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If I'm gauging this correctly, WABC is going through a similar, top-down transition not unlike what WLS experienced over the last few years. First, the youth-pandering content selection. Second, the visual makeover. The notable talent changes should be up next (and no, I'm not counting whatever went down with Sarah Wallace). The situation in Chicago called for some changes. A graphics package going on 9 years, a set closing in on a decade, a presentation style largely unchanged from the '80s, and a talent pool of 9 well-paid weeknight veterans ranging from 50 to 70 were all showing wear. Despite these decades of stability and reliability, ratings were slipping. Changes were many and divisive. New graphics, music, branding, and set all debuted in a 2-year span. One newscast was cancelled and another launched. Three of the aging desk-minders are starting to cut back and retire, including the lead anchor's departure at the end of this month. Both a midday anchor and the #2 meteorologist were let go, and a new, inexperienced meteorologist was hired, soon to be chief. About a half dozen reporters have come aboard, one of which was promoted to morning anchor, and another is destined for a similar fate. The ratings hemorrhage has mostly stopped, but ratings for the late newscast are down 20% since 2013, and a new competitor and rejuvenated rival have only eaten away at that lead. That said, every other newscast has retained or even extended their leads, and experimentation seems to have passed. WLS still isn't as strong as it was in its prime, but the product has returned to being more predictable and stable. WABC really hasn't had the issues to necessitate major change, so there's really no excuse for these self-induced blunders.

Is this animation on the Big Board new? It looks a little like something that would come out of the current graphics, but I don't ever recall seeing that flatter circle theme with little boxes.

One final (rare) AM appearance before hittin' late nights? Haha

WLS is marking this Throwback Thursday with a few bloopers and gags from Ron Magers' days in Minneapolis. As funny as these are, color me stunned that they actually had the guts to post this. The extended reel, though, has a whole lot more that I guarantee won't be rolled out for the publicized retirement remembrances. "You make this crap worth my time."

WMAQ's onboard, too.

Are they still doing that thing where a separate anchor team does the Friday 10pm show and nothing else?

Sarcasm.

Me reading some of these posts...

Nice and small. Glad to see the revamp will be tasteful and concise.

Frankly, I don't think it's a part of the new package...at least in its current form. Any other new elements we've seen are using a different font, so I'll reserve judgement, for now.

Is it the graphic seen during the open here?

Speaking of which, I have NEVER heard of or seen a news team taking part in sooooooo many photo shoots together. Do they have to do them so often in case someone gets another gray hair or wrinkle?

The samples some of us viewed maintained the current cuts.

Well, there is tangible evidence of changes coming, but no clear signal has gone off giving any specific launch date. Most of the time, new weather elements would show up within a few days of debut, but it's been more than a week, so I'd imagine it could be any time. We could stroke our egos and speculate that they're tweaking the opens after seeing our reaction, but that's unlikely.

Just to stir the pot, here's a Twitter post by Bill Evans showing that dog that some of y'all are so obsessed with. The post was retweeted by WABC. So, they hate him, but they don't. They don't want him around, but they do. Discuss. I'll grab the popcorn. [MEDIA=twitter]727187811502317572[/MEDIA]

[MEDIA=twitter]726604299938205696[/MEDIA]

The 2011 graphics launched on a Monday in August. I remember random crap like that.

Welcome to 2016.

Where is there any evidence that WABC has sent the dog away? (I can't believe I just said that.) Maybe the owner just isn't coming around, anymore.

The more dominant the station, the less that needs to change.

Personally, the current KABC cuts are the only Eyewitness News updates I've like since WABC's 1999 update. That said, I think the music in place now is fine, though a few more cuts from that series could stand to see some airtime. As for the new graphics, I'm expecting something that falls between KABC and KTRK's looks, but with whatever font they choose (from those proposed opens, it isn't Gotham). While the new look might be a little flat for some, WABC's visual identity over the last decade has been so messy and bloated that I'm all in favor of it being completely blown up for simplicity's sake. It's sad when you have to go back to the turn of the century to find a WABC graphics package that wasn't an unmitigated disaster.

WGN is practically writing a Feder article, as we speak. Somewhere along the line, during this morning's Dennis Hastert sentencing, the newsroom came under the impression that Hastert would not face jail time. Despite numerous reports from other organizations, they're sticking with their story, leading the anchors in the studio to wrongfully look like complete idiots, and it's not going unnoticed. [MEDIA=twitter]725361141627629568[/MEDIA] [MEDIA=twitter]725364156031885312[/MEDIA] It looks very bad for what has been an otherwise solid, reputable news organization. That said, CNN (possibly pooling off of WGN) and publication Crain's Chicago were way off, too... [MEDIA=twitter]725366706265182208[/MEDIA]

Yeah, but as they're transitioning to a consistent logo finish, they're now playing around with the size and shape of the ABC and Circle 7. The ABC is getting a little bigger, and the 7 appears to be getting widened, making it a Slightly-Oval 7 (which doesn't have the same ring to it). While I may be comparing apples and oranges in the gif, I've seen the new, flatter logo with at least 3 different sizes of ABC attached. Yes, this screws with my self-diagnosed OCD, so I'm going to complain about it.

I don't blame him. I think Feder's use of the word "fuming" is a little much, as he states he's disappointed. That said, those calling Ron a crybaby and out of touch on Facebook are missing the point. I'm not even talking about Ron's opinion on complimenting another news operation. My beef is with the permission to run the testimonial. They've been running ads like these for several weeks, and I'll bet a lot of money to assume that those people are either A.) told/asked that their quote be used, or B.) are under the impression that emailing their statement directly to the show automatically gives their consent to the crew to use it in the future. Magers' situation doesn't fall under either case. He was neither informed nor asked, and he made this statement in a third party setting. That's where a line was crossed. As a fan of both Ron and the WGN Morning News, my opinion of them hasn't changed. That said, WGN's PR department needs a little ethics training, but I have a feeling that won't happen based on the boss' statement on the matter: "What a nice compliment from a legendary newsman looking back at an award-winning career." Jeff Hoover gets points, though: "Ron - First of all, thanks for your kind words. I'm sorry if no one from our marketing/promotions department reached out to you and asked for your permission. I heard a clip from the podcast and shared it with a few people at the station not ever thinking that someone would turn it into an ad in the newspaper."

Damn... [MEDIA=twitter]723343022184783872[/MEDIA] [MEDIA=twitter]723346417922641920[/MEDIA]