CLETVFan

Jim Donovan is celebrating 35 years at WKYC this month. The station is saluting him online and on-air.

Laura Caso is joining WKYC in Cleveland from WAVY in Norfolk. She will be joining Russ Mitchell on the 6pm newscast, and might pickup some more anchoring duties once Sara Shookman goes on maternity leave.

"3" is making some changes. First, they are adding Laura Caso to the weeknight anchor team. She's going to be anchoring the 6pm news with Russ Mitchell, while Sara Shookman moves to the 7pm news with Jim Donovan. Mitchell and Shookman will still anchor the 11pm news together. Second, it seems that "Channel 3" is slowly being phased back in. I have seen that phrase on billboards now, and I heard Hollie Strano mention "in the Channel 3 Weather Center..." Maybe "3" isn't quite working. As for Sara moving to 7, this is the first time Jim's had a co-anchor since Robin Swoboda's departure back in 2014.

Terrence Lee is leaving WEWS, and is headed for Chicago. His final newscast on Good Morning Cleveland is February 7.

I wonder if Jay Crawford is Russ Mitchell's heir apparent at 3, hence the big promotional Jay gets every time a show gets launched. Could Betsy Kling also end up replacing Sara Shookman in the main anchor chair down the road as well? I also wonder if Lunch Break was a set-up to see who clicked well with Jay for the 5pm show. Now that its over, we see "Jae and Betz."

Ladies and Gentlemen...the premiere episode of What's New! (take a look at 25:03 in particular)

This article on the announcement of What's New actually touches on Lunch Break's cancellation, only briefly, but doesn't mention why. https://www.cleveland.com/arts/2019/12/wkyc-studios-will-offer-more-talk-with-whats-new-hosted-by-betsy-king-and-jay-crawford.html It seemed that Lunch Break was supposed to also have guest co-hosts in addition to WKYC stars. The only one I remember who took part was Geraldo Rivera's wife. Now as of today, the morning "news" now starts at 4:30am instead of 4am, and Live on Lakeside has changed its name to It's About You. Don't be surprised if there's not a lot of actual news on the 5pm show.

Betsy has proven herself good at both news and weather, but I fear that the station is stretching her too thin and overusing her. Plus, picking her to co-anchor the 5pm show was a slap in the face to the other talent who could have done just as great of a job as Betsy. I think they want the ratings to be good in that slot. Here's a question I have: Wasn't Jay supposed to do both the Noon and 5pm shows? I thought Lunch Break would continue alongside What's New. To be honest, the moves that WKYC has made have been head-scratching and baffling. The elevator-button logo, strange program titles, the stunt hires (that comedian, Baker Mayfield's wife, all those sports anchors doing the news, Plain Dealer vets), the dumb segments in the morning that have nothing to do with the news yet making them desperately try to be like both the "Today" show and WJW, the aforementioned Lunch Break, letting go of solid talent, bizarre graphics. It's turned me off from watching the station. Speaking of their morning show, there is this article from Cleveland Magazine on one of their AM reporters Austin Love:

Here is WKYC's new lineup starting January 13: 11 a.m. – Kelly Clarkson noon – Live on Lakeside 1 p.m. – Days of Our Lives 2 p.m. – Daily Blast Live (x2) 3 p.m. – Dr. Phil 4 p.m. – Ellen 5 p.m. – 3 News at 5 p.m. (aka “What’s New”) Notice that "Lunch Break" is missing.

Betsy Kling has been named co-anchor of WKYC's upcoming 5pm show with Jay Crawford. The new show is slated to start next month.

WKYC announces its new 5pm team, and the show's name: "What's New with Jay Crawford and Betsy Kling" More info here. No word on who else will be part of the broadcast, and what will happen to the current 2-6pm block on 3. As for the title, it reminds of that Linda Ronstadt back in the early 1980's.

(Cross-posted from "The '3' Thread" in Graphics) It appears that the new look, logo, format, and graphics are only working for WKYC at 11pm (a.k.a. "What's Next"). They have cake to prove it! https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2019/12/2/cleveland-cake-wars The 6pm, morning, and Noon programs are not doing as great as they should be. "What Matters Most" is 3rd at 6pm (my guess is WJW is 1st with WEWS at 2nd) "Go!" is tied for 2nd/3rd in the morning (likely with WEWS since WJW is 1st, though WOIO is touting in promos that they are growing in the AM ratings-wise, so they might be taking away WKYC's viewership) "Lunch Break" is 4th at Noon (the other three, including WOIO, are doing better in that slot!) I think the new "3News" is struggling a bit with only the 11pm show a success.

It appears that the new look, logo, format, and graphics are only working for WKYC at 11pm (a.k.a. "What's Next"). They have cake to prove it! https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2019/12/2/cleveland-cake-wars The 6pm, morning, and Noon programs are not doing as great as they should be. "What Matters Most" is 3rd at 6pm (my guess is WJW is 1st with WEWS at 2nd) "Go!" is tied for 2nd/3rd in the morning (likely with WEWS since WJW is 1st, though WOIO is touting in promos that they are growing in the AM ratings-wise, so they might be taking away WKYC's viewership) "Lunch Break" is 4th at Noon (the other three, including WOIO, are doing better in that slot!) I think the new "3News" is struggling a bit with only the 11pm show a success.

Would anyone say that WBNX is rebounding a year after losing the CW to WUAB?

It's supposed to be live, and it's also carried on social media platforms at the same time. BTW, I used to love the show until this happened: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/daily-blast-white-privilege_n_5b9abfd5e4b0b64a336d12a3 Apparently, they will have clips taken down if it puts their hosts in a bad light.

WKYC has now announced its latest hire: Emily Mayfield, wife of Cleveland Browns QB Baker Mayfield! I will say that I hope she does will on the station. https://www.cleveland.com/arts/2019/10/emily-mayfield-wife-of-browns-quarterback-baker-mayfield-will-join-wkyc-studios-as-a-special-correspondent.html

Looks like the new Lunch Break is not doing too well in the ratings, according to FTVLive. https://www.ftvlive.com/sqsp-test/2019/10/11/this-is-tegna

Don't forget Hometeam 19/43, 43 The Block, numerous attempts from WKYC (5:30, Weekday Fever, multiple attempts at a one-hour 6pm newscast), Today's Morning Exchange, any of WEWS' in-house attempts to replace Ted Henry, Cleveland Television News (WOIO and WUAB's merged newsroom circa 1995), and so on. Am I missing anything? Speaking of ei8ht is News, here are commercials from when WJW was transitioning from that branding to FOX 8. Even the announcer was calling it "Fox ei8ht is News."

At least the current graphics package at WOIO are a lot better than the "Cleveland 19" look and any of the "Action News" looks.

Here's the premiere of "Lunch Break" that went over-the-air on WKYC. They are broadcasting the Noon newscast on Channel 3 (or just simply "3") and both its YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook pages. They will have guest co-hosts joining Jay and Stephanie.

And now, here's "Lunch Break with Jay Crawford!"

Here's the latest from Cleveland.com on WKYC's new look: https://www.cleveland.com/arts/2019/09/wkyc-studios-attempts-to-bring-a-much-more-informative-breezy-vibe-to-all-of-their-news-formats.html

I can see it now. A 2:07 am newscast called "3 News: Let's Go Get Some BBQ and Get Busy" or "3 News: A Hero Ain't Nothin' But a Sandwich." It would feature TV and movie clips fitting to news stories with popular tunes as news music. It would be dope! (By the way, I'm being sarcastic)

I actually like the Channel 5 logo more than the new Channel 3 logo. Like you said some love it, others hate it. Then there are those who are indifferent, and just want the news. Even Channel 19's current logo (a HUGE improvement over the Cleveland 19 logo, which was the "Cleveland's CBS 19" logo but with a different color scheme that was more of the Wolverines and even the Warriors) is better than 3's new design. That's just my opinion.

Hey, if WKYC's new open doesn't work, maybe this could be Plan B: Imagine the anchor teams in this!