TV/Cable News

Walk into nearly any bar, gym, airport or office these days and you’re likely not only to find a TV, but also viewers of all sorts with their eyes glued to the glass. These consumers, out of the confines of their homes, are no less important to networks and advertisers when they’re out and about. This latest insight piece from Nielsen sheds new light on what's being watched away from the home.

Following last week’s earnings release and announcement of the acquisition of Scripps Networks by Discovery Communications, Pivotal Research Group Senior Research Analyst for Advertising Brian Wieser reviewed and revised his expectations for Discovery's core business, and its soon-to-be-acquired operations. What is his updated assessment? 

The addition of the Media General TV stations to Nexstar Media Group significantly impacted its bottom line in Q2: Nexstar enjoyed a 139% net revenue rise to a record $626.1 million.

Poor comps? Not here. Gray Television enjoyed a Q2 2017 that was nothing short of spectacular, as revenue surged to $226.7 million from $196.6 million, and net income catapulted to $70.6 million (97 cents per diluted share) from $17.7 million (24 cents). Thank the Spectrum Auction for the strong quarter, and buckle up for a bumpy Q3.

In a transaction that the company says will be "highly accretive" to its operating results immediately after a Q4 closing, Nexstar Media Group is acquiring the non-spectrum operating assets of the CW affiliate serving DMA No. 52. It's a nice bonus payday for the seller, which had no pre-Auction CSA but gained one ahead of relinquishing this station's spectrum for a winning bid of $125,932,367.

CBS Corp. Chairman/CEO Les Moonves has much to be smiling about: His TV and OTT operations contributed to a great Q2 for the company, which is making available its CBS All Access online platform to all of planet Earth.

Following Monday's Closing Bell on Wall Street, CBS Corporation reported Q2 2017 results that surpassed expectations, coupled with profits that met the Street. Brian Wieser, a senior analyst at Pivotal Research Group who has emerged in recent months as a prolific pulse-taker of broadcast media's publicly traded companies, likes what he sees: CBS execs hint that the company is shifting its revenue mix away from advertising and toward other activities, and those moves are "particularly positive."

Two quick-service restaurant chains are now among the top five advertisers using cable TV spots. What company is No. 1 on the latest Media Monitors Spot Ten Cable report? Click here to find out!

Automotive dealers have concluded their biggest summertime sales push, and a decrease in broadcast TV spots is already being seen. Just two automotive dealer associations are in the latest Media Monitors TV Spot Ten. What company is No. 1? A QSR that isn't actively using radio, but has jumped onto TV in a big way.

Ahead of the release of its Q2 2017 earnings Monday, CBS Corp. revealed that it has reached a carriage agreement with AT&T that brings select CBS and The CW O&Os and affiliates; the Showtime premium pay-TV network; the Pop basic cable TV network; and the CBS Sports Network to the streaming "skinny bundle" package.

The media company that didn't see a reunification with CBS Corp. suffered a bruising session on Wall Street Friday. Viacom shares tumbled 13.8%, to $30.22, on word that subscribers to its cable TV networks will fall by roughly 3% in Q3. That sour news clouded an otherwise good Q2 that saw Viacom beat the Street.

María Elena Salinas will exit the Univision News anchor chair at the end of the year. Salinas has been associated with Univision and its predecessor, Spanish International Network (SIN), for nearly 36 years. As of January 2018, she plans to work independently as a journalist and producer, and continuing to devote herself to philanthropy.

The FCC on Wednesday entered into a Consent Decree with Mountain Broadcasting Corp. that resolves issues tied to the license renewal application of the company's full-power UHF station serving the New York Tri-State Area. The agreement was struck after the station was found to be deficient in its failure to display the "E/I" symbol throughout the duration of all educational programming.

A seasoned media executive with large-market television broadcasting experience is the new VP/GM for WFTX-36, the E.W. Scripps Company-owned station branded as "FOX4" in Ft. Myers-Naples, Fla.

If ever there was a Thursday to throw back. U.S. media stocks, in particular television company shares, got hammered on Wall Street as growing concern over advertising dollars at traditional media — coupled with rough Q2 earnings releases from several companies — sent investors running away.