Sinclair thought a change in administration would enable to get what they wanted. They thought wrong, but botched deal might not stop more consolidation While Sinclair Broadcasting is in trouble with the FCC on how it misrepresented itself in its proposed merger with Tribune Media, it won’t slow down the merger and acquisition activity expected. That’s because an appeals court […]
FCC Chairman has concerns about the deal; could be knockout blow – Sinclair and Tribune both pledge to fight on (Editor’s Note: Updated at 4:10 p.m. on July 17 with new information.) Even Ajit Pai is seeing through the scam. On Monday, the FCC Chairman released a statement saying he had “serious concerns” about the $3.9 billion deal between Sinclair […]
As yet another report showing the Chicago area’s African-American population on the decline, the market’s black-targeted radio stations seem to be holding their own. Even the entrance of classic Hip-Hop/R&B station 104.3 Jams (WBMX) didn’t have much of an impact on the overall share of African-Americans listening to radio in the Chicago market, though WBMX reportedly had taken audience away […]
Plus… My Network TV announces new 2018-19 lineup; Chicago Reader under new ownership; Cubs games to be streamed on Facebook As first reported by Robert Feder last week, WSCR-AM co-host Brian Hanley is being removed from his post as Mike Mulligan’s co-host and his overall role at the station reduced. There is no word on who would replace Hanley in […]
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 […]
Also: Kathy Brock calls it a career; a Sinclair station’s May ratings survives controversy; CW 50 viewers to re-scan their sets It’s an end of an era for WGN Radio. The Tribune Media-owned radio station’s on-air operations moved out of its longtime Tribune Tower digs and into a building at 303 North Wacker Drive as its former home is being […]
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 […]
Premiere is highest-rated of the season A few weeks ago, a writer from Mediapost said the return of American Idol on ABC “saved” the television industry. He might want to revise his article. In stunning news, the revival of Roseanne won big time in the ratings for ABC – averaging a 5.2 rating in the adults 18-49 demo for ABC […]
Also: “Harry” canceled; SyFy strikes deal with C2E2; Olympics underperform in Chicago, falling behind even Bears games With the holidays behind us, it was back to normal in the latest Chicago PPM radio ratings as Entercom’s new Classic-Hip-Hop station 104.3 Jams (WBMX) continuing to rack up strong numbers. Despite a slight decline from last month, WBMX finished third among Chicago’s […]
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 […]
Also: NCIS: New Orleans sold to TNT The first of Dick Wolf’s three Chicago procedural dramas is heading to broadcast syndication. NBCUniversal Domestic Television Distribution announced Monday it struck a deal to sell reruns of Chicago P.D. as a weekday strip to Fox-owned stations in eleven markets, for a September 2018 start. The deal includes Chicago’s Fox-owned CW affiliate WPWR-TV, […]
Blockbuster deal includes 20th Century Fox film studio and programming library, cable and sports networks, and more In a history-making deal, The Walt Disney Company agreed to acquire much of 21st Century Fox for $52.4 billion. The deal was speculated about for the last few weeks on this blog and elsewhere, as 21st Century Fox owner Rupert Murdoch was looking […]
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, […]
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 – […]
Interest in genre explodes as off-net debut puts up strong numbers When the news was announced Dateline NBC reruns were being sold into broadcast syndication, the idea was…laughable. After all, since Cops broke the mold in 1992 and became the first reality show to be sold into off-network syndication, others came along and weren’t exactly successful (Rescue 911, Top Cops, […]
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