It’s a trend likely to spread beyond NBCUniversal Local television stations in the San Francisco Bay Area and, now, North Texas: the time slot formerly held by the now-concluded Kelly Clarkson Show will soon be taken by another station-produced newscast.
For KXAS-5 in Dallas-Fort Worth, NBC 5 NOW at 3 debuts on Labor Day (9/7), with Wayne Carter as anchor.
Additionally, KXAS is expanding its NBC 5 News at 6pm, led by Brian Curtis and Meredith Land, to a full hour on Monday.
This increases the total hours of local newscasts to seven.
“We’re committed to serving North Texas communities and keeping audiences updated and informed on the news, issues and storylines that most matter to them by expanding our live local news to new dayparts,” said Tony Canales, President/General Manager of the station and its Telemundo O&O sibling. “We are proud of our journalism and look forward to bringing even more of it to viewers each day.”
KXAS and KXTX-39 VP of News John Stone added, “Our expanded news programming gives viewers more ways to engage with our journalism through distinct formats and approaches, while maintaining the trusted reporting they expect and deserve. We understand the importance of delivering timely, trustworthy local news, and this additional time allows us to serve our viewers with greater depth and in ways that reflect how they consume news today.”
As Stone and Canales see it, NBC 5 NOW at 3 will offer viewers “a distinct approach to local news,” featuring what is described as “an in-depth, conversational format inspired by the style and pacing of a podcast.”
That’s a likely conversation starter considering the rapid evolution of local newscasts at The E.W. Scripps Co. under the leadership of President of Media Dean Littleton, which now includes anchor-free newscasts and a directive from CEO Adam Symson to be more social media-first with its reporting style and coverage delivery.
NBC 5 DALLAS-WORTH WEEKDAY LOCAL NEWS SCHEDULE (BEGINNING SEPT. 7):
-
5 to 7 a.m. – NBC 5 Today
-
11 to 11:30 a.m. – NBC 5 Today at 11 a.m.
-
11:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. – Texas Today
-
3 to 4 p.m. – NBC 5 NOW at 3
-
4 to 5 p.m. – NBC 5 First at Four
-
5 to 5:30 p.m. – NBC 5 News at 5pm
-
6 to 7 p.m. – NBC 5 News at 6pm
-
10 to 10:33 p.m. – NBC 5 News at 10pm
