Tribune puts out the "For Sale" sign

[Matt Galvin]

KC Sinclair because would be easier for them to add ASN,Comet because FOX4KC hasen't yet and would be replacing Antenna TV that like KAJF can pick up and This TV can go back to either KMBC/KCWE or KCKS-LD.

 

[JeeperOne]

Does this mean the return of The WB?

No

 

[JeeperOne]

I'd much rather see a return of independent "superstations" than another small network.

Or just Indie stations in general who aren't some sort of part-Godcaster part-Independent (AKA KWHD 53 here in Denver)

 

[JeeperOne]

KC Sinclair because would be easier for them to add ASN,Comet because FOX4KC hasen't yet and would be replacing Antenna TV that like KAJF can pick up and This TV can go back to either KMBC/KCWE or KCKS-LD.

Thing is whoever snaps up WDAF 4 in KC will also want sister KTVI 2 in St. Louis as well as a package deal (And Tribune would likely be glad to sell it to them that way too)

With Sinclair already owning KDNL 30, they can pick up KTVI or KPLR for a reverse duo like what Tribune had in Indy for several years BUT Sinclair can't pick up BOTH unless they wanna incur the wrath of the Feds

That's why I DID NOT include Sinclair on my list. It's also why I think the most logical buyer of the two Fox affiliates is Media General (Especially when you consider they also own KSNW 3 in Wichita, KS & (I think) KSNT/KTKA in nearby Topeka, KS) & KPLR 11 will likely go to either Scripps or Hearst

Of course, there's always other possibilities but that one just happens to be at the top of my list

Cheers & 73

 

[Morgan Wick]

In the couple of weeks between the CW and MyNet announcements, there was hope that, with UPN and the WB freed from having to compete with each other, the CW could make a genuine run at becoming a true fifth network, AND that the stations left behind in the merger would kick off an independent Renaissance.

Obviously, neither one happened, even though MyNet stations are now independent in all but name. The "C" part of the CW ensured they would never make a serious effort to become a true fifth network. Even at the time, some people would have preferred that UPN had just shut down and the WB left to pick out choice affiliates and programming. Those ambitions also failed to take into account the realities of the 2000s television business, where the real money was fast becoming in cable.

I think the CW COULD have become the fifth television network if they had made a serious effort at it and was better at keeping potentially valuable affiliates from defecting to MyNet. The way the TV industry has evolved since then, I'm no longer convinced that's still possible. But the CW/MyNet fiasco is why I think the FCC's duopoly rules are completely backwards. They're intended to preserve a diversity of voices in small markets, but when the FCC tried to stop small-market station owners from circumventing them, they (at least claimed to be) unable to sell them to anyone who could run them on their own, and just gutted the stations of valuable programming and either turned in the license or sold the husk to someone who could make auction cash off it. But the fact the big-market UPN stations (as well as UPN itself) were owned by Fox and CBS ensured that neither the CW nor MyNet would do anything to challenge the hegemony of the Big Four broadcast networks or any of their other businesses - such as ex-UPN/WB stations left behind by the merger acquiring programming that could actually compete with Fox's cable outlets, especially, it's clear to me in retrospect, their regional sports networks.

 

[JeeperOne]

What does ANY of this have to do with the sale of Tribune stations Morgan ??

Am I the only one missing the point here ??

In the couple of weeks between the CW and MyNet announcements, there was hope that, with UPN and the WB freed from having to compete with each other, the CW could make a genuine run at becoming a true fifth network, AND that the stations left behind in the merger would kick off an independent Renaissance.

Obviously, neither one happened, even though MyNet stations are now independent in all but name. The "C" part of the CW ensured they would never make a serious effort to become a true fifth network. Even at the time, some people would have preferred that UPN had just shut down and the WB left to pick out choice affiliates and programming. Those ambitions also failed to take into account the realities of the 2000s television business, where the real money was fast becoming in cable.

I think the CW COULD have become the fifth television network if they had made a serious effort at it and was better at keeping potentially valuable affiliates from defecting to MyNet. The way the TV industry has evolved since then, I'm no longer convinced that's still possible. But the CW/MyNet fiasco is why I think the FCC's duopoly rules are completely backwards. They're intended to preserve a diversity of voices in small markets, but when the FCC tried to stop small-market station owners from circumventing them, they (at least claimed to be) unable to sell them to anyone who could run them on their own, and just gutted the stations of valuable programming and either turned in the license or sold the husk to someone who could make auction cash off it. But the fact the big-market UPN stations (as well as UPN itself) were owned by Fox and CBS ensured that neither the CW nor MyNet would do anything to challenge the hegemony of the Big Four broadcast networks or any of their other businesses - such as ex-UPN/WB stations left behind by the merger acquiring programming that could actually compete with Fox's cable outlets, especially, it's clear to me in retrospect, their regional sports networks.