24994J

Nope, my math is bad. It was 8 hours. Either way, they beat NBC 5 by a few minutes, so technically, it was a victory...in the poorest sense of the term. Is it wrong that I found channel 7's coverage to be entertaining at times? Besides the fact that I'm a meteorology student, something about the coverage was pleasing to watch. By the time they had been on 6+ hours, all the studio personnel loosened up, and somehow it calmed the mood. To be clear, they weren't making fun of the situation, but they were clearly enjoying their work and the company of each other. THAT is why they're Chicago's #1 news. Oh, and I think the weekend evening team might be my favorite anchor line-up at the station.

They just went off, ten minutes short of 9 hours. All Chicago stations are done for the evening...until 9 and 10.

5 Anchors. 4 Meteorologists. 2 Sportcasters. Nearly all the reporters in the station's arsenal. Hour 8 of storm coverage continues... By the way, how often do TV stations use a 32-year anchor as a social media reporter? :lol:

At last check, Ravi called in saying he was en route from the south suburbs to the north suburbs, with the ultimate goal to getting to the station about now. Karen tweeted the commute was a disaster. Mike has now replaced Troy, and Jerry called in saying he was going to try to get in from Lemont during the quiet periods. I figured I should mention, WBBM and WMAQ's morning anchors and meteorologists are still on, as are Jim Williams and the ENTIRE NBC 5 Storm Team. Jordan and Bange are now on WGN, and Bellis and Strehl are anchoring Fox's coverage, but they've only broken in a few times, while the others have been wall-to-wall. Update: Johnson and Jiggetts have taken over on 5. Most of the sports reporters at the stadium are pulling weather duty, while a few stations have reporters outside the facility.

I've tried to be polite through all of this, but I'm going to stray from that philosophy for a moment. We have taken your opinion for what it's worth. Many times. You're entitled to it, and we all pretty much respect that. My main problem, and others will agree, is that on MULTIPLE occasions we've voiced our opinions, only to be shot down by you. In several instances, we've all given our two cents, without any encouragement for a rebuttal, but you've repeatedly come back (almost instantly) with your opinion, as if it's the law. If we've given our two cents, you've given a dollar forty nine. After several rants, your views have become watered down, and frankly, most of us don't care anymore. Sometimes less is more. This is one of those times. Some have said you need help, and I even came to your defense, because despite our disagreement on this issue, I feel it's a bit harsh. However, I take great offense at the notion that many of us, myself in particular don't care. I care about this issue very much. I've aired my grievances, and let the words speak for themselves. If someone cares about my opinion, that's great, if they don't, I'm not losing sleep over it, and I'm sure as hell not going to shout it from the rooftops, in case people didn't hear me the first time. I started this thread a few months ago as a way to keep track of the changes at WLS, but I never intended for it to become so derailed by the constant bashing of the station's current management. And I'm not saying that John Idler and Curtis Miles haven't made mistakes. They have. I think they got rid of the wrong anchor (I said it before, I don't feel the need to say it again), and I do think they didn't make the best decision regarding the theme (again, it's been said). However, I'm man enough to not piss on a man's personal integrity at every turn. Is his a different management style than Ms. Barr's? Certainly, but nothing...NOTHING he's done warrants the repeated personal attacks. For every time you call him a dumbo bastard, I come closer to realizing that you, in fact might be the bastard. Is that harsh? By your standards, I would think not. Now, I've thoroughly enjoyed my time here at TVNT. In my opinion, the things I've learned here have more value than just about any degree in the field. I've only been around here a little more than three years, so I realize I don't have any seniority, but I do have common sense. This, my friend, is a community, and I think there's a certain level of respect expected from each member. Now, this post certainly hasn't been very respectful and I apologize to everyone else, but a look at my history would show that this is a rare occurrence, and I'll be damned if it happens again. Your recent outbursts have bordered on been obnoxious, and yes it's 2AM, but I feel it was an appropriate time to dish out some tough love. If this post bothers you, and I don't blame you if it does, take it up with me. It's not right to drag others into the fold, though I guess I already did. You might consider trying to twist my words around, and try to find an instance where I may have contradicted myself. I assure you, I probably have, but it's not going to bother me. I won't let it bother me. With all that said, I will return to Earth. We've all heard your opinion, and I'm sorry the last three weeks have been rough, but it's time to move on. I'm not telling you to let it go, but for the sake of the sanity of those who post here and the image others on the outside world have of us, please don't repeat your stance again. I'm not trying to step on any toes or get in the way of the moderators; they are a mighty bunch whose leadership shall not be questioned, but I think I speak for almost everyone when I say it's time to pull back. To be clear, I'm not trying to bully you, and I encourage you to continue contributing, but we all must remember that everyone's opinion counts at face value...and it should not be abused. To quote a member here, I implore you to "take [that] for what it's worth". I'll probably regret this rant in the morning, but I guess I had to vent. I'm not looking for a response to this post, and I encourage you to honor that. It would be a nice change of pace. Good night, y'all.

WSYR morning anchor Tanja Babich has been hired by WLS in Chicago as a reporter/fill-in anchor. She begins next year. http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/6124-wls-tv-hires-tanja-babich-as-reporter-substitute-anchor

So, there was mention that WLS was looking to hire a reporter and fill-in anchor. This has been confirmed with the hiring of 32 year-old Tanja Babich. The Canadian-born U.S. citizen comes from WSYR in Syracuse. She's a 2005 Cornell grad (government) with her 2007 masters from Northwestern (journalism). She'll debut in January. http://chicagoradioandmedia.com/news/6124-wls-tv-hires-tanja-babich-as-reporter-substitute-anchor I looked her up on YouTube, and I'm optimistic. The top two results are of her doing a cooking segment, and a public television report from when she was in Evanston. In the former, she's not obnoxious, and in the latter, she seems competent. Time has likely helped improve her delivery. Yes, those are my criteria for a news anchor; competent and not obnoxious.

Okay, I have NOOOOOOOO idea where this one came from. The social media portion of the bug turned red...for 30 seconds. The regular blue was in place before and after sports at 5, but it was red after the 'WN' preview. They went to commercial with it, but closed the show with the blue. Pointless, irrelevant, but completely baffling...

Moving on from things, here's a fun one. This is my nominee for 'Live Shot of the Year'... (Note to self: propose an untelevised award show...'The TVNTs') https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=751178471563299&set=vb.594277073920107&type=2&theater

Not cool, man. While I don't agree with him on a few points, he's more than entitled to his opinion. All of us here have our passions, quirks, and interests. There's absolutely no reason to diss someone for it. If I said half of the things on my mind at any given time, I'd be the one needing therapy.

Even in its weakest form (KGO, like 3 years ago), the circle 7, while overused, cannot be topped or replaced.

Precisely. If a Twitter graphic is used and no one watches it, does it really air?

Yeah, WFLD has been doing the Twitter ticker for awhile now. Unfortunately, it has now all-but replaced the news ticker entirely, and it runs during all newscasts. Trust me when I tell you, you will quickly come to hate it.

The reviews for 'Chasing New Jersey' are in! "[...] it's there" -Mrtraveler01

And they screwed the pooch on the 11pm open...they showed the old, short open.

That seriously makes no sense...NONE! Lee learned to keep his clothes on, what gives?

I'm going to say something, and you might be a little surprised. I disagree with you on many of your points, but I do appreciate knowing your final assessment of all of this. Now, I'm not looking to debate anything, I think we can agree to disagree, and be gentlemen on the matter. That said, I still insist that it's not Idler's intent to destroy the station. It literally makes no sense. Including Idler, four managers have been in place during the nearly 3-decade run as number one, and no one wants to be the one to lose it. Sure, they've recently lost some ground, but I really don't think that's anyone's fault. ANYONE. It's just the nature of the business. There are high points, low points, and the transitional periods. The latter is where I believe WLS currently sits. Whether that's still dropping or back rising, I'm not sure. The other stations in town (save for one) have become more competitive, and are testing the strength of the Circle 7. It's a generational cycle, but I think channel 7 still has years before there's anything to truly be worried about. They're not going to win every slot everyday, that's just how it goes. Back to the boss. He's made several mistakes, for sure. There are many words I'd use for him...aloof, conforming, (somewhat) insensitive, even lazy, but most of all NAIVE...certainly not bastard (which I kinda think is a little immature, but to each his own). Again, why would anyone want to destroy a station? I don't think that he's trying to ruin everything as much as he doesn't properly understand the history. Yes, a lot of supposed "research" was done, and you'd think somewhere along the line Idler and Miles would've picked up some stuff, but they didn't. For that, I call them lazy and oblivious, but I maintain that none of this is malicious. He was good enough that Barr employed him, I'd like to think that would count for something. Again, lazy and oblivious, not "no-good dirty lowdown bastards". That's probably a little more than harsh, and even on an adult-driven forum like this, a tad unprofessional and inappropriate. As for Miles, he has his presentation style, it is what it is. I'm not too thrilled with his moves, either. As for the changes...for me, most of it is some little things. For you, it's one big thing. I wholeheartedly agree that the music usage is messy. The late shows are fairly consistent, but the update lacks the personality of the '92 package. I'm mostly satisfied with the opens. They look good, the wording is a little odd, but the cuts work. The PM talent opens are, to my taste, close enough to the original to warrant a half thumbs-up from me. The mornings are especially rough, though. The short open still sounds crappy with how it cuts off suddenly. The talent open, like the later shows, is pretty good. I don't like the use of NS2K13+ (that's what I'm calling it) for the morning bumpers, but I don't really like the bumper to start with. In turn, I don't really like the evening close. The EWN cut used for the morning close is pretty sweet. It's a little outdated, and it's not a theme we're used to on WLS, but it's got substance. Overall, I still think they could've done worse. I do appreciate that they didn't COMPLETELY switch to Eyewitness News. I'll miss the old packages, but I'll get used to it (I already have, and that disappoints me greatly). In terms of graphics, they are what they are. There's clearly a lot of common features seen on other ABC stations, but this is, without a doubt its own package. A little resemblance across the station group is one thing, and standardized graphics are another. I'm glad ABC appears to be sticking with the former. Some of the animations are pointless, or at minimum overdone, but that's just the nature of graphics these days. Most of it is quick, quite fluid and looks decent, unlike WABC's which is WAAAAAAAAAAAY overdone. Look at the 2005 package, it fit the style of that time just as much as the new look does. For my money, WLS is still putting out the best product in town, even if some aspects are lacking compared to the past. WFLD is shit. WGN is looking a little stale these days (and I'm not talking about ANOTHER L3 refresh). WBBM is decent, but the set is lacking and they have several flaws in their presentation. And last but not least, to the single most overrated media entity in town, channel 5. I like very little about anything they do anymore. Sometimes I actually wish they went back to the pre-2012 WMAQ. The set is good, the anchor teams are mediocre (I'll never understand the appeal of Stafford and Rosati as a team), and the station's use of graphics and music are weak. They took a good theme and put in no effort, resulting in a very cheap listening experience. And Look F on NBC5 makes me wish we had Look A again. Case in point, here is a comparison of WLS and WMAQ's breaking news graphics, taken this afternoon at nearly the same time... The WMAQ image really makes me want to throw up. It looks like crap. Look F is very clean, yet the WMAQ graphics department makes it look beyond clunky and cartoonish. I'd rather they'd switch to the serifed, LA Grooved New York/San Fran presentation. At least that's classy. The other thing that really irks me about channel 5 is the eternal chip they have on their shoulder. They've become competitive in the mornings, and have shown growth (albeit minimal) in the later hours, yet they act like they won a freakin' Nobel prize. Channel 7 does the same thing, but at least they've earned the right. Something about their overall image comes off as so pretentious, when the biggest difference between old and new NBC5 is a glorified paint job and an investigative unit. Anyway, back on-topic. I don't like a lot of the recent changes at WLS. I can't fully dictate how disappointed I am at some things, for I'd be going against my personal standards of decency to do so. To close, this may sound like an attack to some, but all I have to say is, that if the station's management, content, look and sound have changed to the point of instilling anger, I'm only left to ask... WHY ARE YOU STILL WATCHING?

Yeah, for like almost a year.

That looks like an ESPN stock graphic with a font change.

That sure sounds like a bully, more than a news anchor.

So, it's good news/bad news for WLS. 'Live' has taken over the top spot from WGN at 9am, leading by more than half a point...certainly a change from September. On the other hand, 'Windy City Live' has now dipped to third in the 11am hour, which I frankly think is as low as they'll go (NBC and Fox? Please). The 3-way race of 2, 7, and 9 is also rather close, just a third of a point separating first (WGN, 2.9) to third (WLS, 2.6). In all of this, I would say that CBS2 (2.7 at 11) is the big winner. http://www.bizjournals.com/chicago/news/2013/10/31/channel-7s-windy-city-live-dips-in.html

Eww.

You must not have hear the news about WLS then. The old music and graphics are gone.

So, I just saw a promo for WMAQ/NBC 5's 10pm news, and Mike Adamle is featured alongside the other anchors. So, it finally seems like he's being acknowledged as the lead sports anchor, a role he's essentially filled for over two years. I know this didn't deserve it's own thread, but it didn't fit into any others, so I guess we can just have one for random rumblings at the old number 5.

I actually thought of that the other day, as well. Let Troy do the early half of the Sunday show, and Phil takes over at 7 (during GMA) or 8. This is good, but still not ideal.