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KCBS 2/KCAL 9 - CBS Los Angeles News Thread


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This spot kind of explains why KCAL is now the unified news brand, with Pat Harvey bringing up Jerry Dunphy with two vintage Prime 9 News opening clips (the first with Dunphy and long-forgotten 10pm anchor Kate Sullivan; the second with her successor, Tawny Little).  It's telling that they're evoking Dunphy's KCAL history as opposed to KNXT; it goes to show how *long* ago the CBS affiliate's news heyday was, while KCAL has been fairly consistent in reputation/perception over the last 30+ years, even with the ownership changes since then.

 

 

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1 hour ago, twotrey said:

This spot kind of explains why KCAL is now the unified news brand, with Pat Harvey bringing up Jerry Dunphy with two vintage Prime 9 News opening clips (the first with Dunphy and long-forgotten 10pm anchor Kate Sullivan; the second with her successor, Tawny Little).  It's telling that they're evoking Dunphy's KCAL history as opposed to KNXT; it goes to show how *long* ago the CBS affiliate's news heyday was, while KCAL has been fairly consistent in reputation/perception over the last 30+ years, even with the ownership changes since then.

 

 

See, this is the kind of promo they should’ve been going with a month ago. I know not everything was ready yet, but you have to give people something to look forward to.
 

I don’t think making KCAL the primary station is a bad thing at all, but *if* the goal is to build around CBS News, that should be indicated on some level in how they advertise themselves. Yes, KCBS is a ratings trash heap compared to the more stable KCAL, but this is still the nation’s #2 market. CBS will have to make its brand more prominent at some point (especially with the streaming component factored in).

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This smells like NewsCentral all over again. Looks like KCAL News will be the primary local news brand, @cbsla is no more on Instagram. This news station will be confusing many viewers as I don't think it the public will realize that "CBS 2 News" is obsolete. 

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Rough start in the 4 a.m. hour with lots of technical difficulties. Anchor microphones didn't work, reporter microphones didn't work, they were unable to cut to the weather anchor. Yes, I know it's their first day but not really -- they've been rehearsing for weeks. Good news is that not 4 a.m. isn't the most watched hour.

 

I'm still surprised that they didn't launch new weather graphics yet, and the old full screen was used for traffic. After all this time the graphics were still not ready for launch.

 

I'm not a fan of how they use the same full screen animation for things like Live, Team Coverage, Weather, Traffic, etc. It gets old when the same thing is used every other minute.

 

Otherwise, this is an interesting idea using KCAL News as the overall branding and doing something different in the morning. I've always thought it must be weird for West Coast viewers to get a three-hour-old national news broadcast. We shall see.

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I was wondering if KCBS doesn't intend in the future to do like KNBC and KABC and broadcast the CBS Evening News at 3:30 pm.

It was just to advance Dr Phil and pass a part of Drew Barrimore to KCAL.

Edited by TheNewsTV
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2 hours ago, nycnewsjunkie said:

See, this is the kind of promo they should’ve been going with a month ago. I know not everything was ready yet, but you have to give people something to look forward to.
 

I don’t think making KCAL the primary station is a bad thing at all, but *if* the goal is to build around CBS News, that should be indicated on some level in how they advertise themselves. Yes, KCBS is a ratings trash heap compared to the more stable KCAL, but this is still the nation’s #2 market. CBS will have to make its brand more prominent at some point (especially with the streaming component factored in).

This is about making the station more local NOT CBS national, "More Local, More Local News". CBS 2 has been completely erased (also 9 from KCAL 9). Mic flags have the CBS eye & KCAL News Los Angeles on them (KCAL News Los Angeles doesn't reflect well on the mic flags in certain angles with lighting, btw). A moving eye occasionally in the graphics, CBSLA.com that pops up occasionally or an even more occasional mention of CBS Los Angeles, is about all they have tying this to CBS.

 

The promo was played during the first local break in the 4 am hour on CBS Mornings, as well (played over & over on KCAL in the first hour, too). There was only a KCAL News weather update during that first break on CBS Mornings at 4:25 am, btw.

 

Promoting this change during the Christmas holidays would have been a waste. People are not paying attention.

 

There were quite a few technical glitches in the 4 am hour.

 

Not having a time/weather bug on a morning newscast is just plain dumb in time conscious Los Angeles where we measure distance by time not miles. The KCAL News graphics are minimalist. Too much so, too small, imho.

 

The 4:30 am two shot of the anchors, they just got swallowed up in the set. Looked more like the set is more important than the anchors, news. There is an audio hum in the studio that is driving me crazy, too. If you're not an audio person, it may not bug you but I am.

 

So far, this local product is a bit too slick, too bland, too national looking for my taste. Not "Los Angeles" enough. Although a bit more tied to "KCAL" the references to CBSLA.com & CBS Los Angeles still show brand confusion. Pick one (KCAL) & forget the others. Unless there are changes, it feels like another ho hum CBS failure in the making.

22 minutes ago, TheNewsTV said:

I was wondering if KCBS doesn't intend in the future to do like KNBC and KABC and broadcast the CBS Evening News at 3:30 pm.

It was just to advance Dr Phil and pass a part of Drew Barrimore to KCAL.

KCBS doesn't have a 4 pm newscast. Would be a complete waste.

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It's great to see Jerry Dunphy in a promo but since he's been dead for nearly 20 years & Los Angeles has had major population/ethnic changes during that period and if you are looking for a younger demographic, it's going to be meaningless for most viewers.

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8 hours ago, TVNewsLover said:

Enlighten me. What are KCAL’s ratings for news in the morning? That’s right, there is no news. The two stations don’t have a different product - it’s the same people and same product. Why not simulcast to get more eyeballs watching?

IF you knew anything, you'd know KCAL's weekend morning newscasts are higher rated than CBS 2 ever had during weekday mornings.

 

IF you ever watched a KCAL newscast, you'd know that they are structured differently with interviews, long sports segments and at a different pace. It has never been the same.

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6 minutes ago, Georgie56 said:

She's already admitted she doesn't understand Los Angeles. There is a reason why KTLA is dominant in Los Angeles morning news. It's a family. It feels like a family on air. It was built as an answer to local radio morning shows. It's why there was so much reaction in the community to the circumstances surrounding Lynette Romero & her exit. Thinking putting your assignment editor on the set (and hilariously having a graphic in the back that only says ESK because his head is blocking it) isn't going to win you viewers. Too much corporate research & not enough gut knowledge about L.A. sums up this bland KCAL News Mornings.

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The simplest scheduling may have been to similcast KCAL Mornings on KCBS from 4:30-7 am, then go to CBS Mornings. Viewers are probably used to local then national arrangement on NBC and ABC so it may be confusing for them (the little that watch)  to see a national morning newscast at 5 AM and then a repeat at 7. I'm sure they have their reasons for doing this though. 

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23 minutes ago, iron_lion said:

The simplest scheduling may have been to similcast KCAL Mornings on KCBS from 4:30-7 am, then go to CBS Mornings. Viewers are probably used to local then national arrangement on NBC and ABC so it may be confusing for them (the little that watch)  to see a national morning newscast at 5 AM and then a repeat at 7. I'm sure they have their reasons for doing this though. 

They just had a preview of CBS Mornings near the end of the 6 am simulcast but made no mention of how those who are viewing on KCAL 9 could watch it. 

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9 minutes ago, CalItalian2 said:

They just had a preview of CBS Mornings near the end of the 6 am simulcast but made no mention of how those who are viewing on KCAL 9 could watch it. 

I mean, isn’t it obvious enough? They can go to CBS. That’s the least of their issues.

 

That being said, the audio issues…holy crap. Several mics keep cutting off, and now I can’t stop hearing that audio hum in the studio. First day jitters are normal, but they‘re really having problems today.

Edited by nycnewsjunkie
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34 minutes ago, polyiguana said:

KCAL could run the CBS Evening News live. KCAL no longer has any sports obligations (other than maybe some preseason NFL football) so making them the news brand makes sense.

Yeah. They should also consider bringing back the 2-3:30 news block that they used to have. Or at least reenter 3pm.

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3 hours ago, CalItalian2 said:

She's already admitted she doesn't understand Los Angeles. There is a reason why KTLA is dominant in Los Angeles morning news. It's a family. It feels like a family on air. It was built as an answer to local radio morning shows. It's why there was so much reaction in the community to the circumstances surrounding Lynette Romero & her exit. Thinking putting your assignment editor on the set (and hilariously having a graphic in the back that only says ESK because his head is blocking it) isn't going to win you viewers. Too much corporate research & not enough gut knowledge about L.A. sums up this bland KCAL News Mornings.

Not sure which "she" you're referring to, but if you're talking about Wendy McMahon, she was head of Creative, Marketing, and Community Engagement for KABC for several years so it's safe to say she knows the market inside and out.

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As it seems to me, the division of schedules looked like this:
4-4:30 am: Kalyna Astrinos.
4:30-6:00 am: Chris Holmstrom and Marci Gonzalez.
6-7 am: Rudabeh Shahbazi and Marci Gonzalez.
7-10 am: Rudabeh Shahbazi and Jamie Yuccas.
10-11 am: Amy Johnson.
11-11:30 am: Chris Holmstrom.

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4 hours ago, qunewsguy said:

Not sure which "she" you're referring to, but if you're talking about Wendy McMahon, she was head of Creative, Marketing, and Community Engagement for KABC for several years so it's safe to say she knows the market inside and out.

This is New Coke. Bland and tasteless. And she made it that way.

 

Just because you've worked in L.A. doesn't mean you understand it. Ask all those that have come through CBS Los Angeles for the last 40 years. This poorly executed product proves that.

Edited by CalItalian2
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I know I keep complaining that the new bug is too big, but look at this. Is it really necessary to scream LOS ANGELES on a bug like that?

 

Imagine if they just used the KCAL NEWS square. Would be a nicer minimalist look. Right now it's just a waste of screen real estate. At least incorporate the time and temperature if it's not going to be elsewhere on the screen.

 

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