24994J

Yeah, I only got the impression that the weeknight shows are suffering. Don't most ratings reports exclude weekend, unless otherwise noted?

I really do like Paula, but she's just trying too hard. Stick to GMA, maybe negotiate some fill-ins for Robin, and play to her strengths. As for Whoopi, she's getting out on her own terms (that we know of, anyway) in case the whole show gets canned, but it's obviously way too early to make that call...which by network logic means we'll know the show's fate by like Thanksgiving.

To me, this isn't the story of Fox 32's ascension, but the fall of WGN. A combination of independence on 9, and a few good lead-ins on Fox makes for bad news for Chicago's Very Own, but it really goes beyond that. Granted, it's early, but WGN's primetime schedule isn't getting any better as the baseball season ends. But again, not that's not necessarily their biggest problem. I'm going to suggest something I never thought I'd ever say...Frankly, one could make the legitimate argument that Fox is putting out the superior product at 9pm right now, and that's why WGN needs to be afraid. Sure, there are those annoying Fox-y things that will never go away, but I can't help but think that viewer fatigue is finally setting in on WGN. Instead of trying something unique with the well-deserved right, the expansion to 10 o'clock just dragged down the quality of the 9, robbing segments and features from the big show to feed the baby, moving around some longtime fixtures (i.e. sports, shifting from the end of the hour to 9:40), and filling in the gaps with more Skilling and useless filler. The last 10-15 minutes of the 9 o'clock news are a virtual throwaway. To a broader extent, opting for a single team across all nighttime shows is what really kills it, for me. I'm not the biggest Micah Materre fan, and I generally lose any interest in watching more than a few minutes of their 3.5 hour PM on-air shift when she's on. I'm sure others feel that way about any of the 4 lead personalities. The WGN News at Nine used to be appointment television, but when I have the option to watch the same product at 4, 5, 10, or not at all, the luster fades for the flagship. Heck the morning show is divided into 3 different blocks, and the midday news is comfortably formatted 2 ways. The one hour morning news adapted and thrived as it ballooned to 6 hours, and I never felt like the news at noon suffered by adding an hour at 11 (with a pit stop at 11:30). Why can't the evening shows figure that out? As for WFLD, 9 o'clock is certainly attainable right now. They should focus on that, and string a few months or even a year of gains/victories together before we declare it to be more than just a fluke. They're going to need older viewers to truly get over the hump (and go against the cardinal rule of television demography), since the demo really isn't an issue. Get that together, then you can set your sights on other dayparts. Unless the proverbial bomb drops only on Bradley Place, #1 in the mornings ain't happening anytime soon. Besides, they need to jump 4 stations in the morning, not just 1. I'll repost the relevant parts in the WGN thread tomorrow with a few unoriginal, familiar, but reasonable suggestions of my own. And one more item for my incoherent rant...Would it kill Dan Roan to wear a gosh darn pair of real life, big boy suit pants? I seriously can't be the only person than can see his bare knees and cargo shorts through the desk. Get a new desk...and set, and then you can sit there in a thong, for all I care. G'night, e'rybody.

Maybe you can say Michael himself isn't good in the role, but it's laughable to say he's unqualified. He's co-anchoring alongside a former sports reporter/college athlete and a former political strategist. Lest we forget, Joe Garagiola had a similar career path as Michael...player turned analyst who later found fame as a talk show host and morning show contributor. At one point, even he was credited in the open of the the Today show. Again, maybe Michael isn't their best option, but nowhere in the rule book does it say that the anchor rolr is reserved for serious, classically-trained news reporters.

[MEDIA=twitter]779475784851296256[/MEDIA]

Not yet announced. You'd think it would coming up pretty quick, unless they wait until after Sunday, since (unlike a weekday anchor's exit) they'll have plenty of opportunities to put out a release during the week.

Heck, that's why they brought in that Tony guy for what seemed like a week before switching to Jesse. Wasn't that sort of the plan for Mike and Mike, too?

In what I think is a first, ABC 7's now using the Stimulus cut for a morning rejoin, in place of the talent rejoin. The top and bottom of the hour opens are sticking with Eyewitness News.

"Do your damn special, but this is primetime, NO SCREWING AROUND!"

Live.

And to think, he was just 2 weeks to retiring from the force. His family won't be able to collect any of his pension.

The morning show special is in progress. So far, it's been...exactly what you'd expect. The highlight so far has been Bob and Jackie doing their secret handshake live in a split screen during the commercial break. "I literally haven't seen Jackie Bange in 6 years."

It was back to normal at 8.

I can't make heads or tails of this one. No skyline backdrop this morning, replaced with a still graphic. The lack of bug/graphics on either image is purely coincidental, but perhaps the (not live) skyline malfunctioned. It's a little dark and the shadows cast by the anchors is a little distracting, but it's not necessarily a bad look. Still hope it's only temporary.

I DVR'd it. I'll try to check in later...like probably Monday.

You got it. That is indeed a sunset. As for the flexibility you suggest, I don't know.

So, I've been capturing the new opens over the last few months, and am finally getting around to the morning show. While processing the video, something caught my eye. Can someone tell me what's wrong with this skyline shot for the 4:00 AM news?

It's been 3 days. Three. Days. Just saying.

Kevin and Lisa would beg to differ.

Yeah, it wasn't ready yesterday. Funny thing is, the "relaunch" (without the new set), was really not much different than normal, except for Michael sitting at the desk. No significant format changes on what was supposed to be a new day.

Limited? Probably not, but maybe the first time in decades. I could totally see Charlie and Joan's GMA doing that during at least a few of their road shows way back when. Entirely commercial-free, though, would almost assuredly be a first.

Knowing that she had connections to the top didn't help the impression that she might not have been best-qualified. And, if nothing else, it's hard to believe she is the best that the network could come up with to be their #1 co-anchor in market #1, though that could be said for a few of the competitors, too.

Gotta technically fall to 2nd to get passed for 2nd.

I guess I'm not surprised. That said, he'll likely show up in the rare case when they go with one meteorologist for the whole night. That said, it's always nice to see Linda at 10. I'm stunned, though, that Elgas is already getting the same treatment at ABC that he got at NBC. On Monday and Tuesday nights when Alan is off, Rob will do all 4 broadcasts on the mothership. When Wednesday rolls around, Ravi will do the 5 and the flagship 10, with Rob continuing in his field reporting/Burton-backup contributor role (really, they might as well formally add him to the 10 o'clock line-up). That's exactly what happened to him at WMAQ when Dick Johnson would still get top priority behind Stafford. Perhaps it's a sweet incentive they gave Ravi for getting passed over, but I'm still surprised.

They needed to do something. Among the others in town, NBC 5 and WGN's apps are so much better and polished.