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WPSD is on the move. They're going from 100 Television Lane to The Paducah Sun's headquarters at 408 Kentucky Avenue in Downtown Paducah (remember, WPSD's focus is on Paducah and Western Kentucky, WSIL's on Carbondale and Southern Illinois, and KFVS' on Cape Girardeau and Southeast Missouri). A new set is guaranteed (finally), but hopefully, new graphics, music, and everything will come with it as their current look is so 2008-old (its the only HD graphics package they've ever had). The progress is documented in a series called Making An American Newsroom. https://www.wpsdlocal6.com/making_an_american_newsroom/

And that’s all perfectly fine. But I think the sarcasm went past you with the fire thing. That’s yet another old fashioned thing to do. He isn’t actually surprised there is a wildfire there. It was a joke. The NBC clip is an example of modern robotic news…. They have all the emotion and delivery of a Vulcan. At least the Vulcan has funny hair and does the eyebrow thing at crazy statements. I would assume they don’t do a ton of happy talk there. This desire for everything to be perfectly neutral like we are putting all of these stories through some sort of arbitration is relatively new and is to some extent a reaction to a carefully crafted narrative of “bias” intended to partially neuter the media. Basically get them so scared they simply won’t report certain things. It also leads them to treat all sides as equal… all sides are never equal, rather there is some sort of spectrum to it. So if our story was about the earth being round vs. flat and a protest by flat earthers turning violent would a hypothetical station have the responsibility to cover the message of the flat earthers straight simply because it is their point of view? Or should the anchors barely contain their laughter at the idea and point out six ways to Sunday in 20 minutes of team coverage why they are wrong? And of course WABC wouldn’t be in the position it is if people watched him and exclaimed “ that biased jerk Bill Ritter is on where’s the remote????”. It’s pretty obvious the audience likes the way he does it and complaints are inside baseball or they already watch one of the other stations. If his flowery delivery and 80’s word choices verifiably cost them cash he’d be turned into a robot really fast.

I would like to point out as well that what he is doing in the fire story is the kind of thing done back 30-40+ years ago and was not only accepted but EXPECTED. People tuned in just for that kind of stuff. The movie Anchorman is partially based on and is an exaggeration of the way they talked on the air. The immigrant example is almost certainly 100% in the copy by the way. He didn’t ad lib that. It’s just an old school way of writing it. The cousin of that is the “happy talk” you get at the end of some emotionally gripping story where the anchors do some bantering back and forth giving a thought or two on it. I don’t know if every station in the world uses it but many do (did?). The flowery intro would be in the copy and then they would ad lib the comments at the end.

Not at all. That said depending who GMA replaces Strahan with, I'd be worried if I were Nate Burleson...

I agree that he kind of whips out the uh’s and ah’s and hesitations when he truly goes off script. His delivery is also a little halting in the first place and his voice isn’t gonna be blowing anybody away in authoritative depth like a deep deep baritone voice might.

With all due respect that off hand remark about immigrants is fairly widely reported and accepted as factual so it’s not exactly inserting biases into the equation. If the appeal was more emotional that would be perhaps biased. But those folks having all kinds of jobs others won’t do is a perhaps dirty but known thing. I don’t see that as in any way being inappropriate.

Lee Goldberg did the last 5pm weather hit and first 6pm weather hit from the roof. It was a pretty cool shot with the World Trade Center in the background and the sunset. He also mentioned many more angles up there and more live shots to come. Should be pretty cool

Clickspring Design is responsible for the new studio. For what it’s worth, they also designed WABC’s street side studio. Here’s a rendering of both

NBC Universal has received several tax breaks for investments made to remain and modernize at 30 Rock. They actually own many of the floors that are used, rather than leasing them from the buildings owners. 30 Rock is iconic to the network, not just the station. ABC for years was a hodgepodge of neighboring (not always connected) buildings and required doubling up use of studios. Before WABC took over the Disney Store space for their news studio, it used the same studio as Live with whoever. It wasn't the most optimized facility as the network grew and developed.

On the 11 he mentioned the screen behind the giant 7 in the weather center is meant to show the current outside weather (not a live shot but a representation) Wonder if they automated that or someone needs to manually select in which case take bets how long the feature lasts. I guess Clickspring doing both the prior and current set explains keeping elements like the big Accuweather repeater when the weather anchor is speaking from the main desk.

Those folks contributing a lot to the economy is also an objective fact. Regardless of status their working means they are contributing and the folks who are working are undoubtedly scared currently. Those are gonna be uncomfortable statements for some people but they are just like the earth being round. That’s why I used it as an example. I’m sure you can find an actual example where he really throws an opinion in there but that simply wasn’t it. Let’s say somebody gets beat up real good and he says “I hope the jerks get what’s coming!”… that might start to blur the lines a bit. I mean if you go to some corner and see folks working doing landscaping there’s at least a chance they are not legally authorized to work but it’s not reasonable to say they aren’t contributing to the economy because [insert flat earth denial reason here]. The first clip you posted didn’t actually include what you were talking about at all by the way. It seemed like a normal intro and then an ABC News sourced report about the fires. I didn’t see where he actually made an off hand remark about whodathunkit in LA. One thing I’m curious about… do you actually work in the news business?

Add the Grizzlies to the NBA OTA party.

My comments weren’t necessarily about his bias (although it’s very apparent) as much as they were about his delivery of off scripted remarks. Again, doesn’t matter what your experience is if you struggle to deliver a cohesive sentence when going off script. Liz Cho, David Navarro, Sade, Joe Torres, Mike Marza, etc. all manage to do the happy talk just fine and in a cohesive way that doesn’t leave this viewer somewhat uncertain of what the point is they were trying to make.

I happened to like having it on then based on my personal schedule. Sure it got truncated or bumped for sports semi-regularly, but it was a convenient time for some of us. There is ABC sports starting at 12:30 the next few weeks, but rather than the 1/2 hour version they used to run ahead of NBA Countdown, it’s informercials on the schedule. Oh well.

Just announced: Gayle King is going to space on a Bezos Blue Origin flight with Lauren Sanchez, Katy Perry, and others.

In my experience anchors often rewrite the intros (that producers originally wrote) in their own way. In comparison, WNBC did the same report and played it straight in the anchor intro. Even Andrew Siff acknowledged confusion over the round-up policy, without getting too subjective. Ritter's fire remark wasn't a problem, it was just funny and odd that he found it shocking for Los Angeles to be burning in a wild fire-prone state. Overall, (my opinion) flowery language (whether ad-libbed, written by producers, or edited by anchors in the copy) is OK until we start getting subjective on hard stories. And this isn't a political critique. I hate it when Rosanna Scotto problematically does this all the time on Fox 5 with her more obvious and right-leaning opinions.

Yup, noticed that too watching KNXV's 10pm news tonight which they've branded Arizona Tonight despite it not being mentioned in the listings as that just ABC 15 News at 10PM, although I know this rebranding is also taking place elsewhere around Scripps like WFTS (ABC/Tampa Bay). 20250226_221329.mp4

Scripps has begun doing a rejoin to their newscasts from the A to B block… “You’re watching 7 News Detroit (news logo up there) then the lighthouse effect and “part of the Scripps News Group” with the new Scripps logo on screen. I will say WXYZ’s quality is up a surprising amount and Scripps appears to be working fairly hard at making improvements to the product. It’s probably the best it’s been in 17 years or so. Surprising credit to them. Their new news director seems to have helped as has making their most senior reporter an “executive reporter” overseeing the other reporters as a manager. On the downside the 11pm is still recorded as are the weekend evening newscasts and it’s blatantly obvious at times because things get cut off accidentally in transitions. Better than nothing though.

They also appear to have dumped the Sunday noon news.

Speaking of awkward ad Libs, Ritter went "Who would've thought, Los Angeles on fire!" I remember myself thinking, and a YouTube commenter writing, "literally everyone" lol. Ad-libbing is one thing, inserting your personal biases into hard news stories that require straight facts is another thing. Certain jobs like a morning show host such as Mike Jerrick gives you a little room to add a little extra flair on lighter stories. But to me, tenure is not a license to editorialize. No matter how you feel about the undocumented immigrant issue, Ritter inserted his own bias when calling them "critical to our economy" in the video below. Even his tonality in "now to the confusion that is the federal round up of undocumented immigrants", Small example among many. Ritter is not alone. Gayle King does it all the time, and Rosanna Scotto is the most obvious example.

I haven’t seen the Strahan news confirmed anywhere else but if it’s happening I’d like to see them incorporate Will Reeve as a more permanent fixture on the program.

Not a bad choice considering they usually put out very good quality sets. WABC's new digs remind me of the recent NBC Nightly News set in a way just before they moved everything to Studio 1A (right down to the floating 7 in the ceiling).

I'm curious as to who did the NBC News Today 95-03 music package w/ the stingers/extended cuts?

More sponcon on WTMJ to replace Scripps News in the 3pm half-hour starting on March 10; It's a Morning Blend extension titled What's Brewing Wisconsin. This time the twist is they're doing advertorial segments...on location.

They did it a couple of days ago when they debuted the studio for the 4 pm show. Well, they did it during a going-on-break bumper shot when I had rewatched it. It was a nice aesthetic. I'd imagine they probably won't do these shots forever, so we should enjoy them while it lasts as the novelty of the new space wears off and they return to the regular live shots, etc.. It reminded me of the classic way of doing the news where they would show the anchors talking before the break, that was a nice touch. :). Regarding Bill Ritter’s ad-libs during the broadcasts, it is important to note that he is a seasoned veteran and a legendary figure in the New York market. His industry reputation allows him to incorporate these ad-libs into the show without disrupting its flow. By doing so, I think he enhances the overall value of the production. A lot of veteran anchors similarly did this, similar to Bill Beutel when he was there before he passed he had his signature closing remark at the end of the 6 pm shows in the '90s. Chuck Scarborough did the same before he departed from WNBC, and the same with retired anchor, Jim Gardner on WPVI before his departure. Bill's a sentimental and empathetic guy, you see it in his presentation and reporting, especially after 9/11 which gripped him and many of the reporters and journalists here in New York. It's not an easy market, this city requires a lot of hard work and diligence to survive here. So naturally the reporters and anchors are just raw and heavy-hearted from all the years of tough storytelling. Personally, I like the adlib it really provides a sense of authenticity to the broadcast and adds an extra level of depth and value to the show.

Somewhat, but it’s more a group of vocal wannabes who shout that some large part of the population wants that, despite evidence to the contrary, because of course they know better than anyone else. And in the cases when such an effort fails, it is because it wasn’t done the right way, or not marketed the right way, or didn’t have time or whatever combination of reasons that ensures the complainer’s theory is never actually incorrect. There’s little question there is some audience for all manner of different approaches, but not all have a sustainable financial model. What there isn’t evidence of is a large, untapped and economically workable audience for the more staid, in-depth approach on a daily basis. Maybe CBS can chart that path and find the balance in which the economics work. Maybe someone else can. Take the swing, and see what happens. But also don’t be surprised if it just doesn’t click.

Well Muir was a successful product of the test tube let’s see what happens.

Per her LinkedIn, she announced her role as an MSJ/Reporter. Although the bigger the market, the lesser frequency of MMJ/MSJing, it still sucks that elevating to market 1 is no longer an escape from one man banding.... and on a big three station not News 12.

I appreciate your affinity for NBC and USA. While this is a creative take, it doesn't consider business realities. Cable channels have dual incomes: subscriber fees from cable operators and advertising. For a long time, they were the envy of the media world, but their revenue has shrunk with cord-cutting. (One can make a pretty compelling case that the cable channel programmers have made their ratings collapse a self-fulfilling prophecy, but that's a topic for another day.) So, combining CNBC with MSNBC would eliminate a huge chunk of subscriber fees. Financially, they need to remain separate. Viewership-wise, they need to remain separate as their audiences are not similar. USA and CNBC are two of the more widely available channels, and MSNBC has consistently been among the Top 5 cable channels in primetime viewership. That's why they are all part of SpinCo. The revenue from these three will drive the new company. Lastly, there's Peacock. As noted in the separation announcement, the cable channels being spun off account for very little of the content streamed on Peacock. Bravo content does well on Peacock, so it's staying put. NBCU is focusing on broadcast and streaming. They see a profitable future in Peacock and FAST channels like NBC News Now. But I did enjoy reading your creative ideas!

New MLB scorebug

Definitely worth the 10+ year wait! This has what a lot of sets these days are lacking, DEPTH and I love it! I know lots of people will say that's because of video walls, but this shows that you can have depth and modern tech mixed in! The new desk is a huge improvement! It beats whatever that oversized one made up of two monitors was! I'll say like @MediaZone4K, the weather area might be my favorite part of the new set! The circles and the clouds are so fun! IDK if it's a duratran or a wall from the image but if it's a wall, it would be cool if they replaced the clouds with lighting/snow/etc to reflect the weather. The angled desk kind of ruins the mood though.

One big fix was the lighting! Dark: Vs brighter more even color The hollow Circle 7 with the clouds is also a great touch. My favorite element of the new set. The echo sounding mics remind me of KTRK and KABC's sound. I don't know if this is a carryover from ABC News, but the anchors asko seem to be talking very loudly. I noticed that on GMA and WNT, my assumption is it's for dramatic effect just like their overuse of breaking news.

The graphics have been leaked. I like it other then their usual cartoon characters FOX uses in NASCAR and NFL.

Breaking news in this market isn’t what it used to be… the area is improved markedly from where it used to be and crime and such is down as a result. I figure they record it in the 9pm hour if they do… they need the studio at 10 for the WMYD newscast. I’ve also seen some that were live and only sports seemed to be recorded so it’s inconsistent. The field reports are never live unless there is breaking news and that goes for the flagship 6pm newscast too. They are 100% live in studio for that one with everybody at the anchor desk. Same for the 5.

Granted, in smaller markets the 11:00 p.m. newscast is typically a regurgitation of what aired at 4:00 p.m, so it might as well be pre-recorded. But in a market as large as Detroit, where I'm sure there's news happening at night, what is to be gained from pre recording newscasts? Are they saving costs, because I'm sure the anchors are still in the building anyway for a full 8-hour shift? If news breaks won't they just keep having to add pre-recorded VOs? And what time is the newscast being recorded? I assume they do it as late as possible to avoid anything new breaking before airtime? In that case, they might as well just go live.

It was. We've known this for 7 months now. KSHB has no Chief anymore. https://www.adweek.com/tvspy/layoffs-at-scripps-kansas-city-station-chief-meteorologist-mike-nicco-out/

Dave Frankel, former Action News weatherman and reporter, dead at 67. https://6abc.com/post/fmr-action-news-weathercaster-reporter-dave-frankel-dies-67/15957608/