WFTV morning meteorologist Joe Smith is getting out of the weather biz ... and the TV biz, too. According to NewsBlues.com, Smith has decided to enter the graduate engineering program at Cal-Berkeley this fall.

After graduating from the FSU meteorology program, he started out at Tallahassee's ABC affiliate before jumping up to Channel 9 in May 2003.

Trying to serve you better, you'll notice new links at the bottom of the story posts on this news page. Click where it says "comments" and you can leave a comment on what you just read or you can read what other people have to say about the news item.

Some folks have been asking to be able to do this for awhile, but I have resisted. I figured the TV Talk Forum area of the site was sufficient for commentary. But I've decided to allow comments to be posted on the news items here because there is one advantage to doing so.

All comments have to be approved by me before they are published -- so I can keep things on topic and cut down on some of the name-calling and other goofiness that some say has chased them away from the message board, which can get a little too wild sometimes. So, comment away ... and then check back later to see your comments published.

SCHOOL DAYS: A couple of items from the higher education department ...

First, the Radio/TV program at Hillsborough Community College is looking for a news set. WESH, which recently changed its set, quickly came to mind as a possible donor. But since people outside the Orlando market also visit this site, perhaps you have a set to donate? If so, please e-mail me, and I'll pass the information along. ...

Second, CBS correspondent Wyatt Andrews, who used to work in O-Town at WFTV back in the day, has been giving something back to his alma mater, the University of Virginia, by teaching a course on "Journalism and the Media" this past semester. Click here to learn more.

NETWORKING: While O-Town's new network allegiances to the CW and My Network TV have been sorted out with WKCF and WRBW, things are still shaking out across the nation on which network gets which stations in which markets. I came across this link that has the recent signings by market, if you are interested.

WESH Sunrise reporter Shannon FitzPatrick signed off Wednesday morning. She's leaving the TV biz to pursue a career in real estate and marketing. (I'd like to have a dollar for every TV person who has gone into real estate, but I digress.) FitzPatrick started at WESH in 1998 and moved to the Sunrise show in 2005. Little-known trivia about FitzPatrick: She's the niece of 1980s WESH anchor Carol Granstrom.

Meanwhile, over at WFTV, I failed to note the departure of weekend anchor Jorge Estevez. His last day on the air was March 19. He's heading to Miami's CBS O&O, WFOR. No word on his replacement at Channel 9, although with Cynthia Demos also off this past Saturday-Sunday, it was Greg Warmoth and Chris Egert filling in on the weekend desk.

You now have one fewer choice for weekend morning news. WKMG has pulled the plug on its weekend First News shows, with the last one airing this past Sunday morning.

WKMG started the weekend morning newscasts three years ago, with Steven Cooper anchoring and Michele Cimino reporting the weather. When the shows debuted in April 2003, they ran for two hours, then they were cut to 90 minutes, then to just an hour each by January 2004.

WKMG News Director Skip Valet said the weekend newscasts are on "hiatus" but could return. "When the time is right, we will revisit the weekend AM broadcast, and then produce the newscast with the resources and support it deserves," he said.

The weekend newscasts' biggest highlight might have been on Saturday, Aug. 14, 2004 -- when they were part of WKMG's coverage of Hurricane Charley. Cimino and Cooper reported to duty early that Saturday morning as Local 6 was the only area station to stay on the air overnight, despite not having power at the station.

As anyone who has watched a Fox 35 newscast can attest, sports is not a high priority at the station. But you would think the WOFL folks would know the difference between football and basketball.

Take Sunday night, for instance. During The Simpsons, Fox 35 aired a promo for its 10 p.m. news, teasing a report on the University of Florida's basketball team: "It's do or die for the Gators. It's been a long time since they went to the Final Four. We'll tell you all about their battle with Villanova."

Nothing wrong with that, right? Well, Fox 35 ran that over football highlights. Click the play button below to see what I'm talking about:





And I'm pretty sure Florida wasn't playing Villanova in that football game. This could have just been a mistake, or it could have been Fox trying to get around CBS and NCAA restrictions on running basketball highlights.

Attorneys for a Winter Park plastic surgeon have filed a defamation suit against WFTV-Channel 9 for a series of reports the station ran about the doctor.

According to the Orlando Sentinel, the civil suit by Dr. Thomas Trevisani alleges that Channel 9 aired reports in 2002, 2003 and 2004 that contained false and defamatory statements. Reported the Sentinel: "The lawsuit cites examples of 'defamatory statements' in which WFTV reported that Trevisani knew and allowed 'unscrupulous behavior' by his clinic employees, and that a "felon" and "two ex-cons" were doing physical exams and prescribing surgery at his clinic."

WFTV Vice President and General Manager Shawn Bartelt issued a statement that said: "The news reports at issue regarding Dr. Trevisani were fair and accurate accounts of matters of public concern. WFTV stands behind the content of its stories."

OK, I don't really have a TV news peg for this, other than ... uh, remember when Fox 35 use to run The Simpsons at 11 p.m. against the late local news instead of that gawd-awful Geraldo show? I do. Ah, I love The Simpsons. This Sunday the famous opening to The Simpsons, where they all end up on the couch, will be done in live action for the first time -- no animation, just real life people.

It's all based on a Sky TV promo. If you like The Simpsons, you'll love this ...

Happy birthday to us, happy birthday to us, happy birthday RogerSimmons.com, happy birthday to us.

It was six years ago today that RogerSimmons.com was born. It's been a fantastic six years for me, and I hope you have enjoyed it too. This TV portion of the site has become its most popular area, and I enjoy helping keep alive some of Orlando's great television history and reporting on the goings-on in the local industry today. So, help yourself to some virtual cake and ice cream.

>> Mentioned yesterday rumors about WOFL parent Fox purchasing WSVN in Miami. NewsBlues reports today that NBC-Universal apparently had a deal to buy WSVN owner Sunbeam, which also owns NBC affiliate WHDH in Boston. Under the plan, NBC-Uni was going to keep WHDH but sell WSVN to Fox. But ... the deal apparently fell apart at the last minute.

>> We've previously chronicled the music career of Fox 35 morning meteorologist Jim Van Fleet. Well, he's got a big gig this weekend. His band, Jim Van Fleet and the Reign, is opening for Dwight Yoakam at Hard Rock Live on Saturday. Tickets are available at the WOFL.com web site.

Some news nuggets for you ...

>> While watching WFTV's Eyewitness News on Monday night, I was more concerned about the safety of reporter Jodie Fleischer than what she was reporting. For a story about a plan to relieve traffic woes on the Turnpike and U.S. 192, Fleisher did a live shot sitting atop a concrete barrier in the middle of a toll lane. Sure, she had on one of those safety vests ... but would that really protect her with all those cars whizzing by? Watching the report made me a little uncomfortable.

>> According to Internet rumors on TVSpy.com, O-Town's Fox-owned sister stations WOFL and WRBW could be getting a new sibling in their News Corp. family today. Supposedly, according to the chatter, Fox is going to buy Miami Fox affiliate WSVN from Sunbeam. The announcement, the posters say, will come down today. We'll see, but I'm a bit skeptical.

>> Todd Jurkowski, who has bounced between Fort Myers and Orlando several times in his TV career, returned to O-Town airwaves this past weekend in his new role as weekend anchor at WKMG.

>> Get those blue tarps ready. In a report on its website, Central Florida News 13 says the first official hurricane prediction of the year is out ... and it's expected to be an above average season.

As we mentioned awhile back, former Channel 6 meteorologist Reynolds Wolf has joined CNN. His hometown newspaper, the Clanton (Ala.) Advertiser, profiles the local boy who's done pretty good and chronicles the big break he got to jump start his on-air career.

"I've always been interested in weather, but the big turning point for me was in 1993 - there was a tornado outbreak in Northeast Alabama. They were Palm Sunday tornados," he said.

Here's the link to the full story.

Orlando received a TV shout-out from Comedy Central's Colbert Report, quite possibly the funniest show on television.

Host Stephen Colbert, in a segment called "Who's Attacking Me Now?," took Orlando Sentinel columnist Commander Coconut to task ... for making fun of his ears. Colbert, in a phone interview with the Commander, depicted the Sentinel as a tree house and the Commander as, well, a coconut.

Said Colbert about the Commander, "He's got a real name, but I can't reveal it. His column is so hard-hitting, he has to maintain his anonymity. I believe he was given the name Commander Coconut by the Witness Protection Program -- so he could blend in to the Florida landscape."

The clip is here on the Comedy Central site. Go to the "Who's Attacking Me Now?" part of the page.

Spring time: I'm taking a few days off from work this week, and I'm not alone. It's spring break time but for many O-Town anchors. Just flipping around the dial last night, I discovered these anchors are also taking time off this week:
WFTV -- Bob Opsahl, Martie Salt, Tom Terry
Fox 35 -- Cale Ramaker
WESH 2 -- Jim Payne
Local 6 -- Bob Frier

Love is on the air: Not sure if you caught the funny story in Philly involving former WOFL morning weather guy Doug Kammerer. He was doing a live shot for NBC O&O WCAU when some young lovers started going at it behind him. Here's the Philly Daily News' item about it.

From big screen to computer screen: While getting the link for Doug's bio for the above item, on his web page at WCAU -- and those of other on-air talent -- you can download their pictures as your computer's wallpaper. Not sure why, but ...

Going all in: The Orlando Sentinel's Scott Maxwell has the scoop on WKMG sports anchor Lee Goldberg's annual Celebrity Texas Hold 'Em Tournament, benefiting Maitland's Jewish Community Center. Wrote Maxwell, "Once the dealing started, WKMG anchor Jacqueline London was one of the first celebs out. 'I had to be back on the air,' she cheerfully protested. 'Otherwise, I would've won it all.' " The event raised more than $30,000.

I told you awhile back that CFN turned on its new outdoors screen and news zipper across its new home in downtown Orlando. Well, finally, here are some pictures. It's pretty cool.

I put up a post Thursday morning about a big NASA announcement that Central Florida News 13 was promoting on its web site. "An Exclusive E.T. Scoop for CFN 13?," I asked in the headline. It was indeed a scoop -- just a wrong one. And it ignited a series of events that crashed 13's web site and had others writing about the station's misinterpretation of a space agency press release.

• "Big NASA Announcement Today. NASA is planning to make a huge announcement today, about possible life in our own solar system. Exact details of what we can expect to hear have not been released. We do know that evidence has been found that could point to life relatively close to the earth. Official word is expected this afternoon at 2 p.m. We'll have complete coverage of today's big news when it is released. Tune to News 13 for the complete story."

Well, after I posted about it, Matt Drudge picked it up and posted it several times on his web site, DrudgeReport.com. The CFN 13 story was the top headline for awhile, running in urgent red type. Drudge linked from his site to the story on CFN 13's site -- which then caused interested web surfers to crash the CFN 13 web site for several hours.

NASA and media outlets were scrambling. Drudge then posted a NASA press release. WKMG, meanwhile, ran a story on its web site talking about the erroneous report on CFN 13's web site.

Brevard County newspaper Florida Today even got in on the act, taking CFN 13 to task -- though not by name:

• "The story posted earlier at the web site of a local cable news outlet here in Central Florida saying that, 'NASA is planning to make a huge announcement today, about possible life in our own solar system' is simply incorrect. The station has since removed the story from the web site, noting that earlier reports may have been misleading. It could be that other news organizations also posted or broadcast the same erroneous information or something similar. In any event, the "news" blazed a trail all over the Internet and prompted a lot of unnecessary excitement."

In the end, we now know NASA's Cassini probe has found possible water geysers on the Saturn moon Enceladus. As the Orlando Sentinel reported, this raises "the possibility that conditions favorable for life in our solar system are much more common than once thought possible."

Saw this posted on Central Florida News 13's web site this morning. Sounds pretty big, but there's no mention of it on OrlandoSentinel.com, CNN.com, Space.com or any of the other local station's web sites. So, is this a scoop by 13?

Big NASA Announcement Today
NASA is planning to make a huge announcement today, about possible life in our own solar system.
Exact details of what we can expect to hear have not been released. We do know that evidence has been found that could point to life relatively close to the earth.
Official word is expected this afternoon at 2 p.m. We'll have complete coverage of today's big news when it is released. Tune to News 13 for the complete story.

Local 6 morning and noon anchor Mark McEwen, still recovering from a November stroke, stopped by the WKMG studios on Wednesday to visit with his co-workers. He said he was eager to get back to work, and that doctors have told him he will soon be able to return to the office for a couple of hours.

Still, no official date has been set for McEwen's return to the anchor desk. Initially, he was expected to be back in January and then March, but his recovery is taking a little longer than expected.

Viewers continue to send McEwen their get-well wishes. You can too by e-mailing firstnews@wkmg.com

Here's a link to photos of McEwen's visit.

Central Florida News 13 flipped the switch this week on its big, outdoor TV on Orange Avenue. The monster monitor now shows CFN 13's programming to those driving by on the street, walking by the building or stopping by one of Wall Street Plaza's fine drinking establishments.

The station also turned on its multi-colored ticker, which runs across the front and side of its new headquarters in the Wachovia building.

It all looks very cool. For a split second, you might think you're in New York City's Times Square -- until you realize it's 80 degrees in March, there's no Diane Sawyer or Charles Gibson hanging around, and the Statue of Liberty down the street is only 6 feet tall.

By the way, if you haven't seen CFN 13's toney new digs, see the station tour on their web site.

Turns out not everyone can watch WOFL's new early evening newscast. And it has nothing to do with its content.

Fox's Orlando duopoly of WOFL and WRBW is really a triopoly, since Fox-owned WOGX-Channel 51 in Ocala is also run out of Fox 35's Lake Mary studios. Fox 51 has its own programming schedule and different syndicated shows than its Orlando big brother. But when it comes to news, the station has traditionally simulcasted Fox 35's morning and 10 p.m. news. They just slap a blue Fox 51 logo on top of the red Fox 35 logo in the left corner of the screen.

But according to one Ocala resident, WOFL's new Fox at 5 newscast hasn't made the cut for WOGX's schedule. Instead of early evening news from Orlando, the Ocala-Gainesville area is getting Seinfeld reruns on Fox 51 at 5 p.m. each day.

For its new Fox at 5 news that debuted Monday, WOFL promised its 5 p.m. start-up would be a different kind of newscast. It kept its word.

Solo anchor Amy Kaufeldt remains standing for the hour-long newscast. Chief meteorologist Glenn Richards is relegated to a new "backyard garden" outside Fox 35's studios in Lake Mary. (The garden looks nice, but don't expect any tranquility there with Glenn since the station sits next to I-4, and the drone of rush-hour traffic is noticeable in his many weather hits.)

Overall, the new newscast has that "morning show" feel, even to the point of former morning anchor Kaufeldt regularly reminding viewers of the time and temperature with traffic hits.

Among the regular features is one called "All The Talk." WOFL apparently thinks its new newscast is going to draw viewers from top-rated WFTV and has designed this segment just for them. "Each afternoon we're going to take a look at what you just watched on Oprah," Kaufeldt explained, then launched into Monday's story about Oscar fashions in Orlando. In keeping with morning show tradition, the accompanying live shot was spread over two segments.

Other regular features include "Just Home Headlines," and a recap at the end of the show called "Skip the 6 p.m." There's also "Justice for All," which follows up on ... uh, judicial stories.

To be fair, Monday was a pretty slow news day, with all four area stations leading with different stories at 5. But I have to wonder how Fox at 5 would react to breaking news or a big story during its feature-heavy news hour.

Still, you have to like being able to have another choice for early evening news viewing.

Some quick hits to bring you up to date -- if you're not there already ...

• According to NewsBlues.com, Channel 9 weekend sports anchor Zach Klein looked up from his desk Saturday afternoon at 4:30 to see a delivery truck ripping through the East-West Expressway retaining fence and heading straight for his office at the WFTV studios on South Street. One of the station's satellite dishes slowed the truck just 50 feet short of the news department. The truck was part of a three-vehicle accident that sent two children to the hospital.
• Former WFTV morning meteorologist Patty Souza has left top-rated KCRA in Sacramento to go across town to ABC affiliate KXTV.
• Matthew Hilk, who also worked in O-Town at Channel 9, has left his post as assistant news director at WTAE in Pittsburgh to become the news director at WSMV in Nashville.
• Central Florida News 13 is showing off more of its new downtown digs on air. It has raised the curtain, so to speak, from behind the anchor desk to showcase its state-of-the-art newsroom. When it vacated its original facilities at the Orlando Sentinel in December, it left most of its old equipment, opting for new stuff for its new HQ.
• Continuing to implement our redesign, our Channel 6 page has now been revised to include more than 100 current and past screen shots as well as some "new" old video. Up next on the revise list, Channel 9. Stay tuned ...

Remember the hubbub over the recent MySpace.com postings of two Orlando TV reporters?

Well, here's another MySpace.com posting with some TV faces you might recognize. Check out the page for this "single 100-year old female" from Orlando. Oh, and she's a Virgo.

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.

As the dust from the February ratings period settles, it's become clear there's no stopping the WFTV juggernaut. Channel 9 was No. 1 in six of the seven daily newscasts, with only WKMG's noon news preventing a clean sweep by WFTV.

The real race is for No. 2 in O-Town, and it looks like WKMG has improved to solid second-place status ahead of WESH in most news time periods.

Based on information distributed to the media by WFTV, here are some details:

• From 5 a.m. to 7 a.m., Channel 9 delivers 67,332 viewers - 95 percent more than second-place WESH (34,438). Third-place WKMG has 30,803, and fourth-place WOFL 20,717. In the battle for No. 2, Channel 6 edges Channel 2 at 5 a.m., with Channel 2 back at No. 2 at 6 a.m.
• At noon, WKMG's Local 6 News is king with WFTV's hour-long Eyewitness News in second place and WESH 2 News a distant third.
• From 5 to 6:30 p.m., Channel 9 pulls in 51 percent of the news audience, winning all three half hours and getting 13 percent more homes than channels 6 and 2 combined. In February, WFTV said it delivered 139,162 households while WKMG had 74,828 and WESH 48,250.
• At 11 p.m., Channel 9 is tops - winning that time period for the second straight ratings period. WFTV says Eyewitness News is the only late local newscast to out-perform its network lead-in, growing rating and share and delivering 20,036 more homes than second-place WKMG.

"Our goal in February, as always, was to provide the quality local news coverage our viewers expect," commented WFTV Vice President and General Manager Shawn Bartelt. "It's a tribute to our staff that viewers are choosing Channel 9 Eyewitness News."

In the 10 p.m. news race, WOFL's hour-long Fox 35 News at 10 is tops followed by the WFTV-produced Action News at 10 on WRDQ-Channel 27. Among the Spanish language stations, WVEN-Channel 27 finishes ahead of WTMO-Channel 40.

The Orlando Sentinel has more on the results of the February ratings period.

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.