tyrannical bastard

North Platte is the smallest market that still puts out newscasts of their own. Even Alpena has largely ceded their news to Traverse City and Sinclair, with just a short local blip in the "B" block of their 10pm show. What's the smallest market with an all-local operation these days? May be Victoria, TX since Presque Isle's WAGM now simulcasts WABI's morning show from Bangor. The buyer of KXGN would likely turn them into an affiliate of all 4 networks, much like WBKB in Alpena. Surprised Morgan Murphy hasn't taken the plunge..yet.

Thought I would check in on KXGN-TV, the only station in the smallest Nielsen market in America, in Glendive, Montana. Since the passing of owner Stephen Marks and the sale of his other TV stations to Morgan Murphy, it looks like preparations are being made to eventually sell off KXGN to another owner. According to Wikipedia, they have ended their .2 affiliation with NBC as of the end of 2024 and no longer produce any local programming in Glendive. Since the departure of Emelie Boyles, they only have done a weekly public affairs program "Let's Talk About it" that aired on Sundays. It is basically a semi-satellite for KTVQ in Billings and most of their newscasts. And this past March, the station was readying a sale at their building in Glendive selling off decades of artifacts from KXGN's existence. https://www.rangerreview.com/news/kxgn-tv-to-sell-off-treasure-trove-of-broadcasting-artifacts-ahead-of-sale-of-station/article_a07b3a08-035c-11f0-9f85-7ff9936504f1.html?utm_campaign=blox&utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&fbclid=IwY2xjawK-m0xleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFvb283dlpzaDNaNEF6dDNqAR65055XO7IRzYKwCZhx3Eg-dlCBSvzSnVNCMditQ5eGEfn8aV0qDcb_tbyy8Q_aem_yyBBO_KPIIT0VrJOtlHwsw (Based on the article, the sale was in the works and may have happened by now) We shall see what happens to KXGN. It's no longer a question of if, but WHEN... and WHO gets it? Interesting footnote. KXGN basically operates as a Central Time station, so everything (including prime time) is an hour earlier in Montana. They fill the hour at 9pm with syndication and run 10pm onward in Mountain Time until they join CBS News in progress overnight.

WJHG is down two meteorologists....Dan Nyman, and former Chief Chris Smith. They are starting a local weather website PCBWeather.com. https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2025/6/12/fired-in-florida They figured their gooses were cooked after their GM was in the same Convention & Visitor's Bureau meeting, objecting to their plans announced there.

I"m surprised it took this long for a station group to embrace such a move. It puts ABC, CBS and NBC affiliates on the same level playing field so they can compete with the FOX/CW/independent stations running local news during this time. With sports pre-emptions happening more often (as TV is putting even more second-rate sports on at primetime), a station can stream at their normal time, and just playback the complete show when the event is over, or regroup if they have to do an abbreviated show on broadcast if they are filling the time for another live event. And with network affiliations becoming more of a gamble, it's an easy move to repurpose the shows should the network drop their station. Plus, not having to wait around for a live show would cut down on overtime. If it was important enough of a story, they would be live with breaking news, anyways.

SAM was good with their pre-2006 packages. It's not the packages themselves, it's just their flagrant overuse by certain groups like Nexstar. I swear if I hear Guardian one more time... Mostly it was the whole SESAC thing which caused many stations to drop them with the rise of licensing fees. In subsequent years, with the consolidation and group-branding of stations, sameness prevailed and a good SAM theme could get maligned by a station or group that ran with something, or even used a theme to the point or boring-ness....

Since San Antonio is already set up for WXLV's newscasts, and if KTXS has transitioned to the anchorless model, it's basically some cut-ins that can be recorded and sent to wherever the newscast is being produced from. Does KTXS have their own master control or is it hubbed? The ACU setup is likely for their newsgathering crews to work out of while their building is either repaired or relocated to a new permanent facility.

The move from fully physical sets to video walls allows for more variation of looks and could be more cost-effective in the long run. And they give a sense of realism as opposed to a truly virtual setup with chroma keying.

It's not too often you see carpeting in a studio. Usually it was the news desk and stage pieces, but not the floor itself. That could be a maintenance headache unless they have a good cleaning crew. Usually the studio floor is concrete and either painted, tiled or veneered for easy cleanup and durability for movement of sets and equipment. But the sale of their "old" studio (only from 2018) is likely a cash infusion that can shelter the owners from the challenges of broadcasting, especially as an independent owner.

More Nexstar stations are adding "Plus" apps to Roku, Amazon and Apple TV including WKRG, WDTN, WJBF, WKBN, WTAJ, WHNT, WIAT, and other middle-market stations. Still some laggards like WGNO and KOLR. Even through the web sites still seem to indicate "delayed streams" of newscasts, they appear to be live now on the apps. About time! Now the question is, will Nexstar put their stations on another app like LocalNow, NewsON or Zeam? They're very much behind the curve in this regard. Sinclair is a little better with total reach on NewsON, and some reach on LocalNow and Stirr, the app they used to run but sold off last year The other groups and even the single stations / small companies like WFMJ, WRAL, WBRZ/KRGV, and KTVN/WRCB also have their stations on standalone apps and stream on sites. Nexstar is getting better but still has a ways to go. So many of the Tribune and Media General stations had better streaming options before Nexstar took over.

Aside from the Astros, Houston is not a market that Fox has a vested interest in sports-wise. The Texans are an AFC team that's had some better years but that's CBS's problem in their eyes. Wonder if the same will happen in Orlando? Austin seems to hold on despite it not having any teams of their own, but feeds on the surrounding markets like DFW, Houston and San Antonio.

Wouldn't be the first time. The Washington Post traded them for WWJ/WDIV. I think Sinclair would be more likely to sell WJLA, with their flagship up the road in Baltimore.

At the rate CBS is heading, WANF and Gray are the winners in that they don't have to pay CBS anymore for less and less content. CBS has done nothing but shoot themselves in the foot for the last several years, especially on the news side. Losing the SEC was another blow, and primetime keeps getting worse and worse. Now that WXIA gave up on the primetime news on WATL, I totally expect WANF to bring it back. And given Gray's great OTT platforms, the reach is far beyond Atlanta as cord cutters and watch WANF virtually anywhere. Since ratings and revenue don't matter anymore, CBS took their ball and went home. They'll be the 5th place operation but as long as people are paying for CBS somehow (through cable, satellite, OTT or Paramount+), they'll get all of the money from that now.

2028, for all of Tegna's CBS affiliates.

Bonus points if it ends up back on WUPA as 69.2

We have a CW55 logo!

If CW moves from 17 to 46, WPCH is one step closer to returning to it's "Superstation" roots...

WANF and Gray aren't wasting any time on the news either. I hope this is a good thing for the Atlanta viewers and not a way for Gray to assume more control of other market's stations. Many in the region were decimated in favor of regionalizing newscasts. But this was clearly an expected outcome that they've been planning for years. WHEN this happens to other stations, they may not be so lucky when they realize they have more hours of programming to fill when their network walks...

The way CBS is going now (especially with their "bombshell" in Atlanta)....Nexstar and others could be a victim of CBS pulling up stakes for whoever pays them the most.

More proof that CBS is following the money, regardless of ratings or market share. They must really be hard off thinking they can do better on their own station rather than having to extort be paid by Gray in Atlanta. Had they waited a little longer, they could have made a deal with WSB or WXIA when their deals were up. But yay! another soul-less CBS (insert city here) newscast. Maybe this time it will actually come out of Atlanta. Gray has probably seen this coming since the last renewal. And it may have been the reason they have stripped affiliate logos from many of their stations. At least they're making the effort to make something out of WANF. As for Tampa, it looks like WTSP (and all of Tegna's CBS affiliations) are locked in through 2028. Since "Coxpollo" is private, this information is not available through their annual report, so there's no word on KIRO's contract.

The true test of when CBS crosses the line of no return is when the CW overtakes it in the ratings. CBS is not what it used to be, but at least the CW under Nexstar is fading even faster towards oblivion trying to be a "catch all" network as opposed to the niche one it used to be under CBS and Warner Brothers.

It's good to see a sign of life from Scripps, especially over the last two years. Has the industry declined so far that I'm actually excited to see this package? So many of the group packages introduced over the past few years are well past their prime already, and groups like Gray haven't even finished yet....

Nexstar caves to a hollow demand of the FCC... https://thedesk.net/2025/05/nexstar-ends-dei-programs-policies/?utm_source=mailpoet#038;utm_medium=email&utm_source_platform=mailpoet&utm_campaign=Nexstar DEI Pullback

Even sadder if they cave towards the Trump administration by "bribing" them the 20 million dollars in his frivolous lawsuit against their news coverage. If that happens, CBS may as well be done for as a credible network and news organization. Even though ABC caved as well, Disney is in far better shape overall.

There has to be some dirt between Byron Allen and CBS. It's like he's extorting them to air his garbage shows on a network timeslot. After all, if his stations are now all leased down to the coffee maker and toilet paper....

As long as Matt Laubhan is still there. He's literally the James Spann of the market, even down to the suspenders! I refer to him as "James Spann Jr."