TV/Cable News

Meredith Corporation as you knew it is now another faded company of broadcast media's past, as Gray Television on Wednesday completed its $2.8 billion merger and subsequent spin-off of its non-local broadcast television assets to the Barry Diller-led IAC.

He was a husband, a father, and a "Poppy." And, he was the founder and President of the Daystar Television Network. Marcus Lamb has passed away at the age of 64. The cause of death: COVID-19.

The shareholders of Meredith Corporation are one step closer to seeing the company's stock, traded on the New York Stock Exchange, disappear forever. That's because they've approved the Des Moines-based multimedia company's $2.825 billion acquisition by Gray Television.

Should a network affiliate be held accountable for an apparent violation of the FCC's rules pertaining to Emergency Alert System tones, if the allegedly infringing action is solely based on network programming the affiliate is contractually obligated to run? The answer could be no, one noted Washington, D.C.-based communications attorney tells RBR+TVBR.

It's officially the holiday shopping season, as the first night of Chanukah was Sunday, November 28. Now, the focus is on Christmas and Kwanzaa, and brick-and-mortar retailers are fueling their desires to lure shoppers by investing heavily in spot television. Meanwhile, there's some intriguing auto activity at Spot Cable of note.

Origin Sports Network, an offering from Gray Television-owned Raycom Sports, has expanded its lineup of distribution partners. As such, Gray brags, the "FAST channel" has more than quadrupled its addressable audience size.

For a generation of local TV news viewers and WTOP radio listeners across the National Capital Region, Doug Hill was a household name — a trusted source of local weather reports and a friendly face to those tuned to WJLA-7, owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group since 2014.  Now, viewers and media industry figures across Washington are stopping to remember Hill, who has died.

With Debbie Bush leaving "FOX 19" for a leadership role in Arizona, once Gray closes on its Meredith Corp. merger, a need for a replacement arose. Gray has now stated who will succeed Bush in Cincinnati when she starts her new role in Phoenix on or about December 1.

It was the third transaction to involve a "unique" group of low-power TV construction permits, given their construction deadline. And, the deal was first announced in late August. Now, Ravi Kapur has completed his acquisition of two digital mini-TV facilities from Mako Communications.

With Black Friday fast approaching, the holiday vibe is in full effect. For one retailer, that means dominating its ad category on both broadcast and cable television, the latest Media Monitors Spot Ten reports show.

With the late Friday release of a Public Notice, the Office of Economics and Analytics (OEA) and the Media Bureau seek comment on the procedures to be used for Auction 112, an auction of construction permits for full-power television stations. The FCC expects the bidding for Auction 112 to begin in June 2022.

With captioning and metadata company Digital Nirvana confirming on Friday that it is attending IBC2021, even as companies including Viaccess-Orca have withdrawn from the affair, the National Association of Television Program Executives has made it clear that it is moving full steam ahead with its NATPE Miami 2022 event — a major draw for television industry leaders and media brokers.

Several Hispanic market media industry leaders, including Estrella Media's Jason Hall, participated in a prerecorded virtual panel presented Thursday as part of the Hispanic TV Summit produced by Joe Schramm for the Virtual Fall TV 2021 event.

This week NBCU hosted its first-ever "Measurement Innovation Forum," with representation from every corner of the industry. Following the Forum, former Nielsen thought leader Kelly Abcarian, today NBCUniversal’s EVP/Measurement & Impact for Advertising & Partnerships, shared an update on the Measurement RFP process with each measurement partner.

"What are you buying here? Not what you think!" Those were the ominous words of MoffettNathanson Senior Analyst Michael Nathanson, who picked apart Roku — positioned as a key player in the Connected TV and Advertising-based Video On Demand (AVOD) space. Investors immediately reacted, sending Roku shares tumbling on Wednesday.