TV/Cable News

Should television viewers some 100 miles to the northeast of Atlanta that subscribe to DISH Network and AT&T’s DirecTV be able to receive that market’s TV stations? That question was posed to the FCC some 20 months ago, and it said yes. An application for review involving the three Georgia counties involved was filed. The FCC has just rejected that request.

CBS today unveiled its new 2020-2021 prime-time programming lineup featuring one new comedy, two new dramas and 23 returning series. Additional new series will be announced at a later date. Here are the details.

 The OTT service created, owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcasting Group has become the inaugural home for the Bob Ross Channel -- a dedicated platform for classic presentation of the paint-at-home legend who has found a new audience among Millennials and Gen Z consumers.

On June 30, Greg Bilte will conclude a career in television broadcasting that began in 1979, when he took a job as an account executive at KXLY-TV in Spokane. Now, in Washington's other big DMA, the search is on for a new VP/GM at the Cox Media Group station Bilte has been overseeing.

From Sept. 11-14, broadcast and cable media tech companies from across the globe were set to attend IBC2020 in Amsterdam, perhaps the world's second-biggest gathering after the NAB Show in Las Vegas. Alas, the COVID-19 pandemic has claimed the Netherlands confab. It's now official: a virtual event will be had.

The FCC on April 1 released a NPRM seeking comment on whether to make technical changes to its rules governing the use of distributed transmission system (DTS) technologies in order to help the broadcast television industry expand DTS use as it deploys the ATSC 3.0 NEXTGEN TV broadcast television standard. Comment and Reply Comment Dates are now in place.

In 1977, fresh out of Boston University, Bill Fine took to the sports desk at WPTZ-5 in Plattsburgh, N.Y., instead of film school at the University of Southern California. By 1982, he was back in Boston, at a station he knows very well. Today, Fine is approaching 15 years in a third round at that Boston TV station. He'll celebrate by retiring later this year from the ABC affiliate. 

Here's something Meredith Corp. can look forward to, now that its fiscal Q3 is in its past. One of its 17 TV stations has been officially tapped as the official broadcast home of the Las Vegas Raiders, formerly based in Oakland.

The FCC on Wednesday released an order implementing "buying group" provisions in the Television Viewer Protection Act of 2019. This was met with applause from the association that serves as a voice in Washington for small-market and small-in-size MVPDs across the U.S.

On May 8, The E.W. Scripps Co. released its Q1 2020 results, and they were quite good. Now, a key Wall Street analyst has reiterated his "Buy" rating on the broadcast TV company's stock. So, why did it did fall by nearly 12% on Tuesday?

Local stations have a significant opportunity to help provide a valuable platform for advertisers. Yet, stations have been struggling to convert this increase into ad revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic. Two senior leaders at Magid believe the solution relies on stations owning their coverage of the local story in a way that positions their brand long-term, with a focus on the future.

Gray Television has named GMs at four of its stations. In DMA No. 85, a promotion is seen. At the three other stations, moving up in market rank is seen. And, three of the new GMs are female.

If you thought cord-cutting was a problem for MVPDs prior to mid-March, when the COVID-19 pandemic brought its global assault to U.S. shores, you ain't seen nothin' yet. That's the gist of a new report from Michael Nathanson of Wall Street advisory house MoffettNathanson, which shines a light on just how distressing the fall-off in cable TV subscribers presently looks.

With less than 45 minutes to go in Friday's trading, Entravision Communications stock was up by nearly 10%. The gains came following the release of Q1 2020 results that show an ever-so-slight net revenue slip; a 20% surge in consolidated EBITDA; and much larger Free Cash Flow. So, why did the Hispanic-focused multimedia company swing to a big net loss?

The E.W. Scripps Co. on Friday will become the latest broadcast TV company to release its first-quarter 2020 results. One day ahead of the distribution of those numbers, the Scripps board declared a cash dividend. Is that why Scripps shares surged across Thursday morning's trading session? Perhaps. But who has snatched up SSP stock recently may be of note.