D-FW news notes: starring Gary Cogill, Shon Gables

Ed Bark — 2013-05-10T16:25:30-05:00

Gary Cogill popped in to co-host KTXD-TV’s (Ch. 47) D: The Broadcast Friday morning, and in the process took a shot at his old employer. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 7) -- Big Bang belts Idol

Ed Bark — 2013-03-08T10:22:27-06:00

The first half-hour of Fox's longtime titan drew 316,673 D-FW viewers compared to Big Bang's 426,820. Idol then edged CBS' Two and a Half Men from 7:30 to 8 p.m. before the special 90-minute edition was beaten anew by the first half-hour of CBS' Person of Interest. ...Over on KTXD-TV (Ch. 47), D magazine's 9 to 11 a.m. menu of D: The Broadcast and D Living again registered "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) in both total viewers and their target audience of 18-to-49-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., March 6) -- Idol romps against mostly reruns

Ed Bark — 2013-03-07T11:51:05-06:00

Fox4's Idol-aided 9 p.m. local newscast likewise delivered two knockout punches, ruling with 199,642 total viewers and 63,788 in the 18-to-49 age range. ...The only KTXD program to show any audience at all in the 18-to-49 demographic was a 7:30 a.m. episode of I Love Lucy, which fared pretty well with 12,758 viewers.

Pistol-packin' Suzie again off her feed on D: The Broadcast (for which they should be thankful -- for now)

Ed Bark — 2013-03-06T13:52:37-06:00

During a "Suzie Says So" segment, Humphreys and Smith were somewhat at odds on the question: "If you hate your job and your boss, do you quit without having another job to go to?" ...But D magazine's Tim Rogers, who's been beating the drums for D: The Broadcast on the magazine's FrontBurner blog, subsequently filed a mid-afternoon post that included both a phone interview with Humphreys and video of the segment in question.

Fox4 reporter Lynn Kawano's crime scoop: what you didn't hear

Ed Bark — 2013-03-06T11:47:59-06:00

Dallas-based Fox4, first TV station to report the arrest of a suspected "serial rapist" during Tuesday's newscasts, may not have been as enterprising as viewers were led to believe. ...Kawano and Fox4 news director Robin Whitmeyer have not returned emails requesting comment on whether the station had an ethical lapse in quoting from the affidavit but not identifying the detective who wrote it as Kawano's husband.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., March 5) -- Idol & NCISers trade punches

Ed Bark — 2013-03-06T10:58:32-06:00

New episodes of NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles won from 7 to 9 p.m. in total D-FW viewers with respective hauls of 502,547 and 406,168. American Idol's first live performance show, specially scheduled on a usual off-night, ran a rather distant second in those hours with 337,326 viewers. ...Idol and Fox4's local 9 p.m. newscast turned the tables among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, sweeping the night with totals of 159,470 and 79,735. Golden Boy dropped to third, beating only Smash.

An old-line KTVT in blooper mode, with anchor Midge Hill hanging in

Ed Bark — 2013-03-05T14:49:25-06:00

Midge Hill, currently one of the recurring "pundits" on KTXD-TV's (Ch. 47) The Texas Daily, previously had anchoring careers at both WFAA8 and KTVT-TV (Ch. 11) before it was bought by CBS and re-christened CBS11. ...hl=en_US&version=3">

D: The Broadcast did a bit better at 9 a.m. with 2,754 total viewers and 1,594 in the 18-to-49 range.

Tammy Dombeck on the roads again with CBS11 debut

Ed Bark — 2013-03-04T09:06:38-06:00

CBS11's early morning show made significant year-to-year rating gains during the just-concluded February ratings "sweeps," but remains in fourth place in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...D-FW Television News Note: Wendy Corona, who recently worked as a freelancer at WFAA8, has left the market to join Atlanta-based WSB-TV as a weekend anchor.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Feb. 27-28) -- Idol doubles its dominance

Ed Bark — 2013-03-03T10:46:26-06:00

ABC removed Zero Hour from its lineup after Thursday's third episode in the 7 p.m. hour performed particularly poorly with 18-to-49-year-olds. Shark Tank repeats will fill in on the next two Thursdays. ...Wednesday -- WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for first at 10 p.m. in total viewers, with WFAA8 winning among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Tall tale? D Magazine's "D TV Strikes Ratings Gold" headline has more than a little tarnish on it

Ed Bark — 2013-03-03T10:46:31-06:00

Before getting specific times from all four major broadcast networks, I left a comment on Allison's FrontBurner post alerting him that his D shows were in part competing with the Pope, not The View, etc. ...For comparison purposes, Wednesday's edition of The View had a timeslot-winning 38,911 viewers in the 18-to-49 demographic; Thursday's edition, all but rubbed out by the Pope, drew just 16,904 viewers in the 18-to-49 age range.

February "sweeps": WFAA8 bounces back at 10 p.m.; Fox4 has most overall wins; CBS11 still most-watched at 6 p.m.

Ed Bark — 2013-02-28T11:43:36-06:00

Comments CBS11 again had a significant total viewers lead-in advantage from its network's 9 p.m. programming, but dismally failed to hold serve after routing WFAA8 last February. ...WFAA8 had the sweeps lead-in advantage among 25-to-54-year-olds, and to its credit ran with it in piling up a big win.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 26) -- Celebrity Wife Swap outshines Golden Boy

Ed Bark — 2013-02-27T10:43:25-06:00

At 9 p.m., Golden Boy won its time slot with 247,831 total viewers after inheriting 351,094 from CBS' preceding NCIS: Los Angeles. ...WFAA8 edged CBS11 in the 10 p.m. total viewers race and won more comfortably among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 25) -- The Bachelor smelling like roses

Ed Bark — 2013-02-26T16:35:16-06:00

ABC's Castle then had an easy time of it at 9 p.m., in part because CBS punted on the final Monday of the February "sweeps" with a competing Hawaii Five-0 repeat. Castle rolled up 289,136 viewers while Five-0 lei-d an egg (117,031 viewers). ...Taking the big Castle lead-in audience to the bank, WFAA8 rolled to dominant wins at 10 p.m. in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 22-24) -- falloff for Oscars

Ed Bark — 2013-02-25T10:25:56-06:00

Another factor: Sunday's Oscars got off to a slow start ratings-wise, with the smallest audience for any full 15-minute segment -- 819,220 viewers from 7:30 to 7:45 -- enduring MacFarlane's very elongated opening screw-around. ...D Magazine earned at least a moral victory on KTXD-TV (Ch. 47) when its Friday 9 a.m. edition of the new D: The Broadcast broke through to become the first of five shows to achieve a measurable audience rather than the dreaded "hashmarks."

Action Doug: Pilot. Runner. Anchor

Ed Bark — 2013-02-22T15:39:09-06:00

He's portrayed as a man of action who can be trusted to dive into a story with the same zeal he brings to running long distances or flying a plane. ...hl=en_US&version=3">

Calvert Collins, a generally solid and still relatively new addition to the night team, was given more than a little too much time for a prominently played story on two Denton High School seniors whose one-paragraph essays were rejected by their teacher because both mentioned guns.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 20) -- Fox/Fox4 dominate prime-time

Ed Bark — 2013-02-21T10:56:20-06:00

Wednesday's two-hour Vegas edition of Fox's American Idol called the tune in D-FW while also inflating the ratings for Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast. ...Now the 10 p.m. edition feels the pain, with Couric placing a distant fourth at 9 p.m. with 89,495 total viewers while landing in that same spot with 18-to-49-year-olds.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 19)

Ed Bark — 2013-02-20T13:19:40-06:00

It's easy to deride Hood County grandma Linda White, 48, as an ignorant, nicotine-stained, drunken bumpkin who should have the book thrown at her for calling 911 and telling a dispatcher, "I need some cigarettes." ...She also isn't the first, and won't be the last reporter to be beaten to the punch by NBC5's dogged Night Ranger (as he's long been dubbed in these spaces).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 19) -- another crime watch

Ed Bark — 2013-02-20T10:14:36-06:00

NCIS: Los Angeles (385,515 viewers) and Vegas (296,021) likewise topped their hours, with Vegas also tying Fox4's local newscast for the 9 p.m. lead with 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Tuesday's 9 p.m. return of ABC's Body of Proof had 165,221 total viewers to run third at that hour behind Vegas and Fox4's news.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 18)

Ed Bark — 2013-02-19T15:54:55-06:00

In part blaming himself for being an absentee father, he also told viewers that if his kids found themselves in a homeless center, "my son would be the one at the table complaining about the quality of the soup. ...Later, during the station's nightly "Viewers' Voice" segment, "Matt from Keller" said via email: "I cannot believe y'all let that lady on there and have her say that those bobcats pose no problems for people, even children!!

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Feb. 15-18) -- Walking Dead domination

Ed Bark — 2013-02-19T11:20:15-06:00

On the night of the NBA All-Star game and the shocking Season 3 finale of Downton Abbey, AMC's 8 p.m. new episode of The Walking Dead splattered both of them while also ranking as Sunday's most-watched TV attraction at any hour of the day or night. ...ABC's second hour of The Bachelor led the way with 108,440, followed by CBS' 2 Broke Girls (92,493 from 8 to 8:30 p.m.) and NBC's The Biggest Loser (105,250 from 8:30 to 9 p.m.) The Following averaged 86,114 for its full hour.

Seismic shift at KTXD -- from Perry Mason to D: The Broadcast

Ed Bark — 2013-02-18T13:33:40-06:00

The primary baby-boomer target audience of D-FW's KTXD-TV (Ch. 47) likely was further put off its feed Monday morning when the ME-TV affiliate dropped oldies Perry Mason and The Rockford Files in favor of a giggly, gabby local version of The View (or The Talk) and the retitled D Living. ...Monday with former CBS11 early morning anchor Lisa Pineiro; Emmitt Smith's wife, Pat Smith; Courtney Kerr from Bravo's short-lived Most Eligible Dallas series; and Suzie Humphreys, who also has been a part of the wizened elder contingent on KTXD's The Texas Daily.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., Feb. 15)

Ed Bark — 2013-02-18T09:30:05-06:00

Still, Fox4 and NBC5 had late night newscasts of some distinction, with the latter station's Deanna Dewberry (on the phone above) making the most of a story on disappointed recipients of damaged Valentine's Day flowers. ...Over on Fox4, anchors Heather Hays and Steve Eagar made optimum use of live, in-studio interviews with experts who added considerable perspective to the preceding stories on returning Carnival cruise passengers and the big meteor explosion over Russia.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Feb. 14)

Ed Bark — 2013-02-15T13:18:22-06:00

For the American Airlines/US Air merger story, only NBC5 reporter Scott Gordon asked newly appointed CEO Doug Parker about the "controversial" $20 million severance package being awarded outgoing AA CEO Tom Horton. ...***Longtime Fox4 news personality Clarice Tinsley took a considerably tamer Valentine's Day tack after first framing her face with an inflatable heart (see picture below) for her second "Your Turn" Facebook segment of the night.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 14) -- Big Bang goes pow while Zero Hour thuds

Ed Bark — 2013-02-15T12:08:35-06:00
CBS' The Big Bang Theory scored its biggest D-FW audience of the season on Valentine's night before Fox's American Idol regrouped to knock off Two and a Half Men. Big Bang neared the 600,000 mark with 592,041 viewers while also ranking as the night's runaway No. 1 draw among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds with 287,046.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 13) -- sinking feeling for Idol, but it's still on top

Ed Bark — 2013-02-14T12:06:18-06:00
Wednesday's latest two-hour performance edition of Fox's American Idol drooped to its smallest audience this season in D-FW while still winning its time slot and carrying Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast with it. ...ABC's audience flow on Wednesdays has become an up-and-down roller coaster ride, with The Middle up (192,758 total viewers), The Neighbors down (130,800), Modern Family up (213,410), Suburgatory down (117,031) and Nashville up (158,337).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 12) -- CBS top destination for SOTU

Ed Bark — 2013-02-13T10:20:25-06:00
The Big Four broadcast networks and three cable news channels yielded much of their prime-time terrain Tuesday to President Obama's State of the Union address and the Republican response from water-gulping Florida senator Marco Rubio. ...In the broadcast universe, CBS and NBC stayed with news coverage to fill out the final minutes of prime-time while Fox4 segued to its regularly scheduled 9 p.m. local newscast.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 11) -- splitting the prime-time spoils

Ed Bark — 2013-02-12T11:11:14-06:00
The second half of Fox's Bones then got in the game with a top-rated 240,947 viewers from 7:30 to 8 p.m. ...WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the top spot in total viewers at 10 p.m. while WFAA8 further cemented its lead among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming) with a solid first place finish.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 8-10) -- Grammys fall off charts but still command night

Ed Bark — 2013-02-11T11:16:57-06:00
Its 227,179 total viewers were more than CBS11 could muster for its 10:30 p.m. local news, which had 192,758 viewers despite a big lead-in from the Grammys' closing 15 minutes (509,431 viewers). ...Friday's top draw with 18-to-49-year-olds was ABC's 8 p.m. hour of Shark Tank with 76,546. The Job had just 15,947 viewers in this key demographic while NBC's Rock Center with Brian Williams fared even worse with 12,758 in its first Friday 9 p.m. outing.

Wait, Wait . . . I'll Tell You

Ed Bark — 2013-02-08T12:10:16-06:00
Sagal, also a playwright and dedicated long distance runner, delights in calling himself a "nerd" who's also become one of radio's royalty in the years since WW... ...The three weekly panelists, drawn from a pool of regulars, were comedian Paula Poundstone, Motel 6 spokesman/racconteur Tom Bodett and Kyrie O'Connor, senior editor and columnist for The Houston Chronicle.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 7) -- Big Bang explodes on Idol

Ed Bark — 2013-02-08T10:51:38-06:00
CBS' Person of Interest won in total viewers at 8 p.m. but ABC's Grey's Anatomy had the most 18-to-49-year-olds. ...The second episode -- and likely the last -- of the Peacock's Do No Harm may have set a historic ratings low for a Big Four broadcast network program in D-FW.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 6) -- Idol wins one, loses one

Ed Bark — 2013-02-07T11:28:00-06:00
But from 8 to 9 p.m., CBS' new episode of Criminal Minds beat Idol by a score of 371,747 to 351,094 viewers (Idol's first hour had 385,515 viewers before Hour 2 slumped a bit.) Idol still won easily among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, though, with ABC's comedy lineup of The Middle, The Neighbors and Modern Family the runner-up from 7 to 8:30 p.m. before the second half of Person of Interest took the 18-to-49 silver.

Strange but true happenings in D-FW television news (updated)

Ed Bark — 2013-02-06T14:17:39-06:00
CBS11 lately is linking trivia questions to all of its network's 9 p.m. drama series in hopes that more viewers will be enticed to watch both the lead-in and the newscast. ...Your friendly content provider also received a reader tip that the anchors of NBC5's early morning show were being required to attend some sort of "comedy school" to punch up their deliveries.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb.5) -- Smash mashed

Ed Bark — 2013-02-06T09:38:25-06:00
NCIS also won with 18-to-49-year-olds before Fox's New Girl ran first from 8 to 8:30 p.m. ...CBS11 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m. but was edged by WFAA8 for the top spot among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target for news programming).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 4) -- slippage for The Following & dropoff for Dallas while Castle gets kinged

Ed Bark — 2013-02-05T10:04:29-06:00
Katie Couric's syndicated Katie also again fell flat in the 4 p.m. slot, with out-of-the-money fourth place finishes in total viewers, 25-to-54-year-olds and 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Nielsens in both measurements while CBS11 perked up a bit by beating NBC5 in total viewers and tying the Peacock for third place among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 1-3) -- Supah Dupah Edition

Ed Bark — 2013-02-04T10:18:20-06:00
Running from 5:31 to 9:45 p.m. and blitzed by a 34-minute second half power outage, the Baltimore Ravens' 34-31 victory over the San Francisco 49ers averaged 2,258,018 viewers with a peak crowd of 2,457,659 between 9:15 and 9:30 p.m. ...CBS' post-Super Bowl attraction, a new episode of the first-year series Elementary, fired up at 10:11 p.m. after a nearly half-hour post-game show.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 31) -- DOA for Do No Harm; minimal interest in 30 Rock finale

Ed Bark — 2013-02-01T10:51:41-06:00
It had 117,031 total viewers, beating Shark Tank (61,958) but losing overwhelmingly to CBS' The Big Bang Theory (516,315) Fox's American Idol (392,399) and CBS' Two and a Half Men (351,094). 30 Rock likewise ran a distant third with 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Among 18-to-49-year-olds, Fox4's 9 p.m. newscast edged Elementary while Person of Interest beat the 8 p.m. episode of NBC's The Office while tying a second episode for first place at 8:30 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 30) -- socko numbers for Fox/Fox4

Ed Bark — 2013-01-31T11:36:13-06:00
Fox's American Idol remained a force Wednesday night, with its latest two-hour audition edition pummeling all competitors while also giving Fox4's 9 p.m. local news a big push. ...It was by far the network's most-watched program of the day or night after coming off a rather puny lead-in of 34,421 viewers for the closing 15 minutes of the movie Knight and Day.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 29) -- CBS rules prime-time, save for one pocket of resistance

Ed Bark — 2013-01-30T10:05:48-06:00
NCIS blew past the half-million mark with 564,504 D-FW viewers at 7 p.m., followed by more domination from NCIS: Los Angeles (475,010) and Las Vegas (378,631). ...In the local news derby results, CBS11 dominated at 10 p.m. in total viewers but WFAA8 edged into first place with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 28) -- The Following blasts Dallas on its home turf (updated with national numbers)

Ed Bark — 2013-01-29T11:07:31-06:00
Fox appears to have a much-needed midseason hit in The Following, which increased its D-FW audience from last week's premiere while also crunching competition from TNT's Season 2 premiere of Dallas. That's quite a feat on the Ewings' home turf, with the grisly Kevin Bacon serial drama amassing 344,210 viewers in the 8 p.m. hour while Dallas drew well less than half that crowd with 151,452.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 25-27) -- throwaway Pro Bowl tops all weekend programming

Ed Bark — 2013-01-28T09:42:35-06:00
The NFL's annual flag football-esque Pro Bowl, in which a few hard hits actually snuck in, dominated D-FW's Friday-Sunday Nielsens in both total viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...The Pro Bowl shrugged off competition from the Screen Actors Guild awards show on TBS/TNT (a combined 96,379 total viewers) and the Dallas Mavericks' home win over the Phoenix Suns (55,074 viewers on Fox Sports Southwest).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 24) -- Katie, Jane & Jimmy

Ed Bark — 2013-01-25T13:12:30-06:00
NBC5's First at Four local newscast led overall in total viewers with 87,429 while Fox4's two helpings of the syndicated Judge Judy were tops among 18-to-49-year-olds with 21,688 and 27,429. ...In Thursday's prime-time rankings, Fox's 7 to 8 p.m. hour of American Idol easily was the top overall attraction with 447,473 total viewers. Idol also was the top draw with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Carla Wade is WFAA8's newest anchor/reporter

Ed Bark — 2013-01-25T11:55:00-06:00
Wade, who spent three years at KOCO, will be joining newcomer Jason Wheeler as co-anchor of WFAA8's Sunday night newscasts, news director Carolyn Mungo confirmed via email Friday. ...hl=en_US&version=3">

McGarry makes maiden voyage on WFAA8's Good Morning Texas

Ed Bark — 2013-01-24T10:56:03-06:00
Starting over in her own right, former NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry returned to local television for the first time since last May for her inaugural "Starting Over" segment on Thursday's edition of WFAA8's Good Morning Texas. ...The "starting over" theme of these pieces -- four more are scheduled on consecutive Thursdays -- was hammered home both during the taped piece and in a live studio interview with surviving parents Mic and Joann Stephens.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 22) -- not much appetite for The Taste

Ed Bark — 2013-01-23T12:12:08-06:00
The Taste also was outdrawn from 7 to 8:30 p.m. by NBC's two episodes of Betty White's Off Their Rockers and Go On and Fox's Raising Hope, Ben & Kate and New Girl. ...Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, Off Their Rockers ran first from 7 to 8 p.m. before Fox took the top spot in the 8 to 9 p.m. slot. The Taste ran fourth in that key demographic during its first hour before winning the silver from 8 to 9 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 21) -- solid start for The Following

Ed Bark — 2013-01-22T11:11:28-06:00
CBS' competing combo -- new episodes of 2 Broke Girls and Mike & Molly -- ran second with 240,947 and 213,410 viewers respectively. The Following also beat the second hours of NBC's The Biggest Loser and ABC's The Bachelor while notably improving on its 7 p.m. lead-in from Fox's new hour of Bones (165,221 viewers). ...Both 2 Broke Girls and Biggest Loser nipped it from 8 to 8:30 p.m. before The Following slipped past ABC's The Bachelor by a paper-thin margin from 8:30 to 9 p.m. while Biggest Loser and Mike & Molly ran third and fourth.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 18-20) -- NFL again flexes might

Ed Bark — 2013-01-21T14:03:47-06:00
An hour earlier, the series finale of Fox's Fringe lured 137,684 viewers, less than half the crowd for CBS' competing CSI: NY (289,136 viewers). Fringe won its time slot, though, among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Friday's local news derby results, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers and tied Fox4 for the top spot among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Former NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry talks about returning to TV with 5-part series on WFAA8's Good Morning Texas

Ed Bark — 2013-01-18T19:04:06-06:00
It's scheduled to launch on Thursday, Jan. 24th and continue for the next four Thursdays, In a publicity release sent to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram (but not to unclebarky.com as of this writing), WFAA8 said McGarry's weekly stories "will focus on a variety of subjects, all involving local people who have experienced significant change in their lives, often due to unforeseen circumstances." ...KTXD-TV (Ch. 47) management had approached her about being a regular contributor to the D-FW station's baby boomer-aimed The Texas Daily, which launched on Oct. 1st of last year and since has been moved from an 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. start time.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 17) -- Idol still winning, but CBS gives it a free pass

Ed Bark — 2013-01-18T11:59:05-06:00
Despite going with repeats, CBS placed a solid second in total viewers from 7 to 9 p.m., with The Big Bang Theory again its heaviest hitter (337,326 total viewers). ...CBS11 took the top spot in total viewers at 10 p.m. while WFAA8 won with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 16) --Idol still dealing Fox a winning hand

Ed Bark — 2013-01-17T11:18:15-06:00
The network's Season 12 premiere of American Idol dominated D-FW's prime-time Nielsens Wednesday, with new judges Mariah Carey, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban up for inspection among the nobodies vying for their affection. The 7 to 9 p.m. relaunch averaged 536,968 viewers, with 261,531 of them in the advertiser-prized 18-to-49 age range.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 15) -- CBS runs the table

Ed Bark — 2013-01-16T11:07:55-06:00
In the four-way local news derby results, CBS11 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m. while WFAA8 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...In fact, Tuesday's snowy start helped make the 7 to 9 a.m. portion of Good Day the station's most-watched program of the day by far in both total viewers and in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 14) -- CBS, ABC split prime-time spoils

Ed Bark — 2013-01-15T11:02:31-06:00
Among advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds, Mother, Big Bang and 2 Broke all ran first before the final half-hour of The Bachelor prevailed by a paper-thin margin over M&M. Hawaii Five-0 won the 9 p.m. hour in this key demographic. ...WFAA8 comfortably won at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but fell to second behind Fox4 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

More changes at CW33's Eye Opener, with Danielle Vollmar off to Philadelphia and Zuri Hall already in play

Ed Bark — 2013-01-14T16:10:48-06:00
Latest to leave is Nightcap co-host and weathercaster Danielle Vollmar, who began a bit over a year ago on the station's similarly themed Eye Opener program. ...The program is billed on the air by its hosts as "a different kind of news" in keeping with the parent company's view that there are too many similarly formatted local newscasts in D-FW and around the country.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 11-13) -- Globes roll for NBC while NFL scores bigger for Fox, CBS

Ed Bark — 2013-01-14T10:13:47-06:00
The Season 2 debut of HBO's Girls didn't fare as well with 41,305 viewers but had a much higher percentage of 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Friday's prime-time Nielsens as usual were paced from start to finish in total viewers by CBS' regular lineup of Undercover Boss, CSI: NY and Blue Bloods.

Fox4 meteorologist Ron Jackson gets his gray on

Ed Bark — 2013-01-11T13:01:02-06:00
Veteran Fox4 meteorologist Ron Jackson's official station website picture hasn't quite caught up yet with his latter day on-air look. Photos: Ed Bark, myfoxdfw.com ...So don't expect Fox4's Clarice Tinsley or WFAA8's Gloria Campos to even think about pulling a Jackson until their on-air days are over and done.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 10) -- CBS/ABC split spoils

Ed Bark — 2013-01-11T11:04:52-06:00
made its best showing to date in its new 10:35 p.m. slot with wins in both total viewers and 18-49-year-olds opposite NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno, CBS' Late Show with David Letterman and Fox4's syndicated combo of TMZ and Access Hollywood. ...WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the top spot in total viewers at 10 p.m., with WFAA8 winning outright among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 9) -- Chicago Fire heats up while Kimmel cools down

Ed Bark — 2013-01-10T12:39:40-06:00
The 7 p.m. hour went to CBS' I Get That A Lot in total viewers and the first half of Fox's Celebrities In Danger: The High Dive in the 18-to-49-demographic. ..., in its second outing at 10:35 p.m., ran second in total viewers among the three late night talkers. The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, which also topped Fox4's TMZ and Access Hollywood, led with 137,684 viewers, with Kimmel (68,842) outpointing CBS' Late Show with David Letterman (61,958).

NBC5 saying goodbye to sports anchor-reporter Matt Barrie, who's heading to ESPN

Ed Bark — 2013-01-09T18:32:03-06:00
Matt Barrie, a distinctive, live wire sports anchor-reporter for NBC5 since joining the Fort Worth-based station in 2008, has decided to take his considerable talents to ESPN. ..."Matt is a terrific journalist who brought fantastic energy to the NBC5 sports team," vice president of news Susan Tully said in a statement.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 8) -- mixed results for Kimmel's first 10:35 p.m. outing

Ed Bark — 2013-01-09T12:43:26-06:00
ABC's Nightline, sent to a likely boneyard at 11:35 p.m. after years of serving as WFAA8's lead-out, had just 38,552 total viewers in its first outing at that later hour. ...In the 18-to-49-year-old arena, NCIS likewise won at 7 p.m. before Fox's New Girl ran first from 8 to 8:30 p.m. and NBC's The New Normal topped the 8:30 to 9 p.m. slot.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 7) -- Notre Dame pratfall deflates championship game crowd

Ed Bark — 2013-01-08T10:11:56-06:00
NBC's two-hour edition of The Biggest Loser had 185,873 viewers to beat ABC's return of The Bachelor (151,452 viewers) despite the presence of Dallas resident Sean Lowe in the title role. ...In Monday's four-way local news derby results, WFAA8 ran the table at 6 and 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Hey, it is called the Fan Sports Show

Ed Bark — 2013-01-08T09:09:46-06:00
Jamison, appearing on TXA21's Fan Sports Show before the Aggies destroyed Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl, was joined by 2 broke, er, 2 (seemingly) blotto girls with a jones for Johnny "Football" Manziel. ...rnd=833005;hostDomain=video.dallas.cbslocal.com;playerWidth=500;playerHeight=365;isShowIcon=true;clipId=8134768;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=Sport;advertisingZone=CBS.DALLAS%252Fworldnowplayer;enableAds=true;landingPage=;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript;controlsType=fixed'>

The Kimmel Live! 10 p.m. news leadout: coming very soon to WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2013-01-07T16:13:14-06:00
The second half of CBS11's 6 p.m. newscasts -- the part containing those three minutes of Wheel -- averaged 165,221 viewers in the November sweeps, up from the 137,684 who watched the 6 to 6:15 p.m. segment. ..., which started at 11:05 p.m., was beaten in total viewers by the closing half-hours of both NBC's Tonight Show with Jay Leno and CBS' Late Show with David Letterman.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun, Jan. 4-6) -- Johnny F'ball ranks 2nd to RG3

Ed Bark — 2013-01-07T11:37:53-06:00
Texas A&M's Friday night rout of Oklahoma, led by QB Johnny "Football" Manziel, ranked as D-FW's second most-watched weekend attraction, with Fox profiting even more from Sunday's Redskins-Seahawks playoff game. ...Sunday night's two-hour Season 3 premiere of PBS' Downton Abbey averaged 178,989 viewers, falling short of CBS' competing 8 to 10 p.m. combo of The Good Wife (192,758) and The Mentalist (213,410).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Jan. 2-3) -- a boffo Big Bang

Ed Bark — 2013-01-04T16:42:21-06:00
CBS' regular Thursday lineup returned to the living with all new episodes while rival broadcast networks either went with repeats or, in Fox's case, burned off episodes of Howie Mandel's Mobbed. The Big Bang Theory emerged as the night's big winner, drawing 461,241 D-FW viewers in the 7 p.m. slot before Two and A Half Men (309,789) and Person of Interest (351,094) also cruised to easy wins.

Jeff Smith joins NBC5's early morning reporting staff

Ed Bark — 2013-01-04T07:10:42-06:00
Fort Worth-based NBC5 has hired Charlotte, NC reporter Jeff Smith to join its weekday early morning news staff. The station hasn't officially announced his arrival, but Smith says on his Twitter page that he'll be starting at the end of January as "your go-to guy for news in the morning."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon, Dec. 31-Tues., Jan. 1) -- WFAA8's Big NYE outdraws all New Year's Day football games

Ed Bark — 2013-01-02T16:49:53-06:00
WFAA8's 6th annual Big D NYE presentation from Victory Park Plaza lit up the late night D-FW Nielsen ratings, averaging 419,936 viewers for its 10:30 p.m. to 12:30 a.m. running time. Hosted by weathercaster Pete Delkus and sports anchor Dale Hansen with supporting roles by Gordon Keith, Ron Corning and Amy Vanderoeuf, the sometimes unintentionally comic production has become a big draw in recent years.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot -- Cowboys roundup

Ed Bark — 2013-01-02T09:51:00-06:00
Snatched from Fox and showcased in prime-time on NBC's Sunday Night Football, the 28-18 closer at Washington averaged 1,652,208 D-FW viewers. ...But that game, with a TV crowd of 907,276, basically served as a warmup act for that night's Game 5 of the 2010 World Series between the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Dec. 20) -- X Factor rules over Christmas specials, repeats

Ed Bark — 2012-12-21T10:20:46-06:00
WFAA8 won outright at 10 p.m. in total viewers while tying for first with Fox4 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...At 5 p.m., NBC5 and WFAA8 tied for first in total viewers while WFAA8 had the top spot to itself among 25-to-54-year-olds.

And to all a good night: D-FW's list of 2012 TV exits

Ed Bark — 2012-12-20T13:26:56-06:00
KRYSTLE GUTIERREZ -- The early morning Good Day reporter left Fox4 in February to join her husband, Kris Gutierrez, who had been hired to co-anchor the waker-upper newscasts for CBS-owned WBBM-TV in Chicago. ...LISA PINEIRO -- CBS11 declined to renew her contract last May after Pineiro joined the station in October 2010 as an early morning co-anchor with Scott Sams, who was let go in 2011 and now is with KRLD radio (1080 AM).

Dombeck newly married and beaming in official wedding video

Ed Bark — 2012-12-20T11:46:49-06:00
And the festivities were on Dec. 16th at Fort Worth's Ashton Hotel. ...
Tammy + Donnie from Coleman Anderson on Vimeo.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Dec. 19) -- X Factor, Fox4 news take prime-time wreaths

Ed Bark — 2012-12-20T10:54:24-06:00
Donald Trump's competing Miss Universe cheese fest on NBC had just 103,263 viewers during those same two hours while CBS' annual A Home for the Holidays special drew 137,684 viewers in its 7 to 8 p.m. slot. ...Fox4's 9 p.m. news had a league-leading 240,947 viewers, whipping competition from CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation rerun (172,105), a new episode of NBC's Chicago Fire (117,031) and ABC's special edition of 20/20 (89,495).

CBS11 effectively wraps its early morning team in bright Christmas promo

Ed Bark — 2012-12-20T09:13:12-06:00
Although still stuck in fourth place, CBS11's revamped early morning news program gained a little ground on its competitors in the November "sweeps" ratings. ...Instead it's winningly whimsical and might put quite a few viewers in the mood to give these guys a try in the coming weeks.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Dec. 18) -- big finishing kick for The Voice

Ed Bark — 2012-12-19T10:29:40-06:00
The Voice, won by Cassadee Pope, averaged 392,399 D-FW viewers from 8 to 10 p.m. while CBS came in a solid second with its combo of NCIS: Los Angeles (323,557) and Las Vegas (254,715). ...CW33's 9 p.m. Nightcap had one of its biggest audiences since the Nov. 1st premiere, thanks to a much better than usual lead-in from the CW network's It's A Very Merry Muppet Christmas Movie.

Larissa Hall shifing responsibilities with Tribune-owned CW33 and its prime-time Nightcap news show (updated and clarified)

Ed Bark — 2012-12-19T08:36:27-06:00
After four months in the position, CW33 director of content Larissa Hall will be charting a different course and splitting time between the Dallas-based, Tribune-owned station and the East Coast. ...Denise Killian, who had been assisting Hall on Nightcap is expected to be the principal hands-on conductor of the program while also moving up to the director of content position.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Dec. 17) -- new White house comedy in outhouse

Ed Bark — 2012-12-18T10:32:57-06:00
It was another sub-dismal night for CW33's comedy-flavored Nightcap newscast, which had "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) from 9 to 10 p.m. in both total viewers and advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Monday's four-way local news derby results, WFAA8 led the way with 6 a.m. and 5 and 10 p.m. sweeps in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 14-16) -- Cowboys-Steelers surprisingly slow on draw

Ed Bark — 2012-12-17T09:43:22-06:00
CBS11 director of communications Lori Conrad notes that the station had 1,930 "likes" on its Facebook page after posting a note to viewers that read: "After such a tragic day, CBS11 is proud to have some great holiday family programming you can watch with your whole family, starting with Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer at 7 p.m. ...In Friday's four-way local news derby numbers, WFAA8 ran the table at 10 p.m. with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Dec. 12-13) -- NBC punched out

Ed Bark — 2012-12-14T11:16:49-06:00
CBS swept Wednesday's total viewer competitions with Survivor: Philippines, Criminal Minds and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. Survivor also won among 18-to-49-year-olds before Fox/Fox4 ran first from 8 to 10 p.m. with the second half of The X Factor and the nightly 9 p.m. local newscast. ...Wednesday -- Fox4 had a big day, winning at 6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 10 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Dec. 11) -- CBS again triples down on crime

Ed Bark — 2012-12-12T15:51:09-06:00
Advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds again fanned out, though. The Voice won at 7 p.m. before Fox's New Girl ran first in this key demographic from 8 to 8:30 p.m. ...In Tuesday's four-way local news competitions, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers and tied WFAA8 for first place among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

No more tongue-twisting surname for new NBC5 meteorologist

Ed Bark — 2012-12-11T15:50:25-06:00
Former longstanding NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry, who "resigned" earlier this year after pleading no contest to a DWI charge, for awhile had the on-air name of Ann McGarry. When she arrived at the station in 1982, McGarry rebooted to "Ann" in deference to incumbent Jane Jayroe, who became the 6 and 10 p.m. anchor two years earlier.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Dec. 10) -- Voice rings out before Peacock falters

Ed Bark — 2012-12-11T11:13:14-06:00
Fox's two-hour American Country Awards shebang drew 178,989 viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. while ABC was in the dumper all night with two Extreme Makeover: Home Edition specials and a Castle repeat. ...In Monday's local news derby results, WFAA8 edged CBS11 at 10 p.m. in total viewers and won by a more comfy margin among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CBS11 tabs Elizabeth Dinh for early morning shift

Ed Bark — 2012-12-10T15:16:53-06:00
Elizabeth Dinh, a University of Texas-Arlington grad who most recently worked at Seattle's KOMO-TV, has joined D-FW's CBS11 as a full-time early morning reporter. ...Dinh worked for KAMR-TV in Amarillo and WFTS-TV Tampa, FL before joining KOMO, where she also was assigned to early mornings.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 7-9) -- Cowboys stay above one mil, fall below previous two games

Ed Bark — 2012-12-10T14:14:49-06:00
Sunday's come-from-behind, walk-off Cowboys win at Cincinnati surpassed the one million viewer mark on Fox but fell below the previous two games against the Redskins and Eagles. ...In the local news derby results, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while NBC5 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Dec. 6) -- CBS, ABC set prime-time pace

Ed Bark — 2012-12-07T11:17:09-06:00
Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Scandal led the way from 8 to 10 p.m. Big Bang and Two and a Half won the 7 p.m. hour. ...In Thursday's local news derby results, CBS11 topped the 10 p.m. field in total viewers and tied WFAA8 for first place among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Former NBC5 reporter/congressional candidate Grant Stinchfield replacing Janine Turner Saturday nights on KLIF

Ed Bark — 2012-12-07T11:17:14-06:00
Stinchfield, who is married to Amy Vanderoef of WFAA8's Good Morning Texas, said that his TV reporting career "taught me that the most important thing to do is to simplify the issues in an entertaining way." "I hope to use the (KLIF) show as a place where we can interview guests and use my skills from my background in media to talk about important issues that are facing Texans."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Dec. 5) -- Dirk-less Mavs mostly a no-show

Ed Bark — 2012-12-06T11:16:04-06:00
CBS' Survivor: Philippines and the first hour of Fox's The X Factor tied for first in total viewers from 7 to 8 p.m. with 261,600 apiece. ...Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, X Factor and Survivor tied for first from 7 to 8 p.m., with the Fox sing-off nipping Criminal Minds in the 8 p.m. hour.

Taking the PR plunge: former CW33 reporter Charles Bassett joins the crowd

Ed Bark — 2012-12-06T10:03:14-06:00
Bassett, who joined the station in spring 2011, was dropped in October during a mass "transitioning" to the new comedy-laced Nightcap program, which launched on Nov. 1st. ...Since last December, WFAA8 reporters Chris Hawes, Craig Civale, Cynthia Vega and Casey Norton, and CBS11 reporter Jay Gormley all have dropped out of newsrooms and dropped into PR positions with North Texas-based employers.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., Dec. 3-4) -- shout outs for The Voice, Rudolph, lingerie

Ed Bark — 2012-12-06T09:20:02-06:00
CBS' Hawaii Five-0 won at 9 p.m. in total viewers while NBC's competing Blake Shelton's Not So Family Christmas drew the most 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Monday -- NBC5 had one of its better days in recent memory, sweeping the 6 and 10 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Ratings ups and downs for Cowboys games against Redskins/Eagles

Ed Bark — 2012-12-04T09:06:40-06:00
The DMN reported Tuesday that Sunday night's game against the Eagles was seen in 838,512 D-FW households compared to a season-low 639,236 for the Thanksgiving Day game against the Redskins. ...As posted Monday on unclebarky.com, the Thanksgiving Day game in fact had significantly more total viewers than Sunday's prime-time matchup -- by a score of 1,301,114 to 1,218,503.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 30-Dec. 2) -- fans flock in fewer and older numbers to Cowboys' win over low-flying Eagles

Ed Bark — 2012-12-03T09:58:15-06:00
Among D-FW viewers in the 18-to-34 demographic -- some of whom are too young to remember the Cowboys' last Super Bowl appearance in 1996 -- Sunday night's game proved to be something of a turn-off. ...But they're getting there -- and seemingly in a pretty big hurry as time marches on and the Cowboys remain a clear and present danger to the team's storied legacy of 8 Super Bowl appearances and 5 Lombardi trophies.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Nov. 29) -- address again is CBS

Ed Bark — 2012-11-30T13:38:19-06:00
Big Bang and Two and a Half Men also won among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds before the 8 to 10 p.m. slot went to ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Scandal in the competition among the Big Four broadcast networks. ...In Thursday's local news derby results, CBS11 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers while WFAA8 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Nov. 28) -- Christmas special free-for-all

Ed Bark — 2012-11-29T10:17:00-06:00
ABC's Modern Family then won from 8 to 8:30 p.m. with Wednesday's biggest haul of 18-to-49-year-olds before the closing half-hour of Fox's The X Factor nipped the second half of Criminal Minds. CSI prevailed at 9 p.m. in this key demographic, edging Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast while Nashville again ran an out-of-the-money fourth. In the local news derby results, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while WFAA8 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

WFAA8 plays games, declares victory in November "sweeps" via cleverly camouflaged promo

Ed Bark — 2012-11-28T14:49:53-06:00
During Tuesday night's Dancing with the Stars fall season finale on ABC, WFAA8 ran a curious promo touting itself as the No. 1 station during the just-concluded November "sweeps" ratings period. ...Subtract the phony inclusion of Good Morning America along with the other 7 to 9 a.m. shows and WFAA8 would be in a statistical dead heat for first place with CBS11 in the total viewer Nielsens.

(Brian) New guy at CBS11

Ed Bark — 2012-11-28T12:42:21-06:00
New is scheduled to start at CBS11 on New Year's Eve, filling the nightside spot vacated by Jay Gormley when he left the station in mid-September to become director of communications for the Dallas region of Time Warner cable. But New also will be a contributor to CBS11's investigative unit, which was further bolstered with Monday's hiring of gumshoe Mireya Villarreal-Gideon from San Antonio's WOAI-TV.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 27) -- NCIS and DWTS pace prime-time

Ed Bark — 2012-11-28T11:36:21-06:00
A new episode of CBS' NCIS drew one of its biggest crowds of this season Tuesday before D-FW viewers slid over to the Dancing with the Stars fall season finale on ABC. ...In the local news derby results, WFAA8 rode the DWTS tail wind to dominant wins at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CBS11 adds to investigative unit with hiring of San Antonio's Mireya Villarreal-Gideon (updated with quotes from her)

Ed Bark — 2012-11-27T16:02:09-06:00
Mireya Villarreal-Gideon, a member of San Antonio-based WOAI-TV's "Trouble Shooters" team since 2008, has been hired as an investigative reporter by D-FW's CBS11. ...Villarreal-Gideon's WOAI bio says she initially attended the University of Texas-Pan American on a tennis scholarship and also considered a career in law before switching gears.

Unger strike: WFAA8 fills another newsroom vacancy with Albuquerque reporter

Ed Bark — 2012-11-27T12:00:39-06:00
In recent months, the ABC affiliate has lost full-time news staffers Cynthia Vega, Craig Civale and Casey Norton to public relations positions with other companies in D-FW. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

An affair to forget on WFAA8 news

Ed Bark — 2012-11-15T07:21:00-06:00
Struggling in the ratings at that hour and bedeviled by usually dinky lead-in ratings from the preceding Katie, WFAA8 occasionally goes to extremes in order to lure and keep an audience. ...Mungo has not responded to an email sent early Wednesday morning asking if she had any second thoughts about WFAA8's decision to pose that question on a newscast.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Nov. 13)

Ed Bark — 2012-11-14T11:47:11-06:00
After a top-of-the-newscast weather alert -- it will be chilly again early Wednesday -- longtime Night Ranger Scott Gordon documented Cuban's displeasure with an alleged Facebook plan to charge him $3,000 to reach one millions purveyors of his Dallas Mavericks' fan page. ...WFAA8 had a mostly forgettable newscast Tuesday night, save for early morning anchor Cynthia Izaguirre's extended and affecting "Then and Now" report on twin boys who were born four months early and spent 199 days in the hospital under mostly life and death circumstances.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 13) -- three-way split for prime-time spoils

Ed Bark — 2012-11-14T10:19:44-06:00
CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles then held 100 percent of the audience to reign at 8 p.m. before the network's Vegas took the 9 p.m. hour with 289,136 viewers. ...It had more 25-to-54-year-olds (92,414) than any other local newscast Tuesday, including the 5, 6, 9 and 10 p.m. editions on Fox4.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Nov. 12)

Ed Bark — 2012-11-13T13:53:10-06:00
This is his first ratings sweeps period as the station's featured 10 p.m. forecaster, with D-FW weather dean David Finfrock segueing to earlier shifts en route to his planned retirement well down the road in 2018. ...CBS11 co-anchor Doug Dunbar twitted the "madness" of some Keller residents who were "braving the chill" in order to be among the first to buy the video game Call of Duty: Black Ops II, which went on sale at midnight.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Nov. 12) -- NBC remains on roll

Ed Bark — 2012-11-13T10:55:36-06:00
Both NBC attractions also ranked No. 1 from 7 to 10 p.m. among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, with Revolution even edging the 9 to 10 p.m. slice of ESPN's Monday Night Football (Steelers vs. ...In Monday's local news derby results, the 10 p.m. spoils were split between WFAA8 in total viewers and Fox4 among 25--to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 9-11) -- interest wanes as Cowboys win survival game against Eagles

Ed Bark — 2012-11-12T10:08:39-06:00
On Friday night, the second episode of ABC's Reba McEntire-fronted Malibu Country remained solid with second place finishes at 7:30 p.m. in both total viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Friday's local news derby numbers, CBS11 romped at 10 p.m. in total viewers while WFAA8 had the edge among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Nov. 7-8) -- deepening problems for Last Resort, Nashville

Ed Bark — 2012-11-09T10:45:46-06:00
Worse yet, both Last Resort and Nashville likewise lagged among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. Last Resort fell to fifth, with The CW's Vampire Diaries taking the No. 4 spot. Nashville stayed in fourth place, but its 9 p.m. ...Wednesday -- CBS11 had a comfortable win in total viewers at 10 p.m., but Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 6) -- election night spectacular

Ed Bark — 2012-11-07T11:18:57-06:00
That's an impressive showing by the three cable news networks, with MSNBC drawing more total viewers than CBS while Fox News Channel and CNN had two of the top four ratings performances. ...CNN, which comparatively plays it down the middle, fared the best overall among the three cable news networks with a third-place tie in prime-time and a first-place tie in late night.

Three-part Dallas Hope a PR plus for Baylor

Ed Bark — 2012-11-06T15:25:14-06:00
Former WFAA8 sports anchor-reporter Tony Martinez (a Peabody winner for his ESPN SportsCentury look at Jim Thorpe) wrote and directed the series in tandem with Kevin Spivey, his partner at Frisco-based Silver Horn Entertainment. ...Introducing a screening of the first two parts of Dallas Hope, Martinez stressed that it's not a commercial for the hospital and that "no one at Baylor changed any of the editorial content."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Nov. 5) -- Peacock again crows with 18-to-49-year-olds

Ed Bark — 2012-11-06T09:44:04-06:00
The 9 to 10 p.m. portion of MNF beat all broadcast network programming in both total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Monday's four-way local news derby results, WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 2-4) -- Cowboys raise ratings while sinking lower

Ed Bark — 2012-11-05T10:48:43-06:00
In the Friday night Nielsens, CBS' season premiere of Undercover Boss had 227,179 viewers in the 7 p.m. hour to run first against ABC's second season launch of Tim Allen's Last Man Standing (151,452 viewers) and the debut of Reba McEntire's Malibu Country (206,526 viewers). ...In Friday's four-way local news derby results, CBS11 had a solid first-place finish at 10 p.m. in total viewers while WFAA8 won by an equally comfy margin among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Nightcap springs itself on CW33

Ed Bark — 2012-11-02T12:25:53-05:00
The scrapping of the station's more or less "traditional" 9 p.m. newscast -- and the terminations of most staffers -- has yielded a 9 p.m. presentation that on opening night was wildly inconsistent but also had some plusses. ...Viewers of the first Nightcap also were afflicted with "Ask Tammy Manners," during which a dude in drag lounged in bed and said that his/her blog "quickly became a viral sensation -- not like Syphilis or anything."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Nov. 1) -- CMAs pace prime-time, with pockets of resistance from CBS

Ed Bark — 2012-11-02T10:53:42-05:00
Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, the CMAS fell to CBS' comedy combo in the 7 p.m. hour before beating Person of Interest and Elementary from 8 to 10 p.m. Fox's 7 to 9 p.m. edition of The X Factor ran a distant third all night in total viewers while running second from 8 to 9 p.m. with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 31) -- road toughening for Nashville

Ed Bark — 2012-11-01T11:10:34-05:00
It was a rout from 8 to 9 p.m., with Criminal Minds pulling in a night's best 296,021 viewers while the competing second hour of X Factor had 178,989. ...NBC virtually fell off the ratings map from 7 to 8 p.m., with its 30 Rock and Guys With Kids placing fifth in total viewers behind CBS, Fox, ABC and The CW's new Arrow. 30 Rock nipped Arrow for the No. 4 spot with 18-to-49-year-olds before Guys With Kids fell back to fifth.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues, Oct. 30) -- improbable Mavs win witnessed by smallish crowd

Ed Bark — 2012-10-31T09:47:36-05:00
Their appearance on The Texas Daily, for the first time in more than 27 years, had "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) for the live 8 a.m. edition and 2,065 total viewers for the 6 p.m. repeat. ...Rebecca Miller says goodbye -- As previously posted, CW33 meteorologist Rebecca Miller will not be a part of the station's new comedy-laced 9 p.m. Nightcap News, scheduled to launch on Thursday, Nov. 1st.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 29) -- NBC vs. ABC, with rivals in reruns

Ed Bark — 2012-10-31T09:00:04-05:00
NBC and ABC sent their usual Monday night big guns head to head while CBS opted for sitcom repeats and a Hurricane Sandy special and Fox threw in a two-hour reprise of The X Factor following a short order World Series. ...WFAA8 had three of the other four golds, with two wins at 6 p.m. and a 5 p.m. first among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Say it fast 10 times: New NBC5 weekend meteorologist is Lindsay Schwarzwaelder

Ed Bark — 2012-10-31T09:00:56-05:00
On her Facebook page Tuesday, the Lexington, KY meteorologist says she's joining the Fort Worth-based station after two years at NBC affiliate WLEX-TV. ...Asked last Thursday if anyone has been hired, the station's vice president of programming, Brian Hocker, said in an email reply, "Nothing to announce on the weekend meteorologist at this time.

Running the shows: Press Club of Dallas salutes five boss ladies of D-FW television news

Ed Bark — 2012-10-29T16:15:30-05:00
Left to right are D-FW television news directors Adrienne Roark (CBS11); Robin Whitmeyer (Fox4); Susan Tully (NBC5); Carolyn Mungo (WFAA8) and director of content Larissa Hall (CW33). Photos: Ed Bark ...Fox4 news director Robin Whitmeyer, who worked her way from the ground floor up during a long tenure at WSOC-TV in Charlotte, NC, said she'd still rather hunker down in a news room with her reporters and editors.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 26-28) -- Cowboys no Giant-killers, but high-jump back over one mil mark

Ed Bark — 2012-10-29T15:08:04-05:00
Sunday's Cowboys-Giants game hit a low of 1,005,093 viewers between 5 and 5:15 p.m. before rebounding to a high point of 1,438,798 viewers in the 6:15 to 6:30 segment. ...On Friday night, NBC's 7 p.m. airing of the busted pilot Mockingbird Lane (an odd, oft-grisly update of The Munsters), drew 110,147 viewers in running third to CBS' NCIS repeat (185,873 viewers) and ABC's Shark Tank (144,568). Mockingbird Lane moved up to second place among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, behind Shark Tank.

CW33 forecasts meteorologist Rebecca Miller out of its picture

Ed Bark — 2012-10-26T13:52:22-05:00
Several sources at the Dallas-based,Tribune-owned station say that Miller was informed Thursday that the new comedy-laced Nightcap News program, set for a Thursday, Nov. 1st debut, will not be including her. ...Miller, a former mainstay of NBC5's early morning news program, was dropped by that station in March 2008 and had to spend six months off the air as part of a standard "non-compete" contract.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 25) -- better numbers for World Series, fast start for Fox4 news on first day of "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2012-10-26T12:18:43-05:00
Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, Big Bang and CBS' following Two and a Half Men controlled the 7 p.m. hour before ABC's Grey's Anatomy edged the Series from 8 to 9 p.m. in this key demographic. ...Fox4 had the most opening day bragging rights, winning at both 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

NBC5's digital channel 5.2 will soon be a COZI environment for vintage TV

Ed Bark — 2012-10-25T17:00:25-05:00
Among the former hit TV series migrating from the NBCUniversal library to COZI are The Six Million Dollar Man, Charlie's Angels, The Lone Ranger, Lassie, Marcus Welby, M.D., Magnum, P.I., You Bet Your Life, The Red Skelton Show, The Lucy Show, Highway to Heaven and The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet. ...NBCUniversal said that COZI TV's overall objective is to stir old movies and TV series, plus first-run programming, "into one compelling network that will appeal to viewers who want to relax and escape."

Reunion towers: former WFAA8 news stars Rowlett, Johnson, Dungan on TV together for first time since 1985

Ed Bark — 2012-10-25T11:36:32-05:00
Their scheduled venue is the Tuesday, Oct. 30th 8 a.m. edition of KTXD-TV's (Ch. 47) The Texas Daily, where former WFAA8 news stars Tracy Rowlett, Iola Johnson and Troy Dungan are scheduled to be that day's featured attractions. ...As previously posted, The Texas Daily, which launched on Oct. 1st, uses a rotating group of former D-FW news personalities to comment on various issues of the day.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 24) -- CBS' Survivor, crime hours outdraw Game 1 of World Series

Ed Bark — 2012-10-25T10:08:40-05:00
Fox's Game 1 of the Giants' 8-3 win over Detroit, which featured three home runs by SF's Pablo Sandoval, was outdrawn across the board in total viewers by CBS' regular prime-time lineup of Survivor: Philippines, Criminal Minds and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. ...Survivor started the night for CBS with 240,947 viewers in beating the 7 to 8 p.m. portion of the Series. Criminal Minds followed with 330,442 viewers before CSI mopped up at 9 p.m. with 282,252.

Another incoming reporter at WFAA8: Jobin Panicker from KSEE-TV

Ed Bark — 2012-10-24T15:37:33-05:00
Dallas-based WFAA8 continues to replenish its reporting staff, adding Jobin Panicker from Fresno, Calif.'s NBC affiliate, KSEE-TV. ...The New York native has a Master's degree in Broadcast Journalism from Syracuse University's Newhouse School of Communication.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 23) -- ABC comedy returnees face stiff opposition

Ed Bark — 2012-10-24T10:36:05-05:00
In the 8:30 to 9 p.m. slot, a substitute episode of Fox's The X Factor (which was waylaid last week by a rain-delayed NLCS game) took the silver while Don't Trust the B nipped NBC's The New Normal for the bronze. Nielsen's advertiser-prized 18-to-49 measurement dumped NCIS: L.A. into fourth place; Go On nipped New Girl for the gold from 8 to 8:30 p.m. before X Factor topped the 8:30 to 9 p.m. field.

Reporters Latoya Silmon, Jason Wheeler respectively hired by Fox4, WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2012-10-23T16:28:46-05:00
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Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 19-21) -- Cowboys fall below one mil mark

Ed Bark — 2012-10-22T11:00:15-05:00
That's the first regular season game to fall below the one million mark since Dallas lost to Jacksonville on Oct. 31, 2010 in what amounted to a warmup for that night's Game 4 of the World Series between the Texas Rangers and San Francisco Giants. ...But AMC's second Season 3 episode of The Walking Dead was prime-time's second most-watched prime-time program in this key demographic. TWD easily dominated everything except football in the 8 p.m. hour.

The very public burning of Big Tex

Ed Bark — 2012-10-19T17:10:18-05:00
The sudden and shocking demise of Big Tex, who went up in flames late Friday morning, is very big news in these parts and around the globe for that matter. ...So I hope he wasn't serious when he tweeted, "In honor of today: 'Big Tex Friday' all flags at HS football games should fly at half staff, and a moment of silence."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 18) -- CBS/ABC split prime-time spoils

Ed Bark — 2012-10-19T16:14:58-05:00
The two CBS sitcoms prevailed among 18-to-49-year-olds before ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Scandal were tops from 8 to 10 p.m. in this key demographic. ABC's fourth episode of the generally praised Last Resort took the silver in total viewers at 7 p.m. but fell to fourth in its time slot with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 17) -- rain-delayed baseball rubs X Factor wrong way

Ed Bark — 2012-10-18T10:32:24-05:00
ABC's Modern Family had the most 18-to-49-year-olds from 8 to 8:30 p.m. before the second half of Criminal Minds prevailed from 8:30 to 9 p.m. FX then scored big with its 9 p.m. premiere of American Horror Story: Asylum, which beat all of the Big Four broadcast attractions in the key 18-to-49 demographic. AHS ran third at that hour in total viewers, behind CSI and Nashville.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 16) -- a big-drawing Round 2

Ed Bark — 2012-10-17T10:53:17-05:00
The premiere of The CW's Emily Owens, M.D., which aired opposite the debate from 8 to 9 p.m., had a teeny-sized 20,653 viewers. In Tuesday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

The new CW33 news: "You would be the most visible person in the circus that is our 9 p.m. show every night"

Ed Bark — 2012-10-16T15:47:52-05:00
The "Host/News Reader" apparently would be at least a bit more sober-minded: Or to quote from the job description, "Authenticity and integrity: these are the key traits we need in our news reader/host. ...And the overall look and demeanor of the new 9 p.m. show likely will be in step with the early morning comedy-infused Eye Opener program, which is produced out of CW33 studios and syndicated to several other Tribune-owned stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 15) -- NBC's Voice again drowns out ABC's DWTS

Ed Bark — 2012-10-16T13:35:05-05:00
NBC's The Voice again took the measure of ABC's competing Dancing with the Stars Monday, edging it in total viewers and crushing it among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In the 18-to-49 demographic, Voice was Monday's biggest overall with 175,417 while Monday Night Football placed a close second with 165,849. DWTS had 95,682, good enough to beat baseball and all of the CBS sitcoms except How I Met Your Mother.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 12-14) -- Cowboys again surpass one mil mark; Packers blast baseball

Ed Bark — 2012-10-15T11:48:38-05:00
The blood-draining 31-29 road killer at Baltimore averaged 1,101,472 viewers on Fox, up from the season low of 1,018,862 who watched Dallas get mauled by the Bears almost two weeks earlier on Monday Night Football. ...Then it was baseball in prime-time -- and also time for most viewers to switch to the Green Bay Packers' thrashing of the formerly undefeated Houston Texans on NBC's Sunday Night Football.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 11) -- Foxes run atop vp debate numbers

Ed Bark — 2012-10-12T11:16:11-05:00
That was enough to roll over Fox's The X Factor (268,484 viewers) while ABC's third episode of Last Resort made a decent third place showing with 185,873 viewers. The CBS sitcoms also won the 7 p.m. hour among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. Last Resort fell to fourth place, a bit behind NBC's 30 Rock and Up All Night.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 10) -- so-so start for Nashville

Ed Bark — 2012-10-11T10:42:20-05:00
Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, CSI inched past Nashville by a count of 86,114 viewers to 82,924. Chicago Fire fell to fourth behind Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast. ...But it was beaten in total viewers from 8 to 9 p.m. by both CBS' Criminal Minds and ABC's two new episodes of Modern Family. MF topped the 18-to-49 field, with X Factor moving up to second.

Reporter Melissa Newton leaving CBS11 to join husband meteorologist in OKC

Ed Bark — 2012-10-11T10:42:25-05:00
CBS11 reporter Melissa Newton, who joined the D-FW station in June 2009, will be leaving soon to join her husband, Damon Lane, in Oklahoma City. ...Lane, the early morning weatherman for KOCO-TV, has been promoted to chief meteorologist in place of Rick Mitchell, who left the station in August to join Fort Worth-based NBC5 as that station's eventual chief meteorologist.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 9) -- crime keeps paying for CBS

Ed Bark — 2012-10-10T12:09:21-05:00
Its lead-off hitter, NCIS, as usual was the day's most-watched TV attraction with 419,936 D-FW viewers. NCIS: Los Angeles (406,168 viewers) and Vegas (289,136 viewers) also won their time slots. ...The Peacock's Go On sitcom won from 8 to 8:30 p.m. with 18-to-49-year-olds, edging Fox's usually first-place New Girl by a score of 98,871 to 95,682.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 8) -- Texans-infused MNF is day's top draw

Ed Bark — 2012-10-09T09:59:47-05:00
NBC's 7 to 9 p.m. edition of The Voice was No. 2 on both scorecards, with 385,515 viewers and 178,606 of them in the 18-to-49 demographic. ...At 9 p.m., the non-football attractions were led by NBC's Revolution in both total viewers (247,831) and 18-to-49-year-olds (105,250).

CBS11 revs up early a.m. promo campaign, urges viewers to "Get your morning rollin' with Drolen"

Ed Bark — 2012-10-08T11:22:55-05:00
The station also has been touting its recently paired anchor team of Brendan Higgins and Adrienne Bankert with comedy-laced spots in the mold of WFAA8's (Ron) "Corning in the Morning" pace-setters. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 4 plus Friday's final Rangers game)

Ed Bark — 2012-10-07T11:40:57-05:00
In Thursday's prime-tiime Nielsens, CBS' 7 p.m. episode of The Big Bang Theory edged Fox's first half-hour of The X Factor by a score of 351,094 viewers to 330,442. ...ABC's second episode of Last Resort ran fourth at 7 p.m. among 18-to-49-year-olds while beating NBC's competing sitcom combo of 30 Rock and Up All Night in total viewers.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 3) -- debate rundown

Ed Bark — 2012-10-04T09:05:18-05:00
Airing in the hour preceding the face-off between President Obama and Mitt Romney, X Factor drew 302,905 D-FW viewers while also ranking as Wednesday's most-watched single network program among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In train wreck TV news, the Texas Rangers' Wednesday afternoon collapse at Oakland averaged 206,526 viewers on Fox Sports Southwest, with a peak crowd of 261,600 between 5:15 and 5:30 p.m.

Anchor Amanda Salinas and meteorologist Rebecca Miller will stay on at CW33 until January expiration of contracts

Ed Bark — 2012-10-03T12:10:16-05:00
"Transitioning" is just about completed at Dallas-based CW33, with the station's remaining two best-known news staffers, anchor Amanda Salinas and meteorologist Rebecca Miller, staying on until January to ride out their contracts. ...As previously reported, Tribune-owned CW33 is re-making its 9 p.m. local newscast in the image of the comedy-infused early morning Eye Opener program, which originates from the station's studios and also is carried by several other TV stations in the Tribune chain.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 2) -- lots of winners, even Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-10-03T10:03:09-05:00
Earlier in prime-time, CBS NCIS/NCIS: Los Angeles combo again drew the most total viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. NCIS had the biggest audience of all Tuesday programming, with 419,936 viewers. ...Fox's Ben and Kate beat only WFAA8's second half-hour of a nasty senatorial debate from 7:30 to 8 p.m. in both total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds.

A few comments on "Comments"

Ed Bark — 2012-10-02T13:28:11-05:00
Those who may have been reluctant to be interviewed by me -- for fear that they'd then be beaten up in the comments section -- can now rest easier. ...It's not a perfect way to deal with this situation, but I hope readers will know that my principal objective from the start has been to provide you with information on D-FW and national television that isn't readily available elsewhere.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 1) -- Cowboys mauled by Bears while viewers turn away

Ed Bark — 2012-10-02T10:12:59-05:00
In that arena, NBC's The Voice edged ABC's Dancing with the Stars from 7 to 9 p.m. by a score of 268,484 viewers to 240,947. ...In Monday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but NBC5 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

"Transitioning" at CW33 claims first wave of staffers

Ed Bark — 2012-10-02T08:52:24-05:00
On Nov. 1st, CW33 plans to launch a 9 p.m. newscast modeled after the station's early morning, comedy-infused Eye Opener program, which also is being carried by several other Tribune-owned stations. Eye Opener originates from CW33 studios. ...Tongish, who also anchored on weekends, has been with the station since the 1999 launch of its 9 p.m. newscast under former news director Anthony Maisel, who resigned in September 2007 and now is general manager at KTEN-TV in Sherman-Denison.

Rocky, oft-redundant start for KTXD-TV's Texas Daily

Ed Bark — 2012-10-01T15:24:03-05:00
Tracy Rowlett and Troy Dungan, who respectively worked together for a quarter-century as WFAA8's main anchor and weathercaster, were first onboard Monday after yet another onetime WFAA8 personality, former PM Magazine co-host Leeza Gibbons, introduced the program to its opening day audience. ...Brady for some reason also cited "this poll taken in Colorado" that showed President Obama with a 58-34 percent lead over Mitt Romney. Texas Daily made no further identification in the poll, whose gaping margin seemed curious to say the least.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 28-30) -- NFL and then everything else

Ed Bark — 2012-10-01T13:56:45-05:00
Its premiere episode drew just 144,568 viewers in the 9 p.m. hour opposite the dominant NFL and CBS' season premiere of its transplanted The Mentalist (302,905 viewers). ...ABC's Shark Tank won at 7 p.m. in this age group before Fox's Fringe and NBC's Dateline respectively took the 8 and 9 p.m. hours.

Forecast brighter for former CW33 meteorologist Bob Goosmann (updated Tuesday a.m.

Ed Bark — 2012-10-01T11:12:25-05:00
Bruce Gilbert, VP of news/talk/sports programming for CBS Radio Dallas-Fort Worth, said that Goosmann "lives and breathes North Texas weather and greatly respects KRLD's commitment to accurate and dependable forecast information every 10 minutes." ...Goosmann earlier had planned to live and breathe real estate, telling unclebarky.com in mid-summer that "for personal reasons, mainly dealing with my family, I chose not to pursue a full-time meteorologist position outside of the area.

25th anniversary Dallas VideoFest includes two panels hosted by your friendly content provider

Ed Bark — 2012-09-28T12:51:00-05:00
It's an honor and privilege to be doing two panels for the 25th anniversary of the Dallas VideoFest, which begins in earnest this weekend at the Dallas Museum of Art. ...But if you stop by to see ol' Uncle Barky, well, you just might win a free soft cotton T-shirt with the official Little Barky head-in-a-vintage-TV-set logo.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Sept. 26-27) -- more new series rollouts, with Elementary the biggest draw

Ed Bark — 2012-09-28T11:18:44-05:00
ABC's first episode of the critically acclaimed military drama Last Resort struggled to a third place finish at 7 p.m. behind the CBS comedies and Fox's The X Factor. Resort drew 206,526 viewers, enough at least to drub NBC's Saturday Night Live election special and Up All Night. ...ABC's new season debut of Grey's Anatomy was tops in the 8 p.m. hour among 18-to-49-year-olds, with Person of Interest and Fox's Glee close behind. Elementary won from 9 to 10 p.m., easily besting Fox4's local newscast.

The time is nigh, but is the timing finally right for KTXD-TV's baby boomer-aimed Texas Daily?

Ed Bark — 2012-09-27T08:58:07-05:00
Beginning on Monday, Oct. 1st, that strategy will take major shape and form with The Texas Daily, a one-hour 8 to 9 a.m. news presentation featuring an array of former D-FW anchors and reporters with more collective mileage on them than Apollo 13. ...KTXD's roster of "Dallas' best-loved former anchors and journalists from the past three decades" -- as a publicity release puts it -- also includes Jeff Brady (the full-time host of Texas Daily) and part-time "pundits" Tracy Rowlett, Troy Dungan, Iola Johnson, John Criswell, Midge Hill, Phyllis Watson, Gary Cogill, Robert Riggs, Jolene DeVito, Debbie Denmon, Suzie Humphreys and John Sparks.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Sept. 25) -- a CBS sweep in total viewers but fall-offs with 18-to-49-year-olds

Ed Bark — 2012-09-26T10:08:45-05:00
ABC's two-hour Dancing with the Stars results show (Pamela Anderson is done) had 220,294 viewers before the 9 p.m. season of Private Practice fell to 178,989 in drawing less than half the audience for Vegas. Among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, though, The Voice, DWTS, ABC's The Practice and Fox's double-barreled Season 2 premiere of New Girl put some limps in CBS' victory march.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 24) -- opening night of new season edition

Ed Bark — 2012-09-25T12:03:23-05:00
Over on ESPN, the biggest replacement ref screwup to date handed the Seattle Seahawks a "Hail Mary" win over the Green Bay Packers that inflamed all of the network's commentators, lit up Planet Twitter and even prompted Troy Aikman to tweet, "These games are a joke." ...In Monday's local news derby results, WFAA8 overcame a substantial NBC5 lead-in advantage from Revolution to win at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Latest Nielsen ratings point values for D-FW show overall increase in viewers, but drops in key demos

Ed Bark — 2012-09-25T09:41:09-05:00
Nielsen Media Research's annual adjustment of ratings point values shows a plus side in D-FW for total viewers after last year's unanticipated drop-off. ...The number of total viewers per rating point increased from 67,741 to 68,842, still a little short of the all-time high of 69,257 for the 2010-11 TV season.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 21-23) -- Emmys take a big back seat; Cowboys win ugly with same ratings as ugly loss

Ed Bark — 2012-09-24T10:42:37-05:00
Sunday's 16-10 victory over Tampa Bay, which ground to a halt at 3:27 p.m., had a peak crowd of 1,280,305 between 3 and 3:15 p.m. ...Sunday's Texas Rangers win at Seattle, by a 3-2 score, began with a sub-scant 13,548 total viewers in the 3 to 3:15 p.m. segment.

It'll be stop and go for Samantha Davies as NBC5's new weather-proof traffic anchor

Ed Bark — 2012-09-22T08:40:10-05:00
The Fort Worth-based station has made her its full-time early morning traffic anchor, filling a position that had been open since longtime "Gridlock Buster" Tammy Dombeck and NBC5 parted ways on July 27th. ...A variety of NBC5 staffers had been filling the traffic cop slot since Dombeck's departure, including Davies and fellow meteorologist Grant Johnston, who recently was named the full-time 5 to 7 a.m. weathercaster.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Sept. 20) -- tough night for returning Peacock comedies

Ed Bark — 2012-09-21T11:23:32-05:00
NBC's season premiere of Parks and Recreation fell to fourth with 81,289 viewers. Glee again won from 8:30 to 9 p.m., with another Two and a Half Men rerun and ABC's second half-hour of a Grey's Anatomy do-over running second and third. Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, SNL and Up All Night also ran third. The Office moved up to No. 2 behind Glee while Parks and Recreation nipped both Grey's Anatomy and Two and a Half Men for the silver.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 19) -- X Factor takes on a new "reality competition" foe

Ed Bark — 2012-09-20T09:34:48-05:00
X Factor won its entire two hours among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, but the Rangers were tops from 9 to 10 p.m. in this key demographic. Big Brother took the 9 to 10 p.m. silver ahead of Fox4's news. Fox4 had a big day in the local news derby Nielsens, winning at 6 a.m. and at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Sept. 18) -- The Voice stays in tune for NBC

Ed Bark — 2012-09-19T13:38:12-05:00
Its 7 p.m. hour rang up 399,672 viewers before a new 8 p.m. episode of Matthew Perry's Go On also won its time slot with a nice-sized 250,642 viewers. ...In Tuesday's local news derby results, WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 took the top spot among 15-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Press Club of Dallas feting D-FW's unprecedented five women news directors

Ed Bark — 2012-09-18T15:35:34-05:00
Presumably appearing together for the first time, D-FW's five women news directors will be honored by the Press Club of Dallas at an event headlined "Breaking News and Ceilings --A First For Journalism in Dallas-Fort Worth." ..."No television market in the United States, much a less a top five market such as D-FW, has achieved this feat," a Press Club publicity release says of the quintet of women news directors.

Former WFAA8 anchor Denmon says she'll double down as Dallas County D.A.'s head spokesperson and part-time commentaor on new Texas Daily news hour

Ed Bark — 2012-09-18T13:34:24-05:00
Former WFAA8 anchor/reporter Debbie Denmon will still be a part-time commentator on KTXD-TV's (Ch. 52) upcoming The Texas Daily news program while also working full-time in her new post as director of communications for the Dallas County District Attorney's office. ...As previously reported, Texas Daily will be a one-hour weekday local news hour aimed at baby boomers and scheduled to premiere on Monday, Oct. 1st at 8 a.m. with a who's who of 14 past D-FW television luminaries.

New possibilities at Fox4 with Tulsa early morning anchor Laura Moss in for an interview

Ed Bark — 2012-09-18T11:55:31-05:00
Fox4 is in another tight three-way early morning ratings battle with NBC5 and WFAA8 after running a close second to the Peacock in the May "sweeps" total viewer ratings while edging NBC5 and WFAA8 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. The initial tip on Moss said that she was a likely candidate to replace incumbent Good Day anchor Lauren Przybyl, who began working the early morning shift with Tim Ryan in September 2009 after Megan Henderson left earlier that year to take an anchoring job at KTLA-TV in Los Angeles.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 17) -- Revolution a street fighting man(ster) for NBC

Ed Bark — 2012-09-18T09:48:49-05:00
In local news derby results, NBC5 failed to capitalize on its runaway lead-in advantage from Revolution, losing to WFAA8 in total viewers at 10 p.m. while tying Fox4 for first among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...It placed fourth in total viewers at 4 p.m., third with 25-to-54-year-olds and in a fifth place tie with CW33's Ricki Lake Show in the 18-to-49 measurement.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 14-16) -- deflated numbers for bubble-bursting Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2012-09-17T17:31:21-05:00
Friday's season premiere of ABC's Shark Tank, with Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban again a regular panelist, tied CBS' Undercover Boss rerun with 115,160 viewers in the 7 p.m. hour. Tank easily topped the time period among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds among the Big Four broadcast networks. ...Earlier in the day, a fifth 4 p.m. helping of Katie Couric's Katie continued to struggle on WFAA8, placing fourth at that hour in total viewers and fifth with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Unclebarky.com turns 6, signs self to new one-year deal, heads off to jury duty

Ed Bark — 2012-09-17T06:31:22-05:00
Daughter Liz and son Sam again over-react in celebrating another unclebarky.com anniversary. ...And there's barely time to say "Oh boy oh boy oh boy" before heading off to jury duty.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Sept. 13) -- another Fox/NBC faceoff

Ed Bark — 2012-09-14T11:43:41-05:00
And then there's Katie Couric's Katie, which is showing serious signs of being a major disappointment for WFAA8 in a key 4 to 5 p.m. slot that provides a pathway to its early evening newscasts. ...WFAA8 found a beacon of light with its still very formidable 10 p.m. edition, which ran first in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Dewberry new to NBC5, but familiar with D-FW

Ed Bark — 2012-09-14T06:34:09-05:00
She is a survivor of leukemia and two diagnoses of breast cancer, the last in 2011 according to an article in Indianapolis Woman magazine. ...version=3&hl=en_US">Longtime D-FW radio personality Alex Burton died Thursday at the age of 80. ...Joe Simnacher, principal obituary writer for The Dallas Morning News, has a complete account of Burton's life and times.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 12) -- X Factor holds off The Voice in battle of singing competition titans

Ed Bark — 2012-09-13T10:04:08-05:00
Its 67,741 viewers were well less than half the totals for both Fox4's news and CSI. New Normal also trailed in third place among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Wednesday's third episode of Katie Couric's Katie continued to lose viewers, with just 40,645 from 4 to 5 p.m. on WFAA8. Katie did a bit better than the previous day among 18-to-49-year-olds and 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming) while still running behind Fox4's Judge Judy and NBC5's First At Four local newscast.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Sept. 11) -- NBC prospers in prime-time with first-run lineup; Katie tanking big-time

Ed Bark — 2012-09-12T14:25:56-05:00
But another Peacock newcomer, The New Normal, dipped to third place from 8:30 to 9 p.m. behind the Rangers (who steadily built up steam) and the second half of CBS' Hawaii Five-0 repeat. ...Both CW33's new Ricki Lake Show and MY27's double run of Meet the Browns episodes had three times as many viewers as Katie in this key demographic. Katie also trailed TXA21's The People's Court, the two Judge Judy episodes and local newscasts on NBC5 and CBS11.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 10) -- Katie doesn't do it on opening day in Dallas

Ed Bark — 2012-09-11T11:57:37-05:00
Airing from 4 to 5 p.m with opening guest Jessica Simpson, Katie drew 81,289 D-FW viewers in finishing third to NBC5's First At Four news and Fox4's double dose of Judge Judy. ...Katie's opening day also failed to light the fuse among both 18-to-49-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for entertainment programming) and 25-to-54-year-olds (key target audience for news programming).

WFAA8 has a Corona -- as a freelancer for now after she lost previous lawsuit against Houston TV station

Ed Bark — 2012-09-11T09:19:29-05:00
storyid=169155886&pos=top&swfw=470"> Sorry, but I just can't help falling in love with this throwback KXAS-TV (NBC5) promo for the station's old series of hard-to-swallow "Dirty Dining" reports. ...Every D-FW station at one time or another has done a variation on this time-honored ratings "sweeps" stunt, which was pioneered in the 1980s by investigative reporter Charles Duncan's recurring "Eat, Drink and Be Wary" dispatches for WFAA8.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Sept. 6) -- NBC leads convention ratings parade while Rangers swing for fences

Ed Bark — 2012-09-07T09:49:06-05:00
MSNBC, led by Rachel Maddow, ridiculed the Republicans for putting Clint Eastwood in the 9 to 10 p.m. prime-time showcase spot while showing Romney's biographical film before ABC, CBS and NBC began their convention coverage. ...NBC5 and WFAA8 tied for first in total viewers at 6 a.m., with the Peacock alone on top among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Former CW33 anchor Walt Maciborski already popping up in new promo for Indy's Fox station

Ed Bark — 2012-09-06T11:48:07-05:00
Anchor-reporter Walt Maciborski, who left traumatized Dallas-based CW33 in mid-August, already is shown in a new promo for Indianapolis Fox affiliate WXIN-TV (Fox 59), which is adding a one-hour 6 p.m. newscast on Monday, Sept. 10th. ...version=3&hl=en_US">Eye Opener. ...WFAA8 increasingly is the D-FW market's comedy central, whether it's the series of promotions for early morning anchor Ron Corning; Texas Rangers pitcher Derek Holland goofing his way through a weather segment or forecaster Pete Delkus jabbing at Hansen -- and vice-versa -- during virtually every newscast.

Veteran CBS 11 reporter Jay Gormley opting for new career; so is the station's special projects editor

Ed Bark — 2012-09-04T17:41:48-05:00
Gormley, who joined the station in 1997 and has been a nightside reporter throughout his tenure, is resigning to become director of communications for the Dallas region of Time Warner cable. ...He had heard about the opening at Time Warner, and decided to apply in the interests of working more stable hours at a job that might have more of a future for a person his age.

Dramatic overhaul for CW33 newscasts, with no one's job guaranteed (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-09-04T14:26:37-05:00
In happier times: Former CW33 9 p.m. news team of Rebecca Miller, Walt Maciborski, Amanda Salinas and Dave Crome. Photo: Ed Bark ...A turbulent four-year reign of former WFAA8 news director David Duitch (now editor of dallasnews.com) was marked by numerous staff firings and hirings, an emphasis on "social media" content and the deployment of a full-time "sexpert" who since has left the station.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 31-Sept. 3) -- Friday night Rangers edge Saturday night football from Jerry's Palace

Ed Bark — 2012-09-04T10:21:02-05:00
Sunday's 7 to 10 p.m. portion of the Jerry Lewis-less MDA telethon on TXA21 averaged just 9,484 total viewers, with "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) for its closing half-hour. ...WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 continued its strong run among 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming) with a comfy win over WFAA8.

Casey Norton leaving WFAA8; former weekend anchor partner Debbie Denmon takes new job with Dallas County D.A.'s office (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-08-31T17:52:32-05:00
But in a statement released by the D.A.'s office, Denmon said, "I'm excited to embark upon this new venture in my career after spending more than 20 years honing my journalism skills in the broadcast industry. ...Earlier this month, Denmon told unclebarky.com that she planned to join the part-time staff of The Texas Daily, a one-hour local morning newscast scheduled to premiere Oct. 1st on KTXD-TV.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Aug. 30) -- convention's closing night another Fox News Channel victory lap

Ed Bark — 2012-08-31T12:24:00-05:00
Fox4 won at 6 a.m. in total viewers while tying WFAA8 for first place among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. The two stations split the golds at both 5 and 6 p.m., with WFAA8 on top in total viewers and Fox4 the most-watched by 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Aug. 29) -- Cowboys, convention, Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-08-30T11:23:49-05:00
Grinding to an end at 10:37 p.m., Dallas' 30-13 win over the Dolphins averaged 338,705 viewers overall, with 352,253 during the 9 to 10 p.m. hour in which ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, Fox News Channel, CNN and MSNBC all offered convention coverage. ...So much so that CW33's 9 p.m. local newscast Wednesday had more 18-to-49-year-old viewers than the convention hours on NBC and ABC while tying PBS.

Ready or not, Tony Romo is (in new commercial)

Ed Bark — 2012-08-30T10:38:44-05:00
version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Aug. 28) -- what condition's the convention in?

Ed Bark — 2012-08-29T10:29:42-05:00
First off, it's not surprising that Fox News Channel would be the No. 1-rated network for Republican Convention coverage during the one-hour in which it went head-to-head with the three major broadcast networks as well as CNN and MSNBC. ...It'll be a tougher task for Wednesday's 9 to 10 p.m. convention window, which in D-FW is opposite the final Dallas Cowboys exhibition throwaway on TXA21 and at least part of the early starting Rangers game if it runs past 9 p.m. after an early 6:05 p.m. start to accommodate Jerry's Team.

Return of the two-headed weatherman -- NBC5 edition

Ed Bark — 2012-08-28T12:44:13-05:00
As previously posted, Mitchell is inheriting the 10 p.m. newscast -- as well as the 4 p.m. -- while Finfrock is relinquishing the late night weathercasts he's been doing since becoming NBC5's chief meteorologist in 1991. ...WFAA8 management later stopped being friendly with Dungan after he anointed CBS11's Larry Mowry as his favorite weatherman during that station's ratings "sweeps" feature story on Dungan's retirement years.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Aug. 27) -- back to school means back on top for Fox4

Ed Bark — 2012-08-28T11:00:18-05:00
In the other local news derby results, WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers but Fox4 again ruled with 25-to-54-year-olds. ...The other golds went to WFAA8 at 6 p.m. in total viewers and Fox4 at 5 p.m. with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Tom and Jerry: Cowboys commercials then and now

Ed Bark — 2012-08-27T16:20:13-05:00
version=3&hl=en_US">Inside Edition, Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune. ...WFAA8 had been the show's home for the previous 18 years, but the station opted to move Entertainment Tonight into the 6:30 p.m. slot after deeming Wheel's audience too old and thereby less profitable in terms of potential advertising revenues.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 24-26) -- Cowboys inch up, Rangers remain solid

Ed Bark — 2012-08-27T10:32:19-05:00
ABC's competing NASCAR race drove into second place in the prime-time Nielsens with 94,837 viewers while NBC's one-hour Wrestlemania special managed 74,515 viewers from 8 to 9 p.m. ...In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 notched a 10 p.m. win in total viewers but bowed to Fox4 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues.-Thurs., Aug. 21-23) -- three more sweeps for Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-08-24T12:51:07-05:00
Wednesday -- CBS11 edged WFAA8 for the 10 p.m. top spot in total viewers while Fox4 cruised to a dominant win among 25-to-54-year-olds. ...NBC5 and CBS11 tied for first at 6 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 again won with 25-to-54-year-olds.

First of its kind: the Dale Hansen Football Classic

Ed Bark — 2012-08-24T11:44:17-05:00
version=3&hl=en_US">

Debbie Denmon, Iola Johnson the latest to sign on as part-time pundits for KTXD-TV's upcoming Texas Daily news program (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-08-23T16:19:49-05:00
Johnson was the first African-American anchor in the D-FW market, debuting on weekends in 1973 before teaming with Tracy Rowlett in 1975 for a ratings-rich 10-year run at 6 and 10 p.m. weeknights. ...Denmon, sacked in July after a 12-year tenure at WFAA8, at first thought that a standard "non-compete" clause in her contract would prohibit her from being on the air with a rival D-FW station for at least six months.

Veteran WFAA8 reporter Cynthia Vega leaves station

Ed Bark — 2012-08-23T15:16:33-05:00
The latest to call it a day is veteran WFAA8 reporter Cynthia Vega, who joined the ABC affiliate in spring 2000. ...Her departure pretty much rubs out the on-camera anchors and reporters hired by former WFAA8 news director David Duitch, who had that position from August 1999 to December 2004.

Keith Garvin back in the running as newest anchor-reporter for Houston's KPRC-TV (updated with comments from Garvin)

Ed Bark — 2012-08-23T13:09:23-05:00
Former CBS11 anchor-reporter Keith Garvin, whose last day at the station was Monday, has quickly landed on his feet in another Texas TV newsroom. ...Garvin initially came to Texas in November 2009 as co-anchor of the now defunct First In Prime local newscast on CBS11's sister station, TXA21.

WFAA8's McCaa staying in place while other D-FW long-timers change courses

Ed Bark — 2012-08-22T15:51:32-05:00
This week's news of NBC5 meteorologist David Finfrock leaving the station's 10 p.m. newscasts while slowly marching toward a planned 2018 retirement came shortly after WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos became a part-timer by giving up her regular 6 p.m. berth. ...And his recently hired news director, Carolyn Mungo, has yet to return an email on any subject, even to comment on the end of Campos' 6 p.m. tenure and what she has meant to the station as D-FW's first Hispanic weekday news anchor.

Iconic NBC5 meteorologist David Finfrock signs last contract with station while newcomer Rick Mitchell gets the 10 p.m. newscast for starters

Ed Bark — 2012-08-22T09:12:42-05:00
The winds of change are sweeping through NBC5's weather center, with iconic meteorologist David Finfrock planning to retire at the end of a new "long-term" deal while newcomer Rick Mitchell soon will be inheriting the 10 p.m. mantle. ...Mitchell, who was a meteorologist for WOI-TV in Des Moines, Iowa before moving to KOCO-TV in 1994, said that "the combination of the rich history of KXAS-TV (now promoted as NBC5) and the chance to be part of their wonderful weather team makes this a dream job for me."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Aug. 20) -- Rangers back on top

Ed Bark — 2012-08-21T15:24:32-05:00
But the first-place Texas Rangers moved firmly back atop the prime-time Nielsens Monday, ranking as prime-time's most-watched attraction in both total D-FW viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Fox's 8 p.m. episode of Hell's Kitchen ranked second in both measurements, with 169,353 total viewers and 86,462 of them in the 18-to-49 range.

CBS11 reporter Jay Gormley still scripting for the big screen, too

Ed Bark — 2012-08-21T10:03:25-05:00
And his eighteen-and-a-half minute film, Odds Or Evens, recently was named "Best Community Short" at the Oak Cliff Film Festival after earlier making the cut for Oklahoma City's annual deadCenter festival. ...It was primarily Venable's film, with a cast that included John Wesley Shipp (best known as Dawson Leery's dad on Dawson's Creek after earlier playing the title role in the short-lived 1990 CBS series The Flash).

Briefly in D-FW television news

Ed Bark — 2012-08-20T16:50:59-05:00
The ABC affiliate also will continue to carry Anderson Cooper's struggling Anderson, which is getting a makeover and a new title, Anderson Live, this fall. ...WFAA8, which has declined to develop a local 4 p.m. news program to compete with those on NBC5 and CBS11, is hoping that Katie will funnel an appreciably larger audience than Dr.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 17-19) -- Cowboys power up, in ratings at least

Ed Bark — 2012-08-20T13:43:08-05:00
Heavy duty area storms also were a factor in Saturday's 10 p.m. equation, with NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 of course milking this situation with top-of-the-newscast weather summations while the Lions and Ravens played on. ...Friday's three-way 10 p.m. competition ended in a total viewers tie for first place between NBC5 and WFAA8, with CBS11 ranking third ahead of Fox's football.

CW33 anchor Walt Maciborski is latest to depart

Ed Bark — 2012-08-17T13:17:05-05:00
Anchor Walt Maciborski is leaving CW33, leaving Amanda Salinas to solo for now at the tumultuous Tribune-owned station. Photo: Ed Bark ...Maciborski and his 9 p.m. co-anchor, Amanda Salinas, were both hired in February 2009 by former CW33 news director David Duitch, who earlier this summer left the station to become editor of The Dallas Morning News website, dallasnews.com.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues.-Thurs., Aug. 14-16) -- West Nile virus coverage vs. pre-season football

Ed Bark — 2012-08-17T11:52:39-05:00
The 10 to 10:30 p.m. portion of Fox's NFL pre-season game drew 134,127 viewers, falling from the 9:45 to 10 p.m. football audience of 172,062 viewers. ...NBC5 was tops in total viewers at 6 a.m. while tying WFAA8 for the lead among 25-to-54-year-olds with Fox4 right behind and CBS11 again well back.

The time is now: Gloria Campos ending 22-year tenure as WFAA8's weekday 6 p.m. co-anchor

Ed Bark — 2012-08-17T07:19:45-05:00
But after 28 years at Dallas-based WFAA8, the last 22 as the first Hispanic of any gender to be permanent anchor of a weekday D-FW newscast, Campos' last regular 6 p.m. edition will be on Friday, August 17th. ...And Campos insists that this was her initiative, not a case of management marginalizing her, as NBC5 did by initially removing both Mike Snyder and Jane McGarry from its 10 p.m. newscasts while at the same time sharply cutting their salaries.

Briefly in D-FW television news

Ed Bark — 2012-08-16T17:59:37-05:00
NBC5 news director Susan Tully relayed a comment via email, saying that Johnston "offered to help out on traffic, as we are still searching and there's vacation scheduling on top of it. ...*** CBS11 reports that one of the station's photojournalists, Edgar Solis, had his Richardson home destroyed by lightning during Tuesday night's storms.

CW33 tabs Larissa Hall as newsroom's latest Director of Content

Ed Bark — 2012-08-16T15:24:31-05:00
Larissa Hall, who has been senior producer of the Tribune Company's laugh-laced early morning Eye Opener program, has been named as Dallas-based CW33's new Director of Content. ...Hall also has been a news producer at Austin's KVUE-TV and has a bachelor's degree in journalism from the University of Texas at Austin, according to her Linkedin biography.

Anchor-reporter Keith Garvin cutting ties with CBS11 (updated with comments from Garvin)

Ed Bark — 2012-08-15T20:21:42-05:00
In a later email reply, Garvin said he's "proud of all my work at CBS11, but especially proud of the time I spent in Afghanistan to tell the stories of North Texas soldiers deployed there. ...Pineiro eventually was dropped and Garvin got re-assigned in June of this year after former NBC5 early morning anchor Brendan Higgins was hired to work the same shift at CBS11.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Aug. 10-13) -- Olympics pass baton to Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2012-08-14T10:13:49-05:00
Monday also marked a big night of post-Olympics premieres on NBC, which had flogged the launch of Stars Earn Stripes and the Season 2 start-up of Grimm throughout the Summer Games. ...NBC5, in the final throes of its Olympic afterglow, swept Friday's 6 a.m. and 5 and 6 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (main target audience for news programming).

Reporter Giselle Phelps resigns from Dallas-based CW33

Ed Bark — 2012-08-11T12:11:18-05:00
"That's really all I want to say at this point, other than to say I appreciate the opportunities I received at CW33," she said in a telephone interview. ...So she will not be shackled by a "non-compete" clause and is free to be an on-camera reporter for other stations in the D-FW market.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Aug. 9) -- Olympics flaming out

Ed Bark — 2012-08-10T12:18:55-05:00
Still, nothing else measured up, with CBS' 7 p.m. repeat of The Big Bang Theory taking the prime-time silver Thursday with 162,578 total viewers. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 swept the downsized three-way 10 p.m. faceoff in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues.-Wed., Aug. 7-8) -- Dallas season finale dodges Rangers bullets, paces cable ratings

Ed Bark — 2012-08-09T11:26:35-05:00
TNT's Season One shutdown of Dallas fell far from the heights of its two-pronged premiere while still beating everything except the Olympics in Wednesday's prime-time Nielsens. ...In the downsized three-way 10 p.m. races, WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for Tuesday's 10 p.m. gold in total viewers, with Fox4 winning among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Cowboys pre-season home will be on CBS11/TXA21

Ed Bark — 2012-08-07T16:17:59-05:00
Dallas' longest-running serial drama, the Cowboys, again are getting ready for some football, beginning with Monday night's pre-season kickoff at Oakland. ...Plus three regular season games, including TXA21's simulcast of ESPN's Oct. 1st Monday Night Football game against the Chicago Bears.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Aug. 6) -- Olympics still dominate but with reduced swagger

Ed Bark — 2012-08-07T11:43:01-05:00
That's one of the smaller crowds for the ongoing Summer Games, but only a slight drop-off from the 684,184 who watched the first Monday's prime-time coverage. ...In local news derby results, NBC5 rolled to sweeps at 6 a.m. and 5 and 6 p.m., winning in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming).

The late Marvin Hamlisch made WFAA8's GMT a regular stop

Ed Bark — 2012-08-07T10:37:12-05:00
Music maestro Marvin Hamlisch, who died Monday at age 68, appeared several times in recent years on WFAA8's Good Morning Texas. ...version=3&hl=en_US">
View more videos at: Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, The O'Reilly Factor and Lopez Tonight. ...
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Get More: Daily Show Full Episodes,Political Humor & Satire Blog,The Daily Show on Facebook

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Aug. 2) -- Olympics. Rangers. Period.

Ed Bark — 2012-08-03T09:58:54-05:00
NBC's Thursday night Olympics package topped out at 1,056,760 viewers between 10:15 and 10:30 p.m. enroute to averaging 826,440 viewers for the entire four hours. ...In Thursday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won a downsized three-way 10 p.m. faceoff in the total viewer Nielsens; Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Aug. 1) -- Rangers miracle comeback still no match for Olympics

Ed Bark — 2012-08-02T11:46:11-05:00
The Summer Games still prevailed by a wide margin, drawing 785,796 D-FW viewers in the 10 p.m. hour before NBC5's late-arriving local newscast had 447,091 viewers for its 11 to 11:15 p.m. segment. ...Among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming, Fox4 was tops at 10 p.m. with just 30,093, followed by CBS11 (24,074) and WFAA8 (18,056).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., July 31) -- fourth night of Olympics competition pulls highest numbers to date

Ed Bark — 2012-08-01T11:27:48-05:00
The fourth day of Olympics competition averaged 860,311 D-FW viewers from 7 to 11 p.m, with a peak crowd of 1,138,049 between 10:15 and 10:30 p.m. ...CBS11's 10 p.m. local newscast had the most viewers with 108,386, followed by Fox4's 9 p.m. news and WFAA8's 10 p.m. edition (88,063 each); Fox4's 10 p.m. news (60,967) and The CW's 9 p.m. news (6,774).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., July 30) -- Olympics show no signs of flaming out

Ed Bark — 2012-07-31T14:52:10-05:00
NBC's prime-time Olympics coverage again squashed all competing programming Monday night, weighing in with an average of 684,184 D-FW viewers from 7 to 11 p.m. ...In Monday's local news derby results, NBC basked in a comfy Olympics halo effect, sweeping the 6 a.m. and 6 p.m. competitions in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Bob Goosmann, Chase Williams latest to leave CW33

Ed Bark — 2012-07-31T12:26:15-05:00
In January of 2009, Goosmann was supplanted as CW33's featured forecaster by Rebecca Miller, who earlier had been dropped from NBC5's early morning team after a long run. ...***In a harbinger of what could be coming at CW33, Monday's 9 p.m. newscast went anchor-less after both Walt Maciborski and Amanda Salinas called in sick.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., July 27-29) -- Olympics tower over all

Ed Bark — 2012-07-30T14:18:29-05:00
Friday night's opening ceremonies from London averaged 894,181 D-FW viewers on NBC, with only the Yu Darvish-powered Rangers' loss to the White Sox drawing anything resembling a crowd. ...In Friday's local news derby results, Fox4 swept the 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., July 26) -- all quiet on the pre-Olympics/Yu tube front

Ed Bark — 2012-07-27T14:31:13-05:00
Another CBS entry, Big Brother 14, easily led all Thursday programming in the advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-old demographic, with haul of 105,676. In contrast, the premiere of CBS' 3, another looking for love "reality" concoction, came up DOA at 9 p.m. with just 54,193 total viewers, 22,416 of the 18-to-49 persuasion.

Dombeck says goodbye, ends 12-year tenture as NBC5's early morning traffic cop

Ed Bark — 2012-07-27T14:31:54-05:00
"She's great at what she does and she has a heckuva smile that she brings us every morning," co-anchor Deborah Ferguson said before Dombeck took her final turn in front of a traffic map at 6:56 a.m. ...Veteran Fox4 sports anchor Mike Doocy and his wingman, photo-journalist Chris Hanks, began their cost-cutting road trip to Cowboys camp in Oxnard, CA Thursday.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., July 25) -- more riches for Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-07-26T12:39:08-05:00
Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast and CBS11's syndicated Wheel of Fortune placed second in total viewers (203,223 apiece) while Fox4's 10 p.m. news was the runner-up with 18-to-49-year-olds (80,058). ...In Wednesday's four-way local news derby results, CBS11 took the 10 p.m. gold in total viewers, but Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Drive, they said: Fox4 sports anchor Mike Doocy won't be flying high to Cowboys training camp

Ed Bark — 2012-07-25T14:20:53-05:00
In reality, sources close to the situation say that Fox4 management didn't want to spring for two round trip plane tickets (for Doocy and his photographer) plus a rental car for the planned two-week stay in Oxnard, CA. ...So it was strongly suggested that Doocy and his designated photo-journalist drive the nearly 1,500 miles from Dallas to Oxnard, where the first full practice is scheduled for Monday after owner Jerry Jones' annual state-of-the-team speech on the day before.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., July 24) -- Rangers, Fox4 9 p.m. news are heaviest hitters

Ed Bark — 2012-07-25T10:34:28-05:00
An angry crowd earlier had gathered at the scene, prompting Fox4, NBC5 and WFAA8 to preempt their 6:30 p.m. entertainment rag mags for continuous live coverage while CBS11 went to the early stages of Wheel of Fortune before bailing out and resuming its live news reports. ...In the four-way local news derby results, WFAA8 ranked first at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., July 23) -- Rangers score on two fronts

Ed Bark — 2012-07-24T13:16:11-05:00
ABC's two-hour season premiere of Bachelor Pad had a lackluster 81,289 total viewers before the network's Big Brother knockoff, Glass House, registered as prime-time's least-watched attraction among the Big Four broadcast networks with 33,871 viewers. Fox4 had a big day in the four-way local news derby results, sweeping the 10 p.m., 6 a.m. and 5 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Museum of Broadcasting? No, KTXD's impending oldies/goodies local newscast

Ed Bark — 2012-07-24T13:16:57-05:00
"We're trying to aim an hour's worth of news and comments at the older demographic, the baby boomers," said Phil Hurley, executive vice president and COO of London Broadcasting, Inc., owner of KTXD. ...Still, he confirmed that former WFAA8 anchor Jeff Brady has agreed to "kind of drive the car" while rotating "pundits" such as Rowlett, Criswell, Dungan (who won't be doing weather) and Murray (who won't be doing sports) hash over the local, national and international news of the day.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., July 20-22) -- Rangers lose two of three to Angels but otherwise make clean sweep

Ed Bark — 2012-07-23T13:53:29-05:00
Sunday night's game on ESPN, a 7-4 Rangers loss, drew 264,190 viewers while Friday night's 6-1 Angels win on TXA21 had a crowd of 257,416. ...In Friday's local news derby results, CBS11 swept the 10 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

R.I.P. Eddie Barker: Aug. 18, 1927 to July 23, 2012 (updated Monday, 3:45 p.m.)

Ed Bark — 2012-07-23T10:09:42-05:00
And as news director at Channel 4 (now KDFW/Fox4), he also hired Judy Jordan, who became the "First Lady" of D-FW television news after Barker made her an anchor. Most accounts initially credited Dan Rather, as did the reporter himself, for being the first to report on television that Kennedy had died during that horrific Nov. 22, 1963 day in Dallas.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., July 19) -- address is CBS

Ed Bark — 2012-07-20T10:50:01-05:00
A CBS mix of repeats and Big Big Brother 14 controlled Thursday's prime-time numbers in total viewers and likewise almost ran the table with advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In the four-way local news derby faceoffs, WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., July 18) -- Talent, Big Brother set pace on sluggish summer night

Ed Bark — 2012-07-19T14:25:04-05:00
NBC's 8 p.m. hour of America's Got Talent ranked as Wednesday's top prime-time draw, but Madison Avenue's desired segment of the human species sided with CBS' Big Brother 14. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 topped the 10 p.m. field in total viewers while tying Fox4 for first place among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CBS11 hires new early morning traffic stopper, shifts incumbent Frosini to reporter role

Ed Bark — 2012-07-19T14:27:03-05:00
CBS11 continued its early morning news makeover Thursday by naming Whitney Drolen as the new traffic "anchor" while shifting incumbent Teresa Frosini to the D-FW station's reporting staff. ..."I am excited to have the opportunity to move into the genre where my passion lies," she says, also noting her love for the early morning shift she'll be leaving.

Anchor Debbie Denmon leaves WFAA8 (updated 3:30 p.m. Wednesday with new comments from Denmon and a no comment from WFAA)

Ed Bark — 2012-07-18T12:51:07-05:00
Anchor Debbie Denmon, who joined WFAA8 in October, 2000, announced on her Facebook page Wednesday that she's leaving the Dallas-based station after a turbulent tenure marked by a discrimination suit that she lost last year. ...Reacting to the arbitrator's ruling at the time, WFAA8 president and general manager Mike Devlin said in a statement the station is "grateful that the arbitrator's decision was based on the clear facts of the case, and on the merits of the legal claims."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., July 17) -- another win/win for Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-07-18T10:58:27-05:00
Moderator Brad Watson, host of WFAA8's Sunday morning Inside Politics program, savvily kept the combatants on topic, knowing when to interject and when to let them have at it. Dallas Morning News political reporter Gromer Jeffers, a regular on Inside Politics, served as Watson's very capable Robin. ...In Tuesday's local news derby proceedings, WFAA8 called the tune at 10 p.m. in total viewers but Fox4 and NBC5 shared first place with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

A post-NBC5 McGarry blooms anew while putting her station behind her

Ed Bark — 2012-07-17T10:42:11-05:00
Reached by telephone Tuesday morning, McGarry continued to pleasantly but firmly state that "for the time being" her widely circulated exit statements on both NBC5's website and her Facebook page will have to speak for themselves. ...It's already been surmised in these spaces that McGarry's transgression gave NBC5 management a convenient reason to part ways with an aging, still comparatively high-salaried anchor who perhaps would have been let go in a year or two anyway.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., July 16) -- Fox4, WFAA8 split local news spoils

Ed Bark — 2012-07-17T09:37:52-05:00
Absent a potent Texas Rangers game, the summertime prime-time ratings sputtered Monday, with Fox's Hell's Kitchen and ABC's The Bachelorette ranking as top draws with modest totals of 189,675 D-FW viewers each. Both bowed to CBS11's still rolling Wheel of Fortune, which led all programming with 257,416 viewers in the 6:30 p.m. access slot.

NBC5 names KOCO vet Rick Mitchell as new early morning meteorologist (updated Mon., 4:30 p.m.)

Ed Bark — 2012-07-16T15:35:24-05:00
NBC5's Monday afternoon announcement of Mitchell's hiring had no information on the status of incumbent Samantha Davies, who had been filling in for Lopez on the station's early morning shift. But vice president of programming Brian Hocker said in a subsequent email reply that Davies "will remain on the AMs and we have to figure out duties/shifts because of the 11 a.m. newscast and how that plays into it."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., July 13-15) -- Rangers make TXA21 the weekend's big winner

Ed Bark — 2012-07-16T10:25:10-05:00
The Rangers' 7-0 loss on Fox Sports Southwest Saturday night emerged as that day's most-watched program with 182,901 total viewers while also leading the way with 18-to-49-year-olds. ...And AMC's Season 5 premiere of Breaking Bad, along with CBS' Big Brother, tied for the lead in 18-to-49-year-olds (89,664) while the Rangers had 83,260.

Dallas, we hardly knew ye

Ed Bark — 2012-07-13T14:04:26-05:00
Check out this tease and opening credits from the 1990-91 swan song, when holdovers Larry Hagman, Patrick Duffy and Ken Kercheval shared "In Alphabetical Order" cast billing with the likes of Kimberly Foster, Sasha Mitchell, Cathy Podewell, Barbara Stock and Sheree J. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Anchor Jane McGarry out at NBC5 after pleading no contest and apologizing for driving while intoxicated (updated July 11)

Ed Bark — 2012-07-10T19:14:01-05:00
But after being taken off the 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts, she was deemed expendable as a middle-aged 56-year-old anchor who earlier had to take a salary cut to remain with the station as a 5 p.m. news co-anchor while soloing on the virtually invisible 6:30 p.m. Nonstop Nightly newscast on digital channel 5.2. It's fair to say that McGarry's appreciably younger 6 and 10 p.m. heir, Meredith Land, likely would have received different treatment from station management had she committed the same infraction without any previous criminal record.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 29-July 1) -- live sports again run up scores

Ed Bark — 2012-07-02T11:19:12-05:00
In an intriguing Sunday night battle, the closing 8 to 9:15 portion of the Rangers-A's game had 325,157 viewers on Fox Sports Southwest, out-kicking that portion of NBC's Olympic trials (291,286 viewers). ...In the less-watched 5 to 6 a.m. hour, CW33's Eye Opener pulled off a first by placing first with 25-to-54-year-olds ahead of runner-up NBC5. Eye Opener slipped to fourth place in the 6 a.m. hour, but still easily beat CBS11.

Dallas doing Dallas again a major "woo hoo" for Film Commission director Janis Burklund

Ed Bark — 2012-07-01T11:15:15-05:00
The decision to both green-light Dallas and keep filming the series in its namesake city pretty much makes up for all that might have been had other network drama series been successful. ...It's very rewarding to know that at least some of our cast and crew will be able to stay home to work for a while, and we're doing everything we can to help make that a long while."

First look at how NBC5's new home is supposed to look

Ed Bark — 2012-06-29T16:46:18-05:00
"Consolidating our operations in CentrePort (where American Airlines and AT&T also are located) provides the opportunity for us to serve viewers better from one strategically-situated location near the center of the North Texas region," NBC5 president and general manager Tom Ehlmann said in the release. ...The station, which became KXAS-TV and now is marketed as NBC5, has operated out of a building at 3900 Barnett St. in east Fort Worth since the day it was born.

TNT's Dallas will catch a second wind, as will on-location shooting in Dallas

Ed Bark — 2012-06-29T14:17:54-05:00
Dallas currently has six more episodes left in its freshman year, with the Fourth of July hour following on the heels of a 4 to 8 p.m. (central) marathon of the first four. ...TNT president Michael Wright said in a publicity release that Dallas "has been a success for us on every level: pitch-perfect writing, smart directing and buzz-worthy performances by a new generation of stars and their iconic counterparts.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., June 27-28) -- very good numbers for bad boy Sheen's return

Ed Bark — 2012-06-29T10:07:00-05:00
FX's following comedies down-trended from 9 to 10:30 p.m. Wilfred had 73,653 viewers in the 18-to-49 age range, followed by Louie (44,832) and Brand X with Russell Brand (16,012). ...Wednesday -- CBS11 topped the 10 p.m. competition in total viewers, but Fox4 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., June 26) -- Yu hoo

Ed Bark — 2012-06-27T11:32:41-05:00
The Peacock's 9 p.m. edition of Love In the Wild then dropped off a cliff, pulling in just 67,741 total viewers, with 28,821 in the 18-to-49 age range. ...It had just 16,935 total viewers in the most-watched 6 a.m. hour, with no measurable audience in the key news demo of 25-to-54-year-olds.

Dombeck makes it official: she's leaving NBC5 (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-27T11:33:39-05:00
Sources say that NBC5 management may have already decided on Dombeck's replacement at a time when the station recently added anchor Mark Hayes to its early morning team and is still looking for a permanent replacement for meteorologist Jennifer Lopez, who was let go in March of this year. ...In the May "sweeps," the Fort Worth-based station rebounded to win the 6 to 7 a.m. hour in total viewers, with defending champ Fox4 a very close second.

El Paso's Jennifer Myers is new Fox4 weekend meteorologist

Ed Bark — 2012-06-26T14:25:15-05:00
"Severe weather has always been my passion, so being in a place where I can do what I love is really something I'm looking forward to," Myers says in a publicity release. ...Fiona Gorostiza, who joined the station in December 2008 as both a weathercaster and reporter, is now listed on Fox4's website as a full-time feature reporter who mainly works for the early morning Good Day program.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., June 25) -- bit of a budge for CBS11 waker-upper

Ed Bark — 2012-06-26T09:22:27-05:00
That was good enough for a rare third-place tie with Fox4 during a summer season when all of the early morning ratings are deflated due to school being out and vacations being taken. ...In Monday's other four-way local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while NBC5 topped the 25-to-54 numbers.

Veteran traffic reporter Tammy Dombeck in likely waning days at NBC5

Ed Bark — 2012-06-25T14:24:55-05:00
The station yearns to escape from an early morning ratings chasm in which millions of dollars in potential revenues have been left on the table while Fox4, NBC5 and WFAA8 continue to fight a tight ratings battle for the No. 1 spots in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the key demographic for news programming. ...As previously reported, veteran WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos will be leaving 6 p.m. newscasts in September while continuing to co-anchor the station's 10 p.m. weekday editions with John McCaa.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 22-24) -- Rangers roll again as top weekend attraction

Ed Bark — 2012-06-25T12:42:03-05:00
On Sunday night, the premiere of TNT's first "reality" series, The Great Escape, had 54,193 viewers in the 9 p.m. hour, falling off from 108,386 for the preceding new episode of the network's Falling Skies. ...WFAA8 also ran first at 6 a.m. in the key 25-to-54 demographic, but Fox4 topped the Nielsens at that hour in total viewers ahead of runner-up NBC5 and third-place WFAA8.

Higgins & Bankert debut in hopes of someday waking up CBS11's snoring early morning ratings

Ed Bark — 2012-06-25T12:58:34-05:00
But Bankert already looks as though she'll be better at parrying Higgins' playful thrusts than Fox4's Lauren Przybyl is or ever has been opposite Tim Ryan, the oft-snarky dean of D-FW morning TV. ...CBS11 had only reporter Susy Solis in the field Monday morning for repeated re-tellings of the missing 47-year-old Plano woman who eventually turned up dehydrated and incoherent in a D-FW Airport rest room.

Second bench warrant for arrest of WFAA8's Shon Gables issued by second judge

Ed Bark — 2012-06-22T12:15:23-05:00
The first bench warrant for her arrest was for twice failing to appear in court as ordered in connection with a successful $35,000 slander judgment against her rendered on April 7, 2010. ...The official "Order For Bench Warrant" document signed by Judge Anderson also notes that "on June 2, 2010, this Court entered a $747,500.00 judgment against the Defendant Shon Morton, more commonly known as 'Shon Gables,' for torts including invasion of privacy and defamation."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., June 21) -- big bang for final act of NBA Finals

Ed Bark — 2012-06-22T11:09:58-05:00
CBS' 7 p.m. rerun of The Big Bang Theory finished a distant runner-up in both ratings measurements Thursday night, with 223,545 total viewers and 76,855 in the 18-to-49 age range. Here are Thursday's local news derby results: CBS11 ran first in total viewers in a downsized three-way competition while NBC5 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., June 20) -- Dallas does halfway decently but is no match for Texas Rangers (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-21T10:17:06-05:00
Despite the substantial dropoff, Wednesday's third episode of Dallas was the No.1 entertainment program in its 8 to 9 p.m. slot, beating Fox's runner-up second hour of So You Think You Can Dance (142,256 total viewers). ...In local news derby results, CBS11 topped the 10 p.m. field in total viewers but WFAA8 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., June 19) -- Game 4 numbers fall along with OKC

Ed Bark — 2012-06-20T11:25:59-05:00
In local news derby results, CBS11 won a downsized three-way race at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 ran first among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. Fox4 added a pair of 6 a.m. wins on a morning when CW33's 5 to 7 a.m. hours of Eye Opener outdrew CBS11 in the 25-to-54 demographic while also beating the first hour of the CBS network morning show from 7 to 8 a.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., June 18) -- Glass House already breaking bad

Ed Bark — 2012-06-19T15:30:10-05:00
Fox4's local newscast won at that hour with 101,612 viewers while the second hour of NBC's American Ninja Warrior (which originated on tape from Fair Park in Dallas) placed third with 94,837 viewers. ...The 5 and 6 p.m. competitions were split two ways, with WFAA8 winning both of them in total viewers while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds.

WFAA8 reporter Craig Civale leaving for Baylor corporate (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-19T15:46:07-05:00
WFAA8 reporter Craig Civale, who joined the Dallas-based station in January 2007, is leaving to take a position in "the corporate world," his colleague, Jonathan Betz, tweeted Tuesday afternoon. ..."I miss being on an Investigative Team but general assignment reporting allows you to tell really good people stories," he says in his wfaa.com bio.

Where the action is: early morns, not late nights

Ed Bark — 2012-06-19T11:09:04-05:00
When he didn't work out, WFAA8 turned to Ron Corning, backing him with an ongoing comedy promotional campaign that has helped to put the station back in the thick of the early morning ratings race after several years of distant third-place finishes. ...Meanwhile, Nielsen numbers for the four-week May "sweeps" further reinforce what veteran Fox4 producer Bruce Smith said back in May 2005: "People who are up watching at that hour, they've certainly got a purpose in life.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs.-Sun., June 14-17) -- high-flying NBA Finals continue to juice ABC

Ed Bark — 2012-06-18T10:31:43-05:00
Sunday night's Miami Heat win over the Oklahoma City Thunder averaged 480,961 D-FW viewers, with a peak crowd of 684,184 between 9:30 and 9:45 p.m. ...Thursday -- CBS11 swept a downsized three-way 10 p.m. competition in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

First promo for Katie, coming soon to WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2012-06-15T09:39:07-05:00
One of TV's most fa-s-s-s-s-s-scinating open questions this fall is whether Katie Couric's new talk show, Katie, will bloom or bomb nationally and in D-FW. ...This new show intends to play up her Today show strengths, which which basically boil down to being bubbly, giggly and inquisitive.

First look: new CBS early morning anchor team of Brendan Higgins & Adrienne Bankert

Ed Bark — 2012-06-14T13:02:38-05:00
And in the key news demographic of 25-to-54-year-olds, CBS11 had just 14,956 viewers compared to first place Fox4's 51,369. NBC5 and WFAA8, which tied for a close-behind second place in this measurement, likewise had more than three times as many viewers as CBS11.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., June 13) -- it's the Ewings' night (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-14T10:25:50-05:00
The elongated premiere, from 8 to 10:15 p.m., out-drew the Texas Rangers-Arizona Diamondbacks game in total viewers and won in the 18-to-49 demographic against Fox's potent So You Think You Can Dance. ...In Wednesday's local news derby results, WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers but Fox4 won with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

WFAA8's Shelly Slater drops anchor to win latest celebrity charity competition

Ed Bark — 2012-06-14T08:49:25-05:00
Happy feet for WFAA8 anchors Shelly Slater & Ron Corning at the celebrity dance-off benefiting Paws In the City. Jeanne Prejean photos ...Slater and her pro dance partner prevailed over a field of eight entrants, including WFAA8 Daybreak anchor Ron Corning, Fox4 consumer reporter Steve Noviello and CBS11 reporter Melissa Newton.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., June 11-12) -- rolling Thunder

Ed Bark — 2012-06-13T12:01:34-05:00
In the 7 p.m. pre-game hour, CBS' NCIS repeat topped the total viewer Nielsens with 230,319 while Fox's Hell's Kitchen comfortably won from 7 to 8 p.m. among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Monday -- WFAA8 had a gainful day, sweeping the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. competitions in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Manana: KFWD-TV set to become D-FW's Spanish language MundoFox affiliate, ending association with Belo-owned WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2012-06-11T17:33:18-05:00
The agreement ends the "strategic alliance" between the "Classic TV" station and Dallas-based Belo Corp. whose WFAA8 provided some programming for KFWD and also has been replaying its 10 p.m. newscast at 11 p.m. on the channel. ...KFWD, a Spanish language Telemundo affiliate when it signed on in 1988, is owned by HIC Broadcasting, Inc., But it essentially has been operated by Belo Corp., which also provides ad sales assistance and some technical and promotional services.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 8-10) -- Tonys get plenty o' nuthin'

Ed Bark — 2012-06-11T16:41:16-05:00
But Nielsen data says that from 8:15 to 9 p.m., the Tonys had no audience at all among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Friday's local news derby numbers went like this: NBC5 scored at both 10 p.m. and 6 a.m., sweeping those competitions in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CBS11 turns to former NBC5 anchor Higgins in hopes of waking up its early mornings

Ed Bark — 2012-06-11T16:42:21-05:00
Garvin, who wasn't mentioned in the CBS11 release heralding Higgins, had joined Lisa Pineiro on October 24th of last year after previously anchoring sister station TXA21's since canceled prime-time local newscasts. ...NBC5 has an affable chuckler in newcomer Mark Hayes, WFAA8 continues to sell anchor Ron Corning via an extended series of comedy spots and Fox4's Tim Ryan is the time period's dean of rib ticklers.

NBC5 finalizes deal to leave only home it's ever known (but will stay in Fort Worth)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-11T11:42:00-05:00
The new "state-of-the-art media facility," to be located just south of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport, is slated to be ready for occupancy sometime in late 2013, with construction beginning at the end of this month. ...Carter, then publisher of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, originally dedicated the facility that "expanded his media business into the exciting new technology of TV," in the words of a station publicity release.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., June 7) -- dating vs. Duets

Ed Bark — 2012-06-08T15:24:42-05:00
Fox's George Lopez-hosted Take Me Out pulled in 101,612 viewers from 7 to 8 p.m., falling short of the first hour of Duets (115,160 viewers). The Choice, Fox's swiveled-chaired dating game answer to NBC's The Voice, inched up to 128,708 viewers, enough to edge the second hour of Duets (121,934 viewers). ...Thursday's four-way local news derbies went like this: WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the 10 p.m. spot in total viewers but WFAA8 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Picturing Slater in post-WFAA8 surroundings

Ed Bark — 2012-06-08T10:45:34-05:00
Slater is closing out her first week of co-hosting the 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Elf and Slater radio show on The FAN (105.3 FM). Just a few weeks ago, she was still singling out early evening traffic jams on WFAA8 for a few seconds per newscast.

Incoming reporter and Dallas native Calvert Collins due to start at Fox4 on June 18

Ed Bark — 2012-06-08T09:21:31-05:00
During an earlier stint at Omaha's KPTM-TV, Collins made some news by posing with a Democratic congressional candidate on her Facebook page and urging friends to vote for him. ...Collins told msnbc.com she removed the Facebook picture with Esch immediately after her KPTM boss heard about it, and said that establishing a rapport with candidates was part of her job as a reporter.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., June 6) -- OKC knocks out Spurs, counts out competition

Ed Bark — 2012-06-07T12:34:53-05:00
As usual, the crowd built slowly but surely, starting with 149,030 viewers in the first 15-minute increment and ending with 406,446 in the last full quarter-hour segment between 10:15 and 10:30 p.m. ...But Fox's 7 to 9 p.m. edition of So You Think You Can Dance easily was the top draw among 18-to-49-year-olds before Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast took that hour in both ratings measurements.

Stegall backtracks, returns to Dallas (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-06-06T16:13:08-05:00
Casey Stegall, who left Fox4's Good Day in March 2007 to become a Los Angeles-based correspondent for Fox New Channel, is reversing course to become part of the cable network's Dallas bureau. ...He replaces Kris Gutierrez, who departed FNC's Dallas bureau in February of this year to become a weekday early morning anchor for CBS-owned WBBM-TV in Chicago.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., June 5 ) -- America's Got Talent outpoints Boston's baking of Heat

Ed Bark — 2012-06-06T10:58:47-05:00
ABC's two-hour concert for Queen Elizabeth averaged 135,482 total viewers from 8 to 10 p.m., good enough to whip NBC's competing two-hour Season 2 launch of Love In the Wild (94,837 viewers). Wild outdrew all the the Queen's men -- and women -- among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Tuesday's local news derby results went like this: CBS11 rang the bell twice at 10 p.m. with wins in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., June 4) -- TNT struts with Spurs-OKC

Ed Bark — 2012-06-05T12:16:01-05:00
Before the game's 8 p.m. start, Fox and NBC split the 7 p.m. proceeds, with the Peacock's America's Got Talent winning in total viewers while the summer season premiere of Hell's Kitchen had the edge with 18-to-49-year-olds. ...Fox4 had a big day in the local news derby results, running first at 6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 10 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun, June 1-3) -- still a Rangers world

Ed Bark — 2012-06-04T10:25:25-05:00
Sunday afternoon's finale -- the only game Texas won -- drew 264,190 viewers on FSS, falling short of the crowd for that night's overtime Game 4 of the Boston-Miami Eastern Conference finals on ESPN (298,070 viewers). ...In Friday's local news derby results, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while WFAA8 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., May 30-31) -- ain't no cure for the summertime blues

Ed Bark — 2012-06-01T11:26:21-05:00
It had 250,642 viewers before the following premiere of CBS' Dogs In The City dipped to 155,804 viewers but still won its 7 to 8 p.m. slot against ABC's sitcom repeats, NBC's Stanley Cup Finals match and Fox's So You Think You Can Dance. ...Wednesday -- WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the lead in total viewers at 10 p.m., but WFAA8 edged Fox4 for the top spot with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

A grand old soap opera: TNT's Dallas has world premiere at Winspear

Ed Bark — 2012-06-01T11:39:50-05:00
Face in the crowd: Larry Hagman takes a bow at Thursday night's world premiere of Dallas at the Winspear Opera House. Photos: Ed Bark ...The original Dallas ran from 1978 to 1991 on CBS, ranking in prime-time's top 10 for seven of its seasons and No. 1 for three of them.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 29) -- even in lopsided defeat, Rangers still rule prime-time roost

Ed Bark — 2012-05-30T15:50:52-05:00
They again were prime-time's most-watched attraction Tuesday, averaging 230,319 D-FW viewers on Fox Sports Southwest in easily outpointing the competing Game 2 Western Conference Finals series on TNT between the San Antonio Spurs and Oklahoma City Thunder (182,901 viewers). ...In Tuesday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won the first half-hour of its extended, election-infused 10 p.m. newscast in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming).

Smelling the roses? Jane McGarry makes a move on her Facebook page

Ed Bark — 2012-05-30T16:15:16-05:00
But in a perhaps symbolic gesture, the 30-year NBC5 veteran lately has removed her anchor-standing-next-to-a-green-screen pose at the top of her Facebook page and replaced it with the above two photos. ...James as an anchor (she's only an occasional fill-in), misspells Fox4 anchor Steve Eagar's name (it's not "Eager") and leaves out the ongoing hottest and most heavily promoted anchor in the D-FW market, Ron Corning of WFAA8's fast-rising Daybreak.

Ex-NBC5 sports anchor Scott Murray gets a weekly radio talker at KLIF

Ed Bark — 2012-05-29T15:41:44-05:00
The station says it "will focus on difference-makers, individuals and groups who give back to the local community and discuss the importance of giving back to those who find themselves in need. ...Murray also is chairman/CEO of Murray Media and hosts Talk Street, a public affairs/philanthropic program airing on NBC5's 5.2 digital channel, NBC DFW Nonstop.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., May 25-28) -- Rangers, Rangers, Rangers, Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-05-29T11:33:17-05:00
Saturday's elongated afternoon game on Fox Sports Southwest, climaxed by Josh Hamilton's walk-off home run, drew 189,675 viewers after a slow start that peaked as high as 338,705 viewers during extra innings. ...In Friday's deflated local news derby results, CBS11 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 won among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Inaugural ATX Television Festival coming soon to an Austin near you

Ed Bark — 2012-05-25T12:25:31-05:00
So this will be the big Saturday night event, with outdoor screenings of the NBC series' first and last episodes plus scheduled appearances by executive producers Jason Katims and David Hudgins, music supervisor Liza Richardson and cast members Jesse Plemons, Matt Lauria, Alicia Witt, Scott Porter, Gaius Charles, Dora Madison Burge, Brad Leland, Louanne Stephens and Michael B. ...Other TV shows with panels and screenings attached include FX's Archer, NBC's Grimm and Parenthood, HBO's True Blood, The CW's The Vampire Diaries, MTV's Teen Wolf and USA's Royal Pains and Suits.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Thurs., May 24) -- call it a draw between Duets & Dance

Ed Bark — 2012-05-25T11:34:22-05:00
Both shows were beaten in total viewers by CBS' repeats of The Big Bang Theory (from 7 to 7:30 p.m.) and Person of Interest (from 8 to 9 p.m.). ...In local news derby results -- the first since Wednesday's end of the May "sweeps" -- CBS11 took the 10 p.m. gold in total viewers while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 23) -- Idol finale a no sweat winner

Ed Bark — 2012-05-24T16:39:55-05:00
Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast rode Idol's coattails to a convincing win and one of its largest hauls in recent memory -- 359,027 viewers. Idol and the news also were runaway firsts among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. In local news derby results, the closing night of the sweeps put NBC5 in the 10 p.m. driver's seat among total viewers while Fox4 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

"THE FAN" radio greenlights Jane Slater, ends her traffic reporter stint at WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2012-05-24T16:40:29-05:00
CBS Radio also announced Thursday that Chris Arnold, longtime arena host for Dallas Mavericks home games, will be joining THE FAN on The G-Bag Nation show, which airs from 7 p.m. to midnight. ..."Their characteristics, personalities and unique perspectives emphasize our goal to be the voice of the man diverse sports fans across North Texas," CBS Radio vice president of news/talk/sports programming said in a publicity release.

May "sweeps" local news finale: NBC5 breaks through with two wins while Fox4 wins three of four demo derbies and 10 p.m. results are split

Ed Bark — 2012-05-24T16:40:08-05:00
After a winless May last year, NBC5 logged two No. 1 local news finishes this time out, including a dethroning of Fox4 as the most-watched early morning newscast and a worst-to-first upgrade at 5 p.m.. ...Comments: NBC5, which trailed first-place WFAA8 by 28,603 total viewers in May 2011, made its own lead-in bed with a 4 p.m. local newscast that nearly tied Fox4's syndicated Judge Judy for first place.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 22) -- Idol, Glee, Dancing set pace

Ed Bark — 2012-05-23T10:09:58-05:00
Fox also called the 7 to 9 p.m. tune among advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds, with Idol romping before the Glee season finale edged the first hour of DTWS, which easily won from 9 to 10 p.m. in this key measurement. CBS offered a three-pronged festival of NCIS reruns, but the first two were still potent enough to beat NBC's America's Got Talent in total viewers. NCIS ran a distant fourth all night, though, with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 21) -- last House a mini-homerun

Ed Bark — 2012-05-22T10:08:02-05:00
ABC's first hour of The Bachelorette ran second from 8 to 9 p.m. in both measurements (169,353 total viewers and 73,653 in the 18-to-49 range). ...The two-hour debut of NBC's American Ninja competition ran fourth in total viewers but moved up to third in the 18-to-49 demographic, beating CBS' combo of sitcom reruns and Clash of the Commercials: U.S. vs. the World.

CBS11 tabs Sacramento's Adrienne Bankert as new early morning anchor (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-05-21T15:37:56-05:00
Bankert arrives from NBC affiliate KCRA and sister station KQCA in Sacramento, where she's been part of the morning news team since 2004 while also hosting the monthly news magazine Common Ground. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., May 10) -- Idol ends its Hollie-days

Ed Bark — 2012-05-11T11:25:56-05:00
ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Fox4's local newscast were tops from 8 to 10 p.m. with 18-to-49-year-olds while CBS' The Mentalist edged Fox4's news for the most total viewers in the 9 p.m. hour. ...Here are Thursday's local news derby results: CBS11 edged WFAA8 at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 took the top spot with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Dallas doing Dallas again --- for red carpet premiere.

Ed Bark — 2012-05-10T16:37:15-05:00
Newly announced Thursday, the above is pretty self-explanatory. TNT's new version of Dallas will hit home screens on June 13th for the first of 10 episodes.

Former KXAS (Channel 5) anchor Dave Layman speaks candidly about the perils of anchoring, drinking, driving

Ed Bark — 2012-05-10T14:59:01-05:00
When I returned to Providence as an anchor and occasional news director/anchor, I continued the practice from time to time on weekends -- having a drink at home with my girlfriend at the time and then headed to Newport (30 minutes away) drinking a "traveler" in the car on the way. ...If I had a high profile client -- and he/she asked for some counsel along this line -- I would tell them if they wanted to avoid a host of problems, including a DUI/DWI threat, quit drinking.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 9) -- Idol calls the tune (updated with local news sweeps standings at the halfway mark)

Ed Bark — 2012-05-10T11:16:14-05:00
Among 25-to-54-year-olds, WFAA8 is ahead by four-tenths of a point over both Fox4 and NBC5, with CBS11 a half-point behind the leader. ...5 p.m. -- NBC5 and WFAA8 are tied for the lead in total viewers while Fox4 is three-tenths of a point behind both of them.

Jane McGarry: public figure

Ed Bark — 2012-05-09T14:21:47-05:00
On that page and her other Facebook page, McGarry repeatedly asked/begged people to vote for her in D magazine's "Best of Big D Readers' Choice" poll until she went silent on May 6th. ...But NBC5 has been phasing her out anyway, with the showcase 6 and 10 p.m. weekday newscasts in her past and the 5 p.m. newscasts her current reality along with those virtually invisible 6:30 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon.-Tues., May 7-8) -- surprisingly small crowd for Hamilton's big blowout

Ed Bark — 2012-05-09T10:10:20-05:00
CBS' 7 p.m. episode of NCIS had Tuesday's biggest haul of 419,994 viewers while NBC's following Season 2 finale of The Voice won the 8 to 10 p.m. slot with 388,672 viewers. ...Monday -- WFAA8 enjoyed a bountiful feast with sweeps of the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. competitions in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Former WFAA8 anchor/PM Magazine host Bill Ratliff dies (updated)

Ed Bark — 2012-05-08T14:55:40-05:00
Ratliff also anchored newscasts at WFAA8 but was primarily known for PM Magazine, a then breakthrough weekday program in which stations from around the country shared their feature stories while being fronted by local talent in each market. ...

NBC5's McGarry off the air indefinitely after station "confirms" her DWI arrest

Ed Bark — 2012-05-07T16:59:55-05:00
NBC5 belatedly "confirmed" longtime anchor Jane McGarry's DWI arrest on its nbcdfw web site late Monday afternoon after the news and the official police report were publicized a day earlier on a variety of outlets. ...On the station's 5 p.m. newscast, co-anchor Marc Fein basically read the text of the web account while 6 and 10 p.m. co-anchor Meredith Land sat in for McGarry.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 4-6) -- Mavs go down hard, almost lose head-to-head against Rangers

Ed Bark — 2012-05-07T15:15:06-05:00
In the end, Dallas blew a 13-point lead at the start of the fourth quarter, with their old tree trunk legs turning to rubber while OKC's saplings blew right by them to complete a 4-0 sweep of the defending champs. ...WFAA8 took the 6 p.m. gold in total viewers, but Friday's other news wins went to Fox4, which ran the table at 5 p.m. and added a 6 p.m. topper in the 25-to-54 demographic.

A bright 'n' chuckly debut for NBC5 early morning newcomer Mark Hayes

Ed Bark — 2012-05-07T09:52:09-05:00
NBC5, which twice had declined to disclose a start-up date for Hayes, continues to look for a new early morning meteorologist to replace Jennifer Lopez, who parted ways with the station after a nearly four-year tenure. ...It's the first time that two African-American male anchors are helping to bring early risers their first news of the day in a market where all four major TV news providers -- Fox4, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 -- now have female news directors with the recent hiring of Carolyn Mungo at WFAA8.

Veteran NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry free on bond after arrest for DWI

Ed Bark — 2012-05-06T19:59:56-05:00
Asked if NBC5 has any official statement on the matter, station vice president of programming Brian Hocker said via email Sunday night, "NBC5 station management is looking into the matter this evening and has no further comment." ...According to her arrest report, portions of which are quoted on The News crime blog, McGarry was driving a 2007 Porsche when a state trooper pulled her over on the Dallas North Tollway (around 1:35 a.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., May 3) -- trickle down numbers for thoroughly whipped Mavs

Ed Bark — 2012-05-04T09:45:30-05:00
Stretching from 8:51 to just after 11:15 p.m., OKC's 95-79 rout of the now all but dead defending champs averaged 189,675 D-FW viewers on both TNT and TXA21, which had the homegrown presentation. ...The 18-to-49 firsts in those time slots went to ABC's Grey's Anatomy and Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast, which trumpeted its live interview with the ever-available Deion Sanders.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 2) -- Idol absorbs another dent

Ed Bark — 2012-05-03T11:38:08-05:00
And they weren't all that much better than those for CBS' Criminal Minds (264,190 viewers at 8 p.m.) and CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, which won the 9 p.m. hour with 257,416 viewers. ...Despite cooperation from all the prominent players, including President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Rock Center ran fourth in the 8 p.m. hour with just 81,289 total viewers while likewise running out of the money with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 1) --NCIS takes command, Rangers still a force

Ed Bark — 2012-05-02T11:58:04-05:00
With NCIS experiencing its usual big drop-off among 18-to-49-year-olds, the 7 to 8 p.m. portion of Rangers-Blue Jays had just enough juice to beat Fox's Glee for the top spot. ...In another blow to downtrodden CBS11's early morning fortunes, CW33's comedy-laced Eye Opener took the No. 4 spot from 5 to 6 a.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds and was close behind CBS11 in the 6 a.m. hour.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., April 30) -- new adventures in Yu tube on a night of high tides

Ed Bark — 2012-05-01T10:58:05-05:00
Ratings magnet Yu Darvish's latest successful outing for the Texas Rangers, an early-starting 4-1 win at Toronto, clashed with ABC's Dancing with the Stars, NBC's The Voice, CBS' potent sitcom lineup and the very early stages of the Dallas Mavericks' second playoff game at Oklahoma City. ...It's now time to finish up with the local news derby results, where CBS11 bucked WFAA8's lead-in advantage from ABC's Castle to win at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Daybreak's bells & whistles promo campaign adds a musical combo

Ed Bark — 2012-05-01T06:43:32-05:00
It should be noted that Fox4, the defending February "sweeps" early morning champ, has its own real-life "Good Daze" band fronted by meteorologist Evan Andrews on drums, traffic reporter Chip Waggoner on guitar and fun-fun Fiona Gorostiza supplying the lead vocals. In the deadly serious early morning ratings wars, Fox4 is trying to fight off what so far looks like a two-pronged May "sweeps" threat from both NBC5 and WFAA8, which long has been in third place but is surging in recent months with its series of Corning-centric promos.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 27-29) -- Mavs heart-crusher is top weekend attraction

Ed Bark — 2012-04-30T15:01:45-05:00
That's an average total audience on the two channels of 379,350, which was good enough to beat the earlier starting Texas Rangers-Tampa Rays game on Fox Sports Southwest (257,416 viewers). ...In Friday's local news derby results -- the second weeknight of the May "sweeps" -- WFAA8 had a doubleheader win at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 26) -- "sweeps" start, with everyone feeling a draft

Ed Bark — 2012-04-27T13:27:38-05:00
But the draft gave Idol a big chill, pulling in 153,710 viewers in the 18-to-49 range between 7:45 and 8 p.m. while logging 137,699 for the full hour. Big Bang beat both the draft and Idol from 7 to 7:30 p.m. with 137,699 viewers in the 18-to-49 demographic.

WFAA8's decidedly different David Schechter (and that's a good thing)

Ed Bark — 2012-04-27T13:39:53-05:00
As many times as I've been around the block, somehow it still surprises me that after every great feast there's still a famine. ...Then, after some anxious hours I plopped down on my desk, brushed off a dusty idea, made a few calls, held the thing up to the light and realized -- there might be something interesting here."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., April 25) -- Rangers-Yanks fall shy of Idol

Ed Bark — 2012-04-26T14:59:07-05:00
Rangers-Yankees on Fox Sports Southwest overall averaged another very nice-sized crowd of 352,253 D-FW viewers, with 298,060 in the 7 to 9 p.m. slot directly opposite Fox's Idol (365,801 viewers). ...In local news derby results, the last before Thursday's start of the May "sweeps" ratings period, WFAA8 rolled up a pair of 10 p.m. wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 24) -- Yu tube all the way

Ed Bark — 2012-04-25T12:22:08-05:00
The Fox Sports Southwest presentation, which ran from shortly after 7 p.m. to 9:49 p.m., out-scored all competing programming in both total viewers and advertiser-prized 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Tuesday's local news derby results, WFAA8 nipped CBS11 at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 ran a comfy first among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main target audience for news programming.

Deion and Pilar the latest celebs in local TV glare

Ed Bark — 2012-04-25T09:11:51-05:00
NBC5's reliably intrepid Ellen Goldberg did the best job of advancing this sorry but juicy story Tuesday while CBS11's Jay Gormley took a different tack in an interesting piece on how impulsive social media outbursts increasingly are used against one or both parties in divorce cases. ...pid=LC2YEXRKXxlXYY0IfIfA6Vb8sZuIfRvy" flashvars="v=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nbcdfw.com%2Fi%2Fembed_new%2F%3Fcid%3D148822225&path=%2F/video"allowFullScreen="true" AllowScriptAccess="always" />
View more videos at: Sunday Night Football on Nov. 4th at Atlanta and Dec. 2nd in a home game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., April 16) -- big day for WFAA8 news

Ed Bark — 2012-04-17T11:48:22-05:00
Buoyed by boffo ratings for a new episode of ABC's Castle, WFAA8 won comfortably at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...In Monday's prime-time tallies, two-hour editions of ABC's Dancing with the Stars and NBC's The Voice again traded first-place finishes from 7 to 9 p.m. Dancing won in total D-FW viewers (392,808) while The Voice hummed along with 18-to-49-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for non-news attractions.

Nerissa Knight gets a new TV day job

Ed Bark — 2012-04-17T09:08:13-05:00
The former CBS11/TXA21 anchor-reporter, dropped by the stations in December 2010 after three years, had been doing freelance reporting for CW33 and lately was filling in as one of the program's hosts. ...In Friday's local Nielsen ratings, it had 3,374 in the 18-to-34 age range from 5 to 6 a.m. while CBS11's waker upper had "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) for its entire 4:30 to 7 a.m. running time.

NBC5's Friedman rewarded for investigative work

Ed Bark — 2012-04-16T12:36:30-05:00
NBC5 investigator Scott Friedman, who until recently co-anchored the Fort Worth-based station's early morning newscasts, has won the Texas Freedom of Information Award for his story on triple-digit speeders. ...NBC5 has not been known in recent years for its investigative work, with the lion's share of awards going to rival WFAA8 and its longstanding investigative team of Byron Harris and Brett Shipp.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 13-15) -- Rangers still a force on three different channels

Ed Bark — 2012-04-16T11:45:03-05:00
ABC's new made-for-TV Titanic splash had just 67,741 viewers for its three-hour Saturday night installment before washing ashore with 74,515 for Sunday night's one-hour conclusion in the 8 p.m. hour. The 60 Minutes tribute to Mike Wallace easily won its Sunday 6 p.m. hour with 203,223 total viewers while also prevailing by a narrower margin in the 18-to-49 demographic.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 12) -- three nets divide prime-time spoils, with NBC again mostly out of sight

Ed Bark — 2012-04-13T11:46:04-05:00
Fox's American Idol results show again set the prime-time pace Thursday, drawing 379,350 D-FW viewers in the 7 p.m. hour while also rolling with advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...CBS' Person of Interest repeat took the 9 p.m. hour with 209,997 total viewers but Fox4's local newscasts won comfortably with 18-to-49-year-olds while Person fell to third behind ABC's second episode of Scandal.

WFAA8's Izaguirre births her twins

Ed Bark — 2012-04-13T11:03:24-05:00
storyid=147308505&pos=top&swfw=470">
Mark Hayes Says Goodbye to FOX 5: MyFoxATLANTA.com

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., April 11) -- Idol holds steady, Rangers still score despite late-inning swoon

Ed Bark — 2012-04-12T13:27:37-05:00
That was good enough only to beat the second half of NBC's yet again relocated Rock Center with Brian Williams. Don't Trust the B finished in the same spot with 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Wednesday's local news derby results, CBS11 edged Fox4 for the most viewers at 10 p.m. while Fox4 won by a wide margin with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

WFAA8's Daybreak re-aligns its personalities while Cynthia Izaguirre is on maternity leave

Ed Bark — 2012-04-11T11:36:19-05:00
During her absence from Daybreak, traffic reporter Alexa Conomos will join Ron Corning at the anchor desk while weekend morning/weekday fill-in meteorologist Colleen Coyle tries her hand at traffic and meteorologist Greg Fields stays in place. ...Daybreak, which has built considerable momentum in recent months, came within an eyelash in the February "sweeps" ratings period of overtaking NBC5 for second place (in the key 25-to-54 demographic) in the early morning news ratings.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 10) -- more nice numbers for Rangers but NCIS and Dancing score higher

Ed Bark — 2012-04-11T10:56:31-05:00
Both shows had live 8 p.m. results editions Tuesday. Dancing pulled in 325,157 viewers to win the time slot, with CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles (291,286) trailing while The Voice (250,642) ran behind the Rangers (270,964) for that one-hour portion of the game. ...Fox's return of Glee won at 7 p.m. while its 8 p.m. episode of New Girl also beat all comers, including the first half-hours of Dancing and The Voice.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., April 9) -- special Yu tube edition

Ed Bark — 2012-04-10T10:24:19-05:00
Fox Sports Southwest has to be even happier with how well the game did from 7 to 9 p.m., when Yu and the Rangers faced both Dancing and NBC's most popular series, The Voice. ...In Monday's local news derby, WFAA8 ran the table at 10 p.m. by topping its three news competitors in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the favored target audience for news programming.

Can Yu's debut outscore the Big Four broadcast networks' powerhouse Monday night lineups?

Ed Bark — 2012-04-09T15:03:34-05:00
And six innings of shutout ball -- with a nice number of strikeouts mixed in -- just might be enough to overpower the wall-to-wall hits he's facing on rival broadcast networks. ...But in the overall 7 to 9 p.m. bloc, I'm going to go with Dancing followed by Yu, The Voice, CBS' sitcoms and Fox's dramas.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 6-8) -- Rangers/Masters vie for Sunday's biggest crowds

Ed Bark — 2012-04-09T13:20:13-05:00
Friday's local news derby results went like this: WFAA8 swept the 10 p.m. competitions in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...At 6 p.m., Fox4, WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for first in total viewers while Fox4 won outright with 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 5) -- Scandal starts sluggishly while Awake still snores

Ed Bark — 2012-04-06T14:29:33-05:00
Following a new episode of Grey's Anatomy, and from the same creator/exec. producer, Scandal drew 162,578 D-FW viewers in the 9 p.m. hour, with just 32,023 within the advertiser-coveted 18-to-49 motherlode. ...Fox's American Idol results show won the 7 p.m. hour across the board, but not by much from 7 to 7:30 p.m. against a new episode of CBS' The Big Bang Theory.

Hansen and "Coach Joe" -- free spirits now minus one

Ed Bark — 2012-04-06T14:30:25-05:00
storyid=146382465&pos=top&swfw=470">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., April 2) -- four-way slugfest

Ed Bark — 2012-04-03T10:50:43-05:00
Kentucky's win over a stubborn Kansas ranked third in total viewers but moved up a notch to second place among advertiser-favored 18-to-49-year-olds. Bones managed to best CBS' sitcom repeats from 7 to 8 p.m. before Fox's new episode of House fell to a distant fourth across the board in the 8 p.m. hour. ...In the full half-hour (8:30 to 9 p.m.) when the three attractions collided, Dancing led with 440,317 viewers, with hoops nipping The Voice by a score of 352,253 to 345,479.

Campos poised to become part-timer, remaining as 10 p.m. co-anchor

Ed Bark — 2012-04-02T14:14:43-05:00
WFAA8 veteran Gloria Campos, who joined the Dallas-based station in 1984 and became its first Hispanic anchor, has agreed to a new contract that will make her a part-timer and include a significant salary cut. ...Sources close to the situation say that Schambach did go so far as to interview for the early morning co-anchor job at CBS11, where management has informed anchor Lisa Pineiro that her contract will not be renewed when it expires in October.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun, March 30-April 1) -- country again gets its kicks

Ed Bark — 2012-04-02T12:54:03-05:00
AMC's two-hour Season 2 launch of The Killing pretty much played dead in these parts with 20,322 total viewers in the 7 to 9 p.m. slot. a new Mad Men hour then had 54,193 viewers. ...The first two shows also won with 18-to-49-year-olds before Blue Bloods tanked as usual and fell to an out-of-the-money fourth place in the Big Four network arena behind ABC's No. 1 20/20, Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast and NBC's Dateline.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 29) -- Idol bops Big Bang while Fox/Fox4 run table with 18-to-49-year-olds

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T17:41:00-05:00
But it was juggernaut compared to CW33's competing local newscast, which registered one of its lowest totals ever with just 5,419 viewers following a barely watched new episode of The CW network's The Secret Circle (10,839 viewers). In Thursdays four-way local news derby proceedings, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the favored advertiser target audience for news programming.

Pineiro's tenure growing short as co-anchor of CBS11's ratings-starved early morning newscasts

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T17:34:19-05:00
On Oct. 24th of last year, Keith Garvin joined the early morning team after CBS11 dropped sister station TXA21's prime-time newscasts, which he had been anchoring. ...On the Wednesday before their initial newscast together, the station had finished a heady second from 6 to 7 a.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Sports anchor Doocy sports a new spring look

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T17:24:56-05:00
But his Fox4 competitor, veteran Mike Doocy, ventured bravely -- or foolishly -- into this territory early Friday morning with a plug for this weekend's Hella Shrine Circus. ..."The Dooc" does have a lighter side, infrequently breaking into song during sports segments and with "The Ticket" radio's (1310 AM) house band at the station's annual "TicketStock."

Never trust anyone over 30 (Ron Jackson excluded)

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T17:18:45-05:00
Fox4 meteorologist Ron Jackson is marking a full three decades this week at the Dallas-based station. ...Congratulations on making it this far at one place -- and in one piece.

TNT's new Dallas showers fans with steamy new tease

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T17:14:34-05:00
Here's the just-released "tease" for TNT's new version of Dallas, which now has an official start date, too -- June 13th. The network says the "steamy artwork" is meant to evoke "one of the most iconic scenes in Dallas history: the shower scene in which Bobby Ewing surprised viewers by returning (after a one-season absence) and revealing that the previous season had been a dream."

Eye Opener gets makeover

Ed Bark — 2012-04-01T16:59:49-05:00
Eye Opener's executive producer Justin Allen, confirmed the changes via email Tuesday, but said that a "jammed" week didn't allow him any further time to elaborate on whether some of the latest host changes are envisioned as permanent or temporary. ...The Lewisville High School and Texas A&M grad earlier produced D-FW-based CBS11's early morning newscast and also has been an executive producer at WKRN-TV, Nashville's ABC station.

Freelance dance brings Selena Hernandez to Fox4 while full-time Emily Lopez is on leave

Ed Bark — 2012-03-16T15:22:28-05:00
Former NBC5 full-time reporter Susy Solis, who left the station last fall after four years, became a WFAA8 freelancer before recently opting to try her hand in the same capacity at rival CBS11. ...And now CBS11 freelancer Selena Hernandez is filling in at least temporarily for full-time Fox4 reporter Emily Lopez, who is on an indeterminate leave for personal reasons.

An accusatory WFAA8 vs. an unnamed Fox4 in big local arrest story

Ed Bark — 2012-03-16T12:59:27-05:00
storyid=142882555&pos=top&swfw=470">
Firefighter Arrested for Firehouse Shooting: MyFoxDFW.com

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 15) -- Missing scores/clanks

Ed Bark — 2012-03-16T11:28:32-05:00
In Thursday's local news derby results, WFAA8 romped to easy wins at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...WFAA8 won by a wide margin at 6 p.m. in total viewers and tied Fox4 for the top spot with 25-to-54-year-olds while CBS11 gave way to basketball.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Wed., March 9-14) -- catchup round

Ed Bark — 2012-03-15T11:49:39-05:00
ABC's Body of Proof (216,771 viewers) and CBS' Unforgettable (182,901 viewers) outpointed Fashion Star from 9 to 10 p.m. while the second half-hour of CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles reigned from 8:30 to 9 p.m. with 284,512 viewers. ...Friday -- CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 rung up a first place finish among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Oklahoma City's KOCO-TV and WFAA8's Shelly Slater talk about a possible move

Ed Bark — 2012-03-09T12:14:39-06:00
That presumably would open the 6 p.m. door for Slater, although just about anything is possible at a station that emerged from the February ratings "sweeps" period with no wins in any of the four-way local newscast competitions in the early morning and at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. ...And to add a further layer of intrigue, the word circulating at WFAA8 is that current KOCO 5, 6 and 10 p.m. anchor Jessica Schambach, a Texas Christian University graduate, has expressed interest in coming to the Dallas-Fort Worth market.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 8) -- Big Bang powers past Idol

Ed Bark — 2012-03-09T10:21:42-06:00
The hit CBS sitcom drew 426,768 D-FW viewers to out-kick the 7 to 7:30 p.m. portion of Fox's Idol results show (413,220 viewers). Bang won by a wider margin among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds before Idol regrouped to win in both measurements opposite a 7:30 p.m. rerun of Bang. ...But NBC's The Office won from 8 to 8:30 p.m. with 18-to-49-year-olds before the second half of Fox's The Finder and Fox4's local 9 p.m. newscast had the upper hands in this key demographic.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., March 7) -- Idol re-explodes

Ed Bark — 2012-03-08T13:28:41-06:00
Idol's renewed super-strong showing also helped propel Fox4's Wednesday 9 p.m. local newscast to wins in both total viewers (277,738) and 18-to-49-year-olds (118,485). ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 had a commanding 10 p.m. win in total viewers while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Treadway done as co-host on WFAA8's Good Morning Texas

Ed Bark — 2012-03-07T18:13:27-06:00
"Ty started with us in early January and worked for a couple of months on GMT," said Muscari, who also oversees the 9 a.m. weekday hour. ...His portfolio has included the roles of twin brothers Colin and Troy MacIver on the daytime soap One Life to Life and hosting duties on American Idol Extra and Merv Griffin's Crosswords.

Manning a Cowboy? Let's at least play around with that idea

Ed Bark — 2012-03-07T13:34:45-06:00
So let's throw out some points and counterpoints while always remembering that Cowboys owner Jerry Jones is obsessed with two things in life -- winning another Super Bowl and filling his palatial Cowboys Stadium to the brim with high-priced ticket buyers. ...PRO -- An even older Brett Favre worked near miracles for the quarterback-needy Minnesota Vikings, taking them to the precipice of a fifth Super Bowl appearance before reverting back to bad Brett and throwing a killer interception against the New Orleans Saints in their classic January 2010 NFC championship game.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., March 6) -- ups, downs for Fox's rearranged comedy night

Ed Bark — 2012-03-07T11:13:35-06:00
CBS' repeat of Unforgettable won that hour with 203,223 viewers but Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast had a decided edge with 18-to-49-year-olds. In the four-way local news derby competitions, CBS11 notched a 10 p.m. win in total viewers while Fox4 took the gold among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Corning takes down a cookie; dough promised by Izzy

Ed Bark — 2012-03-06T17:44:21-06:00
storyid=141563733&pos=top&swfw=470">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., March 5) -- another shout out for The Voice while Smash finds its voice against repeats

Ed Bark — 2012-03-06T10:32:22-06:00
The Voice racked up 474,187 D-FW viewers from 7 to 9 p.m., trampling ABC's The Bachelor and Fox's two new episodes of Alcatraz while CBS punted with comedy repeats. ...But the down-to-the-wire Dallas Mavericks loss at Oklahoma City had the most viewers in both ratings measurements during its closing 15-minute segment (9:15 to 9:30 p.m.) on Fox Sports Southwest.

The five-year ratings picture gives only Fox4 consistent traction in attracting 25-to-54-year-olds for local newscasts

Ed Bark — 2012-03-05T16:29:19-06:00
And in news that may "shock or surprise you" -- as anchors used to say more then than they do now -- the only competition it lost was not at 6 a.m., but at 10 p.m. ...Here is where Fox4, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 stood with 25-to-54-year-olds five years ago -- and where they stand now.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., March 2-4) -- a D-FW halo effect for GCB

Ed Bark — 2012-03-05T11:14:47-06:00
Sunday's 9 p.m. premiere had 291,286 viewers on WFAA8, making it the entire weekend's most-watched attraction. GCB, short for Good Christian Bitches, also won its time slot among advertiser-favored 18-to-49-year-olds. ...The English language Fox network premiere of Q'Viva (an international talent search produced by JLo and her estranged husband Marc Anthony), drew 88,063 viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. before Fox4's local news boosted itself to 142,256 viewers.

Jon Heder throws a few pitches on behalf of his cartoon Napoleon

Ed Bark — 2012-03-02T12:09:32-06:00
"It's certainly a blur," Heder says near the end of his last stop at KHYI "The Range" radio (95.3 FM), where he also entertains questions from unclebarky.com and a reporter from Highland Park Middle School's Tribal Tribune. ...In comparison, The Simpsons and Family Guy both are drawing 7.6 million viewers per episode, with respective 18-to-49 numbers of 4.6 million and 5.1 million, according to Nielsen Media Research.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 1) -- Awake a little sleepy but not comatose

Ed Bark — 2012-03-02T10:54:51-06:00
Fox's two-hour American Idol, in which the 13 finalists will include 18-year-old Hollie Cavanagh of McKinney, had no trouble controlling the 7 to 9 p.m. hours opposite a mix of repeats and new episodes of four NBC comedies. Idol averaged 433,542 total viewers, with only CBS' Person of Interest rerun (264,190 viewers) providing any real competition. Idol won even bigger among 18-to-49-year-olds, with Person falling off the map in that demographic. On the first day after the February ratings "sweeps," CBS11 celebrated its success at 10 p.m. with two more wins -- in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Early morning revamp at NBC5 triggers reassignment of co-anchor Scott Friedman and departure of meteorologist Jennifer Lopez

Ed Bark — 2012-03-01T17:33:08-06:00
NBC5 meteorologist Jennifer Lopez is leaving the station after close to four years while co-anchor Scott Friedman will be heading up a new investigative team as part of an early morning news shakeup announced by the station late Thursday afternoon. ..."This is an investigative reporter's dream, having the support and the resources to track down and report stories that can really make a difference for all of us who live here," Friedman said in a statement.

CBS11 wins the 10 p.m. big tunas, with Fox4 and NBC5 also claiming some top spots in extraordinarily close February "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2012-03-01T10:58:35-06:00
At 5 p.m., for instance, NBC5 beat Fox4 by a 1.81 to 1.77 margin in total viewers while the Peacock took the 25-to-54 race in that time period by a score of 1.53 to 1.46 over Fox4. ...***In a significant accomplishment, Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast averaged more 18-to-49-year-olds (key target audience for entertainment programming) in February than the various 9 to 10 p.m. offerings on NBC, ABC and CBS.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 29) -- Idol rises on leap day

Ed Bark — 2012-03-01T09:40:03-06:00
and Rock Center with Brian Williams ranked as Wednesday's least-watched Big Four broadcast network attractions with just 60,967 viewers each. Rock Center bottomed out even further with 18-to-49-year-olds, drawing a sub-measly 12,809 of 'em. ...On Leap Day, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 rose up with a win among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 28) -- Idol not used to this kind of treatment

Ed Bark — 2012-02-29T11:48:02-06:00
CBS' NCIS drew 521,606 D-FW viewers from 7 to 8 p.m., drubbing the first hour of Fox's Idol (399,672 viewers). NCIS: Los Angeles then tied Idol from 8 to 9 p.m., with each show luring 413,220 viewers. ...Idol and Fox could still claim victory, though, among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. NCIS and its spinoff were decisively beaten in that key demographic while Fox4's local newscast prevailed at 9 p.m. with a slim win over Unforgettable.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 27) -- bizarro Daytona 500 beats 10 p.m. newscasts

Ed Bark — 2012-02-28T10:22:50-06:00
In the 10 p.m. local newscast field, WFAA8 also beat its two rivals -- NBC5 and CBS11 -- among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...But the race for second place with 25-to-54-year-olds will go down to the wire between NBC5 and WFAA8, which took Monday's silver while its Daybreak continues to ply potential viewers with its roving free food truck.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 24-26) -- split decision for Oscars vs. Grammys

Ed Bark — 2012-02-27T10:20:55-06:00
Whitney Houston's death on Grammy eve helped propel the ceremony to its second biggest audience ever, with only the 1984 show drawing a bigger crowd in the year Michael Jackson won eight trophies for Thriller. ...WFAA8's Daybreak, which is still plying potential viewers with free food, is in a down-to-the-wire battle with NBC5 for second place at this hour among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 23) -- another comedown for Idol

Ed Bark — 2012-02-24T10:00:35-06:00
Overall, Idol averaged 386,124 total viewers, with 124,890 in the 18-to-49 age range. Big Bang's respective totals were 419,942 and 147,306; Rob then dropped to 237,094 total viewers, with just 38,428 of the 18-to-49 persuasion. ...But ABC's Grey's Anatomy had a runaway 8 p.m. win with 18-to-49-year-olds before Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast edged ABC's Private Practice at 9 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 22) -- Fox4, CBS11 split local news spoils while NBC again in prime-time toilet

Ed Bark — 2012-02-23T10:34:16-06:00
No longer all-powerful but still strong enough to get the job done, Fox's American Idol again emerged as Wednesday's most-watched prime-time attraction with 406,446 D-FW viewers in the 7 to 9 p.m. slot. Its strongest opponent, CBS' 8 p.m. new episode of Criminal Minds, ran a solid second with 291,286 viewers while ABC's Modern Family drew a nice-sized 257,416 viewers.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 21)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-22T13:27:45-06:00
Fox4, on its 9 p.m. edition, recanted an erroneous report and gave viewers the news on "Nomophobia" and "Me-Ality" before anchor Steve Eagar agreed with a "Viewers' Voice" accuser that he's a pompous ass. ...And in a rather bizarre turn of events, CBS11's Tuesday 10 p.m. newscast cited a Dallas Morning News story (by Christy Hoppe) that said Perry was "leaning toward" running for governor an unprecedented fourth time.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 21) -- CBS crime pays, but only in older circles

Ed Bark — 2012-02-22T09:34:38-06:00
And Fox's comedy combo of New Girl and Raising Hope comfortably won from 8 to 9 p.m. in this key demographic. New Girl again was Tuesday's top achiever among 18-to-49-year-olds. ABC's Body of Proof broke up Fox's party with a 9 p.m. win in the 18-to-49 demographic, with Fox4's 9 p.m. local news a solid second and Unforgettable sliding to a distant fourth.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 20)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-21T11:28:30-06:00
WFAA8 anchor John McCaa took a walk outside to introduce Jason Whitely's "Border Battle" story; Whitely later shared some Facebook comments on what he reported a few minutes earlier. Photos: Ed Bark ...Live viewer reaction is a growing part, with local newscasts striving to stem the tide of shrinking audiences by asking you to "like" them on Facebook, kibitz with them on Twitter and lately see your name in print as reporters or anchors scroll through selected comments.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Feb. 17-20) -- Lin a big win for ABC while The Voice keeps humming

Ed Bark — 2012-02-21T09:54:39-06:00
Advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds pretty much stayed away, though. Downton's 32,023 viewers in this key demographic trailed all programming on the Big Four broadcast networks as well as AMC's The Walking Dead (99,271). ...The Peacock's Smash then fell to third place in the 9 p.m. hour with 176,127 total viewers while ABC's Castle won that slot with 270,964 viewers. Smash also took the bronze with 18-to-49-year-olds, trailing both Castle and CBS' Hawaii Five-0.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., Feb. 17)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-20T10:44:24-06:00
NBC5's usually reliable Night Ranger, Scott Gordon, also stepped in it with a prominently played "he said, she said" time-waster on a young woman who said her wallet was filched from her apartment by a man claiming to be an Ambit energy employee. ...Shortly after the Land-Kardashian hug, new sports guy David Watkins (from a Minneapolis station) rounded out NBC5's Friday edition by saying that the Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki scored 26 points in that night's big second half comeback against the 76ers.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Feb. 16)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-17T14:33:12-06:00
If one of the accused had been the son or daughter of any D-FW station's general manager or news director, that particular photo would never have been shown in the way that Fox4 separately displayed those 10 closeups Thursday night. ...That happened as recently as Thursday, when CBS11 fully acknowledged that it was the only station not to break in with live coverage of Wednesday morning's drug bust news conference by TCU officials.)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 16) -- Fox, Fox4 sweep prime-time demo derby

Ed Bark — 2012-02-17T10:30:16-06:00
The two-hour Idol ruled from 7 to 9 p.m. with 433,542 total D-FW viewers while Big Bang checked in with 406,446 at 7 p.m. before the network's following Rob fell to 223,545 viewers. ...In Thursday's four-way local newscast competitions, CBS11 continued to run strong at 10 p.m. with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Krystle and Kris Gutierrez leaving their respective Foxes, heading to Chicago

Ed Bark — 2012-02-16T16:58:02-06:00
As she had planned, Krystle Gutierrez of Fox4's Good Day is putting the show and the Dallas-based station behind her after husband Kris landed an out-of-town anchoring job. ...She instead remained as "a contributor" with the freedom to leave immediately if her husband negotiated his way out of town.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., Feb. 15)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-16T14:28:07-06:00
You safely could have bet your house, your farm or your luxury high-rise condo that Fox4, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 all would lead their Wednesday late nighters with "team coverage" of that day's TCU student drug dealer scandal. ...In that context, what Patterson didn't say in his statement was that "under my watch, drugs and drug use by TCU's student athletes have NEVER been tolerated or known of by me or any member of my coaching staff.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 15) -- Idol calls the tune before CSI/Fox4 news top prime-time charts

Ed Bark — 2012-02-16T11:25:35-06:00
From 8 to 9 p.m., CBS' Criminal Minds had 291,286 total viewers while ABC's Modern Family had the top runner-up total of 147,306 in the 18-to-49 motherlode. CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation won at 9 p.m. in total viewers (257,416), but Fox4's Idol-aided local newscast edged CSI for the most 18-to-49-year-olds at that hour (73,653).

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 14)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-15T13:32:11-06:00
Fox4 co-anchor Steve Eagar and Dallas police chief David Brown after their live interview on Tuesday's 9 p.m. newscast. Photos: Ed Bark ...Earlier in the newscast, co-anchor Doug Dunbar's reader on the DART sentencing ended with a thud when he told viewers that "details of the deal today and the identity of the teen who took the deal have not been released."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 14) -- The River looks sunk

Ed Bark — 2012-02-15T11:14:43-06:00
CBS' trio of crime dramas as usual won their time slots, with new episodes of NCIS, NCIS: Los Angeles and Unforgettable all cruising to easy wins in total viewers. NCIS again had Tuesday's biggest haul, with 460,639 viewers. NCIS and Unforgettable also took the golds among 18-to-49-year-olds. NCIS: Los Angeles ran second to Fox's New Girl from 8 to 8:30 p.m. before its second half hour knocked off Fox's runner-up Raising Hope.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 13)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-14T14:36:34-06:00
But the station was abundantly less than truthful in selecting which comments to publicize later on Monday's 10 p.m. newscast and also during Tuesday's edition of the early morning Daybreak. ...***CBS11 had an intriguing "only on CBS11" story by reporter Jason Allen, who reported from Lewisville on an apparent prank by an X Box user that prompted a SWAT team to respond to an alleged shooting with the shooter still at large.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 13) -- The Voice dominates before Smash crashes

Ed Bark — 2012-02-14T12:04:24-06:00
NBC's The Voice improved on its already dominating Nielsen numbers from last week, but Smash then shattered any dreams of an all-powerful Monday night. ...The respective totals were 281,802 viewers and 76,855, leaving Smash in a second place tie with CBS' Hawaii Five-0 and just one-tenth of a rating point ahead of Castle.

Snakes alive on WFAA8's Good Morning Texas in new rival to NBC5's famed leapin' lizard incident (amended)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-13T17:21:57-06:00
version=3&hl=en_US">GMT after stints as a daytime soap regular (One Life to Live, Days of Our Lives), a game show emcee (Merv Griffin's Crosswords) and co-host of Soap Talk with Lisa Rinna.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thursday, Feb. 9) -- this time it's Big Bang's turn

Ed Bark — 2012-02-10T10:19:01-06:00
And on Friday night, WFAA8 is resorting to Texas Rangers pitcher Derek Holland as its 10 p.m. weathercaster, with Pete Delkus standing by in case he throws a curve ball and predicts a plague of locusts and triple-digit temperatures for the D-FW viewing area. At 6 a.m., NBC5 rose up for a rare doubleheader sweep during a sweeps month in which it's being hard-pressed by WFAA8 for second place in the 25-to-54 Nielsens.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 8) -- Idol's turn to flex

Ed Bark — 2012-02-09T12:53:08-06:00
In Wednesday's "sweeps"-infused local news derby results, an increasingly competitive NBC5 tied CBS11 for first place at 10 p.m. in total viewers and won outright with 25-to-54-year-olds, the prime target audience for news programming. ...NBC5 and WFAA8 are in a horse race for second place at this early hour among 25-to-54-year-olds, with WFAA8 hoping to get out of third place for the first time in several years.

Former WFAA8 anchor Macie Jepson and the station reach undisclosed settlement on her discrimination claim

Ed Bark — 2012-02-09T12:53:41-06:00
Three and a half years after being laid off, anchor Macie Jepson and WFAA8 have written the last chapter in their relationship with the settlement of her discrimination suit against the Dallas-based station. ...In that instance, both sides claimed victory, with the station saying that Sams received only four percent of what he had asked for while his attorney countered, "That four percent is a 'spin,' and that's putting it mildly."

Two pair on Thursday's Daybreak

Ed Bark — 2012-02-09T07:50:01-06:00
But a saturation "Corning Taking Over the Morning" ad campaign -- in addition to his boyish appeal and comedy stylings -- have helped to put the program within striking distance of No. ... The stations so far are running neck-and-neck in the early stages of the February "sweeps" ratings period, with Fox4's Good Day still pretty comfortably on top.

NBC5 has new sports reporter, with Rontina McCann out

Ed Bark — 2012-02-08T11:13:01-06:00
"He is filling a position left open when Rontina left the station," NBC5 vice president of programming Brian Hocker said in an email reply. ...NBC5 has had a steady stream of young women news staffers leaving the station for various reasons in recent months.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 7) -- The River runs dry for ABC; CBS11 runs strong at 10 p.m.

Ed Bark — 2012-02-08T09:42:03-06:00
But it had less than half the audience for CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles (406,446 viewers) while also losing to the network's Unforgettable (298,060), Fox's New Girl (209,997) and Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast (162,578). ...At 7 p.m., CBS' 200th episode of NCIS easily had Tuesday's biggest overhaul haul, flexing with 548,702 total viewers while also winning comfortably among 18-to-49-year-olds opposite Fox's second place Glee.

WFAA8 adds another Fox station newsie -- reporter Teresa Woodard -- to its newsroom

Ed Bark — 2012-02-08T09:42:17-06:00
Woodard began her reporting career at stations in Bryan and Waco, Texas (KBTX and KCEN respectively) before moving up to WBIR-TV in Knoxville, Tennessee. ...So that's two incoming Foxies, although Mungo also has strong Belo ties from her previous tenure as a reporter for the company's KHOU-TV in Houston.

Mungo officially baptized as WFAA8 news director via two-page publicity release

Ed Bark — 2012-02-07T17:50:43-06:00
Effusive praise from her new boss and an emphasis on making new digital media inroads characterized WFAA8's official publicity release announcing Carolyn Mungo as the Dallas-based station's new news director. ...In an unsolicited email to unclebarky.com, former WFAA8 city hall reporter Chris Heinbaugh (now director of external affairs for the AT&T Performing Arts Center) lauded Mungo as a "journalist's news director who values strong reporting, writing and storytelling.

Sources say WFAA8 has settled on Carolyn Mungo as new news director (updated: and now it's official)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-07T13:01:08-06:00
Sources close to the situation also say that Kurt Davis, news director at Belo-owned KENS-TV of San Antonio, was offered the position but decided to turn it down. ...Current WFAA8 president and general manager Mike Devlin also was at KHOU during those years, serving as news director from 1998 until joining WFAA8 in March of 2005 as vice president and station manager.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 6) -- Voice roars, Smash passes first test

Ed Bark — 2012-02-07T09:51:31-06:00
A two-hour edition of The Voice, following Sunday's post-Super Bowl launch, commanded the 7 to 9 p.m. slot with 501,283 D-FW viewers while also crunching all competing programming in the key 18-to-49 demographic. ...And Smash had more than twice as many 18-to-49-year-old viewers as CBS' competing Hawaii Five-0, which drooped to fourth place in that measurement behind ABC's Castle and Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 3-5) -- latest Supie falls short of previous Jerry's Palace edition

Ed Bark — 2012-02-06T11:31:43-06:00
NBC5's one-hour "Super-Sized Edition" of its late night news, which got off to a 10:22 p.m. start, clocked in with roughly 359,027 viewers after sharing its first quarter-hour with The Voice. ...The cop drama's new 9 p.m. episode pulled in 311,609 viewers while again falling off with advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds to run third at that hour behind ABC's 20/20 and NBC's Dateline.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Feb. 1-2) -- Idol edges Big Bang, NBC5 news makes surprise showing on first day of Feb. "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2012-02-03T10:03:55-06:00
It ran a distant fourth in that measurement while moving up to third with 18-to-49-year-olds ahead of the opening half of Person of Interest. ...Wednesday's local news derby numbers went like this: CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but WFAA8 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds.

I think I've just filled up 3 mins. of CW33's 9 p.m. newscast on opening night of the February "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2012-02-02T16:51:57-06:00
version=3&hl=en_US">

Fox4 entertains idea of putting former CBS11 meteoroglist Julie Bologna back in view

Ed Bark — 2012-02-02T08:36:56-06:00
Bologna was with CBS11 from 2004 to 2008 before returning to her hometown of Pittsburgh and her previous station, WPXI, where she had been a weathercaster for five years before moving to D-FW. ... The married mother of two young sons said that her daily duties on WPXI's weekday 5:30, 6, 10 and 11 p.m. newscasts were making it difficult to maintain a healthy family life.

"Real Stories. Real People. Real Coverage" (For Real?)

Ed Bark — 2012-02-01T16:42:48-06:00
WFAA8 won in the November sweeps by a dinky 4,810 total viewers but enjoyed a wider margin with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...version=3&hl=en_US">*** Fort Worth-based NBC5 announces that it's the only local TV station in the country to receive a nomination by the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD), which will hold its 23rd annual awards ceremonies this spring on three different dates in New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 24) -- State of Union scrambles prime-time schedules

Ed Bark — 2012-01-25T10:48:52-06:00
Still, Loser ran third in its time slot, trailing CBS' NCIS repeat (311,609 D-FW viewers) and Fox's American Idol rehash (277,738). Loser moved up to second with advertiser-sought 18-to-49-year-olds, while NCIS fell to third. ABC's double helping of Last Man Standing reruns ran fifth in both measurements, also losing to The CW's new hour of 90210 while drawing just 60,967 total viewers for its 7:30 p.m. episode.

WFAA8's Shon Gables has another strike against her in Michigan court

Ed Bark — 2012-01-25T10:50:59-06:00
The longstanding $35,000 slander judgement against WFAA8 anchor/reporter Shon Gables took another turn late last week when a Michigan circuit court judge ordered the seizure and selling of any personal property remaining in the Southfield, MI condo where she once resided. ...But notifications of the seize and sell order have been sent to both the Southfield and Frisco addresses, as well as to WFAA8 offices in downtown Dallas, according to the court document signed by judge Stempiem.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 23) -- single-worded dramas dominate

Ed Bark — 2012-01-24T09:37:32-06:00
House and Castle also prevailed among advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds but Alcatraz fell prey to the second hour of ABC's The Bachelor, which nipped Fox's escapist fare. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 happily fed off ABC's bounteous Castle lead-in and romped to commanding wins at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

"A bizarre influx of rats and rodents into North Texas"

Ed Bark — 2012-01-23T18:32:11-06:00
Have a look and see if you believe what you see from a station that's won more Peabody and duPont-Columbia awards than all other D-FW stations combined. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 19) -- Idol nips Big Bang; The Firm on fumes

Ed Bark — 2012-01-23T08:47:04-06:00
Its surging Person of Interest had 379,350 total viewers while Fox's new The Finder fell to third behind ABC's Grey's Anatomy with well less than half that haul (169,353). The Mentalist mopped up with 345,479 viewers, thrashing ABC's runnerup Private Practice (149,030). ...CBS11 capitalized on CBS' potent Mentalist win to win big at 10 p.m. with 250,642 total viewers compared to second place WFAA8's 128,708.

The Me-TV Network can soon be your TV network

Ed Bark — 2012-01-19T15:46:38-06:00
Dig deeper into weekday nights, or early mornings, and you'll find the likes of I Love Lucy, The Untouchables, Peter Gunn, Combat!, Twelve O'Clock High, My Three Sons, The Beverly Hillbillies, Daniel Boone and Love, American Style. ...Dallas-based KFWD-TV (Ch. 52), under the wing of Belo-owned WFAA8, also dabbles in "Classic TV" when it's not repeating local newscasts or reprising the ABC affiliate's afternoon syndicated lineup of Dr.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 18) -- Idol still a force

Ed Bark — 2012-01-19T13:38:50-06:00
Wednesday's 11th season premiere of American Idol led Fox to another prime-time romp, even though the D-FW numbers drooped a bit from last year's launch. ...Fox4's local newscast comfortably ran first with 18-to-49-year-olds, though, with a new episode of ABC's Revenge sagging to fourth in that key demographic.

Laughable 1992 KXAS promo touts a spooky town DART investigation

Ed Bark — 2012-01-19T11:15:28-06:00
version=3&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (New Year's Eve to Jan. 17) -- marathon post-"press tour" catchup round

Ed Bark — 2012-01-18T11:45:05-06:00
In total viewers, CBS prospered with crime repeats. NCIS as usual won at 7 p.m. while Unforgettable edged Fox4's local newscast in the 9 p.m. hour. New Girl had the most total viewers from 8 to 8:30 p.m. before the second half of CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles mopped up with an 8:30 to 9 p.m. win. ...WEDNESDAY, JAN. 11th -- ABC's Modern Family had the biggest prime-time haul with 277,738 total viewers while also easily finishing as the top draw among 18-to-49-year-olds.

Post-"press tour" catchup round: Hansen re-ups at WFAA8; Tam time up at NBC5

Ed Bark — 2012-01-17T22:18:38-06:00
It takes effect in 2014 and will keep the always loquacious Hansen in play at the Dallas-based station until age 68, "if I live," he said in an email to unclebarky.com. ...Hansen, who joined WFAA8 in 1983 after being fired by rival KDFW-TV (Fox4), said the contract extension allows him "some extra days off, to in effect give me a 5-day work week.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Dec. 29) -- Fox4 news falls just short of double grand slam

Ed Bark — 2011-12-30T10:16:44-06:00
The station won at 6 a.m. and 5 and 6 p.m. in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...In contrast, ABC's 8 p.m. rerun of Grey's Anatomy barely registered with 13,548 viewers in a D-FW market of nearly 6.8 million.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Dec. 27) -- Kennedy Center Honors thrive amid reruns

Ed Bark — 2011-12-28T11:33:52-06:00
NCIS and the first hour of the Kennedy Center Honors also won among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds before Fox4's news handily took the 9 p.m. hour. In Tuesday's local news derby results, CBS11 topped the 10 p.m. field in total viewers while Fox4 had the edge among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

And to all a good night: D-FW's list of 2011 TV departures

Ed Bark — 2011-12-27T14:06:50-06:00
CHRIS FLANAGAN -- The former co-anchor of WFAA8's Daybreak and co-host of the station's Good Morning Texas left in October to become a featured nighttime news anchor at Cleveland's WEWS-TV. ..."The TV business has drastically changed over the past few years and I felt it was best to try and control my own destiny before NBC Universal controlled it for me," Stinchfield said of his decision to leave the TV news racket.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Dec. 23-26) -- deflated ratings for Cowboys/Mavs blowouts

Ed Bark — 2011-12-27T12:58:30-06:00
CBS had its usual allotment of two, ESPN's Monday Night Football and the NFL Network each got one and NBC will have had four by the time New York and Dallas finish the regular season in the national prime-time spotlight on New Year's night. ...What looked to be the no-brainer most-watched pro sports event of the day instead ran second on Sunday to NBC's prime-time Packers-Bears game, which had 494,509 D-FW viewers.

CBS11's merry Mowry promo

Ed Bark — 2011-12-23T12:16:29-06:00
version=3&hl=en_US">

Former NBC5 reporter Jay Gray arrested for drunk driving after attending party thrown by attorney for accused child molester Jerry Sandusky

Ed Bark — 2011-12-21T07:46:49-06:00
Based on official police reports, TMZ reports that Gray was arrested for driving under the influence early on the morning of Dec. 12th after attending a Dallas Cowboys-New York Giants watch party at the Pennsylvania home of accused child molester Jerry Sandusky's attorney, Joe Amendola. ...Gray and other reporters attended the party in hopes of landing an exclusive interview with Sandusky, the central figure in a sexual abuse scandal tied to the Penn State University football program.

WFAA8 looking for new news director after Michael Valentine's promotion to corporate position; station's Byron Harris wins another duPont-Columbia award for reporting (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-12-21T07:46:57-06:00
Fox4, as previously posted, hired a news director earlier this month to replace the departed Maria Barrs, who now is president and general manager at ABC's Sacramento television station. ...It's the fifth duPont for investigative reporter Byron Harris, one of which he shared with colleague Brett Shipp in 2009 when WFAA8 became the first local television station to ever win a Gold Baton for overall excellence.

Investigator Kimberly King cites personal matters in leaving NBC5 less than six months after arrival

Ed Bark — 2011-12-20T12:46:39-06:00
ALSO OF NOTE -- Fox Sports Southwest has hired Bob Ortegel as an analyst on pre- and post-game Dallas Mavericks shows. ...Ortegel had been a mainstay on Mavericks game telecasts until owner Mark Cuban bounced him during the middle of what turned out to be last season's championship run.

Fox4's Tinsley wasn't pet smart, still won't talk about it

Ed Bark — 2011-12-20T10:16:32-06:00
Fox4 anchor Clarice Tinsley's Facebook fan page is lighting up like a Christmas tree this month -- with non-fans who are excoriating her for emceeing a Dec. 7th charity auction for Children's Medical Center at which three puppy mill pups were illegally auctioned off to the highest bidders. ...I also understand that she made some uninformed comments about the pup, but that is where true animal rescuers could have taken the opportunity to be civil and respectfully educated her about the horrors of puppy-mills."

Hansen's annual "Thank God for Kids" Christmas video/commentary includes revelation that he was sexually assaulted as a child

Ed Bark — 2011-12-19T14:23:26-06:00
It turned out that no one else was there, and the older boy "then started what Sandusky (accused former Penn State football defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky) would describe as horsing around until he threw me to the ground and pulled at my pants." ...storyid=135840468&pos=top&swfw=$swfw">

NBC5's new newscast look

Ed Bark — 2011-12-14T14:10:38-06:00
Readers have been asking whether the new surroundings for NBC5's news anchors are the planned revamp noted in a previous unclebarky.com post or a temporary fix until the makeover is completely finished. ...Hocker also re-confirmed that NBC5 still plans to relocate from the only home it's ever had at 3900 Barnett St. in Fort Worth to the Centreport office park south of Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.

WFAA8 hires Kansas City's Marcus Moore after losing Chris Hawes (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-12-12T15:37:53-06:00
WFAA8 has hired Kansas City reporter Marcus Moore after losing Chris Hawes, who left the station this month to take a public relations position with Medical City Dallas Hospital. ...WFAA8 president and general manager Mike Devlin and news director Michael Valentine have not returned emails asking for confirmation of Moore's hiring, which later was picked up by the TV Spy and mediabistro websites.

Perfect for next year's Christmas card . . .

Ed Bark — 2011-12-12T14:18:48-06:00
Ron Jackson and Adrian Arambulo on Sunday's Good Day. Photo: Ed Bark ...It rubbed off on meteorologist Ron Jackson and anchor Adrian Arambulo, both of whom succumbed to his gift of funny holiday hats.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 9-11) -- giant numbers, Giants win

Ed Bark — 2011-12-12T12:32:11-06:00
On Friday, local viewers gave a frosty reception to a half-hour edition of the syndicated Extra, which was taped earlier that day in Dallas for a 6:30 p.m. airing on NBC5. It had a paltry 60,967 viewers, well less than one-third the crowd for CBS11's competing Wheel of Fortune (209,997 viewers) and less than half as many as WFAA8's Entertainment Tonight (121,934).

WFAA8 reporter Chris Hawes leaves station, takes hospital PR position

Ed Bark — 2011-12-12T11:33:30-06:00
Hawes, who joined WFAA8 in July 2006 as a general assignment reporter, already has a new position as strategic communications manager at Medical City Dallas Hospital. ... "The role includes external and internal communications for Medical City Children's Hospital, and a variety of Medical City's specialty centers and programs," Hawes said in a Facebook post.

Former D-FW reporters Kim Fischer, Dan Plante land simultaneously in Salt Lake City

Ed Bark — 2011-12-06T14:13:50-06:00
Former NBC5 reporter Kim Fischer, who left the Fort Worth-based station in August after a two-year stay, has joined Salt Lake City's KTVX-TV as part of its new 5 p.m. anchor team. Dan Plante, who worked at Dallas' KDFW-TV (Fox4) back in the 1990s, also has been hired by KTVX as the station's latest early morning co-anchor.

Colorless Garrett colors himself blameless, too. He'd better Cowboy up

Ed Bark — 2011-12-06T12:15:24-06:00
And after Monday's mind-numbing "I don't have a great answer for you on that" press conference, no one can accuse him of being a standup guy either. ...Garrett is already a statue, with "The Ticket" and other sports radio stations succumbing to his daily press conferences with all the anticipation of a little kid opening Aunt Gertrude's annual Christmas gift -- a pair of dress socks.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 2-4) -- Cowboys' desert debacle draws biggest crowd since season opener

Ed Bark — 2011-12-05T15:11:12-06:00
On Saturday night, most of you naughty little boys and girls watched Oklahoma State drub Oklahoma rather than see Uncle Barky's alma mater Wisconsin Badgers win the inaugural Big Ten championship game by barely surviving Michigan State. ...Friday's local news derby results went like this: CBS11 edged NBC5 for first place at 10 p.m. in total viewers but the Peacock rebounded with a big win among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

NBC5's Lindsay Wilcox gets super-sized -- with her hair

Ed Bark — 2011-12-05T10:37:53-06:00
Maybe she's auditioning for a cameo on TNT's new version of Dallas, where a back-in-the day Linda Gray sported both oversized locks and shoulder pads. ...As one who succumbed to a big, puffy curly-haired perm in the '70s, I'm not one to rip or clip anyone's hair.

Selling TNT's Dallas with a suitably over-the-top new trailer

Ed Bark — 2011-12-01T12:52:09-06:00
The old Dallas wasn't known for restraint in its depiction of the cheatin' hearts and crooked bidnessmen populating every nook and cranny of dirty dealin' Big D. ...Included are laughable intonations from an off-screen pitchman, a handful of deep-breathing scenes and a gathering of cast members to chew over what the original CBS series meant to us all.

Scott Pelley (mustache included)

Ed Bark — 2011-12-01T10:52:45-06:00
Pelley also made a point of underscoring the indelible lessons he learned from late news director Marty Haag and assignments editor Bert Shipp, who recently published his first book, Details At 10. ...version=3&hl=en_US">DMN story concluded.

Fox4 paces November "sweeps" in wins and year-to-year increases

Ed Bark — 2011-11-28T07:31:04-06:00
The four-week period, from Oct. 27th through Thanksgiving eve, also was marked by sharp audience declines at 5 p.m. for WFAA8, which ran fourth in total viewers and third with 25-to-54-year-olds after respectively placing first and second last November. ...Or to put it another way, far more viewers 65+ watch CBS11's 10 p.m. news than the combined audience of 18-to-34-year-olds for all four local late nighters.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 22) -- X Factor vs. Dancing before WFAA8 cashes in

Ed Bark — 2011-11-23T10:34:38-06:00
Dancing mustered a strong finishing kick, easily winning from 9 to 10 p.m. in total viewers with 453,865 while CBS' Unforgettable ran a distant second in that hour with 223,545 viewers. Dancing also prevailed among 18-to-49-year-olds, with Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast taking the runner-up spot. ...But the Dancing-fueled ratings windfall likely will be the difference-maker for WFAA8's 10 p.m. news, which on Wednesday's closing night of the sweeps will be preceded by a new 9 p.m. episode of ABC's popular Revenge while CBS feeds its stations Thanksgiving eve gruel in the form of a CSI: Crime Scene Investigation repeat.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 18-20) -- Cowboys inch higher in numbers, standings

Ed Bark — 2011-11-21T10:42:57-06:00
Fox carried the elongated 27-24 win, which stretched to 3:39 p.m. and averaged 1,171,919 viewers with a peak crowd of 1,429,335 for the game's closing minutes. ...As usual, though, it slipped dramatically with advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds, running third at 9 p.m. and drawing fewer viewers in this key demographic than both of CBS' preceding dramas, A Gifted Man and CSI: NY.

Corning in a shower with a naked older guy? Not a good idea for this latest Daybreak comedy spot

Ed Bark — 2011-11-17T08:30:09-06:00
But this latest one's pretty much a stinker, particularly in light of the ongoing Penn State scandal and its prime-target's televised contention that he was just "horsing around" with the young boys with whom he apparently regularly showered. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Nov. 15)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-16T13:30:14-06:00
WFAA8's Craig Civale earlier had an interview with the new attorney for McKinney chiropractor David Allen Russell, whose alleged aggravated sexual assault of two teenage patients has received heavy play during these seven days of local newscast monitoring. ...The station led its 10 p.m. news with Jason Allen's live report on Glenn Beck's decision not to buy an abandoned Southlake church to serve as headquarters for his planned Mercury Radio initiative.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Nov. 14)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-15T15:33:57-06:00
But the link between Smith and Jakes, a multi-millionaire through the grace of his jam-packed sermons and seminars, isn't exactly a closely kept secret. The Washington Post wrote in 2001 about Jakes' associations with Smith and former Cowboys teammate Deion Sanders. ...And in early September of this year, Smith kicked off a local and national tour on behalf of his new book Game On, which Jakes heartily endorsed as an opportunity for readers to learn "just what it takes to be a champion in every aspect of life, including the all-important areas of faith and family."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Nov. 14) -- uplifting trumps sordid

Ed Bark — 2011-11-15T11:22:09-06:00
But MNF topped the 9 p.m. hour among advertiser-favored 18-to-49-year-olds, with Hawaii Five-0 and ABC's Giffords interview running second and third. ...In Monday's local news derby results, CBS11 nipped WFAA8 at 10 p.m. in total viewers, with WFAA8 turning the tables by a slight margin among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newcasts (Fri., Nov. 11)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-14T12:46:05-06:00
Harris' lengthy story, positioned in the mid-section of his station's Friday 10 p.m. newscast, targeted some questionable practices by the mammoth Affiliated Computer Systems (ACS), which he termed "a virtual assembly line of claims processing." ...Reporter Tracy Kornet followed with what had been a heavily promoted "Manopause" story that focused on a beefy young guy whose energy and sex drive had gone south while he also found himself weeping while watching Seabiscuit.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 11-13) -- another million seller for Cowboys' first appearance on CBS

Ed Bark — 2011-11-14T10:47:20-06:00
Ending earlier than most "early" games -- at 2:54 p.m. -- Cowboys-Bills averaged 1,151,597 D-FW viewers with a peak crowd of 1,307,401 between 2:15 and 2:30 p.m. ...In Sunday's other pigskin proceedings, Fox's mid-afternoon game between the 49ers and Giants averaged 609,669 viewers while NBC's Sunday Night Football matchup between the Patriots and Jets dominated prime-time with 480,961 viewers.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Nov. 10)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-11T14:09:42-06:00
De La Garza took things in a decidedly different direction, contending that a 16-year-old patient who claimed she had been molested "does not have a reputation for being truthful" while a 13-year-old accuser may have been confused because Russell's treatment was near her genitals. ...But by the end of Shipp's report, it all seemed like a carefully concocted fantasy, with OEC yet to build any kind of recycling plant even though its website says it has a brand new one in Dallas -- which it doesn't.

Daybreak gets "More Ron!" (ic?)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-10T17:06:40-06:00
And WFAA8 management is now fully on board with the notion that a little song, a little dance, a little seltzer in your pants is the way to go in the early mornings. ...version=3&hl=en_US">Gloria Campos after the station bull-rushed away from ABC's highly watched Country Music Association Awards and fired up two minutes before the appointed 10 p.m. hour. ...Reporter James Rose, who led the newscast, made no mention of Russell's denials -- or of any effort to contact him -- during Wednesday's story and in a followup live Q&A with co-anchor Heather Hays.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Tues., Nov. 8)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-09T12:06:13-06:00
The McKinney chiropractor story played right into that "theme" on a day that Penn State coach Joe Paterno also was reported to be on his way out after one of his former assistant coaches had been arrested on charges of sexually molesting young boys. ...WFAA8 led its Tuesday 10 p.m. edition with reporter Rebecca Lopez's "exclusive" followup on Dallas police officers who pulled a suspected thief out of his burning car after he crashed it into a home that also went up in flames.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Mon., Nov. 7)

Ed Bark — 2011-11-08T12:58:02-06:00
"NBC5's Meredith Land gets behind the wheel to show you what to do when seconds count," co-anchor Brian Curtis assured viewers before she could be seen driving "live" -- in the rain -- for a few yards in the station's parking lot. ...storyid=133414568&pos=top&swfw=$swfw">

Live from CW33 studios, Eye Opener gets its early morning game on

Ed Bark — 2011-11-01T01:15:17-05:00
On Monday's launch, newly hired Laura Thomas did weather updates, lifestyle reporter Toni Duclottni doubled down on traffic and Tommy Noel had brief reports from the field on topics ranging from the discovery of a missing 10-year-old girl's body to the Dallas Cowboys' Sunday Night Football whipping by the Philadelphia Eagles. ...They're much wider awake than the law should allow, throwing out quips and riffs on news nuggets ranging from Heidi Klum's "skinned corpse" Halloween costume to Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain defending himself against old sexual harrassment charges while also admitting he's never heard of "The Dougie."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 28-30) -- Rangers, Cowboys both get the bird

Ed Bark — 2011-10-31T09:55:16-05:00
Fox's Game 7 of the Series, a 6-2 Cards win, ran from 7:06 to 10:22 p.m. and averaged 1,707,073 viewers. ...Fox's 7:30 p.m. premiere of its latest Sunday night cartoon entry, Allen Gregory, had 121,934 viewers after falling sharply from the 230,319 viewers it inherited from The Simpsons.

NBC5 hires Harrisburg's Ben Russell as full-time reporter

Ed Bark — 2011-10-28T13:07:28-05:00
NBC5 news director Susan Tully, in an email to station staffers, said that "when it comes to dynamic live shots, Ben had one of the best resume tapes I've seen in a while. ...The opening visual on the tape is Russell overhand-tossing a brick through a front windshield to demonstrate the lethal force of that same object being thrown from an overpass by teen "pranksters."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 27) -- euphoria interruptus, with more than two million viewers on receiving end

Ed Bark — 2011-10-28T10:31:44-05:00
On the three-way late night news scorecard, CBS11 had the most total viewers for its late edition -- 81,289 -- while the Peacock was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds (45,140), the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...Thursday's other local news derby results gave NBC5 a narrow win at 6 a.m. in total viewers while Fox4 edged the Peacock in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Cheerleading Fox4 makes ass of self, tweets Rangers win before Cards rally in 9th and eventually win (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-10-28T00:30:42-05:00
Its cheerleading coverage of the Texas Rangers, with both the ALCS and World Series carried on Fox, reached the point of no return when the Dallas-based station tweeted a Rangers' World Series victory during the 9th inning of Game 6 against the St. ...Texas blew two-run leads in both the 9th and 10th innings enroute to a crushing 10-9 loss on David Freese's walkoff home run in the 11th inning.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 24) -- Rangers hit new peak high while tying Sunday night numbers

Ed Bark — 2011-10-25T11:07:00-05:00
Game 5 on Fox, which ran from 7:09 to to 10:40 p.m., topped out at 2,045,778 D-FW viewers in its closing segment (Nielsen measures in 15-minute increments). ...NBC's 9 p.m. rerun of Prime Suspect was the night's least-watched program on the five major broadcast networks, drawing a sub-puny 27,096 viewers in a North Texas market of 6.77 million.

Former WFAA8 anchor Macie Jepson lands in Cleveland

Ed Bark — 2011-10-25T09:53:55-05:00
Cleveland's WEWS-TV announced Monday that Jepson will be the ABC affiliate's new Good Morning Cleveland co-anchor. ..."Many viewers already know Macie, and her knowledge of the people, places and things that matter to Northeast Ohioans will be advantageous to everyone who engages with NewsChannel5 in the morning on-air, online and through our social media platforms," WEWS news director Jill Manuel said laboriously in a publicity release.

First a Navy graduation, then a trip to home sweet home -- Racine, WI

Ed Bark — 2011-10-24T13:32:28-05:00
After the stirring festivities, Carl had a few hours of liberty before heading off to the Navy base in Meridian, Mississippi to begin the next phase of his training. Relatively early the next morning, Madeline and I headed west on I-94 for a many-splendored visit to Uncle Barky's nearby birthplace, the "Belle City" of Racine, WI.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Sun., Oct. 19-23) -- Rangers stick a spur in Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2011-10-24T10:19:00-05:00
In other ratings news, Sunday's premiere of ABC's Once Upon A Time drew just 155,804 viewers in the 7 p.m. hour opposite Game 4 of the Series and a portion of NBC's mismatched Sunday Night Football game between the New Orleans Saints and sub-woeful Indianapolis Colts (Final score: 62-7). ...Wednesday -- WFAA8 won a downsized three-way race at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but NBC5 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Katie's D-FW carrier will be WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2011-10-24T09:13:35-05:00
"To have garnered such exceptional clearances in this short period of time is attributable to the enduring strength of the Katie Couric brand and her wide-ranging appeal as one of the brightest, most talented and most dynamic personalities in the business," Disney-ABC Domestic president Janice Marinelli cooed in the publicity release. Couric's brand has not been a particularly big seller in D-FW, where the CBS Evening News and Today seldom won their time slots during her tenures with those programs. Katie will air on all of ABC's owned-and-operated stations.

CBS11 goes to Garvin for early morning anchor

Ed Bark — 2011-10-24T07:55:05-05:00
Garvin originally was hired in fall 2009 to co-anchor sister station TXA21's "First In Prime" 7 to 9 p.m. newscasts, which are giving way to a locally produced sports program hosted by Gina Miller. America's Funniest Home Videos already is occupying the 8 p.m. hour. Garvin, who was raised in the Bryan-College Station area, joined CBS/TXA21 from NBC-owned WRC-TV in Washington, D.C., where he worked for three years.

Rangers vs. Cardinals: here's how it looks

Ed Bark — 2011-10-19T08:39:15-05:00
It's long been impossible, for instance, to envision a scenario in which starter Ted Williams hit a walk-off home run to win the 1941 All-Star game for the American League. ...WIN AT LEAST ONE OF YOUR FIRST TWO ROAD GAMES -- Maybe the Giants would have beaten the Rangers anyway had the World Series started in Texas instead of San Francisco.

Colbert credits WFAA8 with "elaborate and nefarious conspiracy" to block his latest "Super PAC" ad (But it's all good in the end)

Ed Bark — 2011-10-18T13:14:25-05:00
And so it came to pass Monday night on Comedy Central, when The Colbert Report included a segment in which the host harangued and chided Dallas-based WFAA8 for supposedly refusing to air his "Super PAC" ad calling for an immediate end to the NBA lockout. ...
The Colbert Report Mon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c
Sport Report - NBA Lockout & Colbert Super PAC's Ad
www.colbertnation.com
Colbert Report Full Episodes Political Humor & Satire Blog Video Archive

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 14-16) -- World Series bound Rangers vs. going nowhere Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2011-10-17T11:19:45-05:00
Sunday's re-scheduled two-hour edition of Fox's The X Factor drew 311,609 viewers in finishing a close overall second in prime-time to NBC's Bears-Vikings game (331,931 viewers). ...In Friday's local news derby results, CBS11 won comfortably at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 had a sizable win with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 13) -- deflating loss, deflated numbers for Rangers

Ed Bark — 2011-10-14T11:04:06-05:00
In the prime-time Nielsens, Fox's The X Factor and CBS' comedies and crime drama fought for ratings supremacy from 7 to 9 p.m. ...X Factor reigned with advertiser-favored 18-to-49-year-olds, though, winning its entire two-hour segment before ABC's Private Practice ran first at 9 p.m. in this key demographic.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 12) -- rain-delayed Rangers again reign in prime-time

Ed Bark — 2011-10-13T15:23:51-05:00
Texas' 7-3 extra inning win over Detroit, in a rain-delayed nail-biter that ran from 5:32 to 9:32 p.m., fell just short of the one million mark with an overall average of 955,148 D-FW viewers. A peak crowd of 1,388,691 watched between 9:15 to 9:30 p.m., when Nelson Cruz cemented the win with a three-run homer after earlier keeping the game tied 3-3 with an eighth-inning throw that cut down Miguel Cabrera at the plate.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 11) -- Rangers near the million mark while otherwise thrown for a loss

Ed Bark — 2011-10-12T12:18:27-05:00
Game 3 of the Texas Rangers-Detroit Tigers ALCS hit a high point to date on the ratings scorecard while otherwise resulting in the North Texas 9's first loss in the best-of-seven portal to the World Series. ...Episode 1 drew just 139,546 viewers from 7 to 7:30 p.m., beating only the first half-hour of NBC's The Biggest Loser (97,547 viewers).

Swaggering with Fox4

Ed Bark — 2011-10-12T10:37:48-05:00
And on that scorecard, Fox4 is the reigning champ (based on the May "sweeps" ratings results) at 6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 9 p.m. ...And at 10 p.m., which technically could be considered latenight instead of "nighttime," Fox4 ran a close third at 10 p.m. in May's final results among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Corning 'n' Hansen: Take 2 in WFAA8's big push to make Daybreak a gamer

Ed Bark — 2011-10-11T11:26:02-05:00
WFAA8's selling of early morning co-anchor Ron Corning has reached stage 2 with a new 30-second spot featuring the eager kid and his wizened mentor, sports anchor Dale Hansen. ...Hansen says at one point that he's having his "morning coffee," which Corning quickly amends to "Corning coffee" during a bit shot in the ABC station's Victory Park studios.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 10) -- Rangers Cruz into prime-time, soar past the million mark

Ed Bark — 2011-10-11T10:21:25-05:00
Nelson Cruz's walk-off grand slam, which gave Texas a 7-3 win over the Detroit Tigers in Game 2, capped a marathon 11-inning game that ran from 3:20 to 7:45 p.m. on Fox. The closing 15-minute segment was witnessed by 1,341,272 D-FW viewers, giving Dallas-based Fox4 a massive ratings boost before its network's dinosaur-driven Terra Nova began almost an hour past its scheduled start.

Toasting the late Bert Lozano during a Sunday celebration of his life

Ed Bark — 2011-10-10T14:06:56-05:00
Former Dallas police chief/mayoral candidate David Kunkle and his wife, Sarah Dodd (formerly a CBS11 reporter), were among the attendees at Sunday's memorial for Bert Lozano. Photo: Ed Bark ...WFAA8 reporter Rebecca Lopez, who was among five speakers at the noontime memorial, remembered Lozano arriving at the station in 2004 and being "really excited about working with Gloria Campos, who of course is the diva of news in Dallas.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Oct. 7-9) -- hangin' with the Rangers through two hours worth of rain delays

Ed Bark — 2011-10-10T12:09:06-05:00
And Game 1 against the Tigers fell well short of last fall's ALCS opener against the New York Yankees, which averaged 928,044 viewers on TBS despite the Rangers blowing a 5-1 eighth inning lead. ...Friday's prime-time ratings were paced by CBS, which ran the table in total viewers with A Gifted Man, CSI:NY and Blue Bloods, the night's high scorer with 298,060 viewers.

"I hear the viewers here in Dallas-Fort Worth are flipping over the great Friday night lineup on WFAA-TV, Channel 8"

Ed Bark — 2011-10-07T09:23:37-05:00
In this 1965 spot, Francis and Honey West co-star John Ericson talk up WFAA8's Friday night ABC lineup before encouraging viewers to stay tuned for the late news with Bob Gooding, Dale Milford and Woody Van Dyke. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Cuban's investment in Rentrak may give WFAA8 additional ammo in its ratings skirmish with Nielsen

Ed Bark — 2011-09-28T16:26:55-05:00
The Dallas Mavericks/HDNet owner, who will be a regular on the ABC investor series Shark Tank this season, confirmed Tuesday that he has a financial stake in Rentrak -- and lately has upped the ante. ...As detailed in a July post, ABC affiliate WFAA8 has soured on Nielsen Media Research and so far is the lone North Texas TV station to embrace Rentrak as a more accurate barometer of TV viewership.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs.-Mon., Sept. 22-26) -- Cowboys roll over all, Terra Nova hangs in, Playboy Club collapses

Ed Bark — 2011-09-27T09:56:46-05:00
It ran second in total viewers, behind the Rangers, but dove into sixth place with 18-to-49-year-olds, where the Rangers, Fox's Kitchen Nightmares and The CW's Season 2 launch of Nikita ran one-two-three. ...X Factor also fell a bit short with 18-to-49-year-olds, finishing second to Big Bang from 7 to 8 p.m. and losing to the season premiere of ABC's Grey's Anatomy in the 8 p.m. hour.

Local news notes: WFAA8's Flanagan leaving while TXA21's newscast gets left behind in favor of sports

Ed Bark — 2011-09-26T17:42:52-05:00
Although he hasn't officially signed with his new station yet, WFAA8 management confirmed Monday that Chris Flanagan will be joining Cleveland's WEWS-TV as a featured nighttime news anchor. ...The station instead will air a full hour of sports, The Fan with Gina Miller, from 7 to 8 p.m., CBS11/TXA21 director of communications Lori Conrad confirmed.

R.I.P. Jerry Haynes -- Jan. 31, 1927 to Sept. 26, 2011 (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-09-26T15:13:14-05:00
"His professionalism and wonderful sense of humor set a tone in our community for generations of children who enjoyed Peppermint Place as well as the many other roles he played at WFAA. ...He studied drama at SMU, where one of his classmates was the late Aaron Spelling, who went on to become the producer of numerous long-running TV hits, including The Love Boat, Charlie's Angels and Beverly Hills 90210.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 21) -- X Factor opens solidly but not spectacularly

Ed Bark — 2011-09-22T11:28:15-05:00
The second episodes of NBC's Up All Night and Free Agents ran fourth in total viewers from 7 to 8 p.m. Up All Night improved to third place with 18-to-49-year-olds -- beating the first half-hour of ABC's The Middle -- while Free Agents remained fourth. Wednesday's local news derby results went like this: WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the 10 p.m. lead in total viewers but Fox4 was tops with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Should size matter? WFAA8 anchor-reporter Debbie Denmon charges the station with discrimination based on her weight

Ed Bark — 2011-09-22T11:29:21-05:00
Sams' dismissal from WFAA8 "was because of his religion, his age and the fact that he's a white guy," Sams' Dallas-based attorney, Hal Gillespie, said at the time. ...Earlier in her career at WFAA8, Denmon and Michael Rey co-anchored the station's weekday editions of Daybreak until they were supplanted in fall 2005 by the team of Justin Farmer and Jackie Hyland.

WFAA8 keeps trying to move early morning ratings meter, this time with a "kid" Corning comedy spot

Ed Bark — 2011-09-20T17:46:59-05:00
Its Daybreak team of Cynthia Izaguirre, Greg Fields, Alexa Conomos and Ron Corning, who arrived in late April from New York, receives heavy doses of daily promotion on the ABC affiliate. And now in a brand new 30-second spot, it's Corning getting his first showcase, in tandem with l-o-o-o-o-o-ngtime sports anchor Dale Hansen.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 19) -- huge opening for Two and a Half Men while Playboy Club falls flat

Ed Bark — 2011-09-20T10:24:18-05:00
Two and a Half also scored big with advertiser-favored 18-to-49-year-olds while Dancing lagged in third place from 7 to 9 p.m. behind CBS' sitcom lineup and Fox's two helpings of Hell's Kitchen. Dancing did beat Hell's in total viewers, but still didn't have enough juice to outdraw CBS. ...Then came the Peacock's much-hyped Playboy Club, which improved to 138,514 viewers to nip Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast (131,588 viewers). Playboy Club also edged Fox4's news for third place with 18-to-49-year-olds, but in each case was nowhere in the vicinity of the competing dramas on ABC and CBS.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 16-18) -- Cowboys' last ditch win flexes before Sunday Night Football bests Emmys

Ed Bark — 2011-09-19T10:38:52-05:00
Cowboys-49ers averaged 644,958 viewers in the motherlode 18-to-49 demographic compared to the 835,812 who watched the Jets snatch victory from Dallas in the regular season opener after Romo fumbled near the New York goal line and then threw an interception that led to the winning field goal. ...In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers and shared first place with NBC5 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

D-FW takes a rare dip in latest Nielsen population estimates (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-09-16T14:26:09-05:00
The latest Nielsen data, which will go into effect on Saturday, Sept. 24th, says that D-FW's total viewer population will be 6,774,106 (67,741 viewers per rating point) as of that date. ...D-FW also took a tumble in the number of TV households and in two key advertiser-sought demographic groups -- 18-to-49-year-olds for entertainment programming and 25-to-54-year-olds for news programming.

Krystle Gutierrez remains with Fox4, but without a contract and with the freedom to move elsewhere

Ed Bark — 2011-09-13T13:14:37-05:00
Fox4 management in Dallas referred an inquiry from unclebarky.com to its corporate headquarters, from where the official statement came on Gutierrez remaining a contributor for now. She was on the air during Tuesday's Good Day, which remains D-FW's No. 1-rated early morning program while also regularly outdrawing the three network morning shows from 7 to 9 a.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 9-11) -- Cowboys again excel in ratings, collapse on field (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-09-12T10:19:08-05:00
Again excruciatingly entertaining in defeat, the Dallas Cowboys gave away another Sunday Night Football opener while surpassing the D-FW audience for last season's 13-7 gaffe-fest at Washington. The 27-24 loss to the New York Jets on NBC averaged 1,634,465 viewers, up from the 1,574,422 who watched Dallas let the Redskins win the 2010 regular season kickoff under the Peacock's prime-time banner.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 7) -- impressive numbers for Republican presidential debate

Ed Bark — 2011-09-08T16:06:33-05:00
In five years of local ratings chronicling for unclebarky.com, I can't recall MSNBC ever being the ratings leader at any time of the night or day. ...It ran the table with advertiser-preferred 25-to-54-year-olds, winning at 6 a.m. and at 5, 6 and 10 p.m.

Halftime for TXA21 prime-time news, with the 8 to 9 p.m. hour being dropped

Ed Bark — 2011-09-02T11:00:53-05:00
The 8 to 9 p.m. hour of TXA21 News: First in Prime will be supplanted in September by the syndicated version of America's Funniest Home Videos. ...Tracy Kornet, who has been co-anchoring First in Prime, will remain behind the desk on sister station CBS11's weekday 4 p.m. newscast, with Garvin continuing as co-anchor.

R.I.P. Bert Lozano: May 14, 1969 to Aug. 31, 2011 (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-08-31T15:50:39-05:00
His parents, Humberto and Margarita Lozano, said: "Our hearts are so heavy at losing our Bert, but we cannot begin to express the thanks for all the love and support and prayers by Bert's family of friends and colleagues here in Dallas." ...Viewers were asking if they really saw a naked man on TV or if their eyes had played a trick on them because I never said anything about it in my live shot and the anchors never mentioned it during the newscast.

CW33 hires new meteorologist, ramps up for early morning show on two levels

Ed Bark — 2011-08-31T13:43:20-05:00
Dallas-based, Tribune-owned CW33 has imported another new staffer from Lubbock's Fox34 (KJTV-TV) while also learning that its studios will be the hub for a revamped early morning show that's transferring its entire production from Chicago. ...The show's regular contributors included a well-muscled handyman dubbed "Wrench," former Blind Date host Roger Lodge and a pair of women providing parenting tips in the "Mommy Minute." Eye Opener also offered viewers a segment on celebrity tweets from a character called Monsignor Jebediah O'Flaherty.

Next 24 hours will be key for stricken former WFAA8 reporter Bert Lozano

Ed Bark — 2011-08-29T21:08:34-05:00
After suffering an apparent heart attack Sunday morning, he remains "heavily sedated under constant care," according to a family statement sent by Chris Heinbaugh, who worked with Lozano at WFAA8 before leaving the station to become former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff. ...The Lozano family also expressed gratitude "for the outpouring of love and prayerful support from his many friends here in Texas, his home, and across the country.

Former WFAA8 reporter Bert Lozano hospitalized after heart attack

Ed Bark — 2011-08-29T14:59:31-05:00
While at WFAA8, Lozano's live 2006 report on a grass fire near Lake Lewisville in The Colony was compromised by a streaker who ran past him while tooting an air horn. In recounting the incident to unclebarky.com, Lozano said that he at first at first felt "totally humiliated," but later was able to joke about a clip that eventually received heavy national play.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 26-28) -- even a smallish Cowboys crowd sacks Rangers for big loss

Ed Bark — 2011-08-29T10:43:48-05:00
Cowboys-Vikings, which started shortly after 7 p.m. and ended at 10:07 p.m. on CBS11, averaged 664,867 D-FW viewers, with a peak audience of 789,530 between 8:15 and 8:30 p.m. Rangers-Angels, which also started shortly after 7 p.m. and ended a bit later at 10:12 p.m. on Fox Sports Southwest, averaged 131,588 viewers, with a peak crowd of 228,548 between 9 and 9:15 p.m.

NBC5 reporter Kim Fischer leaving to pursue other possibilities

Ed Bark — 2011-08-26T11:13:27-05:00
Here's Fischer's parting quote: "I was at a point in my contract where I could look for work as an anchor, an entertainment reporter or a number of other choices. ...The newscast will be followed by two half-hour editions of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (currently airing on CW33) and the new syndicated We the People, hosted by attorney Gloria Allred.

Former Fox4 reporter Sara Sidner now dodging bullets in Libya

Ed Bark — 2011-08-26T08:14:42-05:00
SNF and Super Bowl XLVI, which the Cowboys won't be playing in no matter how many wet dreams owner Jerry Jones has.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Aug. 15 to Tuesday, Aug. 23) -- catchup round featuring numbers for Cowboys-Chargers and Most Eligible Dallas

Ed Bark — 2011-08-24T12:19:07-05:00

Fox cooked with its 7 to 9 p.m. combo of Hell's Kitchen and Masterchef, which dominated in both total viewers and advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds. Hell's led all prime-time programming with 263,177 viewers. ...Fox cooled way down without its kitchenettes, bombing with Mobbed and a House repeat on a night when prime-time's biggest overall draw was CBS' 7 p.m. hour of Big Brother 13 (186,994 total viewers as well as Wednesday's best showing with 18-to-49-year-olds).

Former NBC5 reporter Grant Stinchfield aspires to be Republican congressman (updated with interview)

Ed Bark — 2011-08-15T11:24:28-05:00

Stinchfield, in a letter and followup email to prospective donors, says he has a goal of raising $150,000 by Labor Day in "order to be taken seriously as a candidate" and to compete against what he calls an "entrenched opponent." ...He has never run for public office before, but "when the economy started to tank, and after the birth of my son, and when the country started to go downhill in a direction I just couldn't support, it became more and more clear to me that I had to do something to get us back to the ideals of freedom, liberty and the free enterprise system that this country was built on."

Packaging former UT backup QB Matt Nordgren for Bravo's Most Eligible Dallas

Ed Bark — 2011-08-12T16:46:12-05:00

Matt Nordgren, principal stud of Bravo's upcoming Most Eligible Dallas (Mondays at 9 p.m. central, starting Aug. 15), went to grade school in Dallas with my daughter. ...I can do these things," says Nordgren, for whom Skylar is the show's designated "gatekeeper" as well as the single "hot mama" of a one-year-old son.

Shipp says he won't file assault charges against Price

Ed Bark — 2011-08-11T11:51:41-05:00

Shipp, who has won numerous prestigious national awards for his reporting during a long career at WFAA8, said he continues to be "focused on this entire investigation, and I can't get off too much on what happened yesterday. ...storyid=127463258&pos=top&swfw=470">

Sh*t happens -- twice on WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2011-08-11T10:44:03-05:00

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Same Name. ...Friday's Rangers win on TXA21 averaged 186,994 viewers, falling short in its closing 9 to 10 p.m. hour to Tom Selleck's Blue Bloods rerun on sister station CBS11 (the night's top draw with 221,622 total viewers).

Talking points in D-FW television

Ed Bark — 2011-07-25T13:10:59-05:00

You'll also have to include a phone number, email and street address in addition to a photo(s) of your property, a brief description of it and why you'd like to participate. "We'll pass the information along, and residents may soon find themselves talking to a representative of the show about how their property can play a part in shaping the world's future view of Dallas," Burklund says.

Numbers game: D-FW's WFAA8 tightens its embrace of Rentrak as a ratings alternative to Nielsen

Ed Bark — 2011-07-25T14:45:18-05:00

But Nielsen's local People Meters, which were introduced to D-FW in 2006, "have failed the original promise to provide this market with a stable, accurate and superior tool to measure television usage," Devlin told a group of local media buyers during a June 21st gathering at WFAA8's Victory Park studios in which Rentrak executives also were present. ...And with 25-to-54-year-olds (which Rentrak currently takes a full month to measure), WFAA8's 10 p.m. viewership zoomed from 80,774 to 220,576; CBS11 showed a far more modest increase in this demographic, improving from 80,774 viewers to 118,055.

Fox4 reporter Matt Grubs ending his tenure at Fox4

Ed Bark — 2011-07-21T15:10:06-05:00

Matt Grubs, a low-key, oft-stylistic general assignment reporter for Dallas-based Fox4, has decided to leave the station later this summer after a three-year stay. He joined Fox4 in September 2008 from Albuquerque, New Mexico's KOAT-TV, and will be returning to the state with his wife to be closer to family, Grubs said in an email to Fox4 staffers Thursday.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., July 15-17) -- numbers up for soccer loss, Rangers' wins

Ed Bark — 2011-07-18T09:59:30-05:00

It tied for second from 7 to 8 p.m. with ABC's Shark Tank repeat, with both series running well behind a new episode of the summertime CBS crime series Flashpoint (200,845 viewers). ...Among advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds, FNL edged Shark Tank for second place from 7 to 8 p.m. while tying CSI: NY for first in the 8 to 8:30 p.m. competition.

WFAA8's Gary Reaves decides it's time to retire (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-07-16T08:46:59-05:00

"After 35 years of going to work every day in a newsroom, I have decided it is time for me to move on. ...Whether it's a fun feature story or a tragedy, I am successful when I make the most of the time I have to produce, and the time I have on the air to tell it."

"We laid waste to everything in our path, J.R. And for what?"

Ed Bark — 2011-07-12T07:13:19-05:00

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Fox4's new Good Day Sunday gives Adrian Arambulo an anchor shot amid surrounding shot clocks

Ed Bark — 2011-07-11T12:08:12-05:00

Fronted by Fox4's cutest male news personality but hijacked by a quartet of opinion-spewing "4 Minutes" segments, the Dallas-based station's new Sunday morning Good Day edition is off to a rather odd start. ...The four of them also jabbered, in two other segments, about Casey Anthony's acquittal on charges she murdered her two-year-old daughter and Roy Williams' rejected mail-in wedding proposal, in which he included a $76,000 engagement ring.

TNT will re-do Dallas -- in Dallas

Ed Bark — 2011-07-08T12:15:31-05:00

But TNT's decision obviously is a big boon to the area TV production community, particularly after three network series filmed last season in North Texas -- NBC's Chase and Fox's The Good Guys and Lone Star -- all were canceled either during or after their first seasons. ...The new Dallas also will star Jesse Metcalfe as Bobby and Pam Ewing's adopted son, Christopher; Josh Henderson as J.R. and Sue Ellen's son, John Ross III; Julie Gonzalo as Christopher's fiancee, Rebecca Sutter; and Jordana Brewster as Elena Ramos, whose "love triangle" includes both John Ross and Christopher.

Three D-FW news personalities shake 'em for charity

Ed Bark — 2011-07-07T11:54:15-05:00

Fox4's Fiona Gorostiza and dance partner Ian Kelley beam while ubiquitous former NBC5 sports anchor Scott Murray (left) approvingly basks in their victory at the recent Top Hat & Tails charity benefit. Photos are from the contestants' Facebook pages. ...But Fox4 weathercaster/roving reporter Fiona Gorostiza ended up the night's big winner with her skimpy outfit and sizzling rumba/samba at the recent Top Hat & Tails charity benefit.

Kids blaze away on Fourth of July/cops called/kids scatter (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-07-06T14:01:46-05:00

Flagg, who described the scene as "basically a war zone," says he suffered a small burn to his neck when hit by one of the fireworks shot at him. ...version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0">

CBS11 anchor Karen Borta throws a few jabs, makes it through The Talk

Ed Bark — 2011-06-28T14:50:39-05:00

CBS11 anchor Karen Borta reacts after getting off a good one -- on disgraced former congressman Anthony Weiner -- during Tuesday's edition of The Talk, where she was a guest host. Photo: Ed Bark ...CBS11 anchor Karen Borta survived a ribald edition of her network's The Talk Tuesday, where the topics ranged from disgraced former Democratic congressman Anthony Weiner to "commando or not?"

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 24-26) -- ratings g-o-o-o-o-ld for U.S.-Mexico Gold Cup soccer final

Ed Bark — 2011-06-27T14:11:27-05:00

Mexico's comeback 4-2 victory, after trailing 2-0, averaged 484,799 D-FW viewers, more than twice the crowd for the most-watched game in the Texas-Rangers-New York Mets series (221,522 viewers for TXA21's Friday night telecast). ...In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 ran the table at 10 p.m. with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Hey Mavericks, the Badgers' Jon Leuer is going to be available (Take him!)

Ed Bark — 2011-06-23T15:48:22-05:00

He shot one for 12 from the field and had just 3 points and 5 rebounds in a 61-54 loss that ended Wisconsin's 2010-'11 season. ...version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0">

Not since Bing and Bowie . . .

Ed Bark — 2011-06-22T17:19:43-05:00

Rob Schneider singing "My Funny Valentine" while accompanied on piano by Marvin Hamlisch is the sort of mondo bizarro kitsch that WFAA8's Good Morning Texas should be specializing in. ...version=3&hl=en_US&rel=0">

American Idol and the head judge on So You Think You Can Dance), Entertainment Tonight co-host Nancy O'Dell, Allison Sweeney of The Biggest Loser and veteran entertainment reporter/producer Jann Carl.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., June 15-16) -- Fox4 trounces rivals with Mavs parade coverage

Ed Bark — 2011-06-17T12:46:28-05:00

On Wednesday night, Fox's two-hour 7 to 9 p.m. serving of So You Think You Can Dance won that slot in total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds. At 9 p.m., the final hour of NBC's Stanley Cup Game 7 (Boston closed out a rioting Vancouver) ran second to CBS' Blue Bloods reprise in total viewers but comfortably took the hour with 18-to-49-year-olds.

The long and winding road of Thursday's Mavericks parade coverage

Ed Bark — 2011-06-16T14:20:15-05:00

Parade day's hustle award goes to CBS11 sportster Gina Miller, who at one point could be seen chasing down a car carrying team president/CEO Terdema Ussery and actor/singer Jamie Foxx, who had hitched a ride after proclaiming himself a giant Mavs during his childhood in North Texas. ...All concerned of course were all in for the Mavs, with Fox4 anchor Steve Eagar gushing at one point, "I really do like the fact that we can sit here and look at these guys and say, 'They are good dudes.'

Mavs do Dave

Ed Bark — 2011-06-16T08:58:17-05:00

Without further ado -- save to note that point guard Jason Kidd was missing in action -- here's the video of how it went down from the American Airlines Center in downtown Dallas. ...version=3&hl=en_US">

Hansen twits hamster-powered unclebarky.com on "feel-good" caliber of Mavericks' NBA title

Ed Bark — 2011-06-14T11:01:35-05:00

He then modestly took credit for the Mavericks belated decision to show Game 6 on the American Airlines Center's big outdoor screen and also the city's now officially announced plans to have the parade for the team this Thursday instead of sometime next week. ...But then the dean of D-FW sports anchors suddenly shifted gears, re-set his jaw and said, "Ed Bark, the TV critic who writes on the Internet at unclebarky.com, says the Mavs' win is the feel-good D-FW sports event of all time.

There's no "King" in team (nor "humility" in Jean-Jacques Taylor): Mavericks exude grit, class in winning first NBA title

Ed Bark — 2011-06-13T12:21:00-05:00

Or at least it seems that way to me, particularly after the team's first ever title came at the expense of the sense-of-entitlement Miami Viceroys and their incessantly analyzed superstar triumvirate of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. ...And now for a mea culpa from me and a jab at a Dallas Morning News sports columnist who's seemingly incapable of ever sucking it up and admitting he was wrong.

Take it from Macy's and The Miami Herald: the Viceroys, not the Mavs, won the NBA title

Ed Bark — 2011-06-13T11:29:15-05:00

The only surprise here is how the LeBron Broadcasting Company, a k a ABC, could have missed out on this great chance to posthumously crown Miami as the new NBA champion after worshipping at the team's superstar altar for the entire series. ... Perhaps after what could have been a climactic Game 7 Tuesday night, addle-headed LBBC analyst Jeff Van Gundy can take out a full-page Herald ad offering to do "King James' " laundry for the entire off-season.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 10-12) -- top o' the world for Mavs and their viewers

Ed Bark — 2011-06-13T09:53:12-05:00

The Game 6 Mavs victory party also had more viewers than the concluding Game 5 of the Rangers-San Francisco Giants World Series (the most-watched with 1,433,620 viewers) and the biggest crowd last season for the Cowboys (1,627,540 for a Dec. 10 home loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on NBC's Sunday Night Football. ...WFAA8's local coverage, with Hansen and Bob Ortegel live in Miami and early morning anchors Cynthia "Izzy" Izaguirre and Ron Corning presiding from a crazed Victory Park, was still pulling in 408,616 total viewers before the station signed off a few minutes before midnight.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., June 9) -- higher and higher for Mavs' Game 5 win against Heat

Ed Bark — 2011-06-10T13:55:26-05:00

The Mavs, now within one win of their first NBA crown, also hit a new high among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, averaging 753,547 for a game that ran from 8:07 to 10:45 p.m. ...Many stayed around to bask in the first 15 minutes of the ABC/WFAA8 post-game coverage, with 10:45 to 11 p.m. scores of 1,419,769 total viewers and 786,453 of the 18-to-49 persuasion.

Mavs-Heat Finals spark an Uncle Barky shoot-around

Ed Bark — 2011-06-09T10:14:44-05:00

***It would be a capital crime, under NBA jurisdiction at least, if stone-handed former Dallas Maverick Erick Dampier got a championship ring while sitting on the Miami Heat bench at the expense of Dirk Nowitzki coming away empty again. ...This team has confounded the experts all season, but it would be a true Herculean feat for Dallas to win the last two games on Miami's home court after going down 3-2.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., June 7) -- Mavs draw biggest crowd to date with pulse-pounding, beat the Heat Game 4

Ed Bark — 2011-06-08T10:12:54-05:00

Sports anchor Dale Hansen and analyst Bob Ortegel, bounced from Mavs telecasts by owner Mark Cuban, are putting lots of pep in the step of WFAA8's pre- and post-game coverage. Photo: Ed Bark ...Also on Tuesday night, NBC's America's Got Talent and CBS' NCIS rerun both aired out of harm's way at 7 p.m. before Mavs-Heat tipped off at 8:07 p.m. NCIS won the hour in total viewers while Talent ran third behind a WFAA8/ABC combo of pre-game shows.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 3-5) -- Mavs numbers are up, but still short of Game 1, for Game 3 downer

Ed Bark — 2011-06-06T11:00:15-05:00

Dirk Nowitzki and his little Mavericks pals fought valiantly in Game 3 of The Finals, but the Miami Heat's Big 3 gang-shot their way to an 88-86 win Sunday night in Dallas. ...In Friday's local news derby, NBC5 and CBS11 shared first place at 10 p.m. while the Peacock flew solo with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., June 2) -- Mavs beat Heat and mash all competition but fall short of Game 1 crowd

Ed Bark — 2011-06-03T10:18:33-05:00

Ratings peaked in both measurements for the final 15 minutes of Game 2, in which Dallas came all the way back from a 15-point deficit midway through the 4th quarter to stun-gun Miami 95-93. ...So the ratings were deflated overall, with CBS11 leading the total viewers pack with 159,291 while also drawing the most 25-to-54-year-olds, main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Another miraculous Mavs win is good for the soul

Ed Bark — 2011-06-03T07:47:24-05:00

Magic also admitted, post-game, that he had completely written Dallas off after Miami built a dunk-juiced 15-point lead with just 6 minutes, 20 seconds left in the fourth quarter. ...That eventually led to "OMG to the infinite power" as Dallas came all the way back, took the lead, endured a Terry brain freeze on defense, took the lead again and survived a last-second off-balance desperation three-point attempt by Dwyane Wade, who had torched the Mavs for 36 points.

Up and comer: WFAA8's Colleen Coyle has national stage this week on ABC's GMA

Ed Bark — 2011-06-02T11:33:46-05:00

Coyle reported from the station's helicopter during the recent heavy storms in North Texas and also was a key player in the 10 p.m. tornado special that replaced WFAA8's regular 10 p.m. newscast on the last night of the May "sweeps" ratings period. ...But in an earlier video chat with WFAA8's Daybreak anchors, Coyle said it was her first visit to the Big Apple and that she's spent a good part of her off-time walking around Manhattan.

Scott Sams and former CBS11 early morning colleagues make nice with sugar and spice

Ed Bark — 2011-06-01T13:38:48-05:00

Bounced out of CBS11's early morning picture when his contract wasn't renewed last March, Scott Sams is now co-anchoring the 5 to 10 a.m. morning drive program on KRLD-AM radio (1080). ...rnd=362541;hostDomain=video.dallas.cbslocal.com;playerWidth=500;playerHeight=465;isShowIcon=true;clipId=5907869;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=News;advertisingZone=CBS.DALLAS/worldnowplayer;enableAds=false;landingPage=http%253A%252F%252Fdfw.cbslocal.com%252Fcategory%252Fwatch-listen%252Fcbs-11-video-library;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript'>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 31) -- Mavs blow well past 1 million mark in opening game loss to Heat

Ed Bark — 2011-06-01T12:07:19-05:00

The Dallas Mavericks' opening game 102-94 loss to Miami Tuesday night in the NBA Finals sent the season premiere of NBC's America's Got Talent and a new episode of The Voice into semi-eclipse. ...Then The Voice dropped off to 13,170 male viewers in this age range while CBS' competing 9 p.m. rerun of The Good Wife registered "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) and Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast managed to lure 1,756.

Miami dominates Mavs late in Game 1 while ABC's commentators turn up the Heat throughout

Ed Bark — 2011-06-01T00:02:12-05:00

The Dallas Mavericks shot out to a 51-43 lead at the start of the third quarter, but a blood-draining three-pointer by LeBron James at the buzzer made it 65-61 in favor of Miami going into the 4th. This would be the pattern for much of the night, with either James or running mate Dwyane Wade making big baskets or defensive plays at money time while Dirk Nowitzki withstood a hammering and put up 27 points without enough help from his rotating supporting cast.

May The Force be with Dirkzilla

Ed Bark — 2011-05-31T11:14:47-05:00

My son, Sam, who co-owns a t-shirt and poster design shop in Austin (it's called Under Pressure) made the above image for a fan who wanted to look ready for combat while attending the Mavs-OKC Western Conference finals. ...title=0&byline=0&portrait=0" width="400" height="300" frameborder="0">

Dirkzilla from immotionstudios on Vimeo.

Fox4 paces May "sweeps" local newscast ratings, with WFAA8 also scoring points (with some sleight-of-hand trickery at 10 p.m.)

Ed Bark — 2011-05-26T13:34:04-05:00

Tuesday night's storm coverage inflated the 10 p.m. newscast audiences on all four stations, with WFAA8 routing its three opponents in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds despite being criticized in some quarters for mixing its prime-time severe weather updates with the season finale of ABC's Dancing with the Stars. ...But Nielsen numbers-crunching shows that had the station's Wednesday 10 p.m. news ratings been averaged in, CBS11 would have won by scores of 206,920 to 205,110 in total viewers and 80,681 to 79,190 among 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 25) -- boffo day for big events, with Mavs clincher leading the charge

Ed Bark — 2011-05-26T11:09:46-05:00

Oprah Winfrey signed off, teen country crooner Scotty McCreery won the 10th season of American Idol and -- oh yesssssssssss! -- the resilient old dog Dallas Mavericks closed out the very frisky pups from Oklahoma City in Game 5 of their Western Conference championship series. ...Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast, which refreshingly focused on post-tornado coverage instead of a prolonged and embarrassing Idol rehash, dominated its time period among non-Mavs alternatives with 429,393 total viewers.

A sermonizing but becalmed Oprah bids her faithful a fond farewell

Ed Bark — 2011-05-25T17:17:58-05:00

A vision in pink after absorbing two previous days of A-list adulation on Oprah's Farewell Surprise Spectacular, Winfrey billed her final one-woman show as "my love letter to you." ...OWN's her new baby, but "You and this show have been the great love of my life," she testified on Wednesday's finale.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 24) -- special storm edition

Ed Bark — 2011-05-25T11:38:00-05:00

CBS11, which preempted most of CBS' NCIS repeat with storm coverage, ran third from 7 to 8 p.m. with 242,400 viewers, whipping NBC5's combo of the Biggest Loser: Couples finale and weather updates (186,994 viewers) while trailing WFAA8's mix of a Dancing with the Stars warmup hour and weather alerts (304,731 viewers). Among 18-to-49-year-olds, whose safety and well-being is of prime importance to advertisers, Idol easily had the most viewers, followed in order by Dancing, Biggest Loser and CBS11's weather coverage.

Whether they're right -- or (weather) they're wrong . . .

Ed Bark — 2011-05-25T09:30:01-05:00

Some viewers might also be upset at WFAA8's treatment of ABC's Dancing with the Stars finale, which at times was reduced to a silent movie at the bottom right hand corner of home screens while weathercaster Pete Delkus delivered live reports on the night's dangerous North Texas mix of funnel cloud sightings, hail and heavy rain. ...So Delkus brought full weather updates during commercial breaks and also popped in regularly during the show itself, which (as pictured above) shrunk to a non-audio presentation in the bottom right hand corner of screens.

Scott Sams lands anew -- at Dallas-based KRLD radio

Ed Bark — 2011-05-24T17:42:01-05:00

Former CBS11 early morning co-anchor Scott Sams will be keeping roughly the same hours with his new job at Dallas-based KRLD-AM (1080) radio. ...A station memo says that Sams "brings a wealth of news experience to morning drive as we continue building and refining our 'All News, All Day brand.'

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 23) -- miracle Mavs win has big finishing kick in numbers, too

Ed Bark — 2011-05-24T10:45:30-05:00

Meanwhile at 4 p.m., the three-part start of Oprah Winfrey's last big push for herself -- Oprah's Farewell Surprise Spectacular -- commanded the time slot with 228,548 total viewers and 65,812 in the 18-to-49 demographic. ABC's two-hour season premiere of The Bachelorette, which will slog on through the summer, fell off in its 9 p.m. hour to run third in total viewers behind Fox4's front-running local newscast and the CBS special Clash of the Commercials: USA vs. the World.

Invasion of the game snatchers, with the Mavs returning from six feet under

Ed Bark — 2011-05-24T06:43:58-05:00

***First off, let's recall the Jack Buck call after the Los Angeles Dodgers' limping Kirk Gibson hit a two-run pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the ninth to beat the Oakland A's and unhittable closer Dennis Eckersley in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series. ...That was the difference-maker in the 4th quarter, with Nowitzki sending ESPN's play-by-play trio into spasms of superlatives as he made one clutch shot after another.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 20-22) -- Mavs re-take command against OKC, but numbers droop anew

Ed Bark — 2011-05-23T10:29:55-05:00

Sunday's prime-time Nielsens were paced by the CBS movie Jesse Stone: Innocents Lost, which had an imposing 394,765 total viewers to outdraw both the Miami Heat-Chicago Bulls playoff game on TNT (332,434 viewers) and ABC's three-hour dollop of the Billboard Music Awards (283,954). ...Hart's farewell, which she handled classily without getting too overwrought, also ran behind the competing rag mag Access Hollywood (124,663 viewers) on Fox4. ET likewise placed third with 18-to-49-year-olds, with Access Hollywood edging Wheel in that demographic.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 20-22) -- Mavs get upper hand against OKC, but numbers again fall off

Ed Bark — 2011-03-23T09:43:50-05:00

Also on Saturday night, the season finale of NBC's Saturday Night Live, with host Justin Timberlake and heavy participation by Lady Gaga, drew a nice-sized 228,548 viewers to easily outdraw all prime-time programming except Mavs-Thunder. ...Over on Fox4 Saturday night, the struggling Texas Rangers' road loss to the Phillies (at the hands of former Ranger ace Cliff Lee) managed 152,365 viewers in falling a bit short of CBS' 8 p.m. Crimetime Saturday repeat (159,291 viewers).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., May 19) -- Mavs fall a bit short in ratings, on court

Ed Bark — 2011-05-20T12:33:17-05:00

Those are still humongous numbers, with Fox's American Idol results show (it'll be an all-teen Final 2 of Scott McCreery/Lauren Alaina) running a pretty distant second-best with 616,387 total viewers and 218,253 in the 18-to-49 age range. ...But Couric bombed with 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming), running sixth behind Fox4's news, World News, CW33's Family Guy repeat, the NBC Nightly News and MY27's rerun of Everybody Loves Raymond

Bell tolls on further filming in Dallas of ABC's Good Christian Belles

Ed Bark — 2011-05-18T18:12:40-05:00

That would be the possible TNT remake of Dallas, which hasn't been officially green-lighted as a series yet but just completed location shooting in North Texas on a pilot that included Larry Hagman, Linda Gray and Patrick Duffy reprising their old characters of J.R., Sue Ellen and Bobby Ewing. ...Burklund said she's gotten questions about that omission, but noted that the Dallas pilot was shot with an eye toward the 2012-'13 season, "so I wouldn't have expected it to have been mentioned.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 17) -- massive Mavs numbers for opening Western Conf. finals win

Ed Bark — 2011-05-18T12:08:19-05:00

The broadcast arena still did some good business Tuesday night, with CBS' NCIS getting its episode safely out of the way before the Mavericks tipped off at 8:09 p.m. NCIS drew Tuesday's biggest non-sports audience, averaging 415,542 total viewers. ...But Voice again won its time slot among 18-to-49-year-olds, even though many of them by that time had abdicated to the Mavs-Thunder game. Dancing took the 8 p.m. hour in the 18-to-49 demographic, narrowly outdrawing the second hour of NBC's The Biggest Loser.

Mavs-Thunder showcases the post-season's ultimate generational divide

Ed Bark — 2011-05-16T18:27:52-05:00

Nowitzki, Kidd, Terry, Shawn Marion, Peja Stojakovich and Tyson Chandler are among the Mavericks who realize that if they don't get a championship ring now, it may never happen for them. ...The old Mavericks may have to shake off a little lumbago from those nine days on the beach while the young Thunder battled the Memphis Grizzlies for a full seven games before taking them out Sunday afternoon.

ABC's Good Christian Bitches gets new name -- and apparently a new out-of-Dallas venue

Ed Bark — 2011-05-16T16:52:16-05:00

Gatlin's official GCB website puts it this way: "In the whirling midst of salacious gossip, Botox, and fraud, Amanda turns to those who love her and the faith she's always known. ...Last year at this time, Dallas was flush with the news that NBC's Chase and Fox's The Good Guys and Lone Star all would be filming in the Dallas area after making their networks' fall lineups.

Double feature on WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2011-05-13T12:48:44-05:00

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New wheels for former CW33 sports anchor-reporter Dave Crome

Ed Bark — 2011-05-09T17:54:55-05:00

The former longtime CW33 sports anchor-reporter, dropped by the Dallas-based station last month, says on his Facebook page that he'll be wheeling over to the Texas Motor Speedway on Monday of next week to "start my new position in the media relations department." His Facebook well-wishers quickly piled up, with former CW33 on-air colleagues Rebecca Miller, Bob Goosmann, Dawn Tongish, Tom Crespo and Walt Maciborski among those offering congratulations.

Veteran investigator Kimberly King joining NBC5

Ed Bark — 2011-05-09T11:53:07-05:00

She has won a Murrow Award among others during her time at Fox 59, which dates at least as far back as the 2000 firing of Bobby Knight as Indiana University basketball coach, which King covered. ...Others have said there even could be a move out of Cowtown to somewhere in Dallas, although that would be a surprising seismic shift as well as a severe jolt to the station's longstanding image as Fort Worth's only major homegrown TV station.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 6-8) -- Lakers number is up, Mavs' numbers are w-a-a-a-y up

Ed Bark — 2011-05-09T09:35:30-05:00

On another sports front, Saturday's running of the Kentucky Derby on NBC -- preceded by a 25-hour buildup (well, not quite) -- drew a rather smallish 207,771 viewers for the actual race between 5:30 and 5:45 p.m. ...In Friday's local news derby results, CBS11 swept the 10 p.m. competitions with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

NBC5 adding Amanda Guerra to reporting staff

Ed Bark — 2011-05-09T06:47:43-05:00

Guerra, a former student at Dallas' Ursuline Academy and graduate of the University of Oklahoma, also has interned for CBS' longstanding Sunday Morning program. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Balls Out: Gary the Tennis Coach, which co-starred Seann William Scott (Steve Stifler in the American Pie movies) and Randy Quaid.

There's only one way to say Mayfest -- and this isn't one of 'em

Ed Bark — 2011-05-06T11:15:28-05:00

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Kunkle goes au naturel in a mayoral campaign stripped of any TV ads by the former Dallas police chief

Ed Bark — 2011-05-05T17:08:39-05:00

He has no shortage of yard signs throughout the city, which some might see as something of a refreshing throwback to the way candidates used to run before TV stations began collecting big-time money from campaign image-makers. ...This is particularly true in a May ratings "sweeps" period where CBS11's late night newscast recently spotlighted the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders' exercise regimen while WFAA8 led its 10 p.m. edition with a story on "end-of-the-world" billboards cropping up in D-FW and elsewhere.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 4) -- Mavs soar past half mil mark in outpointing everything (including Idol)

Ed Bark — 2011-05-05T15:11:45-05:00

From 8 to 9 p.m., Idol and ABC's Modern Family ran one-two with 18-to-49-year-olds in the first half-hour before the second part of Criminal Minds held off ABC's second-place Cougar Town. Fox4 had a big day demographically in Wednesday's local news derby, winning at 6 a.m. and at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

New "DFW Nonstop" digital channel spreads the NBC5 brand with array of lifestyles/news programming and a signature 6:30 p.m. newscast anchored by Jane McGarry

Ed Bark — 2011-05-05T10:13:31-05:00

NBC5's morning team and anchor Jane McGarry will be featured players on the new, 24-hour DFW Nonstop, a digital channel also available on major area cable systems. Photos from nbcdfw.com ...NBC5 hopes to use its 5.2 digital channel in a big way with the launch of DFW Nonstop, a 24-hour local news and lifestyle network whose centerpiece will be a half-hour 6:30 p.m. Nonstop Nightly newscast helmed by veteran anchor Jane McGarry.

Dallas-based CW33 adds five on-air News Team reporters (for the most part without further elaboration)

Ed Bark — 2011-05-03T16:03:38-05:00

His "first big TV break" was at KIDK-TV in Idaho Falls, Idaho, where he toiled as the station's morning anchor, weathercaster, assignment editor and reporter. ...He also has been a general assignment reporter at KFOX-TV in El Paso and was an on-air intern at Austin's KTBC-TV while studying broadcast journalism at the University of Texas-Austin.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 2) -- Mavs light up late night numbers with pulse-pounding win over Lakers

Ed Bark — 2011-05-03T12:27:28-05:00

ABC's Castle continued to flex at 9 p.m., handily beating CBS' Hawaii Five-0 in both total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds, where the picturesque CBS cop drama fell to third place behind Fox4's competing local newscast. ...The station placed first in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds (the main advertiser target audience for news programming), with arch rival CBS11 second in both measurements.

CBS11 puts a little frosting on the cake of otherwise secret Romo-Crawford wedding (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-05-03T09:10:38-05:00

Candace Crawford and Tony Romo were last seen on TV together singing carols on a CW33 Christmas special shortly before she resigned from the Dallas-based, Tribune-owned station. Photo: Ed Bark ...The station cannily tied the story to last week's royal wedding of William and Kate, although interviewer Teresa Frosini (who also does traffic reports for CBS11) may have spread the frosting a little thick with her description of Romo and Crawford as "a North Texas prince and princess."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 29-May 1 -- Mayday for bin Laden means late night ratings boom

Ed Bark — 2011-05-02T10:29:05-05:00

But it seems relatively safe to assume that the great majority of American television viewers didn't mind the last portions of their Sunday night entertainment programs giving way to news that Osama bin Laden had been shot and killed in his Pakistan lair by U.S. forces. In D-FW, the ratings began ballooning at 9:45 p.m., when ABC, CBS and NBC respectively bailed out of new May "sweeps" episodes of Brothers & Sisters, CSI: Miami and The Celebrity Apprentice.

A soon to be post-Oprah WFAA8 has no current plans to join the 4 p.m. local news game

Ed Bark — 2011-05-01T11:05:53-05:00

None of the general managers at WFAA8, NBC5 or CBS11 can openly admit that their stations would be far better off in Fox4's shoes from 7 to 9 a.m., when the last two hours of its locally produced Good Day easily outdraws Today, Good Morning America and the long-languishing CBS Early Show. ...Fox4 also has local news at 5:30 p.m., where in February it ranked No. 1 with 25-to-54-year-olds ahead of the network evening newscasts on NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 28) -- opening night of May "sweeps" brings wealth of attractions

Ed Bark — 2011-04-29T12:19:05-05:00

Back in the broadcast network universe, Carell's sign-off on an extended version of NBC's The Office drew 207,771 viewers, to run fourth behind ABC's Grey's Anatomy (290,873 viewers), Fox's Bones (270,102) and CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (214,697), all of which offered new episodes. ...Opening the defense of its February crowns, CBS11 edged WFAA8 in total viewers and also won by a narrow margin (over NBC5) among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

DMN sports columnist again a no-show as Mavericks show who really lacks guts

Ed Bark — 2011-04-29T09:21:31-05:00

In fact, he hasn't written a word about the Dallas Mavericks since eviscerating them after last Saturday's Game 4 debacle in Portland, which evened their Round one NBA playoff series at 2-2. ...And when they guttily closed out Portland on their opponent's home court late Thursday night, Taylor was safely back in Irving pontificating on the Dallas Cowboys' first round draft pick.

WFAA8 welcomes another early morning male -- and Ron Corning just might deliver

Ed Bark — 2011-04-27T13:14:09-05:00

That's when Justin Farmer left for Atlanta's WSB-TV, to be followed by Brad Hawkins, Jeff Brady (neither of them with the station anymore) and Chris Flanagan, who on Monday was sent to WFAA8's 9 a.m. Good Morning Texas. ...It's actually Cheryl Burke, who's been with the show for all but one edition and helped take former Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith all the way to the finish line in Dancing's third edition while WFAA8 covered it like a blanket.

Weathering Tuesday's latest storm of program pre-emptions

Ed Bark — 2011-04-27T06:16:00-05:00

The weather turned frightful in some areas of North Texas for a second straight day Tuesday, with D-FW's four major TV news providers all opting for continuous coverage from late afternoon through early evening. ...Fox4 delayed a new 90-minute, heavily promoted Lady Gaga-themed episode of Glee before airing it in its entirely from 7:30 to 9 p.m. instead of 7 to 8:30 p.m.

Tuesday's late afternoon/early evening weather coverage pits a coat and tie guy for all seasons against three jacket-less juniors

Ed Bark — 2011-04-26T18:10:53-05:00

Clockwise from top left: WFAA8's Pete Delkus' NBC5's David Finfrock; Fox4's Dan Henry and CBS11's Larry Mowry during Tuesday's early evening tornado/storm coverage. Photos: Ed Bark ...Still, did Finfrock look less up to the task by keeping his coat in play throughout the Tuesday pre-emptions that knocked out late afternoon editions of the Oprah Winfrey and Judge Judy shows, plus the 5:30 p.m. network evening newscasts on NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11?

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., April 25) -- Mavs whip Blazers and also beat Dancing in key demo

Ed Bark — 2011-04-26T12:53:35-05:00

TXA21's home-grown telecast for the first time was pretty much the only game in town, with a simulcast available on the still relatively obscure NBA TV network instead of a competing separate national presentation on ESPN or TNT. ...The 10 p.m. competitions were split, with WFAA8 drawing the most total viewers (342,509) while CBS11 overcame a lead-in disadvantage from its network's Hawaii Five-0 repeat to top the field in 25-to-54-year-old viewers (the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations).

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 22-24) -- Mavs horror show gets same audience as easier-to-stomach Game 3 loss

Ed Bark — 2011-04-25T11:16:20-05:00

That was good enough to beat everything except Fox4's competing 9 p.m. newscast, which won the 9 p.m. hour by a score of 262,177 viewers to 193,920 for the 9 to 10 p.m. portion of Commandments. ...CBS11, aided by a substantial lead-in audience for CBS' two-hour Girls Night Out country music special (256,251 total viewers overall and 290,879 from 9:45 to 10 p.m.), kept most of the inherited audience to win at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Mavericks return home after referees assist in their Game 4 collapse (And no, they're not "gutless" -- the Mavs that is)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-25T08:39:18-05:00

Since Tyson Chandler (center) was involved, the referees of course reversed their initial call and belatedly fingered Chandler in a key turnabout with 49.4 secs. left in Game 4 and the score tied 82-82. Photo: Ed Bark ...And it's small consolation that he took much of the blame for the team's reversion to crepe paper defensive play after a stellar third quarter had Portland down by 23 points at one point.

WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos hopes to be back early next week after back surgery (updated with note on WFAA8 newcomer Ron Corning)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-25T07:51:40-05:00

It's been a rough several months for longtime WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos, who had back surgery on Good Friday and earlier broke a kneecap in December after a fall outside the Dallas-based station's Young Street offices. ...The one-month May "sweeps" ratings period starts on Thursday of this week, meaning that Campos will miss her regularly appointed 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts on at least the first two weekdays of the tri-annual competition.

Sports department of one shrinking to none at CW33 with departure of Dave Crome

Ed Bark — 2011-04-25T07:31:59-05:00

Crome's last scheduled day is Wednesday, leaving CW33 without any remaining sports staffers after the earlier departures this year of Desmond Purnell and Candice Crawford, who is engaged to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. The entire full-time, on-camera news team, pictured on the station's website, will be down to 11 before the May "sweeps" ratings period starts Thursday.

Fox4 reporter Sophia Reza leaving station after husband gets new out-of-state job

Ed Bark — 2011-04-22T16:35:18-05:00

Reporter Sophia Reza, who has spent close to three years at Dallas-based Fox4, is resigning from the station to join her husband in Seattle, where he has a new job. ...She has been part of Fox4's 9 and 10 p.m. newscast reporting team after coming to Dallas in July 2008 from ABC affiliate KOCO-TV in Oklahoma City.

Fox4 meteorogist Ron Jackson loses Cedar Hill home and pets to Good Friday fire of still unknown origin

Ed Bark — 2011-04-22T15:23:02-05:00

Veteran Fox4 meteorologist Ron Jackson woke up in his Mansfield apartment Friday morning to learn that his main home in Cedar Hill had been gutted by a fire. ...Two exotic birds that he owns perished in the fire and his cat is still missing, Jackson said he was told.

No one can accuse Fox4's Dan Godwin of coasting -- not even on the new Texas Giant

Ed Bark — 2011-04-22T12:30:39-05:00

But he's a survivor who comes to play, whether it's anchoring the Dallas-based station's noon newscasts, filling in on the early morning Good Day as Tim Ryan's desk replacement, presiding over Saturday morning's Good Day or reporting live in the early mornings from a wide variety of locales. ...dppversion=8705" name="movie"/>

Dan Takes the Plunge: Texas Giant: MyFoxDFW.com

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 21) -- numbers droop for late-starting Mavs loss

Ed Bark — 2011-04-22T09:25:27-05:00

Elsewhere Thursday, Fox's American Idol as always led the parade, pulling in 519,428 viewers from 7 to 8 p.m. as the show said goodbye to Stefano Langone and reduced the field to six. Fox's following new episode of Bones also won its time slot, with 290,879 viewers, before Fox4's 9 p.m local newscast took the gold at 9 p.m. with 277,028 viewers.

Obama vs. Watson: The unabridged WFAA8 video tells a fuller, different story

Ed Bark — 2011-04-20T17:12:26-05:00

National outlets, ranging from Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor to The Drudge Report to The Huffington Post, have seized on the reporter's observation (during Monday's 10 p.m. newscast) that "after the interview, Mr. ...But in reality, Watson asked concise and sometimes pointed questions with the full realization that his time was precious and that allowing the president to simply run out the shot clock would not justify the expense of his station sending him to Washington.

Think not what KERA-TV can do for you

Ed Bark — 2011-04-20T16:44:50-05:00

The radio arm of Think remains in place, but budget concerns and the "ever-changing media landscape" have prompted Dallas-based KERA13 to drop the Friday night TV version, according to the stations' "Media Room" website. ...President and CEO Mary Anne Alhadeff said that the station's planning for the 2012 fiscal year, which begins July 1st, must take into account "continuing uncertain economic times" and a "potential reduction" down the road in federal spending for public broadcasting.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 19) -- Mavs men man up again

Ed Bark — 2011-04-20T12:16:26-05:00

The Mavs' convincing 101-89 win, which ran from 8:46 to 11:19 p.m., averaged 346,285 D-FW viewers on TNT, where the game action was called by little-known Matt Devlin and Hall of Famer Kevin McHale. ...But among the Big Four broadcast networks, CBS' second repeat of NCIS: Los Angeles beat ABC's new Body of Proof in total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds, where Body fell to fourth.

Losing Cowboys again come up winners on NBC's Sunday Night Football

Ed Bark — 2011-04-19T18:50:56-05:00

In fact they'll be bookending NBC's regular season schedule, beginning with a Thursday night, Sept. 8th "NFL Kickoff" game against the New Orleans Saints and ending with a not-so-holy Christmas night encounter with the arch rival Chicago Bears. ...In fact, the only other losing team to get even one game is the 6-10 Minnesota Vikings, who are scheduled against the Bears on Oct. 16th.

Comparing and contrasting: How the Obama exclusive played on Denver TV station (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-19T14:20:39-05:00

NOTE TO READERS: Since KCNC lately has made video of the latenight newscast interview unavailable, here's a link to reporter Boyd's other one-on-ones with Obama, which aired on various newscasts. ...rnd=303219;hostDomain=video.denver.cbslocal.com;playerWidth=420;playerHeight=278;isShowIcon=true;clipId=5768871;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=News;advertisingZone=CBS.DENVER/worldnowplayer;enableAds=false;landingPage=null;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript'>

WFAA8's Brad Watson in the spotlight, with an irked President Obama fixing a steely glare on him

Ed Bark — 2011-04-19T09:45:15-05:00

Former CBS11 freelance reporter Jane Slater officially changed stations and jobs Monday, making what amounted to cameo appearances on WFAA8's 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts as the new "traffic anchor." ...Asked whether Slater will be a full-time staffer or do anything other than traffic updates, news director Michael Valentine said in an email response Tuesday that "Jane will doing traffic part-time on our 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 15-17 -- Mavs come alive on this scoreboard, too

Ed Bark — 2011-04-18T10:54:05-05:00

Excluding Rangers-Yankees, Sunday's prime-time Big 4 broadcast network Nielsens were led from 6 to 9 p.m. in total viewers by CBS' lineup of 60 Minutes, The Amazing Race and Undercover Boss. ... It was a checkerboard among 18-to-49-year-olds, with NBC's Dateline winning at 6 p.m., Amazing Race on top at 7 p.m. and ABC's Desperate Housewives and Brothers & Sisters controlling the 8 to 10 p.m. hours.

Reporter Jane Slater moving from CBS11 to WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2011-04-15T13:06:34-05:00

Reporter Jane Slater, who's freelanced at D-FW's CBS11 for the past 18 months, is switching stations to join rival WFAA8, starting on Monday, April 18th. ...WFAA8 management so far has not returned emails and a phone call asking whether this will be a full-time position and if Slater will only be doing traffic.

Mavs must play mad as well as hard to douse the Blazers

Ed Bark — 2011-04-15T08:19:27-05:00

The not-so-subliminal message: Again impressive in the regular season, the Mavs will have to man up against the formidable Portland Trail Blazers or slink home after another failure to perform in the post-season. ...So in a way justice was served when Popovich played all of his regulars in the season finale, a loss to the Phoenix Suns in which guard Manu Ginobili emerged with a strained right elbow that could cause him to miss one or more playoff games.

Cheeky (or if you prefer, "a bra for the booty" on Good Morning Texas)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-12T18:11:04-05:00

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From the mind of NBC5 reporter/anchor Kim Fischer . . . (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-11T13:26:17-05:00

Perhaps all North Texas TV stations should take a closer look at how some of their anchors and reporters are using social media. ...She also re-wrote her Twitter page's introduction, which now reads: "A reporter who believes a sense of humor should not take away from Journalistic integrity . . . but what the heck do I know, really?")

Kim Fischer Facebook photos removed after her photographer threatens lawsuit

Ed Bark — 2011-04-08T14:53:41-05:00

On his myspace page, he says of himself and his art, "I love taking photos of women and photographing the essense of the self, not like a portrait, that is a likeness or reflection of what one normally sees but what is inside the person that I photograph." He adds, "In my opinion, there is nothing more beautiful than to see a woman walking across the house wearing nothing but her birthday suit being her natural self -- walking ART.

NBC5 reporter Grant Stinchfield re-ordering -- and re-oiling -- his priorities

Ed Bark — 2011-04-07T13:00:08-05:00

"I have put every ounce of savings I have into this new business venture in an effort to make a better life for my family and I," Stinchfield said in an email Thursday to unclebarky.com. ..."The TV business has drastically changed over the past few years and I felt it was best to try and control my own destiny before NBC Universal controlled it for me," he said.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 5) -- Aggie victory dance vs. Rangers 5-0 start

Ed Bark — 2011-04-06T17:14:35-05:00

ABC's new Body of Proof continued to hold up well at 9 p.m., winning its time slot with 235,474 viewers. Body, Dancing and NCIS also took their respective hour with advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...That's an impressive complete retention of the Body of Proof audience, which should be good enough for the 10 p.m. crew to merit at least double scoop ice cream sundaes Wednesday while owner Belo's five principal titans tote home $1.6 million in cash bonuses as well as hefty yearly salary increases.

CBS11's cougar town throwdown (co-starring slap-happy Jody Dean)

Ed Bark — 2011-04-06T02:45:45-05:00

It looks like Scott Pelley will be Couric's replacement, Dean said before one of his crew members added, "Yeah, if you look at TMZ this morning, they're calling Scott Pelley THE guy." ...(Actually more than 20 million viewers still watch on an average night, with last week's 8.8 million viewers for the NBC Nightly News far exceeding NBC's woeful prime-time average of 5.4 million viewers per show, according to Nielsen Media Research.)

Rich get richer, lumpens run in place at The Dallas Morning News

Ed Bark — 2011-04-04T17:56:02-05:00

But Decherd is sympathetic, telling employees in a letter last month that executives "continue to monitor competitive pay practices in our industry and we are very much aware that there have been no merit increases at A.H. ...An "early-stage recovery in Dallas" and "economic challenges" in Rhode Island and Inland Southern California (where Belo owns the Press-Enterprise of Riverside, CA) "continue to create uncertainty that makes it difficult to predict when merit increases can be implemented at any level in the company," Decherd said.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 1-3) -- Rangers vs. NCAA hoops

Ed Bark — 2011-04-04T10:44:13-05:00

On Friday, CBS launched the "comedic drama" Chaos, which was its least-watched series of the night but still ranked first at 7 p.m. with 152,365 total viewers. Chaos fell to third place with 18-to-49-year-olds, beating only ABC's competing Shark Tank. Friday's local news derby competitions were paced by NBC5, which won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

(Pea)body count: WFAA8 quickly trumpets latest win with in-your-face promo

Ed Bark — 2011-04-03T16:17:31-05:00

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It's another Peabody for WFAA8's Byron Harris

Ed Bark — 2011-03-31T11:19:19-05:00

He won his second George Foster Peabody award for "Bitter Lessons," which the official citation says "exposed abuses by government-funded 'career' schools that provide poor training and sometimes leave desperate students deeper in debt than they started." ...i=106350718" />

WFAA8 shakes up morning picture with import of Ron Corning to Daybreak, export of Chris Flanagan to Good Morning Texas

Ed Bark — 2011-03-23T09:59:16-05:00

Corning most recently worked at Cablevision's News 12 Long Island, which he joined in November 2009 after being dropped as a morning anchor by Fox's Good Day New York (WNYT-TV/Ch. 5) in April 2008 after nearly two years at that station. ...In the February "sweeps" Nielsen ratings, Daybreak ran third at 6 a.m. in a four-station field, trailing Fox4 and NBC5 in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Sheen inflicting himself on Dallas, too

Ed Bark — 2011-03-18T11:53:36-05:00

The former Two and a Half Men star, who's filed a $100 million lawsuit after being fired, is launching his shows on April 2-3 in Detroit and Chicago. ... Tickets for the Dallas show -- "This IS where you will hear the REAL story from the Warlock," Sheen promises -- will go on sale Saturday, March 19th, with $1 from each ticket sold going to the Red Cross Japanese Earthquake Relief Fund.

Dallas-based WFAA8 would "strongly protest" any airing of ABC series under the current working title of Good Christian Bitches

Ed Bark — 2011-03-17T14:20:09-05:00

So WFAA8 is sending out an official reply to all inquiries, stressing both the work-in-progress nature of Good Christian Bitches and its determination to let ABC know how it feels about such a title. ...WFAA8, which preempted the first two seasons of ABC's NYPD Blue for content reasons, says in its official response that "often, organizations will prematurely issue false statements and make assumptions about programs, then encourage members to contact local stations such as WFAA in protest, long before the facts are known."

It's official: TNT's Dallas pilot to be shot in -- drumroll -- Dallas

Ed Bark — 2011-03-17T11:08:41-05:00

In other words, they're saying all the right things about a series whose CBS original initially ran into opposition from city officials who worried it would portray Dallas as a greed-drenched haven for oily, crooked, philandering businessmen. ...This is good news for both the Dallas Film Commission and local production crews, who had been on a high last year with three network series simultaneously in production -- Fox's The Good Guys and Lone Star and NBC's Chase.

Snippets of D-FW anchor dean Clarice Tinsley during her wonder years at Milwaukee's WITI-TV

Ed Bark — 2011-03-16T13:42:00-05:00

Your friendly content provider and native Wisconsinite grew up in Racine watching nearby Milwaukee TV stations, but was a cub reporter and college kid at the University of Wisconsin in Madison by the time Tinsley joined WITI. ... But WITI also was the longtime home base of Albert the Alley Cat, a hand puppet voiced by the station manager who was as popular -- if not more so -- as any of WITI's human personalities.

Megan Henderson appears to be quite happy in L.A.

Ed Bark — 2011-03-16T12:19:40-05:00

So here's a recent clip of her giving a very enthusiastic welcome back to veteran weathercaster Mark Kriski, who had just returned after a three-month battle with pneumonia and a resultant infection. Longtime Good Day meteorologist Evan Andrews also might have merited such a pants-happy welcome had he been on the shelf for a while during Henderson's Fox4 days.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., March 15) -- "hashmarks" (no measurable audience) in key demos for CW33's 9 p.m. news

Ed Bark — 2011-03-16T10:38:49-05:00

Tribune-owned CW33 newscast officially has hit rock bottom in times when Houston's Tribune-owned station, (KIAH-TV/Ch. 39), is proceeding with plans to launch NewsFix this weekend, according to a detailed report in the Houston Chronicle by David Barron. ...WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but again took a hard fall among 25-to-54-year-olds, where Fox4 placed comfortably on top while NBC5 took the runner-up spot.

Dirty Sexy Money was one thing (but Good Christian Bitches?)

Ed Bark — 2011-03-15T14:21:22-05:00

The pilot episode for ABC's Good Christian Bitches, still not officially ruled out as the title of the network's adaptation of Kim Gatlin's same-named book, is scheduled to begin filming in Dallas next week. ...The will-they-or-won't-they-keep-it game surrounding Good Christian Bitches is getting ratings-challenged ABC some publicity mileage at the moment, even though the Parents Television Council already has condemned it as an affront to both women and "the world's largest faith."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., March 14) -- The Bachelor dominates prime-time but NBC5 cleans up

Ed Bark — 2011-03-15T13:09:30-05:00

ABC ran the ratings table in prime-time Monday with its two-hour finale of The Bachelor followed by The Bachelor: After the Final Rose and The Bachelor Makes WFAA8 Anchor John McCaa Puke. ...NBC's plucky Harry's Law otherwise rose from the ashes of the preceding The Event to finish a strong second at 9 p.m. with 256,251 total viewers.

Iron Mike Rawlings? He cannily picks his spot in a mayoral race against Dallas' former top cop

Ed Bark — 2011-03-15T06:23:29-05:00

And in his inaugural TV ad, Dallas mayoral candidate Mike Rawlings looks more like the city's top cop than the former top cop he's running against. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Return with us now to NBC5's "JaM" cam promos for anchors Jane McGarry/Mike Snyder

Ed Bark — 2011-03-14T14:18:45-05:00

The station's "JaM" promos, which included a Jif peanut butter style logo, were launched a couple of years after Jane McGarry and Mike Snyder became NBC5's 6 and 10 p.m. anchor team in 1992. The station's promotions director at the time, Lee Spieckerman, said it was an effort to strengthen NBC5's brand in the months preceding the big summer of '95 D-FW affliliate switch in which Murdoch's Fox corporation took Channel 4 away from CBS, which in turn relocated to Channel 11.

Fox4's Next: a visually impaired show for a social media age

Ed Bark — 2011-03-11T13:23:46-06:00

This also turned out to be the most compelling segment of Next, with Fox4 reporter Adrian Arambulo narrating a series of jarring youtube clips before colleague Lynn Kawano explored the Facebook angle after noting that her brother in Hawaii is OK but without cell phone service at the moment. ...The reliably bubbly Gorostiza, who's both a roving reporter and substitute weathercaster for Fox4's Good Day, had little to do or say until gabby Noviello finished narrating the inevitable Charlie Sheen segment and then proclaimed him "Hollywood's most trending celebrity" in the social network realm.

By the way, the below spokesman for Heart Attack Grill is now dead. He was 29

Ed Bark — 2011-03-10T14:04:14-06:00

As noted at the end of Wednesday's lead story on Nightline, Arizona-based Heart Attack Grill soon plans to have a second restaurant -- in Dallas. ...We are what we eat, and there's absolutely no doubt that Dallas' own Heart Attack Grill will be gang-covered by every area TV station on the day of its grand opening.

Next big thing? Fox4's Next with Steve Noviello, Fiona Gorostiza

Ed Bark — 2011-03-08T16:35:31-06:00

But if the ratings and content play along, Next with Fox4's Steve Noviello and Fiona Gorostiza could be at least a weekly sighting on the Dallas-based station. ...Noviello otherwise is Fox4's consumer reporter while Gorostiza is both a weathercaster and roving reporter for the station's early-to-mid-morning Good Day program.

University of Diversity: a new look from a different angle at the race/gender compositions on D-FW's four major TV news providers

Ed Bark — 2011-03-07T12:05:45-06:00

Fox4's Shaun Rabb and WFAA8's Gary Reaves both have logged more than a dozen years at their respective stations while NBC5's Randy McIlwain (who had just one story during this period) also is a veteran street reporter. ...As previously reported, the ratings results for the full four-week February "sweeps" put CBS11 on top at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Cuban courts Sheen for unscripted HDNet series

Ed Bark — 2011-03-05T13:58:36-06:00

Sheen has threatened to sue CBS for breach of contract after the network shut down production of Two And A Half Men in response to what it called "the totality of Charlie Sheen's statements, conduct and condition." Cuban and HDNet already employ former CBS newsman Dan Rather, whose $70 million breach of contract lawsuit against the network was dismissed by a New York court in January 2010. Dan Rather Reports has been part of HDNet's prime-time schedule since November 2006.

CBS11 and Fox4 dominate Feb. sweeps while once dominant WFAA8 takes a beating

Ed Bark — 2011-03-03T13:26:10-06:00

Also, Fox4's one-hour 9 p.m. local newscast ran second to CBS network entertainment programming while outdrawing both ABC and NBC in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds. ...Clearly that helped the station, which retained a sizable percentage of its inherited audience while both NBC5 and WFAA8 increased the viewership for their 10 p.m. newscasts after getting comparatively meager network lead-ins from 9:45 to 10 p.m.

A Leppert shows his spot

Ed Bark — 2011-03-02T13:49:11-06:00

Wearing a baby blue shirt with a buttoned down collar, Leppert solemnly mouths all the standard issue pieties while standing next to what looks like either a jail cell or a window with burglar bars, but is probably neither. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Inside Politics program. ...But she confirmed that "a special devoted to one topic" means the station will be eliminating the ratings for its 10 p.m. newscast on a night when WFAA8 generally gets its best lead-in of the week from ABC's 9 p.m.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Feb. 24th)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-25T12:07:10-06:00

Fox4 began with reporter Matt Grubs' Dallas-based summation of the story before going to Brandon Todd in Lubbock, where the accused/arrested terrorist had been a student at Texas Tech and most recently at nearby South Plains College. ...Thursday's presentation, which targeted the allegedly abusive owner of a ramshackle Dallas residence for the homeless and mentally challenged, included footage of Oliver slamming a stack of code violations on a police car hood before she literally yelled out her script from a squad car-filled parking lot..

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., Feb. 23rd)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-24T12:30:49-06:00

Voluble veteran sports reporter Steve Dennis, an acquired taste for some, turned a pro forma Children's Medical Center appearance by Roger Staubach and Troy Aikman into a good little story about the prospects for a Super Bowl L in North Texas after XLV thoroughly soiled itself. Dennis spring-boarded off sports anchor Babe Laufenberg's previous interview with Staubach, in which he championed Aikman to replace him as point man in the effort to land another Super Bowl at Jerry's Palace.

Where's Candice and who's Toni? CW33 strikes again

Ed Bark — 2011-02-24T08:56:24-06:00

While at CW33, the former Miss Missouri USA reported on high school sports, did the weekly "Up All Night" feature and also collaborated with colleague Roni Proter on the five-minute "RC Project" segments that closed out the station's early evening newscast. ...

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 22nd)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-23T11:36:16-06:00

Hays also did a live interview, this one tied to Tuesday's Dallas County Commissioners court hearing at which the police security seemed to be ridiculously beefed up following last week's heavily covered fireworks between commissioner John Wiley Price and speaker Jeff Turner. ...It should be noted that Leppert's chief of staff, Chris Heinbaugh, took that position in August 2007 after a seven-year stint as a full-time WFAA8 reporter. The Dallas Morning News, which regularly collaborates with across-the-street partner WFAA8 on local stories, also reported in Wednesday's print edition that it had learned "late Tuesday" of Leppert's resignation.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 21)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-22T12:08:06-06:00

The station then went heavily into "Crisis in the Classroom" mode, noting that five school district budget meetings were being held Monday night. Carol Cavazos reported from the one in Grand Prairie, where there was no shortage of upset parents. ...NBC5 also paid attention, for the first time on weeknight 10 p.m. newscasts, to the otherwise heavily covered blowup last week involving Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price and a group of white speakers at the regular Tuesday meeting.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., Feb. 18)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-21T09:38:31-06:00

Also on Friday's 10 p.m. edition, co-anchor Karen Borta followed up her retirement piece on former WFAA8 weathercaster Troy Dungan with a look at anchor Tracy Rowlett's life after he helmed 10 p.m. newscasts at both WFAA8 and CBS11. ...Reporter Jason Whitely probably had the most relatable story, telling viewers that the cost of their daily coffee fixes will be going up due to big increases in bean prices. Jim Douglas had the second of his extended dispatches from aboard the USS Carl Vinson off the coast of California while sports reporter George Riba performed his own brand of Sports Illustrated jinx on the Baylor women's basketball team by lauding their 21-game winning streak and No. 1 national ranking.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Feb. 17)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-18T13:22:32-06:00

On Thursday's 10 p.m. edition, which ran a distant second in the D-FW Nielsens, WFAA8 countered with 30-year-old footage of sports anchor Dale Hansen very gamely wrestling a bear while employed by Dallas-based KDFW-TV (Ch. ...But much earlier on Fox4's 9 p.m. newscast, reporter Brandon Todd had a live interview with a police officer who said the entire matter already had been resolved peacefully, with the motorist under arrest and no one hurt.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 17) -- CBS11 kayos WFAA8 with help from Troy/Tracy/Mentalist

Ed Bark — 2011-02-18T10:45:13-06:00

CBS11 began the second half of the February ratings "sweeps" by reuniting anchor Tracy Rowlett and weathercaster Troy Dungan, both of whom became big stars at WFAA8 but hadn't been together on a news set in almost 12 years, according to CBS11 anchor Karen Borta. ...At 8 p.m., Justin Bieber's guest appearance on CBS' CSI: Crime Scene Investigation -- he climactically died in a hail of bullets -- did not seem to help the long-running show in D-FW's Nielsen numbers. CSI tied for second with ABC's Grey's Anatomy in total viewers, with Fox's Bones the leader.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., Feb. 16)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-17T14:26:05-06:00

CBS11's Ginger Allen and Jane Slater respectively got out and about to report from the site of a police raid and a damaged battered women's shelter on Wednesday's 10 p.m. newscast. Photos: Ed Bark ...NBC5 topped its Wednesday 10 p.m. edition with reporter Scott Gordon's "exclusive" look at an alleged sex scandal involving the father of the wife of Daystar Christian TV network evangelist Marcus Lamb, who late last year admitted to his flock that he had cheated on her.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 15)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-16T11:50:37-06:00

Those with a big thirst for this story got a filled-to-the-rim 32-ounce cup on Fox4's 9 p.m. newscast, during which co-anchor Heather Hays and Price sparred back and forth in a live interview. ...dppversion=7885" name="movie"/>

Commissioner Price Tells Citizens to ‘Go to Hell’: MyFoxDFW.com

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 14)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-15T13:39:34-06:00

Monday night's best story also came from NBC5, with the invariably solid Scott Friedman reporting in depth on the numerous problems authorities have had with blurry or grainy red light camera pictures. ...Co-anchor Heather Hays led viewers through a four-pronged "News Wrap" that made good and concise use of a like number of reporters. Melissa Cutler and Richard Ray respectively reported on entrants in the Dallas and Fort Worth mayoral races before Emily Lopez joined Hays in the news room to recount how a Dallas police officer stopped a dangerous wrong-way motorist by ramming him. James Rose closed the whip-around festivities with a report on blood bank shortages.

Have you had a "Godo" Day lately?

Ed Bark — 2011-02-15T08:16:09-06:00

Everyone makes a mistake now and then, although this one has all the makings of a legendary five-star blooper. ...And this is a station that somehow spells co-anchor Lauren Przybyl's surname correctly the vast majority of the time.

Sports anchor Desmond Purnell the latest to leave CW33 (updated)

Ed Bark — 2011-02-14T10:42:06-06:00

His departure from CW33 leaves only weekend anchor/reporter Dawn Tongish, reporter Barry Carpenter, weekend sports anchor/reporter David Crome and meteorologist Bob Goosmann remaining from the on-camera CW33 news staff inherited by David Duitch when he became the station's news director in the summer of 2008. ...As noted in a recent post, general assignment reporter Shana Franklin, who specialized in sex stories, and sports/lifestyles reporter Candice Crawford, who's engaged to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo, also have parted ways with CW33.

Revisiting the shockingly quick demise of Lone Star -- and how it sent Fox reeling

Ed Bark — 2011-02-14T08:50:46-06:00

During last month's network TV "press tour" in Pasadena, your friendly content provider decorously asked the network's two top programming executives whether the opening night ratings for Lone Star were "like a punch in the nuts or something." ...NBC's Chase, likewise a North Texas production, premiered last fall on Mondays, was switched to Wednesdays in midseason and now has been put on hiatus in favor of the plug-in game show Minute to Win It.

More animated than ever: Dirk in cartoon form on Sunday's The Cleveland Show

Ed Bark — 2011-02-09T12:47:32-06:00

The Big German will be voicing his cartoon self on the Sunday, Feb. 13th episode of Fox's The Cleveland Show (8:30 p.m. locally on Fox4). Dirk Nowitzki, shown above with Dwyane Wade and former Dallas Mavericks teammate Steve Nash, is among the NBA All-Stars on an episode subtitled "A Short Story and a Tall Tale."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 8) -- big cold weather heat-up for Fox4's 9 p.m. news

Ed Bark — 2011-02-09T12:00:44-06:00

And among advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds, Fox4's 9 p.m. prelude to the morning's big freeze ranked as Tuesday's biggest draw, even topping its network's new hour of Glee. ...It had 152,365 total viewers to rank a distant third in its time slot behind the second half-hour of CBS' front-running NCIS: Los Angeles (346,285 viewers). Traffic Light also took the bronze with 18-to-49-year-olds.

Network morning shows again frozen out by D-FW's "Winter Blast"

Ed Bark — 2011-02-09T07:43:30-06:00

For the fourth time in the last seven weekdays, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 all ran another "Winter Blast" marathon while respectively preempting the 7 to 9 a.m. editions of Today, Good Morning America and The Early Show. ...Audiences in fact are comparatively huge for these weather-centric 7 to 9 a.m. segments, with Fox4 drawing the most total viewers on Tuesday and Wednesday of last week while NBC5 took the top spot on snow-blanketed Friday.

XX random observations on Super Bowl XLV

Ed Bark — 2011-02-07T12:29:38-06:00

II. Fox analyst and former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman said before game time, "I would be shocked if this isn't one of the all-time greatest Super Bowls." ...VI. Any pre-teen Little Johnnys watching the big game got a rocket-ride toward puberty via the above, very bouncy visual for the Adam Sandler/Jennifer Aniston comedy Just Go With It.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs.-Sun., Feb. 3-6) -- Super duper numbers for XLV

Ed Bark — 2011-02-07T11:20:59-06:00

The D-FW audience for Super Bowl XLV at Cowboys Stadium not surprisingly outdrew last year's crowd-pleaser while also hitting an astronomical peak audience of over 3 million Sunday. The Green Bay Packers' 31-25 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers averaged 2,791,057 viewers on Fox, with a high of 3,068,085 during the game's climactic quarter hour -- 9 to 9:15 p.m.

A snow day at Flag Pole Hill gives CBS11 reporter Bud Gillett a chance to shine

Ed Bark — 2011-02-05T10:39:39-06:00

Amid all the trials and tribulations of Super Bowl week, here's a very charming, feel-good story from CBS11 reporter Bud Gillett. ...rnd=874333;hostDomain=video.dallas.cbslocal.com;playerWidth=500;playerHeight=225;isShowIcon=true;clipId=5537079;flvUri=;partnerclipid=;adTag=News;advertisingZone=CBS.DALLAS/worldnowplayer;enableAds=false;landingPage=null;islandingPageoverride=false;playerType=STANDARD_EMBEDDEDscript'>

Final chapter in Packer backer buildup

Ed Bark — 2011-02-04T16:01:50-06:00

Quarterback Bart Starr, MVP of the first two Super Bowls, drops back to pass on a Verizon Fios cable box while a miniature Brett Favre stays in uniform in a mockup of Lambeau Field. Photo: Ed Bark OK, it's at last time to make a prediction in the big 'n' tasty Super Bowl XLV matchup between Uncle Barky's native state Green Bay Packers and the pillaging Pittsburgh Steelers.

Heavy snow adds another Super Bowl week woe

Ed Bark — 2011-02-04T08:54:27-06:00

"It's just a weird week in the year, and we have to accept that," Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo said Friday morning on ESPN2's First Take show while a steady snow fell behind him. ...Frisky Fox4 reporter Fiona Gorostiza faked a forlorn look when Jersey Shore dumbo Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino turned out to be a no-show for a Thursday night party at BlackFinn in Addison.

Icy grip in Super Bowl week prompts a reprise of WFAA8's all-time classic cold weather report

Ed Bark — 2011-02-03T17:37:58-06:00
Former WFAA8 reporter Valeri Williams can laugh about it now, and did so when unclebarky.com caught up with her in a June, 2008 post tied to her still famed Nov. 24, 1992 live dispatch from sub-freezing Hedley, Texas. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">wrong with these people?'

Storm troopers: D-FW's TV news grunts out in force in early morning elements

Ed Bark — 2011-02-01T08:30:06-06:00
There were some notable excesses amid the live blow-by-blow reporting, none more ridiculous than WFAA8 anchor Cynthia Izaguirre touting the station's live, "exclusive front seat" coverage from a sand truck leading the Green Bay Packers' toward Cowboys Stadium for Super Bowl XLV's mid-morning "media day." ...Mix 'n' match: Clockwise from upper left are CBS11's Jane Slater, NBC5's Grant Stinchfield, CBS11's Sana Syed and WFAA8's in-studio traffic reporter Alexa Conomos, who looks as though she'd dressed for a nice 'n' balmy spring day on a morn tailor made for sweaters.

Former WFAA8 giants Tracy Rowlett, Troy Dungan will re-emerge for one-night retirement profiles on rival CBS11 during upcoming February "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2011-02-01T00:40:55-06:00
Anchor Tracy Rowlett and weathercaster Troy Dungan, longtime members of WFAA8's juggernaut 10 p.m. news team, will be profiled in their retirement years by CBS11 anchor Karen Borta. ...The Dallas Observer's "Unfair Park" blog reported Monday that Dungan would make a "one-time only" appearance on CBS11 this month, but had no further details on what the station planned to do with him.

Not since Nitschke

Ed Bark — 2011-01-31T13:02:47-06:00
Linebacker Ray Nitschke still looms large amid Uncle Barky's Packer trinkets while Clay Matthews follows in his path and has a locker room replica at NFL Experience in downtown Dallas. Photos: Ed Bark ...Thirty-eight years after his final game with Green Bay, the team at last has another folklore-ic intimidator on defense in the form of No. 52, outside linebacker Clay Matthews.

NBC5 bolsters two-man sports department by adding Cincy import

Ed Bark — 2011-01-31T11:40:35-06:00
Arriving from Cincinnati's WXIX-TV (Fox 19), she'll be both a producer for incumbents Newy Scruggs and Matt Barrie and a self-standing "video journalist" who will shoot, produce and narrate her own stories. ...Her WXIX bio says she was doing basketball play-by-play as a 15-year-old and also became an "award-winning cook and journalist" before leaving for Cincinnati.

High jump, Packers style: origin of the "Lambeau Leap"

Ed Bark — 2011-01-28T12:25:17-06:00
In Part 4 of Uncle Barky's Super Bowl-spurred ode to his native state Green Bay Packers, we rewind back to a Dec. 26, 1993 game between the Green 'n' Gold and the then Los Angeles Raiders. On a weird play that probably should have been negated on two counts, future Hall of Famer Reggie White picked up an Oakland fumble and eventually lateraled the ball to safety LeRoy Butler.

Shaped like a racetrack, kringles are the thoroughbreds of pastries (and perfect for your Packer backer Super Bowl party)

Ed Bark — 2011-01-26T17:34:32-06:00
Perhaps you've noticed that Uncle Barky is just a bit excited about his native state Green Bay Packers making their inaugural visit to Jerry's Palace as one of the teams in Super Bowl XLV. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Dec. 23-Sun., Dec. 26) -- Christmas night Cowboys still worth a million-plus

Ed Bark — 2010-12-27T10:12:56-06:00
The only Cowboys game to fall short of the one million mark this season was the dismal Halloween afternoon home loss to Jacksonville, which had 907,276 viewers as a warmup for that night's Game 4 of the World Series between the Rangers and Giants. ...In Thursday's local news derby results, Fox4 won all four major time periods (6 a.m. and 5, 6 and 10 p.m.) among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

And to all a good night: D-FW's list of 2010 TV departures

Ed Bark — 2010-12-21T14:02:46-06:00
GARY COGILL (movie critic, arts reporter and co-host of Good Morning Texas at WFAA8) -- After a 24-year career at the ABC affiliate, he left after his contract expired on Oct. 31st to start up a new film production company, LasCaux Films LLC in partnership with Dallas anesthesiologist Richard Touissaint and Richards Group managing partner Derrick Evers. ...MIKE SNYDER (anchor-reporter at NBC5) -- Was shown the door on July 1st after a 30-year career at the station, much of it teaming with Jane McGarry as co-anchors of the flagship 10 p.m. newscasts.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 17-19) -- Cowboys inch past one million mark with blown lead win over arch rival Redskins

Ed Bark — 2010-12-20T12:00:42-06:00
CBS' Jets-Steelers game, which followed the Cowboys and also went down to the last seconds, drew 498,650 total viewers while the Green Bay Packers' game but losing effort against the nearly invincible New England Patriots gave NBC 512,502 viewers in prime-time. ...WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Injured Romo completes a pass anyway -- to CW33's Candice Crawford

Ed Bark — 2010-12-17T18:23:35-06:00
As you can see from the above, Dallas-based CW33 clearly is underplaying the news that its own Candice Crawford is newly engaged to Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. ...Couldn't they at least build a special Christmas Day newscast around an exclusive interview with the gentleman who prefers blondes and his just turned 24-year-old fiancee?

There he goes again: Gingrich wants another big donation from Dallas-based gentlemen's club

Ed Bark — 2010-12-16T13:02:04-06:00
As documented on this website, National Public Radio, MSNBC's Rachel Maddow Show and numerous other news outlets, American Solutions last year offered to name Rizos one of its Entrepreneurs of the Year in return for a $5,000 donation. ...Rizos in fact has never been a member of American Solutions, and is passing on a chance to be one until the two parties "can discuss what happened last year."

Baseball's official World Series film shows that the Giants still win

Ed Bark — 2010-12-16T13:01:58-06:00
when Rangers' rookie third baseman Mitch Moreland hits a three-run "jimmyjack," as Nadel put it, to give Texas a 3-0 lead in the early stages of the team's first and only World Series win. ...Among the items acquired by baseball's Hall of Fame is the bat used by Moreland to hit the Rangers' first ever World Series home run and some pitching mound dirt from the first World Series game played on the team's home field.

Aguilar vs. Fox -- Epilogue

Ed Bark — 2010-12-15T13:08:23-06:00
Barrs and Aguilar in fact co-existed for nine years at Fox4 before their end game came in the form of that much-documented Oct. 15, 2007 interview with an elderly West Dallas salvage business owner who had shot and killed two would-be burglars in three weeks time. ...But this case put a microscope on one of the country's major news operations, even though Fox4 -- as the station is billed in all of its promotions -- fell back on the old "KDFW" tag throughout the trial in an effort to dissuade jurors from at least subliminally thinking that the Fox corporate monolith easily could part with the couple of million bucks that Aguilar's attorneys wanted for her.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Dec. 10-13) -- Cowboys numbers go through the roof, probably for last time this season

Ed Bark — 2010-12-14T18:20:18-06:00
Friday -- CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but NBC5 stretched its first-place streak to four straight weeknights among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations. ...Monday -- CBS11 had a bountiful day, again running first at 10 p.m. in total viewers and this time edging NBC5 among 25-to-54-year-olds to halt the Peacock's four-night run.

Former CW33 anchor Tom Crespo reunited with former newsroom boss

Ed Bark — 2010-12-14T10:29:45-06:00
Anchor Tom Crespo, sacked nearly two years ago by Dallas-based CW33 as part of widespread makeover, has landed a spot as co-anchor of the featured weekday newscasts on KXII-TV, the Texoma-based CBS/Fox affiliate. ...Crespo, who's married with two sons, said in the release that the Sherman/Denison locale "has always been on my family's radar as an area that offers the kind of life style suited for raising our children."

Aguilar vs. Fox4 -- she loses on all counts as the Dallas-based media trial closes its books (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-12-13T16:57:13-06:00
In his 45-minute closing argument to the jury, Shaunessy said that Fox4's action solely had to do "with the fact that Rebecca Aguilar for more than 10 years was a bad employee." ...Race and retaliation had nothing to do with the actions Fox4 took against her, Shaunessy told the jury, ending his closing argument with the words, "Rebecca Aguilar made her bed and she has to lie in it."

Day Five: Aguilar vs. Fox

Ed Bark — 2010-12-10T15:49:59-06:00
D-FW's dean of news anchors, a 32-year veteran at KDFW-TV (Ch. 4), was called in to buttress the defense's case against Aguilar, who is suing the Fox-owned-and-operated station for wrongful termination on the grounds of racial discrimination and retaliation. ...A fourth witness for the defense, attorney Gregory Shamoun, testified that he had done an in-person interview with Fox4 reporter Emily Lopez in connection with the death of a child who died after allegedly being negligently left in a day care center vehicle during July, 2006.

New face at CBS11/TXA21 means exit of incumbent weekend anchor Nerissa Knight

Ed Bark — 2010-12-10T14:51:06-06:00
Williams, who will begin anchoring on the weekend of Jan. 22-23, arrives from CBS-owned WFOR-TV in Miami, where she worked for current CBS11/TXA21 news director Adrienne Roark. ...In a publicity release, CBS11/TXA21 president and general manager Gary Schneider noted that Williams covered this year's earthquake in Haiti and also is an avid sports fan who began her journalism career as a college student producing feature stories on University of Tennessee athletes for Fox Sports Net South.

Day Four: Aguilar vs. Fox

Ed Bark — 2010-12-09T17:13:46-06:00
Aguilar's paid suspension, under the standard "pay or play" terms of her contract, became an end game on March 6, 2008, when Fox4 exercised its option to drop her at the midway point of her latest two-year deal with the station. ...Fox4 assignments editor Judi White, who has been at the station for more than 25 years, praised Aguilar's reporting skills in a 2007 video shown to jurors by her lawyers.

Day Three: Aguilar vs. Fox

Ed Bark — 2010-12-09T03:32:09-06:00
The star attraction in Rebecca Aguilar's wrongful termination suit made a cameo appearance on the witness stand late Wednesday afternoon after hearing attorneys for her former employer, Fox4, amass a blizzard of performance evaluations and testimony that portrayed her as an increasingly dysfunctional reporter both in the newsroom and on the street. ...Her much-publicized suspension came on Oct. 16th of 2007, the day after Aguilar's controversial followup story on a then 70-year-old West Dallas salvage business owner who had shot and killed two alleged burglars within three weeks time before she interviewed him in a parking lot after he had just purchased another shotgun.

Day Two: Aguilar vs. Fox

Ed Bark — 2010-12-08T06:14:11-06:00
On the day she was escorted from Fox4, Aguilar and her husband (who continues to work at the station in an off-camera newsroom position), tried to see her in her office, Saunders said. ...(It should be noted that unclebarky.com reviewed both of these stories, criticizing Rose for putting the unidentified woman on camera against her wishes, but praising Noviello for his persistence in tracking down and exposing the seemingly negligent Red Cat owners.)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 3-5) -- Cowboys pony upward while Trinity-Coppell pumps up TXA21's late night numbers

Ed Bark — 2010-12-07T05:55:26-06:00
That's not much compared to the Cowboys, but it did make TXA21 the market 's No. 1 broadcast station opposite Fox4's syndicated TMZ and the network late night attractions on ABC, CBS and NBC. ...Friday's local news derby results yielded a split decision at 10 p.m., with CBS11 winning in total viewers and WFAA8 on top among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CBS11/TXA21 sports reporter Gina Miller rediscovers married life

Ed Bark — 2010-12-06T22:56:47-06:00
Which CBS11/TXA21 sports anchor-reporter Gina Miller and James Wyatt Neale did in a big way by announcing their wedding in the Dec. 5 Sunday Styles section of The New York Times. ...She's still the only woman working the sports beat on one of D-FW's Big Four local TV news providers.

Aguilar suit against her former Fox employers finally has its first day in court

Ed Bark — 2010-12-07T06:00:47-06:00
Former Fox4 reporter Rebecca Aguilar's $2 million wrongful termination civil suit against her ex-employers at last went to trial in downtown Dallas Monday morning, with a 12-member jury selected before attorneys squared off in oft-pointed opening statements. ...Her October 2007 suspension with pay and an eventual dismissal in March 2008 at the halfway point of a two-year contract were followed by a January 2009 lawsuit in which she claimed racial discrimination and retaliation on the part of Fox

Sax and the city -- it used to be Ch. 5's calling card

Ed Bark — 2010-12-02T00:11:33-06:00
The "Night Team" ads also pictured late, legendary meteorologist Harold Taft and former sports anchor Scott Murray, who's still in D-FW as the head of Murray Media. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

WFAA8 regains 10 p.m. top spots while CBS11 breaks through for first-ever 6 p.m. win in November "sweeps" newscast ratings races

Ed Bark — 2010-11-29T08:16:41-06:00
WFAA8 very narrowly retained the D-FW 10 p.m. ratings "sweeps" crowns it lost to CBS11 in May while at the same time losing at 6 p.m. to CBS11, which won in total viewers for the first time ever. ...Still, its 10 p.m. newscast on that night failed to fully capitalize on a substantial lead-in advantage from CBS' Hawaii Five-0, which drew more than twice as many viewers as ABC's competing premiere of Skating with the Stars.

NBC5's weather team finds Shade

Ed Bark — 2010-11-21T18:29:48-06:00
Remeisha Shade will be joining the station from WAFF-TV in Huntsville, Ala., where she's been the weekend forecaster since August 2006. ...Shade also is a former Miss Florida State University (circa 2003) who worked at KBMT-TV in Beaumont, TX for three years before heading to Alabama.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Thurs., Nov. 18)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-19T12:34:56-06:00
NBC5 anchor Brian Curtis reported on puppy mills while CBS11 anchor Doug Dunbar looked at a mystery gravestone next to Lee Harvey Oswald's during Thursday's 10 p.m. newscasts. Photos: Ed Bark ...***WFAA8 also had a good story by Monika Diaz, who reported that some businesses that balk at paying fees to join the Better Business Bureau in turn are getting failing grades from the BBB despite few if any complaints against them.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Wed., Nov. 17)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-18T10:13:27-06:00
CBS11 also scored, although not as resoundingly, with anchor/reporter Tracy Kornet's interview of Texas Rangers star Josh Hamilton, whose nearly fatal addictions to drugs and alcohol have been well-documented both locally and nationally. ...So Fox4 and WFAA8 couldn't resist leading their newscasts with some of the juicier aspects while NBC5 played the story second after Scott Gordon's "Breaking News" report on a pilot who crashed into a tree in Roanoke but emerged unhurt.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Tues., Nov. 16)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-17T14:00:52-06:00
WFAA8 also had a nice human interest story by Steve Stoler, who reported on a Hurst-based missionary who was shot in the face during an ambush in Africa but recently returned to a hero's welcome. ...Keyes acknowledged the downspiral, but said that Blockbuster hopes to be prosperously back in the movie rental game via a new "early release" deal that will give the company a 28-day head start on some of its major competitors, including Netflix.

Nice guys finish third -- on prominent website's all-time worst list

Ed Bark — 2010-11-17T10:30:31-06:00
A new deadspin.com list of the NFL's all-time 100 worst players is at first gentle to CBS11 sports anchor Babe Laufenberg, former backup quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys, San Diego Chargers and New Orleans Saints. ...But the Babe was rated worse than even former Cowboys QB Ryan Leaf, a former No. 2 overall draft pick who threw two touchdowns and 15 interceptions in his rookie season with the Chargers.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Mon., Nov. 15)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-16T13:47:55-06:00
Delkus returned to the Hansen festivities after Monday night's weathercast, priming the pump by saying, "This guy right over here, after all of these years of just totally looking the other way at anything that management says -- it's finally caught up with you, hasn't it?" ...CBS11 investigator Ginger Allen was over-charged for a pack of Oreos during the course of her story on how unwarranted sales taxes on snack items can add up to real money over time.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 12-14) -- no more Wade-ing in; Cowboys ride Garrett's new wave to big win, big numbers

Ed Bark — 2010-11-15T10:32:22-06:00
Interrupted by a major power outage, Sunday's game on Fox ran all the way to 6:39 p.m., averaging 1,288,180 viewers with a peak crowd of 1,482,100 in the closing minutes. The Cowboys' 33-20 victory, under new head coach Jason Garrett, went down a lot easier in North Texas than the previous Sunday's prime-time swoon at Green Bay, which cost Wade Phillips his job and averaged 1,031,929 viewers on NBC.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night local newscasts (Fri., Nov. 12)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-15T08:19:36-06:00
CBS11 got a little carried away, though, boasting that its man on the scene, Jack Fink, was the only reporter to talk to a man whose truck suffered a big dent when a sign blew onto it. ...So even on a relatively slow news night, it made little sense to devote this much time to a segment that was spiced only by Webster informing Eagar near the start, "I want you to let me talk now."

WFAA8's David Schechter is looking more and more like North Texas' best TV storyteller

Ed Bark — 2010-11-12T15:33:02-06:00
On Thursday's 10 p.m. newscast, Schechter had a story on the Rio Grande Valley's National Butterfly Center, which is dedicated to protecting the hundreds of species unique to Texas. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">Brandon Todd's piece on an impressive start-from-scratch World War II museum in Fort Worth and Fil Alvarado's piece on a 73-year-old veteran who journeys to DFW Airport almost every day to greet arriving troops.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., Nov. 10)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-11T15:27:20-06:00
Recently hired freelance reporter Andrea Lucia, who previously worked at KHOU-TV in Houston, reported live from the school's sparkling hallways after her taped story showed both the extent of the damage and the determination to clean it up. ...And Perry, who also signed copies of his new book at the event, acknowledged on camera that he once considered running for president but now wants to stay put in Texas after again being reelected as governor.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Nov. 9)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-10T13:10:31-06:00
Fox4's James Rose also first reported Monday night on a prosecutor in the Dallas County District Attorney's office who claimed he was fired by DA Craig Watkins after being spotted attending an election night rally for Republican opponent Danny Clancy. ...But NBC5 Night Ranger Scott Gordon just couldn't resist saying "some people are crying foul" while reporting on a proposed Fort Worth ordinance that would limit the number of roosters a resident can own.

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Nov. 8)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-09T13:30:44-06:00
Under Fox4's still relatively new extended story/interview stratagem, sports anchor Mike Doocy spent the first 13 minutes of the 9 p.m. newscast talking turkey in the studio with analysts Daryl Johnston and Sean Salisbury, both of whom are also former NFL players. ...During the opening Cowboys segment, both Johnston and Salisbury agreed that the team likely was over-rated from the start while also under added pressure to christen February's Super Bowl XLV in Jerry's Palace with the first-ever appearance of a home team.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri., Nov. 5 -Sun., Nov. 7) -- buttery Cowboys spread thin in Dairyland

Ed Bark — 2010-11-08T10:53:10-06:00
And Saturday on ESPN, the down-to-the-wire final race of the Breeders' Cup, in which Blame ended Zenyatta's perfect 19-race winning streak by less than a head, had a surprisingly dinky 48,480 viewers from 5:45 to 6 p.m. In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 broke through to win at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Bearded ladies, laddy at CBS11 (and a heavy-duty graphics gaffe at CW33)

Ed Bark — 2010-11-05T12:05:01-05:00
It was the end result of a wager made with a San Francisco TV station, whose dawning-of-a-new-day anchors would have been required to sing "Deep in the Heart of Texas" while wearing cowboy hats had the Rangers won. ...***Thursday's 9 p.m. newscast on CW33 included a classic graphics gaffe tied to reporter Barry Carpenter's story on how anorexic women are more likely to have unplanned pregnancies because they often don't have regular menstrual cycles.

New set for CW33 news -- which just might be improved, too

Ed Bark — 2010-11-04T11:21:41-05:00
Preceding Franklin's report, CW33 did manage to work in a little woman-on-woman kissing video tied to Maciborski's brief reader about a survey in which 17 percent of "heterosexual adults" admit being attracted to the same gender, with 36 percent of them taking measures further in a "sexual way." ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 2) -- election returns favor GOP, FNC

Ed Bark — 2010-11-03T10:29:59-05:00
Big night for Palins: Sarah celebrates from her perch as a paid Fox News Channel analyst while weepy homesick daughter Bristol again evades eviction on ABC's Dancing with the Stars. Photo: Ed Bark ...WFAA8 instead nipped Fox4 for the top spot in total viewers, but those finishes were reversed among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri. Oct. 29 - Mon., Nov. 1) -- Buried Rangers bury buried Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2010-11-02T20:59:03-05:00
Let's look at the scoreboard as unclebarky.com returns to the living following an Internet router flameout Saturday that left your friendly content provider waiting at length for a replacement from a communications company that shall not be named (except that it rhymes with horizon). ...CBS11 ran the table at 10 p.m. for the second straight weekday of the November "sweeps," winning in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 28) -- Rangers numbers down as championship hopes also diminish

Ed Bark — 2010-10-29T09:33:14-05:00
In contrast, Donald Trump's The Apprentice on NBC drew just 55,406 viewers at that hour to rank as the least-watched attraction on the five principal broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and The CW). ...Nevertheless, CBS11 claimed a pair of opening night victories, topping a diminished three-way field in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Antlers down: Rangers instead have deer in the headlights look

Ed Bark — 2010-10-28T22:23:38-05:00
But that may be another way of saying that Texas Rangers' fans are living in a dream world if they think the San Francisco Giants are going to fall apart after treating the North Texas 9 like pinatas in the first two games of the World Series. ...A blister on one of Wilson's pitching fingers only makes matters worse as the Rangers head to Arlington for three games that they realistically have to sweep to have any chance of making this a competitive World Series instead of the Giants' grown men playing against the Rangers' T-ballers.

Fun with Newy and Mary Jane

Ed Bark — 2010-10-28T17:39:55-05:00
Supporters of Proposition 19, which would legalize recreational use of marijuana in California, have posted his riffs on youtube and tagged them with a reggae-themed endorsement at the end. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Death rattle: Down goes Romo, and with him Cowboys' season

Ed Bark — 2010-10-25T23:53:14-05:00
A stout defense and even marginal competence by shopworn 38-year-old Jon Kitna should have been enough to gut out a home win that would have taken Dallas from 1-4 to a redeemable 2-4 in an NFC with no breakout dominant team. ...But Coughlin will be like the drill sergeant therapist in the Geico commercial, telling his team that instead of taking some time off during bye week, "Maybe we should chug on over to namby pamby land where maybe we can find some self-confidence for you, ya jackwagons!"

Biggest sports week ever in D-FW, with Rangers and Cowboys fighting for ratings bragging rights while the Mavs hope to avoid "hashmarks" (no measurable audience)

Ed Bark — 2010-10-25T08:16:21-05:00
But the promotional possibilities are endless, and Fox4 will milk every last one of them for a Rangers-spiked World Series that starts on the eve of the November "sweeps" ratings period and could continue all the way through Thursday, Nov. 4th. ...But their sports anchors and reporters will be dispatched to San Francisco and then to Arlington in hopes that the games will end early enough for them to show highlights and player interviews during 10 p.m. newscasts.

The Rangers' biggest win ever in pictures. Enjoy

Ed Bark — 2010-10-22T23:51:33-05:00
"Almost poetically," in the words of TBS announcer Ernie Johnson, former Texas Ranger Alex Rodriguez came to bat for the New York Yankees with two outs in the 9th inning and his team trailing 6-1. ...It gave the Rangers a 3-1 lead they never relinquished en route to a 6-1 win. Photos: Ed Bark

CBS11/TXA21 add a Ray (of sunshine?) to meteorologist team

Ed Bark — 2010-10-22T10:00:03-05:00
"Being both born in Texas and a graduate of Texas, I can't tell you how much it means to me to now be able to raise my boys in Texas," Ray said in a publicity statement. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Oct. 19) -- the Rangers will average 1 million viewers for a game when pigs fly (P.S. PIGS FLY!)

Ed Bark — 2010-10-20T09:57:43-05:00
In other local news derby results, NBC5's 10 p.m. local edition led the pack among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations. NBC5 and Fox4 split the golds at 6 a.m., with the Peacock winning in total viewers and Fox4 tops with 25-to-54-year-olds before the 7 to 9 a.m. portion of its Good Day again slaughtered the three network morning shows in that demographic.

Let's play oddball -- and then longball. Rangers whack Yanks again in oft-wacky game

Ed Bark — 2010-10-20T08:01:39-05:00
The top of the fifth inning then brought a potential "Bartman moment" when the Rangers' Josh Hamilton hit a two-out foul ball down the left field line with runners at first and second and the Rangers trailing 3-2. ...And TBS perfectly captured the moment by later showing Yankee third baseman and former Ranger Alex Rodriguez almost revert to the fetal position as Molina watched the ball sail into the left field seats.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Oct. 18) -- Rangers double audience for Dancing with the Stars

Ed Bark — 2010-10-19T10:51:27-05:00
It drew 173,143 total viewers to finish third at 9 p.m. in the broadcast universe behind CBS' Hawaii Five-0 (290,879 viewers) and ABC's Castle (270,102 viewers). ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 edged CBS11 at 10 p.m. in total viewers and won by a comfier margin over NBC5 among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

From super-tense to strikingly easy: 6-run Ranger 9th turns pulse-pounder into walk in the park

Ed Bark — 2010-10-18T22:46:47-05:00
Cliff Lee's eight shutout innings, in which he yielded two cheap singles and struck out 13, kept the Texas Rangers clinging to a never-safe 2-0 lead built on Josh Hamilton's first-inning home run. ...TBS' two ex-pitcher commentators, John Smoltz and Ron Darling, were suitably awed by Lee's command of pitches and ability to mix them up in the face of an at times exceptionally tight strike zone by umpire Jim Reynolds.

WFAA8's Hansen tinkles on Lone Star Emmys -- and other recent D-FW developments of note

Ed Bark — 2010-10-18T14:28:13-05:00
*** During your friendly content provider's road trip, news came that the Texas Rangers have decided not to renew TV announcer Josh Lewin's contract after nine seasons in the booth with analyst Tom Grieve. ...Clarice Tinsley anchors, with social networking reports from the field by Matt Grubs, Sophia Reza, James Rose and Natalie Solis, who is caught in the act of taking "a picture of myself with one of the shooting victims" after promising to immediately post it on Facebook.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Oct. 7 to Sun., Oct. 17) -- catching up with Rangers, Cowboys, local news derby numbers

Ed Bark — 2010-10-18T11:02:50-05:00
Thursday, Oct. 7th -- CBS11 ran the table at 10 p.m. with wins in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations. ...Friday, Oct. 8th -- WFAA8 ran first at 10 p.m. in both ratings measurements while also sweeping the 5 p.m. competitions and winning at 6 p.m. in the 25-to-54 demographic.

'Boys will be 'Boys: Dallas finds another way to lose, paving the way for (Jerry as coach?)

Ed Bark — 2010-10-17T19:38:10-05:00
But the poor old galoot is snake-bitten and plumb wore out after five games of a season that was supposed to end with Jerry's 'Boys playing in Jerry's Palace in February's Super Bowl. ...But Jerry as coach would leave no doubt who's in charge, even if it's only for the rest of this season while he tries to lure another authoritarian from an outside world populated by the likes of Bill Cowher and Mike Holmgren.

It's not supposed to be this easy: Rangers trot to 2nd post-season win, making Rays look like '98, '99 Rangers

Ed Bark — 2010-10-07T16:57:03-05:00
Texas' 6-0 win at Tampa Bay Thursday afternoon puts the team on a cloud as it heads home to play a possibly clinching game Saturday in Arlington. ...The Rays will whine long and hard -- as they did during the game -- about whether third baseman Michael Young really checked his swing on what would have been a third strike in the fifth inning of a 2-0 game.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Oct. 6) -- afternoon delight, with Rangers doing all right

Ed Bark — 2010-10-07T12:57:19-05:00
The first half-hour of Fox'sHell's Kitchen (186,994 viewers) won at 7 p.m. in a close battle with ABC's The Middle and Better With You and CBS' Survivor: Nicaragua. Among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, Hell's Kitchen took the 7 p.m. gold, followed by Modern Family from 8 to 8:30 p.m. and HK from 8:30 to 9 p.m.

That's what we're talkin' about: Rangers win Game 1 against Rays

Ed Bark — 2010-10-06T15:55:31-05:00
Timely power hitting and a strong, 10-strikeout seven innings from starter Cliff Lee gave the Texas Rangers their first post-season win since 1996 in Game 1 at Tampa Bay. ...The game ended with a 5-1 Texas win after a semi-scary 9th inning in which closer Neftali Feliz walked the first two hitters he faced and survived a line shot to right field before ending the game with two strikeouts.

No more talkin' 'bout My Generation

Ed Bark — 2010-10-04T08:51:52-05:00
Each aired for just two episodes before the ax swung. Generation drew a piddling 3.8 million viewers nationally for its second outing Thursday in ABC's prime-time lead-off spot. ...Last Monday's second episode had 6.3 million viewers to finish a distant third in its time slot opposite CBS' Hawaii Five-0 (12.7 million) and ABC's Castle (11.1 million).

Fox4's new look 9 p.m. newscast isn't quite a slam dunk, but does include a dunking meteorologist

Ed Bark — 2010-10-01T14:11:40-05:00
Presenting Fox4's new and quite possibly very improved 9 p.m. local newscast, which on Thursday featured three live anchor-newsmaker interviews in an effort to better combat the oft-formidable network entertainment programming on rival stations. ...Eager and Doocy might have been overly chummy with Cuban at times, but they did press him a bit on why anyone should believe the Dallas Mavericks will be any better this season after not signing anyone resembling a marquee free agent.

Billboarding The Defenders: another sign of the times

Ed Bark — 2010-09-30T11:59:04-05:00
Those watching Wednesday's episode of CBS' latest 9 p.m. hit, The Defenders, were treated to the above "pop-up" during the closing seven minutes. ...It's probably only a matter of time -- and a short time at that -- before whatever you're watching ends up looking like a NASCAR entry from start to finish.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 29th) -- Defenders beats LOLA in first new season faceoff

Ed Bark — 2010-09-30T10:12:42-05:00
The second episode of ABC's competing The Whole Truth finished third in total viewers and fell to fourth with 18-to-49-year-olds behind Fox4's 9 p.m. local newscast. ...In Wednesday's local news derby results, CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers and tied Fox4 for first among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Take it from WFAA8's Gloria Campos: "I know what happened first hand, because I was there!"

Ed Bark — 2010-09-29T13:50:29-05:00
WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos tells an all-ears John McCaa on Tuesday's 10 p.m. newscast that Sarah Palin in fact wasn't booed during the previous night's Dancing with the Stars. Photo: Ed Bark ...And anchor Gloria Campos indeed ranged all the way to southern California Monday, skipping newscasts to attend ABC's live Dancing with the Stars broadcast with one of her sons in tow.

Fox's Dallas-made Lone Star gets gunned down

Ed Bark — 2010-09-28T17:35:10-05:00
It was officially canceled early Tuesday evening, to be replaced on Monday, Oct. 4th by the premature season premiere of Lie to Me, which initially was set to return on Nov. 10 in a Wednesday, 7 p.m. (central) time slot. ...Fox put a second episode into play on Sept. 27th, but the ratings were even worse in a murderous time slot also populated by ABC's Dancing with the Stars, CBS' Two and a Half Men and NBC's new The Event.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 27) -- Lone Star rolls over while WFAA8 news rolls

Ed Bark — 2010-09-28T12:29:55-05:00
Meanwhile, ABC's second two-hour performance edition of Dancing with the Stars rolled to a massive win from 7 to 9 p.m., drawing 588,685 total viewers while also triumphing among 18-to-49-year-olds. At 9 p.m., CBS' second episode of Hawaii Five-0 edged ABC's Castle in total viewers by a score of 325,508 to 304,731 while also winning by a bit comfier margin in the 18-to-49 demographic.

CBS11 tabs Lisa Pineiro as early morning co-anchor

Ed Bark — 2010-09-28T11:46:59-05:00
Pineiro, currently living in Salt Lake City, has been out of broadcasting for the past five years, opting to be a stay-at-home mom to her four sons. ..."We think North Texas viewers will respond to Lisa's warmth and sincerity," CBS11/KTXA president and general manager Gary Schneider said in a publicity release.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 24-26) -- Cowboys again worth a million-plus while Rangers' clincher gets nice-sized tune-in

Ed Bark — 2010-09-27T10:39:16-05:00
So sorry to say, the bloom is turning to gloom on the local production front. Good Guys is on fumes at best, and Fox's critically acclaimed Lone Star, also filmed in North Texas, might well have its final telecast Monday night after shockingly low ratings for the previous Monday's premiere episode. ...On to Friday's local news derby results, where CBS11 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but slid all the way to fourth among 25-to-54-year-olds (the preferred advertiser target audience for news programming) despite the hefty lead-in advantage from Blue Bloods.

Saturday, 6:24 p.m. Texas time: the Rangers win the West!!!

Ed Bark — 2010-09-25T18:41:09-05:00
Good lovin' on Fox4. Stalwart Michael Young and manager Ron Washington celebrate the Texas Rangers' first post-season appearance in 11 seasons after a 4-3 win at Oakland. Photos: Ed Bark

!$%# Hansen Says -- how come ABC didn't think of this first?

Ed Bark — 2010-09-24T10:55:02-05:00
Earlier this week on a 10 p.m. newscast, Hansen hit another sweet spot after the other half of the Dallas-based station's comedy duo -- weathercaster Pete Delkus -- boasted about getting a signed copy of the new Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders calendar. ...And if you want my opinion, yeah, maybe it puts a little tarnish on an ongoing new promotional campaign that positions WFAA8 as the Taj Mahal of local news content.

Ma's Roadhouse: homegrown, low down fun with a double Dallas connection

Ed Bark — 2010-09-22T10:58:59-05:00
AMS Pictures head Andy Streitfeld is flanked by the namesake of Ma's Roadhouse and her son, Rick Fairless, owner of the Strokers Dallas motorcycle shop and adjacent bar/restaurant. Photo: Ed Bark ...AMS threw a premiere party for last Wednesday's first two episode of Ma's Roadhouse, during which Ma bitched about tattooed bikini girls, her driver's license renewal test and anything else that displeased her -- which is just about everything.

New WFAA8 news campaign pledges to ride the range in pursuit of "bringing home the kinds of stories no other local station can"

Ed Bark — 2010-09-21T17:38:34-05:00
WFAA8's John McCaa and Gloria Campos get out in the field by getting out in a field in new "On the Road" campaign. Photo: Ed Bark ...The ad's succession of burnt orange and sunny yellow taglines informs viewers that the Dallas-based station's anchors and reporters will be rolling through the countryside as a new TV season begins.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Sept. 20) -- Dancing, Hawaii Five-0 roll while Lone Star takes a heavy hit

Ed Bark — 2010-09-21T09:31:33-05:00
ABC's two-hour season premiere of Dancing With the Stars, featuring Bristol ("I'm just a regular girl") Palin, fully controlled the 7 to 9 p.m. slot in both ratings measurements before CBS' re-do of Hawaii Five-0 stepped in to win the 9 p.m. hour. ...In Monday's local news derby numbers, NBC5 performed impressively at 10 p.m., winning in both total viewers (203,589) and with 25-to-54-year-olds (104,346), the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Sept. 17-19) -- there's no V in Cowboys; instead it's another Big D

Ed Bark — 2010-09-20T10:24:11-05:00
After their improbable 27-20 win over Dallas, the 2-0 Chicago Bears will host a showdown game on ESPN's Monday Night Football with the 2-0 Green Bay Packers. ...In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 15) -- big night for reality finales and Jimmy Johnson's hair

Ed Bark — 2010-09-16T09:49:31-05:00
Reality competition series had a Super Bowl-esque night Wednesday, with the season finales of America's Got Talent, Big Brother 12 and Masterchef and the premiere of a Jimmy Johnson-infused Survivor: Nicaragua. ...Post-Talent, the premiere of Jimmy Smits' far-fetched Outlaw legal series on NBC won the 9 to 10 p.m. slot in total viewers with a very nice-sized 278,238. Outlaw slumped with 18-to-49-year-olds, though, running a distant third with 61,970 viewers behind the second hour of Big Brother 12 (140,249) and Fox4's local newscast (88,063).

WFAA8's Shipp wins one, loses one in exposes of Southlake Carroll, Euless Trinity football programs

Ed Bark — 2010-09-15T13:00:35-05:00
The juries are in on WFAA8 gumshoe Brett Shipp's much-talked about looks into alleged irregularities in the high-powered high school football programs at South Lake Carroll and Euless Trinity. ...i=102898589" />Star Magazine that Kushton had been seen smooching a 20-year-old blond at an Italian restaurant. ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Sept. 9) -- total, utter, complete dominance by NFL kickoff game

Ed Bark — 2010-09-10T10:44:58-05:00
It only had to go against a half-hour of the game following an overblown 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. kickoff preview show (featuring Taylor Swift and The Dave Matthews Band) that drew 285,025 total viewers to also easily win its time slot. ...In Thursday's local news derby results, CBS11 won a downsized three-way 10 p.m. competition in total viewers while tying Fox4 for the top spot among 25-to-54-year-olds, the principal target audience for news programming on most stations.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Sept. 8) -- weather coverage swells local news numbers, particularly in early evening

Ed Bark — 2010-09-10T09:04:55-05:00
But Fox4 led by a relatively comfortable margin among 25-to-54-year-olds, with CBS11 dropping to fourth and WFAA8 moving into second place ahead of NBC5 during those 90 minutes. ...WFAA8 also led by a lesser margin from 5 to 7 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds, with Fox4 a solid second ahead of NBC5 and CBS11.

Pictures tell the story -- and WFAA8 makes the most of them

Ed Bark — 2010-09-08T15:21:00-05:00
His department does not have a helicopter, explained WFAA8 reporter Cynthia Izaguirre, who unfortunately also spent an undue amount of time extolling "HD Chopper 8's" role in helping out. ...CW33, part of the cost-cutting LNS (Local News Service) content-sharing arrangement with Fox4 and NBC5, did not bother to interrupt scheduled daytime programming for coverage of the day's flooding.

CW33 "sexpert" Shana Franklin caught in love nest with -- four dogs

Ed Bark — 2010-09-07T17:18:25-05:00
She bills this as a "sneak peek into the real me" before introducing the couple's four canine "children" and cueing viewers to her brand of "sex and relationships" reporting. ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Sept. 2-6) -- TCU, SMU, BSU make for big holiday weekend on ESPN

Ed Bark — 2010-09-07T10:46:09-05:00
That day's closing 5 to 6 p.m. hour of the annual Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy Association telethon drew just 20,359 viewers in losing lopsidedly to a mix of local and national news on Fox4, WFAA8 and CBS11. In Friday's local news derby, NBC5 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Highway to hell: Rerunning a daring 1978 WFAA8 story that got a lot of motors running

Ed Bark — 2010-09-02T15:30:31-05:00
In May 1978, Harris and two other WFAA8 staffers decided to test the feasibility of the federally mandated 55 mph highway speed limit by driving three cars abreast on I-30 from Dallas to Fort Worth. ...People realized that Channel 8 was involved because one of the three cars we used to drive 55 belonged to (former anchor) Michael Brown, who had a "News 8" vanity license plate."

Taunting's a penalty in football -- and WFAA8 investigator Brett Shipp merits a flag

Ed Bark — 2010-09-01T00:36:04-05:00
Shipp's report contends that both schools may have violated University Interscholastic League rules in Texas by letting some members of their teams scrimmage together in June while coaches appeared to be yelling out "sport specific skill instructions." ...It's one thing for him to use Facebook as a vehicle to alert potential viewers that Part 2 of his investigation into possible high school football irregularities is coming Tuesday night.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 27-29) -- Emmys hold off pre-season football; Cowboys crunch Rangers

Ed Bark — 2010-08-30T12:06:13-05:00
In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers but Fox4 edged CBS11 for the gold among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...CBS11 took first at 6 p.m. in total viewers, but Fox4 had the early evening's other three golds with a 6 p.m. win among 25-to-54-year-olds and a sweep of the 5 p.m. competitions.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Aug. 26) -- Rangers loss still amounts to ratings gain

Ed Bark — 2010-08-27T14:03:21-05:00
In local news derby results, CBS11 had the most total viewers at 10 p.m., but WFAA8 ran first -- and CBS11 slid to fourth -- among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations. Verdicts also were split at 6 a.m., with NBC5 tops with total viewers while Fox4 nipped the Peacock in the 25-to-54 demographic.

No more need to "yuck monkey it up" on Rangers TV telecasts now that the team looks like a thoroughbred

Ed Bark — 2010-08-27T14:08:30-05:00
"I would like to be up here broadcasting the games, but I'll probably be just as happy and might enjoy it even more if I'm just down there watching it and not having to worry about what I'm saying." ...And should the Rangers almost miraculously get to their first World Series, Lewin says it's OK with him "If the call for the ages is being made by the signature voices of baseball -- (Joe) Buck and (Tim) McCarver on Fox.

The slow reveal -- extended weather forecasts used to be hand-activated, one by one

Ed Bark — 2010-08-26T11:32:14-05:00
And CBS11 lately is trying to out-Delkus WFAA8's Pete Delkus with a promotion that underscores Larry Mowry's proclivity to go coat-less whenever the weather kicks itself up a notch. ...fs=1&hl=en_US">

Nutritive news takes another kidney punch with NBC5 "story" on one-woman "Twitteratzi" brigade

Ed Bark — 2010-08-24T11:45:11-05:00

View more news videos at: http://www.nbcdfw.com/video.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Aug. 19) -- WFAA8 flexes, then falters in four-way news competitions

Ed Bark — 2010-08-20T10:24:32-05:00
WFAA8 management publicly made it very clear, after a less than stellar November 2009 "sweeps" performance, that the only ratings barometer of any real monetary worth is a newscast's standing among 25-to-54-year-olds. ...In other ratings developments, the faltering first-place Texas Rangers' fourth straight road loss, this time at lowly Baltimore, drew a second straight smallish crowd of 115,367 total viewers on Fox Sports Southwest.

Latest made-for-TV car chase should have been nipped far earlier

Ed Bark — 2010-08-19T22:28:56-05:00
Stopping these prolonged car chases much earlier in the game will deprive local TV news stations of both their breathless live coverage and eventual lead stories on all nighttime newscasts. Still, the moron who led police on a super slo-mo adventure Thursday afternoon should have been stopped almost before he started.

CBS11/TXA21 meteorologist Mike Burger mapping out his retirement (updated with interview)

Ed Bark — 2010-08-19T17:07:57-05:00
Burger, who joined the D-FW stations in 2000, earlier had spent seven years as Dallas-based Fox4's head meteorologist before leaving the station in 1996 for a four-year stint at Orlando's WKMG-TV. ...Burger's last weather segment in D-FW will be on CBS11's Saturday, Sept. 4th 10 p.m. newscast (it's been changed back again from 6 p.m.).

Dallas-born Harrison brokers "love," lives to tell about it as host of Bachelor, Bachelorette, Bachelor Pad

Ed Bark — 2010-08-18T12:36:39-05:00
Dallas native and Bachelor/Bachelorette/Bachelor Pad host Chris Harrison brokered last month's slam-a-thon between former made-for-TV lovebirds Vienna Girardi and Jake Pavelka. ABC photos ...And his fledging company is developing another celebrity-driven show for TV Guide that will replace Hollywood 411 after "we kind of blow that up," Harrison says during a recent ABC "All-Star Party" event.

Personally speaking, it's been quite a summer for WFAA8's women anchors. Latest development: wedding bells primed to ring for Cynthia Izaguirre

Ed Bark — 2010-08-17T14:29:24-05:00
The Dallas-bred graduate of Thomas Jefferson High School, who joined WFAA8 in January 2008 from New Mexico's KOAT-TV, said via email, "Yes, I am happily engaged with a wedding for this October!" ...Izaguirre's future fiance took her to the emergency room earlier this summer after her nose survived a technical knockout from a garage door.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Aug. 13-15) -- Rangers, Rangers, Rangers (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-08-16T11:44:23-05:00
The Rangers also laid waste to the quartet of local late night newscasts, drawing 413,964 viewers from 10 to 10:30 p.m. while Fox4, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11 drew a combined 346,101 viewers. ...Although bludgeoned by Friday night's Rangers game, NBC5 and WFAA8 (Cowboys coverage and all) tied for first at 10 p.m. in total viewers with a bunt-sized 108,581 apiece.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Aug. 11) -- victory in defeat: gut-grinding Rangers loss sets all-time FSS viewing record

Ed Bark — 2010-08-12T10:50:02-05:00
An average of 366,460 D-FW viewers watched the home team blow a 6-1 lead and eventually succumb 7-6 in a game that stretched from 7:09 to 10:54 p.m. ...Fox's first of a two-part So You Think You Can Dance season finale drew 176,444 viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. while NBC's one-hour 8 p.m. edition of America's Got Talent had 149,299 viewers.

"Spirit of Texas" -- 25 years removed

Ed Bark — 2010-08-11T18:05:47-05:00
Quaint but still homey, these little vignettes played out in a 30-second 1985 "Spirit of Texas" spot for WFAA8, which got major use out of that slogan during its many years as D-FW's dominant TV news force -- ratings wise and otherwise. ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Aug. 10) -- Rangers rack up another viewing record with clutch win over Yanks

Ed Bark — 2010-08-11T12:38:02-05:00
But an average of 318,956 D-FW viewers (for the game's actual running time from 7:07 to 10:45 p.m.) broke the nearly 12-year-old FSS record set on Sept. 16, 1998 vs. the Angels. ...Hell's Kitchen also romped among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds while the network's new Masterchef beat the first hour of Talent in this key demographic.

CW33 web reporter Pelpina Trip leaving to weave another web

Ed Bark — 2010-08-10T17:19:03-05:00
Internet specialist Pelpina Trip, whose "Pelpina's Picks" have been a nightly feature on CW33's 9 p.m. newscasts, is leaving the Dallas-based station for another web venture. ...For one, longtime movie critic, arts reporter and former Good Morning Texas co-host Gary Cogill will be leaving Dallas-based WFAA8 after his current contract expires on Oct. 31st.

Dallas-based CW33 news director says his station's immune from impending Tribune "NewsFix"

Ed Bark — 2010-07-26T10:41:23-05:00
We have to be radically and noticeably different -- we have to imagine TV and TV news in a totally new way, one that breaks through and reinvents the decades-old, tired TV playbook." ...And among 18-to-49-year-olds -- one of CW33's target demographics -- it regularly outdraws the 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts on two or more of the Big Four broadcast stations.

Fox4 experiments with new point/counterpoint feature on 9 p.m. newscasts

Ed Bark — 2010-07-22T14:23:35-05:00
Fox4 anchor Steve Eagar moderated an illegal immigration debate on Wednesday's 9 p.m. newscast between Dallas lawyer Domingo Garcia and Adryana Boyne, national director of Voces Action. Photo: Ed Bark ...Incorporating mini-debates into Fox4's 9 p.m. newscasts seems like basically a good idea, although the overall idea likely is to stimulate more of an animated Crossfire approach than the genteel discourse on display Wednesday night.

Copycatting CW33 (but let's see how far they dare go)

Ed Bark — 2010-07-21T15:33:06-05:00
They're supposed to shield some of your better kept secrets from full-body airport scanners, "though it's really unclear how the stickers will protect your private parts any better than regular underwear," a perceptive Maciborski noted. ...Co-anchor Amanda Salinas took the helm -- and remarkably remained straight-faced -- while introducing this story on whether good looks can play a role in being hired.

CBS11 names investigations head

Ed Bark — 2010-07-21T09:27:36-05:00
Blegen, who arrives from Fox-owned WTVT-TV in Tampa, FL, will be the station's executive producer of Special Projects & Investigations, news director Adrienne Roark announced in a memo to staffers Tuesday night. ...An example of a WTVT investigation that freed an innocent man from a 15-year jail term was detailed in the trade magazine TV Week.

CW33 adds Duarte Geraldino to reporting staff

Ed Bark — 2010-07-20T12:11:45-05:00
He also co-produced programming for the all-news network's financial news network before getting his first on-camera experience at New York's Capital News 9, a 24-hour cable news channel now called YNN Capital Region. ...

Another CBS11 meteorologist under the weather

Ed Bark — 2010-07-15T15:31:31-05:00
CBS11 meteorologist Jeff Jamison, whose principal beat is the station's weekday early morning news program, underwent a non-emergency appendectomy Tuesday night and is now recovering. KRLD-AM radio's Krista Villarreal again is filling in while doing the same for TXA21/CBS11 meteorologist Garry Seith, who had a serious motorcycle accident in late June and isn't expected back until sometime in August.

WFAA8's Slater and Gables: tweetin' and bloggin' about their impending deliveries

Ed Bark — 2010-07-15T09:46:55-05:00
Already short-staffed on the anchor front, WFAA8 will have to re-juggle again later this summer, when Shelly Slater and Shon Gables respectively are due to become mothers for the first and third times. Slater, who co-anchors the Dallas-based station's 5 p.m. weekday newscasts and also fills in regularly on other editions, is having a boy with her husband, Clay.

Can we see some ID please? CBS11 explains its decision to reveal the name of a seriously injured Fort Worth police officer while rival stations held back (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-07-14T15:10:33-05:00
On CBS11's Thursday, 10 p.m. edition, co-anchor Karen Borta said that "sources close to the family" had identified the injured officer as 37-year-old Richard Lambing, whose name was officially released Friday morning by the Fort Worth police department. ...Duitch said that "our reporter on the story (Giselle Phillips) was hearing a name but we did not feel we had enough sources to confirm it nor confirmation that the family would be okay with us reporting it.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., July 13) -- All-Stars edge Talent in battle of summertime heavyweights

Ed Bark — 2010-07-14T10:33:43-05:00
The Brewers' Ryan Braun takes a dive and makes the catch during NL's win over AL in Tuesday night's All-Star game. Photo: Ed Bark ...They went head-to-head from 8 to 10 p.m., with Fox's coverage of the NL's first win over the AL since 1996 drawing 325,742 viewers in those two hours to Talent's 298,597.

Meteorologist Garry Seith still recovering from motorcycle crash

Ed Bark — 2010-07-13T16:48:03-05:00
TXA21/CBS11 meteorologist Garry Seith remains on the mend from a serious late June motorcycle accident and isn't expected back to work until sometime in August, the station confirms. Former NBC5 meteorologist Krista Villarreal, who lately has worked at Dallas-based KRLD radio (1080 AM), is filling in on occasion during Seith's absence.

CBS11's Ginger Allen opting out of early mornings to become station's lead investigator

Ed Bark — 2010-07-13T12:10:59-05:00
Ginger Allen, CBS11's early morning co-anchor for the past three years, is returning to the gumshoe beat as the station's "senior investigative reporter." Staffers learned of the change in a memo from news director Adrienne Roark, who said that Allen will remain on CBS11's yawn patrol until the end of this month in tandem with holdover Scott Sams.

All ears for award-winning NBC5 mini-ads

Ed Bark — 2010-07-09T14:07:34-05:00
In these cases, the already ingrained three-note NBC chimes theme is matched to natural sounds from a White Rock Lake bike trail, Billy Bob's, a McKinney Ave. streetcar and a Frisco Roughriders game. ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., July 8) -- LeBron-athon paces prime-time

Ed Bark — 2010-07-09T09:17:56-05:00
The 12th edition of CBS' Big Brother premiered at 7 p.m., edging ABC's competing Wipeout in total viewers by a score of 176,444 to 162,871. BB also comfortably won the hour among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 had its biggest day in recent memory, running the table at 5, 6 and 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for newscasts on most stations.

WFAA8 hires Colleen Coyle as new weekend Daybreak weathercaster

Ed Bark — 2010-07-08T14:34:25-05:00
She is originally from Atlanta and describes herself as "a bit of a daredevil" who loves bungee jumping, roller coasters and chasing tornadoes. She spent about a year-and-a-half at KPSP before jumping from TV market No. 142 to D-FW, which is No.

Yan leaves CW33, joins CNN

Ed Bark — 2010-07-08T06:50:44-05:00
Yan joined CW33 after being laid off by The Dallas Morning News, where she spent five years as a reporter. She'll now be working for CNN Wire, which provides content for all of CNN's "platforms," including television, digital and radio.

Credit where it's due: Dogged work by WFAA8 gumshoe Brett Shipp prompts statewide action on faulty natural gas couplings

Ed Bark — 2010-07-07T10:32:31-05:00
He since has won three national Peabody Awards and a like number of duPont awards in just the past seven years, including both of them in 2008 for his reporting on the faulty gas couplings. ...i=97853139" />
View more news videos at: http://www.nbcdfw.com/video.

Jake and Jilted: she dishes, he sits sullenly in sneak peek of their two-ring circus on Monday's Bachelorette

Ed Bark — 2010-07-01T13:31:49-05:00
Their post Bachelor breakup has provided a summertime feast of spillage, with Girardi mouthing off to The Star while Pavelka took his grievances to the slightly higher brow People. ...

July dawns with assortment of D-FW news/views on CW33, Rebecca Miller, Mike Snyder and Rebecca Aguilar

Ed Bark — 2010-07-01T11:36:38-05:00
Reporter Shana Franklin, whose current lot in life is patrolling the station's recently created sex beat, had an interesting and valid story Wednesday night on two SMU professors who have created a virtual reality program aimed at teaching students how to avoid unwanted sexual advances. ...***Former Fox4 reporter Rebecca Aguilar, still awaiting a hearing -- or a possible settlement -- in her discrimination case against the station, has hopes of landing a show on Oprah Winfrey's upcoming OWN cable network.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., June 25-27) -- net loss for U.S. soccer team but big gain for ABC

Ed Bark — 2010-06-28T11:35:54-05:00
That put it in a third-place tie with CBS11's syndicated Rachael Ray behind the third hour of NBC's Today (101,795 viewers) and CW33's Jerry Springer (33,932 viewers). ...Friday's local news derby results yielded a split decision at 10 p.m., with WFAA8 winning in total viewers and NBC5 taking the gold among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Pavelka's Bachelor bustup barely in play on another gooey GMT

Ed Bark — 2010-06-25T15:50:24-05:00
She soon added, "You've been going through a little bit of a tough time," before Pavelka interjected and said, "I don't really want to get too much into it, but I'm getting all of the tweets and all of the support from the fans and it's absolutely wonderful. ...And you'd like to think that they'd be eager to have him spill just a little juice about, you know, the purported girl of his dreams who weepily said on Entertainment Tonight that Pavelka told her he might have won Dancing with the Stars had he "dumped her" in mid-show.

Public lewdness charge dropped against former WFAA8 anchor/reporter Brad Hawkins

Ed Bark — 2010-06-25T13:58:42-05:00
A police charge of public lewdness against former WFAA8 anchor/reporter Brad Hawkins has been rejected by the district attorney's office, his attorney confirmed Friday. ...At the time of the charge, Schulte said, "We're going to fight the charges and we ask that everyone holds their opinion until all the facts are known.

Vintage video of Rowlett's declaration of independence at CBS 11 a sign of how much has changed in the decade since

Ed Bark — 2010-06-24T15:33:57-05:00
"I never thought I'd be at this station at this time doing what I used to do at another station for a very long time," he said before quickly adding, "I don't intend to rehash all that business about leaving Channel 8." ...

WFAA8's GMT puts former Bachelor lover boy back in local spotlight

Ed Bark — 2010-06-23T17:44:09-05:00
Dallas-bred Jake Pavelka, still on a high-profile rebound from his split-up with made-for-TV fiancee Vienna Girardi, will be guest-hosting both the Friday and Monday editions of WFAA8's Good Morning Texas, the station announced Wednesday. Pavelka, 32 and a pilot by trade, segued from his starring role on last season's The Bachelor to Dancing with the Stars to a recently filmed guest shot on Lifetime's Drop Dead Diva series.

Bachelor rose petals wilt for Dallas flyboy Jake and ex-fiancee Vienna

Ed Bark — 2010-06-22T16:25:19-05:00
In yet another phony reality show love story gone awry, Dallas palooka Jake Pavelka and his bikini model fiancee, Vienna Girardi, have split after declaring their undying love for each other on ABC's The Bachelor. ...Both Pavelka and Girardi spend way too much time staring at their individual images in a mirror to mesh as anything in the vicinity of a loving couple.

Way they were: KDFW-TV's 1989 weekend news team

Ed Bark — 2010-06-22T12:16:26-05:00
The below introduction to KDFW-TV's (Channel 4) weekend newscast is from 1989, when the team consisted of news anchor Barbara White, weathercaster Ron Jackson and sports anchor Paul Crane. ...

WFAA8 anchor Cynthia Izaguirre's nose survives hard punch from garage door

Ed Bark — 2010-06-21T13:57:25-05:00
"Already running a little bit late for work," Izaguirre said she backed her car out of the garage at her boyfriend's house but then couldn't find the remote to close the door. ...Instead she was told not to apply any makeup to the cut for several days, and "in a couple of weeks, it would look like nothing had ever happened.

Take it from Big Walt: CW33 news is full of $#!T

Ed Bark — 2010-06-18T12:02:14-05:00
Drinking news director David Duitch's Kool Aid -- some say he's merely assuming the position dictated by Tribune corporate -- has to be a hard swallow for at least some of the staffers at CW33. ...That would be breaking the code, even though the success or failure of CW33 and other Tribune-owned news purveyors could have a reverberating impact on stations still clinging to higher roads.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., June 17) -- higher and higher for end game of NBA Finals

Ed Bark — 2010-06-18T10:39:50-05:00
Oh, but we love to kid CW33's salacious, sex-ified, drool-dripping presentations, where you can learn how to "Get In Shape to Look Better Naked" on one night and be taught "Porn 101: A Rookie's Guide to Erotica" the next. ...CBS11 won a downsized three-way 10 p.m. news competition in total viewers and added a first place finish with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming on most stations.

Poker game turns deadly, with CBS11 photographer apparently shooting in self-defense

Ed Bark — 2010-06-17T12:22:46-05:00
When he fired at the players, Johnson pulled a gun and fatally shot the man, who was identified as 28-year-old Darvis Dervon Young in myfoxdfw.com's brief report on the shootings. ..."We are relieved that our employee was unharmed, but we consider this to be a personal matter and have no other comment at this time," CBS11 communications director Lori Conrad said via email Thursday.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., June 14) -- sickly numbers for Dallas-made Good Guys

Ed Bark — 2010-06-15T09:44:44-05:00
The serio-comic cop series' third episode, which included a cameo by Fox4 anchor Clarice Tinsley, ran third at 8 p.m. in total viewers and -- worse yet -- an overall fourth among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In Monday's local news derby results, CBS11 edged WFAA8 in total viewers at 10 p.m., but WFAA8 had the win among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Take it from the late Jimmy Dean: "Climbs hills like a sure-footed stallion"

Ed Bark — 2010-06-14T16:46:10-05:00
The Plainview, TX native, who died Sunday at age 81, did the below commercial in 1960, just a year before recording his chart-smashing anthem, "Big Bad John." ...

CW33 newsroom discovers that breasts are big

Ed Bark — 2010-06-10T17:33:50-05:00
D-FW's very own CW33 should be allowed to show how far ahead of the curve it is as a provider of cutting edge news you can use for a new age of PromoPeeps. ...

Mmm . . . WTF?!

Ed Bark — 2010-06-09T15:06:28-05:00
Your friendly content provider is jealous that the above ad is appearing on The Dallas Observer's Unfair Park blog and not on unclebarky.com. ...But as for that "this just in" press release announcing CBS11's 4:30 a.m. start time, well, we reported that one -- pre-press release -- on May 13th.

Over and out for NBC5's Mike Snyder

Ed Bark — 2010-06-09T12:02:55-05:00
The transition began in July of last year, when Snyder was dropped as co-anchor of NBC5's 10 p.m. newscasts, where he had teamed with Jane McGarry for 17 years. Snyder and McGarry, who later also was removed from her 10 p.m. anchor chair, since have been co-anchoring the NBC-owned station's 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts under substantially reduced salaries.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., June 7) -- staggering start for Dallas-made Good Guys

Ed Bark — 2010-06-08T10:06:38-05:00
The made-in-Dallas, serio-comic cop series drew 142,512 D-FW viewers at 8 p.m., running behind CBS' repeats of Two and a Half Men (176,444 viewers) and The Big Bang Theory (183,230 viewers), and the second hour of ABC's The Bachelorette (169,658 viewers). ...Meanwhile, at 9 p.m. locally, NBC came up mostly empty with the premiere of its whodunit miniseries Persons Unknown, which was not available for review before it aired. PU drew just 95,008 total viewers to run fourth in that measurement behind CBS' top draw repeat of CSI: Miami (217,162 viewers).

It's officially Good Guys Day in Dallas (but tonight's national ratings will be of far more import)

Ed Bark — 2010-06-07T12:25:13-05:00
The Good Guys, a retro serio-comic cop drama being filmed entirely in North Texas, premieres in its regular summertime Monday time slot on June 7th at 8 p.m. central. ... So tonight's performance will be of more than marginal importance, even though Good Guys already has been given a Friday night berth on Fox's fall schedule.

Doing Dallas: Thursday's So You Think You Can Dance showcases SMU auditions

Ed Bark — 2010-06-03T12:30:50-05:00
This is Season 7 of Think You Can Dance, with the eventual winner again getting a $250,000 cash prize, the title of "America's Favorite Dancer" and a cover feature in next March's issue of Dance Spirit magazine. ...dppversion=1631" name="movie"/>

Summer of '96: Two homegrown KXAS spots tout weather, sports plusses in idyllic pre-NBC ownership days

Ed Bark — 2010-06-02T14:16:25-05:00

WFAA8's Daybreak: Cynthia, Greg and the man with no name

Ed Bark — 2010-05-28T11:11:20-05:00

CBS11 sweeps 10 p.m. May news numbers for first time in any ratings "sweeps"

Ed Bark — 2010-05-27T12:41:10-05:00
For the first time since launching a 10 p.m. newscast in 1995, the CBS-owned station won a weeknight "sweeps" ratings period in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...The biggest "blowout" in any of the four principal time periods was Fox4's slightly more than four-tenths of a rating point win over WFAA8 in the 6 p.m. battle for 25-to-54-year-olds.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 26) -- Idol finale scores big, CBS11 clinches first-ever across-the-board 10 p.m. newscast win

Ed Bark — 2010-05-27T10:51:15-05:00
Fox4's giddy Fiona Gorostiza makes a "sandwich," as she put it, between North Texas' two American Idol Top 10ers, Tim Urban and Casey James, during the station's 9 p.m. newscast. Photo: Ed Bark ...Its wins in total viewers and with 25-to-54-year-olds (main advertiser target audience for news programming) clinched the station's first-ever across-the-board golds in a ratings sweeps period. (We'll have a complete sweeps results report a bit later.)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 25) -- Idol and Dancing dominate while CBS11 closes in on historic 10 p.m. "sweeps" doubleplay

Ed Bark — 2010-05-26T12:52:06-05:00
American Idol's final sing-off between Crystal Bowersox and Lee DeWyze powered Fox to a runaway victory in Tuesday's opening prime-time hour before ABC's Dancing with the Stars won in total viewers but not with advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds. ...The concluding 9 to 10 p.m. hour of Dancing then vaulted into the top spot with 18-to-49-year-olds, besting NBC's second place Parenthood, CBS' The Good Wife and Fox4's local newscast.

Sex the latest Rx for struggling CW33 news

Ed Bark — 2010-05-25T10:54:31-05:00
CW33's latest strategy is to sell sex as its principle newscast commodity, whether cooing over various cheerleader tryouts, concocting sometimes ill-fated viewer participation gambits or sending Franklin into the breech as part of what she calls "a beat you won't see at many TV stations." ...

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 21-23) -- it's Lost from start to stop

Ed Bark — 2010-05-24T10:22:43-05:00
The Peacock also controlled the 6 a.m. ratings in both measurements while adding a 5 p.m. win in total viewers and running first at 6 p.m. with 25-to-54-year-olds. ...NOTE TO READERS: Due to the heavy volume of big series and season finales through Wednesday of this week, we are bagging out of the last four days of our "Night in the Lives" look at the late night newscasts on Fox4, NBC5, WFAA8 and CBS11.

WFAA8 anchor Gloria Campos mulls her options while getting ready to relinquish "Wednesday's Child"

Ed Bark — 2010-05-21T14:47:18-05:00
In a candid email exchange with unclebarky.com, Campos also says she has had a "couple of conversations" with news director Mike Valentine about scaling back her hours -- and accepting a requisite pay cut -- either before or when her current contract expires at the end of 2012. ...Devlin, in a pointed statement last December on the value of the total viewers measurement, said that "others may count children as part of a 'victory'; however, the fact is all local stations make a living on adults between 25 and 54."

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., May 20)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-21T11:23:03-05:00
...NBC5 sports anchor Newy Scruggs also dropped Cuban's name, wondering aloud if he might be fined for a CNN website interview in which he talked about the possibility of LeBron James coming to Dallas.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., May 19)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-20T16:18:25-05:00
That said, let's move on with a few comments about Wednesday's late night newscasts, all of which were topped by news of more tornado touchdowns in Oklahoma before weathercasters quickly turned to the business of forecasting possibilities of rain on Thursday in North Texas. ...During the ongoing May "sweeps," the only exception I've seen to this inviolable rule is when CBS11 sports anchor Babe Laufenberg showed a brief clip of Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo's recent guest appearance on NBC's The Biggest Loser.

Last standing Texan gets Idol boot (but you'll hear more from Casey James)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-20T09:20:59-05:00
Crystal "Mama Sox" Bowersox and Lee "Charisma Chip Missing" DeWyze will square off next week in hopes of becoming American Idol's ninth season champ during the swan song for signature judge Simon Cowell. ...The prediction here -- and it's been made several times now -- is that James will have the longest lasting career among this season's overall lackluster crop of contestants.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., May 18)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-19T16:38:12-05:00
Fox4 again spent ample time on American Idol finalist Casey James of Cool, TX, who took another beating from judges for his opening song choice Tuesday night. Brandon Todd, seasoned veteran of area Idol "watch parties," talked to the 27-year-old James' mother and brother this time. ...WFAA8 again got all lathered up about the possibilities of inclement weather in outlying areas, with co-anchor Gloria Campos telling viewers up top, "Severe storms are possible tomorrow," with a chance of hail and strong winds.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., May 17)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-18T15:13:27-05:00
Elsewhere Monday, rain and hail in Seagoville topped three of the four late night newscasts, with only CBS11 initially resisting by doing a jailhouse interview with a sorry excuse for humanity who ran over and killed a 17-year-old bicyclist on a country road before fleeing the scene. ...WFAA8 reporter Jason Whitely was all over it in that sometimes aggravating way of his after anchor Gloria Campos chirped, "Hail and high water" before colleague John McCaa added, "Storms hit North Texas and it's just a taste of what's to come this week."

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., May 14)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-17T11:30:33-05:00
WFAA8 co-anchor Gloria Campos told viewers to expect "a very wet weekend" before weatherman Pete "I'll tell you when -- at 10" Delkus flashed his shirtsleeves again. ...The Cool, Texas native began his whirlwind tour on Fox4's Good Day before later doing two concerts in Fort Worth and visiting a hospital whose doctors and staff repaired him after he had a serious motorcyle accident six years ago that threatened to compromise his guitar skills.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 14-16) -- Volley of ABC season finales and Survivor fight to finish Sunday night

Ed Bark — 2010-05-17T10:37:54-05:00
That made it a close second to CBS' competing Ghost Whisperer (135,726 viewers). Lights tied ABC's Wife Swap and The CW's Smallville for second among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in total viewers while Fox4 ran first with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

TXA21 ending weekend newscasts, dropping Chris Salcedo

Ed Bark — 2010-05-14T14:46:27-05:00
Salcedo, whose picture and bio already have been removed from the CBS11/TXA21 "News Team" page, originally was hired in September 2006 from a San Diego station to join an inaugural "First In Prime" anchor quartet of Tracy Kornet, Kenneth Taylor and Kaushal Patel. ...Both the weekday and weekend TXA21 newscasts, which air from 7 to 9 p.m., have been struggling in the ratings.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., May 13)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-14T11:42:17-05:00
Let's get right to them after first briefly noting that Fox4 and NBC5 again couldn't resist leading off with yet more details on how it's going to rain on and off this weekend. ...CBS11 anchor Doug Dunbar, who narrated his station's brief story on the matter, told viewers that "when Smith finally got to the hospital, he admitted to police also that he had been drinking that evening."

Earlier wakeup call for CBS11 eye opener

Ed Bark — 2010-05-13T15:12:48-05:00
As first reported in these spaces, Fox4's Good Day began rising at 4:30 a.m. in early April in hopes of getting viewers on board before rival stations kicked in at 5 a.m. ...CBS11 currently is running fourth in total viewers at 6 a.m., but is just one-tenth of a point behind third-place WFAA8.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., May 12)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-13T13:13:42-05:00
"A line of thunderstorms moving through North Texas isn't severe, but it is creating a lightning show out there," Fox4 anchor Heather Hays told viewers in the opening seconds of Wednesday's 9 p.m. edition. "The storms are really just a preview of what's to come over the next few days," added co-anchor Steve Eagar before meteorologist Dan Henry stepped in to warn -- among other things -- that "an active period" of rain could befall parts of North Texas in the next few days.

Add Midland -- now Lone Star -- to list of Dallas-made network TV series

Ed Bark — 2010-05-12T17:05:27-05:00
Made here in March and being retitled Lone Star, the so-called "subversive" soap opera stars Jon Voight as a two-timing con man who of course is involved in the Texas oil and power industries. ...And with at least three prime-time series ready to roll, who really needs that on-again but mostly off-again feature film that initially had John Travolta on board as the new J.R.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., May 11)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-12T11:52:15-05:00
But he was in Noble, OK Tuesday night to helm coverage that also included solid reporting from Jonathan Betz on the mobil home destruction that killed a Little Axe mother and critically injured her three children. ...A brief story on the discovery of a bagged grenade floating in Mountain Creek Lake also took precedence over tornado followup coverage. Scott Gordon then reported via videotape on Monday's destruction, telling viewers at story's end, "In a strange way, those who lost everything say they're grateful."

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., May 10)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-11T11:05:10-05:00
NBC5's Scott Gordon and WFAA8's Jason Whitely both had live reports from the ground while Fox4 chief meteorologist Dan Henry filed a telephone report after joining a team of storm chasers. ...WFAA8's David Schechter had a good story, too, on diesel-powered vehicles that are all but exempt from mandatory emissions testing despite being "the largest source of ozone-producing pollution on the road in North Texas."

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 7-9) -- White brightens SNL scorecard

Ed Bark — 2010-05-10T10:19:47-05:00
That was a slight dip from the network's preceding Amazing Race 16 finale, which had 237,521 to win its time slot while Stone ran second overall. Race also topped the 18-to-49 numbers at 7 p.m., but Stone dropped to fourth in that key demographic. On Friday night, NBC's season premiere of Austin-made Friday Night Lights (which first ran on DirecTV) drew 115,367 total viewers to finish second at 7 p.m. behind CBS' Ghost Whisperer (142,512). Lights nipped Ghost Whisperer among 18-to-49-year-olds, but both ran behind the first hour of TXA21's Texas Rangers Friday night game of the week.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., May 7)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-09T14:14:22-05:00
NBC5 instead led at 10 p.m. with Scott Gordon's dispatch on an alleged scammer who solicited donations for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America at two small Dallas hair care emporiums. ...dppversion=1548" name="movie"/>

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., May 6)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-07T10:06:48-05:00
WFAA8 led its newscast with a "Fast Cars and Mad Moms" story that amounted to four women in a River Oaks residential area brandishing signs and urging passing motorists to slow down. Jason Whitely reported, but this likely won't show up on any resume tapes. ...At the other end of the spectrum, a contributor to Fox4's nightly "Viewers' Voice" segment said she would pray for the salvation of the network after Wednesday's "absolutely appalling" performance by Lady Gaga on American Idol.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Wed., May 5)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-06T14:52:38-05:00
On Wednesday, Gordon joined WFAA8's Gary Reaves and Fox4's Sophia Reza in reporting on the arrest of a Colleyville man who sent an explosive device to his estranged wife while camouflaging it with salad bowls. Fox4 and WFAA8 led with it while the lately reforming Peacock topped its newscast with Scott Friedman's far more impactful piece on American Airlines' increasingly "intensive negotiations" with a variety of unions.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., May 4)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-05T13:11:30-05:00
In her only contribution to the investigation, Newton knocked on the door of the 60-year-old man's home with the lame proviso that "We would just like to give him a chance to tell his side of the story." ...In contrast, WFAA8 topped its newscast with a comparatively sedate but far worthier story on a DISD "land spree" in which proposed sites for new public schools require the demolitions of local businesses and an historic Oak Cliff church. Jonathan Betz ably reported on some residents' displeasure with the plans while one man seemed more than happy to have the city purchase his ramshackle house.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., May 3)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-04T14:49:00-05:00
Fox4 also scored Monday night with gravel-voiced gumshoe Becky Oliver's extended look at how accused offenders regularly have their cases dismissed if they can't be easily found. ...Hidek offered what seemed to be some fairly lame excuses, telling Oliver that a "cost benefit analysis" eventually is made if accused offenders can't be found over an extended period of time.

CW 33's Jim Grimes calling it a night (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-02T23:41:26-05:00
CW33 reporter and weekend anchor Jim Grimes, who joined the Dallas-based station in the momentous month of September 2001, will be leaving the station later this month. ...In an email response sent Monday evening, Grimes said that Sunday's May 23rd 9 p.m. newscast will mark his last appearance on the station.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., April 30)

Ed Bark — 2010-05-02T17:32:36-05:00
Henry hit in the lead-off spot before Fox4 segued to reporter Lynn Kawano's extended report on a very disturbed 18-year-old who dug up a grave for the purpose of severing a corpse's foot and then putting it in his duffel bag. ...In contrast, the night's best story came from WFAA8's David Schechter, who reported on efforts to help the homeless in times when they often are their own worst enemies.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., April 29)

Ed Bark — 2010-04-30T12:43:18-05:00
Sturdy Omar Villafranca reported on a "Real Estate Rush" by homebuyers looking to take advantage of a substantial tax credit that expires at midnight Friday. Scott Friedman, who doubles as NBC5's early morning co-anchor, had an informative piece on the increase in airline overbooking and resultant flight bumping. ...In the station's closing "Viewers' Voice" segment, co-anchor Steve Eagar read a dispatch from a woman who termed it "rather insulting" that Fox4 would use "wetback" on the air but otherwise fall back on "the n-word" when it comes to slurs against blacks.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., April 29) -- Mavs end, May "sweeps" begin

Ed Bark — 2010-04-30T09:32:40-05:00
The big news on opening day was CBS11's twin wins at 6 p.m., where WFAA8 had dominated for decades until November's fall into a pair of first-place ties. WFAA8 ran a relatively distant third Thursday in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Send coach Carlisle to the principal's office after Mavs flunk another playoff test

Ed Bark — 2010-04-29T22:12:47-05:00
But after a 22-8 first quarter deficit and a 22-point lead by the San Antonio Spurs at one point, the Mavericks rallied to take a very brief one-point lead at the 4:55 mark of the third quarter. ...But they did bury themselves nonetheless, with much of the blame going to Coach Rick Carlisle, point guard Jason Kidd (who played in cement sneakers all night) and shooting guard Jason Terry, who looked pretty much shot.

Gray area: alleged hair color restorer makes news on CBS11, etc., etc., etc.

Ed Bark — 2010-04-29T13:17:29-05:00
Several readers of unclebarky.com questioned the news value of the story and whether Go Away Gray "creator" Cathy Beggan perhaps had paid stations to have her product featured. CBS11's story was by Ginger Allen, who raised questions about Going Away Gray while also reporting that it's working for some people, most notably Stephanie Swanson of Irving.

Up close and pretty personable: New CBS11 news director Adrienne Roark

Ed Bark — 2010-04-28T16:06:48-05:00
One of her investigators was hired from the Miami Herald, and Roark says she'd ideally like to find at least one print reporter to join the CBS11 unit, too. ...Roark says she plans to reach higher with stories aimed at women viewers of a certain age, but "I'm not telling you what we're doing in May . . .

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 27) -- stayin' alive in a big way on TXA21

Ed Bark — 2010-04-28T10:04:39-05:00
It was a two-sided story at 8 p.m., with CBS' NCIS: Los Angeles beating Glee in total viewers but finishing a distant second to the Fox show among 18-to-49-year-olds. ...In local news derby results, the spoils were split at 10 p.m., with CBS11 tops in total viewers and WFAA8 winning among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

CW33 dropping local 5:30 p.m. newscast (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-04-27T10:52:09-05:00
***While I was briefly away in Chicago, KTCK-AM ("The Ticket") suspended co-host/producer Mike Bacsik (who mostly works with Norm Hitzges on the 9 a.m. show) for moronically tweeting "Congrats to all the dirty Mexicans in San Antonio" after the Dallas Mavericks' Sunday night loss. Dan Bennett, vice president and market manager for the Cumulus-owned, Dallas-based station, said in a statement that Bacsik's comments "were unacceptable and offensive, and are inconsistent with the core values of KTCK and Cumulus.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 23-25) -- down 'n' dirty 'n' dead(?)

Ed Bark — 2010-04-27T09:19:38-05:00
In Friday's local news derby results, NBC5 and WFAA8 tied for first in total viewers at 10 p.m., but the Peacock prevailed among 25-to-54-year-olds, the favored target audience for news programming. ...It also cratered badly with 25-to-54-year-olds, where Nielsen says that a competing MY27 rerun of My Name Is Earl also had more viewers in this age group than WFAA8's local news.

HDNet's Road Diaries series recounts the ongoing rebounds of a former Mavericks hopeful

Ed Bark — 2010-04-23T10:08:26-05:00
"It was literally like looking at a corpse," says Mavericks president and GM Donn Nelson, who still has a hard time talking about it in HDNet's Ray Johnston Band: Road Diaries. The improbable, inspirational eight-part look at Johnston's recovery and re-invention premieres Sunday, April 25th at 7 p.m. (central) on HDNet., which is owned by Mavericks' owner Mark Cuban.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., April 21) -- flat numbers for flat, flattened Mavs

Ed Bark — 2010-04-22T13:11:50-05:00
Meanwhile on Fox, the two hour-plus Idol Gives Back averaged 407,178 viewers from 7 to 9 p.m. and fell to 373,266 for the run-over, in which Duncanville's Tim Urban was voted out. ABC's three-hour festival of comedy repeats -- two apiece of The Middle, Modern Family and Cougar Town -- put it in fourth place all night among the Big Four broadcast networks.

Former Dallas TV reporter and current Southwest Airlines media spokesman Brad Hawkins arrested on alleged public lewdness (updated at 9:48 p.m.)

Ed Bark — 2010-04-21T16:05:29-05:00
He was arrested Monday night, April 19th, on a charge of public lewdness in a Dallas park after allegedly making sexual advances toward an undercover Dallas police officer. ..."I feel I'm jumping from one of local TV's greatest news dynasties to one of the most emulated and respected companies in the world," Hawkins told unclebarky.com in November 2008 on his decision to join Southwest Airlines.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., April 20) -- in a remote control universe, size still matters

Ed Bark — 2010-04-21T09:52:39-05:00
Whatever the case, NBC5 won Tuesday's 10 p.m. newscast competitions with help from its network's 9 p.m. Parenthood, which on the same day was officially picked up for a second season. ...It was the same story with 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. Parenthood led the way in this key demographic at 9 p.m. before NBC5 triumphed at 10 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 16-18) -- Mavs men whip Spurs, wallop country music awards

Ed Bark — 2010-04-19T11:47:10-05:00
Friday's prime-time Nielsens, dinky in comparison, were topped by NBC's Secrets of the Mountain, which had 156,085 total viewers. ...In Friday's local news derby results, WFAA8 broke a two-day string of no wins by topping the 10 p.m. ratings in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

By the way, this used to be the theme song for NBC5 news

Ed Bark — 2010-04-16T13:14:04-05:00
dppversion=7267" name="movie"/>

Too delicious: The Onion wrings tears of laughter with scathing Skip Bayless takedown

Ed Bark — 2010-04-16T11:05:33-05:00
The lead paragraph goes like this: "Expressing regret that joyless, wrongheaded ESPN commentator and attack journalist Skip Bayless could not be dealt with otherwise, commissioners from every major professional sporting league, top officials of amateur athletic associations, and representatives of player unions reached an agreement Wednesday to end the practice of competitive sports in order to forever deprive Bayless of any subject matter." ...In a web column headlined "How Does Skip Bayless Sleep At Night?," veteran D-FW sports reporter/talk show host Mike Fisher excoriated Bayless for continuing to perpetuate the alleged rumor that former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman is gay.

Hansen unplugged: the sequel

Ed Bark — 2010-04-14T14:00:17-05:00
What emerged, on the Dallas-based station's Tuesday 10 p.m. newscast, was a veritable verbal assault on station management for deciding to air a secretly recorded Jerry Jones video in which the seemingly well-oiled Dallas Cowboys owner profanely ripped former coach Bill Parcells and the NFL potential of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow. ...Newsblues.com, one of many TV industry-related sites to pick up on the Hansen commentary, ended its post with "Late yesterday, Hansen tweeted: 'just to kill any rumors - i am going to be gone most of april on vacation . . . so i have not been fired . . . just so you know.'

"Unplugged" Hansen slugs away at WFAA8 management for airing secretly recorded Jones video

Ed Bark — 2010-04-14T10:56:56-05:00
Hopping mad about the station's decision to air a secretly recorded barroom video of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, veteran sports anchor Dale Hansen blistered WFAA8 management and television news in general during a markedly pointed "Unplugged" commentary on that night's 10 p.m. newscast. ...Embarrassing stories about "some of the most powerful people in this town -- the stories about the people who come into your home every night at 6 and 10 -- those stories somehow never see the light of day unless one of the other stations decides to -- and sometimes they do," Hansen said.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., April 9-11) -- implosion palooza, plus The Masters

Ed Bark — 2010-04-12T10:50:01-05:00
Sunday's final round of The Masters on CBS averaged 325,742 viewers, peaking at an American Idol/Dancing With the Stars-sized 481,827 viewers between 4 and 4:15 p.m. ...On Friday night, TXA21's first of 25 weekly regular season Texas Rangers games had 108,581 viewers, good enough to finish third behind first-run entertainment programming on ABC and CBS.

Last picture show: Local TV stations gang-tackle the crumbling of Texas Stadium

Ed Bark — 2010-04-12T10:51:53-05:00
In preparation for a dust cloud that never really materialized at ground level, the intrepid reporter showily encased himself in a head-to-toe, baby blue body suit and goggles that made him look like an extra from Outbreak, which was not directed by either Allen or Winkler. ...Canned reports ranged from a hard-hatted Slater's look at the intricacies of blowing up the stadium to Riba's history lesson (Crosby, Stills and Nash was the first concert performance) to Campos' rather gooey piece on young buck Rogers, whom she escorted into the Cowboys' former home for a last look at the pre-implosion mess.

Bad karma? Hope not. Made-in-Dallas The Good Guys has a title previously used by a brain-decaying sitcom

Ed Bark — 2010-04-09T16:59:20-05:00
As noted in a recent post, Fox's action-comedy cop series, The Good Guys, continues to shoot in the Dallas area while the network readies it for a May 19th premiere. ...

Picturing Megan Henderson -- one last time

Ed Bark — 2010-04-08T11:06:30-05:00
Judging from readers' comments, a number of you still aren't over former Good Day co-anchor Megan Henderson, who left the Fox4 morning show in February 2009 to join KTLA-TV in Los Angeles. ...Being seen with stars in L.A. likely beats mingling with Dallas mayor Tom Leppert while getting cross-eyed in the presence of his ever-present wide-striped suits.

Dallas-shot Good Guys series getting first promotional push on Fox

Ed Bark — 2010-04-07T13:23:11-05:00
Bradley Whitford strikes a pose while Colin Hanks give him the ho-hum in new stills from Fox's The Good Guys (formerly Code 58). ...Fox is starting to roll out promotional photos and video teases for its new spring-summer cop series The Good Guys, scheduled to premiere on Wednesday, May 19th after American Idol.

More national exposure for "America's premier gentlemen's club in the heart of the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex"

Ed Bark — 2010-04-07T08:18:13-05:00
It's the latest example of national coverage -- and un-coverage -- of the upscale Dallas gentlemen's club. Nightline is spotlighting The Lodge for an upcoming look at efforts to repeal the Texas "sin tax," which requires strip clubs to collect a $5 surcharge for each customer visit. ..."Writer in residence" Michael Precker, a former Dallas Morning News reporter who also is an assistant manager at The Lodge, earlier appeared on CNN's now defunct D.L.

Ka-boom town: D-FW's picture providers planning big blowouts for Texas Stadium blowup

Ed Bark — 2010-04-06T14:10:15-05:00
WFAA8's special will be titled End of An Era: the Implosion of Texas Stadium, with Daybreak co-anchor Cynthia Izaguirre presiding with help from backup sports anchor Joe Trahan. ...Its one-hour Texas Stadium: The Final Farewell, also starting at 6:30 a.m., will be anchored by its featured 10 p.m. weekday team, Doug Dunbar and Karen Borta.

Woods/Rangers start new seasons in tandem

Ed Bark — 2010-04-05T16:22:52-05:00
The Rangers initially looked helpless at the hands of Toronto starter Shaun Marcum, going hitless through the first six-and-one-third innings and trailing 3-0 before -- BOOM!!! -- Nelson Cruz tied the game with a three-run homer while 50,299 watched. ..."There's a tremendous relief off his shoulders," said ESPN analyst and former pro Curtis Strange after Woods advanced the ball a little more by disclosing he had "a busted up lip and a pretty sore neck" after crashing his motor vehicle on Thanksgiving night.

Another video that keeps on giving -- the night the streaker struck. Former WFAA8 reporter Bert Lozano still remembers all the details

Ed Bark — 2010-04-05T11:21:20-05:00
I really didn't feel like that when I was going through it, but when I had a chance to look at it later in the evening, I was very relieved that I had not made a complete and total fool of myself." ...

Weather right or wrong, they're pretty much all right -- or all wrong

Ed Bark — 2010-04-01T12:47:08-05:00
At the outer reaches of their extended 7-day forecasts, Fox4, WFAA8, CBS11 and CW33 respectively say we'll hit Wednesday highs of 75, 76, 77 and 78. ... Of the three stations that forecast lows, CBS11 has it at 54 while WFAA8 and CW33 go with 55.

An even earlier start for Fox4's Good Day

Ed Bark — 2010-04-01T01:33:16-05:00
In this year's February sweeps, Good Day was No. 1 in total viewers from 5 to 5:30 a.m., but then yielded first place to NBC5 from 5:30 to 7 a.m. Good Day then bounced back to first place from 7 to 9 a.m. opposite the three network morning shows. ...In this month's ratings, NBC5 has consistently won the 6 a.m. hour, but it's been a closer three-way race from 5 to 6 a.m., where WFAA8's Daybreak also is in the hunt before the program usually loses ground between 6 and 7 a.m.

Badu ado is picture perfect for D-FW newscasts (but one of 'em bungles it anyway)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-29T22:14:04-05:00
NBC5 anchor Mike Snyder almost does a spit take Monday when Jane McGarry tells him that a "couple of" her Facebook fans wanted to know if he was the local celebrity who had appeared nude at Dealey Plaza. ...In brief, Badu purportedly sought to make an artistic statement with "Window Seat," in which she brazenly "liberated" herself by stripping to a completely nude state before collapsing to the ground at the site where President Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

NBC5's Wilcox gets weekend early morning anchor spot while station also adds a new reporter (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-25T11:32:39-05:00
NBC5 spokesman Brian Hocker confirmed Wilcox's promotion Thursday and also said the station has hired a new reporter, Julie Tam, who will join the station on April 19th. ...As described by Tam, it's designed to "help high school students and adults get into the college of their choice by presenting them at their best by editing their applications, which include creative, compelling essays without spelling or grammar errors."

Faces of WFAA8 sports: Verne, Dale ride again

Ed Bark — 2010-03-24T13:18:48-05:00
Their chat included clips ranging from the station's old bowling show, hosted by Lundquist, to his sharing a courtside perch with President Obama during a CBS telecast of a Duke-Georgetown basketball game. ...i=84487767" />CW's fourth edition of The RC Project, this one on waxing, featured a plus-sized, barebacked man lying mute on a rubdown table and co-host Candice Crawford revealing, "I come from a family with bushy eyebrows." ...

Pete's winter wonderland

Ed Bark — 2010-03-21T14:41:20-05:00
Tweeting like a mad man and as usual stripped to his shirtsleeves, WFAA8 weathercaster Pete Delkus again made his presence felt as spring snow fell fast and flurry-ous under Sunday's dark. ...Fox4 and CBS11 don't have local waker uppers on Sundays, leaving their respective main meteorologists, Dan Henry and Larry Mowry, out of the picture.

CBS11's Burger survives 40 years of highs/lows

Ed Bark — 2010-03-17T13:15:14-05:00
He began his broadcasting career at an Orlando radio station, working in the news department before agreeing to fill in at WDBO-TV (now WKMG) as a weekend forecaster. ...

Idol: Two from North Texas on tepid Top 12 sing-off

Ed Bark — 2010-03-17T08:28:06-05:00
Uncle Barky -- "Going reggae with 'Under My Thumb' was like doing 'Back in the USSR' to a calypso beat. ...Also of note: Amarillo's resilient, likable preacher's daughter, 24-year-old Lacey Brown, did a decent job with "Ruby Tuesday," even if it was typical of the night's inclination to mush up the Stones' playlist.

CW33's The RC Project proudly puts the vacu- in vacuous

Ed Bark — 2010-03-16T09:09:28-05:00
RC Project, co-starring the station's Roni Proter, arrived at the close of CW33's new 5 p.m. local newscast, a companion to the existing 5:30 p.m. edition. ...

Idol seems out of step this season, says former producer and current mainstay of So You Think You Can Dance

Ed Bark — 2010-03-15T11:39:41-05:00
He was Idol's co-executive producer for the Fox blockbuster's first seven seasons before leaving in August 2008 to become fully engaged with the network's So You Think You Can Dance as both a producer and judge. ...Lythgoe obviously will be keeping an eye on his old show during the ongoing nationwide auditions for So You Think You Can Dance. lt launches Season 7 on May 27th, just a few days after Idol ends its ninth.

Fun with Mike & Jane (hmm, maybe this should be a recurring feature!?)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-12T15:55:19-06:00
The fun-o-meter advantage here goes to Mike because, well, I never envisioned him in a picture with Charo but I did envision Jane with another Republican. Jane fights back with this recent prose post: "Going to work and it feels like spring so I think I'll try a new orange jacket -- plus the ankle bracelet -- gotta have the ankle bracelet :)"

Footloose with Fox4's Fiona Gorostiza

Ed Bark — 2010-03-12T09:45:15-06:00
Fox4's Fiona Gorostiza strikes her "Cheerleader Pop" pose during Dallas auditions for So You Think You Can Dance. Photos: Ed Bark ...It presumably beat barefoot walking on hot coals, which Gorostiza, 31, did around this time last year during a Good Day segment from Fair Park conducted by the Firewalking Institute of Research and Education.

WFAA8 anchor Shelly Slater soon will be delivering more than the news (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-11T22:34:38-06:00
Slater, who joined Dallas-based WFAA8 in September 2006, said she is due in early August and "we find out the sex of the baby on St. ..."I haven't announced anything on-air about the baby," she added, "but my husband and I are thrilled, nervous and anxious all at the same time."

Idol voters slit show's throat (and not just by axing two North Texans)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-11T21:03:36-06:00
American Idol's 12 finalists emerged Thursday night after viewers evicted two distinctive song stylists while also trimming the North Texas 4 in half. ..."A lot of incredible talent is going home tonight," a stunned Scott said after in-over-her-head Katie Stevens, 17, got the night's final Top 12 spot.

CBS11 names Miami's Adrienne Roark as news director (updated with official station confirmation)

Ed Bark — 2010-03-10T15:12:59-06:00
Roark said in a statement, "I am honored to be given the opportunity to be a part of such a distinguished news team, and I have great respect for what KTVT and KTXA mean to the Dallas-Fort Worth community." ...Reliable sources say that news director Kurt Davis of KENS-TV in San Antonio also was a finalist for the news director position.

Friedman tabbed to co-anchor NBC5's waker-upper

Ed Bark — 2010-03-10T14:38:10-06:00
NBC5 has named Scott Friedman as the co-anchor of its local early morning newscasts, teaming him with incumbent Deborah Ferguson. ...Jane McGarry, co-anchor of NBC5's 5 and 6 p.m. newscast, earlier revealed Friedman's new assignment on her Facebook FanPage, where she also writes, "I'm in the attic looking for old work photos.

White vs. Perry: a view through the looker glass

Ed Bark — 2010-03-09T17:32:55-06:00

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., March 5-7) -- despite no surprises, Oscars soar above last year's total

Ed Bark — 2010-03-08T09:50:57-06:00
Jay Leno's NBC Tonight Show again easily bested David Letterman's CBS Late Show Friday, giving him a clean sweep for the week in both total viewers and 18-to-49-year-olds. ...CBS11 had an uncommonly big day in the early evening news numbers, running the table at 6 p.m. and also winning at 5 p.m. in the 25-to-54 demographic.

Remarkable run: half of Idol's remaining eight guys are North Texans

Ed Bark — 2010-03-05T08:01:42-06:00
They join fellow North Texans Alex Lambert and Tim Urban among the final eight males on Fox's American Idol, which in Season 9 is still prime-time's most-watched weekly series. ...It's also a local angle gold mine for Dallas-based Fox4, which may end up having to send its entire late night reporting team to Idol "watch parties" next week.

Olympics-skewed Feb. sweeps yield asterisk-emblazoned golds for WFAA8, NBC5, Fox4

Ed Bark — 2010-03-04T12:35:07-06:00
It should be noted that on most Olympics nights, NBC5's late-starting late nighter generally had more viewers than the most-watched, regularly scheduled 10 p.m. newscast. ...The 6 a.m. newscast competitions, which were the least-affected by the Olympics, ended with narrow wins by NBC5 in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Schack shucks WFAA8 to take top meteorologist job in old Kentucky home

Ed Bark — 2010-03-03T15:25:02-06:00
Jennifer Schack, weekend meteorologist at Dallas-based WFAA8, will be leaving the station after her last shift on March 7th to become the head forecaster at ABC station WTVQ-TV in Lexington, KY. ...Schack, who joined WFAA8 in October, 2008, grew up in California, KY and graduated with a degree in Independent Studies: Meteorology from Thomas More College in Crestview Hills, KY.

NBC reboots, NBC5 hopes to get a leg up

Ed Bark — 2010-05-01T02:03:37-05:00
The Monday-Friday 9 p.m. lineup, subject to change as winter yields to spring, will be Law & Order; the promising new drama series Parenthood; Law & Order: SVU; Jerry Seinfeld's comedy-panel show, The Marriage Ref and Dateline. ...His long-term goal is to regain the dominance he had over David Letterman's Late Show, which thumped Conan O'Brien's Tonight for much of their seven-month faceoff.

TV news as we know it/knew it/fear it might become (with a little self-analysis, too)

Ed Bark — 2010-02-26T14:51:16-06:00
And Dallas-based WFAA8 on the surface at least seems lucky to be on its own in a market where Fox4, NBC5, CBS11 and CW33 all are owned from afar by their increasingly intrusive corporate masters. ...WFAA8 and CBS11 aren't yet in the "shared content" business, but Fox4, NBC5 and CW33 have been business partners since last spring as part of a Local News Service that's also taken hold in many other markets.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 25) -- four out of five for Idol over Olympics (updated)

Ed Bark — 2010-02-26T10:44:24-06:00
On Thursday night in D-FW, the overall haul was 508,973 viewers, with a peak audience of 665,057 between 10:30 and 10:45 p.m. for the final minutes of the women's figure skating competition. ...In local news derby results, CBS11 swept the downsized three-way 10 p.m. competition with wins in total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Sometimes the camera should be in their faces -- as Fox4 showed by playing "Gotcha" to good effect

Ed Bark — 2010-02-25T13:43:14-06:00
And there are recurring abuses, including Fox4 "Street Squad" reporter James Rose's decision last November to needlessly put a minor traffic violator on camera after she told him emphatically and repeatedly, "No, I don't want to be on TV." ...dppversion=6494" name="movie"/>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 24) -- Idol again spanks Olympics; Mavs-Lakers endgame whips 10 p.m. local newscasts

Ed Bark — 2010-02-25T10:49:55-06:00
The Fox cash cow again easily outdrew NBC's Olympics in their 7 to 9 p.m. matchup. Idol had 542,904 D-FW viewers this time while the Winter Games averaged 346,101 viewers. ...In other local news derby results, CBS11's 10 p.m. win in total viewers didn't hold up among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 23) -- Idol thrashes Olympics in third of five faceoffs

Ed Bark — 2010-02-24T10:17:03-06:00
Elsewhere in prime-time, ABC again had solid returns for a new episode of Lost, which drew 298,597 viewers in the 8 p.m. hour. Lost fared even better among advertiser-craved 18-to-49-year-olds, where it crept very close to the Olympics while Idol dominated. ...In local news derby results, WFAA8 and CBS11 tied for the lead at 10 p.m. in total viewers, but CBS11 had the gold to itself among 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming.

No business like snow business

Ed Bark — 2010-02-23T12:49:00-06:00
A thousand and one editions of sports anchor Dale Hansen's "Unplugged" commentaries on WFAA8 pale next to forecaster Pete Delkus topping a newscast by saying, "Plunging temperatures could mean sweater weather tomorrow, with the cold snap just beginning. ...

THE TRADE: removal of malignant tumor rejuvenates Mavs and returns them to living

Ed Bark — 2010-02-23T12:27:14-06:00
The above statistics, put up on Fox Sports Southwest Monday night, are jaw-dropping in what they say about the Mavs' defense since the acquisitions of Caron Butler, Brandon Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson from the Washington Wizards. ...Owner Mark Cuban deserves credit for seeing the obvious and pulling the trigger on a trade that brought new grit to the team while also cleansing it of a constantly injured head case who occasionally showed up for half a game or so.

Left out but still in: Duncanville's Tim Urban a virtual mystery guest among Idol's Top 24

Ed Bark — 2010-02-17T23:19:00-06:00
Fleeting glimpse: Unmentioned either verbally or on-screen, an otherwise happy Tim Urban of Duncanville was merely No. 89416 until the closing minute of Wednesday's American Idol. Photo: Ed Bark ...Still, Idol needs to do a much better job of coming clean on the program itself rather than leaving viewers mystified as to why the show's Top 24 finalists only added up to 23 until Urban somewhat magically appeared as the closing credits rolled and the 12 chosen males each danced for a few seconds.

Schneider gets reins at CBS11/TXA21 (updated with interview)

Ed Bark — 2010-02-16T11:41:56-06:00
"It's really going to be a continuation of what we're doing here," Schneider said when asked how he'll make his stamp on CBS11/TXA21. ...CBS11's self-standing investigative unit basically has gone out of existence with the recent departure of reporter Bennett Cunningham and the producer who was in charge of what once was a full-time, three-person team of Cunningham, Robert Riggs and Ginger Allen.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Feb. 12-15) -- Olympics, NBA All-Star game, etc.

Ed Bark — 2010-02-16T09:36:15-06:00
The high-scoring, down-to-the-last second All-Star game at Jerry's Palace in Arlington drew 427,537 viewers during its 7:50 to 10:37 p.m. running time on TNT. ...In other local news derby results, NBC5 swept Friday's 6 a.m. competitions while Fox4 took both 6 p.m. golds and WFAA8 did likewise at 5 p.m.

NBC5's glimmer twins

Ed Bark — 2010-02-15T13:47:54-06:00
NBC5's former 10 p.m. anchor duo, Jane McGarry and Mike Snyder, were dubbed "JAM" in a now somewhat infamous 1990s station promo that amazingly still hasn't made it to youtube. ...Johnson herself had been in TV news for just five years before she joined the much more journalistically experienced Tracy Rowlett to form WFAA8's featured, No. 1-rated anchor team.

"I mean, I've got the Stones on my iPod, but I've also got rap" -- NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry talks about life beyond the 10 p.m. news

Ed Bark — 2010-02-12T14:52:48-06:00
McGarry will remain at NBC5 as co-anchor of the 5 and 6 p.m. newscasts, where her former 10 p.m. partner, Mike Snyder, has been deployed since NBC5 replaced him in July with Brian Curtis. ...McGarry, who is in her early 50s but would not specify her age, said she still considers herself "totally a full-time player here at Channel 5 and totally a full-time player in moving ahead into this next thing.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 11) -- NBC5, WFAA8 top windfall ratings for snowfall newscasts

Ed Bark — 2010-02-12T12:51:08-06:00
Grey's was the day's biggest draw, with 447,896 total viewers. Survivor had 400,392, thumping ABC's The Deep End in its first hour before losing to Grey's from 8 to 9 p.m. ...NBC5's 10 p.m. newscast more than tripled that lead-in, but still ran fourth in total viewers on what turned out to be veteran Jane McGarry's last night as co-anchor.

Land replacing McGarry as NBC5's 10 p.m. co-anchor

Ed Bark — 2010-02-12T12:58:09-06:00
Jane McGarry, a fixture for nearly two decades as NBC5's 10 p.m. newscast co-anchor, has been re-assigned to the Fort Worth-based station's 5 and 6 p.m. editions, where she'll team with veteran Mike Snyder. ...

Snow 'n' tell: the sequel

Ed Bark — 2010-02-11T17:29:32-06:00
WFAA8 knocked off The Oprah Winfrey Show and Fox4 waylaid Judge Judy rather than let rivals NBC5 and CBS11 get a jump with their regularly scheduled 4 p.m. newscasts. ..."It has been more than 30 years since we've seen a snow storm like this," Fox4 anchor Clarice Tinsley said at the start of the station's 5 p.m. news.

Snow 'n' tell: a keepsake album from Thursday's D-FW dawn patrols

Ed Bark — 2010-02-11T11:07:29-06:00
Clockwise from bottom left: NBC5's Ashanti Blaize; Fox4's Adrian Arambulo; WFAA8's Jim Douglas; Fox4's Saul Garza; NBC5's Lindsay Wilcox; CBS11's Robbie Owens; CBS11's Joel Thomas and a cheery, hand-built snowman from WFAA8's Cynthia Vega. Photos: Ed Bark ...That's why you see so many local newscasts -- at all hours of the day -- leading off with their weathercasters in times when a drop of rain or a 10-degree plunge in temperatures hangs in the balance.

New bottom lines on Fox4's 9 p.m. newscasts

Ed Bark — 2010-02-09T11:34:19-06:00
In the above picture, reporter Sophia Reza introduced a story on telephone "Sexting" while Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie contemplated a lawsuit over widely disseminated reports that they aren't having sex anymore because their relationship (not marriage) is on the rocks. Bottom-of-the-screen news blips are hardly new, although the eye can still encounter a little trouble getting used to them when they pop up in a new venue.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 5-7) -- another steamrolling Super Bowl

Ed Bark — 2010-02-08T10:36:14-06:00
WFAA8 won at 10 p.m. in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds, the main advertiser target audience for news programming. ...At 6 p.m., CBS11 recorded rare twin wins, edging WFAA8 in total viewers and running first by a more comfortable margin with 25-to-54-year-olds, where Fox4 and WFAA8 tied for second.

Old, tired and all but dead: Mavs crap out against Timberwolves

Ed Bark — 2010-02-05T22:18:01-06:00
You just DON'T lose to a team that was 11-38 going into Friday's game and had just three road wins. ...In fact, I'd love to see Dirk traded to a team that had a genuine chance to win a championship.

Nose for news at NBC5

Ed Bark — 2010-02-02T11:18:11-06:00
NBC5 virtually invited a snark attack by letting anchor Jane McGarry go one-on-one with an odoriferous, sight gag graphic during Monday's 10 p.m. newscast. ...Her splendiferous home spread in the current D magazine is evidence that the veteran news reader buys only the best -- and can afford to do so.

Gables makes WFAA8 weekend morning debut; station also stages a three-way GOP guv debate

Ed Bark — 2010-02-01T01:00:32-06:00
But candidates also were grilled in depth during one-on-one segments in which the sharpest, most persistent questioners were longtime Dallas Morning News political reporter Wayne Slater and Len Cannon of Houston's KHOU-TV. ...***Responding to a previous post on WFAA8's nationally popular new iPhone app, Elvira Sakmari, director of integrated media at Fort Worth-based NBC5, notes that her station launched an iPhone app in October.

App-centuate the positive for WFAA8

Ed Bark — 2010-01-28T11:52:13-06:00
That so far puts it ahead of national entities such as msnbc.com, HuffingtonPost.com, Time mobile, CBS News and The Today Show according to itunes current list of top 100 free news apps. ...10th place WFAA8 launched its app on Jan. 15th, according to the itunes chart, although the station didn't officially announce it until Jan. 25th.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 27) -- Idol Dallas auditions on single network outdraw State of the Union on four

Ed Bark — 2010-01-28T09:54:58-06:00
Idol rolled in with 807,570 D-FW viewers on Fox, dominating the 7 p.m. hour by a seven-to-one margin over the most-watched competing program, ABC's repeat of Modern Family (115,367 viewers). ...In Wednesday's local news derby results, the 10 p.m. race was downsized to three competitors when CBS chose to air a full rerun of Two and a Half Men that delayed CBS11's start time to 10:17 p.m.

Staying a spell: New Fox action-comedy cop series begins six-month stretch, with Dallas Fair Park as home base

Ed Bark — 2010-01-25T13:08:11-06:00
PASADENA, Calif. -- Bradley Whitford's old-school cop character won't be living in a van down by the river when production on a new Fox action-comedy series begins Tuesday in Dallas. ...On-location shooting in Dallas and environs is scheduled to stretch all the way to July, making Code 58 the biggest boon to the area film industry since Fox's Prison Break.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 22-24) -- high profile weekend with NFL conference championships, Conan finale, Haiti telethon

Ed Bark — 2010-01-25T10:48:39-06:00
Including the two post-season contests, it would have ranked sixth on a list of 18 games, ahead of the Oct. 4th Dallas loss at Denver (1,472,627 viewers) and behind the Nov. 8th win at Philadelphia (1,649,071 viewers). ...In Friday's local news derby results, NBC5's 10 p.m. news found it helpful to serve as the warmup act for O'Brien's Tonight finale.

WFAA8 hires two new weekend anchors

Ed Bark — 2010-01-19T14:55:27-06:00
Shon Gables, who had been freelancing at WPIX-TV in New York and also hosting the syndicated Black Enterprise Business Report, will be the ABC station's new morning weekend anchor, starting next week. Casey Norton, a weekend anchor with Seattle's KOMO-TV since 2007, will co-anchor WFAA8's Sunday night newscasts and also report four days a week.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Sun.-Mon., Jan. 17-18) -- Cowboys' closeout falls short of 2 mil mark

Ed Bark — 2010-01-19T10:34:17-06:00
Building to a peak between 2:15 and 2:30 p.m. -- and then dwindling after that -- Sunday's Cowboys playoff exit on Fox fell well short of being the team's most-watched game of the season. ...Fox's sneak-preview of its Human Target series, which returns on Wednesday, got off to a decent start in the 7 p.m. hour with 264,666 viewers before the two-hour Season 8 premiere of 24 upped that total slightly to 271,452 viewers.

Cowboys routed, but key first quarter cave-in clearly set the tone

Ed Bark — 2010-01-17T22:22:00-06:00
And for me, the beginning of the end for the Cowboys Sunday was the boneheaded, momentum-sucking decision NOT to go for it on 4th and 1 just outside the Vikings 30 yard line with 5:48 left in the 1st quarter. ...It sowed the seeds of an eventual 34-3 drubbing in which the defense pretty much held up for three quarters while an increasingly rattled Romo ran for his life in the face of a fearsome pass rush.

Over and out for NBC5 anchor Brendan Higgins, CBS11 news director Scott Diener

Ed Bark — 2010-01-17T17:36:56-06:00
Brendan Higgins, co-anchor of NBC5's No. 1-rated early morning newscast, reached a contract talk impasse that led to his decision to leave the D-FW station after Sunday. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram's Robert Philpot reported confirmation of Higgins' departure Friday via an official statement from NBC5 vice president of content development Susan Tully. ...In a companion statement announcing his hiring at KCBS/KCAL, Diener said, "I am honored to be given the opportunity to lead the largest and one of the most distinguished local television news teams in the country and look forward to coming home to the Los Angeles area with my family."

Wingwoman role for Fox4's Gutierrez; CBS11 announces day and date for 4 p.m. news expansion

Ed Bark — 2010-01-06T10:28:00-06:00
Dissatisfied with flat and generally second-place ratings for its early morning Good Day program, Dallas-based Fox4 has decided to re-fold Krystle Gutierrez into the anchor desk mix. The plan is for her to periodically sit with co-anchors Tim Ryan and Lauren Przybyl, who joined the program in September after a lengthy search for Megan Henderson's replacement.

Odds/ends from WFAA8's Big D NYE telecast

Ed Bark — 2010-01-05T12:41:39-06:00
Credit WFAA8 anchor Shelly Slater for having a mega-toothy smile and a self-deprecating sense of humor during the station's live New Year's Eve telecast of Victory Park's Big D NYE celebration. ...Former WFAA8 PM Magazine host Leeza Gibbons also made the Big D NYE scene, in the company of sports anchor Dale Hansen and weathercaster Pete Delkus, who served as co-hosts.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 4) -- purple passion among viewers, purple haze on the field

Ed Bark — 2010-01-05T10:57:22-06:00
TCU's humbling 17-10 Fiesta Bowl loss to Boise State Monday night otherwise vanquished all competing programming, including ABC's local angled season premiere of The Bachelor: On Wings of Love and NBC's two-hour return of Heroes. ...TCU-Boise State also cleaned up among advertiser-coveted 18-to-49-year-olds, amassing 391,392 viewers in this age range. Belt of Love moved up to the No. 2 spot in this key demographic, outdrawing both Leno and CSI: Miami.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot -- special Cowboys edition

Ed Bark — 2010-01-04T11:39:31-06:00
The late afternoon/early evening game, which ran from 3:15 to 6:12 p.m. on Fox, roped in a gargantuan 1,744,079 viewers. ...The mega-audience for Dallas' regular season closer barely topped this season's previous record of 1,737,293 viewers for the Sept. 20th unveiling of Jerry's Palace, in which the Giants beat the Cowboys 33-31 on NBC's Sunday Night Football.

Cable/network wars are good business for print news neutrals (and other D-FW news updates)

Ed Bark — 2010-01-03T12:09:23-06:00
But the agreement, which will keep Fox's broadcast and cable programming available to Time Warner's 13 million subscribers, came only after a barrage of pricey, back-and-forth full-page ads in major market newspapers, including The Dallas Morning News. ...In its December 17th filing, the ABC affiliate says that after the June 12th transition from analog to digital, it "began to receive a deluge of calls from viewers that could no longer receive the station's digital signal via their indoor antennas.

And to all a good night: D-FW television's list of 2009 departures

Ed Bark — 2009-12-21T12:10:27-06:00
KEN ARNOLD (helicopter pilot, NBC5) -- Dropped in January when station opted to lease choppers from Garland-based Sky Helicopters, Inc. ...MEGAN HENDERSON (co-anchor, Fox4's Good Day) -- Left station in February after five-and-a-half years to join the early morning team at KTLA-TV in Los Angeles.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 18-20) -- Cowboys-Saints have it Big Easy in D-FW

Ed Bark — 2009-12-21T09:20:28-06:00
On a Saturday night brimming with Christmas parties and sports bar patronage, the Cowboys' pulsating win over New Orleans tickled the in-home Nielsen ratings to a total of 1,384,405 D-FW viewers on two channel choices. ...All 14 of this season's Cowboys games have topped the one million mark, with the smallest crowd still the 1,065,449 who watched Dallas defeat Tampa Bay on Fox's opening day telecast.

Cowboys get December monkey off back, making Galloway a horse's ass -- again

Ed Bark — 2009-12-20T14:11:47-06:00
On Friday afternoon's edition of Galloway & Company (103.3 FM), the host semi-facetiously and repeatedly predicted a 100 to 3 Saints win. ...The host of course was "keeping it real" while one of his sidekicks, Ian Fitzsimmons, had the temerity to say that Dallas at least had a chance against New Orleans.

No more James gang at Fox4 news

Ed Bark — 2009-12-20T13:31:45-06:00
James, who had been with the Dallas-based station for a decade, said his final goodbyes on Friday's 10 p.m. newscast. ..."I can't thank you enough for being a part of my journey, allowing me into your homes, for the support you've given me over the last decade," he said.

Former TV meteorologist Kristine Kahanek weathers new career, publishes second kids book

Ed Bark — 2009-12-18T10:27:18-06:00
Former CBS11 meteorologist Kristine Kahanek, who left the station in May after a seven-year stint, will be signing, selling and reading the second book in her children's series Friday (Dec. ...The venue is Plano's Legacy Books, where Kahanek and the illustrator of Katie and the Magic Umbrella: On Snowflake Trail will be appearing from 6 to 8 p.m.

Cowboys again in the crosshairs while commentators wade into Phillips

Ed Bark — 2009-12-16T15:21:55-06:00
So once again, revving up my warm-to-the-touch sports opinion motor, I say to a riled-up Cowboys nation and its fomenters: Imagine the outcry if that had happened to reviled Coach Wade Phillips and his Cowboys 11. ...Nor is there a compelling or sensible argument to show Phillips the door with just three games left in a season where the Cowboys still hold the second wild card spot despite two successive losses in the dreaded month of December.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 11-13) -- Christmas shopping, balmy day and another December loss help hold down Cowboys' crowd

Ed Bark — 2009-12-14T10:17:56-06:00
The opening day Sept. 13 road win at Tampa Bay is still this year's small fry, though, with 1,065,449 viewers on Fox. (Note: minor adjustments in some previously posted crowd totals have been made after Nielsen increased its D-FW population estimates earlier this fall.) ...The 7 to 9 a.m. portion of its Good Day then beat the three network morning shows in both measurements, including the last Good Morning America for Diane Sawyer before she begins anchoring ABC's World News on Dec. 21st.

Fakeout: Looks like a Christmas commercial, but instead it's a promo for . . .

Ed Bark — 2009-12-11T11:33:34-06:00
See if you can guess the punchline before this very nicely produced 30-second spot hits the finish line. ...

Heading West: CBS11 president/GM Steve Mauldin takes top job at KCBS/KCAL-TV in Los Angeles (updated)

Ed Bark — 2009-12-10T13:07:18-06:00
Two weeks after CBS11 topped the 10 p.m. news ratings for the first time ever, president and general manager Steve Mauldin is leaving the station to assume the same position at CBS-owned KCBS/KCAL-TV in Los Angeles. ...Dunn, in the CBS release, praised Mauldin as "one of our most experienced executives running major market duopolies, having done so in both Dallas and Miami to great effect -- both in terms of driving sales growth and leading his stations to first place in late news.

'Tis not the season for WFAA8's GMT After Dark

Ed Bark — 2009-12-09T11:30:33-06:00
D-FW viewers expecting to see A Charlie Brown Christmas and a new holiday-themed Disney special (Prep & Landing) instead were subjected to a live edition of the station's Good Morning Texas After Dark. ...And especially not on a night when you're rubbing out two family-targeted Christmas shows in favor of GMT hosts tra la la-ing about products whose purveyors buy air time to hawk them.

Dirk gets up close, unusually personal in Fox Sports Southwest's latest In My Own Words special

Ed Bark — 2009-12-08T16:49:01-06:00
He tells interviewer Dana Larson that last May's media feeding frenzy over his since-ended relationship with Cristal Taylor prompted him to go "on a binge there where I ate and drank everything in sight, probably all of May and June. ..."It would be nice to play in (this season's) All-Star game since it's here in Dallas, but I don't really care about it that much anymore," Nowitzki says.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 4-6) -- more Giants-sized ratings for Cowboys

Ed Bark — 2009-12-07T12:05:19-06:00
This season's ratings champ, among 12 games, is still the first Cowboys-Giants game, which unveiled Jerry's Palace to the tune of 1,737,293 viewers for NBC's Sunday Night Football. ...Friday's ratings marked a rare time slot win for NBC's The Jay Leno Show, which prevailed across the board at 9 p.m. in total viewers, 18-to-49-year-olds and 25-to-54-year-olds.

CBS11 investigative reporter Bennett Cunningham balks at salary cut, abruptly leaves station

Ed Bark — 2009-12-04T15:16:12-06:00
Cunningham, 41, said he saw a dim future ahead of him at the CBS-owned station after being offered a 10 percent pay cut that would have reduced his annual salary by $17,000. ...In his memo to staffers, Diener said, "We very much wanted Bennett to stay on and continue to contribute to our success, but Bennett tells me he wants to take advantage of his law degree . . .

WFAA8 loads up on CBS11 with sharp-worded rhetoric, but doesn't entirely hit its bullseyes

Ed Bark — 2009-12-01T13:30:16-06:00
Devlin and this reporter had what could be called an animated phone conversation Monday about what he termed a phony victory by a "wind-aided station" that reaps the benefits of bigger lead-ins from CBS' 9 p.m. crime series hits. ...At 10 p.m., for instance, WFAA8 lost 38,531 viewers in the 25-to-54 demographic, a dip topped only by fourth place Fox4's free-fall of 40,365 viewers in the year-to-year November sweeps.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Sun, Nov. 25-29) -- after the "sweeps" comes the catchup

Ed Bark — 2009-12-01T01:29:42-06:00
As usual, that wiped out all competing programming, but still couldn't outdraw the regular season unveiling of Jerry's Palace, when the Cowboys lost to the Giants on NBC's Sunday Night Football while 1,737,293 watched. ...It was a tough call to make, given the anticipated "lead-in" advantage from CBS' CSI: NY, which delivered by easily winning its 9 to 10 p.m. time period.

Squeezing through: Nielsen shows CBS11 beating WFAA8 by a speck for its first 10 p.m. news win in total viewers while WFAA8 declares it a tie (updated)

Ed Bark — 2009-11-30T09:13:41-06:00
In other local news sweeps results, WFAA8 won by a more comfortable margin at 10 p.m. among 25-to-54-year-olds, with CBS11 a close, competitive second. ...CBS11's breakthrough at 10 p.m. is tempered by the fact that it finished last in the other three time periods, save for a third-place showing in total viewers at 6 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Nov. 24) -- WFAA8 wins big, but CBS11 still on top in 10 p.m. news combat

Ed Bark — 2009-11-25T11:12:04-06:00
Runner-up CBS11 had 244,307 viewers for its late nighter, coming off a not-too-shabby 9:45 to 10 p.m. lead-in of 291,811 viewers from CBS' The Good Wife. ...In Tuesday's other local news derby results, NBC5 ran the table at 6 a.m. and looks as though it will score narrow November sweeps wins over Fox4 in both total viewers and 25-to-54-year-olds.

Anchor Baron James being dropped by Fox4

Ed Bark — 2009-11-25T10:37:37-06:00
Fox4 anchor Baron James, who co-anchors the station's 5 and 10 p.m. newscasts with Clarice Tinsley, is being let go after roughly a decade in the D-FW market. ...Known for his flashy on-air wardrobes, James previously worked in Pittsburgh at ABC station WTAE-TV and before that with NBC affiliate WSFA-TV in Montgomery, Alabama.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's 10 p.m. news titans -- WFAA8 and CBS11 (Mon., Nov. 23)

Ed Bark — 2009-11-24T10:02:55-06:00
CBS11 reporter Nerissa Knight's piece on "Secret Black Friday Deals" also had the scent of an infomercial, although DealTaker.com in fact turns out to have a lot of good information on bargains and day-after-Thanksgiving deals. ...Cowboys bitch about refs but profit from missed call -- CBS11 sports anchor Babe Laufenberg, who does the team's radio-casts with Brad Sham, showed he's no homer by telling viewers that the Cowboys' lone, game-winning TD against Washington Sunday should have been nullified.

This just in: A night in the lives of D-FW's 10 p.m. news titans -- WFAA8 and CBS11 (Fri., Nov. 20)

Ed Bark — 2009-11-23T13:48:37-06:00
WFAA8, which copied its arch rival's ratings "sweeps" gambit on Thursday's 10 p.m. edition, went ahead with another 23-minute helping of news and weather before yielding to its first batch of sponsors' messages. ...Two other WFAA8 stories hit closer to home -- and to the heart. Gary Reaves had an interesting look at an increase in storage shed auctions being held after renters fell delinquent on their payments.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Nov. 20-22) -- Cowboys nooner slogs past one mil mark

Ed Bark — 2009-11-23T09:53:57-06:00
That game averaged 1,737,293 viewers. (Note: Totals have been readjusted from previous posts after Nielsen Media Research revised its viewer population figures upward for the fall TV season. ...NBC5 took the gold at 6 a.m. in total viewers, but WFAA8 scored a rare win among 25-to-54-year-olds by finishing a nose ahead of Fox4.

Dallas-Fort Worth TV

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., May 15) -- audience numbers for five hours of head-to-head storm coverage/competition

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., May 14) -- <i>NCIS</i> again leads way

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., May 13) -- <i>HIMYM</i> scores with season-ending reveal

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., May 10-12) -- strong finishing kick for <i>Survivor</i>

D-FW news notes: starring Gary Cogill, Shon Gables

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., March 7) -- <i>Big Bang</i> belts <i>Idol</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., March 6) -- <i>Idol</i> romps against mostly reruns

Pistol-packin' Suzie again off her feed on <i>D: The Broadcast</i> (for which they should be thankful -- for now)

Fox4 reporter Lynn Kawano's crime scoop: what you didn't hear

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., March 5) -- <i>Idol</i> & <i>NCIS</i>ers trade punches

An old-line KTVT in blooper mode, with anchor Midge Hill hanging in

Tammy Dombeck on the roads again with CBS11 debut

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Feb. 27-28) -- <i>Idol</i> doubles its dominance

Tall tale? <i>D</i> Magazine's "D TV Strikes Ratings Gold" headline has more than a little tarnish on it

February "sweeps": WFAA8 bounces back at 10 p.m.; Fox4 has most overall wins; CBS11 still most-watched at 6 p.m.

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 26) -- <i>Celebrity Wife Swap</i> outshines <i>Golden Boy</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 25) -- <i>The Bachelor</i> smelling like roses

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 22-24) -- falloff for Oscars

Action Doug: Pilot. Runner. Anchor

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 20) -- Fox/Fox4 dominate prime-time

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Tues., Feb. 19)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 19) -- another crime watch

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Mon., Feb. 18)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Mon., Feb. 15-18) -- <i>Walking Dead</i> domination

Seismic shift at KTXD -- from <i>Perry Mason</i> to <i>D: The Broadcast</i>

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Fri., Feb. 15)

This just in: a night in the lives of D-FW's late night newscasts (Thurs., Feb. 14)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 14) -- <i>Big Bang</i> goes pow while <i>Zero Hour</i> thuds

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 13) -- sinking feeling for <i>Idol</i>, but it's still on top

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb. 12) -- CBS top destination for SOTU

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 11) -- splitting the prime-time spoils

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 8-10) -- Grammys fall off charts but still command night

Wait, Wait . . . I'll Tell You

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Feb. 7) -- <i>Big Bang</i> explodes on <i>Idol</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Feb. 6) -- <i>Idol</i> wins one, loses one

Strange but true happenings in D-FW television news (updated)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Feb.5) -- <i>Smash</i> mashed

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Feb. 4) -- slippage for <i>The Following</i> & dropoff for <i>Dallas</i> while <i>Castle</i> gets kinged

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Feb. 1-3) -- Supah Dupah Edition

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 31) -- DOA for <i>Do No Harm</i>; minimal interest in <i>30 Rock</i> finale

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 30) -- socko numbers for Fox/Fox4

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 29) -- CBS rules prime-time, save for one pocket of resistance

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 28) -- <i>The Following</i> blasts <i>Dallas</i> on its home turf (updated with national numbers)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 25-27) -- throwaway Pro Bowl tops all weekend programming

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 24) -- Katie, Jane & Jimmy

Carla Wade is WFAA8's newest anchor/reporter

McGarry makes maiden voyage on WFAA8's <i>Good Morning Texas</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 22) -- not much appetite for <i>The Taste</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 21) -- solid start for <i>The Following</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 18-20) -- NFL again flexes might

Former NBC5 anchor Jane McGarry talks about returning to TV with 5-part series on WFAA8's <i>Good Morning Texas</i>

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 17) -- <i>Idol</i> still winning, but CBS gives it a free pass

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 16) --<i>Idol</i> still dealing Fox a winning hand

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 15) -- CBS runs the table

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 14) -- CBS, ABC split prime-time spoils

More changes at CW33's <i>Eye Opener</i>, with Danielle Vollmar off to Philadelphia and Zuri Hall already in play

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Jan. 11-13) -- Globes roll for NBC while NFL scores bigger for Fox, CBS

Fox4 meteorologist Ron Jackson gets his gray on

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Jan. 10) -- CBS/ABC split spoils

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Jan. 9) -- <i>Chicago Fire</i> heats up while Kimmel cools down

NBC5 saying goodbye to sports anchor-reporter Matt Barrie, who's heading to ESPN

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Jan. 8) -- mixed results for Kimmel's first 10:35 p.m. outing

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Jan. 7) -- Notre Dame pratfall deflates championship game crowd

Hey, it <i>is</i> called the <i>Fan Sports Show</i>

The <i>Kimmel Live!</i> 10 p.m. news leadout: coming very soon to WFAA8

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun, Jan. 4-6) -- Johnny F'ball ranks 2nd to RG3

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed.-Thurs., Jan. 2-3) -- a boffo <i>Big Bang</i>

Jeff Smith joins NBC5's early morning reporting staff

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon, Dec. 31-Tues., Jan. 1) -- WFAA8's <i>Big NYE</i> outdraws all New Year's Day football games

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot -- Cowboys roundup

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Thurs., Dec. 20) -- <i>X Factor</i> rules over Christmas specials, repeats

And to all a good night: D-FW's list of 2012 TV exits

Dombeck newly married and beaming in official wedding video

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Wed., Dec. 19) -- <i>X Factor</i>, Fox4 news take prime-time wreaths

CBS11 effectively wraps its early morning team in bright Christmas promo

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Tues., Dec. 18) -- big finishing kick for <i>The Voice</i>

Larissa Hall shifing responsibilities with Tribune-owned CW33 and its prime-time <i>Nightcap</i> news show (updated and clarified)

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Mon., Dec. 17) -- new White house comedy in outhouse

Local Nielsen ratings snapshot (Fri.-Sun., Dec. 14-16) -- Cowboys-Steelers surprisingly slow on draw