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What are ABC's weakest affiliates?

A

ajc_trw

I wouldn't be starting this thread if I didn't have two excellent examples.

WPVI Philadelphia: A long history of dropping network programming for any stupid reason.

The worst (or best depending on your tastes) involved PVI not showing Edge of Night in 1979 but having WKBS 48 run episodes a week later. When the Three mile island disaster struck ABC ran wall to wall news coverage. The mistake: WKBS taped the 4PM hour (EofN & news) and ran it a week later making everyone watching think it was happening again.

Recently they've just bumped ABC for local news events without thinking to use one of their sub-channels instead.

WMAR Baltimore has gotten just as bad when it comes to charity shows in lieu of ABC programming, even first run shows. Ditto for using 2.2 for network rather than an SD duplicate.

At least Bomo folks have WJLA for their ABC needs.
 
KDNL St. Louis. They're basically The CW Jr. in that market since they basically don't have ANY local news, not to mention they run Maury in the midday :p
 
I'm gonna nominate WBND-LD South Bend Indiana, only because it's on a low power station. While they're carried on cable & I believe satellite, I believe they'd do better on a full power signal. The programming decisions are made in Chicago at the WCIU studios rather in South Bend. Weigel Broadcasting only has a sales department in South Bend, but not the actual TV station (same with their CW station WCWW-LD & MNT WMYS-LD).
 
WEAR-TV in Pensacola, Florida mistreats programming from ABC on a regular basis:

"Nightline" has been broadcast at 11:01 PM or later since the TV season of 1983-1984.
"Jimmy Kimmel Live", which began in 2003, was not broadcast until 2005 and the station blacked out promotions for the program until then. The program is usually broadcast at 12:06 AM.
"World News (Tonight)" is not broadcast on Saturday or Sunday.
"World News Now" is never broadcast live.
Prime time programming from ABC is pre-empted for a movie occasionally.
The station would interrupt network programming during the night time and the day time for weather reports and display obstructive weather graphics to the dismay of folks recording their favorite programs. This applies to the stations in Mobile, Alabama with news operations or connections to news operations due to ownership.
In 2008, the station attempted to broadcast "The Ten Commandments" from ABC on a delay of one hour in order to broadcast a local newscast between 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM as usual. The station instead joined the movie all ready in progress after 7:00 PM. After the network broadcast of the movie was over, WEAR-TV showed the last hour of the movie again after recording it as part of the original plan for the night.
 
Dave said:
I'm gonna nominate WBND-LD South Bend Indiana, only because it's on a low power station. While they're carried on cable & I believe satellite, I believe they'd do better on a full power signal. The programming decisions are made in Chicago at the WCIU studios rather in South Bend. Weigel Broadcasting only has a sales department in South Bend, but not the actual TV station (same with their CW station WCWW-LD & MNT WMYS-LD).
Click to expand...

Never ceases to amaze me how South Bend has had an low-power ABC affiliate for the past 15 years, since WSJV/28 switched from ABC to FOX in 1995. Fortunately parts of the South Bend market get WLS from Chicago on cable.
 
ajc_trw said:
I wouldn't be starting this thread if I didn't have two excellent examples.

WPVI Philadelphia: A long history of dropping network programming for any stupid reason.

The worst (or best depending on your tastes) involved PVI not showing Edge of Night in 1979 but having WKBS 48 run episodes a week later. When the Three mile island disaster struck ABC ran wall to wall news coverage. The mistake: WKBS taped the 4PM hour (EofN & news) and ran it a week later making everyone watching think it was happening again.

Recently they've just bumped ABC for local news events without thinking to use one of their sub-channels instead.
Click to expand...

Three things come to my mind:

1. So much for the theory that network O&O stations have no choice in terms of having to air network programming at the scheduled time. I guess individual stations in the ABC group have more autonomy than I thought. Recently, I have thought about how non-O&O stations in areas where there is no connection to the teams involved (e.g. SEC on CBS) air sports programming without any thought to local concerns and, on the other hand, preempt programming that many in the local community may be interested in regardless of origin because station managers feel that airing a weather report (other than emergencies), news programming or charity events are more important.

2. Even if they can use a subchannel, most homes subscribe to some sort of pay TV service and many may not know whether the pay TV provider they have has the subchannels for WPVI. Better to use the main channel, from their standpoint.

3. Maybe WPVI feels that Philadelphians aren't interested in Dancing With The Stars. ;)
 
WTNH in New Haven, Connecticut.

In the past they've pre-empted prime-time programming for reruns of syndicated shows they (or sister station WCTX) had the rights to and move prime-time shows to 1:07AM after Jimmy Kimmel.

Pre-empting the prime time programing for stuff like St. Jude's Hospital or Operation Smile or Feed The Children. (That's what the 7PM-8PM Block is for - local programming, which is Jeopardy/Wheel)

Plus they replaced the 1:07AM rebroadcast of the 11PM News with The Insider (which airs at 11:05PM on sister station WCTX). Then they show infomercials 1:37AM-2:37AM (or 3AM) which is when they air ABC's Overnight Newscast.

And they're the only Hartford/New Haven station not starting their news at 4:30AM.

They air the 12PM-1PM block of ABC Kids Programming 5AM-6AM. In the old days before they had a Saturday Morning Newscast and before there was GMA Saturday they'd air ABC Kids 8AM-10:30AM and then show infomercials and low-budget programming 10:30AM-1PM. The shows airing on ABC 1030-1PM got bumped to time slots between 5AM and 8AM.
 
musicman3355 said:
KDNL St. Louis. They're basically The CW Jr. in that market since they basically don't have ANY local news, not to mention they run Maury in the midday :p
Click to expand...

KSDK's going to be programming their news starting in January. I might an opportunity to see that product in action myself in April, so it should be interesting.

And I do have a pretty weak top-market ABC outlet for you: KNXV. Their footing has always been awkward in the market.
 
ajc_trw said:
WMAR Baltimore has gotten just as bad when it comes to charity shows in lieu of ABC programming, even first run shows. Ditto for using 2.2 for network rather than an SD duplicate.

At least Bomo folks have WJLA for their ABC needs.
Click to expand...

WMAR pre-empting ABC is kinda ironic consider that was THE reason why CBS had dumped them back in 1981...over WMAR airing every single Orioles game which, of course pre-empted anything CBS was airing.

WJLA..ah they have done their share of pre-empting ABC lately according to www.dcrtv.com by reading some of the emails on there but I guess not bad as the old WMAL-TV had done in the early 70's. According to DCRTV ( well their mailbag..gotta hunt for it ).. ABC was so unhappy with WMAL thay they were very close to signing up with then-Metromedia in making WTTG DC's ABC affilate. For the record I believe the same post had said that CBS was just as unhappy with WTOP and they wanted to go to WMAL.

Geeeee imagine what would DC TV be like had this taken place...NBC ( 4 ), ABC ( 5 ), CBS ( 7 ) and 9 being an independent.

Oh an interesting thing about WMAR, they share their news chopper with other TV stations, but its NOT WBAL or WJZ..it with the WASHINGTON DC stations.
 
WXLV Winston-Salem. Sister station to KDNL and WEAR; has
no local news, although it does carry ABC News on weekends.

WOLO Columbia, SC. At one point its "local news" was being
produced at sister station WCCB Charlotte. From what I hear,
the station runs fourth in a number of timeslots, behind WIS (NBC),
WLTX (CBS), and WACH (Fox).
 
ajc_trw said:
WPVI Philadelphia: A long history of dropping network programming for any stupid reason.
Click to expand...

Sure, if your definition of "WEAK" is being the undisputed #1 station in the market for over a decade.... ::)

musicman3355 said:
KDNL St. Louis. They're basically The CW Jr. in that market since they basically don't have ANY local news, not to mention they run Maury in the midday :p
Click to expand...

KDNL definitely came to my mind first as "weak" ABC affiliates are concerned. Yes, we can poke fun at the operations of plenty of small-market ABC affiliates all day long, but here's a bush league large-market station that seems to be absolutely inept.
 
BRNout said:
Sure, if your definition of "WEAK" is being the undisputed #1 station in the market for over a decade.... ::)
Click to expand...

More like three decades!
 
WLNE in Providence, R.I. That station has lost several shows from CBS-TV DIstribution after WLNE failed to pay its syndication rights to Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray & E.T. Lately, WLNE is showing shows that are normally seen on The CW or MyTV; Like Steven & Chris, The People's Court, Don't Forget The Lyrics, and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
 
I must mention WEAR-TV stopped broadcasting the serial "Loving" (it later became "The City") between 1990 and 1992 and never broadcast an episode of the serial "Port Charles". Syndicated programs and local newscasts were broadcast at 11:30 AM instead.
 
Troy Goodwin said:
WLNE in Providence, R.I. That station has lost several shows from CBS-TV DIstribution after WLNE failed to pay its syndication rights to Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray & E.T. Lately, WLNE is showing shows that are normally seen on The CW or MyTV; Like Steven & Chris, The People's Court, Don't Forget The Lyrics, and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
Click to expand...

Steven & Chris doesn't even air on CW or MyNetworkTV affiliates for the most part. The show is mainly cleared on small (and sometimes LPTV) independents. Embarrassing to see it on an affiliate of a Big 3 network.
 
Troy Goodwin said:
Lately, WLNE is showing shows that are normally seen on The CW or MyTV; Like Steven & Chris, The People's Court, Don't Forget The Lyrics, and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
Click to expand...

Those shows are on a good number of FOX affiliates as well. Also, I think WCBS 2 in New York used to air The People's Court.
 
Troy Goodwin said:
WLNE in Providence, R.I. That station has lost several shows from CBS-TV DIstribution after WLNE failed to pay its syndication rights to Dr. Phil, Rachael Ray & E.T. Lately, WLNE is showing shows that are normally seen on The CW or MyTV; Like Steven & Chris, The People's Court, Don't Forget The Lyrics, and Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?
Click to expand...

These are only the latest in an unbroken string of embarassments, failures, disappointments and frustrations for WLNE (the former WTEV) since sign-on January 1, 1963.

In fact, some former employees of WTEV/WLNE have even put together a website devoted to fond (and not-so-fond) memories of WTEV/WLNE.

http://chef.menujoy.com/wtev/index.htm
 
Eric Stein said:
Steven & Chris doesn't even air on CW or MyNetworkTV affiliates for the most part. The show is mainly cleared on small (and sometimes LPTV) independents. Embarrassing to see it on an affiliate of a Big 3 network.
Click to expand...

Considering that it was produced in Canada by the CBC, what do they expect?
 
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