Fox Television Stations

With a 10 p.m. primetime hand back hanging over broadcast, Fox Television Stations CEO Jack Abernethy says producing more of the same local news will have diminishing returns for the whole industry. In a wide-ranging Executive Session interview, Abernethy weighs in on programming challenges and their pressures on newsrooms, streaming opportunities and his outlook for syndication, measurement, auto’s resurgence in spot and broadcast’s ability to compete against the big streamers.

Leaders from Fox News, WPVI Philadalphia, Fox Television Stations and LiveU discuss how technologists and technology facilitating this effort to produce more content for more outlets while allowing creators to work from anywhere in a panel at TVNewsCheck’s NewsTECHForum event at the New York Hilton on Dec. 13. Register here.

He will be recognized at a gala award ceremony and fundraiser to be held March 6, 2023, at the Plaza Hotel in New York.

Executives from Gray Television, Fox Television Stations, E.W. Scripps, Sinclair and Dalet will discuss how hubbing, news sharing and collaboration, AI, the cloud and cutting-edge video acquisition strategies are enhancing the ability of content creation teams to expand their productivity in a panel at TVNewsCheck’s NewsTECHForum event at the New York Hilton on Dec. 13. Register here.

Tech executives from Sinclair, Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Fox Television Stations, Imagine and TAG Video Systems will offer predictions for the most important trends in the coming year including building IP networks, cloud production and playout, cybersecurity and streaming technology in a TVNewsCheck Working Lunch webinar on Dec. 1. Register here.

The veteran broadcaster and former KNBC GM is succeeding Bill Lamb as head of the Fox Los Angeles duopoly.

TVNewsCheck’s Michael Depp talks with Paul McGonagle, VP and news director of Fox-owned WTTG Washington, about two new shows that will bring the station up to over 80 hours of original weekly programming, how they manage that volume and hacks for hiring quality people in a tough market. A full transcript of the conversation is included.

The two syndicated entertainment shows will air on the Fox O&Os through the 2024-25 season.

Comscore said that it made a deal with Fox Television Stations in which the stations will use Comscore-based currency to transact advanced audience advertising deals. Financial terms were not disclosed.

The veteran head of Fox’s Los Angeles duopoly will step down on Oct. 3 after a career of 50 years in television.

The four-week preview of the new weekday half-hour game show hosted by Melissa Peterman begins on Aug. 8 in nine markets.

Executives from E.W. Scripps, Fox Television Stations, NBCUniversal Local and Cox Media Group told a TVNewsCheck webinar last week that hiring challenges are frustrating their efforts to swiftly build out robust streaming channels, but forays into automation and hub-and-spoke models are easing some of the pressure.

Executives from Estrella Media, NBCUniversal, Scripps Networks, Gray Television, Fox Television Stations and Allen Media will share how they’re maximizing their OTT sales opportunities and cultivating innovative strategies for audience development in part two of a TVNewsCheck webinar event slated for Aug. 25. Register here.

Fox Television Stations is reporting that its digital properties finished May 2022 as the top-performing O&O station group in total minutes, unique visitors and total views, according to Comscore Media-Metrix data cited by the station group. FTS closed out the month reaching 1.67 billion total minutes, 403 million total views and 54 million unique visitors.

TVNewsCheck’s Streaming News 2022 kicks off as a two-part webinar event on July 21 focusing on news programming for OTT and how its production can smoothly integrate into newsroom workflows. Executives from Cox Media Group, NBCUniversal Local, E.W. Scripps and Fox Television Stations will discuss how they’re tackling the platform. Register here.

The Jerry O’Connell-hosted strip will debut in national syndication in fall 2022.

Sharri Berg, president of Fox Weather, COO of news and operations for Fox Television Stations and one of this year’s TVNewsCheck Women in Technology Leadership Award winners, has been piecing together emerging technology and talented personnel throughout her 34 years at the company. Along the way, she’s built her own reputation as an irrepressible innovator, a generous mentor and a prescient trendspotter in TV technology. Above: Sharri Berg at 2 minutes and 3 seconds before the launch of Fox Weather on Oct. 25, 2021.

Executives from Fox Television Stations, E.W. Scripps, Tegna, Gray and Blackbird said in a TVNewsCheck webinar Thursday that local content is becoming increasingly crucial in a world of shrinking syndication options, but to pull it off more resources need to be invested in local people and the technology to support them.

Executives from Fox Television Stations, Gray Television, Tegna, Blackbird and E.W. Scripps will discuss how they’re diversifying local programming to replace syndicated content and create new options for their linear and streaming channels, all while containing costs, in a TVNewsCheck Working Lunch Webinar on April 14 at 1 p.m. ET. Register here.

Joining Fox Television Stations for the one-hour daytime talk show launch is Hearst Television, along with additional station groups representing more than 60% of the U.S.

The New York-based daily talk show with Sherri Shepherd, the actress, comedian, best-selling author and daytime Emmy winner as longtime co-host of The View, will take over the Fox O&O time slots currently held by Debmar-Mercury’s The Wendy Williams Show.

Fox Weather will be available to viewers on Fox Television Stations’ subchannels in 17 markets and select simulcast hours on Fox-owned duopoly stations across the country. It will also be available on YouTube TV, Amazon News, The Roku Channel, fuboTV and Xumo.

The Fox veteran will oversee all engineering, operations and technology functions for the station group, succeeding Richard Friedel, who retired last December.

Vendors say broadcasters are increasingly looking to expand virtualization of their operations across the whole chain, and they’re also seeking to take that virtualization off-premises, either in their own master control hubs or the public cloud.

With the possibility of several of its key syndicated shows ending after this season, Fox Television Stations has both influence and flexibility headed into 2022.

The game show originally ran as a limited summer series on select Fox TV stations in July and has been officially greenlit as a syndicated series.

Executives from Fox Television Stations, Vice Media and Fox Sports distinguished temporary pandemic-driven production changes from those likelier to settle in for good in a panel at TVNewsCheck’s Television Production in a Changed World virtual conference last week.

Local broadcasters and cable operators needn’t be constantly at odds with each other, leaders from Fox Television Stations, Hearst Television and Gray Television said in a panel last week that also tackled streaming, M&A and diversity.

Fox Television Stations’ WTTG-WDCA Washington duopoly moved into its new home in suburban Bethesda, Md., in late July, a facility that puts its assignment desk, technical operations center and news sets at the architectural center.

TV station leaders and syndication producers face ever-changing guidance on how and when to bring people back as caution continues to abound and stringent COVID protocols return. Above, on Fox First-Run’s new syndicated show, You Bet Your Life, starring Jay Leno and his former Tonight Show band leader Kevin Eubanks, the live audience of 40-60 people are all vaccinated and masked. Note: This story is available to TVNewsCheck Premium members only. If you would like to upgrade your free TVNewsCheck membership to Premium now, you can visit your Member Home Page, available when you log in at the very top right corner of the site or in the Stay Connected Box that appears in the right column of virtually every page on the site. If you don’t see Member Home, you will need to click Log In or Subscribe.

Fox-owned WTTG (Fox) and WDCA (MNT) are now broadcasting from 7272 Wisconsin Ave. in suburban Bethesda, Md., which is about two miles from their previous location at 5151 Wisconsin Ave. in the District of Columbia where the stations had been located since 1966.

He is promoted from digital marketing and strategic partnerships at Fox Television Stations.

The return of the classic game show hosted by Jay Leno has been sold in 190 U.S. markets to station groups including Sinclair, Nexstar, Scripps, Tegna, Meredith, Gray, Hearst, McKinnon, Standard Media, Block, Lockwood, Mission and Sun Broadcasting. It launches on Sept. 13.

Hosted By Jerry O’Connell, the game show based on the classic sketch game, will have a four-week run beginning July 12.

Streaming executives from CBS News Digital, Fox Television Stations, Gray Television and KSL Salt Lake City say live and local content, good UX and quality control are key factors in finding and retaining audiences in the highly competitive OTT space.