Posts with tag local news
Posted Dec 24th 2007 7:21PM by Jay Black
Filed under: News, Web, Watercooler Talk

There are few things in life more satisfying than when something goes wrong during a live broadcast. I mean, sure there are weddings and births and all that crap, but those things happen
all the time. Seeing broadcasters -- especially
anchormen, what with their sensible hair and their authoritative voices -- lose their cool is as rare and special as seeing Brigadoon (the magical Scottish town, not the boring Broadway musical).
Breitbart.tv has posted what might be one of the best on-air bust-ups of all time: a minivan crashing into the studio of Chicago's ABC affiliate, WLS,
during a live broadcast. The video after the jump...
Continue reading Minivan crashes into Chicago TV station during live news broadcast - VIDEO
Posted Oct 31st 2007 11:02AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: News
I hate being scared at Halloween. I mean, scary movies and costumes are one thing, but I can't stand it when people just jump out from hiding to shock you. Such an easy, cheap way to freak out someone. It's only funny when you do it to someone, not when it's done to you.
The news anchors at KXTV in California know that feeling. At the start of a segment on the morning news the other day, they were greeted by a pack of knife and bone-wielding creatures and completely freaked out on camera. And this isn't one of those times where the anchors really knew about it ahead of time. You can tell by the screams that they were caught completely off guard. I'm also sure several viewers had to change their underwear too.
My favorite part is Melissa Crowley, who pretty much says "the hell with my friends!" and actually runs out of the studio.
Posted Aug 3rd 2007 10:22AM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Other Reality Shows
Anchorwoman, the upcoming comedy/reality series from FOX that takes place at an actual news station in Tyler, Texas, will debut on Wednesday, August 22 rather than August 21 (as previously reported). It will still air at 8:00 p.m., though, kicking off with a one-hour premiere before settling into its normal half hour on Wednesday nights.
Continue reading Anchorwoman shifts to Wednesdays
Posted Jun 11th 2007 2:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities
On August 21 at 8:00 p.m., FOX will debut Anchorwoman, a comedy/reality TV program focusing on a swimsuit model who moves to the quiet community of Tyler, Texas to try her hand at local news reporting.
As a twist, the series will take place in an actual newsroom, KYTX-TV, a CBS affiliate. Actual newspersons will appear on the program, which has many people in the community asking if this is such a good idea.
Continue reading Anchorwoman has Texas town talking
Posted Apr 6th 2007 12:02PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: News, OpEd
Joel Cheatwood, who helped develop programming at Headline News such as Showbiz Tonight and Glenn Beck and oversaw CNN's highest-rated series, Nancy Grace, is heading to Fox News to develop programming for both the news network and the upcoming Fox Business Channel.
According to Variety, Cheatwood has been tapped for Fox News because of his "tabloid sensibility" that he developed while working on local news in Miami, where he often led with crime stories in order to grab the attention of viewers. According to Cheatwood, news can be both "top-notch" and "fun to watch." Cheatwood used that approach to revamp Headline News, and hopes to do the same when Fox Business Channel launches.
Continue reading CNN executive heads to Fox News
Posted Apr 5th 2007 1:02PM by Julia Ward
Filed under: Scrubs, The Office, Friday Night Lights, Ugly Betty, Awards

The Peabodys are an interesting case in a world over-saturated with award ceremonies and self-congratulatory accolades. The Peabodys don't actually have categories or even a set number of awards to give out every year. The good folks at the University of Georgia's Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication just give them out as they deem necessary, and their goal isn't just to recognize local news stations or broadcast journalists. The Peabodys' aim is to hold up examples of "what can and should be done in the worlds of journalism, entertainment, documentary, education and public service," or so their press release tells me.
Continue reading 66th annual Peabody Award winners announced
Posted Jan 19th 2007 9:10AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Other Reality Shows, NBC, News, Daytime, Talk Show
What made me think of this is the news that the Today Show is expanding to a fourth hour in September.
Yeah, that's exactly what's missing from my TV schedule: another hour of Today. Hey, let's add three more hours to Good Morning, America. Maybe The View can be an all-day thing, and ABC can show All My Children at 2 in the morning?
Continue reading Things I Hate About TV: It's all about news, talk, and reality
Posted Nov 27th 2006 7:00PM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: News, Video, Web
I'll admit it: I'm a sucker for blooper shows. The ones from sitcoms and dramas where the actors screw up are OK, but the great ones are from news broadcasts, because not only are the shows live, but they're supposed to be very straightforward and serious most of the time. You can see some sort of minor blooper on almost every news broadcast, but the ones here at AOL TV aren't minor. Like the newsanchor that has a tooth fall out of his mouth while live on the air, or the college weatherman who is incredibly nervous and gives one of the worst weather forecasts you'll ever see. Or the guy who tries to stuff a dollar bill down the cleavage of a reporter and the massive slips of the tongue on a live show. And then there's something everyone will like, the prank caller who manages to get on Nancy Grace's show and call her something we'd all like to call her.
Oh, and the next time you're watching your local news, and you think that the meteorologist or the anchorperson is lame or silly, remember this weatherman from the Charlotte, NC TV station (second video down). Wow. (He was eventually fired after rehab and now works at KREX-TV in Denver.)
Posted Oct 16th 2006 8:16AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: Industry, Programming, OpEd, The Five, Celebrities

I know, you're probably thinking, isn't the TV Squad blog just a series of random thoughts about television already? Yes and no. Sure, the thoughts are often random, but we put them in very specific posts, whether it's a review, an essay, or an op-ed piece.
The random thoughts below are just things I've been thinking about lately. They could possibly end up in some future post about a specific show or star, but I'm putting them here for now. (And thanks to Rich for
starting this.)
1. Why do weather forecasters and anchorpersons always freak out over cool temperatures? When October comes around and the temps drop to the 50s, you'd think the world was ending by the way the local news stations act. It's not 10 below zero folks, it's 55, and it happens every single fall. And it's comfortable! Newscasters always seem to bemoan the start of fall, almost to the point of apologizing to viewers, because summer is over. Folks, I have news for you: humid, 90 degree weather is terrible; fall is the best season.
Continue reading The Five: Random television thoughts
Posted May 31st 2006 9:06AM by Bob Sassone
Filed under: News, Talent, Things I Hate About TV, Celebrities

I was watching
Larry King Live last night (oh, come on, like you didn't tune in to see what the hell's going on with Elizabeth Taylor), and Larry calls Liz's priceless jewelry "costume," and she's stunned. Larry tries to laugh it off that he was just needling her, that he can't tell the difference between real and costume, and then he goes to a break and throws it to Anderson Cooper to see what's coming up at the top of the hour on
360, and he says something like "Anderson, get me out of this will you?" as Larry and Liz laugh, and since he has put him on the spot, Anderson has to muster up a semi-joking "I can't tell the difference either Larry ...coming up, more violence and bloodshed in Iraq."
Why do they always do this, joke about something and then throw it to the news to get some witty, light comment when there's serious news to report? The worse is the local news, when they'll come out of the weather forecast, laughing about "oh, where did summer go? It's so cool out!", and they're all laughing and shaking their heads, and then they'll put on their frowns suddenly and say something like, "we'll be right back with that update on the child who died in the car accident today."
Mixing the serious and the humorous is a very tricky thing. People like Olbermann and Stewart can do it, but their shows are built like that and since they're just one anchor controlling the show, they can make the segues easier. But on most news shows ...ugh, it's horrible.
Posted May 27th 2006 12:53PM by Anna Johns
Filed under: News, The Daily Show, Web

Oh, YouTube! Where were you back in the day when the wrong graphic appeared next to a Portland news anchor's head? It was a photo of a man with the caption, 'Arm Amputated', and he said, "With this tight economy, everybody's making cutbacks." Classic.
YouTube is quickly becoming a great place for local news bloopers. A friend alerted me to
this one the other day. The anchor's slip-up about a Mount Everest climber just defies explanation. I don't want to ruin it for you, just check it out.
And,
Lost Remote brought two other clips to my attention. One is a
rapping traffic report. By a white girl. With blonde hair. And she's rapping about morning commute traffic. In North Carolina. The
other clip is of the Terre Haute, Indiana weather wars promos featured prominently on
The Daily Show.
Posted May 25th 2006 2:05PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Web, Comedy Central, Dog Bites Man

Comedy Central's partially-improvised spoof of local news,
Dog Bites Man, debuts on
June 7 at 10:30 p.m. Right now you can click over to Comedy Central's Web site for the show and watch a preview clip, plus "interviews" with different members of the tenacious but somewhat inept KHBX newsteam. It's hard to gauge by the brief clip alone, but the show looks pretty funny, and I love the talent they've assembled for it. It definitely has a
Reno 911 vibe to it, so I'm sure I'll be checking out at least the first episode, which will see the newsteam cover a bodybuilding competition and take part in sexual harassment training.
Posted May 15th 2006 6:00PM by Adam Finley
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Celebrities, Comedy Central, Dog Bites Man

As soon as I started seeing the commercials for this new Comedy Central series, I was thrilled. First of all, the series will spoof local news, which is ripe for spoofing, I must say. Most spoofable is the local news, that's what I'm getting at. Also, the new series will feature Matt Walsh (the reporter) of
Upright Citizens Brigade, and one of my favorite funny people of the moment, Zach Galifianakis (who will play the director). Andrea Savage and A. D. Miles will round out the cast. The series is produced and written by Dan Mazer of
Da Ali G Show. I can't believe this show won't be hilarious with this crew behind it. The series debuts June 7 at 10:30 p.m.