Clear Channel top 40 WAKS/96.5 programmer Bo Matthews is out looking for a replacement for "J-NIICE", who recently booked from "KISS Cleveland" to join former WAKS program director Dan Mason at Miami's Y100.Matthews tells the folks at AllAccess his requirements for the open slot: "If all you can do is scream and count down the Top 8 At 8, save the postage and don't waste the bandwidth. But, if you are a serious entertainer, this is your shot."He's asking applicants to drop resume, materials and … [Read more...]

Not to be outdone by its talk radio sister station at Oak Tree, OMW hears that Clear Channel Cleveland's WMJI/105.7 is also selling sponsorship to its broadcast facility.The oldies station is now said to be broadcasting from "Your Northern Ohio Chrysler and Jeep Dealers studio", which also nets the dealer group a line on the WMJI website.OMW reported yesterday that sister talk WTAM/1100 is now airing a sponsor billboard for its newsroom, the bill footed by FirstEnergy's The Illuminating Company … [Read more...]

Nothing particularly significant:THAT SLIMMED DOWN BROWNS COVERAGE: We've had several notes about our report on changes in coverage of the Cleveland Browns' training camp, which we mentioned were inspired by current team local rightsholder WOIO/19 running amok during last year's Browns camp.The restrictions we mentioned - which include the prohibition on sets and props, and pre-approval of live shots - were clearly visible on "19 Action News" at 5 PM on Wednesday, the training camp's opening … [Read more...]

New WOIO/19 "19 Action News" weekend co-anchor Paul Joncich is already in town, and already has been pressed into service.OMW spotted Joncich filling in during a newscast on Tuesday, getting acclimated to his new digs in the basement of Reserve Square in downtown Cleveland.The former Sacramento TV anchor is getting some ribbing in his former home market, from Sacramento Bee TV/radio writer Sam McManis. In the Bee's "21Q" blog, McManis rips the North Coast as Joncich's new location:But, Paul - … [Read more...]

OMW first talked about this way back in December, when we learned that Clear Channel's Madison WI news/talk station sold naming rights to its newsroom to a local bank.Some seven months later, Clear Channel talk WTAM/1100 Cleveland has followed suit in selling newsroom naming rights...though the station did not turn to a bank, it turned to a utility.WTAM's local newscasts are now tagged "from the WTAM/1100 24 Hour Newsroom, powered by The Illuminating Company and Ohio Edison". We don't know how … [Read more...]

Time to check in with some of the outposts away from the greater Cleveland/Akron/Canton area, unless another TV station is going to sue another professional sports team, at any rate...MIAMI VALLEY MY-GOODBYE: It looks like CBS affiliate WHIO/7 Dayton's second channel won't be the market's home of My Network TV this fall.Current UPN cable-only affiliate Miami Valley Channel (also known as "UPN 17") is being dropped by the Dayton area by Time Warner, the market's dominant cable operator. As … [Read more...]

As the local NFL team's management starts its legal battle to take the local TV rights away from CBS affiliate WOIO/19, Cleveland Browns players start their drive to take away ballgames from opponents.With training camp underway starting today, OMW hears that a LOT, and we mean a LOT of restrictions have been placed on the media covering that camp...much of it a direct result of that very TV station's behavior last year.OMW's eyes and ears in Berea tell us that the various media members are … [Read more...]

This just in...Raycom Media's WOIO/19 has sued the Cleveland Browns for trying to get out of the team's contract with the local CBS affiliate.The Cleveland Plain Dealer's news blog reports that WOIO says it "did nothing to warrant" the termination of a three-year, $4 million contract which is entering its second year. The station has also asked a judge to block the Browns from terminating the contract, and asks for unspecified damages.For the team's part, a Browns official wrote in his July 13th … [Read more...]

Some followup, mostly on previous items...and all from the Cleveland Plain Dealer, as it turns out:NEW ANCHOR TEAM: Just an hour before we posted our own item, the Plain Dealer's Entertainment blog had official word of WOIO/19's new "19 Action News" weekend anchor team.As we reported earlier, and heard from our own sources, it's indeed former KOVR/13 Sacramento anchor mainstay Paul Joncich coming to Reserve Square as half of the weekend anchor team at the local CBS affiliate.His co-anchor, as … [Read more...]

OMW has been hearing rumblings that Raycom Media's WOIO/19-WUAB/43 is bringing in new faces to anchor the weekend editions of "19 Action News", and we've confirmed the coming arrival at least one of those faces.Reliable sources in California tell OMW that former KOVR/13 (CBS) Sacramento anchor Paul Joncich, who left the station amid recent changes caused by the network buying that affiliate, is coming to "19 Action News" to anchor weekend newscasts.OMW has also heard rumors of Joncich being … [Read more...]