My favorite part of “NonStop Local” is the pre-recorded late night weather forecast on “Mother Q” as she’s affectionately known. In the three weeks leading up to the launch — barring the Friday before the launch — the 10p/11p weather was taped. The quality is crap, but kudos to Claire and Blake for making the toss look live. The late forecast was live on a Tuesday, perhaps, during launch week and one other time during last week’s snow. Interestingly enough, Blake is live for the weather cut-in on NBC News Daily. If any forecast is taped it should be this one … it’s plays during a program where KHQ controls very little of the ad inventory. You’d think they’d allocate their labor to programs where they control all the ad $$$ like their local newscasts. So far, all other stations in the Cowles group are airing live weather.
re: The 4PM regional newscast is two things — a money grab for political ads and a reason to not have to pay for a syndicated program.
re: Tracci Dial … there has been an opening for a co-anchor posted on the careers page for so long. At this point, I’d bet they’d hire anyone.