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WLNE in receivership (Bankrupt)

Raymie said:
If the world was about to end and WJAR and WPRI got knocked off air, would people THEN watch WLNE?
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Probably NOT! :D

Raymie, this is how bad it is/was. I was at a friend's house back in the 80's and we were watching the "Dialing for Dollars" movie on WLNE. Then, the news theme for the Channel 6 News came on (Skynet's favorite one :D :D). Immediately, my friend got up and changed the channel to WJAR.
 
Besides the reincarnations of news names like Action News, WLNE News, ABC 6 News, there was the original - Newscope 6 - which has the name Scope like the mouthwash.
 
formeraa said:
Raymie, this is how bad it is/was. I was at a friend's house back in the 80's and we were watching the "Dialing for Dollars" movie on WLNE. Then, the news theme for the Channel 6 News came on (Skynet's favorite one :D :D). Immediately, my friend got up and changed the channel to WJAR.
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Hahaha.... "Insert Pee Wee Herman Laugh here". I Love that story! ;D
 
Does anyone know how WTEV News......er......Newscope 6......um......Channel 6 Action News......oops....Channel 6 News......er....6 News......um......WLNE 6 News......er......WLNE News......um......ABC6 News is doing in the ratings against the 10 pm newscast on WNAC/Fox Providence?

Poor Channel 6....You keep wondering if you should laugh out loud, or pity them.

Now THERE's a heck of a choice! ;)
 
Well Channel 6 doesn't have a 10 PM Newscast. So you can't really compare ratings against WNAC Fox News at 10PM. If WLNE did have a 10 PM Newscast I'm sure that WNAC would still win. People around here are just groomed to watch anything besides Channel 6.

The station is really going to have to do something drasticly different to change those viewing habits. Something more than just a new set and new graphics. They need to completely change talent as well. I hate to see people lose jobs, but they've really got to completely change their identity in every way possible. Part of that process is to disassociate the current channel 6 with the "new" channel 6. I believe that they've got to come on the air one night with a whole different look and all new people. The newscast is going to have to look so different that people will feel like they are watching a newscast from a whole different city.

Have you ever gone on vacation somewhere and tuned in their news simply because you were curious to see how things compared? There is a certain curiosity level when you see something totally different. Well WLNE needs to peak peoples curiosity. They also need to run a ton of News promos during prime time. Then at least maybe they can capture some interest and get more people to tune in. However if people still see one or two of the same anchors or reporters from before, that is just going to defeat the whole purpose of making this change. It's really got to be all new people. Otherwise ANY Change is doomed to fail (as we've seen happen over and over and over and over before.)

So like I said.... DRASTIC CHANGE. Change everything. Start over from the beginning. Get rid of the 4 PM News. Get rid of the 7 PM News. They didn't save you. You guys are going bankrupt. So obviously the quirky start times didn't work for you. Time slots are not what needed to be changed. Try again. Maybe take my advice. I wasn't kidding about the eye candy either. Get some real hot looking women to join the crew. I don't care how crazy it may seem to you. Have you seen the world we live in lately? It's the crazy stuff that gets attention. Well right now WLNE needs as much attention as they can get. I wish them luck.
 
http://www.wpri.com/dpp/news/abc-6-in-receivership-after-ad-drop

According to an article on WPRI.com, it is unlikely that the station's newsroom would be closed, and it would probably be sold to "either a wealthy individual or a company that already owns a station in the Providence-New Bedford market, which could then merge the two channels’ news operations to save money."

Current owners in the market:
Lin
-WPRI
-Operates WNAC through LMA
Media General
-WJAR
Nexstar
-Operates WLWC, which is owned by Four Points

I wouldn't mind if Lin got control of the station, but Nexstar and MG would probably just make a bad situation worse. It's a shame because WLNE was actually starting to improve their product under Global's ownership.
 
The way I see it, Nexstar would have the most to gain by tying itself up with WLNE, since WLWC has no news operaion of its own, and could easily do a 10 pm newscast, using WLNE resources. It's one way that WLWC could increase its market presence.

Of course, my dream scenario would still be for Hearst to play the role of "Knight in Shining Armor", and rescue Channel 6.

Hey!......A person can dream, can't they?
 
Oh please if there is a GOD, he won't allow LIN to purchase them. I can't take another channel with nine "Breaking News" alerts every half hour. Two Eyewitness News channels in one town is already enough. I can do without ABC6 Eyewitness News. That's for sure. There is something to be said for individuality. That kind of goes away if you've got three different channels with the same newscast. Know what I mean?
 
Skynet74 said:
Oh please if there is a GOD, he won't allow LIN to purchase them. I can't take another channel with nine "Breaking News" alerts every half hour. Two Eyewitness News channels in one town is already enough. I can do without ABC6 Eyewitness News. That's for sure. There is something to be said for individuality. That kind of goes away if you've got three different channels with the same newscast. Know what I mean?
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No...they would brand it "Rhode Island News Now*". Let's see 5am to 7am simulcast on WLNE and WPRI, 7am to 9am on WNAC, 11am on WLNE, 12noon on WPRI, 4pm on WLNE, 5pm and 5:30pm on WPRI, 6pm simulcast on WPRI/WLNE, 7pm on WLNE, 10pm on WNAC, 11pm simulacast on WPRI/WLNE.

(*Reference to "Hawaii News Now", which airs on 3 different Honolulu stations!)
 
If Lin did take over I think they would be smart to switch the branding to ABC6 Eyewitness News and change WPRI and WNAC to something else. It could possibly help WLNE to have the Eyewitness News branding since it's familiar to people. However this totally goes against changing the entire identity of the station which I think is preferable if new owners come in. But..whatever. What the hell do I know. One minute I'm saying they should totally change. The next minute I am saying that they should use Eyewitness News branding since it's familiar to viewers. I'm as confused as they are.
 
Skynet74 said:
If Lin did take over I think they would be smart to switch the branding to ABC6 Eyewitness News and change WPRI and WNAC to something else. It could possibly help WLNE to have the Eyewitness News branding since it's familiar to people. However this totally goes against changing the entire identity of the station which I think is preferable if new owners come in. But..whatever. What the hell do I know. One minute I'm saying they should totally change. The next minute I am saying that they should use Eyewitness News branding since it's familiar to viewers. I'm as confused as they are.
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They used that at WPRI for a while (their News Series 2001 era) before the switch, so I would not be surprised if they DIDN'T move it out of sheer logic. Also unlike Hawai'i there's only one other news operation in the Providence market ("Turn To" 10), so I could see the FCC denying any such action to preserve competition. (The largest market with two news operations is likely #54 Scranton-Wilkes-Barre, featuring WNEP the market bully and WBRE (WYOU lost news last year and saved $1 million –but they now regret it!). The largest market with three might be Raleigh, North Carolina – WRAL got lucky in buying WRAZ when they did (that wouldn't fly now that they are two of the top 4), though Jacksonville is another large market with only three full news operations –two "two-big-4" network duopolies + WJXT.)

Nexstar is about the worst owner for any station out there. Cheap-o! That and we'll soon be hearing "WLWC sold to Mission Broadcasting"...I hate Nexstar because I hate how they make illegal duopolies (Sinclair and Granite do the same thing!) and I wish they were told to sell their stations. They have to go.
 
The key to really understanding the Providence market is its proximity to Boston. Yes, there is a place for two news operations in the Providence/New Bedford market. However, it's very clear that the population will not support a third news operation. With the proximity to Boston, I always sensed that many people preferred to watch a Boston newscast (higher quality, more going on, etc.) at least once a day.

Then again, maybe the economy just needs to improve!!!
 
formeraa said:
I always sensed that many people preferred to watch a Boston newscast (higher quality, more going on, etc.) at least once a day.
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Yeah I tried that while growing up. My parents would then tell me to switch it to a local channel because they couldn't care less about what happens in Boston. I'm thinking that most Rhode Islanders are like my parents.
 
Skynet74 said:
formeraa said:
I always sensed that many people preferred to watch a Boston newscast (higher quality, more going on, etc.) at least once a day.
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Yeah I tried that while growing up. My parents would then tell me to switch it to a local channel because they couldn't care less about what happens in Boston. I'm thinking that most Rhode Islanders are like my parents.
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And by the same token, WTEV/WLNE's ability to attract viewers for its various incarnations of its news broadcasts has been hampered by its being licensed to New Bedford.

When I've asked people why Channel 6 never figured into thier decision making about what local news to watch, I'm often told "Oh!...That's Massachusetts"!. It doesn't seem to matter to these folks that the Channel 6 news studio sits right in the middle of downtown Providence.

That's Rhode Island for you in a nutshell! ;)
 
Dighton Rockhead said:
When I've asked people why Channel 6 never figured into thier decision making about what local news to watch, I'm often told "Oh!...That's Massachusetts"!. It doesn't seem to matter to these folks that the Channel 6 news studio sits right in the middle of downtown Providence.

That's Rhode Island for you in a nutshell! ;)
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It's crazy is what it is. WLNE did a live shot from their parking lot last week and you could see the Rhode Island skyline. It's the only TV newscast actually located in the city of Providence! So for people to still think the station is in Mass is definitely nutty. Channel 6 hasn't been located in Massachusetts for 30 YEARS!~
 
But WLNE did have a New Bedford newsroom through the mid-80's! At that time, they tried to cover both Providence and New Bedford. I distinctly remember a live segment every weeknight during the 6pm newscast: "Let's go live to Massachusetts bureau chief Pamela Watts/Barbara Meagher in New Bedford for the latest Massachusetts news...".

I always thought that their 6pm news intro should say "Live from Downtown Providence and New Bedford this is WLNE news!"
 
You'd think they'd be true to their call letters and have bureaus in Vermont and Maine, et al. "We Love New England!" :D
 
DToTheJ said:
You'd think they'd be true to their call letters and have bureaus in Vermont and Maine, et al. "We Love New England!" :D
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I always found it interesting that there were two different markets that have historically claimed the moniker of "Southern New England": Hartford/New Haven and Providence. So, as far as WFSB is concerned, Southern New England is comprised of Connecticut and western MA while WJAR has seen it as RI and southeastern MA.

You don't hear that term used as much on CT stations as in the past, now that Hartford/New Haven channels concentrate specifically on CT, leaving Massachusetts news to Springfield stations. Meredith's "CBS-3 Springfield" pretty much put the last nail in that coffin by removing western MA from WFSB's to-do list. Even though WTIC ("Fox CT") is still seen in Springfield, they don't bother covering that area. Ditto for WVIT, which is also still available on cable in parts of western MA - despite the presence of local WWLP.
 
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