Jan. 31 -- Gee, I take a short break from writing and look what happens: Fox 35 brings in a new anchor and dumps its news director. According to NewsBlues.com, WOFL VP for News John Sears quietly left the station last Monday and hasn't been seen since. Station GM Stan Knott, flew to Fox corporate offices in New York and has reportedly told staffers that "John is gone" and he doesn’t "know when he’s coming back." Is this a TV station or a CIA outpost? If you think the latter, it would help explain the often bizarre moves during Sears' tenure -- such as completely overhauling the on-air talent of reporters and anchors, leaving anchor positions open for more than a year sometimes, and changing the tone of what had been a successful morning show, Good Day Orlando. (The morning show has since recovered.)

Meanwhile, speaking of those on-air changes, Fox 35 has finally hired a new main anchor, more than six months after Brad Stephens left the station. Cale Ramaker, noon anchor at WHO-Ch. 13 in Des Moines, is apparently the guy. Ramaker came to WHO-TV from KSTP-TV in Minneapolis where he last anchored their 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. newscasts. He also anchored and did some investigative reporting at WSYM-TV in Lansing, Michigan.

And another change: WOFL is running promos saying it will start broadcasting from its new set on Tuesday night's 10 p.m. news.

Jan. 31 -- I received several e-mails last week concered about WKMG morning traffic anchor Secily Wilson. Last Tuesday, she was on the air around 5 a.m. and something was wrong. She was able to get out “Get Morning” when she started but couldn’t speak after that, a station insider said. Turns out, she was having a minor stroke. "I couldn't get my words out," she told the Sentinel's Scott Maxwell. "My words were slurred. ... I just broke down crying," she said. Hospitalized shortly thereafter, she was told she had suffered two minor storkes. Since then, she has been working with a speech pathologist and, accoridng to Maxwell, sounded fine on the phone. "The outpouring of prayers and love has really been felt," she said. "And I'll be back, telling you how to move along I-4, soon."

Jan. 25 -- WKMG-Local 6 launched its new newscast, First at 4:00, on Monday -- giving Orlando its first 4 p.m. newscast in seven years. The Lauren Rowe-anchored show is supposed to be hard news -- no soft features, no cooking segments. On Monday's debut, there was a crawl with headlines and teases to stories on the 5 and 6 p.m. shows, a couple of weather hits (showing off the new weather center), "Chopper" Dan McCarthy with a live Sky 6 report on an accident that closed Alafaya Trail, and a live shot with reporter Nancy Alvarez "in Orange County" (well, she was really just standing out in back of the station.) Overlooking that offense, it still was a pretty good, well-paced show.

But will that be enough to keep it around? The last local attempt at an early afternoon newscast, on WESH-Ch. 2 in 1997, lasted only about a year. That's kind of been the norm for most stations attempting to expand news into the 4-5 p.m. hour, according to Broadcasting & Cable. From 1994 to last May, less than half of the new newscasts improved on their time period ratings in the key 25-54 demo, while about the same number underperformed.

It really is Big Picture Weather

Jan. 25 -- WKMG can now boast that it has just about as many big screens as the neighborhood movieplex. The station's new Big Picture Weather Center features a giant screen that dwarfs chief met Tom Sorrells, plus a couple of adjacent big flat-panel monitors that display other weather graphics. And those are in addition to the huge movie theater-sized screen that acts as the background for the main anchor desk.

The new screens are great, but they're still working out the camera shots. Click on the image to the right of the headlines at the top of the page to see what happened when one of the robotic cameras missed its shot. Click on the images below to see enlarged pictures of the weather center and the new 4 p.m. show.

WKMG First at 4:00 and new Big Picture Weather Center

Jan. 25 -- WFTV's widely praised reporting of Florida's historic 2004 hurricane season is coming soon to DVD. The station announced Monday that it is issuing a two-disc DVD collection of Eyewitness News' coverage of Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne.

“This marks the first time in history that Florida has been hit by four storms, and due to power and cable outages many Central Florida residents never had a chance to see television coverage as the storms blew through,” said WFTV chief met Tom Terry. “So many amazing stories of courage and survival came out of the summer of 2004, we just felt that we had to offer this DVD collection to give the people of Central Florida a permanent record that they can hold on to.”

The collection includes highlights from WFTV's coverage of the each of the storms, "plus stories of heroes and hope that emerged after each storm passed. " Special features will include behind the scenes interviews with station meteorologists, anchors, reporters and photographers who worked non-stop during the storm coverage.

The limited edition DVD is being sold exclusively at Central Florida Albertson’s locations beginning in early February and will be on sale for $7.50 per copy. All proceeds will benefit the American Red Cross, Second Harvest Food Banks and the SPCA of Central Florida. The station is also sending free copies to all local schools and libraries.

Jan. 21 -- Fox 35 showed off its under-construction new set earlier this week. As you can see, there's still some work to be done. When will we see it in action? That secret is being closely guarded ... probably as much as the one about that strange circle behind the anchor desk. What's it for? Sweeps sacrifices, maybe? C'mon, this is Fox, after all.

Jan. 20 -- Well, it's official. WKMG has started airing promos for its new 4 p.m. newscast. "Local 6: First at 4:00" starts on Monday and will be anchored, as expected, by Lauren Rowe. The 30-minute newscast will be followed by "Inside Edition," leading into "Local 6 News at 5." So, will you be watching Oprah or Ellen or Lauren at 4? ...

||| Not necessarily news-related, but the addition of "First at 4:00" to WKMG's schedule is one part of a programming shuffle. "First at 4:00" is bouncing "Extra" to parts unknown. "Home Delivery," which had be airing at 9 a.m., is out and being replaced by reruns of Frasier and ... 20-plus-year-old episodes of Laverne & Shirley. Sclemeel, schlemazel, hasenfeffer incorporated! ....

||| Long live The Daily Buzz! An insider with the Orlando-based morning show says recent rumors on some internet sites -- uh, this one included -- about Viacom starting a rival morning show are flat-out false. "After we heard this rumor, we checked into it, and Viacom found the source of the rumor and confirmed that no such plans were in the works," the source said. "We have a really good working relationship with Viacom ... They are even trying to get us on more of their stations, and they are trying to get their Daily Buzz affiliates to promote the show more." Cool.

||| Radio insiders say popular host Drew Garabo, fired by Real Radio 104.1 earlier this week, could be back on the air soon. A rival radio group is reportedly initiating discussions with Drew.

Jan. 19 -- There's a big shake-up in Orlando radio. Drew Garabo, popular evening talker on WTKS-Real Radio 104.1, has been dumped by the station after 11 years. In a farewell posted on the WTKS website, Garabo writes, "I've learned that when your boss calls you to come in to a meeting before your show it's rarely good news. My discontent with my current job had been growing and manifesting itself for quite some time now, and something had to give. Today, it gave." Garabo originally hosted a radio show on Rollins College's WPRK when he got the call for a part-time gig at WTKS. He later produced Ed Tyll's midday show, then hosted a popular overnight program on WTKS before moving to the evening slot. ...

||| You know it would take something special to get WKMG anchor Bob Frier out of bed and onto a bowling lane at 8 in the morning. But that's where he was Tuesday to help WOMX-Mix 105.1's Scott and Erica Show celebrate its 14th anniversary. A sure sign Frier can ad lib -- exchanging bowling quips just a few hours after signing off the 11 p.m. news. ...

||| The excellent Central Florida Radio website has an update on former WESH sports anchor Don Gould. He left Central Florida in 1982 to back up Marv Albert and Len Berman at WNBC-Ch. 4 in New York. Since then, he's bounced around from NBC News to ESPN to several Big Apple radio gigs. He even spent a year at the Mets' public address announcer. ...

Jan. 18 -- Imagine being on the air for more than 100 hours -- and there isn't even a hurricane in sight! DJ Dave Plotkin started what could be a 110-hour stint on the radio Monday morning on Rollins College's WPRK-FM. He's hoping to break the world record for longest DJ radio broadcast, a 105-hour mark set in Bern, Switzerland, in 2002. He'll be spending all that time in the studio, which has been equipped with a toilet and shower.

How do you fill 110 hours on the radio? Lots and lots of guests. Among them are WKMG reporter Chris Trenkman, a radio veteran who did a story on Plotkin's quest for Local 6 News on Monday. Also, WESH's Wendy Chioji was scheduled to visit on Monday night.

You can check out Plotkin's progress by listening to WPRK at 91.5 FM or by visiting the official marathon website, www.110hours.org. If successful, Plotkin will break the world record on Friday at 5 p.m., and the 110-hour goal has him signing off at 10 p.m. Good luck, Dave.

Jan. 18 -- Fox 35 has a new sports guy. Thomas Forester started last week. He fills the sports position that has been vacant since Penn Holderness departed the station more than a year ago in Dec. 2003. ...

||| If you know when to hold 'em and know when to fold 'em, you'll probably be interested in an event WKMG sports anchor Lee Goldberg is helping organize. The inaugural Lee Goldberg Celebrity Texas Hold 'em Poker Tournament is scheduled for April 7 at Tabu downtown. The winner will get a trip for two to Vegas (that's Vegas, baby!) and will stay at the Hard Rock Hotel. Proceeds from the event will benefit the Jewish Community Center's scholarship fund of greater Orlando. For more info, call David Wayne at the JCC at 407-645-5933, ext. 242. C'mon, go all in. ...

||| I'm just guessing here -- not really willing to make a bet -- but maybe, just maybe we might get to see the new Fox 35 set tonight. Fox's No. 1 show, American Idol, returns with a two-hour edition. That should funnel a large audience to WOFL's 10 p.m. news -- making it a prime time to show off the new look. We'll see.

Jan. 17 -- Yeah, there's the trash talkin', the challenges, the back and forth. We're talking about the ugly sport of ... tennis? WESH reporter Greg Fox is taking on WFTV's Bob Opsahl in a grudge match as part of the Star Island Tennis Classic in Kissimmee this week. Scott Maxwell of the Sentinel writes, "And both men have vowed to fight fiercely. 'I'm not sure which chin will hit the ground first,' Fox said. 'But one will.' Opsahl promised to play hard as well, adding: 'I'm not looking at this as a major championship or anything ... although, if I win, I will.' " Sorry, Greg, but my money is on Opsahl. I know several people who have played him before. The match is slated for Saturday morning at 9:30. For more information, call 407-997-5155. ...

||| Speaking of athletic endeavors, WESH anchor Wendy Chioji has her own event coming up. "Wendy Chioji's Run Around the Universe 5k" is set for Feb. 6. For a marathoner like Chioji, this is like a walk in the park -- or theme park, in this case. Runners will race through Universal Studios, Islands of Adventure and City Walk. Proceeds benefit the Universal Orlando Foundation. For information, visit TrackShack.com. ...

||| It was a busy weekend for some Central Florida anchors. Fox 35 morning guy Tom Johnson was the ringmaster for Friday night's performance of the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus at TD Waterhouse Centre. NewsChannel 2's Gail Paschall-Brown was the grand marshal for Saturday's Martin Luther King Jr. parade in Eatonville. ...

||| If you missed it, check out Ray Quintanilla's interesting article in Sunday's Sentinel about how locals in Puerto Rico are reacting to mainland-based Univision taking over one island station. Among the changes: dozens of on-air personalities lost their jobs because station officials deemed their Spanish accents too "Puerto Rican," local programming has dwindled from about 50 shows per week to three, and news shows now carry a mainland slant, such as lamenting Team USA's loss to Puerto Rico in the Athens Olympics. (Yeah, that went over real well down there.). Apparently bad management decisions know no language barrier. ...

||| If you haven't visited the RogerSimmons.com Orlando TV Talk forum lately, it has a new address. It's www.rogersimmons.com/forum. There's also a new look -- but the conversation is pretty much the same.

Jan. 14 (UPDATED JAN. 17)-- WESH's 17-1/2 hour telethon to benefit victims of the Asia tsunami netted more than $294,000 on Thursday. The telethon began with WESH's 5 a.m. Sunrise newscast and continued throughout the day, ending at the conclusion of WESH's 11 p.m. news.

The station had live shots of the telethon phone bank during all its newscasts, and it dropped promotional announcements and some commercials throughout the day to provide updates on the fund drive.

In addition to making donations via phone or WESH.com, the station and the American Red Cross set up collection sites at the Daytona USA attraction outside the speedway and at Universal City Walk in Orlando. More than $10,000 was collected from those two locations alone.

Central Floridians who missed out on giving will have another chance on Saturday. All NBC Universal broadcast and cable stations -- including NBC, USA, Bravo, Trio, Sci-Fi, MSNBC and CNBC -- are scheduled to air a national telethon for tsunami victims from 8-9 p.m.

WESH Tsunami Telethon

Jan. 13 -- Work is continuing on Fox 35's new set, but viewers of WOFL's morning news got a peek at the new digs. The new set looks HUGE, although basically just its skeleton was visible during the short tease the station ran. Even in its unfinished form, it looks like a big improvement over the old set. The new set is expected to be unveiled before the Super Bowl on Feb. 6.

But "Extreme Makeover: TV Station Edition" isn't just going on at Fox 35. Insiders tell us that phase 2 of the redesign of WKMG's set is in the works, with a new weather center (and even more weather gizmos) to be unveiled during February's sweeps.

WFTV already has a new weather center, but the station is reportedly redoing its anchor desk. The new look is supposed to be ready by ... you guessed it ... the February sweeps. WFTV's set is currently the oldest in the market, making its debut back in 1998. Still looks pretty good to me.

This new-set mania isn't confined just to Orlando. Los Angeles' KTLA, one of my favorite stations on the satellite, unveiled their snazzy new set on Jan. 1. ABC flagship O&O WABC in New York this week debuted their new set, too. If you're interested ...

KTLA-5 Los Angeles | New Set
WABC-7 New York | New Set

Jan. 13 -- Orlando-based Sunshine Network is changing its name. Not sure if it has to do with viewers' ever-shortening attention spans ... uh, what was I talking about? Oh ... Sunshine Network will become just Sun Sports on Tuesday. During the Magic-Pistons game, the sports channel will debut its new identity with new graphics, the new Sun Sports logo and new music. Sunshine launched in 1988 with 1.5 million subscribers. Today, it's available in more than 6.1 million homes statewide via cable and satellite. ...

||| The current issue of Orlando Magazine takes a swipe at WESH, looking back at the November sweeps. "The summer hurricanes that ravaged Central Florida also brought an ill wind to WESH," writes Publisher Jim Clark in his Media Notes column. Mike James, the former WFTV sportscaster who now runs the great NewsBlues.com, is quoted in the article, saying the storms "exposed WESH as unprepared -- Channel 2 was noticeably outgunned technologically." The story also notes the station's decision not to renew meteorologist Mike O'Lenick's contract: "Whether O'Lenick will take the fall for the mistakes of others, or whether others may follow him out the door, remains to be seen." ...

||| Just two days ago we told you about the growing empire that is The Daily Buzz. Well, that 136-station empire might be getting ready to crumble. According to a poster on TVSpy.com, Viacom is planning its own national morning show to be based out of Miami's UPN station. Several of the UPN O&O stations now air The Daily Buzz, which is produced here at WB18. We assume that if Viacom goes forward with its plans, those stations -- and others -- may drop the Buzz for the new show.

Jan. 12 -- Sky 6, the WKMG helicopter, captured some of the most dramatic video ever recorded in Central Florida. Just before 5 p.m. Tuesday, those in the helicopter noticed a small plane in trouble. They recorded as the Cessna attempted to make an emergency landing at Orlando's Dubsdread Golf Course. Instead, the plane came in low over the 18th green -- missing golfers and an SUV traveling on an adjacent road -- and crashed into a utility pole, breaking power lines arcing with electricity.

Within minutes, all the stations were covering the crash, but WKMG had the clear advantage with a copter already over the scene and three reporters en route. And Local 6 had the tape of the crash -- which it played repeatedly during the next 90 minutes of news. The tape was so compelling, it was seen again later during the CBS Evening News.

One person was killed and another seriously injured in the crash, which also left 900 homes in the College Park area without power.

||| Watch WKMG's video of the crash
||| Read about it in the Orlando Sentinel

Jan. 11-- CBS News's long-awaited internal investigation into its "60 Minutes Wednesday" story about President Bush's National Guard duty made news across the nation and here in Central Florida.

At the end of Monday's Local 6 News at 6 p.m., WKMG ran an editorial by station General Manager Henry Maldonado. In it, Maldonado addressed the CBS investigation and said it was "direct, thorough and useful to all news operations." He added, "Accuracy in reporting must never be jeopardized by the rush to get a story on the air. Accuracy is always better than first."

The editorial might have been a preemptive strike for the station against critics. When the "memogate" story broke in the fall, a protester showed up at WKMG for several days complaining about bias, and the station received emails and calls about the CBS story. Maldonado also had an editorial at that time, saying, "we also agree with many of you that CBS took too long to face up to the reality that they were duped or 'misled.' "

Jan. 11 -- We missed it, but a viewer alerted us to the departure of looooongtime Central Florida broadcaster Marty Stebbins from WESH. His last day was apparently this past Sunday on the station's morning news, which showed clips of him from the past and displayed a farewell cake at the end of the show. ...

||| WESH-Channel 2 will join with the American Red Cross to host a telethon for tsunami victims on Thursday. It joins a number of Hearst-Argyle stations that have staged fund-raisers for the disaster. ...

||| WOFL kicked of its new 5 a.m. newscast on Monday. Trei Johnson is anchoring along with weather guy Jim Van Fleet. I have to say that after more than a year of revolving anchors and staff shortages, Fox 35 seems to be getting its act together. Its morning and evening newscasts have improved, and Fox may become a real player in Central Florida news. ...

||| The launch of WKMG's new 4 p.m. newscast has been delayed until Jan. 24. ... Larry Mowry replaced Reynolds Wolf last week as morning weather anchor on Local 6's First News. Early reviews are pretty positive for the former Chicago meteorologist. Wolf, meanwhile, has secured a job at St. Louis' KMOV ... Local 6 is also in the process of revamping its weather graphics. The station is using more of those "true view" weather graphics all the other stations (including CFN 13) have been using for awhile, and it has bumped its 6-day outlook up to 7 days. ...

||| Orlando-based The Daily Buzz on WKCF-WB 18 keeps growing. WB Network affiliates WBNX in Cleveland and KBWB in San Francisco are the latest stations to pick up the show. With the additions, the show will be available in 136 markets, reaching 36.2 percent of the nation. ...

||| Former Fox 35 news director Lena Sadiwskyj, who was ousted when Fox took ownership of WOFL in April '03, has been hired as the new EP at KTVK in Phoenix, NewsBlues reports. She starts January 24. ...

||| And, finally, some very sad news from over the holidays. Former Channel 9 and 6 consumer reporter Ellen MacFarlane died on Dec. 29 after a 19-year battle with multiple sclerosis. She was 59. MacFarlane earned a reputation as a tough, no-nonsense consumer reporter during her days at WFTV and WCPX, as Channel 6 was known back in the 1980s. Her move from Channel 9 to 6 landed her in court for breaking the non-compete clause in her contract. She lost the case and had to stay off the air for months but was allowed to work behind the scenes at Channel 6 until the non-compete clause ran out. In 1985, she found out that she had MS, but continued working -- ultimately from a wheelchair when the disease worsened. She left Orlando in 1992 to move home to New York to be closer to her family. Former co-worker Ben Aycrigg, in MacFarlane's obituary in the Orlando Sentinel, said "it was a loss to us all in the community when she had to move away."