Unloading Before The Holidays

This doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re going on The H Word through the end of 2013.

But, a lot of items have piled up, so here we go!

MORE 5 CHANGES: In TV news, the phrase “nothing is more constant than change” is certainly true.

But at 3001 Euclid, the folks at Scripps ABC affiliate WEWS/5’s “NewsChannel 5” could adopt the phrase as a motto.

The station’s low-rated “Good Morning Cleveland” has undergone a host of changes since this blog debuted in 2005.

Now, the “NewsChannel 5” folks are making more changes – with what they have.

OMW hears “GMC” is bringing morning reporter Josh Boose into the studio alongside current anchors Macie Jepson and Mike Dunston.

Presumably so the set won’t be too crowded, Dunston will be based in the show’s “Live Center”, which has apparently moved out of a dark control room to an island (with a flat screen) on the main set.

The station’s Terrence Lee will anchor “Good Morning Cleveland Saturday”, alongside meteorologist Trent Magill.

A memo from WEWS news director Jill Manuel that floated out of 3001 Euclid to our front lawn says that the move is “part of our increasing efforts to refine real-time morning news and better connect with our audience”.

The memo says Dunston’s placement in the “Live Center” will “will continue to define urgency and immediacy”. (TV news speak…whew.)

Notice that we haven’t said anything about “GMC’s” meteorologist position, aside from Trent Magill going to the show’s Saturday edition. That’s because…

INCOMING WEATHER: …WEWS has finally filled the opening left when “GMC” meteorologist Christine Ferreira left the station, and Northeast Ohio, for her home area of south central Pennsylvania.

Tera Blake, who’s been the morning metorologist at CW (former Fox) affiliate WCCB/18 Charlotte NC, joins NewsChannel 5 on January 6th.

Blake has also worked in the Denison TX market, and her bio indicates that she interned for a Chicago weather institution, WGN-TV’s Tom Skilling.

The Charlotte station was one of the charter Fox affiliates, until the network itself bought then-CW affiliate WJZY and moved the Fox affiliation there earlier this year.

Blake’s show was formerly known as “Fox News Rising”…it’s now “WCCB News Rising”.

Ferreira has landed in her home area, as morning meteorologist for Hearst NBC affiliate WGAL/8 Lancaster PA, where she interned while in college…

NEW ND: We told you earlier that Clear Channel talk WTAM/1100 news director Darren Toms was leaving the station, and the radio business, as the new Director of Community Outreach for the Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court.

WTAM has found his replacement, and that new news director is no stranger to radio, news or even doing news on stations that are alongside WTAM on Oak Tree.

Tom Taylor, in his excellent Tom Taylor Now newsletter, has details:

Jack Callaghan is the newly-named News Director at Clear Channel’s talk WTAM Cleveland (1100), starting (11/27).

He’s done news for other Clear Channel stations (like classic hits “Majic 105.7” WMJI) as well as CBS Radio’s classic rock WNCX (98.5).

Jack was most recently the Eastern Regional Sales Manager at Beat the Traffic and VP/Director of Television Marketing at Metro Networks (where he’d also been regional director of operations).

Our congratulations to Jack!

WHERE DO YOU HOLD A PROTEST?: Photojournalists at Local TV-to-be-Tribune Fox affiliate WJW/8’s “Fox 8 News” wanted to draw attention to their unhappiness with contract negotiations, and they sure picked a good place to get public attention.

How about in front of FirstEnergy Stadium with the Cleveland Browns playing the hated Pittsburgh Steelers?

As seen here in a photograph sent anonymously to OMW, the photogs carried signs saying “Fox 8 – Photographers Want A Fair Contract”, and handed out leaflets expressing their points.

Among them, the group says they haven’t had a raise in “more than 4 years”, while station profits increased. The leaflet also talks about job security – with concerns about more staff reductions – and “fair scheduling”.

The leaflet advised people to make the case for the photographers on Fox 8’s social media platforms.

And the location was a high-visibility place to hold a protest. Had they stood in front the station’s studios on Dick Goodard Way/South Marginal Road a bit further down the East Shoreway, the group would have to have much larger signs…

HEADING TO DAYTON: A former meteorologist at LIN TV CBS/Fox/ABC combo WYTV/27-WYFX/19-WYTV/33 in Youngstown is heading to the other corner of Ohio.

Kirstie Zontini joins the staff of Cox CBS affiliate WHIO-TV/7 Dayton, the dominant station in that market, as morning and noon meteorologist.

We’re reminded she’s joining a former Sunset Blvd. co-worker at WHIO – Natalie Jovonovich…

BACK WHERE HE BELONGS: George McFly left Northeast Ohio radio for a good reason…he left Northeast Ohio itself, after his wife was transferred to Fort Smith AR.

The talented radio pro landed quickly in his new home market, taking afternoon drive at Fort Smith rocker KLSZ/100.7.

That is, until owner Cumulus decided to use that station as its CBS Sports Radio affiliate there.

McFly and his wife are back in Northeast Ohio, and he’s back at his old radio home.

George has rejoined Rubber City Radio country WQMX/94.9 in Akron, where he was heard for over 10 years before his Southern Adventure. He’ll be back to his former role doing weekend/swing/fill-in work, and presumably much more.

McFly is also doing occasional fill-in traffic reporting on WQMX and the other Rubber City Radio stations (oldies/news WAKR/1590, rock WONE/97.5 and Cleveland’s smooth AC WNWV/107.3)…but he’s not taking requests, at least of the musical variety, in that role…

NO CHANGES THAT WE CAN SEE: Televangelist Paul Crouch, who founded the Trinity Broadcasting Network religious TV empire, passed away last week.

We only mention that here because TBN owns one station in the OMW Coverage Area, WDLI/17 Canton. In the digital age, WDLI transmits from the TV/FM antenna farm near Akron’s pretty-much-dead Rolling Acres Mall (near ION’s WVPX/23 and Western Reserve PBS’ WEAO/49 and a host of FM stations), and tries from there to serve as the TBN outlet for the entire Cleveland market.

From here, there would appear to be no chance that WDLI will continue as anything but a TBN O&O.

For one, Crouch’s widow Jan is the network’s co-founder, and presumably, she’ll carry on its mission…

JAZZY CHRISTMAS: Ideastream public news/talk WCPN/90.3 Cleveland is once again launching its full-time holiday jazz stream.

A note we got from the station a while back explains:

Need a little holiday jazz?

Right this very minute?

For a uniquely jazzy approach to holiday music—where no one gets run over by a reindeer—join us online at
www.wcpn.org/swingin from now through New Year’s Day.

ideastream’s own jazz authority Dan Polletta has spent hours carefully blending classic holiday recordings by jazz greats with new takes on seasonal songs that will help warm you up.

With our large library of holiday favorites, you’re assured a unique jazz combo every time you listen.

A PLACE TO GO: This blog started in 2005, spurred by our participation on the old Radio-Info.com message boards.

We seem to recall that there was a “Buckeye Radio Board” earlier, but Radio-Info was the place to go to talk about the crazy business of radio, and closely associated topics like local TV.

Radio-Info survived a rather tragic event – the death of its founder, Doug Fleming. Doug’s parents kept the site going, and even expanded the Radio-Info brand…bringing in editorial talent like the aforementioned Tom Taylor.

That all fell apart recently, when the non-message board assets of Radio-Info went to TALKERS magazine publisher Michael Harrison – well, except for Mr. Taylor, who eventually went out on his own with the “Tom Taylor Now” E-mail newsletter.

The message boards stayed with the Fleming family, renamed “RadioDiscussions.com” after Harrison took over the Radio-Info branding.

The Flemings sold RadioDiscussions to Streamline Digital, the company owned by Radio Ink publisher Eric Rhoads…and in a sudden move this week, Rhoads’ company shuttered the RD site with absolutely no warning.

Effective immediately RadioDiscussions and RadioDiscussions.com is ceasing operation.

We appreciate all of your support over the years.

Radio Business Report, another Streamline site, has more:

Said RBR-TVBR/Radio Ink EVP/GM TJ Lambert: “This was an economic decision. Our intention was to offer Radio Discussions as an option to our advertisers but we found there was no interest and though we respect what Doug Fleming originally built, it simply does not make sense to pour cash into something with no prospect of revenue.”

What’s a radio message board addict to do?

Enter Lance Venta, a former Radio-Info team member who left the site, and started his own RadioInsight.com.

Though RadioInsight has primarily been known for breaking radio news, and for Lance’s skills at divining future radio format changes by snooping into domain name registrations, the site also has forums and interactive features that have been there for some time.

The word is apparently getting out, as RadioInsight’s traffic has gone through the roof with the sudden end of RadioDiscussions.com.

As we noted in our brief update before this one, that affects your Mighty Blog of Fun(tm) as well, as we occupy a corner of Lance’s server space.

Things are getting better…and will continue to improve as Lance adjusts to the flood coming from the closure of RadioDiscussions, a flood he had no idea would come.

And as we reminded you before, the Cleveland forum at RadioInsight Community is the official discussion area of OMW…