Local Newscasts Today

[Mario-500]

How do you feel about the idea of having fewer and shorter local newscasts? In recent years, more stations have been adding more newscasts to their schedule and making existing newscasts longer. WEAR-TV in Pensacola, Florida recently added a one-hour newscast on Saturdays and Sundays at 6:00 AM in addition to the one-hour Saturday newscast at 6:00 PM, the two-hour weekday newscast between 5:00 AM and 7:00 AM, the half-hour newscast at 11:00 AM, the one-hour weekday newscast at 4:00 PM, the one-hour weekday newscast at 10:00 PM (as an ABC affiliate, WEAR-TV delays "Nightline" and has done so since 1984), and the half-hour weekday newscasts at 5:00 PM and 6:00 PM.

All the TV news stations in Mobile-Pensacola have local newscasts between 5:00 AM and 7:00 AM and one hour more on WALA-TV, a FOX affiliate in Mobile. This is too much for a TV market like Mobile-Pensacola, as the local news is repeated and national news unrelated to the area is reported during the local newscasts on stations with network newscasts. The time used for national news should be used for more local news and information. Some of the local news (originally reported on the previous day) in the morning newscasts is repeated during the 12:00 PM newscasts, especially on WKRG-TV, a CBS affiliate in Mobile. Not only is the news repeated on WALA-TV's morning newscasts, but the current time is also mentioned constantly and the news presenters always reintroduce themselves after a commercial break. The news presenters on WALA-TV constantly report something as "breaking news" (local and national) with dramatic music and a large banner at the bottom of the screen during the morning news and at the beginning of the one-hour newscasts at 5:00 PM and 9:00 PM.

If were there fewer and shorter newscasts, more people would be watching, and more money and employees would be saved. A one-hour weekday newscast at 6:00 AM, a half-hour newscast at 5:00 PM or 6:00 PM, and a half-hour newscast at 10:00 PM would do much better for stations in my area. WALA-TV seems to be fine with one-hour weekday newscasts at 5:00 PM and 9:00 PM, since the station has no network newscasts and more time for local programming, but the morning news should be shorten to one hour at 6:00 AM. WKRG-TV could use the 12:00 PM half-hour for create a local program based on their "Take 5" segments featuring local history, guests, and cooking. Video and film from the station's past would be a great feature for such a program.

Too much of the same thing will eventually lead to viewers checking other stations for new information (no old news) or other programming. When it comes to local news, less time means more news and more viewers.

[KeithE4]

Because news is available on the web, including the stations' own websites, 24/7, there is no need for anything more than one or two hours before 7 AM (OK, maybe an indie can go until 9), then noon, 5, 6, and 10/11 - 30 minutes each.  Emphasis should be on news, maybe some better investigative reporting, with no real need for weather or most sports anymore.  But it can get done in 1/2 hour.

The weather is available on that same station's .2 subchannel in many cases, and those who want game highlights can find them on SportsCenter.  The only exception to "no sports" is local high school and smaller-college sports that won't get covered on a national sports network.

In other words, it needs to be deja vu 1975 all over again, maybe even back to the cheap/cheesy sets, obnoxious theme music (not every station can have Cool Hand Luke), and anchormen with "Ron Burgundy" mustaches.  Eyewitness News name and happy talk are optional.

[Dave]

In Chicago, WGN-TV decided to expand the midday from noon to 1pm to  11am - 1pm (11am - 12pm not available on WGN America), added the 5:30pm - 6pm newscast a few months back, then added 5-5:30pm to make the evening news from 5-6pm.  WGN has 8 hours of news on Monday - Friday.  If I'm not mistaken, the 4 big networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, & Fox) don't even have as much news at the local level.  ABC, NBC, & CBS have network programming around 7-9am EST, which could count as news, but if you look at local news, the network stations don't have as much local news as WGN does.   

[MarcB]

For the longest time Tribune's FOX 61 in Hartford only had a 10PM-11PM Newscast.

In March 2008 they launched The FOX 61 Morning Show airing 6AM-8AM. That evolved into The FOX 61 Morning news 4:30AM-9:00AM in August 2008. Earlier this year they added an 11PM-11:30PM Newscast Sunday-Friday. Then this fall they added The FOX 61 Midday News 11AM-1130AM Monday-Friday.

The FOX 61 Morning news 4:30AM-9:00AM Monday-Friday 4 1/2 hrs x 5 days = 22 1/2 hrs

The FOX 61 Midday News 11AM-11:30AM Monday-Friday 30 Mins x 5 days = 2 1/2 hours

The FOX 61 News at 10 10PM-11PM Monday-Friday 60 mins x 5 days = 5 hours

The FOX 61 News at 11 11PM-11:30PM Sunday-Friday 30 mins x 5 days = 3 hours

The FOX 61 News at 10 Weekend 10PM-1045PM*Saturday & Sunday 45 min x 2 days = 1 1/2 hours

Total Number of News hours per week on FOX 61 are now up to 34 1/2 hours/week Thats up a lot from 7 hours/week less then 2 years ago.

*The News at 10 on the weekend is only 45 mins long because they air a 15 mins sports show called FOX 61 Sports Ticket 1045PM-11PM. The 10PM-11PM News 7 days a week is simulcast on sister station WTXX Channel 20 the CW affiliate in Hartford known as "TXX-TV"

[jsu5381m]

4pm news is ridiculous in my opinion. How about more stations adding a 7pm news if on eastern time and 6:30 if on central time?

[shmee]

the CW station here in St. Louis KPLR 11 has their news at 7pm (CST) & pushed the CW network programming from 8-10pm (CST) Monday-Friday

[gr8oldies]

I would disagree about the weather not being important, especially in the morning., when a lot of people are movinfg around the house and not staring at the computer. You do have to remember as far as talent reintroducing themselves and giving the time frequently that people are largely listening and watching as they are getting ready for work, not staring at the TV. Repetition is going to happen because viewers are turninfg over fgrequently, few are watching the entire 5 to 7pm block. Most markets don't have 90 minutes or two hours of news that are interesting.

[cowboybud]

Local news in Houston:

KPRC (NBC)
4:30-7 am
11am-12pm
4-4:30pm
5-5:30pm
6-6:30pm
10-10:35pm
Total: 5 hours, 35 min.

KHOU (CBS)
4:30-7am
12-12:30pm
5-5:30pm
6-6:30pm
10-10:35pm
Total: 5 hours, 5 min.

KTRK (ABC)
4:30-7am
11am-12pm
4-5:30pm
6-7pm
10-10:35pm
Total: 6 hours, 35 min.

KRIV (FOX)
5-10am
12-12:30pm
5-6pm
9-10pm
Total: 7 hours, 30 min.

KIAH (CW)
5-6pm
9-10pm
Total: 2 hours

[Lkeller]

I haven't added up all the hours, but in the Bay Area, there is more local news than ever.  The 'Big 3' network stations have given up news in the 4:00 hour, and the 5:00 PM news is now only a half-hour, so they can run the network news at 5:30 -but outside those hours, news has expanded. KGO-TV now runs 3 hours of morning news starting at 4:00 AM. 

The Fox affiliate (KTVU) still runs an hour of news at 10:00, and has recently added 30 minute broadcasts at 5:00, 6:00, and 7:00. If you count the Spanish language news broadcast, there are now news programs on 5 stations at 6:00.

[bpatrick]

4pm news is ridiculous in my opinion. How about more stations adding a 7pm news if on eastern time and 6:30 if on central time?

You should be in South Carolina.  WCSC/5 Charleston has a
4:00 newscast, but there are six stations in the state with
7:00 newscasts: WCSC and WCIV/4 Charleston; WIS/10 and
WLTX/19 Columbia; WSPA/7 Spartanburg; and WPDE/15 Florence.
In addition, WSPA has a program at 7:30 called "Scene On 7"; I'm
not sure it's more news or a magazine-type show since I haven't
seen it, but weathercaster Jack Roper hosts it, which suggests it
might be a magazine-type show.  Anyone know about it?

My NBC affiliate, WNCN/17 Raleigh/Durham, does an hour of
local news from 7-8.  I guess it does OK, but I don't think it's
any threat to "Entertainment Tonight" and "Inside Edition" on
WRAL, or "Wheel Of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!" on WTVD.

In the Central time zone, 6:30 newscasts have been quite
successful in Nashville (WSMV/4 and WTVF/5) and Houston
(KTRK/13).

So maybe you have a point.