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Apparently Kayla Ayres spent all of 2 months at KPRC before this move. How long does she stay at WJZY before the next big thing comes along?

Y'all might want to check in on the news at nine tonight. Steve Sanders was off at midday, filling in right now at 4 and 5, so I'd assume he'll pop up on his old stomping grounds later on. I forget, has he anchored the 9 o'clock show since he left? I know he's done a few reports in-studio.

Rob just debuted, reporting in-studio on the top story at 4:30. By the way, Ron is off, but Ravi is filling in at 5, so they're not going nuts with this...like we are...like I am.

Hell, John Drury did the 10 exclusively for 8 years, and he pushed it til he was 75. Thinking about all the potential musical chairs, I've finally figured out Hosea Sanders' role in all of this. He's this generation's Joel Daly. They both were anchors of other broadcasts that were slipping in the ratings, and in an effort to keep them while bringing in new blood, management installed them on brand-new broadcasts alongside Linda Yu. Both were non-factors when discussing personnel moves and shifts. Also, both aren't used as fill-ins on the 10pm news, despite their availability.

To the first question... Hell. Yes. To the second, that is entirely possible. I also wonder if they'd go the same route as the main network, where the veteran is passed over for the prime slot, but still assumes the role of principal anchor, even if it's only a title considering the nature of local news. Ultimately, it all depends on the kind of stability the bosses want down the road. Due to his long tenure, Alan might be more inclined to retired at 60 or 40 years or something. If they want someone to man the desk for 20 years, then Rob/Terrell/Ravi (anything's possible) are the better option. Prediction: Ron cuts back to one newscast within by the fall. If he leaves the 5, Rob is installed on the next broadcast.

Rehearsals have begun... [ATTACH]1546.IPB[/ATTACH]

I've been thinking about it. Rob doesn't need to succeed Ron to be stepping up from NBC5. Sure, you could ask why he'd go from #2 at one station to #2 at another, but was we he really second banana at WMAQ? Anytime Stafford was off, Dick Johnson would cover the later shows like 4 times out of 5. Also, NBC's leadership seems high on Stefan Holt, which might set Holt up to succeed Stafford (whenever, no rush), leaving Elgas in the cold. Back at 7, even with the new hire, I'd say Krashesky is next in line after Magers. While that might not rationalize the move, Elgas would likely front two newscasts compared to the single broadcast he left, and be on a more solid track to succeed Krashesky, in a similar time frame as if he stayed behind Stafford.

Giangreco's wearing pants tonight.

I follow Cheryl on social media, and she was away for the weekend. Jerry did the the 4, 5 and 6, but Cheryl was back in time for the 7. If it's just a one day absence, one will do all five shows for the other. If it's like a whole week, Phil does the 4/6 for a few days (depending on who's off).

Cheryl was off on the early shows, so is sticking around late and they're using her with Jerry at 10. It's the new normal on stormy nights. End of story.

NBC wasn't really a problem, though, until after Elgas left. I'm not saying he inhibited their success, but, outside of a few short-lived spikes, WMAQ wasn't officially considered as a serious threat til May. So far, despite the song and dance that went down months ago, Elgas is being very well-received on ABC 7's Facebook page.

I think Hosea's anchor status is dependent on existence of the WCIU deal. If that ends (at some point, anyway), I think he'll continue with the station. They're clearly trying to build him up as a Theresa Gutierrez/Harry Porterfield-esque features reporter and program host.

Holy shit... http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/7495-rob-elgas-joins-abc-7-as-reporter-anchor Remember the last time someone was hired as a fill-in? I had a sinking feeling this might happen, but was crossing my fingers that it wouldn't. That said, I do like Rob, more than Cheryl Scott. If I were in charge, he'd be being set up to fill the evening void when Magers retires and KRASHESKY GETS PROMOTED. I know, where would that leave Hosea, he's continue in his current role, as I don't think he's a long-term option to maintain the strong evening roster. Ron mentioned several times on the radio that he saw himself going another 2-3 years. This was more than a year ago. Feder's also been very quiet, which intimidates me more.

Of course each station is trying to one up the others. Twenty years ago saw stations entering the morning and midday slots with weekend mornings following soon after. In the last ten years, as the network morning shows became the powerhouse revenue streams, the local stations became more competitive in the dawn hours. Stations that debuted with only 30-60 minutes in the late 80s have expanded backward to 4:30 and even 4am. Big three affiliates (especially on the east coast) are limited by the early morning network newscasts, and if expanding to more than 3 hours, have to start hiring more on-air talent. With weekdays hitting their limit, the attention is now on weekends. I'll just speak for Chicago, where 4 of the 5 affiliates air weekend morning news, with one only on for an hour each day, another for 3, and the other two for 4 or more. The latter three that I mentioned all start at 5am. Sure, they can put on infomercials and stuff, but airing news at that hour might even be cheaper, and more profitable.

Apparently Hosea Sanders is available to fill in in any time slot. Any other time Stacey would just go solo on a Saturday morning, but the former morning anchor is joining her today.

Now that you mention it, I haven't seen them together in months. And they never say the other is off. All in all, I wouldn't say it's a big issue, as that newscast is so low-rated and lightweight. It's not really worth having two anchors. One of two competent anchors is better than two incompetent every day.

Considering he'll be fronting 4 newscasts/2.5 (or 3?) hours in the evening, I can't imagine that he would.

Well, I guess moving Ukee to evenings isn't a terrible move. That's about it.

It boggles my mind how bosses think mass firings like this are a good idea. In these large markets, this kind of BS seems to fly only on the ratings-starved CBS-owned stations. This notion that if the personalities go away, the problems will go with them is very one-dimensional, and really only alienates the viewers that are still around. Look at the infamous 1996 WCBS "massacre". More than a half-dozen anchors and reporters were unceremoniously dumped between newscasts, leading to more than a decade of rotating anchor chairs and formats, and general instability that didn't give viewers anything to adjust to. (Terrible grammar, I know. It's late.) Many say that the flagship STILL hasn't recovered. Similar dismantling took place at Chicago sister WBBM in 2008, and like with WCBS before, the already poor ratings only became pathetic. I'm no expert on these sorts of things, and I understand TV is a different kind of animal, but I do think there has to be superior ways of conducting such dismissals. Let them say goodbye on the air, drop an anchor every few months, I don't know, but pulling the rug out only tells me that this station's bosses don't care for their employees, and to a certain extent, their viewers, and is willing to give a big "screw you" to both, just to say they made their mark and that they tried.

Jerry's usually in the weather center by the end of the 5 o'clock show and Cheryl had just wrapped up, so they're both around. It's not like they dragged in either of them at a really off hour. Besides, after everybody in town screwed the pooch this time two weeks ago, nobody's taking any chances, and doing their best to avoid getting caught with their pants down.

Shame on ABC for promoting the English alphabet!

Yeah, WFLD's biggest problem has always been WGN. For over a decade, Fox 32 News Chicago put out a very respectable product. The years when Robin and Walter (and later Mark) anchored were arguably successful. They did well in the demo and beat Steve and Allison on 9 in total viewers on many occasions. It was a lot flashier and more tabloid than their competitor, but it was rarely unpleasant, and fit well with the network's image at that time. I watched often, especially on weekends. At some point, and other Fox O&Os can attest to this, the parent company became more hands-on, the economy began to slide, and changes were made that cheapened and soured the product. Right now, the best we could hope for is stability and quality in their product. Unfortunately, the big bosses are concerned enough to meddle, but not concerned enough to make a quality effort in rebuilding, but instead throw more and more shit at the wall (and the viewer), to see if anything sticks. They won't begin to make any positive changes until viewers come back, but no one will come back until they see change. It's a vicious circle, and no one seems interested in getting off the ride. Why spend money to improve quality without a guarantee of ratings improvement, when it's just easier and cheaper to let them flail helplessly in the dust being kicked up by WGN.

I like the new open and headline tease better. The 8am L3s are better than the old and the new. The new color scheme is better than the old.

Yes. It's on the picture, actually.

Not surprisingly, Windy City Live has been preempted for storm coverage. Hosea and Judy are anchoring from 190 North, with Terrell in the field.