T Dog's Think Tank: The state of syndication today

First of two parts.

Josef Adalian had some thoughts on the current state of the syndication business in a wonderfully written column in TV Week, as the NATPE convention descended on Las Vegas this past week. As a person who is very knowledgeable about this business - since the days yours truly read his first NATPE issue of TV/Radio Age as a 12-year old in 1985 - I can tell you first hand this business - and the convention itself - just isn't the same.

The first-run syndication business exploded in the 1970's and 1980's, with many hits. But the business has been slowly declining for years, thanks to the perfect storm of consolidation between syndicators, station groups, and stations themselves; general erosion of broadcast television ratings; and the emergence of DVDs and the Internet. When consolidation became a force - especially after fin-syn ended in 1995 and Prime Time Access Rule (PTAR) expired in 1996, cost became a major concern. Say goodbye to the exotic, spacious booths on the NATPE convention floor and hello to cramped hotel suites.

The problems actually had its root in the early 1970's, when the FCC gave syndicators a huge break.

The FCC instituted PTAR in 1971 - forcing the Big Three networks to give the 7:30 ET time slot to affiliates to program themselves. Affiliates in the 50 largest metropolitan markets were barred from airing off-network fare in the hour before prime-time, relying only on local or first-run programs. The move was a huge boon for the first-run syndication industry, as most stations used first-run shows in a “checkerboarding” format, i.e. airing a different show in the same time slot every night. Unfortunately, most of the early first-run entries back then weren't known for their quality. And while affiliates couldn't run off-network sitcoms in the hour before prime-time, independent stations did by airing repeats of off-net sitcoms such as Andy Griffith and I Dream of Jeannie and reaped even bigger benefits than network affiliates did airing first-run fare.

In 1973 for example, early evening fare consisted of a sitcom titled Dusty's Trail, a Gilligan's Island clone set in the Old West featuring Bob Denver no less; another sitcom titled Ozzie's Girls, a sequel to the classic sitcom Ozzie & Harriet where the elder Nelsons took in two young college women as borders and hilarity supposedly ensues; and an one-hour import from Canada titled Starlost, which featured a crew on a 200-mile ship in outer space. Considered one of the worst sci-fi series of all-time and shot on glorious videotape, the scripts and the cast of the show indeed looked "lost". Needless to say, none of these shows made it to a second season.

In 1983, Comedian Alan Thicke with MGM and Metromedia, decided to challenge Johnny Carson with Thicke of the Night, a 90-minute talk show. The only thing he challenged was his own sanity. Hated by critics and ignored by viewers, the series averaged a 0.8 rating - a record low at the time for any first-run strip. Thicke finally vanished in September 1984, lasting longer than anyone thought (Thicke said he fainted after watching after watching his debut. Imagine what he did after watched the second episode...)

During the 1987-88 season, the NBC O&Os decided to return to checkboarding programs in prime access at 7:30 p.m. ET (6:30 in Chicago), this time, featuring a different syndicated sitcom each night. With the likes of Suzanne Sommers in She's the Sheriff and Michael Richards stumbling around in Marblehead Manor, the critically panned programs were incompatible with each other and wound up attracting different demos. The experiment mercifully ended months later.

The 1990's saw syndicators trying to replicate the success of Star Trek: The Next Generation, Baywatch, and Xena with one action hour failure after another. Remember Viper, Fame L.A., and Queen of Swords? Neither does anyone else. Meanwhile, the talk show graveyard was littered with the courses of Chuck Woolery, Dennis Miller, Bertice Berry, Whoopi Goldberg, Charles Perez, Stephanie Miller, Ron Reagan, Terry Bradshaw (yes, Terry Bradshaw!), etc... I could go on and on.

But of all the time the critics spend on the shortcomings of syndication, it has produced some great success stories.

The first syndicated hit can be traced to the surprise ratings successes of Sea Hunt and Huckleberry Hound in the 1950's. The Muppet Show and the weeknight version of Family Feud were overnight sensations in the late 1970's. King World changed the business forever with the success of Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy! breaking the ratings records in the 1980's, and making the company and its founders very rich. Phil Donahue and Oprah Winfrey both put daytime talk on the map, but Geraldo Rivera, Jerry Springer, and Jenny Jones were responsible for raising the sleaze factor.

Aresnio Hall became the first successful African-American late-night talk show host, while Maury Povich introduced A Current Affair into our homes, spawning an even sleazier arch-rival in Hard Copy.

Scripted shows also has their share of success. Fame moved into first-run syndication in 1983 after a season and a half on NBC, while Star Trek: TNG premiered four years later and became a monster success. Both shows proved with great writing and acting, a program can draw an audience, no matter what platform the program was airing in. Then came the success of Baywatch, another short-lived NBC castoff. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, was a smash hit in 1993, while Bablyon 5, Xena, and Hercules also were quite successful.

First-run sitcoms became a staple on weekend schedules in the 1980's with revivals of Too Close for Comfort, Mama's Family and Charles in Charge – all three would find greater success in first-run than they ever could on the major networks. Meanwhile, Small Wonder was a monster hit, finishing in the Top 10 syndicated programs list for three of its four seasons on the air.

But those success seem long ago as syndicators have found it tougher and tougher to launch new shows and succeed. Only two programs were christened bona fide hits in the last fifteen years: The Rosie O'Donnell Show and Dr. Phil (keep in mind some successful shows currently on the air - Judge Judy, Regis & Kathie Lee/Kelly, and Ellen - started out slow and built their audience over time.)

Unfortunately, the syndication business of today has become a shell of its former self. Only one scripted action hour exists (Legend of the Seeker) with none coming down the pike for next fall. There are too many courtroom shows in daytime, with at least two more coming. Many viewers and advertisers have fled syndication over the years, as most first-run and off-network programs have seen rating declines.

The problem with syndication seems to be the lack of originality, innovation, and creativity, and its one that has plagued the business for decades. Syndication is seen as a business whose model is more built on sales and earning revenue than anything else. The familiar formats work because they can draw an audience and generate revenue. Risk-taking is – well, too risky, which is why you see Judge Judy clones all over the place.

And while shows like Wheel and Jeopardy! and even Oprah outdraw a lot of prime-time shows, TV critics could care less (unless someone like Ken Jennings can win seventy games in a row, like did on Jeopardy in 2004.) And when they do write about syndicated fare – it's usually not positive. For example, Chicago Tribune TV critic Clarence Petersen criticized PTAR in a 1973 article for failing to create the local, diverse programming the rule was intended for. Petersen singled out Let's Make A Deal (the highest-rated first-run show at the time), quoting a New York City TV critic as saying “a show of such unbridled avarice that Mafia members are said to turn it off in disgust.”[1] Luckily for host Monty Hall, he seldom visited the Big Apple.

And things haven't changed much. If you look at syndication today, you see a sludge of court, talk, and off-net programming, with most not even coming close in quality. Can someone tell me why Jury Duty (with an average rating of 0.2) and Comics Unleashed (in reruns) are still on the air? Why does Steve Wilkos deserve a third season while ratings hover around 0.8? Are station managers this neglectful of their schedules they don't care what they air anymore?

And those barter ad spots... ugh. Many shows in syndication are filled with direct-response ads like those for Hoveround chairs and Craftmatic beds (are they targeting the 25-54 audience or the nursing home crowd?) Daytime TV in syndication is looking more and more like the ragged dollar store down the street. When you find The Best of Cristina's Court DVD at the local Family Dollar in the bargain bin for only 99 cents, you'll know what I'm talking about. I guess I better hop in my Hoveraround chair and head on down there to pick up a copy.

Some stations have given up completely. NBC affiliate WTMJ-TV in Milwaukee no longer airs syndicated strips (aside from Better TV, which is currently in 20 markets), and decided to expand its newscasts instead. If the quality of the product doesn't improve, more and more stations - notably ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates - will move away from syndicated fare and produce their own, notably in the form of local news or talk shows. Already, network affiliates in San Francisco, Boston, Miami, and few other markets are airing local newsmagazines in prime access.

In fact, one of those stations – CBS-owned KPIX-TV in San Francisco (who now airs Eye by the Bay weeknights at 7:00 p.m. ) was a pioneer in the concept when it introduced Evening Magazine in 1976, a local entertainment and lifestyle magazine strip. Then-owner Group W expanded the show to four of its other owned stations (it some markets it was called PM Magazine) and later to other local stations, using material in a “cooperative”, where they could customize content to suit their market with locally-produced segments. Oddly enough, Westinghouse Broadcasting was the only TV station group owner who understood what the PTAR rule was all about (though it took them six years.)

So, it's easy to see why syndication doesn't get any respect. It needs to get away from the real estate mentality and into one more creative and innovative-based. After all, the housing market collapsed in the past year. The syndication business could wind up doing the same.

Coming up in Part II - A new, ground-breaking model for producing programming arrives - and its happening right here in Chicago. Is this the future for syndicaton?

[1] - Petersen, Clarence (1973-02-11), "Even the Mafia can't stomach it", Chicago Tribune pg L8, TV Week.

T Dog's Groovy Grab Bag

WFLD relaunches web site; More Howie; NATPE Wrap-up.

- Fox-owned WFLD has relaunched its website (myfoxchicago.com), as part of an effort to revamp its websites in all eighteen markets where it owns stations. WFLD is the second to get a makeover; Fox's WNYW-TV in New York was the first.

WFLD's new website looks more clean and organized than the previous one, which looked quite cluttered.

- NBC has ordered twelve more episodes of Howie Do It, a Candid Camera type program featuring pranks played on unsuspecting citizens, hosted by Howie Mandel. Ratings among adults 18-49 were up 67 percent from its year-ago time period (7 p.m. CT Fridays.)

The program airs on NBC in the U.S. and on Global in Canada, whose parent company (CanWest Global) co-produces the show with other production companies. The program is taped in Toronto, Howie Mandel's hometown.

- NATPE ended this week with a thud (it actually began with a thud), with attendance down 14 percent and only a handful of news items coming out of the convention. Harry Jessell from TV Newsday (registration may be required) and Marc Berman from Mediaweek have the wrap-up (and in the TV Newsday story, check out yours truly's comment below...)

While Marie Osmond, How I Met Your Mother, and a few weeklies made some headlines, there weren't any regarding proposed strips Judge Jeanne Pirro and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

Updated 7:08 p.m. 0n 2009-01-31 (corrected liks)

T Dog's Four Pack

It's back! After a few weeks of being on hiatus, the weekly list of winners and losers returns.

The Four Fab Pack

- Marie Osmond. What a career comeback. She's performing with her brother on stage in Vegas and now her new talk show for fall has cleared 70 percent of the country in syndication. And she's still fine.

- The Big Bang Theory. Even though it was a repeat, this week's episode was LOL funny, about Sheldon's ordeal over getting his driver's license. See you in off-net syndication in 2011!

- House votes down DTV switch. It's time to get this over with. But those who support the switch to June 12 are still pushing hard.

- The Doctors. Amid the doom and gloom coming from NATPE this week, here's another bright spot: This past Wednesday in Cincinnati, the new one-hour medical advice show scored a whopping 14.4 household rating and 24 household share at 9 a.m. (!) on CBS affiliate WKRC-TV.

That's many more viewers than The Oincho Cinco & Dusty Baker Power Failure Hour - starring Bengals player Chad Johnson and Reds manager Dusty Baker, who continue to prove why Cincinnati's pro sports teams don't win a lot.

The Four Flop Pack

- Gov. Rod Blagoveich. How many shows he appeared on this week to proclaim his innocence? Good Morning America, Today, Larry King, and I think Sesame Street and How I Met Your Mother. Pathetic. Goodbye and good riddance.

- Geraldo Rivera. How about it when he blasted Rep. John Fritchey and his kind for being crooks on his cable news channel show. Yes, this crap is from the same guy who basically exploited people on his daytime talk show constantly for eleven years. And he talks about politicians being scumbags? You practically wrote the book on being one Geraldo, so Who Are You Crappin'?

- The Chicago Bulls. The only thing worst other than having to watch the Bulls? Watching the Clippers and the Wizards play.

- NATPE. Attendance is down 14 percent from a year ago as the economy and the changing way of doing business took its toll on the yearly gathering in Las Vegas. The lackluster crowds led to a lackluster convention, with hardly any news coming from there. It's time to re-invent this gathering, a concept NATPE brass doesn't seem to grasp.

Univision flips three radio outlets

(No direct links here, so you'll have to take my word for it)

In an odd move, Univision radio has flipped its three Spanish-language FM stations to different formats.

This is going to get confusing, so bear with me... Beginning today, "Recuerdo" (an adult contemporary format) appears on WVIV-FM (103.1, which used to be The Eighties Channel a while back) and WVIX (93.5), replacing "La Kalle" (Dance/Urban), which moves to WPPN-FM (106.7), which was the home of Passion (Spanish oldies), which has been dropped.

Which I hope you all got that... Which out.

T Dog's Groovy Grab Bag - The NATPE edition

This version of the Groovy Grab Bag comes to you from the National Association of Television Program Executives convention going on in Las Vegas. Before we start on a barrage of news and notes, let's talk about the convention itself: things are not going so well.

Attendance at the convention is way down, as station managers and others have decided to stay at home given the way the economy is going. Celebrities are not as viable as they were in years past. Meanwhile, the show with perhaps the biggest shot of succeeding (Sony's Dr. Oz) isn't even represented at NATPE since Sony stopped attending the event years ago. Plus, Sony is refusing to make him available to the press. Whose their PR rep, the same people who handle Beyonce? Sony pulled this same stunt in 2004 with its new talk show Life & Style, when none of the stars showed up. And we all know how that show turned out.

There will be a NATPE convention in 2010 in Las Vegas, but after that, it's anybody's guess. The poor attendance this year may not bode well for its future.

Just a few reminders why this convention isn't what it used to be. Sad, really.

Now on to the news:

- Marie Osmond's new daytime talk show from Program Partners has been declared a "firm go" after clearing WNBC-TV in New York and KTLA in Los Angeles, clearing the 70 percent threshold it needs to get on the air for fall. No Chicago clearence as of yet, but reports are surfacing that WCIU-TV may land the show.

The program is based taped in Las Vegas, where she and her brother Donny are in a Vegas variety show at the Flamingo Hotel and Casino. Both co-hosted a daytime talk show with each other from 1998-2000 - and of course, a variety show in the 1970's.

-Made in Hollywood, a weekend half-hour entertainment magazine, has been sold to CBS-owned stations in 21 markets, including WBBM-TV here. The series takes a behind-the-scenes look at upcoming Hollywood movies and features interviews with actors, writers, directors, and producers. Also included in the deal is Made in Hollywood: Teen Edition, which covers stations' E/I requirements. Both shows are distributed by Connection III.

Made in Hollywood currently airs Sundays at 1:30 a.m. on WCIU.

- Twentieth has announced it has cleared off-network sitcom How I Met Your Mother in broadcast syndication for fall 2010 in 75 percent of the country, including WFLD/WPWR here.

- NBC Universal's new Deal or No Deal strip recently hit a season-high 2.0 rating, up 5 percent week-to-week. The program is expected to return for season 2.

- TBS has picked up Tyler Perry's Meet the Browns for 80 more episodes. Perry plans to use the same blueprint he used for House of Payne to take the show into syndication in 2010. Based on the film of the same name, the series has racked up impresive ratings for the cable network so far in its ten-episode test run. TBS plans to premiere the series for a regular run this summer.

Chicago PPM results for December

Since this survey is an anomaly because of the Holidays (a.k.a. skewed because of Christmas music), we'll refrain from the listing the winners and losers. But that doesn't stop yours truly from making a few observations... Remember, this is based on overall 6+ numbers:

- WLIT (Lite FM) did gangbusters with Xmas music in December, as it finished first. The real question now is - will listeners stick around?

- Blago's troubles were very good for WBBM-AM and WLS-AM.

- WVAZ (V103) finished a strong third, and its numbers keep growing month-to-month.

- The bleeding has stopped at WGN-AM, and is trending upward (wait until the Cubs come back...)

- A good survey for WBBM-FM (B96) as its numbers are trending up, but is still behind WKSC-FM (Kiss).

- WSCR-AM (The Score) holds a lead over WMVP-AM (ESPN 1000), but the male demos will tell the real story.

- WCFS-FM (Fresh) is up, but they also played Christmas music to try to take audience away from WLIT (pathetic.)

- Trending downard: WKQX-FM (Q101), WLUP-FM (The Loop). Not a good survey for Emmis.

- Barely showing a pulse: WPWX-FM (Power 92). Power off.

Click here to see the numbers.

Could Channel 2 dump its street-side studio?

If you're one of those who waives to the few people watching Channel 2's newscasts through the window of its street-side studio, time may be running out.

CBS-owned WBBM-TV is considering moving its newscasts from the street-level studio it occupies along Dearborn Street at Daley Plaza to the second floor.

Nothing is definite yet, but the station is considering moving the news set to the second floor at The Church of Tisch, given the station's newsroom is located there, and the floor has a better view of Daley Plaza and the Picasso statue than the street-level studio.

The new digs so far has not boosted the station out of the doldrums at 10 p.m., where it often places behind reruns of Family Guy on WGN and its 6 p.m. news is behind reruns of Two and a Half Men on WGN and The Simpsons on WFLD-TV, not to mention its news competition.

WBBM moved to its new headquarters at Daley Plaza last September after 52 years at McClurg Court, and started broadcasting its news in HD (even though over-the-air digital TV viewers still can't get Channel 2's HD signal. Well, at least I can't.)

DTV switch date defeated in House

If you haven't gotten your converter box - you'd better bet cracking.

The House defeated a bill that would have extended the analog cut-off date to June 12. The Obama Administration wanted the deadline to be extended because there was fear a lot of Americans weren't ready for the switchover and the coupon program ran out of money.

With the defeat of the bill (which sailed through the Senate unanimously), the date for the analog cut-off is still February 17 - at least for now.

The House vote became a partisan one, as most Republicans voted against the bill. The piece of legislation was opposed by broadcasters, public safety officials (who need the analog signals) and others.

Currently, it is estimated 6 million Americans are not prepared for the digital switchover.

Thought: I'd never thought I say this, but yours truly is siding with the Republicans on this issue (and I guess I'll become a Cubs fan, too.) Don't mean to sound harsh but, if these 6 million Americans didn't get the message regarding the DTV switchover date - a date set four years ago, mind you - why should the rest of us should pay? Let them figure it out for themselves. Delaying the switch isn't going to make the number drop any faster. Whether if its Feburary 17 or June 12, somebody will complain about their TV getting shut off. Deal with it.

Update: Here is a more detailed look on the digital transition from TV Barn - plus some audio. Good work, Aaron!

Updated at 9:10 p.m.

"Star Trek: The Next Generation" returns

Star Trek: The Next Generation is returning home to where it all began. Its mission: to boost ratings in a landscape of tawdry talk shows, crummy courtroom shows, and According to Jim-like off-network sitcoms.

Reruns of the sequel to Star Trek, which practically put one-hour scripted action dramas on the map in syndication in the 1980s and 1990s, has been sold to 83 percent of the country for its second syndicated act by CBS Television Distribution for this fall. 178 episodes were produced between 1987 and 1994, and all are available for this upcoming package. Station groups signing on include CBS, Sinclair, and Tribune (individual stations were not identified.)

Paramount Domestic Television announced the revival of Star Trek for syndication in October 1986, and premiered on September 28, 1987 to more than 25 million viewers. The series went on to be nominated for eighteen Emmy Awards, and became the first syndicated drama to nominated for Outstanding Drama Series in 1994, its seventh and final season.

Star Trek: TNG helped make Paramount's syndication operations one of the richest and most successful in the industry, and helped put a huge number of independent TV stations on the map. One of those stations was WPWR-TV in Chicago, which ran the show Saturdays at 6 p.m. (and again at 10:30 p.m. on Sundays) and always finished a strong second in its time period.

The program also was successful as an off-first run all-cash strip, bucking the trend at the time of hour-long dramatic series failing to find an audience in off-network syndication.

Star Trek: TNG moved to TNN (now Spike TV) in 2000, leaving broadcast syndication (WPWR even aired a "goodbye marathon" of the series.) The series has been thrown around the cable dial since, previously airing on G4 and SciFi Channel and now on WGN America.

The program helped spawned three other Star Trek series: Deep Space Nine (Syndication, 1993-99), Voyager (UPN, 1995-2002), and Enterprise (UPN, 2001-05), plus four movies.

The original Star Trek ran on NBC from 1966-69, but proved more popular in off-network syndication - so much so, several movies featuring the original cast were made. In 2006, Star trek returned to broadcast syndication as a weekly, completely remastered in high-definition (Star Trek: The Original Series airs on WWME-TV Saturdays at 5 p.m.)

An animated version aired on NBC's Saturday morning lineup from 1973-75, produced by Filmation.

Thought: Great move by CBS Television Distribution. The return of Star Trek: The Next Generation provides a good alternative to the profiliation of court, game, and talk shows in syndication. It's a all-barter deal (unlike in its last cycle in weekday syndication when it sold for cash - meaning no barter spots), so it's a good deal for stations.

T Dog's Think Tank Archive: No cable required. This post is from October 26, 2006, when NBC Universal announced it was selling Law & Order: Criminal Intent into broadcast syndication as a strip - the first time an off-network drama was sold into syndication in this manner in eight years.

Did you know? In addition to Star Trek: The Next Generation, Paramount also brought out another first-run drama titled Friday the 13th: The Series in 1987, though the show had no connection to the movie franchise of the same name. When Friday the 13th started having trouble attracting advertisers because of its often gory content, Paramount pulled the plug in 1990 after three seasons, along with another first-run drama, War of the Worlds after two.

NATPE News

The National Association of Television Program Executives convention got underway today in Las Vegas. While it won't be as jumping as it was in recent years, there is business to be done here in the world of syndication and beyond. Plus, look for not one, but two T Dog Think Tanks on the state of syndication in 2009. We'll have news from the convention all week, so keep it here.

- TV Week named "Judge" Judy Sheindlin Syndication Personality of the Year. She's got a BS Meter, and is not afraid to use it (and it goes up - way up, when the meter is around Governor Blago.) Read the interview here.

- Broadcasting & Cable has an article up on the convention, stating its a rebuilding year for syndication in 2009 (though it seems every year is a rebuilding year. Detroit Lions fans can relate, right?)

- Litton has some news: It has renewed weekly series Storm Stories for a second season in syndication while giving a "firm go" to new courtroom strip Street Court after clearing 65 percent of the country, including WCIU-TV here.

- Disney-ABC Television Distribution has renewed Legend of the Seeker for a second season after Tribune picked up the show for its 26 stations, including WGN-TV here. Legend airs Saturdays at 4 p.m.

"Ugly Betty" to be yanked

It looks like Ugly Betty may be down for the count.

ABC has decided to replace the low-rated one-hour dramedy with two half-hour comedies: The new In The Motherhood and the returning Samantha Who? in its' Thursday night (7 p.m. CT) time slot. The move is effective March 26, but the plan is to put Ugly Betty on hiatus and bring it back after the two comedies' run ends, with means Betty could have its season finale in June.

Betty, along with Heroes, were the toast of the freshmen town in 2006, but both have slid in the ratings and in the quality department over the past year-and-a-half. Both programs have been criticized for increasingly silly storylines during this time span.

The move could seal Betty's fate, though no decision has been made on whether or not it will be back for a fourth season.

According to AfterElton.com, ABC officials said it has "complete confidence in Ugly Betty and the hiatus is no way meant to reflect a loss in faith for the show which remains large part of ABC's identity."

Thought: All right, ABC, what is this? Okay, you're yanking Ugly Betty off the air for two months because of declining ratings, replacing it with two lame-brain comedies, and now you say you have complete faith in the show? What bull. If you did, you wouldn't be yanking it off now, would you? You idiots screwed the show up to begin with by failing to move it from its early Thursday night time slot, letting it die opposite Survivor. And guess what? Until early March, it's still going to get beat by Probst & Co. by wide margins, no less. Wow, talk about adding insult to injury. And you still have faith in the show?

While Ugly Betty deserves its benching, ABC's "having your cake and eating it too" stance on this show is just another reason why viewers are abandoning network television (remember what CW did last year with Girlfriends?)

This TV clears 60 percent of U.S.

This TV, the new digital movie channel launched by MGM and Chicago-based Weigel Broadcasting on November 1, 2008, has now cleared 60 percent of the country on digital subchannels, including several major markets.

This features movies mostly from MGM's library (though not from the pre-1986 library, which Turner/Time Warner owns), as well as classic TV series such as The Outer Limits (1964 version), Mr. Ed, and The Patty Duke Show.

In some markets, This TV replaces now-defunct music video channel The Tube, which went out of business on September 30, 2007.

One of those markets is Los Angeles, where Tribune-owned KTLA fills the vacant 5.2 channel slot once occupied by The Tube. Another Tribune station (WPHL, Philadelphia) does likewise, which fills the 17.2 channel left vacant by The Tube and its replacement, World Championship Sports Network (now Universal Sports, which has moved to one of WCAU-TV's digital subchannels.)

Other Tribune markets nabbing This include Hartford and New Orleans.

This has also cleared digital subchannel space on Raycom stations in Cleveland, Memphis, Louisville, Cincinnati, Knoxville, and ten other markets. These markets also once carried The Tube.

Several Equity Broadcasting stations have replaced Retro Television Network with This TV as well, such as WNGS-TV in Buffalo. Several Sinclair and Quincy Newspaper stations have also cleared This TV for their digital subchannels.

Other recent clearences include Boston (WHDH), Detroit (WDIV), Houston (KPRC), Seattle (KOMO), Tampa (WMOR), Portland OR (KATU), Harrisburg/Lancaster (WGAL), and Albany NY (WRGB).

Here in Chicago, This TV can be seen on WCIU-DT, digital channel 26.4 and Comcast cable channel 246, and in Milwaukee on WDJT-DT, digital channel 58.3.

Digital TV switch to be delayed until June 12

The Senate has voted to delay the digital TV switch until June 12 from February 17, the original date the switchover was to take place.

The vote was unanimous, and it is now expected to go to the House, where it is expected to easily pass.

Consumers were to get $40 coupons to help them get a converter box if they already did not have cable, satellite, or an over-the-air digital signal. But the program recently ran out of money, and consumers who request the coupons now have to be put on a waiting list.

The delay for four more months could cost broadcasters like PBS money, which said it may lose $22 million if the switch were to be put on hold (which could mean more pledge drives, a.k.a. "beg-a-thons".)

It's Jared vs. The Noid

Welcome to Sub Sandwich Smackdown!

In one corner, you have long-time vet Subway and another you have feisty challenger Domino's and their new oven-baked sandwiches, which they claim beat Subway's in a two-to-one taste test.

Bunk to that, says Subway.

If fact, Subway sent Domino's a cease-and-desist letter, ordering them to stop airing the ads, claiming they were deceptive.

Well, Domino's president appeared in another ad which aired Wednesday night with the letter - and set fire to it, literally (I'm not making this up.)

Domino's defends its attack ads on Subway, claiming they were reviewed by lawyers and the television networks before getting the green light to air.

So, who do you have in this fight? Jared, the guy who lost all that weight by eating Subway sandwiches and exercising? Or The Noid, the little runt who ruins pizzas before you eat them? (Moot point, given the pizzas are basically ruined before he jumps on them, since they taste like the cardboard they come in.)

All of this and more on the next episode of Sub Sandwich Smackdown! Right here on My Network TV.

"Lost" loses steam in the ratings

The fifth season-premiere of Lost didn't gain viewers as the event notched its lowest-rated season-premiere to date.

Lost averaged a 5.0 rating and 12 share among adults 18-49 and drew 10 million viewers for ABC in the 8-10 p.m. (Central) time slot Wednesday night for ABC. While the results were still pretty good, it's still down from the fourth-season premiere in 2008 (which aired on a Thursday) and Lost viewers every half-hour, never a good sign (excuse the pun.)

By comparison, American Idol drew 25 million viewers and a 9.6/25 in 18-49s for Fox on Wednesday.

Locally, Lost averaged a surprisingly low 5.8/9 in households for WLS-TV (The highest-rated market for Lost was Detroit, where WXYZ-TV earned a 10.1/15.)

By comparison, WLS' 10 p.m. newscast on Tuesday earned a 13.4/22 in households.

WFLD hires Fowler as news director

Fox-owned WFLD-TV has hired former WBBM-TV news director Carol Fowler to work in the same capacity.

Fowler replaces Andrew Finlayson, who today took a job with News Corp. as director for online content and business for the Fox Television Stations Group.

Fowler was news director at CBS-owned WBBM for six years before being fired last fall in a newsroom shakeup. During her tenure, WBBM's news ratings failed to improve.

The move comes as both WBBM and WFLD are still not impressing anyone with their news ratings. Despite some gains - including beating rival WGN-TV in the ratings head-to-head with all-day coverage of the Governor's arrest, WFLD still trails WGN in all news time periods by considerable margains, even at 9 p.m., where WFLD can't seem to take advantage of its network prime-time lead-ins (something WBBM and WMAQ-TV have been accused of in the past.)

Meanwhile, WBBM's 10 p.m. newscasts still lags behind those of its rivals, while WFLD's new 10 p.m. newscast failed to match the numbers of Simpsons repeats, which occupied the time slot last year. Both programs are often beaten in household ratings by repeats of Family Guy on WGN.

Thought: This move is a questionable one as Fowler is liable in a still-pending lawsuit filed by Amy Jacobson, who was caught at the Stebic house in 2007 in videotape shot by WBBM. Fowler couldn't improve ratings at WBBM, so what makes anyone think she can improve the news ratings at WFLD?

T Dog's Groovy Grab Bag

Inauguration ratings; Litton clears Street Court in New York and Chicago; Erica Cobb has a new gig.

- The Inauguration of Barack Obama scored in the ratings yesterday, with the most watched swearing-in ceremony since President Reagan in 1981, with a 29.2 rating in the 56 markets metered by Nielsen on an "overnight" basis. In Chicago, here's how the household ratings broke down for each local station from 11a.m. to 11:30 a.m.:

WLS (ABC): 13.7/28; WMAQ (NBC): 7.4/15; WBBM (CBS): 2.2/5; WFLD (FOX): 2.1/4

Ratings for WGN-TV were not available.

Best performance of a station in a top 30 market: KSDK-TV (NBC) in St. Louis, which notched a 17.2/39. Worst: KSWB-TV (Fox) in San Diego with a scant 0.5/1. Of particular note in the Top 30 was a lot of CBS affiliates trailing their NBC and ABC counterparts, including Detroit, whose local news-less O&O (WWJ) notched only a 1.1/3. (Thanks to Douglas at PIFeedback.com. Click here and scroll down to see the entire list.)

Keep in mind the ratings do not take into account millions more watching on the Internet.

- Litton Entertainment has cleared its new courtroom strip Street Court on WCIU-TV here in Chicago and WPIX-TV in New York. With these big clearences, the program is likely to get a "firm go" at the NATPE convention in Las Vegas next week.

Street Court is presided by former Brooklyn D.A. Michael Mazzariello (also known as "Judge Mazz"), who takes the warring parties out of the courtroom and on the scene of where the dispute happened.

On WCIU, Street Court could take over the 2 p.m. time period now occupied by Judge Karen, which has reportedly been canceled after one season. Sony has not recently said anything about the show's future, or that of Judge David Young.

- Erica Cobb, who appeared on the now-defunct Eddie & JoBo show on WBBM-FM, has landed at Entercom's KALC-FM in Denver(Alice 105.9), where she will join the BJ & Howie show, effective Monday.

The Clear Channel layoff

While Barack Obama was being sworn in as our 44th President, something else was going on. And it wasn't good.

Clear Channel made what is perhaps the biggest one-day layoff of any media company in history by axing around 1,850 jobs nationwide from Chicago to Atlanta, from Detroit to San Francisco, and everywhere in between.

Clear Channel CEO Mark Mays confirmed the layoffs - which amount to 9 percent of the company's workforce. The axings were spread around its radio, outdoor advertising, and corporate headquarters. The company also plans to cut back on local programming and add more syndicated content.

While ad sales and promotion positions were eliminated, some on-air personalities were shown the door as well -literally.

Two-decade veteran Rick O'Dell of Smooth Jazz WNUA-FM was one of those fired yesterday. O'Dell was the station's popular midday personality and also served as the music director and program director. The move also raises the speculation about the future of WNUA, whose ratings have fallen since the implementation of the Portable People Meters, the new ratings system now used by Arbitron, and the Smooth Jazz format has already been sacked in markets such as Minneapolis, Denver, and Washington, D.C.

Also out was WKSC-FM's Marty Headrick, who handled promotions and production.

Word is two dozen employees were axed from Clear Channel Chicago.

And it didn't stop there as a long list of terminations were posted on All Access and Radio and Records. As far as the Midwest is concerned, layoffs occurred at Clear Channel clusters in Madison, Wis.; Minneapolis; Cleveland (where 46 were let go); St. Louis; and in Detroit, where the entire staff of all-sports WDFN-AM was let go - including the Stoney and Wojo morning show - and the station may flip formats. Another all-sports radio station - this time in San Diego (XTRA-AM) had its entire staff purged as well.

Read Clear Channel President/CEO Mark Mays' and Clear Channel Radio President/CEO John Hogan's letters to employees here.

Thought: Man... Where do I begin? Employees escorted out by security... entire staffs being let go... firing your morning personality - who finished first in the ratings... Yep, it's the Clear Channel way.

No, it's the corporate radio way. And its little wonder why listeners are fleeing for iPods/MP3 players, satellite radio (until Uncle Mel screws that up), and Internet radio (until the RIAA shuts it down because of their royalty "tax".)

Today, Clear Channel openly admitted it doesn't care about its listeners or its employees - something everyone has known for years.

And did anyone think they would try to get away with this by trying to bury this news on the same day Barack Obama was being sworn in as our 44th President? News about the layoffs were leaked out last Thursday. How dumb do they think we are? No, Clear Channel executives are the dumb ones. What a dick move.

Even more appalling is their plan to cut back on live, local programming and add more syndicated content. The audience has been telling them for years they demand live and local programming. But since Clear Channel doesn't listen to or care about the listener, why bother?


It no longer matters what the audience wants. To radio companies, its the bottom line that matters. Quality doesn't (which explains syndicated crap like Delilah, Van Pelt, Seacrest, etc.) The audience can either take it or leave it. And from the look of things, the audience has left it.

And don't give me this BS about the weak economy. While it is tough times out there, why aren't Clear Channel execs having their pay cut? Mays and Hogan are still incredibly wealthy from what I hear, especially after taking the company private. These layoffs would have happened anyway, weak economy or no.

And don't forget: it's not just Clear Channel. Dan McNeil was dropped from WMVP-AM on Friday by the mighty overlords at ESPN, who think Mike & Mike is the best radio show in the world (not) and annoying prick Scott Van Pelt is the next superstar. I hope his sister Lucy pulls away the football, hits him with it, and beats him up... CBS Radio have axed personalities from its FM stations, including four at WBBM-FM in the last two years alone. Citadel made a huge layoff at WLS nearly a year ago.

You know, when I started this blog in September 2006, I promised you a twisted look at the media business. But with all the layoffs and firings over the last several months, writing about this business is becoming less and less fun. There's nothing humorous about heartless media companies like Cheap Channel treating employees like cow manure - and then putting them out to pasture.

Yesterday was indeed a historic day in America. Leave it to the radio business to make history on the same day for all the wrong reasons.

(Editor's Note: On Wednesday, it was revealed the Mays brothers were voluntarily cutting their own pay, from $800,000 a year to $500,000. Of course, they still get their bonuses, which could top out at a paltry $4 million. Wow, how nice of you guys... to clean your conscious like that, so you can sleep at night. Too bad you can't say the same about the people you assholes laid off, who are laying awake at night wondering how they are going to pay their bills. Totally despicable. - T.H.)

Our new President

Our very own Barack Obama - from the South Side of Chicago - is the nation's 44th President - and the first African-American to be in the Oval Office. It's a historic day in this country.

Just like the day the Chicago White Sox won the 2005 World Series - President Obama's election makes yours truly proud to be a Chicagoan, an African-American, a South Sider - and to be an American.

Thank you, President Obama.

More on McNeil's departure

As you know by now, ESPN's WMVP-AM cut Dan McNeil from the Mac, Jurko & Harry show, with only Jurko & Harry remaining, joined by Carmen DeFalco - for now.

Ed Sherman (formerly of the Chicago Tribune) wrote in his sports blog for Crain's Chicago Business with more on McNeil's firing - one important factor was McNeil's high salary, commanding $600,000 a year (but that's lower compared to what other local radio personalities have been paid.)

McNeil has become the latest well-known - and well-paid radio personality to be let go, which has been the pattern for the last year or so. Other exits include Howard McGee, Steve Dahl, and Eddie Volkman & Joe Bohannon.

Let's face it - in an era where economics factor into everything, it's the bottom line that matters. Believe it or not, there are some station managers who currently air The Oprah Winfrey Show that would glad to see her go if she doesn't come back after 2011, given the license fee for the show is up there in the cost department. Despite the fact most reality shows bomb in the ratings, they stay around because the programs are cheap to to produce. If it's on a shoestring budget - it's in. Quality be damned!

Though quality doesn't really qualify in this case. Judging from the comments I read on Sherman's blog, McNeil hasn't exactly been Mr. Likeable. Then again, what Chicago sports radio personality isn't?