Looking for a local newscast where the assignment desk editor isn’t glued to the police scanner awaiting the latest Nielsen ratings-driven rush to the scene of an incident fueling the old “if it bleeds, it leads!” adage?
DuJuan McCoy and his Circle City Broadcasting may have just the right cup of tea — or best flavor of juice box — for your afternoon viewing needs.
Starting March 31, Circle City-owned WISH-8 in Indianapolis will debut two new live chat-focused newscasts designed to “inspire, educate and strengthen family bonds while bringing communities together.”
This sees the arrival of WISH-TV Focus on Family from 3pm-3:30pm and WISH-TV Focus on Family & Community from 3:30pm-4pm weekdays.
Phil Sanchez and Faran Fronczak will host the shows, while Dakarai Turner will serve as a contributing anchor.
“These newscasts are the first of their kind in the state,” McCoy says. “They represent WISH-TV’s commitment to the communities that we serve. This unique presentation and storytelling should be refreshing to our viewers as it will be more of an educational approach as opposed to hard news.”
With the two new 30-minute programs, WISH-8, an affiliate of The CW Network, will now produce over 90 hours per week of live news and entertainment programing, “more than any TV station in the state,” McCoy notes.
And, it could provide some inspiration to Warren Buffett-controlled BH Media-owned WPLG-10 in Miami, which made the stunning announcement on Thursday that it will no longer be an ABC affiliate as of August 4. This will make it an independent news-driven television channel with holes to fill, once ABC programming departs the lineup.
