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KUSA replacing 6pm news with "Next with Kyle Clark"


C Block

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In what appears to be a major gamble, KUSA is replacing its traditional 6pm format with "Next with Kyle Clark." It'll be an interview/panel analysis and commentary show that's trying to break away from the "caricature" of local news.

 

"Next" starts on Friday and will run weeknights on the big channel 9. There are some sample segments of the show on the 9News YouTube. Here's the promo:

 

 

http://www.9news.com/entertainment/television/programs/next-with-kyle-clark/next-with-kyle-clark-comes-to-9news-on-aug-5/271973653

 

https://www.facebook.com/Nexton9NEWS/

 

http://www.westword.com/news/next-with-kyle-clark-hopes-to-move-past-soundbites-caricature-local-tv-news-8094656

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KARE 11 in MSP does something like this for their 6:30PM. Maybe KUSA should of did this at 6:30PM.

 

I don't know if they'd want to move ET at 6:30, but I agree that this is quite the risk to dump a newscast at a very prominent time on a very prominent channel. To me, it seems like it would have been better to try it on KTVD first. He may have a loyal Twitter following, but as many other stations have painfully learned, social media audience is not necessarily the same as TV audience. We'll see whether a significant number of viewers tune away once their traditional 6pm news is gone.

 

From a few clips on the YouTube channel, it appears to be a promising format. In one, he took the attention over Michelle Obama's line about slaves building the White House and connected it with a ballot initiative that would amend the Colorado constitution to remove an uncomfortable clause about slavery. Another clip had him interviewing the Denver mayor at the DNC. Seems like a cool concept, but I'm not sure how well it'll translate to five nights a week. It's like Chris Hayes' show (he even looks like him), but local.

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Makes you wonder who this guy had to sleep with to get such a great opportunity.

 

How about they let the show sink or swim based ONLY on social media feedback. Take it out of the hands of the consultants..Put the money where the social media mouth is.

Allow the idiots of Facebook, Instagram and twitter to decide the "ratings".

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  • 2 weeks later...

For those of you interested, here's the first show in full. Definitely an interesting concept that's more substantive than the traditional local news format that takes ice cream scoops out of your brain. I'm still not sure how they'll be able to keep it going with the same energy and new material every night, though admittedly I've only watched this first show.

 

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Same with WUSA 9. I've never cared for these kinds of shows, they all seem stupid to me.
The question is how do you make local news interesting enough to do a panel discussion 5 days a week? Good luck. Our local PBS station does that once a week with a panel of four people usually comprised of politicos and journalists, and it is actually pretty interesting. But it is only once a week.
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For those of you interested, here's the first show in full. Definitely an interesting concept that's more substantive than the traditional local news format that takes ice cream scoops out of your brain. I'm still not sure how they'll be able to keep it going with the same energy and new material every night, though admittedly I've only watched this first show.

 

 

I only watched a little bit but I think it could be feasible that this could last. WMAR launched In Focus two years focusing on investigative journalism and they are still going strong. I imagine there is a greater story pool in Denver as well.

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The question is how do you make local news interesting enough to do a panel discussion 5 days a week? Good luck. Our local PBS station does that once a week with a panel of four people usually comprised of politicos and journalists, and it is actually pretty interesting. But it is only once a week.

 

News Channel 8 has NewsTalk and SportsTalk, which I enjoy watching, because it's never a panel discussion. It's only the host, whoever they're interviewing, and callers. But a show like that (to me) fits better on a cable all-newser rather than replacing a 6pm newscast.

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Geez--I really, really want to like this. It's a huge risk to launch during the Olympics but the first program was...good! Really good, even! It reminds me a lot of Olbermann's Countdown without all the Special Comments.

 

At least, it did from episode one. Then it apparently got stupid-silly. Really quickly. Argh!

 

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The question is how do you make local news interesting enough to do a panel discussion 5 days a week? Good luck. Our local PBS station does that once a week with a panel of four people usually comprised of politicos and journalists, and it is actually pretty interesting. But it is only once a week.

 

Exactly,

 

This show will just morph into a more traditional show as time moves on. Lets see what it looks like 4 mos from now.

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"From Colorado's 'We'll do anything for even the slightest sliver of ratings' Leader...

 

This is 9Snooze"

 

You do realize that 9 wins hand over fist every ratings period, right? So no, they are not trying to eek more viewers and if this were truly experimental, it wouldn't be in Denver where Tegna's VP of News/Director of Recruiting (Patti Dennis) and the President of Tegna Media (Dave Lougee) live!

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  • 2 weeks later...

A KARE anchor came to shadow the show. To be honest, I think it's a great format. None of the shows I've watched seem to drag, and it's really refreshing to see house fires and police chases absent in a local newscast.

 

[MEDIA=twitter]766766891633352704[/MEDIA]

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You do realize that 9 wins hand over fist every ratings period, right? So no, they are not trying to eek more viewers and if this were truly experimental, it wouldn't be in Denver where Tegna's VP of News/Director of Recruiting (Patti Dennis) and the President of Tegna Media (Dave Lougee) live!

 

Overheard at Tegna last week....

" We love the show, it's a hit!"

"Ratings Gold"

 

"Refreshing and new"

"Engaging" (barf)

 

" Now can you go make me one for each Tegna market...and cut the cost by 80%?"

 

"Groovy...luv ya baby!"

"Sock it to me."

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Overheard at Tegna last week....

" We love the show, it's a hit!"

"Ratings Gold"

 

"Refreshing and new"

"Engaging" (barf)

 

" Now can you go make me one for each Tegna market...and cut the cost by 80%?"

 

"Groovy...luv ya baby!"

"Sock it to me."

 

Cute, but no. They haven't had any staffing changes.

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I only watched a little bit but I think it could be feasible that this could last. WMAR launched In Focus two years focusing on investigative journalism and they are still going strong. I imagine there is a greater story pool in Denver as well.

 

I'd rather Scripps expand the "In Focus" concept to the rest of their stations instead of the steaming pile of garbage that is "The Now".

 

As far as this is concered, I've watched a little bit of this program and I have to say, it does look pretty interesting. Kyle Clark seems to be a real good fit for the format too. I'd be curious to see if TEGNA will branch out this concept although I think it only works good with stations that have a solid news department (stations like KARE, WKYC, KING, WFAA, etc.).

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