TV stations may consider farming out sportscasts (Dinosaur Media DeathWatch™)

Chicago Tribune ^ | March 20, 2009 | Phil Rosenthal

[abb]

WMAQ-Ch. 5 and WFLD-Ch. 32 have an opening for their Local News Service

The games are the same, as are the scores. Highlights and interview sound bites vary only slightly. What differentiates the sportscast on one local newscast from another—occasionally memorable enterprise features and reporting notwithstanding—is mostly the writing, the reading and the rapport of those who bring it to us.

So what would happen if one station's news operation farmed out its sports segment? What if a deal was struck with, say, Comcast SportsNet to produce and deliver that part of the newscast?

If such an arrangement could get past the unions, would that be an effective way to reduce costs? Or would the loss of identity, control and other potential pitfalls make it a mistake, no matter how shrewd it might initially seem?

It's not as though a Chicago station is poised to make that move yet. But at least one media outfit's brainstorming sessions have yielded such a scenario. And no one in this or any other market—in broadcast or print—can afford to shrug it off.

Revenue declines, splintering audiences and the need to reduce costs and staffing in the least damaging way have even still-profitable media operations weighing what to do after all the corners have been cut.

Partnerships, content-sharing, outsourcing—everything's on the table.

Even though no formal announcement has been made of an imminent launch, an opening for a managing editor has been posted for the Local News Service, or LNS. That's the video service NBC-owned WMAQ-Ch. 5 and Fox-owned WFLD-Ch. 32 have talked about in recent months.

The service would pool resources to share non-proprietary raw video of events such as fires and news conferences that participants could edit and use as they see fit.

snip

[abb]

"By the end of this decade or shortly thereafter, television networks as we know them today will cease to exist. They will be just another url on the world wide web competing against millions of others."

"Network evening newscasts will go dark after the '08 elections and their news divisions disbanded."

Walter Abbott, (b. 1950), Media observer and commentator

[abb]

ping

[abb]

http://www.journalism.org/index_report/bloggers_ponder_decline_religion_economic_prosperity_and_newspapers
PEJ New Media Index: March 9-13, 2009
Bloggers Ponder the Decline of Religion, Economic Prosperity and Newspapers

http://recoveringjournalist.typepad.com/recovering_journalist/
Point-Counterpoint on Newspapers. Rinse. Repeat. Endlessly

Newsday Throws Itself Off The Paywall Cliff

http://www.niemanlab.org/
Why young reporters need to get past their institutional mindsets; or, how reporters are like priests

Arthur Sulzberger & Walter Isaacson on making money online — in 1995

[Luke21]

I wanted to be a sportscaster from age eleven. I met my wife calling a high school game for a local radio station in 1976. We've been married nearly thirty two years.

In 1983, no less than Harry Caray told me that I was swimming upstream, that I either had to be related to someone in the business or an ex-jock. What he didn't tell me about was affirmative action. I learned about that soon enough.

[abb]

http://www.newspaperdeathwatch.com/
Layoff Log

http://cancelthebee.blogspot.com/
Looming disaster in Miami?... figures published yesterday show circulation at the Miami Herald has fallen by 50,000 in the past year

http://www.businessinsider.com/hearst-had-offers-for-the-seattle-p-i-they-just-werent-any-good-2009-3
Hearst Had Offers For The Seattle P-I, They Just Weren’t Any Good

http://www.cjr.org/behind_the_news/shortshrifting_seattle.php?page=all
Short-Shrifting Seattle

http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/6092145.html
Newspapers’ suitor has real estate-based price

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-et-rainey20-2009mar20,0,7281321.story
Newspaper cuts open door to more political trickery

http://www.nypost.com/seven/03202009/business/a_pretty_thin_portfolio_160390.htm?page=0
A PRETTY THIN PORTFOLIO

http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/ss/fromcomments/112484.php
Negotiations continue for possible sale of Citizen

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2009/03/20/notes032009.DTL
Die, newspaper, die?

http://www.onpointradio.org/shows/2009/03/local-news-without-paper/
Local News, Without Paper

http://xark.typepad.com/my_weblog/2009/03/news-futures-a-whats-next-overview.html
2020 vision: What’s next for news

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/20/business/20paper.html?_r=2&ref=todayspaper
Newsprint Firm Tries to Revamp Debt to Avoid Bankruptcy

[abb]

http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/Television_44/Call_it_March_sweeps_but_not_really.asp
Call it March sweeps, but not really

http://www.medialifemagazine.com/artman2/publish/Newspapers_24/The_tragedy_that_s_not_Newspapers.asp
The tragedy that’s not: Newspapers

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118001431.html?categoryid=18&cs=1
Media biz in coin catch

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aUelnan1CmEk
Sony Will Freeze Workers’ Pay, Trim Bonuses as It Faces Loss

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008888422_apwaseattlepitraffic.html
Hearst encouraged by Seattle P-I debut as Web-only

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=aO1VCr.GHV_o
Newspapers Face More Bankruptcies This Year, S&P Says

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003953811
Freedom Communications to Implement One-Week Furloughs

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003953774
‘Star-Ledger’ Appears to be Planning Unpaid Furloughs

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190364-Primetime_Ratings_ABC_and_CBS_Tie_on_March_Madness_Opening_Night.php
Primetime Ratings: ABC and CBS Tie on March Madness Opening Night

http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/190361-Senators_Want_Spectrum_Inventory_Reform.php
Senators Want Spectrum Inventory, Reform
Kerry and Snowe introduce bill requiring review of current uses of spectrum

[Zakeet]

TV stations may consider farming out sportscasts

TV Weenies have been pulling the material in their news and sports broadcasts off the wires and out of newspapers for years. Even at the national level, if you want to know that will run on the major alphabet nitworks, pick up a copy of the New York Times.

What is different is that now they are considering having one joker do the deed for all stations -- from Bangor to Bakersfield -- with a complete loss of local identity. Since local coverage is the main reason most people tune into the local yokels in the first place over a national sportscast such as ESPN, this latest cost savings measure is indeed a sign of desperation.

[abb]

An interesting web site here:

http://long-lines.net/

All kinds of history of how complicated electronic networks once were. When they had this monopoly, they could (and did) charge lots of money for advertising.

All gone now. The web has destroyed the entire model.

[bgill]

I’ve been calling news stations and newspapers all over the state today. About 10% of the calls I’ve actually gotten through to a person and most of those stopped at clerks who are incapable of taking a message. I tried speaking to Jason (please let his boss see this) at Houston’s KHOU who was too rude to even take down my information and when I said I’ll call another tv station he hung up.

My eyes have been opened today. I am shocked at how many newspapers and tv stations are merely getting their stories from AP rather than actually going out and researching what they’re reporting. We all know AP isn’t reliable but the local media is happy reguritating lies and shoddy reporting to the sheeple. They can’t even be bothered with looking at the true facts on a particular business’ web site. At an Austin news station, the woman did manage to get to the site but couldn’t understand the simple pie chart and said she could only report what the business spokesperson told her. Hey, I’m the Queen of England but don’t bother taking 5 minutes to check the facts that prove I’m not. I’ll eat that pie chart if she didn’t vote RAT.

[Radix]

"They can’t even be bothered with looking at the true facts on a particular business’ web site."

I learned long ago that in Science one does not deal with "truth" (tautologies aside), rather facts are observed and hypotheses are developed, etc....

The media has for a long time now not been interested in either "facts" or "truth."

[abb]

http://www.portfolio.com/views/blogs/mixed-media/2009/03/19/building-an-online-news-empire-one-city-at-a-time
Building an Online News Empire, One City at a Time

http://www.nationaljournal.com/njonline/no_20090319_3231.php
USA Today To Close Its Hong Kong Bureau

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003953697
SPECIAL REPORT: Content-Sharing Agreements Gain Traction

[abb]

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003953856
Memphis ‘Commercial Appeal’ Cuts Newsroom Staff

http://www.editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003953839
Then There Were Nine: ‘News-Gazette’ to Stop All-Day Publication

[Erasmus]

You wouldn't perchance be talking about a moderately hot but airheaded Hispanic Newsette, who was observed making out in an SUV in the station parking lot with her somewhat older country music singer boyfriend,

Would you?

≤}B^)

[abb]

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123758861909300001.html#mod=testMod
Time Publisher Donald Fries Steps Down