Journalism

The five-hour block of programming titled “Portraits in Black” will examine seminal events from the past as well as current events, including the response by athletes following the shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin.

More and more, fact-checkers seem to be trying to bail out an ancient, rusty and sinking freighter with the energetic use of measuring cups and thimbles.

Black sports broadcasters have faced harsh criticism — and consequences — when delving into social issues in recent years. But as the player work stoppage demonstrated, those issues, particularly racial injustice, are absolutely entwined with the on-field action those journalists are paid to cover.

Executives from Nexstar, Newsy, CBS Local Digital and Local Now will assess ad technology’s performance amid the pandemic’s growing streaming audience at TVNewsCheck’s virtual OTT News Summit on Sept. 24. Register here.

Fox News dominated ratings for the Republican convention, and MSNBC was the clear No. 1 for the Democrats’ gathering.

One of the worst-case scenarios for a television station played out early Thursday morning as the strong winds of Hurricane Laura moved into southwest Louisiana. The transmission tower of KPLC was snapped in half during the fierce storm, sending the top portion of the tower tumbling down into the station’s broadcast studio below.

Tucker Carlson is being criticized for suggesting that no one should be surprised by the killing of two demonstrators during social unrest in Kenosha, Wis.

Republican National Convention TV viewership fell off significantly on its third night, which was highlighted by Vice President Mike Pence’s acceptance speech from Fort McHenry. According to early numbers from Nielsen, an average of 15.7 million viewers watched in the 10-11:15 p.m. ET time frame across six networks. That compares to 18 million who watched in the same period on Tuesday, when First Lady Melania Trump spoke from the Rose Garden at the White House.

ABC News will host a town hall with President Donald Trump and undecided voters on Sept. 15. George Stephanopoulos will anchor the event, which will take place in Philadelphia and will held in accordance with state and local government COVID-19 regulations and guidelines set by local health officials. The event will air at 9 p.m. ET on the network and ABC News Live.

Throughout the convention coverage Wednesday, there were hints that a lot was going on in the wider world. CNN weather forecaster Tom Sater delivered an apocalyptic view of Hurricane Laura shortly before 10:30 p.m. ET, and CBS’s Norah O’Donnell noted “the biggest day of sports activism ever.” NBC News cut to a reporter on the streets of Kenosha, Wis., and CNN’s Dana Bash read former President Barack Obama’s tweet in support of NBA players angered by police shootings.

Margaret Sullivan: “Perhaps more than any other Trump official, she has undermined the entire notion that truthful information should be expected from the White House and that public officials at the highest level should be held accountable for their words and deeds. Yet she kept being invited on the air, she continued being a key source for reporters, and she schmoozed her way through every problem.”

Austin Kellerman, Nexstar’s director of digital content: “When talking to newsrooms and journalists about social media, I often urge them to try to find their voice in major stories. Think about the angles no one is talking about and create that content for your timeline. That’s exactly what happened to me during the coronavirus crisis — only I kind of stumbled on it. The result ended up being roughly 8,000 new followers in March and April. How did it happen? Let’s break it down.”

Panelists from NBC, CBS, Graham and Fox will tackle the challenges of launching new content and adapting streaming programming in a year upended by COVID-19 and explosive protests at TVNewsCheck’s virtual event on Sept. 22. Register here.

The “World News Tonight” anchor’s nightly summary averaged 8.2 million viewers last week, more than any primetime program on television, according to Nielsen.