Local TV Strategies: AI And Building Tomorrow’s Station Group

Generative AI will transform how all media operate, and broadcasters are making their first steps toward using it amid enormous economic pressure to find greater efficiencies in their operations. How gen AI can and will play an instrumental role in reshaping local TV will be the subject of a panel, AI And Building Tomorrow’s Station Group, at TVNewsCheck’s Local TV Strategies conference at the NAB Show New York on Oct. 9 at the Javits Center.

Speakers are Rafi Mamalian AVP, head of innovation lab, Sinclair; Ian Hill, director of digital audience development, Tegna; and Kurt Christopher, VP of television digital strategy, Hubbard Broadcasting. Jon Accarrino, founder, Ordo Digital, will moderate.

“Local broadcasters will either lead or follow in their adoption of gen AI in their operations, and Rafi, Ian and Kurt are among those showing the industry’s way into its use,” said Michael Depp, chief content officer, NewsCheckMedia and editor of TVNewsCheck. “This session will look at the efforts local TV groups can make now to give them a competitive edge in the multiplatform environments in which they function, along with how to upscale their employees as more AI-fluent and productive.

“From sales and marketing to production efficiency and content generation, gen AI can already play a substantive role for broadcasters,” Depp added. “We’ll break down where that impacts savings and revenue generation in practical and immediate ways.”

Other Local TV Strategies sessions include:

Station Group Leaders on the State of the Industry — Four station group leaders assess the state of the industry, capitalizing on multimedia opportunities and assessing emerging revenue streams. Where do they see the most promising opportunities in 2025 including NextGen TV, streaming, sports and a reimagining of local news?

Advertising Leaders on Thriving in 2025 — Media buying leaders talk about optimizing multiplatform TV advertising locally and regionally in 2025. What kind of growth do they anticipate from national spot TV? Where is the industry evolving in audience measurement and the way advertising is targeted?

Reinventing Local TV for Relevance and Revenue Growth — As the multiplatform video market continues to morph and evolve, local TV must keep pace with competitors by tapping innovations in technology, data, business models, audience, and advertiser trends. How can the industry bring legacy businesses into the future on sound economic footing? How can local TV leverage its unique value propositions while creating new ones that go beyond its core strengths? What are the major pivot points that will determine success or failure as local TV transforms, and what can broadcasters expect ahead for ad revenue, retrans and even reverse comp?

Advanced Streaming and FAST Revenue Strategies for Local TV — How can broadcasters push past legacy thinking to open new revenue opportunities on their AVOD and FAST channels? Where are the revenue prospects beyond programmatic, and how can they be realized? Who are the sellers most effectively connecting with advertisers on streaming, and why are they succeeding?

Mining NextGen TV for Revenue ROI in 2025 — CFOs, technology and revenue leaders assess emerging sources of revenue in datacasting, targeted advertising, personalization and audience measurement. How much revenue will come in 2025? When will it be transformative for ROI and consumers’ perception of local TV?

Lightning Round: AI & Local TV’s Future — Leaders and futurists from AI technology providers specializing in the media offer brief takes on how artificial intelligence can streamline workflows in content creation, sales, operations and management. 

Keynote Interview: Blueprints for a New Local TV News — Sean McLaughlin, VP of news at Graham Media Group, outlines a vision for local TV news that culls its irrelevant sacred cows, reallocates resources toward original new ideas and empowers disruptive thinkers. In this keynote interview with TVNewsCheck Editor Michael Depp, McLaughlin presents a radical paradigm for news — and a path to its implementation — with a new frame for reporters, meteorologists, anchors, producers and news leaders to do their jobs and the ROI potential that can follow the change.

AI Tour of the NAB Show New York Exhibit Hall —  TVNewsCheck’s VIP tour of AI providers on the NAB Show New York exhibit floor offers opportunities to see the technology in action, ask questions and brainstorm with futurists.

Register here for Local TV Strategies.