KC Weather Is Bloggin' Away

These days competition for television viewers just isn't on the air, but online. There is no better example than in the Kansas City area. Viewers in the metro have a wonderful selection of talented meteorologists (Katie Horner, Gary Lezak, Bryan Busby, and Mike Thompson... just to name a few). That competition is really heated online... as KSHB and WDAF bring their weather blogs to life. They are very active!

Check out KSHB's blog here.

Check out WDAF's blog here.

KY3 Welcomes New Reporter

Abby Wuellner joins KY3 as a new reporter. Her bio is located by clicking this link. She is originally from Sedalia. I am not sure when she began first reporting for the station but I caught her for the first time last night during the news at 10.

My $.02... The New KSPR

Well, today makes day 7 of the new KSPR and I have to say it is a vast improvement over what was being called a "newcast" on that channel. The station needed a rebranding badly and I believe that most of the steps were in a positive direction. Let me briefly summarize my likes and dislikes.

Likes:

* Time changes: I may be the only one in the Ozarks who feels this way, but news at 4:30 and 5:30 are more convenient for me. Having a station with a newscast before everyone else gives the station a chance to "break" stories.

*New weather system: By far, an improvement over the graphics of the former Springfield 33. Could possibly be the cleanest graphics in all of the Springfield market.

* Talent: Personalities mesh very well, especially Josh deBerge and Michelle Sherwood. Only one reporter has so far stood out to me as having been a little weak, but it could have just been because it was breaking news, feed problems, etc. I will give it more time before I pass judgment.

*Interaction with Viewers: Great feature added to the newscast!

Dislikes:

* Sunday-Thursday wheel: Maybe it is because it is new and I am not used to it yet, but I HATE the Sunday-Thursday rotation for the weekday anchors and Sat-Sun for the weekend set.

*Ad campaign: While I like the premise for the ads, I find the responses by the viewers completely bizarre. I am not sure what KSPR is going for. I think the ads would be much more effective if they had this scenario. Take the grocery shopping ad, for instance. The mother and kids are walking down the aisle and pick up a box of sweets. A KSPR anchor/reporter comes down the aisle with a cart, warns the mother "Did you know...", the mother smiles, puts it back, looks appreciative, while the kids are like "WHAT?". Then it looks like KSPR is doing a service as opposed to annoying the Ozarks.

* Lack of news: Some of the newscasts have been filled with stories, some are rather sparse and have many more commercial breaks. KSPR needs to find a consistant coverage level and stick with it.

Overall, I am enjoying the new KSPR. That's just my $.02... your thoughts?

The Big Story at Fox News...

Hmmm... is John Gibson in trouble??

The Big Story gets a co-anchor starting on September 17. According to the Fox News page, Heather Nauert (former feature reporter for the show) is coming back to join John Gibson at the anchor. There are rumblings that Gibson could be shown the door if ratings don't improve. Only time will tell if this is the case.

And The Last Shall Be First...

KSPR has unveiled its chic new website and has begun to add photos to its Meet The Team page. The site is very impressive and is a huge improvement over the site they had previously. Check it out!

KYTV... A Whole Lot of Shakin' Goin' On

While Springfield's KSPR may be shaking up its news schedule starting on Monday, the most dramatic and potentially jolting shift was announced today on KYTV. KYTV's morning icon, Steve Grant, will now be anchoring noon and 6 pm newscasts.

In addition, other anchoring duties are changing. Here are the new anchor pairings...

Ozarks Today, 5 am - 7 am: Maria Neider, new anchor Paul Adler, Met. Brandon Beck

KY3 News @ Noon: Steve Grant, Met. Brandon Beck

KY3 News @ 5: Ethan Forhetz, new anchor Marie Saavedra, Chief Met. Ron Hearst

KY3 News @ 6: Steve Grant, Lisa Rose, Chief Met. Ron Hearst, and Ned Reynolds

KY3 News @ 10: Ethan Forhetz, Lisa Rose, Chief Met. Ron Hearst, and Ned Reynolds

(Weekends will remain the same... Paula Morehouse, Chad Plein, Met. Dave Snider, and Joe Hickman)

I have my own personal thoughts about some of these changes but I will save them for an additional blog entry later. Your thoughts?

Rita Cosby Back on FNC...

Just for one night! Tomorrow night the former Fox News Channel and MSNBC anchor will promo her book entitled Blonde Ambition on the popular O'Reilly Factor. TV Newser scoops some details about the book that are sure to shock those who followed the death of Anna Nicole Smith and the subsequent custody battle.

From the Tipbox...

A tipster has informed The News 2K that the new 5 pm anchor for KYTV has been selected.

"The internal announcement has been made. Without giving it away I can
tellyou it IS an insider at KY, however, its NOT an existing anchor."

Let the guessing begin...