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May
24

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Cleveland anchors go nuts as Cavs beat Magic

Category: Orlando Magic, Orlando TV Tags: , Leave a Comment

So, face it. Those of us in the media sometimes are accused of being “homers” — cheering for the home team rather than being objective. And, granted, sometimes we are homers.

But I can’t recall anyone EVER in Orlando TV news going as far as the anchor team at Cleveland’s top-rated WEWS-ABC 5 did on Friday night — when LeBron James hit a game-winning 3-pointer against the Orlando Magic. Watch the clip below and judge for yourself. You’ll see bedlam break out on the set at the 40-second mark of the video when sports guy Terry Brooks jumps out of his seat screaming, “CAVS WIN! CAVS WIN!”

So, are Cleveland anchors more passionate about their team than Orlando’s anchors are about the Magic, are or Orlando’s anchors more professional than Cleveland’s? Just askin’.

 


 

Not only is this clip on YouTube, WEWS is publicizing the anchors reaction on its own Web site. (Thanks to the Sentinel’s Magic BasketBlog for letting us know about the clip.)

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May
13

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Like Rodney Dangerfield, I get no respect

Category: Orlando TV Leave a Comment

A visitor to the Web site spotted this the other day on WFTV-Channel 9, from an episode of Family Feud.

The category for the two teams to guess: Name a Famous Roger. Sure, there’s Roger Moore (the filmmaker — or is it the Orlando Sentinel movie critic? – take your pick). And baseball’s Roger Clemens, and even Disney’s Roger Rabbit.

You’ll have to watch until the end of the short clip to see why I’m equally happy and humbled:

 


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May
4

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Oh, doctor! Did Local 6 run out of news?

Category: Orlando TV, WKMG-6 Tags: Leave a Comment

WKMG’s new schedule goes into effect today. No more news at 4, 5 or 5:30 p.m. — the new hourlong 6 p.m. show starts, followed by the CBS Evening News with Katie Couric at 7 p.m.

Taking over one of Local 6 News’ former time slots — from 5 to 6 p.m. — is talk show host Dr. Phil. WKMG moved the good doctor to be the lead-in for its local news — an idea that was first tried at Post-Newsweek sister station WPLG-ABC 10 in Miami in 2006 with great ratings success. Back then I asked then-GM Henry Maldonado if WKMG had any plans to copy the Dr. Phil programming strategy.

“Dr Phil is doing better than ever here at 7,” Maldonado wrote in an e-mail back then. “We were the first major market station to put Dr Phil in the evening, and now others are following our lead. Our news is doing just fine, we are No. 2 in those time periods, and looking to keep moving up.”

“But,” he added, “it’s good to know that there’s a strategy out there in case this town runs out of news.”

Well, I think we have plenty of news — just not as many people watching it.

Also of note: The news schedule that WKMG is starting today — hour of news from 6-7 followed by CBS Evening News — was employed here in the Sunshine State back in the 1980s when WTVT-Fox 13 was still a CBS affiliate. It ran “Pulse 13 News” as an hourlong block leading into CBS’ news at 7 p.m. As they say, the more things change …

Here’s a clip from WTVT:


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May
1

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Real Radio’s Shannon Burke in jail after shooting wife, dog

Category: Orlando Radio, Orlando TV Leave a Comment

Breaking Radio News: OrlandoSentinel.com is reporting that Shannon Burke of Real Radio 104.1 is in jail today, accused of firing a gun — the bullet from which injured his family’s dog and grazed his wife in the head. Burke, 43, is facing charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon and animal cruelty. Burke used to have a regular segment on the Orlando-based morning show, The Daily Buzz, on WRDQ-Ch. 27.

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May
1

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WKMG spins news shuffle

Category: Orlando TV, WKMG-6 Tags: Leave a Comment

Here’s a video WKMG produced for advertisers and others — trying to put a positive spin on Local 6′s decision to abandon news at 4, 5 and 5:30 p.m. starting Monday. Take a look here: (oops — video removed at request of Local 6)

What do you think about the changes at WKMG? Talk about them on our message boards.

 

 

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May
1

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Shake up at WKMG: Layoffs, newscasts shuffled

Category: Orlando TV, WKMG-6 Tags: , , Leave a Comment

Thursday was a sad day for those at WKMG-Local 6.

Hit hard by the sagging revenue and sagging ratings, the CBS affiliate reportedly laid off 20 staffers and canceled its 4, 5 and 5:30 newscasts. Starting Monday, WKMG will air Dr. Phil from 5 to 6 p.m. and an hourlong newscast from 6 to 7 p.m. The CBS Evening News with Katie Couric moves to 7 p.m. from 6:30.

If this lineup sounds familiar to TV observers, that’s because it’s the forumla used at Post-Newsweek sister station WPLG-ABC 10 in Miami and at Gannett’s WTSP-CBS 10 in Tampa. Both stations moved Dr. Phil to 5 p.m. to compete against rivals’ local newscasts, and both saw bumps in ratings for their 6 p.m. newscasts — a feat Local 6 hopes to repeat. But it may not be so easy.

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