What if?...... Westinghouse/CBS Deal

[jerseyfla 193]

This thread series is off to a good start. Here's the next topic.

 

The Westinghouse aka Group W/CBS deal. The story is in this Wikipedia article for an unreliable but helpful reference http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westinghouse_Broadcasting

 

Not just the New World/Fox deal but the Scripps/ABC deal played a big role in Westinghouse aligning with CBS and thus turning all of the Westinghouse O&Os into CBS O&Os by 1996.

 

Since I lived in the Philadelphia market from 2001-2004 and know a lot about the history of the market.

 

Philadelphia

 

KYW (NBC) I think NBC has finally had enough with KYW being a bottom dweller in Market #4 constantly pre-empting their programming that by 1996 with the Summer Olympics not boosting ratings at all, NBC offers Group W an ultimatum "Sell us KYW or we start bidding with other stations even network O&Os WCAU and WPVI". Of course WPVI was only going to be sold when hell freezes over and CBS likes the solidarity of one of it's original O&Os WCAU. Westinghouse standing by it's NBC affiliates tells NBC if you want to buy KYW you are going to have to buy WBZ as well at a hefty price. Well guess what NBC shells out it's cash which would kill them in the long run being that they just purchased the rights to the Olympics from 2000-2008. As in reality NBC loses the NFL, NBA, and MLB. KYW looks good with NBC's programming but once Friends said goodbye the station and the network take a nosedive. KYW is behind WTXF in ratings. There's turnover in the news department NBC is scrambling due to their decling programming. Sunday Night Football remedies the situation somewhat but NBC unsmartly extends the Olympic TV deal to 2012. HD Newscasts are only done at WNBC, KNBC, and WMAQ. NBC predicts HD newscasts to KYW for 2010, hopefully. Plus the addition of Larry Mendte in 2003 hurts them five years later when he is caught spying on co-anchor Alycia Lane's emails. Alycia is no better with personal life problems and a run-in with the law.

 

WPVI (ABC)- The same as always the 8000 pound gorilla in the market. First station to have HD newscasts

 

WCAU (CBS)- In the 90s CBS programming is suffering but once they take the AFC away from NBC and the the better programming due to Raymond, CSI, and Two and a Half Men the only direction WCAU goes is up. The news department is very strong, with and without Larry Mendte who had a contact dispute in 2003, they share Phillies broadcasts with fellow O&O WPSG. They make the other CBS O&Os look like bumbling fools due to KYW's non-success but they just can't seem to pass WPVI. They were the second news operation in HD surpassing flagship neighbor WCBS.

 

WTXF (Fox)- Fox's purchase of the NFC rights in 1994 and the surge of the Eagles with the arrival of Andy Reid and Donovan McNabb boosts ratings so much that they add a 5pm newscast and it blows NBC O&O KYW's newscast out of the water. WTXF even with a weak #4 network does very well and is the best Fox O&O in the country.

[channel2 869]

The Scripps/ABC deal is the reason the CBS/Group W deal happened. Anyway, my take on Philly (again; this thread also signals the creation of ANOTHER alternate reality):

 

KYW (NBC) is the object of NBC's desire. By 1998, NBC had been fed up with KYW being one of their weakest affiliates, and also craved an O&O in Philadelphia (they were the last network without an O&O in the market). NBC approached Group W about a sale of the station; Group W agreed to the sale, as long as they got a station in return. KUTV was offered to the group. Group W declined, as they wanted a larger outlet. WTVJ was offered to Group W, an offer they accepted. WTVJ and $15m are given to Group W, and KYW and $18m are given to NBC. The deal closed in November 1998, and the following New Year's Eve, the station became "NBC 3", while still keeping the Group W "3" (the sale stipulated that the logo be kept for at least five years after the sale). 2003 hit, and the logo was abandoned in favor of a sans-serif "3" not unlike that of WKYC's pre-1993 logo. KYW brings in former WNBC news director Dianne Doctor around this time, who transforms KYW into a Philly-centric clone of WNBC. This apparently worked, as KYW now regularly trades #2 with WCAU.

 

WPVI (ABC) as I said before, needs no introduction.

 

WCAU (CBS) during KYW's Group W years was regularly #2, in spite of CBS's weak programming during the 1990s. 'CAU resurges thanks to CBS's strong programming this decade.

 

WPHL (WB) is a partial O&O of The WB, seeing as how Tribune owns part of The WB. The station is #2 against WTXF, with it's 10PM news. Trib intends to establish morning news on the station soon. Also, in this alternate alternate universe, Tribune is not as well off as it's alternate universe counterpart, but better off than the real Tribune. The amount of stations this Tribune owns is significantly less than the alternate universe Trib (here, they only own WPIX, KTLA, WGN, WPHL, WLVI, WGNX, KWGN and WGNO. Tribune dropped the ball on acquisitions after The WB was launched, as launch costs for the network sucked away a great deal of money; however they have considered buying established WB affiliates from groups such as Sinclair, Glencairn and Acme).

 

WTXF (Fox) was, in all three universes (Reality, Unreality 1 and Unreality 2, the one I'm describing now), purchased by Fox in the wake of being on UPN's initial roster. It's news is ahead of WPHL's, being longer established and having the stronger network.

 

WGBS/WPSG (UPN) has the same history across all three universes. Here, a news department was founded in 1997, when "UPN News at Ten" was formed, initially a production of WCAU, before the station started producing it's own news in 2000.