Vlad

Are there any specific instances of when he adds his "2 cents" to the story? I wonder if there are any YouTube clips.

Thank you Weeters for in a way bringing us back to our roots. (Early 2000s) If we all remember correctly this forum was originally born from an AOL or Yahoo Geocites page haha. if I vaguely remember and it was called Local News Discussion lol. So in away the new name, Local News Talk brings us back to our roots! Glad to be back!

Well like @MorningNews and a few of us have speculated, they are likely going to replace Bill with Mike Marza when he retires. So that's why they are grooming him for the role. Plus Sandra has been doing the 11 pm on the weekends for at least two decades now at this point, so if she was going to get the 11 pm slot, it would've likely occurred already but they gave her Shirleen's former Noon slot instead. Plus the 11 pm on Fridays is the lowest rated show so its the best time for stations to try out new talent without necessarily impacting the quality of the dynamic. But the 5 and 11pm have been Sade and Bill's staple for a while. Very nice duo. Though I am curious, when Mike fills in on Fri night in his intro does he say "I'm Mike Marza, in for Bill Ritter?" I have yet to watch an 11 pm Fri broadcast. That will give us more clues haha.

Maybe they are going to get the ultimate look of the package, KABC has always been pretty top tier with their on-air appearance, I remember when their current graphics rolled out how crisp and wonderful it was at the time and still is pretty good, but it has shown its age at this point so we'll have to see how. But at this point, each station's on-air adoption of this package has been uniquely tailored and looks great so can't go wrong.

Overall a solid new look for 6ABC, watching the broadcast right now. And wow, the "Action News" format is very apparent with the new package. The pace of the newscast is notably quicker than the big sister up north. I never fully watched an Action News broadcast before. But overall, it's a solid product. Glad they kept the music theme too! At this point is KABC the only station now left to get the update? Seems like most of the O&Os have converted now at this point.

Looks beautiful! Such a nice open! I love how they allow the stations to keep their identities. Such a great theme and they incorporated it nicely with the new package! The open is simple and effective.

Ah, yes they do! Didn't realize that! Saw them for the first time yesterday. So cool! I guess we can expect an unveiling of the new package soon. Highly curious as to how they will adopt the Move Closer To Your World music package to it.

I guess based on the PageSix article Muppetman shared, we can get to enjoy the street studio while it lasts, which will be gone by the middle of next year. Per the article, they could probably have studios in the basement of the new complex next year. Hopefully, the NYC subway rumbling underneath them won't be too loud or disruptive to the new WABC studio and broadcast, haha. Back on the topic of the graphics now, does anyone have any insight on when KABC and WPVI will adopt the O&O group package? It seems like these are the only O&Os left to shift to the new generalized look. The weather graphics haven't changed yet either for them as of today.

I agree with you MediaZone, the set is a bit dated now at this point having been in use since 2012. The studio can certainly use some updates, but we have to remember how horrible their set always was even before they moved to the street studio in 2012. So I still think 'Abysmal' is a bit harsh, to say the least. They are the only station in New York to have a street studio which to me beats any other station in NY. That alone is quite amazing. Their current streetside studio, despite now being just over 10 years old, is still country MILES away better than what they had before. Their previous studio was also cramped, small, and (even burned down) only to be rebuilt again. The issues you pointed out with the camera and graininess are quite possibly rooted in two things: 1. They are still on 720p (two steps below 4K), so they are not able to get the best picture quality because for some reason ABC and Disney opted for 720p during the HD rollout of the late 2000s rather than 1080i which allows for better lighting and picture quality. Most people won't notice the difference between 720 progressive and 1080 interlace, but 1080 is still more pixels and thus better quality. I'm not sure if ABC will ever upgrade to 1080i but that is certainly a limiting factor. 2. I do agree with you that WABC's set/studio lighting has never been optimal. It's always been just fair. They've always had issues with lighting and contrast. One thing they could do that is cost-effective is simply invest more in their lighting to squeeze more life out of the current studio till they move downtown later in the decade. It would certainly add more life to their aging set. Overall, I think WABC has come a very long way with its on-air appearance. It's taken them up until now really to get it right. With a couple of tweaks to the lighting and cameras, they can easily enhance their studio's look. And right now with the new group package, it's possibly the best look they've ever had. At the time it was pretty dated and antiquated and arguably the worst in the market. I don't think their current set is all that bad, is it on par with the rest of the O&Os, I think it is actually. All the other O&Os have newer updated sets so naturally they are more modern but WABC's new studio is on the horizon with the big move for ABC downtown so I'm willing to bet they will exceed our expectations when they move down there. I hope they go with a nice futuristic "White and Blue" look similar to CBS, rather than the dark blue hues we commonly associate them with. Would be a refreshing more modern look for them.

I just hope under this change, the O&O stations continue to keep their individuality and local news branding instead of making them all look alike. There is a charm to that indivualistic aspect of a news station versus them all looking alike and sounding the same.

From The ABC Owned Television Website: WLS TV (ABC 7 Chicago): ----------------- WABC TV (ABC 7 New York): These are the official logos from the ABC O&O website. WLS on top, WABC on bottom. There are some differences. But largely they are identical.

Yeah I believe its some sort of red shelving for documents and papers, it is a bit tacky for sure, but, in a way, it does match with the red elements associated with their package haha. Also if you notice, it took me a while to realize this, but if you carefully pay attention, the "bars" that overlay the skyline that look off-centered and asymmetrical during the mornings at ten backdrops, are zoomed in cropped pieces of WABC's iteration of the Italicized "EYEWITNESS NEWS" wordmark. It's just "EYEWITN" or "WITN" haha. One thing I didn't care to pay attention to enough though is if the the elements move. I think it Is stationary. But all in all, it seems like they could put whatever they want behind that desk, kinda like what their sister station, KABC does in LA. The new bug is so much more refreshing, miles away than the box they had before. Still rather amazed at their new look. Hope they keep it for a while! Much cleaner and sleek.

Bill is also probably nearing retirement so I noticed he's scaling back on the duties, slowly. But he also still anchors the 5, 6 and 11 so thats still a lot of air time. So its a good strategy to have Bill, the lead anchor still maintain a solid on-air presence while allowing potential successors to groom them out on that Friday evening slot. I can even see the new guy, Pedro Rivera potentially later on down the line, landing the weekday evenings which would be a nice success for him. A lot of anchors who do the morning show on weekend mornings always end up landing somewhere bigger after, seems to be the show with most turnover.

WLS-TV's New ABC Circle 7 (Above) WABC's New ABC 7 Circle 7 (Above) Is there a visual difference between the two now at this point? They look so incredibly identical, before the WLS ABC Ball was slightly off-centered and higher in the earlier days and now it closely resembles if not identical to WABC. What do you guys think?

Yay this is amazing! Wow this group package is making all of the O&Os shine. Wild how the two major CA (KGO vs KABC) stations are completely different looking now with their new look. KABC doesn't have any hint of the new package, at least we haven't seen it yet in the weather department. And the pre-covid original theme is so nice to hear again! Finally! I'm also glad the stations are keeping their music. The three stations look really uniquely stunning, though I still like WABC's color scheme a tad better but excellent update to KGO, and wow just yesterday I had mentioned that they would be the first to get the new look, and low and behold just hours later they did just that. Bravo, KGO! So another question I have for those who are in the know about broadcast graphic design rollouts, why was this package rolled out in two phases for each station? They all started with the updated weather graphics first, then the news graphics after, was their a technicality behind that or does it have to do with the AccuWeather branding, etc? Or is the weather package a sub package? Thoughts? Now we wait for KABC's take on it, I hope KABC keeps their music as well their theme is perfect!

I agree, this is their current package, and there is no hint of anything new yet at KABC. If anything their sister up north, KGO I can see being the first to unveil their package and then moving down to KABC perhaps later in the year.

Thats pretty cool! At least he'll still be with WABC but in a different capacity!

Yeah she's a class act, we barely saw her this year with her other illnesses, just goes to show the fragility of life. Hope she gets a speedy recovery, knee surgery is no joke, depending on the type of surgery she's having..

Yeah, I remember how ecstatic we were when this graphics package debuted in 2008. It wasn't their best and there were other stations that had better graphics, but that was also the year when many TV station productions have "gone HD" What an era haha. That was their Giant Octopus package, which was very "Shiny" in that era when we were transitioning from SD 4:3 to HD 16:9. I remember the bugs would always be further centered in the screen to accommodate the 4:3 video feed but now that most people do not have 4:3 the trend seems to be to move the bug further to the right.

Yeah, I can confidently say, (in my humble slightly biased opinion, of course) that WABC for the first time in pretty much forever, is the clear winner with the graphics in the O&O group (and arguably in all of NYC at this point.) WNBC comes close but I think WABC has the edge with their new graphics. Finally, and major props to WABC! It's so crazy how it took them a very long time to "perfect" their graphics. When I reflect on my time here on this great forum, some of us TVNewsTalk veterans talking about WABC's on-air presentation in the local New York Forum way back when TVNT was not even born yet (Local News Discussion) those who have been here long enough remember that forum haha, the graphics were always WABC's biggest gripe and chief complaint from the astute viewers of Channel 7, and we just felt that it just wasn't fair for "the top station in the nation" to have a lackluster boring, and pretty much subpar look. We collectively felt that WABC deserved to have a graphic package that is representative of a top local news station. And I gotta say, they sure as hell nailed it now with this new group O&O package! Above and beyond really, sure its flashy here and there but it's smooth and it works for them. Finally, after all these years of complaining about how WABC has had a lack of luster on-air presentation with their graphics, most people can probably put that to rest. Their news set while starting to show its age, (debut back in 2012 and over 10 years old now) to me still works, considering what they had prior which was pretty awful. The set still looks great and it still works to this day, as we've discussed on the New York forum for the WABC thread, the accompanying studio can be very versatile and just needs to be used more creatively and if they use it more they can squeeze more life out of it before the big move to Hudson Square. I think WABC is pretty much perfect right now and is finally looking like the #1 Station in the nation. I hope they continue with this package even through their move to Hudson Square. The graphics are so incredibly refreshing overall. Great Job!!

Yeah, I'm very interested in seeing WPVI's integration with the package. I can envision them using just the last few seconds of the cut, which has the signature portion being used for the beginning, and then, maybe they can do a full open during the broadcast that has the theme. "You're Watching 6ABC Action News... With... (while Move Closer To Your World Plays in the background)." I have to constructively disagree with you MediaZone about WABC's current set being abysmal. I honestly don't think their set is "abysmal" not at the very least, astute time viewers of WABC remember vividly how terrible their set used to be before they moved to the street studio, remember back when they were sharing the space with Live with Regis and Kelly? (Early 90s through 2011) when they had the cramped space now that was "abysmal" at the time, their current studio is pretty good, but when they move to the new headquarters sometime next year, i'm sure they'll get a well deserved update, hopefully more spacious and perhaps by the street again? One can hope!

Yeah overall its crazy how it took WABC this long to finally look like the top station in the nation. These graphics are finally on par with their identity as the #1 Station in the nation. The look of WABC is elevated by far, and they quite frankly are the best-looking station now. So I echo the same sentiment with everyone on here since I started writing on these forums nearly 20 years ago the chief complaint has always been how lackluster WABC's graphics always were compared to the rest of the local stations, but now finally we can say they are up on top now. The news theme is old but it still works and sounds modern enough, way better than what their sister, WLS in Chicago did for their new opening which sounds like a mess. WLS should've kept their old News Series 2000+ themes that were iconic for them, hopefully, they'll revise it in the future, but I highly doubt it haha. Seems like news stations are holding on to their themes longer now and changing themes isn't as a big thing anymore as it was back in the day. The Eyewitness News intro sounds a bit different, with the removal of the "news ticker" sound as someone mentioned, also the opening tease cut is a bit different too more of a beat to it now and less melody you hear the drums and bass more I guess haha for lack of better words. Here's an Evolution of WABC's Graphics from the early 2010s to Today for comparison. Giant Octopus Graphics Package (2012 - 2016) Previous Package "Downgraded Look" (September 2016 - January 2024) Current Package "Best Overall" (January 2024 - Present)

Im curious as to what open did they use for Mornings@10 and also is it the same cut? Hasn't been posted to YouTube yet and when I watch it on the streaming platforms (YouTube TV), seems to be cut out. Still in awe that these are the graphics that WABC is using, so incredibly refreshing.

Overall, this is a great package and super refreshing for WABC. What a fantastic improvement from the downgraded package they launched in 2016 and it's finally put to bed today after nearly 8 years. So it's really exciting to see this new look for them! They still kept the Eyewitness News Signature music package though (It dates back to September 1999) Kept it simple with the music. Same cuts they've been using since 1999. The intro's bumper has a bit of an altered sound for the opening teases. The open music sequence is much better than WLS. Let's see how the West Coast will follow suit. Overall I think WABC is a contender and I think they take the crown for the best overall O&O Graphics. The set looks gorgeous as well. The change in the backdrop is refreshing. Makes the set look new again! Anyway, this upgrade will be sufficient till they move to their new locations in Hudson Square Downtown in 2025.

A bit off-topic, but in regards to Times Square, people actually wear diapers to stand there for all those hours haha. The convenience stores like CVS and Rite Aid, etc. put diapers on display to provide for the revelers to stand there for the entire day, its pretty wild. But in regards to ABC, it will be the end of an era, when ABC leaves the area to head to their new location downtown. I believe it is slated to happen in 2025?