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Raoul Martinez, who just departed WESH, has already landed a new gig. According to Orlando Sentinel TV Guy Hal Boedeker, Martinez will help launch the Fox network on San Diego's KWSB. That's the Tribune Co.-owned station that's switching from the CW to Fox on Aug. 1.
"I will be anchoring the news on the new four-hour morning show, Monday through Friday, alongside Arthel Neville," Martinez says. Click here for the full story
Are you ready for your digital TV test? On Wednesday night, 11 O-Town TV stations will simulate the end of analog broadcasting and go dark to let viewers know if they're ready for the digital TV age to begin.
Here's how it will work: At 7:59 p.m., these local television stations -- WESH-NBC 2, WKMG-CBS 6, WFTV-ABC 9, WCEU-PBS 15, WKCF-CW 18, WMFE-PBS 24, WVEN-Univision 26, WRDQ-Independent 27, WOTF-Telefutura 43, WTGL-Independent 45 and WBCC-PBS 68 -- will first alert viewers and explain how the test will work. Each station will then simulate the termination of analog broadcasting by removing the video signal that feeds the analog transmitter for 10 seconds causing the screen to go dark.
On each participating station's digital broadcasts, and on cable and satellite systems that receive direct feeds from the station, the station will notify viewers that they have successfully passed the test. At the conclusion of each test, stations will notify viewers that if their screen went blank they need to take corrective action -- such as getting a digital TV converter box for their analog sets.
Also, during the test broadcasts, each station will provide a toll-free telephone number and Web site for additional DTV transition assistance.
This is the first of three tests the area stations are uniting to perform. Noticeably absent from the test are Orlando's two Fox-owned TV stations -- WOFL-Fox 35 and WRBW-MyNetworkTV 65.
The local stations will switch off their analog signals for good on Feb. 17, 2009.
Anchor/reporter Raoul Martinez, who has been at WESH for about six years, is leaving the station. His last day will be Sunday, according to Sentinel TV Guy Hal Boedeker. Martinez performed a number of roles at WESH during his tenure, including being an early-evening anchor, morning anchor for WESH's news show on WKCF-CW18 and most recently weekend anchor. ...
Zach Klein signed off this week as sports director at WFTV-Channel 9. He had been with the station since 2003 and is jumping to Cox flagship WSB in Atlanta. His replacement is Phil Burton from Boston's CN8. ....
Speaking of WFTV, the station changed programming on its digital 9.2 subchannel. It used to be full-screen, live weather radar, which was very handy during our summer thunderstorms. Now, the station has shrunk the presentation from 16:9 to 4:3 and is adding weather forecasts and traffic reports to a rotation that also includes the live Doppler. If I wanted all that, I'd sit through WESH's boring WeatherPlus. I'd rather have just the Doppler, thank you. ...
Former WKMG reporter Trace Gallagher continues to move up at Fox News Channel. This week he became co-anchor of FNC's Live Desk. Of course, the most famous Channel 6 alum at Fox News Channel is still Shepard Smith. Click here for video.
KOAT in Albuquerque, N.M., has kicked off an interesting summer experiment. It's expanded its late newscast to an hour. That's not so unusual for a Fox affiliate or independent station, but it is unusual for an ABC affiliate. KOAT is delaying Nightline by a half hour to have an hourlong late show. OK, so what's the Orlando connection? Former Fox 35 anchor Shelly Ribando is one of the anchors on the hourlong experiment. If it works in New Mexico, I wonder how many other stations may jump at the chance to wring some more money out of news? Of course, KOAT's newscast runs from 10-11 p.m. -- which even with the time zone consideration is a lot different than having a local newscast from 11 p.m. to midnight. Click here to see a video with Ribando explaining the decision for the expanded show. (Final footnote: KOAT is owned by WESH parent Hearst-Argyle.)
WESH veteran anchor Wendy Chioji -- who celebrates her 20th anniversary with the station today -- will leave Channel 2 at the end of the May sweeps. In a press release issued Thursday, WESH said Chioji's decision to leave "was based on her personal interest in moving west and the opportunity to open a new business in Park City, Utah. She and two partners will launch a new Vision Quest cycling center in that city."
"It's a bittersweet time for me," said Chioji. "I have loved living in Central Florida for 20 years. I've also learned that life cycles have an ending, and it's time to end my life cycle at WESH. I am forever grateful to Hearst-Argyle and WESH for the amazing two decades-long run here. It has allowed me to work with the most talented people in the business and live in one of the greatest cities on earth. I am excited about my new adventure."
It became apparent not too long ago that WESH was turning away from its iconic anchor when the station brought in Martha Sugalski to anchor the 11 p.m. news with Jim Payne. Despite WESH's improved numbers at 11 p.m., Chioji remains popular.
How popular? News of Chioji's departure was among the top stories on the OrlandoSentinel.com Web site, and a photo gallery of her career at WESH had more than 65,000 page views on the Sentinel Web site on Thursday. That's really not surprising for someone who has been in viewers' homes for 20 years, sharing personal information such as her battle with breast cancer.
"Wendy is a class act," said WESH 2 News Director Barbara Maushard. "She will be greatly missed in the WESH 2 newsroom and in homes all around Central Florida."
No decisions have been made regarding Chioji's replacement or other anchor assignment changes at the station.
Looking back, I wonder if it was a clue? When the stations issued their news releases from the Novemeber sweeps, Bill Bauman's comments were not in WESH's release. Instead, it was VP and station manager Bob Fein who was quoted as saying, "in May we saw significant growth for WESH 2 News over the previous year. It's now very gratifying to see that viewers are continuing that vote of confidence and helping us build on that momentum." But it's what he didn't say -- about year-over-year ratings -- that also stood out.
In the end, that's what most people will remember. Bauman unexpectedly leaving WESH by announcing his immediate retirement at the company Christmas party. But there is more to remember about Bauman.
In my limited dealings with him over the years, I found Bauman to be very professional and passionate about his station and anchors. One time he tracked me down at work with a phone call to personally let me know about a message on the TV Talk Forum that he thought crossed the line about one of his anchors. And, he was right. It was a pretty vicious personal attack, and I removed it.
One time after WESH debuted a new set, he asked for my thoughts on it. I gave it a thumbs up but mentioned one part of it that I thought was a bit distracting. A week later, that part of the set was tweaked. Now, I don't think it had anything to do with my comment, but rather it was something that was pretty apparent to viewers. And for the most part, I think that's what Bauman knew best: what Orlando viewers wanted.
Let's not forget that despite WESH's current ratings woes, Bauman had his station poised to overtake WFTV-Channel 9 not that long ago. Solid, serious reporting gave WESH a sterling reputation that began to resonate with local viewers sick of endless crime coverage on WKMG and WFTV. But a combination of legendary news director Bob Jordan returning to Channel 9 to resurrect Eyewitness News and the decline of NBC's prime-time ratings never allowed WESH to get over the hump. Then began the changing of the guard among its reporters and news directors.
Bauman is a local guy -- a graduate of Winter Park High School. How many folks get to travel around and come back to their hometown to run a TV station? It must be pretty rare, and that could be the reason local TV news is so criticized by many today. So many of those responsible for local news have no local connections. We actually need more Bill Baumans in TV news -- that was have one less today is actually bad news for all of us.
BREAKING NEWS ... Hal Boedeker of the Orlando Sentinel has news that longtime WESH/WKCF GM Bill Bauman is retiring immediately. He has been part of the O-Town TV scene since the 1970s. Click for details from the Sentinel on Bauman's departure.
Want more morning news? This week WESH began a six-week experiment simulcasting the 6-7 a.m. hour of its Sunrise newscast on CW18 -- leading into the two-hour block of local news it airs on WKCF.
According to a WESH news release, "The goal of the simulcast is to expand the reach of WESH-TV's morning news while strengthening the lead-in to WKCF-TV's morning news block." Said WESH/WKCF GM Bill Bauman: "This is a great opportunity to use the power of both stations to build our morning news audience. If the simulcast experiment is successful, we'll consider expanding it or making a permanent programming change."
In the Novemeber sweeps, the WFTV-produced Eyewitness News This Morning on WRDQ-Channel 27 jumped past WESH 2 News on CW18. One reason could be that WRDQ started airing The Daily Buzz from 6-7 a.m. as a lead-in to its news.
The irony is that WESH booted The Daily Buzz from its 6-9 a.m. slot on WKCF to make way for its local news show.
WESH-2 is one of a handful of TV stations and newspapers (including, ahem, the Orlando Sentinel) that have a partnership deal with YouTube to post video to the popular site.
But it's the video viewers are posting from WESH that seem to be getting most of the traffic on YouTube. The "Blondes Make Men Dumb" video had more than 11,000 views as of this morning.
And now, another clip has appeared on YouTube of an interview with a robbery victim who drops the M-F bomb live on WESH's morning news on CW18. Yikes! See below.
The UCF Knights have to thank WESH for part of their Conference USA Championship. Heavy rains late last week make the field at Bright House Networks Stadium soggy, so the school asked WESH to bring over its chopper to help dry the field. While school officials have been concerned about how fans jump up and down and shake the stadium, from the video, flying a chopper inside the bowl looks far more dangerous. Watch the video. (It's the second one under the video player.) ...
Former WKMG reporter Candice Coleman, now working for the Disney News Bureau, did a story about the pardoned Thanksgiving turkey arriving at Disney World for Good Morning America's Web cast. Here's a link. (Also, I know it's Disney Co.-synergy, but do you think ABC News has ever run a PR release video from any other company?) ...
News WESH anchor Aixa Diaz made a trip to "back home" to Puerto Rico for the station -- documenting the trip, of course. With the area's Puerto Rican population surging, advertising an anchor's ties to the island seems to be a smart idea.
Some good news to report. Former Fox 35 anchor Shelly Ribando has landed a new gig. She'll become the main anchor at KOAT-ABC 7 in Albuquerque, N.M. According to Eckhert Talent Management, she'll co-anchor the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts at the Hearst-Argyle station. Ribando anchored her final newscast at Fox 35 in September 2006. ...
WKMG-Local 6 morning weather guy Larry Mowryis heading to Big D. He's become the 4 p.m. and 10 p.m. meteorologist at CBS O&O in Dallas, KTVT-11. He'll find another alum of the Channel 6 weather staff when he arrives. Longtime O-Town weather man Mike Burger is still at KTVT. ...
Not sure if it's just to help fill-in or if she's Mowry's replacement, but former Miami meteorologist Elizabeth Hart has been forecasting the weather on WKMG this week. She left CBS O&O WFOR-4 in September 2006 and has filled in for Mitch English on the Orlando-based Daily Buzz since then. ...
Former Central Florida News 13 reporter Don Guevara has jumped to WSVN-Fox 7 in Miami. ...
And Syan Rhodes from WMC-NBC 5 in Memphis will join newcomer Scott Walker as co-anchor of WESH 2 News at Sunrise starting Monday, Dec. 10. Found an interesting post about Rhodes on a Memphis TV site while seeking additional information for this item.
This holiday season marks the 22nd year of WESH 2's "Share Your Christmas" community food drive. The drive began last month and will end on Dec. 14. "Demand for food assistance is at all-time high in Central Florida, and we're facing a huge shortage between now and the end of the year," said Dave Krepcho, Executive Director of Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida, in a WESH press release.
Last year, the WESH program helped account for more than 300,000 pounds of food in seven Central Florida counties. WESH encourages individuals, businesses, schools, and organizations to donate non-perishable food items and personal products for the needy in Central Florida.
The food collected remains in the county of collection and is distributed by Second Harvest Food Bank in Orlando, Daytona Beach, and Cocoa, and the Salvation Army units in Orlando, Daytona Beach, DeLand, Sanford, Ocala, Kissimmee, Cocoa, Leesburg, Titusville, and Melbourne.
To highlight "Share Your Christmas," WESH 2 will broadcast live from Universal Orlando on Dec. 7 as its kicks off the Macy’s Holiday Parade at Universal and Universal employees unite for the food drive. Monday, Dec 10th, WESH kick off a week of live broadcasts from across the area for the program. The live shots begin in Daytona Beach that day as residents drop off their donations. Tuesday, Dec. 11th the broadcast will be in Brevard and Lake Counties. Wednesday, Dec. 12th the broadcast will be in Marion County followed by the Thursday broadcast in Osceola and Seminole counties.
The conclusion of the broadcast will be at WESH 2/CW 18 studios in Orange County on Friday, Dec. 14th. The totals of the food donated will be revealed throughout the day, culminating with the grand total announced on WESH 2 News at 6pm on Dec. 14th.
For additional information or details regarding specific food drop off locations or participation you can go here on WESH's Web site or call the Second Harvest Food Bank at 407-295-1066.
And if you're in a very generous mood, you can also check out the Orlando Sentinel's Family Fund holiday drive, which helps needy families across Central Florida. For more information on that drive, click here for the Sentinel's Web site.
The spin: WESH-TV today announced continued growth and momentum in key time periods from May '07. In early morning, WESH 2 News Sunrise (6 - 7 a.m.) maintains its strong No. 2 position and Today (7 – 9 a.m.) continues to grow in popularity with Central Florida viewers, increasing its audience by 11,000 households. In addition to mornings, the growth continues in early evening news, where WESH 2 News at 5 and WESH 2 News at 6 with Wendy Chioji both saw greater ratings increases from May than any other early evening newscasts in Central Florida.
The quote: "In May we saw significant growth for WESH 2 News over the previous year. It's now very gratifying to see that viewers are continuing that vote of confidence and helping us build on that momentum." -- VP and Station Manager Bob Fein.
From WFTV-Channel 9 press release ... The spin: Eyewitness News continued to dominate the ratings for local news viewing in most news time periods. From Eyewitness News Daybreak at 5AM all the way through to the late news at 11PM, Channel 9 Eyewitness News reaches more local news viewers than any other station, in some cases, more viewers than our competition combined.
The quote: "Every day in every newscast our team covers local news like no one else can. From our experienced reporters to our talented photographers and editors, we know how to deliver a newscast that Central Florida viewers have told us they want." -- News Director Bob Jordan
From WRDQ-Channel 27 press release ... The spin: This November, Central Florida's TV27 delivered its best rating period ever. Among the station's biggest successes in November are Eyewitness News This Morning, According to Jim, Oprah and Eyewitness News at Ten, which, for the first time, is in a virtual tie for first place with WOFL. Eyewitness News This Morning is the only local 7AM newscast to grow audience share book to book. Less than a year after its launch, Eyewitness News This Morning has grown from 1,345 households to an astonishing 12,562 households, making it Central Florida’s No. 2 local morning newscast in its time period.
"The enormous growth Eyewitness News has shown this November is a testament to TV27's dedication to provide viewers with quality local newscasts. I am very proud of our Eyewitness News team and this extraordinary rating period motivates us to continue the trend." -- VP and GM Shawn Bartelt
The November ratings for Orlando showed another dominating performance by WFTV's Eyewitness News. By my count, WFTV has now been the No. 1 newscast at 6 p.m. for 29 years. And the Channel 9 juggernaut seems to be getting even stronger.
According to WFTV, from 5 to 6:30 p.m., more than 50 percent of the homes watching news in Central Florida are turned to Channel 9. Its lead over No. 2 Local 6 is more than 78,000 households at 5 p.m. -- and the lead grows to 94,914 more households at 6 p.m.
Channel 9 is nearly as dominant in the morning. Its two-hour Daybreak has 49 percent of the news-watching audience -- nearly 37,000 more homes than No. 2 WKMG, nearly 40,000 homes more than No. 3 WESH and nearly 58,000 homes more than No. 4 Fox. 35.
WOFL was down across the board, but the shocker the WFTV-produced news on WRDQ-Channel 27 nearly tying Fox 35 at 10 p.m. WOFL was down 23 percent from Nov. 2006. The good news for Fox 35 is that its numbers are sure to jump shortly with the return of American Idol.
In the morning, the WFTV-produced news on WRDQ moved into No. 2 behind Fox 35 in November ahead of WESH's news on WKCF-CW 18.
The November sweeps brought us original episodes of our favorite shows, but the ratings results for the O-Town news looked more like another rerun.
Based on information provided in news releases by WFTV and WESH, Channel 9 once again dominated the local news scene in a ratings period that saw most everyone dropping a bit from a year ago. Here's how the stations rank in the news time periods:
5 a.m. -- WFTV-Ch. 9, WKMG-Ch. 6, WESH-Ch. 2 and WOFL-Ch. 35. Local 6 displaces WESH 2 News at No. 2, but everyone was down in share
6 a.m. -- WFTV-Ch. 9, WESH-Ch. 2, WKMG-Ch. 6 and WOFL-Ch. 35. WESH barely hangs on to the No. 2 spot, dropping a full rating point and 3 share points from 2006. WKMG was up in rating and share.
7 a.m. local news -- WOFL-Ch. 35, WRDQ-Ch. 27, WKCF-Ch. 18. The shocker is that the WFTV-produced morning news on WRDQ jumped to No. 2 ahead of the WESH-produced show on WKCF. Overall WRDQ's ratings in the time period are up 800 percent from a year ago.
Noon -- WKMG-Ch. 6, WFTV-Ch. 9, WESH-Ch. 2. Even without Bob Barker, WKMG edges WFTV for the top spot at noon. WESH drops year over year.
5 p.m., 5:30 and 6 p.m. -- WFTV-Ch. 9, WKMG-Ch. 6, WESH-Ch. 2, WOFL-Ch. 35. WFTV, as usual, dominates the early evening and tops the combined audience of its three competitors. Everyone is down in the time periods from a year ago except WFTV at 6, which increased slightly.
10 p.m. -- WOFL-Ch. 35 and WRDQ-Ch. 27. Another shocker -- Fox 35, which used to have a huge lead at 10, holds on to No. 1 by the skin of its teeth. The WFTV-produced news on WRDQ was up 23 percent year over year, while Fox 35 was down 23 percent.
11 p.m. -- WFTV-Ch. 9, WKMG-Ch. 6 and WESH-Ch. 2. Channel 9 and Local 6 both saw growth at 11 o'clock while WESH lost some audience.
As WESH prepares to go HD, one of its anchors has already been digitized. Wendy Chioji is the surprise tour guide for the Florida High Tech Corridor Web site. As you poke around the site, you can always call Wendy back to help you when you have a question. Maybe they should do the news that way? ...
From an O-Town tipster -- but not yet confirmed: Former WESH morning anchor Tom Schaadhas landed a main anchor gig at WAVY-NBC 10 in Norfolk, Va. ...
From another O-Town tipster -- but also not yet confirmed: Central Florida News 13 has hired a new meteorologist who is scheduled to start work today. A number of internal candidates have been wondering about the position, according to the tipster. ...
Finally, if you've been waiting patiently for your account to be activated on the Orlando TV News Talk forum, you should be now ready to go. Just log in. Also, as always, feel free to leave comments on the posts here on the Orlando TV News page. I've opened up the approval process, so your comments will now appear immediately after you post them.
Here's WESH's press release about launching its news in HD on Nov. 1.
On November 1, WESH 2 News will begin broadcasting all newscasts in high definition. In addition to high definition studio cameras and a state-of-the art graphics package, the WESH 2 Weather Plus team will begin utilizing HD radar images and weather graphics.
"The pictures are just stunning," said WESH 2/CW18 General Manager Bill Bauman. "Our goal is to provide Central Florida viewers with big coverage of the big stories. Now, that commitment gets even bigger with the addition of HD. Viewers will see local news in the Orlando area like they have never seen it before."
WESH 2 will broadcast forty-three and a half hours of local news per week in high definition, including WESH 2 News Sunrise, WESH 2 News at Noon, WESH 2 News at 4, WESH 2 News at 5, WESH 2 News at 6 with Wendy Chioji, WESH 2 News at 6 weekend edition and WESH 2 News at 11. In addition, WESH 2 News on CW18 will be broadcast in HD weekday mornings from 7 to 9 a.m.
WESH 2 Weather Plus Chief Meteorologist Tony Mainolfi says, "High definition gives us the ability to give our viewers a clearer, sharper look at the weather that affects Central Florida. We’re excited to take our weather forecasting to a whole new level."
WESH 2 will offer more high definition programming than any other station in the Orlando market. In addition to WESH 2 newscasts, the station also broadcasts NBC programming in high definition, including: The Today Show, Heroes, Sunday Night Football, ER, Bionic Woman, Friday Night Lights, Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit, Saturday Night Live, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and Late Night with Conan O'Brien.
For more information on high definition, viewers can visit the WESH 2 HD page on www.wesh.com. They will find definitions to HD related terms, answers to HD frequently asked questions, a WESH 2 HD programming guide, and information on choosing a high definition television set.High definition programming
Can becoming the second station in Orlando to go to high definition for news boost WESH's ratings? The station thinks so. "To me, it's a substantial competitive advantage over those who are not HD," WESH General Manager Bill Bauman told the Orlando Sentinel.
Market-leader WFTV switched to HD for Eyewitness News in June 2006 -- becoming the first station in Florida to do so. Since then, a handful of stations across the state joined the HD bandwagon. WESH plans to add new graphics and intros to showcase its new high definition look when it launches on Nov. 1.
As for Bauman's comment, it seems to be a shot across the bow of No. 2-ranked WKMG Local 6 News. The station told the Sentinel it has not plans currently to switch to HD. WOFL Fox 35 said it will be switching to HD soon.
Cynthia Demos, the latest anchor or reporter to depart WFTV, says the reason is simple: "When you work at Channel 9, other stations recruit you," Demos said. "They know if you can work for Bob Jordan and succeed, you must be good at your job." The Orlando Sentinel reports on how WFTV has become a feeder station for larger markets. Read all about it here. ...
Over at WESH, the latest to leave the station is meteorologist Leslie Hudson, who won't be coming back from maternity leave. So, why are so many folks leaving Channel 2? GM Bill Baumananswers here. ...
Have you noticed the new traffic graphics on WFTV's Eyewitness News in the morning? It's the new 3D "Beat the Traffic" system from a Campbell, Calif., company. You can read more about the system here. ...
LATV, the Latin-themed programming that WKMG runs on its 6.2 digital subchannel, has a new fall lineup. Among the new shows: the animated "Homies," based on the worldwide figurine phenomenon created by Dave Gonzales. Read about that here.
The 50th anniversary of Jack Kerouac's "On the Road" holds special meaning for WESH reporter Bob Kealing. He's the local expert on Kerouac and has been instrumental in helping ensure the writer's place in Central Florida has been properly preserved.
The Orlando Sentinel reports that Kealing, 43, spent his spare time tracking down the author's ties to the Sunshine State, a quest that yielded the 2004 book Kerouac in Florida: Where the Road Ends and started the ball rolling toward the formation of the Kerouac Project and the preservation of the Kerouac House."Kerouac's status has grown exponentially since he lived in College Park," Kealing said. "The best part is, he's not just a 'Beatnik icon.' Today he's widely recognized as a great American author of the 20th century, right up there with Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings. That is the crucial recognition Kerouac was lacking at the time of his death."
WESH has decided to part ways with morning anchor Tom Schaad, who has been with the station since 1996.
Over the years Schaad has served in a variety of roles for WESH, most recently being the station's morning anchor. (See video of Schaad anchoring noon news in 1997.) "That's the TV business," he told the Sentinel's TV Guy. "We all understand that. They make changes to accommodate the viewer. You have to abide by that. It's one of the things you accept when you become an anchor."
No word on a possible replacement, but I'd put my money on newcomer Scott Walker, who joined the station from WPMI-NBC 15. He filled in for Jim Payne on WESH's evening newscasts on Monday.
We all know how competitive weather is around here -- i.e. my Doppler is bigger than your Doppler. So, I thought it was interesting that WFTV brought in chief met Tom Terry and WKMG brought in chief met Tom Sorrells on Sunday to cover Hurricane Dean. WESH and WOFL stayed with their regular weekend forecasters. ....
Also, WFTV has sent morning meteorologist Brian Shields to Cancun to cover the approach of Hurricane Dean. ...
Now confirmed ... features reporter Candice Coleman is indeed leaving Local 6. That's too bad. As our local newscasts continue to focus on crime, cars running into houses and dogs biting people, the type of feature stories Coleman reported certainly helped the story mix and gave a nice respite from the relentless pounding drumbeat of "breaking news." ...
Some O-Town folks are on the move in this TGIF report:
Denise Cullen, former sports director at Central Florida News 13, has joined the Orlando Predators as their new director of communications. "Working for Orlando's only professional football team is another step up in my career. I can't imagine a better job," Cullen said in a news release. Cullen made her mark in Orlando TV, working her way up from sports intern at WFTV-Channel 9 to being the first female to head a sports department at an Orlando station. Cullen has been an avid football fan ever since she can remember and at one point had dreams of playing in the NFL. She said, "I told my parents I wanted to play for the Pittsburgh Steelers and wear #88 just like Lyn Swann. If only I were taller!"
Meanwhile, Danielle Bellini, longtime traffic reporter at Channel 2, signed off at the end of the WESH's 6 a.m. broadcast. Her replacement, Kimberly Williams, started with the 7 a.m. WESH 2 News on CW18.
And, from a tipster but not confirmed, longtime feature reporter Candice Colemanwill be leaving Local 6. She's been with the station since 2001, and I've always found her "Out There" reports to be a hoot.
Rumors that veteran reporter Stephen Stock was leaving WESH were true. WFOR, the CBS O&O in Miami, has hired Stock to join its I-Team investigations unit.
"Stephen is a strong investigative reporter with an amazing work ethic. He brings unique investigative skills to an already strong I-Team. We are very excited about him joining us here at CBS4," said WFOR News Director Adrienne Roark in a news release.
While at WESH, Stock's investigations included uncovering tax fraud by Florida prison inmates, digging up the exact cause of hundreds of fires in Ford trucks and exposing problems with Florida's day-care system. He also was the lead investigative reporter on WESH's 20-part series, "Building Homes: Building Problems," which examined the home building industry in Central Florida in partnership with the Orlando Sentinel. He and WESH won at George Foster Peabody Award for the series.
Stock has been at WESH since 1991. He did a lot of work out of WESH's Marion County bureau -- which, perhaps not-so-coincidentally, one tipsers says the station may be preparing to shutter.
When he arrives at WFOR-CBS 4, he'll find some familar O-Town faces -- former WESH anchor Shannon Hori, former WFTV anchor Jorge Estevez and former WFTV reporter Ted Scouten.
So, could this be the start of the big changes forecast at WESH?
Lagniappe magazine in Mobile, Ala., reports that WPMI-NBC 15 anchor Scott Walker is leaving the city and heading to WESH as a new anchor. And from the story, it looks like he's part of a huge exodus from the Alabama TV station.
Walker, whose bio has already been removed from the WPMI site, was named "best anchor" in the market by the Mobile Press Club. He had been at the station for seven years. Here he is saying goodbye to his viewers.
According to Lagniappe, "Morning show anchor Scott Walker, who has taken a position at WESH in Orlando ... was the last of the station’s weekday anchors remaining from last year. The last several months have seen a mass exodus from the station, including anchors [Peter] Albrecht, [Drexel] Gilbert, [Kim] McCrea, Walker, Sandra Shaw, meteorologist David Glenn and reporter Nicole Patrick."
The big question in O-Town, though, is what will Walker's role be at WESH?
WFTV has lost its distinction as having Florida's only HD newscast. Scripps-owned WFTS-ABC 28 started airing its news in HD on July 28, and sister station WPTV-NBC 5 in West Palm Beach became the first South Florida station to take the HD plunge last week. ...
I recently asked if anyone had any info on the cryptic e-mail I received about big changes coming to WESH. A former WESH insider says the word is it's contract renewal time for some of the station's biggest names -- and who knows if all of them will still be with WESH once negotiations end. Stay tuned ...
Speaking for WESH, some folks who have already left the station are starting their version of MySpace for the Baby Boomer set. Marc Middleton, Bill Shafer and Andrea CoudrietBatchelor are behind the venture. You'll recall, they all set up a consulting business after leaving WESH -- showing there really is life after TV. Click here to read more about the Web venture. ...
Former Channel 6 video guru Ken Shuba, who was also Broadcast Operations Manger for the City of Orlando, is back in TV news. He's now working at WESH. ...
Finally, I know my summer break was rather extensive, but did I really miss all of these people leaving -- Chris Egert, Laverne McGee, Trei Johnson, Lee Goldberg, Julie Watkins, Arch Kennedy, Joe Oliver and ... am I missing anyone else? If so, add their names as a comment to this post.
There are a lot of re-runs in the summer ... and also in the O-Town ratings competition. WFTV-Channel 9's Eyewitness News was again the top choice for Central Floridians. WFTV was No. 1 from 5-7 a.m., from 5-6:30 p.m. and at 11 p.m., according to the Orlando Sentinel's TV Guy.
In the 6 p.m. competition, WFTV had 141,000 homes to 61,00o for WKMG-Local 6 News and 57,000 for WESH 2 News.
At 11 p.m., Eyewitness News wast No. 1 with 98,000 homes followed by Local 6 at 76,000 and WESH at 64,000. The Sentinel's TV Guy says in that late-night timeslot, WKMG was down 11,000 from a year ago, WESH was up by 28,000 and WFTV was up by 4,000.
WESH was up across the board, actually. In a press release, Channel 2 said it was the only local broadcast station to see growth in all weekday newscasts. "We saw significant growth in both households and adult viewers in May, and it's gratifying to see it continuing in July. It's clear we are building some solid momentum," said station President and General Manager Bill Bauman. High points for WESH: up 96 percent at 4 p.m. from a year ago, up 27 percent at 5 p.m., up 16 percent at 5:30, up 10 percent at 6 p.m. and up 13 percent at 11 p.m.
WESH was also eager to point out that its morning news on sister station WKCF-CW 18 from 7 to 9 a.m. is drawing 13 percent more viewers than The Daily Buzz did in the timeslot a year ago. Of course, now the Buzz is over on WRDQ-Channel 27, but it appears before and after WFTV's morning news its sister station.
All the stations in town picked up on the story about a 9-year-old boy who called 911 when his mother fell unconscious on the floor. But when area stations showed the "first meeting" between the Alex Swee and 911 dispatcher Matt Nicotra -- it was actually staged for two local stations who showed up late.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, "crews from WESH-Channel 2 and WFTV-Channel 9 were on time to film the exchange of hugs when Alex and his mom met Nicotra for the first time. But WOFL-Channel 35 showed up late and asked the three to do it all over again so they could tape it. Then in the middle of the second 'first' meeting, a WKMG-Channel 6 crew arrived and asked the three, 'Can you do it one more time?' "
The paper wryly pointed out, "The 'first' meeting ended up taking almost as long as the six-minute 911 call between Alex and Nicotra."
Orlando Sentinel sports columnist Jerry Greene reports that new WKMG sports anchor David Pingalore has been "delayed" in leaving Cleveland for his new O-Town gig. That has led to a further diminishing of the declining sports product on Local 6. For example, at 11 p.m. Tuesday night there was no sports anchor again -- news anchor Bob Frier did a brief sports recap. And on the night the first major-league baseball game was played in Central Florida between the Tampa Bay Devil Rays and the Texas Rangers, WKMG showed highlights of a Devil Rays-Blue Jays game while Frier did the voice over. (Wow.) By contrast, WESH had sports guy Guy Rawlings anchoring from Disney's Wide World of Sports stadium -- with actual highlights of the Rays and Rangers. ...
Orlando's male TV anchors/reporters are competing this week for the coveted title of Orlando TV's Hunkiest Hunk. It's the 16th year for the contest, sponsored by the always entertaining Scott and Erica Morning Show on Mix 105.1 (WOMX-FM). The guys have been calling into to solicit listener votes. Early leaders this week have included WKMG's Frier and Larry Mowry, WESH's Jim Payne, WFTV's Chris Egert and Brian Shields and WOFL's Jim Van Fleet and Tom Johnson. In fact, WOFL closed out its morning news on Tuesday by posting a graphic of its candidates and urging viewers to vote for them. The voting continues through Friday.
The Daily Buzz is moving to a new home -- and a new station.
WRDQ announced Friday that the Buzz is moving to TV 27 from WKCF-CW 18 starting May 28. According to the press release, "TV27 is taking The Daily Buzz back to the roots of where the show previously aired, and enjoyed its largest audience, at 6 a.m. Monday through Friday leading into Eyewitness News This Morning. A second hour will be tape-delayed and presented at 10:30 a.m."
The Buzz has been sort of a red-headed stepchild at CW18 after the station was acquired by WESH parent Hearst-Argyle. WESH expanded its morning news to CW18, bumping the Buzz to 9 a.m.-noon and running the show on a three-hour delay.
"The Daily Buzz has created a distinct brand that fills a void in the morning. It's the perfect lead in to Eyewitness News This Morning, which will continue to air from 7-8:30 a.m.," said Shawn Bartelt, General Manager for WFTV/ WRDQ. "We recognize that there has been a longing in the community for The Daily Buzz to return to its original time period, and we are excited to give the audience what they are looking for."
As we reported earlier, The Buzz is currently broadcasting from the Disney-MGM Studios until its new broadcast facility at Full Sail is completed.
A South Florida tipster says that former WESH anchor Shannon Horimay be headed back to the Sunshine State. According to the tip, Hori is on the list of possible replacements for anchor Maggie Rodriguez at CBS O&O WFOR in Miami. Rodriguez is leaving to anchor the Saturday Early Show on the network. Hori left WESH in 2004 for her current home, CBS O&O KTVT in Dallas. ...
The voting begins today for the finalists for WKMG traffic reporter job. But, if you've been listening closely to the rules on Local 6, your voting means practically nothing. Station management will make the decision on who to hire ... but they will "consider" the voting when making the decision. So, if you still want to vote, go for it. ...
Internet Broadcasting Systems, which runs the Web sites for WKMG, WFTV and WESH in Orlando and more than 70 other stations nationwide, is moving its headquarters to St. Paul, Minn. Here's the full story.
Kathy Marsh, veteran reporter for WESH, has joined Orange County Public Schools as their new senior manager for media relations, the OCPS announced Thursday. Marsh had been with WESH since 1992 -- with much of her tenure spent on the education beat. She won numerous awards for her education coverage, and she was featured in a 1998 New York Times story about WESH's commitment to focus its coverage on education, transportation and the environment.
In other news ...
If the iVillage Live folks think leaving Orlando will solve their ratings problems, they may need to think again. Here are a couple of recent articles about the show. This New York Post story says NBC insiders are questioning the exec behind iVillage. This blog post -- actually from the iVillage.com site -- has an NBC VP saying perhaps more sex talk in Chicago will boost ratings. Uh, yeah. ...
Tuesday's big immigration march in Orlando was peaceful, but it might have been costly to a couple of local station. Police asked O-Town media twice to move their live trucks from Lake Eola. "Per the Commander: PLEASE move the news trucks from inside the rally area of Lake Eola. You may park on Rosalind Ave at Washington and walk to the event and film anywhere you choose," one e-mail to the stations said. According to one reporter on the scene, two stations were ticketed by the cops -- and also received a cold shoulder the next day from the PIO. Ouch.
In a move that I doubt surprises anyone, WESH on Tuesday named Tony Mainolfi its new chief meteorologist, effective immediately. I believe he is just the third chief meterologist in WESH's 50-plus year history, joining an elite group that also includes O-Town legends Charles Stump and Dave Marsh.
"Tony is a skilled meteorologist and a natural leader," WESH ND Barbara Maushard said in a news release. "He has proven in every recent severe weather event that he knows how to accurately forecast and aggressively cover Central Florida weather. Tony will effectively lead the WESH 2 Weather Plus team of meteorologists in our commitment to providing accurate daily forecasts and the best severe weather coverage -- anytime, day or night."
Prior to joining WESH, Mainolfi was the chief met at WCHS in Charleston, W.V., for nine years. He also worked for several years at The Weather Channel in Atlanta.
Said Mainolfi: "I look forward to stepping into this new role at a television station that places such a high priority on weather. Our No. 1 priority is to prepare and protect our viewers. And when big weather events happen, WESH makes a station-wide commitment to inform and safeguard everyone in Central Florida."
Actually that headline is a tease. We'll have more on that later in this post. But first ...
> Have you been seeing those promos on Local 6: "Ping! is coming" they proclaim. Yeah, I'm a little slow. I finally put it together with the impending arrival of new sports anchor David Pingalore. So, scratch that off your list of things to wonder about ...
> We told you about WESH meteorologist Tony Mainolfi's 20-day, 20-location trip along the Central Florida coast. In addition to doing his live shots, he's also writing short stories about the experience. Read Tony's Scrapbook here. ...
> April was a record month for traffic on RogerSimmons.com. I'll have more details for you soon, but I thought I would share the top 3 stories that you made the most popular on the site this past month:
Now, back to our top story in this very, very slow news day ...
> UFOs attacking our beloved theme parks! The Orange County Visitors Bureau declaring itself a provisional government! That's the premise of a new film by a couple of local brothers, James and Robert Dastoli. "Southwestern Orange County vs. the Flying Saucers" has been nominated for an MTV Movie Award. And in case you're wondering how our local TV stations might have missed flying saucers attacking us, don't worry. In the movie, "Local 12" -- which actually looks a lot like Fox 35 -- helps keep O-Town viewers informed about the attack. Actually, it's a cool movie and worth a watch. The Sentinel's Roger Moore has a copy of the 16-minute film posted on his blog here.
O-Town sports radio talker Dan Sileo is expanding into television. He reports that he's going to Tampa to join the 11 p.m. NewsEdge newscast at Fox O&O WTVT-Channel 13. Sileo's morning show on WQTM-740 AM also airs in Tampa, and it's is adding Jacksonville to its simulcast network on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, I forgot to note last week the sad state of sports in O-Town. When your Orlando Magic traveled to Detroit to play the Pistons in their playoff series, the only local video crews covering the team in Motown were from WFTV-Channel 9 and OrlandoSentinel.com. WESH, WKMG and WOFL all stayed home. Wow, how things have changed from the old Shaq days, huh?
Finally, Sunday's NHL double-overtime playoff game on NBC meant the scheduled special on Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro got iced. WESH reports that "Barbaro: A Nation's Horse" will now air on CNBC on Friday at 9 p.m. and midnight.
> If case you've been living under a rock, WKMG is having tryouts for its new traffic reporter. Hal Boedeker of the Sentinel blogs about the finalists.
> Hey, forget traffic reporting -- maybe you should be a network correspondent? The South Florida chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists is presenting a seminar on Saturday in Miami called, "How to Break into Network News ... and Stay There." Susan Candiotti of CNN and Mark Potter of NBC will be on hand to provide the skinny. Click here for information.
> So, we've reached another sweeps and still WFTV (and little sister WRDQ) are the only O-Town stations broadcasting the news in HD? What Central Florida station will be next? WESH's sister, KCRA-NBC 3 in Sacramento, started HD news recently -- using the same exact set WESH has now. WFTV seems to be setting the standard for the Cox chain, as its little sister in Charlotte, WSOC-ABC 9, started its HD broadcasts last week. The new sets at WKMG and WOFL look like they're HD ready. OK, after saying all that, I'm putting my money on WESH for the fall.
> Stan Knott, the GM at Fox's O-Town dupoly of WOFL-Fox 35 and WRWB-My65, likes having the Magic on his station, says the Orlando Sentinel's Jerry Greene. Of course, like just about everything in primetime on My65, the Magic are getting canceled, too.
> Do you like Family Guy? If so, you'll be excited that you'll be seeing more of it on WOFL-Fox 35. The station has signed on to carry re-runs of the cartoon comedy starting in the fall.
Here's an update on two of WESH's May sweeps projects:
Starting Thursday, meteorologist Tony Mainolfi will forecast the weather from a different location along the Brevard, Volusia and Flagler county coasts during a 20-day, 20-location event. In his live broadcasts in WESH's 4-6:30 p.m. newscasts, Mainolfi will feature stories on the people and places he visits in addition to providing the daily forecasts.
"It's important for us to get out of the studio and explore how our communities are impacted by weather, as we prepare for the upcoming hurricane season," WESH News Director Barbara Maushard said.
Starting Monday, a monthlong weight-loss series is the feature its WESH's Sunrise and CW18 morning shows. Dieters will be split into two teams and will follow either South Beach or Atkins weight-loss programs. Participants will be monitored by WESH 2 News medical reporter Dr. Todd Husty, who will also provide helpful and healthful information.
Viewers can follow each dieter's progress throughout May. The dieters will share their stories, their frustrations and their secrets to success. Viewers will also learn how men and women respond differently to South Beach and Atkins diets.
According to Maushard, "these are real people with real stories. Viewers will be able to relate to these folks, cheer them on, and hopefully learn something about how to best lose weight."
First, an Orlando news crew was roughed up on the ground. Now, our O-Town TV guys are being attacked from the air.
WOFL has suspended its regular outdoor weather segments in the garden area behind its studio because of a mother hawk. She's taken up residence in a tree above Fox 35's Lake Mary studios.
"We have a little situation going on," anchor Tom Johnson explained on air this week. "There is a mama hawk high up in one of the pine trees. And we think she has some eggs she's waiting on or some little ones in that nest right there. So anytime anybody goes out behind out station, mama hawk gets a little upset and attacks."
WOFL already has its live newsroom Web cam and its live studio Web cam, so why not make the most of this situation and add a live Hawk Cam?
In other news ...
New WKMG anchor Erick Weber made his debut Tuesday on Local 6's First News. He'll be doing the morning and noon show with Lauren Rowe ...
WOFL's new logo, graphics and music debuted Monday. All the changes were positive ones, and I'll post some frame grabs later. Still waiting for the new WKMG set, which was supposed to debut Monday. ...
Sweeps start Thursday. WESH's plans include having meteorologist Tony Mainolfi at the beach and a weight loss segment on 2 News Sunrise
Here's your Monday memo -- some quick hits to start the week ...
> WKMG's traffic reporter tryout stunt is today from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Local 6 studios on John Young Parkway. During First News, WKMG reported that one woman was already in line by 4 a.m. (Why?) In addition to not needing any experience, from the guidelines posted on the Loca6.com, it sounds like WKMG is really just looking for a prop comic. For example, from the station's FAQs: "What should I wear? Whatever you feel projects your personality. Can I bring props? Yes! Anything that help us understand who you are trying to sell." Maybe WKMG is secretly hoping to hire Gallagher to do traffic in the mornings?
> Former WFTV weather producer and now WPBF-ABC 25 meteorologist Eric Burriswas filling in with the weather on WESH Weather Plus over the weekend. Both WESH and WPBF are owned by Hearst-Argyle. Folks who saw him and e-mailed me gave the Orlando native a big thumbs-up.
> We told you last week about how a WFTV crew was pushed around by an angry businessman in Ocala, and how WFTV planned to file an incident report with the Marion County Sheriff's Office. The station apparently did, according to the Ocala Star-Banner.
> An interesting and admirable experiment in TV news is taking place down in Southwest Florida. WFTX-Fox 4 in Fort Myers is creating a "Viewer Bill of Rights" for its news coverage. Among the items in the "Bill of Rights," is the Right to Responsible Newscasts and Promotions: "Fox 4 will keep it real. While our presentation style will be conversational, we will avoid sensationalism. We will deliver the content that we promise. We will explain our values, but will not indulge in empty bragging." I assume that also includes not indulging in a no-experience-needed traffic reporter tryout during sweeps?
A WESH 2 News report about how prison inmates file false tax returns for employment while serving long prison sentences has led to the creation of a bill in Congress to stop the practice.
For years, law enforcement officials and the IRS were aware of the fraudulent practice yet did nothing to stop it because the perpetrators were already serving prison sentences that usually paled in comparison to tax fraud conviction. A U.S. Treasury Department audit discovered the scam, exposed by the WESH reporter Stephen Stock, costs American taxpayers more than $68 million in 2004 alone.
A WESH press release said a bill aimed at preventing the practice overwhelmingly passed the U.S. House of Representatives this week on its way to becoming a law. According to Rep. Rick Keller, "the WESH investigation resulted in us successfully getting a congressional hearing and now passage of legislation which cracks down on the prisoner tax fraud problem -- which could end up ultimately saving taxpayers $800 million a year." The bill must still pass the U.S. Senate before becoming law.
Stock's "Doing Time, Stealing Your Money" report that brought attention to the problem was awarded a prestigious first place Green Eyeshade Award for TV Investigative Reporting from the Society of Professional Journalists in 2005. The report was also a 2005 IRE Awards finalist.
Steve Rondinaro, who spent 10 years on the anchor desk in O-Town, is back reporting the news. He's the new lead anchor and managing editor for WWAY-ABC 3 in Wilmington, N.C.
Rondinaro was the main anchor at WESH from 1986 to 1995, when he stunned co-workers with a decision to leave Central Florida and move to the quiet mountains of North Carolina. He and his wife bought a bed and breakfast, but also he kept his hand in broadcasting by acquiring a tiny radio station. That led to the creation of Rondinaro Broadcasting, which would later add an FM station and another AM station.
Rondinaro returned to Orlando in 1999 -- this time at WFTV -- to anchor for a year before again returning to the mountains. He eventually sold off his radio stations and bought a local TV station, WLNN (known as Mountain Television).
"Bland newscasts [that] lack a distinctive style."
That's how Orlando Sentinel TV Critic Hal Boedeker characterizes WESH 2 News. It was part of a Sunday feature on the state of the city's newscasts. He says top-rated WFTV "delivers fast-paced Eyewitness News with businesslike determination," and WKMG "has hit on a formula of offering reports that make viewers switch away from WFTV or stay up at 11."
> Traffic reporter needed, no experience necessary. That's the help-wanted ad WKMG is placing -- seeking you, me or anyone else who wants to try traffic reporting to replace Secily Wilson on Local 6 First News. "We'll know what we're looking for when we see it," WKMG ND Susan Forbes told the Sentinel. "They'll be given a script. Each person gets about a minute. We'll narrow it down and see what we find." A la American Idol, viewers will be invited to vote on the on-air performances, although the vote is meaningless for the most part. The auditions will be April 23 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at WKMG's studios at 4466 John Young Parkway. But really -- don't get me started on what it says about your news department when its reduced to pulling a stunt like.
> Some real O-Town broadcast journalists WITH experience have been recognized in the 2007 Society of Professional Journalists' Sunshine State Awards. Finalists for this year's contest were revealed over the weekend. Winners will be announced May 19. Among the local finalists:
Deadline Reporting: Erik von Ancken and Alfred Mason, WKMG, "Firestorm Closes In"
Sports Feature/Commentary: Scott A. Fais and Neil Petagno, Central Florida News 13, "Grand Slam Colin"
Criminal Justice Reporting: Tony Pipitone, Darran Caudle, Tim Arnheim and Brent Singleton, WKMG, "Cheerleaders Betrayed"
Political/Government Reporting: Tony Pipitone, Darran Caudle, Scott Noland and Tim Arnhein, WKMG, "Toll Agency Troubles"
> WKMG Problem Solver Mike Holfeld appears on the Dr. Phil show tonight on Local 6 to talk about the case of former Lockheed engineer Allison Quets, who kidnapped her birth twins from their adoptive parents. Not familar with the story? Click here for what Holfeld reported back in February.
> The Don Imus saga had a profound effect on Orlando broadcasting. The Sentinel's Scott Maxwell reports that a on-air discussion of the New York curmudgeon's racist comments led to one local radio personality storming out of the studio, quickly followed by another -- which left the station scrambling to fill the dead air with a "best of show." Who's involved? Read all about it here.
> Local stations are required by the FCC to file annual reports on how well they do hiring minorities. These Equal Employment Opportunity reports have been posted on the area stations' Web sites. Are they doing enough to try to hire minorities? Read the reports for yourself here on WESH/WKCF and WKMG (2007 reports), and WFTV/WRDQ and WOFL (2006 reports).
-- The Internet sex sting in Polk County that resulted in the arrests of 28 men -- including three Disney workers and one technician for Local 6 -- was widely reported on local TV news. But the way the stations reported it varied greatly. Video on WKMG's Local6.com site shows the station did not try to downplay its employee's arrest. Actually, it's the Disney connection that's downplayed in my opinion. It's obviously an embarrassing incident, but WKMG made the right call in not trying to hide the arrest of one of its own. WESH.com video shows Channel 2 focused on the three Disney workers. Video on WFTV.com shows Eyewitness News reported the Disney workers and the WKMG worker in its package. A co-worker told me she thought WFTV was overplaying the WKMG's worker's connection to the sting, but based on the video here I would have to disagree.
-- Apparently a lot of folks in Central Florida think it's great to be a Florida Gator! Monday night's NCAA basketball championship on WKMG was watched in 294,000 local households, according to the Orlando Sentinel. The semifinal game against UCLA on Saturday drew an impressive 214,000 homes on Local 6.
-- Interesting discussion topic I'll throw out for you all. If you were having a charity event or other public function, what Orlando TV anchor would you want the most to be the guest speaker? Somehow, a colleague ended up in a discussion about this, and he said hands-down it's WESH's Wendy Chioji. She's been here a long time, folks here know her and she's living a great story after successfully battling cancer. Can't disagree with that. Any others you would put high on your list and why? You can leave comments below.
Look, up in the sky! It's a bird? It's a plane? No, it's .... the new, blue Chopper 2.
WESH has a new eye in the sky, debuting its improved Chopper 2. Piloted by veteran helicopter reporter "Chopper Dan" McCarthy, the new Chopper 2 is quipped with four cameras and an automatic pilot feature. But perhaps the most important part of this model, known as the "Long Ranger," is its larger fuel tank. That will allow the chopper to stay in air for longer periods of time.
"We are committed to covering big news stories in a big way. This new helicopter allows us to stay above the scene longer," WESH News Director Barbara Maushard said. "This gives WESH 2 News a huge advantage when covering brush fires and other big news events that are best covered from the air."
Added McCarthy: "I'm thrilled to be piloting one of the best news helicopters in the country. The new Chopper 2 is the envy of everyone I've talked to!"
When not covering breaking news, the new helicopter will be scanning the sky every morning during WESH 2 News Sunrise and WESH 2 News on CW 18.
WESH was the first station in the Orlando-Daytona Beach market to bring viewers news from the air. The first Chopper 2 debuted in 1979.
WESH has extended the contract of longtime anchor Wendy Chioji, according to NewsBlues.com . No word on contract details. Her solo-anchored WESH 2 News at 6 p.m. newscast was up 10 percent from a year ago in the February sweeps. Chioji has been with the station since 1988, as a reporter, weekend anchor and then lead anchor. To salute Wendy on her new deal, here's a clip of her closing out the weekend news back in 1990, plus a 2 News promo from 17 years ago.
This week began with the anchors and weather personnel at WESH taking on their new news assignments. So far: Wendy Chioji is walking a lot, Tony Mainolfi isn't sleeping a lot but the ratings look good.
The re-named, solo-anchored "WESH 2 News at 6 with Wendy Chioji" is definitely different from the other early-evening newscasts on the station -- and the ones on the other stations, too. (Watch a clip of the first show here) The stories are a bit longer, and nightly interview segment with Chijoi is something that seems worthwhile. Chioji also is now standing while delivering the news, walking about the studio for the weather segment with Mainolfi and the sports segment with newcomer Guy Rawlings. If WESH was going for distinguishing this newscast from its others, it's succeeded.
Mainolfi, though, is losing sleep over the changes. He's been reassigned from the morning newscasts to the 6 and 11 p.m. shows -- but his morning replacement hasn't arrived yet. So, when Mainolfi finishes the 11 p.m. show, he basically takes a nap at a nearby hotel then returns to the studio for the 5-7 a.m. morning news and then the 7-9 shift on CW 18 . Fortunately for Mainolfi, new morning weather guy Jason Brewer starts on Feb. 12.
WESH insiders have been happy with the ratings for the revamped shows so far this week. The station says this is its long-term plan, so we'll see how things fare during the sweeps.
And, speaking of WESH, former assistant ND Anzio Williams has been bumped up the Hearst-Argyle chain. After WESH, Williams became the news director at H-A's WDSU in New Orleans -- leading the station's Hurricane Katrina coverage there and later in Orlando when the station temporarily moved its ops here. Now, Williams is going to be the ND at KCRA-NBC 3 in Sacramento.
Expect a complete makeover of Channel 2's anchor assignments shortly, according to a WESH insider. Included will be a solo anchor shift at 6 p.m. for Wendy Chioji, a return to the 11 p.m. show by Jim Payne and a more prominent evening role for morning weather guy Tony Mainolfi.
I haven't received confirmation yet, but here's what the insider says the new assignments are:
4-5 p.m. -- Martha Sugalski and Chioji anchor
5-6 p.m. -- Payne and Sugalski anchor
6-6:30 p.m. -- Chioji anchors solo
11-11:35 p.m. -- Payne and Sugalski anchor
Payne and Sugalski have been anchoring the 4 p.m. show, Chioji and Raoul Martinez have been doing the the 5 p.m. with Payne and Chioji at 6 p.m. and Sugalski and Chioji at 11.
The anchor reassignments are due in some part to the hasty assignment of Martinez to anchor WESH's new 7-9 a.m. newscast on CW18 with Eryka Washington.
What Mainolfi's move to evenings mean for meteorologist Amy Sweezey remains to be seen.
