Jase

Let the speculation begin as to her replacement. My guess is Cheryl will pick up 6 & 10, with Judy taking the 7 from Cheryl, and Tanja taking the 11am from Judy.

I agree with this. Having Alan & Cheryl @ 5,6 & 10 would be best and put them in line with WMAQ and WBBM (not that this matters) in terms of having the same pair on during those time periods. Really no need to give the 6 to Judy.

I debated on which station thread to put this in. They nearly switched places, because they also know that this seating arrangement just isn't right. They did an interview and cooking segment, in addition to talking about Linda's new show, and they haven't missed a beat. They should've had Caplan do the weather. He was on the panel at 9am.

It was great to see Sylvia, Linda and Mike together at 9A. They went all out for this reunion w/ Linda (live at 9A and Noon, pre-taped segment, cooking segment, etc..).

I might be the only one, but I'm starting to get tired of the constant speculation and fear-mongering regarding this deal. Feder brings it up every other week it seems, but really only offers "what-ifs" and ominous predictions. Is that really helpful?

You're not alone about getting tired of this whole Sinclair ordeal. I think we have reached the point that we have to let things play out and stop the daily 'Sinclair is evil' debate. It's not like we're going to forget that Sinclair has done/will do some shady stuff nor are they going to suddenly stop doing said shady stuff. You're right about Feder too. He was at it again today.

I'm not sure what (if anything) WGN management said to Hoover, but his tweet remains up/visible. I'm guessing the reprimand was that he doesn't make any further tweets, comments and the like in the future.

[MEDIA=twitter]980809034562404353[/MEDIA]

Looks like WGN is trying to get ahead of any Sinclair resistance that may be building up.

http://www.robertfeder.com/2018/04/03/chicagos-peril-wgn-tries-keep-lid-sinclair-resistance/

Derek Dalton named new GM at WBBM

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-cbs-2-new-gm-20180403-story.html

Kriste is going night side per her ig post

I’m assuming to work the ‘Live Desk’ @ 5 and report @ 9P?? Guess we have to wait and see on Monday. I wonder if she’ll bump Sylvia as #2 (Dawn’s backup). If so, I’m not liking that idea.

Despite not making any significant accomplishments during his tenure, I would give kudos to Kiernan for being on this long.

He gets no kudos from me. He was lucky enough to work for a GM who was just as ineffective as he was. Then when she bails, so does he. Couldn’t even wait until a new GM is named or, at the very least, a month before leaving. Quite the leader he is.

Don't judge me, but what the hell is Channel 2 doing with their top met spot? As hard as it was to bid adieu to Steve Baskerville, at least I was reassured they'd be rotating fill-ins until a permanent replacement was named. Instead, Mary Kay Kleist has shifted to weeknights (every single weeknight) and newcomer Robb Ellis fills-in for Mary Kay on weekends.

I don't think they have much control at the local level to make decisions. If I'm not mistaken, NYC (corporate) has the ultimate say. Also, Ed was sidelined/off-air for like 2+ years unable to go anywhere (he was still under contract) before they brought him back. My guess is that someone doesn't think too highly of him and that's why he wasn't named Steve's successor much less shifted to weekend nights temporarily to fill in for Mary Kay.

Anthony Ponce is coming back inside from the car, going head-to-head with his big brother. No word on where that leaves that other lady, who's so memorable that I can't think of her name.

 

http://www.robertfeder.com/2018/03/13/robservations-anthony-ponce-parks-fox-32-morning-show/

 

Kristen Nicole is the name that you're looking for. Maybe she takes over for Anita (who then goes back to just reporting) or Kristen goes back to GDC Weekends where she started when she came to WFLD. They needed another guy on the mornings and Anthony is a solid pick.

Actually, no they wouldn't. They are piling on Sinclair, even though Nexstar donated to Hiliary Clinton during the 2016 election cycle.

In actuality, they gave more to republicans than democrats that year and didn't directly, to my knowledge, ask their employees for political contributions. Again, I don't think media/broadcasting/communication companies should have a PAC.

Ouch. I’m sure 32 or 26 will pick her up. Hope she finds new work soon.

I think 32 is not an option given they already have Brittney on board. But she would be a perfect addition to 'the JAM' on 26.

Apparently she has landed a gig on 100.3 WSHE as their afternoon drive personality along with Jay Stiles... at least she landed on her feet... she starts March 29th...

Not surprised someone picked Jenny up. I'm still unclear as to why WFLD let her go in the first place. Her replacement brings nothing to GDC and can't even finish reading the map/travel times most days.

I thought Tom Negovan to be ambitious enough to go after the primary anchor chair. Not that being a senior reporter is a bad thing.

 

Just a thought, but I'm wondering if Larry ever had a conversation with their news director to discuss the possibilities of replacing Suppelsa...

I'm sure Tom is ambitious, but who really wants to be tied to the anchor desk all day? Rafer (WFLD) only anchors Friday and Saturday and unlike his predecessor, Scott, has never worked the Live Desk @ 5P and spends most of his time out in the field.

From Tom's bio- 'When Mark’s busy, you’ll find Tom filling in on WGN Evening News and WGN News at Nine and Ten alongside Micah Materre. But truth be told, he’d rather be out covering a story.' That pretty much speaks for itself.

I'm guessing Larry was asked/considered, but probably likes the shift he has. In by 4A out by like 10-11A isn't a bad deal. Get to spend a great deal of time/one's day with the family.

I'm not too surprised by this. I don't think Tom likes anchoring (he would rather be out in the field) and Ben is B team material (C team imo, but..). Larry and Dan were not moving off of mornings for obvious reasons. Steve wasn't going back to evenings and the weekend guys were staying on the weekends.

Of course...

The corporation asked nicely for a donation.

 

However the union just took it (your money)...as a condition of employment.

 

A donation is not mandatory in the case of Sinclair and it's desired pac. A union member has NO choice as to where the dues go, and for what "cause".

 

As you were.

Let me put it this way.. A corporation, in this case, a media/broadcasting one, has a lot more influence/power than a labor union and can push their political agenda (whether it's pro-right/left/up or down) out to a lot more people. As overly-idealistic as this may sound; I just don't think it's a good idea for a corporation to ask for a 'donation' or a union to use dues towards anything political. Decisions like that should ultimately be left up to an individual.

And despite what SCOTUS says, a corporation is not an individual.

Back to you Jim.

Like labor unions do?

I wouldn’t put a labor union in the same boat as a corporation.

I have to agree. However I do miss Greg Kelly. One thing I wish they'd stop doing is that "panel" with all of them at 9am on Fridays. I like that they bring them all together but it feels too much like the view.

WFLD does their own version of FNC' 'Outnumbered' during their 9A hour, so it's not uncommon to see this type of stuff.

This isn't a big deal in my mind. Many companies have PACs and just because Sinclair leans right it becomes a big deal. I guarantee if any of you work for any large corporation like Sinclair (broadcasting or not), they will have a PAC of their own that they will want you to donate to.

 

I'm not a huge fan of Sinclair but nobody can seem to give them a break. I guarantee if any left-leaning broadcaster did this nobody would give a da*n.

No media/broadcasting corporation should, directly or indirectly, have a PAC and/or ask their employees to contribute to said PAC regardless of political affiliation. While it may seem like people are piling on Sinclair; believe me that they would be just as critical if this was Comcast, AT&T, Disney, etc...doing the same thing.

I believe the Friday night show has been 30 minutes since the Bears show restarted for this season. That's about the time Rafer and Sylvia became Friday night anchors, and Corey and Dawn took Sundays. With that show over, they either reinstated a 2nd half hour of news, or figure out another option. Now we know that they chose the latter.

They have cut the Friday 9P newscast short before (normally during ratings periods) to run special programs (i.e Chicago at the Tipping Point, Inside the Bears, etc..), so it's unclear if 'Fired Up' will become a regular thing. Feder often complains/points out that WFLD does this to fudge their ratings #s.

highly doubt they are remodeling the set during sweeps... whatever you see now are probably all the changes that are going to be made...

 

if it aint changed by the minute the opening ceremonies end on friday it aint getting changed...

In theory, they could do whatever/whenever they want. It’s not like the Winter Games are here in Chicago. Just because it’s sweeps means nothing. They are due for a remodel and could easily do what they have to do over the next several weeks without interruptions to their newscasts. Again, no one said a remodel is officially happening only that it APPEARS something more significant is taking place.

Wideshot for reference...

 

So what do we think will happen with the rest of the set? Are they going to strip out all of the wood and make everything match this area?

I am assuming that will be the case (remove the wood, etc...) to make everything match, but they have had sets in the past that didn't have a cohesive overall look, so who knows??

It's a little hard to tell. Are the blue panels see-through to the newsroom? If so, I kinda like that. I wonder if that area might become a temporary anchor set if the main desk area gets a makeover.

With the overall set/space being super small, they couldn't shove the desk over there. If the plan is to stay in place while they remodel, the best option would be to go to the opposite side (between the chroma key wall and weather center). That would give the cameras enough room to move around. Or they could throw up some blue panels behind them during each newscast to cover whatever they plan to do to that part of the set. Guess we have to wait and see what, if anything, happens.

I am a little surprise they didn't just go upstairs to the old Steve Harvey studio temporarily and take care of everything at the same time.

The color scheme feels so WBBM, and not in a good way, IMO.

I can live with the color. I just hope this is a temporary setup and they plan to do more to finish off this space. If not, this is a wasted opportunity and a huge step backwards.

Here’s the updated stand-up area. Again, this could mean more changes are coming to the rest of the set.

February 2018

Was the stand up area in the corner to the viewer right of the desk?

Yes and upon further review (i just watch the 6P), it looks like they may be (again, i say MAY BE) remodeling the entire set (excluding the weather center??) in phases rather than all at once. I have to watch again at 10p and tomorrow at 4A to get a better sense of things and hopefully some more pics too.

February 2012 (Set Debut)

2017

I also thought they had a monitor wall directly next to the weather center but it’s been covered by a chroma key wall.

It's been awhile since I watched an NBC5 newscast, so maybe it's been like this for some time, but when did they update the studio lighting and remodel the stand-up area of the set?

The lighting upgrade, I don't know, but I would guess several months back. I personally notice no real difference, but I have poor eyesight, so...yeah.