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New news director at WBTV
- Thread starter IM42A
- Start date
Hopefully he can help restore previous legacy standards at the Carolinas first television station and original news leader. Certain personnel matters seem a bit suspect since Gray took over, as there have been multiple departures in recent years. Top tier talent has retired, such as Paul Cameron, Maureen O'Boyle and Eric Thomas, but others such as Molly Grantham, Kristin Miranda, Nick Oschner, and Caroline Hicks seem a bit perplexing. WSOC-TV has the strongest news operation currently and more available resources.
Not a fan of WBTV’s “gotcha” style reporting. Agree that some of their recent hires are very amateurish and questionable. I grew up on Channel 9 and prefer their no nonsense reporting.
Yes overall Channel 9 has the best news presentation and strongest coverage of breaking news. But WBTV still has the strongest signal and widest coverage area. While WJZY and WCNC also have similar strong signals. All from the tall towers in Gaston County. It is disappointing that WSOC-TV did not follow suit and upgrade with a taller tower also. They are full power and reach the core counties surrounding Charlotte, but do not extend as far in the fringe. In Spartanburg County, WBTV comes in strong just like a local channel, although WSPA and WYFF are our primary market stations in the Upstate. But ironically, the Channel 9 newscasts on WAXN-TV64 have a wider coverage area as they now share the same strong signal from WBTV. But WSOC-TV does have translators to help fill the gaps.
I don’t think too many people watch local tv over the air anymore.
I don't like the loud noises they make between stories. I only watch specific stories, and I record the 6:00 newscast.
I don't like the meteorologist they have now at 6. My only interest is in what DID happen. She thinks that's irrelevant and just talks about what she thinks will happen. Most days someone updates the web site to show the high and the low for the day once those are known. I discovered this when looking for a way to complain. I don't think any of the other stations' web sites even bother to give that information.
WCCB is somewhat better about giving the high and low, but not by much. However, it is important to tell us, because one night I saw a forecast saying the high would be in the 60s. The woman didn't even realize her mistake, even though the hour-by-hour forecast showed the temperature mysteriously jumping by 15 degrees as it was supposed to get cloudy. That would have been reasonable if it had been cloudy before the sun came out. It got cloudy before it was supposed to, and as I suspected, it only got into the 50s that day.
WCNC once had a meteorologist who would never admit he or anyone else on the station had made a mistake, and wouldn't ever say what did happen either. He didn't last long.
I don't like the meteorologist they have now at 6. My only interest is in what DID happen. She thinks that's irrelevant and just talks about what she thinks will happen. Most days someone updates the web site to show the high and the low for the day once those are known. I discovered this when looking for a way to complain. I don't think any of the other stations' web sites even bother to give that information.
WCCB is somewhat better about giving the high and low, but not by much. However, it is important to tell us, because one night I saw a forecast saying the high would be in the 60s. The woman didn't even realize her mistake, even though the hour-by-hour forecast showed the temperature mysteriously jumping by 15 degrees as it was supposed to get cloudy. That would have been reasonable if it had been cloudy before the sun came out. It got cloudy before it was supposed to, and as I suspected, it only got into the 50s that day.
WCNC once had a meteorologist who would never admit he or anyone else on the station had made a mistake, and wouldn't ever say what did happen either. He didn't last long.
If you live in Spartanburg County and want to also watch the Charlotte stations you have to use an antenna, as they are not offered on cable, satellite, or streaming services. Years ago WBTV was on cable here. And there are still plenty of cord cutters out there who use an antenna to reduce expenses.
Spartanburg is not in the Charlotte market so nobody cares. WBTV is not getting ad revenue from businesses outside of Charlotte.
Most streaming bundles include local channels. I don’t know anybody who still uses rabbit ears.
I think more folks watch over the air TV than you think. I am seriously considering doing away with YouTubeTV. Way too much money for no more than I watch it. Plus the station I tend to watch the most, MeTV isn't on YTTV.
I have a first gen Tablo that I just rigged in my attic. With a cheap antenna I bought on the Zon I am getting most of the Charlotte stations.
A friend who lives in Birmingham was telling about his rig last night. He has three antennas feeding a Televes SmartKom combiner. He feeds his house cable with it. Says he is getting stations from all around. He also has a HD Homerun receiver for ATSC 3.0. and DVRing.
I am not sure I watch enough TV to spend that much money but it might be worth it.
What is "the Zon"? Amazon?
Televes antennas and amplifiers are excellent products in terms of performance and reliability. Excellent build quality. Based on my personal experience and professional reviews. And the Smartkom allows you to combine antennas without interference and eliminates the need for a rotor.
And yes there are folks who choose to watch TV over the air. My cousins in Cabarrus County use antennas to receive both Charlotte and Greensboro channels. And at my house I have antennas in the attic for GSP and Charlotte reception. I only use Spectrum for internet.
Nielsen tracks all of that data. Only about 15% of households are set up to receive tv over the air, and it’s low single digits for OTA exclusively.
Count me as a OTA viewer with no cable channels. Very happy to have 9,14,18, 42. and 58 not located in Gaston county. Reception of 3, 36, and 46 all in Gaston county can be problematic in East Charlotte.
I was a faithful WBTV viewer until I noticed WSOC had a higher story count both local and network.
Gray and CBS has seen a lot of good people leave. The infrastructure is crumbling. A sad time for WBTV and CBS.
I was a faithful WBTV viewer until I noticed WSOC had a higher story count both local and network.
Gray and CBS has seen a lot of good people leave. The infrastructure is crumbling. A sad time for WBTV and CBS.
On WBTV I miss Maureen O'Boyle, Molly Grantham, and Kristin Miranda. And Nick Oschner was a good investigative reporter. I would seem as if Gray may not be offering good contracts or salary negotiations, but something has just seemed amiss since they took over. Hopefully things will get better.
Nick Oschner is a dirty reporter and I’m glad he’s gone. WBTV’s investigative team wants those “exclusive” stories so bad that they often lack journalistic integrity, or the factual stories are so stupid that nobody cares. I know someone who had to sue them, and they had to air a retraction. I’ve also never been a fan of Molly Grantham, Maureen O’Boyle, or most of the staff at WBTV. I agree that they were a lot stronger back in the day, though.
Katy Solt is good looking.
One new man seemed to just be a substitute.
You can get both market signals in Salisbury which is exactly between these two cities