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But no Lisa McRee and Kevin Newman? Dis. A. Pointing. Frankly, I totally forgot that the anniversary was coming up. I do wonder, though, why they're celebrating to late compared to the 30th anniversary. That was on like November 3rd in '05.

Mark just let the cat out of the bag on the radio that virtual weather graphics, including the "7-day coming out of the floor", are on the way. Those are likely the other changes down the line that Phil alluded to on opening night. Oh, and "everything's made of glass. I have to wear pants now...and underwear."

You want a scaled-back, no nonsense, simple promo? Well... I wonder if they were going were a 'This is SportsCenter'-type vibe with this one, because it sort of reminds of the simplicity of those commercials. It's a shame, though, that Krashesky wasn't in it, as he's shown in other spots that he can actually sing. (He was off the day this was shot.)

Yeah, that could work.

According to a quick search, the secondary definition of 'fore' is "the front part of something, especially a ship". Honestly, that totally sounds like a word Ron would use (and in the correct context), but yes, a more common phrasing would've been ideal. Heck, 'forefront' (the leading or most important position or place) would've made a similar point, in a form more people would understand.

Heck, they had 5 reporters out there. Ron and Cheryl were all by their lonesome to close the 5 o'clock news. I have to admit, I'm really beginning to like Rob Elgas's field anchor-like role they've had him in for Cubs coverage and stuff. His field work is very good, though I am warming up to him in the studio.

What the actual f*ck?

I kindly respect your opinion, but you're clearly not willing to have a legitimate, educated, mature debate on the issue, so I'll just say...SECURITY!

Windy City Live's has been upgraded to the new O&O layout, and it's now folded into the station's website. That said, the windycitylive.com url still works. I think the header looks really nice in orange, and I also like that the bottom of the page still connects to the news links. 190north.com has also been given a similar treatment.

With Cubs playing the Mets, the friendly waters have begun between WLS and WABC. Kelly and Michael challenged Ryan and Val to a pizza bet, but the really high stakes were set by the weekend morning news teams. What's on the line? [MEDIA=twitter]655378012666368000[/MEDIA] [MEDIA=twitter]655444650392690688[/MEDIA] No word on what WLS would get in return.

They always mention the score, even if without video. They get lumped in the briefs with the WNBA and MLS. This won't change anything. The Hawks' affiliate is in Rockford, and the Wolves feed into St. Louis, ironically. No.

WLS will usually feature video from a game or two a week, usually from the same team that's featured on the morning newscast flyover/live shot. Back in the day, Mike Caplan would do weather at 4 from some school's pre-game. They do have some partnership with a lesser-known site for prep coverage, too, and it'll be mentioned in a OTS with a few scores/results rattled off. However, that seems to hold off til later in the season. I know the Tribune trio has rather comprehensive coverage, though the radio and newspaper presence is strongest, with WGN only making a few mentions, most often on Instant Replay on Sundays. I can't really speak for the other stations, though. Oh, and with the Wolves coverage, they have nothing to do with the production. What goes out over the air is the stadium graphics package with the same set of broadcasters, no matter the channel. I know WPWR 50 had games in previous years, and I'm pretty sure 5.2 carried matches back in the Nonstop days.

Apparently ABC 7 is airing two Chicago Wolves (AHL) games on 7.2 this season, the first of which was tonight. WCIU carries 3 games as a part of a separate deal, but the vast majority air on 26.2, The U Too. http://www.chicagowolves.com/2015/10/14/wolves-and-abc-7-chicago-announce-broadcast-agreement/

Okay, I'll gladly clarify my statement. Arrogance is rarely good, I'm just saying that when you promote yourself as #1, a certain level of arrogance is unavoidable. It's the same as getting too comfortable in the position, which WLS did. To my eyes, the NBC 5 of today is comparable to ABC 7 in its prime (let's say like 2005-09), in terms of delivery and tone. That format is working for them, and it's a method that ABC 7 hasn't entirely abandoned. Hiring former WLS leadership is also going to strengthen the notion that NBC is finding success with the ABC formula. I'm also not saying doing so is straight-up copying, and I certainly don't think it's a bad way to go. That said, with this bit of success, the tone of WMAQ's recent promos and advetisements have reminded me of the work that WLS has used in previous years. Everything our new friend hates about ABC is slowly creeping into NBC's product (so is the nature of the business), so his/her comments border on being a bit hypocritical. But that's just my opinion.

There's a new Ron promo today that is only like 15 seconds. Much better than the Kathy and Cheryl spots. It's much more concise and well-written. To paraphrase, he says that Eyewitness News has been #1 for a long time, but they never forget that they have to earn the viewers' trust. Nice and simple.

There's a faction on the internet (though it might be just one person) that spams blog posts, Facebook updates, YouTube videos, and other forms of social media with the message that ABC 7 sucks donkey butt (which would be more creative than their normal attacks) and NBC 5 is the second coming. Frankly, I'm surprised it took til now for them to reach here. Ironically, the WMAQ they love and praise so much has not built itself as alternative to WLS, but as a near copy. I will admit, there are many things being done at NBC that are superior to ABC, but this so-called arrogance by 7 is at least warranted, as being #1 for 30 years gives them some right. NBC 5 has been on its way up for like 2 years, has yet to become the established top dog, and yet they're beginning to show the same "arrogant, hostile, and snotty" attitude as the supposed hell-spawns at 190 North. Oh, and these rabble rousers think that Allison Rosati is second to God, which automatically kills any credibility they have. (So glad I found that emoji online)

I just noticed there's another Kathy commercial, and it seems really cobbled together, almost as if it wasn't supposed to make it to air. It's of a different subject matter than her other one, but it's not as visually-pleasing as the first. The Ron promo is definitely best in the set. It'll be interesting to see if Mark and Jerry get their own spots. They have before, so it wouldn't be unprecedented.

"I need to shave my back and glue it on my chin." -Mark Giangreco, Professional Wordsmith

I thought I'd mention that the station rolled out two other versions of the new 10pm campaign, these led by Kathy Brock and Cheryl Burton. While Ron's emphasized experience, Kathy's focuses on chemistry, and Cheryl's talks about community.

WGN's 1.8 drop from 9 to 10 likely helped 7, but (without numbers in front of me) I'd estimate WBBM lost at least 2-3 points at 10. Combine those losses and that pretty much accounts for 7's increase. But all that is just simple logic, ignoring a lot of other factors. By the way, The Tonight Show almost assuredly plays a role in WMAQ's success.

I think I've figured out ABC 7's problem. They haven't lost viewers to NBC 5 as much as viewers have lost loyalties to any specific channel. I think the 9 o'clock lead-ins are also more important now than ever before...sort of, anyway. If you look at CBS 2, they had almost 40,000 more (about 1.1 points) viewers than normal, with a strong 9 o'clock rating (though they still lost a bunch). NBC 5 logged a 8.5 at 9, and dropped only 0.2 at 10. ABC 7, with a crappy repeat lead-in only notching a 3.3, added a whopping 4.3 when the news rolled around. WGN, on the other hand, has been very steady at 10, rarely deviating from a rating in the high 2's, all with the same lead-in every night. I don't know that any large segment of viewers are avoiding any station in particular, but instead not reaching for the remote as much.

Willie has been rumored to be moving to primetime on MSNBC...supposedly.

We've discussed it before, and general consensus is that they're preparing to hire a new fifth meteorologist to fill the void when Jerry retires (likely within a year).

Ben and Stacey are a very physical anchor team. [MEDIA=instagram]8swQFap41O[/MEDIA]

If WNBC ever decides to upgrade to V.2 of Look F, reformatting would be a part of the deal.