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Archive for the ‘WKCF-18’ category

WKCF doing well for the CW

January 24th, 2007

After picking up the pieces from the failed WB and UPN networks, the CW is still trying to find its identity — and its viewers.

But Orlando’s WKCF-CW 18 has emerged as one of the netlet’s strongest affiliates. "The initial ratings were soft, we think, because of a lot of confusion surrounding the launch of The CW," station GM Bill Bauman told the Orlando Sentinel. "But we have seen growth every week."

Bauman, who also manages WESH, praised the CW management team, too. "We’ve had many conversations with the people running The CW, and they appear to me to be the most affiliate-friendly network ever," he said.

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Posted in Orlando TV, WKCF-18

Tags: Ratings WKCF-18

Morning news battle heats up today

January 15th, 2007

Good morning, Orlando. You may not realize it, but you’re waking up in what has become the most competitive market for morning news in the nation — with more local news, with more national news and with plenty of surprises.

Monday morning, WESH-Channel 2 and WFTV-Channel 9 will start their early newscasts at 5 a.m. and then keep on broadcasting once their respective network morning shows go on the air at 7 o’clock. Instead of watching NBC’s Today, you can view WESH 2 News on CW 18 from 7-9 a.m. by switching over to WKCF-Channel 18. Instead of watching Good Morning America, you can tune to Eyewitness News This Morning from 7-8:30 a.m. by going to WRDQ-Channel 27.

WESH’s and WFTV’s news expansion to their sister duopoly stations sets up a local 7-9 a.m. showdown for the first time. WOFL-Fox 35 has had the 7-9 a.m. local broadcast news franchise to itself for six years since it launched its morning news in 2000. (Oh, and we can’t overlook cable’s Central Florida News 13, whose all-local newscasts do well in the mornings, too.)

WFTV was the first to announce its plans to expand its Eyewitness News franchise in the morning to sister station WRDQ. The details were revealed in early December, but the station has been planning the new morning news since July.

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Posted in Orlando TV, WESH-2, WFTV-9, WKCF-18, WRDQ-27

Tags: WESH-2 WFTV-9 WKCF-18 WRDQ-27

New news moves Buzz to later air time

January 15th, 2007

WESH’s decision to air local news on WKCF-CW18 from 7 to 9 a.m. each weekday has displaced The Daily Buzz.

The nationally syndicated morning show will now air on tape from 9 a.m. to noon on WKCF. The show had been airing live from 6-9 a.m. on WKCF since it moved operations to Channel 18′s studios in Lake Mary in 2004.

Once WESH acquired WKCF last year, it immediately indicated its wanted to air local news in the Buzz’s time slot. The big question is whether the Buzz will remain at 9-noon on WKCF or be dropped from the station all together soon.

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Posted in Orlando TV, WKCF-18

Tags: Daily Buzz WKCF-18

Help Wanted Sign Out at Daily Buzz

March 7th, 2006

The Daily Buzz is looking for a new anchor.

The Orlando-based national morning show has posted on tvjobs.com looking for someone "to sit next to our current host Andrea Jackson." Uh, isn’t that what John Brown does now?

The answer is yes. The show confirms that Brown is leaving, and the posting is for his position.

In more Buzz news, show marketing director Chris Iller is heading out West to be part of ACME’s Albuquerque duopoly. Coming in to take the Buzz’s marketing duties are Steve Bailey and Deanne Schulz. Bailey is the VP of ACME Promotions as well as the official new marketing director for the show, and Schulz handles media and affiliate relations.

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Posted in Orlando TV, WKCF-18

Tags: Daily Buzz

CW Signs Up 18 — Plus Other Stuff

March 1st, 2006

It’s been a newsy couple of days so far this week …

The new CW Network signed up its first round of affiliates on Wednesday, and among the group of five was Orlando’s WKCF-Channel 18. The future former home of the WB network will now be the place where the CW calls home in Central Florida. WKCF won out over independent WRDQ-Channel 27. I’m not sure how strong of a contender Channel 27 was for CW affiliation, but a couple of insiders said the station sure was interested. Emmis-owned WKCF is still up for sale, by the way, and CW affiliation should help those prospects. The other new netlet this fall, Fox-owned My Network TV, will end up on Fox-owned WRBW-Channel 65, currently home to UPN. Read the full story.

Marc Middleton ended a 20-something-year career at WESH on Tuesday, signing off after the noon news. Middleton came to WESH initially as its sports director back in the early 1980s. He later swapped places with then-morning anchor Bill Shaffer. As reported earlier, Middleton is teaming up with former Channel 2 anchor Andrea Coudriet in starting a media relations company.

Reynolds Wolf, former morning meteorologist at WKMG-Channel 6, is joining CNN as a new weathercaster. After leaving O-Town, Wolf was at KMOV in St. Louis. He starts Monday. Here’s more info.

Central Florida News 13 is getting a full-time Tallahassee bureau. Station owner Bright House Networks said the bureau, working out of FSU station WFSU-Channel 11 (PBS), will feed stories to CFN 13 as well as sister station Bay News 9 in Tampa. "What happens in Tallahassee on a daily basis affects all of us living in Florida," Elliott Wiser, vice president of news programming for Bright House Networks Florida Group, told the Orlando Sentinel.