Sinclair Broadcast Group hosts its News Reporter Academy March 30. A virtual three-hour session for college students looking for a career in news reporting, the free event is hosted by Sinclair news managers. 

It is the second year of the News Reporter Academy. 

“Students will learn the basics of news reporting and investigative storytelling, managing a social media presence, how to look and sound their best on-camera and how to package a resume and reel,” said Sinclair. 

Sinclair also hosts the Producer Academy, for students interested in digital or broadcast news production. That is in its fifth year. 

Students must register for the News Reporter Academy by March 25. Registration is limited to 150 students. 

Sinclair owns or provides services to 185 TV stations in 86 markets, and has 21 regional sports networks too. Stations include WBFF Baltimore, WKRC Cincinnati and WJLA Washington. ■

Rehan Aslam has been named VP and news director of ABC-owned WABC New York, effective May 3. He will report to Chad Matthews, president and general manager of the station. Matthews was the news director before he was promoted to GM earlier this year. 

“Rehan is a proven news executive with an impressive record of leading and modernizing news teams across multiple platforms at a time when the industry is changing at an extraordinary pace,” said Matthews. “I have worked with Rehan in the past, and I'm confident he will continue to elevate Eyewitness News, deliver the highest quality in local news, and be committed to our inclusive and diverse culture.”

Aslam was VP of news at ABC’s KTRK Houston, where he previously was assistant news director. 

“I remember the day I started my career in television and the dream I had to work in New York City one day. When the opportunity became available to work at WABC, a station I admire tremendously, that dream became a reality. I am elated and humbled,” said Aslam. “It is a complete honor to lead the Eyewitness News team at the No. 1 station in the country as we continue to tell stories in an innovative way that is both solutions-driven and critical to the tri-state communities we serve. We will continue to modernize and exceed the expectations of our audiences. It has truly been a privilege to work with KTRK these past six-plus years. I will miss them, and Houston will always be in my heart.”

Aslam began his broadcasting career in 2001 at WEWS Cleveland. He has also worked at WJW Cleveland and WFLD Chicago. He is a founding member of ABC Owned Television Stations’ Houston Belong Committee, a group that focuses on diversity and inclusion in the workplace. 

He won a Peabody Award in 2009 for his work on “The Derrion Albert Beating.” 

With demand for food assistance never greater than during this COVID-19 pandemic and many people losing their jobs, on Friday, April 10, Nexstar stations WTTV-TV (CBS) and WXIN-TV (Fox) teamed up with Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana and Midwest Food Bank Indiana Division for a Pack the Pantries Virtual Food Drive and raised $219,394.00.

Beginning Friday at 4 a.m., with the help of partners from iHeartRadio and Cumulus Media, both stations encouraged viewers to “Do Good on Good Friday” by giving financially to these two Central Indiana food banks, the stations said. People gave donations online and through a “text to donate” option. One viewer alone donated $5,000. "Just $5 can feed a family of four for a day. That’s 43,878 families who won’t go hungry today thanks to the generosity of viewers," the stations said in a release.

Dominic Mancuso, VP and general manager of WTTV CBS4 and WXIN FOX59 said: “What started out as an idea at a management meeting on Tuesday became reality in three short days. At a time when the need is greater than ever, the charity and compassion of our viewers for their fellow Hoosiers is a truly amazing and wonderful thing.”

“Many thanks to everyone at Fox59 and CBS4 and all who gave so generously and helped to make the Pack the Pantries Virtual food drive a huge success,” John Whitaker, executive director of Midwest Food Bank Indiana, said in the release. “Hope is found through faith and faith is found where there is hope. Midwest Food Bank is so grateful to be a part of a community that acts by faith and lives it out by showing unconditional love for those who have been greatly impacted by this pandemic. I know God must have had goosebumps as He witnessed so many sacrificially giving to help feed and care for their neighbors who are in great need. Truly we are a blessed city and we will persevere no matter what comes our way because Hoosiers Give Hope! Together we will continue make a difference in the lives of others one meal at a time. God bless you all for your faithfulness and continued support.”

CEO of Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana John Elliott said: "Relationships are deeply tested in times of crisis and we see the true nature of people and organizations. Once again, the team at FOX59 and CBS4 have demonstrated a deep, sincere commitment to caring for their hungry neighbors in need and for the mission of Gleaners Food Bank. It is a privilege to collaborate with MidwestFood Bank and many other partners to serve a daunting number of neighbors, but we could not do so without the astounding generosity of so many individuals here in central Indiana. On behalf of those families in need who often don't have a voice, thank you."

“The response from our viewers exceeded even my wildest expectations,” CJ Hoyt, news director for WTTV CBS4 and WXIN FOX59, said. “I am floored by the power of the Hoosier spirit and exceptionally grateful. Thousands of families will have food on their table over the next few months thanks to this amazing generosity.”

People can still give by texting @MFBINDY to 52014 to donate to Midwest Food Bank Indiana Division or by texting GIVE to 317-593-2400 to donate to Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana or by going to websites fox59.com/PackthePantries and cbs4indy.com/PackthePantries.

The Nashville stations are scrambling to cover the tornado that tore through the city early Tuesday. It is all hands on deck today, and tomorrow, and thereafter, as local reporters keep Nashville viewers up to date.

The National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Nashville around 12:15 a.m. March 3. The stations reported 22 fatalities as of midday March 3.

WTVF, for its part, had two meteorologists, Bree Smith and Henry Rothenberg, in the building as the tornado approached. “We felt very prepared to let people know that danger was approaching,” said Lyn Plantinga, WTVF VP and general manager.

Part of Scripps, WTVF’s neighborhood was “severely hit,” said Plantinga. The station, which goes by NewsChannel 5, lost power, relying on a generator and backup system to stay on the air. “It worked exactly as it was supposed to,” said Plantinga. “It’s an investment I’m glad we made.”

WTVF’s helicopter is out of commission following tornado-related hangar damage at Nashville’s John C. Tune Airport, but Plantinga said some aviation friends of the station provided a chopper the station could deploy. “I’m not optimistic about what we’ll find under the rubble,” she said.

Plantinga has been at the station for 30 years, and has been the GM for the last five. She’s been through disasters before. She mentioned a direct tornado hit to the station in 1998, when she was a news manager, and a massive flood in 2010.

Around 150 people work at WTVF. Staffers are “in shock,” said Plantinga, but are plugging along. They’ve gone through injuries and property damage in the last 24 hours, but stay at it. “We’re deeply affected by what has happened in the community but we have a job to do,” said Plantinga. “We have a very experienced team of people, and this is a time that the experience has a direct payoff.”

Other stations in market No. 28 include Nexstar’s ABC affiliate WKRN and Meredith’s NBC outlet WSMV. WKRN’s website said the tornado hit downtown around 1 a.m., and winds reached around 160-165 mph. WSMV has Nashville Mayor John Cooper saying, “Last night was a reminder about how fragile life is.”

Sinclair holds Fox affiliate WZTV, which reminds users that Tennessee is one of the 14 states involved in Super Tuesday primaries.

Station staffers will be scrambling for the foreseeable future, but Plantinga said they have to head home to regroup. “I know from my own experience, you have to have staff ready today, and you also need to have staff ready for tonight, and tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day,” she said.

Sister Scripps stations are sharing staffers. “We really don’t even need to ask,” said Plantinga.

The mission is clear for Nashville reporters over the next several days. “We’re running on shock and adrenaline,” said Plantinga. “It’s very difficult because we’re reporting on our friends and neighbors.”

WCBS New York unveiled a fun promo Monday afternoon. The spot promotes chief weathercaster Lonnie Quinn, but Quinn--the real Quinn, at least--never appears in it. Under the guidance of Bruce Brauer, senior VP, creative services, promotions and advertising, CBS Television Stations, the 30-second spot looks like a cheeky late ‘70s/early ‘80s commercial for, say, an Evel Knievel wind-up motorcycle toy.

It features a Lonnie Quinn action figure ready to tackle severe weather.

Brauer spoke about the promo moments after it premiered on WCBS, around 4:23 p.m. ET. “It’s a good type of disruptor ad that will stand out from the clutter,” he said.

The action figure features pull-string “Lonnie-isms,” Quinn uttering catchphrases like “Let’s go to the Mobile Weather Lab!” and “The storm is coming.”

The figure also rolls up its sleeves, as Quinn often does when the forecast appears severe.

Helping the Lonnie action figure do its job is a winter coat, umbrella and the CBS2 Mobile Weather lab.

Brauer said the project took about a month to complete. An artist worked on a generic male doll to fashion into Quinn’s image. “We showed it to Lonnie today and he loved it,” said Brauer.

He figures viewers of a certain age will recall those toy commercials from days of yore. “It’s a nod and a wink to those commercials,” he said. “It will find a warm space in older viewers’ hearts.”

A couple years ago, the CBS2 creative services department had another catchy, Lonnie Quinn-themed promo called “Gotta Listen to Lonnie.”

“We jumped a little higher this time,” said Brauer.

The figure is not available for purchase. But Brauer said, if demand goes sky high, that might change.

Watch the Lonnie Quinn action figure promo below:

Watch the "Gotta Listen to Lonnie" promo below:

[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YM2lmQj1jz0[/embed]

Rick Devens, anchor at WGXA in Macon, Ga., competed on the season of Survivor that ended May 15. As the season wound down, Devens, an affable and cunning contestant, looked like the favorite to win the million.

It was hardly an easy ride. For the first time, Survivor featured the Edge of Extinction--when a contestant was voted out by their peers, they could head home, or go to the Edge, a desolate stretch of beach inhabited by other cast-offs, clinging to a remote chance of winning a return to the game.

Devens did six days on the Edge of Extinction before returning to the game.

He made the final four with at times sneaky game play, planting a pair of fake immunity idols that other contestants, Julie and Lauren, gleefully dug up and assumed were legit. Alas, Devens lost a fire-making challenge to eventual champion Chris, and went no further.

And so he’s back on the job in Macon, anchoring the 6-7 a.m. news for the Sinclair station’s ABC half, and anchoring the 7-9 a.m. program for its Fox half.

Devens arrived in Macon after graduating college in 2006, and calls it a lively news market. “There’s always a lot going on. We have a lively local political system and the local crime stories you’re used to,” he said. “We have an Air Force base that ties you in nationally. There’s a lot of great people doing good things for each other, and that’s our favorite thing to cover.”

Devens spoke with B&C about his time on Survivor, his local news gig and how Survivor has made him a better anchor.

You work for a station that is affiliated with ABC and Fox. How did WGXA handle their anchor starring on a CBS program?

They were very supportive. We worked with CBS to get permission to show everything that a CBS affiliate would be able to. We pretty much just promoted it. Every Wednesday I would talk a little bit about Survivor leading into the show and

Thursday morning I would talk about what people saw [the night before].

Even though it’s on a rival network, we figured if people were watching, they might tune into my morning show to see what was going on.

What made you want to be a news anchor?

I’ve always been really comfortable in front of people; I did well in speech competitions in high school. I kind of fell in love initially with sports and was sports director at our station for a little while. When we decided we were going to add a morning show several years ago, they approached me about it. I’d had my fill of local sports for the time being so I thought it would be a lot of fun to try news, and it has been an adventure.

Did being an anchor help you on Survivor?

It really helped me in tribal councils. That set is the most like being an anchor--you’re sitting in one spot, you’re facing your audience, whether it’s [host] Jeff [Probst] or the jury. I’m used to being in that spot, under the bright lights. Other people were really nervous about what they would say to Jeff, and were just trying to get through it. Because I had a comfort level I was able to listen more, and contemplate the bigger splash at some of the tribals.

Has being on Survivor led to job interviews?

I’ve not gotten any offers yet. I’m very happy in Macon but we’re always open to whatever is out there, certainly. We’re waiting to see how all the cards fall.

Do you think the Edge of Extinction was good for Survivor? Think it will be back?

I’m thankful every day that I was on the Edge of Extinction season so I get to talk about coming in fourth instead of going home fourth. It will be interesting to see if they use it again.

I think Jeff really enjoyed seeing the growth stories of the people that were on the Edge of Extinction. I don’t think it’s something they’ll go to every season but it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw it again.

What was your low moment on the show?

I had two lowest moments. One was Day 11. The Lesu tribe, which was made up of all my original Manu tribe, had to rebuild our camp and we just didn’t have the energy. We got rained on. We were hungry. It was right near the two-week mark and I ended up [getting voted out] that night.

The other low moment was real late in the game. Julie won [a reward challenge] with about five people left. I was really hoping she would take me on the reward because I felt like I’d done some things for her. She was smart and didn’t take me. I realized, I am definitely all alone in this game, and that’s how I’m gonna get to the end. It was a rough afternoon, but by that evening I was back to playing tricks on my other castmates.

When you see Julie and Lauren today, are they still upset with you about the fake immunity idols you hid?

Julie and I are very close. She definitely laughs about it. She said she still gets credit for finding an idol--it’s not her fault it was fake.

Lauren and I, we’ve talked and we’re good. I think seeing [the episode] for the first time was tough. For me, seeing myself losing the fire-making was tough. Probably seeing how much fun I was having in that moment [after Julie and Lauren found the fake idols] just because I felt the world was against me for so long...We might still have a discussion in our future and I hope we do. There are definitely two sides to the coin.

How was Survivor different than what we see on TV?

As a huge fan, I was real worried that it would be a disappointment when you get out there and see behind the curtain. It was anything but. It is absolutely incredible to see the work that goes into it and how many people are involved, and how they can involve all those people and still make you feel like you’re all alone out there.

It really made me want to work harder at what I do, because every person you run into out there cares so much about what they’re doing. I have even more respect now for the show than I did before. I can’t say enough about the people that run it and the people that work on it.

Has being on Survivor made you a better anchor?

I think it has. It’s made me a better listener. I think I can read between the lines now when I’m talking to people and maybe find the more interesting angle, the more interesting question. It’s taught me patience, which I think is good no matter what your career is. Patience is something we can all use more of.

Hank Price, well-traveled station general manager, has published Leading Local Television (Beaver's Pond Press, $19.95), his book on the ins and outs of managing a TV station. Price breaks down every aspect of local television, including news and sales, of course, along with network relations, syndication, crisis management and community service.

He describes local TV as “the last form of mass media.”

“If you want to sell cars, create consumer traffic, or get elected to a national office, you pretty much have to advertise on television,” Price writes.

Price retired as WVTM Birmingham president/general manager at the end of 2018. Jordan Wertlieb, president of parent Hearst Television, called him “the quintessential broadcaster” who “represents everything we aspire for a Hearst president and general manager to be.”

Joining Hearst Television in 2000, Price also ran WXII in Winston-Salem/Greensboro. Before coming to Hearst, he ran WBBM Chicago and KARE Minneapolis.

Price notes how television must work harder to connect with younger consumers to retain its relevance. “Ratings and viewer age are the writing on the wall,” said Price. “We either have to find ways to attract younger viewers to a linear experience, or we must change platforms to reflect current viewer preferences.”

Technology is “merely a way to disseminate content,” he said, while the content is the true power of media.

Leading Local Television feels like required reading for any station general manager, or anyone hoping to be one. But Price’s management lessons, offered up in plain-spoken yet lively prose, are of value to anyone who oversees others in the workplace.

Price does an effective job of detailing the stress of working in local television. Like a professional baseball player and his batting average, the ratings show who’s winning and losing every darn day. He offers a compelling look at how and why so much local news looks almost identical to that on a rival station.

The eminently readable book also examines “Boomers and Turnarounds”, or the first-place and last-place stations in a market. “The single most important thing to do when leading a turnaround is to ignore your competitors,” he writes. “Constantly execute your plan without regard to what anyone else does. My position has always been that our station is setting a new market standard, not measuring ourselves by what others do.”

Price is now director of leadership development at the School of Journalism and New Media at the University of Mississippi. From 2000 to 2015, he was Senior Fellow/Television at Northwestern’s Media Management Center.

Price writes that there are too many players in the local news game. The ones that seek to survive would be wise to read his book. 

William L. McGee has authored The Broadcasting Years, 1958-1989: Memoir of a Television Pioneer. As the title suggests, McGee spent three-plus decades in the broadcasting business, initially selling syndicated shows, then helping launch KBHK in San Francisco, managing stations, and finally launching his own ad sales outfit, Broadcast Marketing Company.

A cowboy before he worked in television, McGee is a prolific memoirist. He’s written books about several chapters of his life, including Montana Memoir: The Hardscrabble Years, 1925-1942; Bluejacket Odyssey, 1942-1946, Guadalcanal to Bikini; Operation Crossroads, Lest We Forget! An Eyewitness Account, Bikini Atomic Bomb Tests 1946; and The Divorce Seekers: A Photo Memoir of a Nevada Dude Wrangler, 1947-1949.

McGee, who is 93, publishes his books through BMC Publications. His wife Sandra is his co-author.

One learns not to judge a book by its cover, but the front of The Broadcasting Years ($19.95) does not exactly beg the reader to crack the book open. It depicts a middle-aged McGee seated at a desk, working the phone. Hopefully Nevada Dude Wrangler has a catchier cover.

Speaking of dude wranglers, The Broadcasting Years starts with McGee toiling at a dude ranch in Reno, and shifting to television sales after meeting director Norman Tokar. Much of The Broadcasting Years reads a bit dry, though McGee does offer a somewhat compelling glimpse at another era in television, when the martinis flowed during lunch, and the local newspaper was viewed as the enemy of television.

McGee took painstaking notes from his time in television, and it can make for some low-wattage content, such as when he launched the Advertising Tennis Association (people who worked in television who liked to play tennis) and built his carport and paddle tennis court at his home in Sleepy Hollow, California, east of Los Angeles. “By the time these projects were finished,” he wrote, “I thought I was qualified to join the carpenters union.”

Also irksome is McGee’s tendency to repeat phrases he finds meaningful, such as New York being “where the bread is baked,” and quoting Henry J. Kaiser on problems being “opportunities in work clothes.”

McGee never completely breaks from his cowboy past, leavening the boardroom anecdotes with climbs of Mount Everest and Mount McKinley, hikes through the wilds of Hawaii, and river rafting in Colorado.

A natural raconteur, McGee comes across as a likable chap, with some hard-earned business lessons to pass along. It’s a little hard to imagine the book’s readership extending beyond those who work in local TV sales--or those who know McGee. But his writing is engaging, and the book moves quickly. 

The fact is, television must evolve in order to take advantage of the market opportunities afforded to cable and internet companies. In order to evolve, broadcasters must be able to fund innovation.-Armstrong Williams

Defeating so-called “media concentration” has long been the liberal media’s rallying cry when it comes to consolidation in broadcasting. They have conveniently ignored that the lion’s share of the nation’s households view both local and national television over cable networks and other platforms. Broadcast television’s shrinking share of the media market demands a reconsideration of the rules governing station ownership.

As it stands, the 6 MHz of spectrum set aside for broadcast television is a dedicated open line into the consumer’s home. Unlike other forms of media–cable and internet, for example--consumers of broadcast television are essentially a captive audience. Broadcasters are also, in essence, captive carriers. In a traditional broadcasting scenario, the broadcaster can only transmit one stream of content per channel in one direction. As it stands, they cannot deliver interactive services such as self-generated viewer ratings and comments. Broadcasting platforms do not currently permit viewers to retransmit, simultaneously, content across social media. These interactive capabilities, among others, have become basic features of today’s multimedia environment.

The fact is, television must evolve in order to take advantage of the market opportunities afforded to cable and internet companies. In order to evolve, broadcasters must be able to fund innovation. That includes industry rollout of the ATSC 3.0 protocol. Investment in innovative technologies like ATSC 3.0 will ultimately help the industry survive in a hyper-competitive media environment. Doing so requires increased cooperation between broadcasters and bolstering the business case for broadcasting as a growth industry.

The two critical elements in creating such a business case are reforming the legacy rules regarding broadcast ownership, and conducting appropriate cost-benefit analyses for ongoing spectrum allocation decisions. The former, including “sidecar” arrangements and JSAs, helps owners share production and administrative costs.

The second element is developing more robust economic analysis of the costs, benefits and winners and losers of any major proposals regarding spectrum allocation. It is essential that localism and viewpoint diversity figure prominently in any actions affecting the allocation of spectrum resources. When a regulatory agency moves spectrum away from entities with public interest obligations to those that don’t, where exactly does the public interest go? Perhaps that’s a question better left to a higher power.

How does media consolidation in broadcasting advance the public interest? Quite simply by marshaling resource commitments and creating opportunities for horizontal, collaborative innovation. The ATSC 3.0 platform rollout represents just that opportunity. Making effective use of the broadcast spectrum requires, at this early stage, that broadcasters are free to collaborate in meaningful ways. The benefits are potentially game changing: increased consumer choice, vastly more efficient spectrum utilization, enhanced transmission quality, and hyperlocal information targeting.

Companies in the cable and internet space have generated large moats around their businesses and capture a huge share of the advertising market. Their businesses, unlike broadcasters’, do not carry additional obligations to act in the public interest. In order for broadcasters to compete in this changing environment, government has to remove suffocating regulations that force us to grow or die.

Williams is sole owner of Howard Stirk Holdings I & II Broadcast Television Stations. He can be heard on Sirius XM126 Urban View nightly 6:00-8:00pm EST.

WPTA Fort Wayne has a unique special airing Thursday, December 21, about a man in the market who fought in World War II in Papua New Guinea, who lost his dog tags after sustaining a serious head injury. The man’s tags were located in October, and returned to him by an Australian man who simply wanted to thank the veteran, named Erven Oetting, for his service. 

The WPTA anchor, Brien McElhatten, went to Papua New Guinea and Australia on his own dime to do the story. “A last-minute trip to the South Pacific wasn’t in the budget,” he says. 

He didn’t think twice about covering his air fare, which ran around $3,000. “I felt that strongly about it,” he says. 

Quincy Media owns WPTA, an ABC affiliate. Quincy also owns the NBC and MyNetworkTV stations in Fort Wayne. 

The 30-minute special, Lost and Found: A Soldier’s Story, airs at 7 p.m. Thursday, bumping Entertainment Tonight. It’s McElhatten’s first documentary-type special. “You can’t put a price on a story like this,” he says. “There’s just no way I was not going to do the story.”

McElhatten says the Australian man who delivered the dog tags, James Tinalli, phoned WPTA in the fall. McElhatten happened to pick up the phone in the newsroom, and heard about Oetting’s dog tags turning up in Papua New Guinea, and heard the soldier was living in the DMA. “He’s alive and well in Fort Wayne,” says the anchor. “He’s living a very humble life.”

Willie Guise found the tags, and contacted his cousin, Tinalli, a World War II buff. Tinalli located Oetting, who is 94, in Fort Wayne. “I gave up the idea of ever finding them,” said Oetting. 

What motivated Tinalli to deliver the dog tags was simply an urge to say thank you for the soldier’s bravery in fighting the Japanese in the “Battle of Milne Bay.” 

“He felt people should know about the sacrifice the soldiers made, and people should know that people in Australia and Papua New Guinea are very grateful,” said McElhatten.

Before the December 21 special, WPTA ran an almost eight-minute story on Oetting and Tinalli and his dog tags back before Thanksgiving, McElhatten mentioning “a piece of Fort Wayne from World War II found on a faraway land.” 

McElhatten said he thought the competition might run their own story after that aired, but it appears WPTA has the exclusive. 

McElhatten spent three days in Papua New Guinea, shooting the story himself. He then spent a 13-hour layover in Australia, where he filmed Tinalli before heading back to the airport and flying home. “This person put his life on the line,” said Tinalli. “The least I could do was take them back to him.”

McElhatten acknowledges that the $3,000 plane ticket  is “not a small chunk of change,” but says he’d do it again in a second. 

The anchor spent around 20 hours in the editing bay, working on the special. Tinalli and Oetting were also recorded at Oetting’s home, when Tinalli presented his dog tags. “You can’t imagine the feeling,” said Oetting, “when they said somebody found your dog tags.”

The anchor is very psyched to share the story with Fort Wayne residents. “We’re losing our World War II veterans so fast,” McElhatten said. “I was fortunate to take a moment to have a conversation with one.” 

He was excited to get to do a positive story too. “We report on so much bad news,” said McElhatten. “This story is about the good in the world.” 

He added, “This is why we’re in the business of broadcasting—to tell these kinds of stories.”

Growing Tegna is redesigning its stations’ on-air content. KUSA Denver and KARE in the Twin Cities launched their redesigned product December 19, and many more stations are to follow. Tegna refers to it as a “digital first” approach, with a focus on how consumers take in content on a range of different screens, including television.

Viewers said they wanted to see the time, weather conditions and temperature on the screen, which is reflected in the redesign. Blocks promote what’s coming up in the newscast, when it’s airing, and how viewers can access more on a given topic on digital and social platforms. Varying colors offer greater vibrancy for the viewing experience, says the group, and they change throughout the day.

Meredith Conte, Tegna VP of marketing, describes the design as “modern and contemporary.”

“It reflects the local communities we serve,” she adds.

Helping reflect the markets is the use of local photography and new iconography for weather reports and transitions in the newscast. The photography may still feature a local landmark, but Conte says it may be viewed from the perspective of a local resident, which is probably different from that of an outsider.  

“It’s a way for the (station) to share their unique perspective on that market,” she says, mentioning a “very thoughtful” use of local shots.

The redesign is planned for the 38 Tegna stations, a number that went up one with its $325 million acquisition of KFMB San Diego December 18. First up in the redesign are the group’s NBC affiliates, which include KUSA, KARE and KING Seattle, as those will have increased viewer sampling when the Olympics go on in February. WBIR Knoxville and WGRZ Buffalo have both launched their redesigns.

All the stations will have undergone on-air redesigns by April, according to Tegna’s plan.

Tegna’s own in-house design agency helped guide the relaunch, as did outside firms the company declined to name, and Conte was a key architect too. The stations got to “put their own stamp” on their design as well, says Conte.

She mentions how lots stations make sure their digital product is consistent with their on-air content. At Tegna, digital is helping shape the broadcast content.

“It’s something we’re really proud of,” says Conte, “and something consumers have definitely noticed.”

Antenna TV will be getting onboard with a 1970s-themed Caribbean cruise next March, adding retro TV talent, programming, panels and parties to the five-day excursion. 

Antenna, Tribune’s classic TV multicast network, will be bringing Three’s Company actors Jenilee Harrison, who played Cindy Snow, and Richard Kline, who played Larry Dallas, along on the ‘70s Rock & Romance Cruise. The duo will host a range of Antenna-sponsored events.

The Celebrity Cruise trip will also include concerts by 70s favorites Styx, Air Supply, Michael McDonald and the Atlanta Rhythm Section.

Antenna viewers even get a price break on the trip, which runs from March 3-8, 2018, at http://rockandromancecruise.com/antenna. 

KJRH, the Scripps-owned NBC affiliate in Tulsa, Okla., has hired two former co-anchors at a rival station to host the station’s morning show.

Starting Aug. 14, Scott Thompson and Lisa Jones—who co-anchored at KOTV, Griffin Communications’ CBS affiliate—will be hosting KJRH’s 2 Works for You Today from 4:30-7 a.m. on weekdays, the station said.

Thompson, who worked 28 years for KOTV, was let go from the station in May. He won five national Murrow Awards and multiple regional honors during his tenure.

Jones, who spent 16 years in broadcast journalism, left the TV business in 2000 after she was laid off from KOTV. Since that time, she has worked as a consultant and corporate trainer, most recently in the oil and gas industry.

NBC-owned WNBC New York and its sister station, Telemundo’s WNJU, Monday is launching a school supply drive spanning three states.

Created in partnership with the furniture seller Raymour & Flanigan and the Boys & Girls Club of America, the inaugural Supporting Our Schools drive will run through July 29.

Donations will be accepted at 47 Raymour & Flanigan stores in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, according to NBC Owned Television Stations. Nearby Boys & Girls Club chapters will collect and distribute them.

In addition, Raymour & Flanigan will offer contributors a one-day, $100 discount on purchases over $1,000 on July 29. 

The New York-area effort is part of the NBCUniversal station group’s national drive. NBC and Telemundo stations in 20 markets are spearheading similar efforts.

(Photo via Clint Mason's Flickr.Image taken on June 26, 2017 and used per Creative Commons 2.0 license. The photo was cropped to fit 16x9 aspect ratio.)

Cozi TV will be using its library to commemorate June’s designation as Black Music Month by highlighting appearances by iconic black musicians on classic TV shows.

From June 19-23, the NBCUniversal-owned multicast network will air episodes of shows like Miami Vice, The A-Team and Baywatch that include cameos by musicians including James Brown, Isaac Hayes and Little Richard. The broadcasts will air in conjunction with original shorts featuring current hip-hop and pop artists discussing those individuals’ roles, as well as their musical and cultural influence.

The schedule is:

• June 19, 10 p.m.: The A-Team with Della Reese   
• June 20, 11 p.m.: Miami Vice with El DeBarge 
• June 22, 10 p.m.: The A-Team with Rick James & Isaac Hayes 
• June 22, 12 a.m.: Baywatch with Little Richard 
• June 23, 11 p.m.: Miami Vice with The Fat Boys 

The NAB Education Foundation has named the musician Jon Bon Jovi recipient of its 2017 Service to America Leadership Award for his efforts combatting poverty and homelessness.

Bon Jovi, who will be formally honored June 20 in Washington, chairs the Jon Bon Jovi Soul Foundation, whose mission is to foster positive change for those in need “one soul at a time.”

The foundation supports programs aimed at the cycle of poverty and homelessness in the United States. The organization has provided grants to nonprofit organizations across the nation working to create affordable housing for thousands of low-income individuals and families.

With Mother’s Day coming up, it’s at long last time to show your favorite TV mom the love.

Antenna TV, the Tribune-owned multicast network, is calling on viewers to vote for their favorite TV mom—who will be awarded with an entire Mother’s Day marathon in her honor.

The candidates (and the shows they appeared on) are:

• Florida Evans - Good Times
• Endora – Bewitched
• Mary Jenkins – 227
• Gladys – My Mother, The Car
• Elyse Keaton – Family Ties
• Shirley Partridge – The Partridge Family

The voting is open on the classic TV network’s Facebook page through April 24.  The winner’s marathon will air from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Mother’s Day Sunday, May 24.

Veteran newsman Paul Magers, who anchors the KCBS Los Angeles evening news, is going to sign off after nearly four decades in the business.

Magers has been in the anchor chair at the CBS O&O for 13 years. He announced his retirement Wednesday.

“Paul Magers is a special individual, not only as a news anchor, but also as a friend and colleague to everyone who has had the pleasure of knowing him,” said VP and general manager Steve Mauldin. “He’s been a bright light in our newsroom as a rock-solid journalist and, when appropriate, someone who could deliver a well-timed joke. While we wish he were staying with us, we respect the decision he has made and look forward to giving him the warm sendoff he deserves.”

TMZ creator Harvey Levin and Frank Cicha, Fox Stations’ senior VP of programming, will discuss what it takes to produce a successful syndicated entertainment news show on April 24 at the NAB Show in Las Vegas.

The partnership between Fox TV and TMZ, as well as the program’s evolution from web brand to syndicated TV show, will be among the topics discussed. TMZ Live’s debut on Fox Stations and Fox’s content-testing strategy will also be addressed.

The panel will be moderated by B&C contributing editor Paige Albiniak.

The NAB Show will be held April 22-27 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. More information is available on the show website.

What it took for Brockmire, the new IFC comedy, to go from viral video to TV series will be the focus of a session at April’s NAB Show in Las Vegas.

Series star and executive producer Hank Azaria, along with co-star Amanda Peet and IFC president Jennifer Caserta, will participate in the discussion on April 24 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

Brockmire, which premieres April 5, started as a digital short on the comedy site Funny or Die.

It follows a famed major league baseball announcer who has an on-air breakdown shortly after discovering his beloved wife’s serial infidelity. A decade later, Brockmire finds himself calling minor league baseball games.

Raycom stations in Georgia and Mississippi raised $585,000 to help victims of the destructive tornados that hit south Georgia in January.

WALB in Albany, Ga., an NBC affiliate, partnered with the American Red Cross in raising more than $202,000 through a one-day phone bank, as well as an ongoing online fundraising drive, according to Raycom.

Related: Raycom: ATSC 3.0 Could Enhance Public Service

WDAM in Hattiesburg, Miss., also an NBC affiliate, worked with the Greater Pinebelt Community Foundation in raising $385,000 through a one-day telethon. Raycom’s WLBT in Jackson, Miss., WLOX in Biloxi, Miss., and WMC in Memphis, Tenn. joined that effort.

The storms that hit South Georgia on Jan. 21 and Jan. 22 killed 16 people and destroyed homes and businesses. Hundreds of homes in southwestern Georgia had been demolished by a severe storm just weeks before.

WAGA, the Fox O&O in Atlanta, has a new heartbreaker in the newsroom, who very well may be the best looking guy in local TV.

With big brown eyes and soft golden hair, Max, a golden retriever puppy, arrived Jan. 17 at the station, where he will stay under the careful watch and training of staffers, who are preparing him for a career in service. By his second birthday, Max will be matched with a veteran in need through the group Canine Assistants.

While prepping for the job, Max will spend his days at WAGA, go out on the town a bit to get socialized and spend his nights warm at home with staffers who have been trained as foster parents.

There are other perks of being adopted by a TV crew. Before the NFC championship game kickoff, Max was on the Georgia Dome’s 50 yard-line picking the winner (he correctly chose the hometown Falcons). He’s also gotten a bit of TV time and has his own Twitter account.