Fort Smith CBS Station Adds New Reporter

Christine Whitten (Courtesy: Twitter)

South TV News has learned journalist Christine Whitten started with KFSM-TV last month as a reporter for the Fort Smith, Ark., station.

Her station bio on KFSM’s website states she previously worked at sister station KFOR, the NBC afiliate in Oklahoma City.

LIN TV, Cable Provider Cox Reach Retrans Agreement at 11th Hour

Mere hours before stations in five states, including Alabama, were slated to disappear from cable provider Cox Communications, a deal was reached to continue programming under a new retransmission agreement.

As we reported last month, the removal of those stations threatened two stations within the South TV News area, Mobile, Ala.-Pensacola, Fla., FOX affiliate WALA-TV and CW affiliate WFNA-TV.

Arkansas NBC Affiliate Gets New News Director

Austin Kellerman (Courtesy: ArkansasBusiness.com)

KARK-TV, the NBC affiliate for the Little Rock, Ark., market, has hired Austin Kellerman as the station’s news director to start next Monday.

He replaces Rob Heverling, who had been with the station for seven years.

Kellerman previously worked as news director for KTAB-TV and KRBC-TV in Abilene, Texas, and also worked as an executive producer at KTAL-TV in Shreveport, La.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Florida’s Broadcast Television Markets

The Sunshine State certainly has its share of TV stations/personnel. Along with California and Texas, it has more media markets than any other state in the U.S.: ten in all.

• At the top of the list, Tampa-St. Petersburg (Sarasota), ranked #13 from this year’s Nielsen compilation. Stations include:  WFLA (NBC), WTSP (CBS), WTVT (FOX), WFTS (ABC) and Bay News 9 (IND). Both WTVT and WFLA compete heavily for the number one newscast in the Tampa market. All major affiliates have high-definition newscasts.
• Second in line: Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, at 16th. Stations include: WFOR (CBS), WTVJ (NBC), WSVN (FOX), WPLG (ABC) and WSFL (CW). All major affiliates’ newscasts are broadcast in high definition.
• The state’s third Top 25-rated market is Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, at #18. Stations in this market include: WESH (NBC), WKMG (CBS), WFTV (ABC), WRDQ (IND), WOFL (FOX) and Central Florida News 13 (IND). Though heated, WFTV typically wins the ratings war in central Florida. Only WKMG’s newscasts are not in high definition, instead broadcasting in 16:9 standard definition.
• West Palm Beach-Ft. Pierce is #38 on the list, according to Nielsen. Stations in this market include: WPTV (NBC), WPEC (CBS), WPBF (ABC), WFLX (FOX), WTVX (CW) and WTCN (MyTV). WPTV regularly wins the ratings war as the highest-rated station in the market.  All stations air newscasts in high definition.
• Jacksonville follows the list at #48, the fifth Top 50 market in the state of Florida. Stations here include: WJXT (independent), WTLV (NBC), WCWJ (CW), WJXX (ABC), WAWS (FOX) and WTEV (CBS).  WJXT has consistently been first in the ratings war since 2008. All stations have newscasts in high definition.
• Next on the list is a market that is shared with south Alabama: Mobile-Pensacola (Ft. Walton Beach). The hyphenated market ranks 59th among Nielsen markets nationwide. Stations include: WEAR (ABC), WKRG (CBS), WALA (FOX), WPMI (NBC) WFGX (MyTV) and WFNA (CW). All stations air newscasts in high definition.
• Slide down three spots, and you come to Ft. Myers-Naples, #62. Stations in this market include: WINK (CBS), WBBH (NBC), WZVN (ABC), WFTX (FOX) and WXCW (CW). WINK has been the dominant ratings leader in the area for decades. Only WFTX does not air newscasts in high definition.
• Tallahassee-Thomasville shares its market with southeastern Georgia. It’s market No. 106, according to Nielsen statistics. Stations in this market include: WCTV (CBS), WSWG (MyTV), WTLF (CW), WTXL (ABC), WTWC (NBC) and WTLH (FOX). WCTV, WSWG and WTXL broadcast newscasts in high definition.
• Panama City comes in at No. 154 in the Nielsen rankings. Stations here include: WTVY (CBS), WJHG (NBC), WMBB (ABC) and WPGX (FOX). WTVY leads the ratings war because of a larger coverage area. None of the stations in this market airs high-definition newscasts; WJHG airs newscasts in 16:9 enhanced standard definition.
• Gainesville is the last market in Florida, at #162. Stations include: WNBW (NBC), WCJB (ABC), WMYG (MyTV), WOGX (FOX) and WGFL (CBS). WCJB leads the market in ratings. WCJB, WNBW, WGFL and WMYG have newscasts airing in high-definition; all of the newscasts are produced by the Independent News Network based in Davenport, Iowa.

(Above updated February 1, 2015)

That covers another one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Alabama’s Broadcast Television Markets

It is true: if you’re a sports anchor-wannabe, a job in Alabama could be your goal, and there’s plenty of diversity among media markets to choose from. Where else can you cover the self-proclaimed king of SEC football?

• Birmingham (Anniston/Tuscaloosa) is the state’s biggest market, at #43. Stations include: WBRC (FOX), WVTM (NBC), WTTO (CW), WIAT (CBS), WBMA-LP (ABC) and WABM (MyTV). WBRC claims ratings dominance here, but given it’s a FOX affiliate (and its newscasts are on one hour earlier than the other affiliates), that’s a difficult pill to swallow. No clear winner here. All stations provide their newscasts in high definition.
• Next on the list is a market that is shared with the Florida panhandle: Mobile-Pensacola (Ft. Walton). The hyphenated market ranks 59th among Nielsen markets nationwide. Stations include: WEAR (ABC), WKRG (CBS), WALA (FOX), WPMI (NBC) WFGX (MyTV) and WFNA (CW). All stations air newscasts in high definition.
• The third top-100 station in the state, Huntsville-Decatur (Florence), is another hyphenated market, coming in at No. 79. Stations include: WHDF (CW), WHNT (CBS), WAAY (ABC), WAFF (NBC) and WZDX (FOX). All news-producing stations provide newscasts in high definition.
• Montgomery-Selma is the next station in Alabama, comprising the capital city. It’s ranked #121 among Nielsen media markets. Stations include: WAKA (CBS), WSFA (NBC), WCOV (FOX), WBMM (CW) and WNCF (ABC). WSFA has been the market leader for decades. All stations air newscasts in high definition.
• Another market that straddles state borders is the Columbus, GA (Opelika, AL) DMA, market #126. Interestingly enough, it also straddles the CST and EST time zones. Stations include: WRBL (CBS), WTVM (ABC), WLTZ (NBC) and WXTX (FOX). WTVM is the ratings leader in this market. All stations broadcast newscasts in HD.
• Dothan rounds out the Alabama markets, at #173. Stations include: WTVY (CBS), WDHN (ABC) and WDFX (FOX). WTVY is the ratings leader. Only WDHN does not air newscasts in HD.

(Above was updated February 1, 2015)

That covers another one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Tennessee’s Broadcast Television Markets

We’re more than halfway through our journey of states featured on South TV News, and Tennessee has a lot to offer within its borders.

• At the top of the list, Tennessee’s capital of Nashville sits comfortably at market No. 29, according to Nielsen 2014-15 statistics. Stations here include: WKRN (ABC), WSMV (NBC), WTVF (CBS), WZTV (FOX), WUXP (MyTV) and WNAB (CW). WSMV and WTVF usually go neck-and-neck for first place in the ratings wars. All stations in the market broadcast newscasts in high-definition.
• Memphis follows as the state’s most populous city, situated near the borders of two other states, Mississippi and Arkansas. It also is designated as market No. 50. Stations include: WREG (CBS), WMC (NBC), WHBQ (FOX), WATN (ABC) and WLMT (CW, MyTV). WMC dominated the Memphis market in ratings for years, but now WREG has been winning the battle consistently for months. All station broadcast their newscasts in high definition.
• Not far behind Memphis in market size yet on the other end of the state is Knoxville, at #61. Stations include: WATE (ABC), WVLT (CBS), WBIR (NBC), WBXX (CW) and WTNZ (FOX). All stations air their newscasts in HD.
• Next in line is Chattanooga, No. 88. Stations include: WRCB (NBC), WTVC (ABC), WDEF (CBS), WFLI (CW) and WDSI (FOX). WTVC leads the ratings war there, according to figures from the last Nielsen ratings period. Only WRCB and WDEF broadcast newscasts in high definition.
• A little farther down is Tri-Cities, TN-VA, a market that extends into Virginia as well. It rates at #97. Stations include: WCYB (NBC), WJHL (CBS), WKPT (ABC), WEMT (FOX) and WAPK (MyTV). WCYB is the market leader for most newscasts in the ratings war. WJHL, WCYB and WEMT broadcast their newscasts in HD.
• Last is Jackson, at market No. 176. Stations include WBBJ (ABC) and WJKT (FOX). WBBJ is the only station with a locally-produced newscast in this market, but competes in certain counties with stations from the Memphis DMA. WJKT airs a simulcast provided by Memphis station WPTY. Only WBBJ’s newscasts are in high definition.

(Above updated February 1, 2015)

That covers another one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Mississippi’s Broadcast Television Markets

Our third state on the list doesn’t have any Top 50 markets (as defined by Nielsen) but still has several smaller ones statewide.

• The biggest is the state capital, Jackson, at #94. Stations include: WLBT (NBC), WJTV (CBS), WAPT (ABC), WRBJ (CW), WUFX (MyTV) and WDBD (FOX). WLBT leads the ratings war in Jackson, though in recent years that lead has not been as dominant, with WAPT running a close second. WLBT, WDBD, WJTV and WUFX broadcast newscasts in HD.
• Next in line is the Columbus-Tupelo-West Point-Houston market (as defined by Nielsen), #133. Stations include: WCBI (CBS), WTVA (NBC/ABC) and WLOV (FOX). All stations broadcast their newscasts in high definition.
• Biloxi-Gulfport, market #160, is located in the southern part of the state. Stations include: WLOX (ABC/CBS) and WXXV (NBC/FOX). Both stations air local newscasts in high definition.
• Next is the Hattiesburg-Laurel market, No. 167. Stations include: WDAM (NBC), WHLT (CBS) and WRBJ (CW). Only WDAM has newscasts in high definition.
• Meridian follows, in market #189. Stations include WTOK (ABC), WMDN (CBS) and WGBC (NBC). Only WTOK has HD newscasts.
• Last in the state, the Greenwood-Greenville market, #190. Stations include WABG (ABC/FOX), WXVT (CBS) and WNBD-LP (NBC). WABG remains the market leader in ratings. None of the stations has high-def newscasts.

(Above was updated February 1, 2015)

That covers another one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Louisiana’s Broadcast Television Markets

There are seven media markets within Louisiana’s state borders:

• The biggest, of course, is New Orleans. Ranked 51st among U.S. media markets according to Nielsen Media, its stations include WWL (CBS), WDSU (NBC), WVUE (FOX), WGNO (ABC), WNOL (CW) and WUPL (MyTV). WWL has led Nielsen ratings in the city for nearly the last three decades. Only WVUE and WWL broadcast their newscasts in high definition; WDSU and WGNO broadcast their newscasts in widescreen standard definition.
• Shreveport, market 83, is the second-largest in the state. Stations include KTBS (ABC), KTAL (NBC), KSLA (CBS), KPXJ (CW), KMSS (FOX) and KSHV (MyTV). All three news-producing stations in the market — KTBS, KSLA, and KTAL — broadcast newscasts in HD.
• Next in line is Baton Rouge, market 93. Stations include: WBRZ (ABC), WAFB (CBS), WBXH (MyTV), WBRL (CW), WVLA (NBC) and WGMB (FOX).  WAFB remains first place in the ratings war. Currently, only WAFB, WBXH, and WBRZ broadcast their newscasts in high definition. WVLA’s newscasts are in 16:9 standard definition.
• And then we have Lafayette, market 124. Stations include: KATC (ABC), KLFY (CBS), KADN (FOX) and KLAF-LP (MyTV). KATC is the market leader for the area. Only KLFY broadcasts local newscasts in high definition.
• The Monroe-El Dorado market, #137, shares a good portion of its south Arkansas coverage area with northern Louisiana. Stations include: KNOE (CBS), KTVE (NBC), KMLU (ABC) and KARD (FOX). KNOE has been the market leader in news for more than 25 years; KNOE airs its newscasts in high definition. KTVE’s news operation is partial HD; studio cameras are not high definition, but their field cameras are.
• Further down the market ladder, at #174, is Lake Charles, with two stations: KPLC (NBC) and KVHP (FOX). Only KPLC broadcasts newscasts in high definition.
• The smallest market station in The Bayou State is Alexandria, at market 179. Stations include KALB (NBC/CBS), KLAX (ABC), KBCA (CW) and WNTZ (FOX). Though KLAX offers contributions from local reporters, its newscast is produced/anchored from Iowa. Only KALB produces and airs local news content in this market, and is easily the market leader as the first station in Alexandria. As such, only KALB broadcast newscasts in HD.

(Above was updated February 1, 2015)

That covers another one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

Everything You Wanted To Know About Arkansas’ Broadcast Television Markets

Within , there are four different media markets, as defined by Nielsen Media Research (2014-2015)

• The largest in the state, Little Rock-Pine Bluff, is ranked 56th in terms of population size.  It has a station from every major U.S. television network within its market: KARK (NBC), KATV (ABC), KTHV (CBS), KLRT (FOX), KASN (CW) and KARZ (MyTV).  KTHV has consistently been the market leader in ratings for the area. All stations mentioned above broadcast their newscasts in high definition.
• The second largest market is also hyphenated: Fort Smith-Fayetteville-Springdale-Rogers. It’s ranked 101st by Nielsen and its DMA also includes a small portion of southeast Oklahoma. Stations include: KFSM (CBS/MyTV), KFTA (FOX), KHBS (ABC), KHOG (CW) and KNWA (NBC). KFSM has been the ratings leader for years. KHBS/KHOG broadcast their newscasts in 16:9 enhanced definition, not HD.
• The Monroe-El Dorado market, #137, shares a good portion of its south Arkansas coverage area with northern Louisiana. Stations include: KNOE (CBS), KTVE (NBC), KMLU (ABC) and KARD (FOX). KNOE has been the market leader in news for more than 25 years; KNOE airs its newscasts in high definition. KTVE’s news operation is partial HD; studio cameras are not high definition, but their field cameras are.
• Jonesboro, ranked 181st by Nielsen, has ABC affiliate KAIT and NBC affiliate KJNE-LP (as a subchannel of KAIT) within the DMA borders in terms of national network affiliates. The market is served by other stations from the Little Rock-Pine Bluff market, predominantly. KAIT began broadcasting newscasts in HD in October 2011. It’s also the smallest media market in the state.

(Above was updated February 1, 2015)

That covers just one of several states we’ll be covering. If you work for one of these affiliates and have news about new hires, on-air graphic updates, HD overhauls, or anything that would be of interest to this local news blog, please let us know.. I’m not necessarily talking about station gossip, but that works, too. If someone uttered a profane word on-air, for example, that’d be something. Station sales, downsizing, things like that are also newsworthy. You can do so anonymously, of course, but have to prove you work for the station in question for credibility purposes by sending us an email to southtvnewser@gmail.com.

DirecTV: Raycom, You’re Crazy. We’ve Already Renewed Your Stations.

Here we are three full days into 2011, yet the End of the World (as predicted by Raycom execs) hasn’t come. In fact, though DirecTV has issued no official statement as of yet, a company “spokesperson” has been quoted in several newspapers, saying slightly different things, but all with one thing in common: your local Raycom channel will still be on the satellite provider’s lineup after the New Year. In fact, some newspapers claim the deal auto-renewed and is good until Dec. 31, 2011.

This excerpt from a recent Arizona Daily Star article says it best:

Raycom Media’s position is that its current contract with the satellite provider ends on Jan. 1, and if a new multiyear agreement isn’t reached, DirecTV could stop carrying its programming, said Jeff Rosser, Raycom Media’s senior vice president.

DirecTV, on the other hand, said the contract extended to the end of 2011 automatically and there’s no chance of satellite subscribers losing access to that programming.

“DirecTV customers should ignore Raycom’s messaging and scare tactics; they are mistaken; the stations will remain up,” DirecTV spokesman Robert Mercer said in an e-mail.

While talks are ongoing, Rosser said DirecTV has become less responsive. The two parties disagree on when the contract ends, he said, which leads to the possibility of DirecTV subscribers in Tucson losing KOLD’s programming.

“We’re not using scare tactics,” he said. “We’re trying to do the responsible thing and alert viewers of the possibility.

But is it true? If it is, it certainly makes Raycom look more and more like it’s preying on its viewers’ fears, scaring them into believing DirecTV is an evil  monster that preys on local affiliates.

According to the Southeast Missourian, Raycom is negotiating on behalf of 30 stations. But nothing has yet been reached.

There is no signed agreement, but neither side has pulled the signals, said KFVS general manager Mike Smythe. Raycom has provided DirecTV a signed copy of an agreement that will allow DirecTV to continue to carry of the station into 2014, Smythe said. Raycom is awaiting DirecTV’s officials’ signatures.

Other media conglomerates Hearst and Insight have recently signed similar contracts for their stations, but Raycom seems the odd man out here because of their practices considered deceptive by media bloggers.

Is your station on the chopping block? Let us know by emailing us at southtvnewser@gmail.com.