jbnews 344 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I've been thinking about the purpose of local 4pm news lately. What is the purpose? Who's home to watch at 4? What formats work the best, why? Would a 4pm newscast only be successful in a large market? I'm all for news at 4, just wondering why it exists in a bunch of markets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 There's only one word that accurately describes why there's 4pm in a ton of markets. ... OPRAH. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weeters 1805 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I've been thinking about the purpose of local 4pm news lately. What is the purpose? Who's home to watch at 4? What formats work the best, why? Would a 4pm newscast only be successful in a large market? I'm all for news at 4, just wondering why it exists in a bunch of markets. Because in most cases it's cheaper to produce than most decent syndicated programming. /thread Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnya2k6 171 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 There's only one word that accurately describes why there's 4pm in a ton of markets. ... OPRAH. And that was why WABC, WPVI, WSB, and WSMV wanted to launch their 4:00 news as soon as Oprah ended rather than waiting till later in the fall. But it was KCBS who started all this in 1978; they were the first with 2 1/2 hours of news starting at 4:00. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nelson R. 560 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 And that was why WABC, WPVI, WSB, and WSMV wanted to launch their 4:00 news as soon as Oprah ended rather than waiting till later in the fall. I thought for sure WSOC would as well but they did not and still have not to this day launched 4:00 news unless there is MAJOR news. WCNC was the first in Charlotte to have 4:00 news. WBTV soon followed. Originally WCNC had 4:30 news but not 4:00, then 4:00 but not 4:30, then WCNC finally started having news for the full hour in exchange for shortening their noon news to a half hour. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FiveNews 327 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 The recent uptick in stations adding 4pm shows is also related to last year's election. Lots of $$ to be had with all the political advertisements running, so TV stations threw their hat into the ring to get their cut of the ad revenue. I live in the LA market, and @johnnya2k6 hit it on the head with his point on KCBS and 1978. Additionally, several other large market stations have had 4pm news since the early 80s (before Oprah)...KABC, WLS and WMAQ come to mind. LA and Chicago can easily sustain a 4pm show since it is a larger market. They can fill time with extended wx coverage or a pursuit if needed. I have seen some smaller market's 4pm shows and it is brutal to watch them fill time or see the same report an hour later at 5pm without any new information....just a rehash. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRolyPoly 1843 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 And that was why WABC, WPVI, WSB, and WSMV wanted to launch their 4:00 news as soon as Oprah ended rather than waiting till later in the fall. But it was KCBS who started all this in 1978; they were the first with 2 1/2 hours of news starting at 4:00. I thought KABC was the first one to start offering a 4:00 p.m. newscast in 1980. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Georgie56 3059 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 There's only one word that accurately describes why there's 4pm in a ton of markets. ... OPRAH. Yep. To give an example, after Oprah went off-air, WFAA aired Dr. Oz at 4pm, then they caved and started a 4pm newscast. Also, 4pm news is often lighter in nature than 5-6-11pm news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
east-tx-tv 105 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 In north TX, KXAS and KTVT have been doing 4pm news for a while (for part of the time, KTVT had 30-minute 4pm news, then something else (Inside Edition?) till 5pm). WFAA waited a whole year after Oprah's finale (Katie at 4pm) before giving up and starting a 4pm news. Most of the time that WFAA has been trying the 4pm news it has been the lowest-rated show of any in the timeslot. KDFW probably would be doing news at 4, but they show an hour of Judge Judy then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToriElectra 291 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I love news at 4PM- I was waiting for the day Oprah was gone and WABC would have news instead. My cable system has certain Philly stations in SD in the 250s, and one day I found WCAU's 4PM news- I loved the idea of not having to wait an hour after I got home from school for local news, and for years I hoped someone in the NYC market would try. (I wasn't aware of WCBS' multiple failed attempts at the time.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Breaking News 802 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I love news at 4PM- I was waiting for the day Oprah was gone and WABC would have news instead. My cable system has certain Philly stations in SD in the 250s, and one day I found WCAU's 4PM news- I loved the idea of not having to wait an hour after I got home from school for local news, and for years I hoped someone in the NYC market would try. (I wasn't aware of WCBS' multiple failed attempts at the time.) WCBS has had the 4pm on and off for about 20-25yrs and the same with KCBS and WBBM. It funny most but not all markets have a 4pm news, but even some of the smaller markets, and it cheaper to produce as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRolyPoly 1843 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 The smallest is North Platte thanks to KNPL's simulcast of KOLN/KGIN's 4pm news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrabbleship 427 Posted November 28, 2017 Share Posted November 28, 2017 I love news at 4PM- I was waiting for the day Oprah was gone and WABC would have news instead. My cable system has certain Philly stations in SD in the 250s, and one day I found WCAU's 4PM news- I loved the idea of not having to wait an hour after I got home from school for local news, and for years I hoped someone in the NYC market would try. (I wasn't aware of WCBS' multiple failed attempts at the time.) The resistance the NYC market had for a 4:00 PM newscast for so long is a bit amazing, especially given how just about every other major market had supported one (or several) for years prior. I know WCBS's two attempts at 4:00 were debacles but did that poison the well that much? Of course, NYC seems to behind the curve on a whole bunch of trends. I find it funny that right now FOUR upstate markets are programming something resembling a 7:00 PM newscast yet nobody in NYC has thought of taking the plunge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SoFloTVClassics 905 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 WSVN Launched its news at 4 in 2006. Later WPLG and couple years ago it was WTVJ. Not sure if WFOR will suit since not only it has Dr. Phil and Judge Judy, but also currently has A 7pm newscast, (hard to believe it was ten years ago that WTVJ did the same thing but lasted only 2 years) to fill the void of the insider which was cancelled this year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Metrodonmartin 42 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 And that was why WABC, WPVI, WSB, and WSMV wanted to launch their 4:00 news as soon as Oprah ended rather than waiting till later in the fall. But it was KCBS who started all this in 1978; they were the first with 2 1/2 hours of news starting at 4:00. Was actually 4:30. Anchored by Mike Parker and when he was let go in 79, Connie Chung. KABC had the first hour long 4pm. Was launched in 1980. Anchored by Jerry Dunphy and Tawny Little. KNBC started a 4pm in 82. Anchored by Kelly Lange and Jack Perkins. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4UL4U 127 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 I'm somewhat surprised no one in Columbus (Ohio) has a 4 p.m. show. Cincinnati and Cleveland stations do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Breaking News 802 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 I'm somewhat surprised no one in Columbus (Ohio) has a 4 p.m. show. Cincinnati and Cleveland stations do. Guess what? Me too, but someone said ugh not enough news in Columbus at 4pm...I'm thinking smaller markets are doing 4pm, so why isn't the 614...That my birthplace, but the market never seems to play in a " big market league" or at least try to fit in with the other 30ish markets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
onthesea 292 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 In Boston, WHDH premiered a 4pm newscast in June 1996, competing against Oprah on WCVB and syndicated shows on WBZ. And it worked, but it was a half hour. It expanded to a full hour in 2001, after WFXT's attempt on that timeslot. WBZ tried to do the same in late 2005, when moved its 5pm news to 4pm and Dr. Phil went to 5pm. It failed, and a couple of months later, the 5pm hour was back. Now WHDH, WCVB, WBTS and WFXT have 4pm newscasts (on 7, 8 and 25 runs for 1 hour, on 5 is 30 minutes long because of Inside Edition). I don't know why, but Boston's 3 major stations were a little bit conservative when it comes to news expansion. WBZ was first to launch a 5:30pm newscast in 1975, WNAC followed in 1977 but didn't last long. WNEV launched a 5pm hour in 1987 and the first half-hour was eliminated in 1991 because of a regional recession, and that block wasn't reinstated until 1994. WCVB sticked with the 6pm hour until 1994, when it expanded to 90 minutes, beginning at 5pm (I assume that was a Hearst's decision). At the same time, WBZ eliminated its 5:30pm newscast and ran a full hour at 6pm until 1995, now as a CBS affiliate, when expanded to 2 hours (5-7pm, followed by CBS Evening News), but reducing it to 90 minutes in 1997. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scrabbleship 427 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 I don't know why, but Boston's 3 major stations were a little bit conservative when it comes to news expansion. WBZ was first to launch a 5:30pm newscast in 1975, WNAC followed in 1977 but didn't last long. WNEV launched a 5pm hour in 1987 and the first half-hour was eliminated in 1991 because of a regional recession, and that block wasn't reinstated until 1994. WCVB sticked with the 6pm hour until 1994, when it expanded to 90 minutes, beginning at 5pm (I assume that was a Hearst's decision). At the same time, WBZ eliminated its 5:30pm newscast and ran a full hour at 6pm until 1995, now as a CBS affiliate, when expanded to 2 hours (5-7pm, followed by CBS Evening News), but reducing it to 90 minutes in 1997. That early 90s New England regional recession led to a purge of local non-news programming. Evening Magazine and People Are Talking on WBZ, Good Day! on WCVB, a lot of local WGBH productions including The Ten O'Clock News and all of WHDH's non-news output (RTG!, et Al) all ended during that period. It hit WHDH the hardest and led to the breakup of New England Television, the nixed sale to CBS, and the eventual sale to Sunbeam in part because Ansin was their landlord. Like or hate it, that sale of WHDH and all that ensued breathed some fresh air into the Boston market and led the pendulum to swing from one end to another in terms of news expansion. It surprised me that it took as long as it did post-WBZ attempt for someone else to take WHDH on at 4:00/4:30. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sctvhound 27 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 Charleston has had 4pm news for a long time on WCSC. They started 4pm news in 2004. Oprah was beating them in the market (on NBC WCBD), while Channel 5 had lesser-known talk shows competing with her (Queen Latifah, Iyanla to name a couple). They hadn’t had a talk show do well against Oprah since Montel in the late 1990s. They had a soap opera lead out at the time (Guiding Light), and the news fit the soap opera TV viewers. It is always lighter than even the 5pm news, with lots of health news, no 5-day forecasts, and a recap of the afternoon news, and they’ve made a good niche with their afternoon talk shows (The Talk, then Harry) leading into that, then Inside Edition, then their successful 5pm news. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bixpchiphead 105 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 There's only one word that accurately describes why there's 4pm in a ton of markets. .. OPRAH. Strangely enough in Pittsburgh, 4PM news came about because of Oprah leaving, but not in the way you think..... KDKA, who had the rights to Ms. Winfrey's show lost them to WTAE. KD then started doing a solid 3 hour block of news, 4 to 7. The news at 4 actually started beating Oprah in the ratings..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnnya2k6 171 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 Well...I guess both NCFLMedia and Metrodonmartin were right about KABC being the first anywhere with a 4:00 news; KCBS’s in 1978 (when they were still KNXT) was 4:30-7:00 followed by Walter Cronkite. Now if KYUR in Anchorage can give up the 4:00 or 4:30 airing of Family Feud to be the first in Alaska with news at that hour, but I doubt they will (and their competition is Judge Judy (KTUU) and Ellen DeGeneres (KTVA), by the way). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyrannical bastard 3442 Posted November 29, 2017 Share Posted November 29, 2017 Agreed, as soon as the "O" left the airwaves, stations sprung into gear with 4pm shows. It seems like it fares better in inland time zones (central & mountain) because the 5pm news is cut in half by network news (since Eastern & Pacific generally have the whole 5pm hour and network news at 6:30). They also have the 3pm hour while the coastal time zones have a full hour of access time at 7 instead of the half hour at 6:30. I'm somewhat surprised no one in Columbus (Ohio) has a 4 p.m. show. Cincinnati and Cleveland stations do. WCMH tried to do one in 2008-2009. It disappeared either due to poor ratings or Media General's decimation of their stations at the time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CLT-DCA-ORF-PTI 86 Posted November 30, 2017 Share Posted November 30, 2017 I thought for sure WSOC would as well but they did not and still have not to this day launched 4:00 news unless there is MAJOR news. WCNC was the first in Charlotte to have 4:00 news. WBTV soon followed. Originally WCNC had 4:30 news but not 4:00, then 4:00 but not 4:30, then WCNC finally started having news for the full hour in exchange for shortening their noon news to a half hour. I always thought that too about WSOC, until I realized when you figure out how many hours they broadcast news, its 9 hours a day (incl. TV 64), where, WCNC is 6 hours, WBTV is 7.5. So, I don't think WSOC is going to anytime soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
H4UL4U 127 Posted November 30, 2017 Share Posted November 30, 2017 WCMH tried to do one in 2008-2009. It disappeared either due to poor ratings or Media General's decimation of their stations at the time. Shoot...forgot about "First at 4"...and I know people who worked on that show. Never heard the full story about why it got canceled, but I would guess it had to do with both reasons you mentioned. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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