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Gray TV takes over CBS in Anchorage, AK


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31 minutes ago, Weeters said:

 

KTVA itself no longer has a news department. Everything but the license and transmitter now belongs to Gray. More than likely, the KTVA signal will go dark once it's fully integrated into KYES. KYES is essentially airing a news product named "KTVA 11 News" right now and simulcasting on Channel 11, from the way it's described in the announcement.

 

So is the KTVA news department technically the DCI news department?

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18 hours ago, ABC 7 Denver said:

 

Why would Nexstar be concerned about the cap? They could sidecar every station in the country and still be considered 'under market cap'.

 

Outside of this run-around to control WPIX, when has Nexstar used a shell to enter a new market? 

I think that Nexstar is holding out to buy Vision Alaska cheap and get the whole state. Problem is that operation is so eviscerated that there might be a good chance they either go full Billings and exist newsless or go full Utica, booting NewsNet out and taking years to build a skeletal department to satisfy the bare minimum of ABC/Fox. That might be why Nexstar passed here, an all-or-nothing strategy versus Gray.

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2 hours ago, scrabbleship said:

 

Outside of this run-around to control WPIX, when has Nexstar used a shell to enter a new market? 

I think that Nexstar is holding out to buy Vision Alaska cheap and get the whole state. Problem is that operation is so eviscerated that there might be a good chance they either go full Billings and exist newsless or go full Utica, booting NewsNet out and taking years to build a skeletal department to satisfy the bare minimum of ABC/Fox. That might be why Nexstar passed here, an all-or-nothing strategy versus Gray.

 

Nexstar isn't touching those stations with a hundred foot pole.  They will never have a chance against KTUU/KYES because the few people who advertise up there aren't going to put their ads on a duopoly that gets virtually no viewership.  You know why Nexstar has KSVI/KHMT? They never really wanted it, but it was part of the Quorum package, so they had to take it.  They have tried to sell those stations, but no one wants to buy the third and fourth stations in a two station market.  It's the same fact in Anchorage. If GCI's cable leverage and multi million dollar investment couldn't dent Gray and KTUU, nothing will.

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3 hours ago, scrabbleship said:

 

Outside of this run-around to control WPIX, when has Nexstar used a shell to enter a new market? 

I think that Nexstar is holding out to buy Vision Alaska cheap and get the whole state. Problem is that operation is so eviscerated that there might be a good chance they either go full Billings and exist newsless or go full Utica, booting NewsNet out and taking years to build a skeletal department to satisfy the bare minimum of ABC/Fox. That might be why Nexstar passed here, an all-or-nothing strategy versus Gray.

 

Coastal Television is so cheap that buying either of the Coastal operations of note would require significant investment.

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30 minutes ago, Samantha said:

 

Coastal Television is so cheap that buying either of the Coastal operations of note would require significant investment.

Not to mention the guys who run that are straight up jerks! Before I got let go due to "Newsroom Restructuring", this email was sent to us from a former reporter in Alaska. 

Screenshot_20200803-141355_Messages.jpg

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3 hours ago, WxNerd said:

Not to mention the guys who run that are straight up jerks! Before I got let go due to "Newsroom Restructuring", this email was sent to us from a former reporter in Alaska. 

Screenshot_20200803-141355_Messages.jpg

 

I'm actually nauseous. I've heard the anecdotes, but to see it put on paper like this is... unholy. 

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3 hours ago, WxNerd said:

Not to mention the guys who run that are straight up jerks! Before I got let go due to "Newsroom Restructuring", this email was sent to us from a former reporter in Alaska. 

Screenshot_20200803-141355_Messages.jpg

 

Well, if we were under any delusion that local news meant little more than a network contractual obligation...

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5 hours ago, NEOMatrix said:

Or have it all redirect to Alaskanewsnow.com eventually?

 

KTUU is THE brand for broadcast news in AK, like 80+% of the market. Whatever happens with CBS5/KYES, I would not count on any branding change online or on air for KTUU. 

Edited by alaskanews
Clarifying it is the dominant broadcast brand. Anchorage Daily News (adn.com) is equally as powerful for digital news branding.
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On 8/3/2020 at 3:24 PM, effseesee said:

 

Nexstar isn't touching those stations with a hundred foot pole.  They will never have a chance against KTUU/KYES because the few people who advertise up there aren't going to put their ads on a duopoly that gets virtually no viewership.  You know why Nexstar has KSVI/KHMT? They never really wanted it, but it was part of the Quorum package, so they had to take it.  They have tried to sell those stations, but no one wants to buy the third and fourth stations in a two station market.  It's the same fact in Anchorage. If GCI's cable leverage and multi million dollar investment couldn't dent Gray and KTUU, nothing will.

 

The one thing that could get Nexstar out of Billings is to work a deal in which the KULR news department transitions to KSVI/KHMT (syncing all of Cowles' Montana stations with ABC/FOX) with KULR being spun off to Sinclair with a Billings bureau set up. Would probably be better than the status quo.

 

This is why I also mentioned Utica, a market where Nexstar had literally nothing - Clear Channel took all of WUTR's equipment at the last second and sent it elsewhere in the ex-Ackerley CNYSG, took years to make something, and has done nothing outside the barest minimum of 60 minutes on WUTR and 30 minutes on WFXV. That and what they haven't done in Binghamton could be harbingers though that could also be issues Newport left to fester.

 

 

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On 8/4/2020 at 10:46 AM, CircleSeven said:

Looking at this guide, it appears that they moved the MyNet feed from 5.1 to 5.4.

 

Follow up. And to no surprise, CBS & MyNet are switching places on the Cable dial.

 

CBS moving to Cable 5 and MyNet (KYES-DT4) is moving to 11, beginning Sunday, August 14th.

 

Also, it appears that they've replaced the "11" logo for the "KYES 5" logo on the bug.

7PAWRpM.png

 

Edited by CircleSeven
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On 8/3/2020 at 4:15 PM, WxNerd said:

Not to mention the guys who run that are straight up jerks! Before I got let go due to "Newsroom Restructuring", this email was sent to us from a former reporter in Alaska. 

Screenshot_20200803-141355_Messages.jpg

 

Umm... what?! You freaking serious? Show that to FTVLive so that people can read it and ridicule the company. They deserve all the ridicule and hatred they get. Also, it does mention Maria Athens a few times. What is she like, the co-owner of the company or something? Good grief.

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18 hours ago, scrabbleship said:

 

The one thing that could get Nexstar out of Billings is to work a deal in which the KULR news department transitions to KSVI/KHMT (syncing all of Cowles' Montana stations with ABC/FOX) with KULR being spun off to Sinclair with a Billings bureau set up. Would probably be better than the status quo.

 

 

I'm sure Cowles would find it much easier to have ABC/FOX throughout the entire state, but they're not touching KSVI/KHMT.  Billings sits at the base of the Rimrocks, which run along the city's eastern border.  Both KULR and KTVQ have their towers on top of the Rimrocks, as close to the edge as possible.  It's the only way you can actually see the entire city.  KSVI and KHMT share a tower, which would be okay except that KHMT is licensed to Hardin, MT, 45 miles east of Billings.  The only way you can run both stations on the same stick, while legally covering both Billings and Hardin is to be farther away from the edge of the Rimrocks.  In the case of KSVI/KHMT, the tower is 10 miles east of the edge.  Since the tower can't see most of Billings, the signal simply flies over the city.  KSVI/KHMT have to run multiple translators to fill in the gaps.  

 

Since the FCC is unlikely to ever allow KHMT to change its city of license from Hardin to Billings, this is always going to be an issue.  That's why Cowles is not going to trade one very good station for two bad stations.

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20 hours ago, CircleSeven said:

 

Follow up. And to no surprise, CBS & MyNet are switching places on the Cable dial.

 

CBS moving to Cable 5 and MyNet (KYES-DT4) is moving to 11, beginning Sunday, August 14th.

 

Also, it appears that they've replaced the "11" logo for the "KYES 5" logo on the bug.

7PAWRpM.png

 

I know this is all happening g suddenly, but my goodness that logo needs to change, and it needs to change fast.

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21 hours ago, CircleSeven said:

 

Follow up. And to no surprise, CBS & MyNet are switching places on the Cable dial.

 

CBS moving to Cable 5 and MyNet (KYES-DT4) is moving to 11, beginning Sunday, August 14th.

 

Also, it appears that they've replaced the "11" logo for the "KYES 5" logo on the bug.

7PAWRpM.png

 

 

That logo bug looks really bad.

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On 8/1/2020 at 6:12 PM, NewsMaster said:

Here's more from the Anchorage Daily News.

 

On a related note, I wonder what impacts this will have on Southeast Alaska. Did Gray also acquire the CBS affiliation for Southeast Alaska as well, or does GCI still own it? I have a feeling we will know more once Gray's acquisition of KATH/KSCT closes, which I have a feeling will be followed by an acquisition of the CBS Southeast cluster (KTNL Sitka / KUBD Ketchikan / KXLJ Juneau).

  

 

KTUU has dominated Alaska news for as long as it's been around.

Correction: at least since the late 80's...KIMO was at the top before that

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From this article from Alaska Public Media, looks like they're starting the consolidation process.......

Quote

GCI will continue to employ Denali Media’s cable advertising staff, but another 60 or so employees involved in the news and broadcasting operations have been asked to apply for jobs with KTUU, Windt Pearson said.

 

Gray Television will hire some, but not all, of those employees, said Kevin Latek, executive vice president with Gray.

 

“We have a number of positions open,” Latek said. “We need to add considerably to KTUU’s staff, but we need to add fewer than the positions that were being filled at KTVA.”

 

Latek said he did not know yet how many people would be hired. He said they will join KTUU at its broadcast center in Midtown Anchorage, and a group from the larger, total staff will work on a news program to be broadcast on KYES alongside the existing CBS programming.

_________

For now, KTVA’s news programming will continue as usual for the rest of the month, albeit on a different channel. Kevin Latek, the Gray Television executive, said KTUU was expected to be making job offers late Friday to the KTVA employees it hopes to hire, and anyone left without a job or that wanted to move to a different market would have opportunities to apply for a position at one of Gray’s television stations or digital properties in the more than 90 markets in which it operates.

 

 

And here's the promo promoting the new CBS 5. 

 

Edited by CircleSeven
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