If you're at the top of your field, and have been for decades, you're basically the living dictionary definition of your profession. If the broadcasting dictionary entry is "Akron radio newsman", the answer is clearly "See: States, Larry". After over 40 years in radio news, the last 30-plus at Rubber City Radio Group talk WAKR/1590 Akron, Larry States is calling it a career. We'll call on long-time OMW reader and Rubber City VP/information media Ed Esposito for a few words about Larry, … [Read more...]
New Leader, New Job
Posted on August 29, 2014 · Leave a Comment
WEWS BRINGS HOME NEW ND: It's been just over five months since Scripps ABC affiliate WEWS/5 "NewsChannel 5" news director Jill Manuel left the station for "bigger opportunties in another market" (Chicago), as a station memo said at the time. Her replacement will have no trouble finding his way around Cleveland, or even 3001 Euclid Avenue. Jeff Harris has been news director at Scripps' sister ABC station in Denver, KMGH/7...but heads back to Cleveland to take over the news reins at WEWS. … [Read more...]
The Gone And The Now
Posted on August 27, 2014 · Leave a Comment
Another Cleveland TV news personality is heading for the Big Apple, and another TV type is incoming from a smaller market... NEW YORK STATE OF MIND: We watched as former "Fox 8 News" anchor Stacey Bell left the anchor desk at Tribune Fox affiliate WJW/8 for Long Island NY, where she joined Cablevision all-news channel "News 12"...then later, made the big jump to New York City's NBC O&O, WNBC/4. She'll be joined on the air in New York soon by a fast-rising Cleveland TV news star who is … [Read more...]
A Lot To Catch Up On
Posted on August 12, 2014 · 9 Comments
As Life is Intervening(tm) a little less here at the OMW World Headquarters, we have some time to catch up... WKNR MIXES IT UP AGAIN: The rumored lineup change at Good Karma sports WKNR/850 "ESPN Cleveland" came to fruition, but not quite as rumored. Still, the big pieces are as expected, and the biggest move affects the station's signature program, "The Really Big Show" in middays. The changes take effect August 25th. The 9 AM-1 PM show keeps its lead host, long-time local sports … [Read more...]
Newspapers? Remember Them?
Posted on August 6, 2014 · 2 Comments
For many years, Northeast Ohio broadcasters have gone without newspaper siblings locally. The last such pairing (newspaper/TV division) was shuttered in the early 1980s, when the E.W. Scripps-founded Cleveland Press (originally the "Penny Press") was sold off by the media company that still bears its founder's name. The only broadcast/newspaper pairing left is in Elyria, where Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting still owns talk WEOL/930 and its sister stations in the Sandusky area - WKFM/96.1 … [Read more...]
The When? The Now
Posted on July 28, 2014 · 2 Comments
Scripps is readying another in-house syndication project for its TV stations, and the next one is coming to the company's ABC affiliate in Cleveland, WEWS/5, soon. "The Now" is already airing on two of the company's stations - Denver ABC affiliate KMGH/7 and Kansas City NBC affiliate KSHB/41. (The picture is from the KMGH website, with Denver local anchor Lionel Bienvenu, who has been a sports anchor.) So, what is "The Now"...or as stylized by Scripps, "The NOW"? Let's let them describe … [Read more...]
Weekend Reading
Posted on July 19, 2014 · 2 Comments
We've got some reading for you to help fill your media weekend. Or, you can catch up at work on Monday morning... BACK UP: For nearly a week, Western Reserve PBS' Akron outlet was nowhere to be found on the airwaves. The outage at WEAO/49, the Cleveland-Akron market half of the public TV station's duo, lasted at very least from early Friday morning of last week. This Thursday night, a half-power signal came on the air from the station's Copley Township tower at about 9 PM. WEAO then … [Read more...]
Working For The Weekend News
Posted on June 19, 2014 · Leave a Comment
Local TV news used to live and die by what happened at 6 and 11 PM weeknights. As audience habits changed, weekday mornings became very important. A big part of that came from the success of non-"big three" station local morning news and talk shows, successfully competing against the network shows after 7 AM. Here in Cleveland, that's more than evident at the powerhouse that is Tribune Fox affiliate WJW/8's "Fox 8 News in the Morning"...a combination of news, weather, traffic and chat … [Read more...]
Marriage, Dogs And Baseball
Posted on June 18, 2014 · 3 Comments
Don't worry, you'll figure out the connection... SHE'S MARRIED AND STAYING: The question has been peppering our inbox for some time now. Is Gannett NBC affiliate WKYC/3 morning meteorologist/host Hollie Strano now leaving the station after her marriage? The question has come up not because Strano is now hitched, but because her new husband doesn't live in Cleveland. Hollie and Alex Giangreco got married over the weekend on the beach in Fort Lauderdale FL (Alex's hometown). And we … [Read more...]
On The Way In, And On The Way Out
Posted on June 10, 2014 · 3 Comments
Incoming and outgoing news tops our agenda today, in people, shows and channels... MOVING UP AT DICK GODDARD WAY: Sales wins the day when it comes to replacing former Tribune Fox affiliate WJW/8 "Fox 8" VP/general manager Greg Easterly. The station has tabbed one of two strong internal candidates to replace Easterly, who moved to Chicago to run new Tribune sister station (and Tribune TV flagship) WGN/9. He's Paul Perozeni, who's been VP/general sales manager for WJW for 13 years, and has … [Read more...]
