program was hosted by Bruce Wolf, who will now be reassigned to sports anchoring and reporting duties during the morning newscast.
No, we’re not talking about former NFL coach Jim Mora talking about not going to the playoffs. But if WBBM’s newscasts were a sports team, it wouldn’t make the playoffs. And as a result, changes must be made. And so, Antonio Mora is out and Rob Johnson is in after a shakeup at CBS-owned WBBM-TV’s perennially low-rated 10 p.m. newscast. […]
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