40/29 Touts February Book Results

40/29 News (KHBS/KHOG-TV) continues to dominate news ratings in Northwest Arkansas, according to the latest Nielsen survey.

“40/29 beats the combined household ratings of KFSM and KNWA in most newscasts. KHOG was the first station to cover Northwest Arkansas, and we remain the news leader,” said Jim Prestwood, President/General Manager of 40/29 News. “We do our best to provide strong news and weather coverage, and we’re gratified the viewers of Northwest Arkansas respond to it.”

Mr. Prestwood, describes the station’s commitment: “40/29 News is the leading destination for local TV news in Northwest Arkansas, and our website, 4029TV.com, is the number 1 local TV website. Our mission is to serve our viewers with live, local, late breaking coverage in every newscast, and to serve our advertisers by delivering an audience they simply can’t find anywhere else.”


Monday-Friday: Early Morning (5:30-7AM) Local News
Station HH Rating Local News Share
KHBS-KHOG-TV (ABC) 5.6 57.7
KFSM-TV (CBS) 3.5 36.1
KNWA-TV (NBC) 0.6 16.2

Monday-Friday: Evening News Household Ratings
Station 5p Rating 6p Rating 10p Rating Evening Share
KHOG-TV (ABC) 11.8 12.4 9.7 46.8
KFSM-TV (CBS) 7.8 7.2 6.0 29.0
KNWA-TV (NBC) 4.0 4.8 8.8 24.2

40/29 News To Expand Sunrise Newscast

Source: KHBS-KHOG Press Release Beginning Monday, 40/29 News Sunrise will be expanding to two hours, with a new start time of 5 a.m.

This makes 40/29 News the area’s only station providing local news and weather coverage at 5 a.m.

“This expansion has been in the works for some time.” According to News Director Mike Courington, “We realize that people are getting up earlier and looking for local news and weather.”

40/29 News Sunrise is anchored by Jennifer Haile, a graduate of the University of Arkansas. She is joined weekday mornings by AMS Certified Meteorologist Justin Povick. The duo is the most experienced morning news team in the area.

“We look forward to the expanded format.” Says Jennifer, “it allows us to provide viewers with the information they need at their convenience.”

KTHV and KARK Gain Ground in February Book

Arkansas Business.com has the numbers from the February ratings book. Below are the highlights:

> KTHV is still the overall leader at 5 a.m. and 6 a.m. (4.2 rating, 26 share and 8.4 rating and 29 share, respectively), but KARK is creeping into its territory with a 3.7 rating and 23 share at 5 a.m. and a 6.3 rating and 22 share at 6 a.m.

Veterans Tracy Douglass, Matt Mosler and Mike Francis, alongside the comparatively newer Melissa Simas, has “KARK 4 Today” in solid second ahead of KATV’s 2.9 rating and 19 share at 5 a.m. and 4.8 rating and 16 share at 6 a.m.

> It’s also worth noting that KARK’s traditional stronghold at noon, boosted by its eternal “Dialing for Dollars” shtick, again was far ahead of the pack with an 8.5 rating and 28 share.

> A 12.2 rating and 26 share at 5 p.m., along with a 14.9 rating and 27 share at 6 p.m., has the ABC affiliate well ahead of the other two competing stations, though in year-to-year comparisons KATV has lost some ground in most major demos.

KARK pulled out a second place at 5 p.m. with a 9.4 rating and 20 share, but swapped with KTHV at 6 p.m. The household designated market-area numbers show a tie between KTHV and KARK at 6 p.m., each with an 8.5 rating and 15 share, but KTHV leads in most demos at that hour.

> Channel 11 brought in a 12.5 rating and 25 share weekdays at 10 p.m., while KATV had a 10.9 rating and 22 share. Last February, the ABC affiliate was in the lead with a 12.5 rating and 25.5 share.

KATV Being Sued by Family of Woman Killed in Ells Accident

Source: Associated Press The family of a woman killed when a car driven by University of Arkansas football broadcaster Paul Eells crossed the median of Interstate 40 and hit her car has sued the television station where he worked. The suit filed by the family of Billie Jo Burton of Dover claims that the station was negligent.

The 70-year-old Eells, who worked for KATV in Little Rock, and the 40-year-old Burton both died in the accident last July 31 near Russellville. The Burton family sued in Pope County Circuit Court but the lawsuit was moved Tuesday to federal court in Little Rock.

In its response Thursday, the television station denied negligence. In its filing, the station acknowledged only that Eells worked for it, that he and Burton died of injuries suffered in a car accident and that Eells played golf and worked for the station on the day he died.

The Burton family lawsuit said Eells was negligent and that KATV, because Eells worked for the station and was driving a car that the station owned, was also at fault.

Little Rock Stations Receive Murrow Awards

The RTNDA has announced the list of Edward R. Murrow award winners. Below are the winners from the Little Rock market:

Overall Excellence: KATV-TV, Little Rock, AR

Continuing Coverage: KLRT-TV, Little Rock, AR Casey Crowder Amber Alert

Feature Reporting: KARK-TV, Little Rock, AR Bracketology

Spot News Coverage: KATV-TV, Little Rock, AR Cabot School Fire

Writing: KARK-TV, Little Rock, AR CSI/Hall

LR Clear Channel Stations Hit by Fine

Source: Broadcasting and Cable The FCC has proposed another $26,000 in fines against TV stations-- in this case two Arkansas outlets owned by Clear Channel-- for what it called "willful and repeated" violations of commercial limits in children's programming and kids TV reporting violations.

The FCC proposed fining KLRT-TV Little Rock, Ark., $14,000 for a number of violations, including airing a Garfield commercial in a TV show containing the character, as well as misplacing and failing to file required documents regarding its children's programming. Garfield was a not allowed because the FCC limits commercials in kids TV shows to 10.5 minutes on weekends and 12.5 minutes during the week. The FCC counts the entire show as a commercial if it contains so-called host selling.

The commission proposed fining Clear Channel's KASN-TV Pine Bluff, Ark. for similar filing lapses, and for airing a Fruit Loops commercial in 2001 featuring Buzz Lightyear during a Buzz Lightyear show.

The FCC has proposed fines and official sanctions against a number of stations for kids TV rule violations in the past year.

Ditchfield Ditching THV

Arkansas Business.com reports KTHV meteorologist Becky Ditchfield is leaving the station for the morning weather gig at KUSA-TV, Channel 9 in Denver. Ditchfield came to Little Rock in July2004.

Former KTHV Anchor Becomes Financial Advisor

I had several sources on this story. From e-mails I received it was in the daily Bull Whiz e-letter and Arkansas Business.com has a story about it. Former KTHV anchor anchor Andy Pearson has given up the anchor chair to be a financial advisor for UBS Financial Services Inc.

What does Pearson have to say about the move? “The television business had sort of changed, and the single thing I enjoyed most about it was the ability to help people and tell their stories,” said Pearson. “What better way to help someone than to do it financially? That could potentially last for generations.”

KLRT FOX News at 5pm and 5:30pm Starts Monday

Scott Returns to the THV Anchor Desk Monday

Liz Massey just announced that Dawn Scott will return to the anchor desk at KTHV on Monday. Scott has been on maternity leave since mid-December. She returned to the KTHV anchor desk in November 2006. This could prove to be interesting as KTHV will have to come up with some sort of anchor pairing now that Andy Pearson is out of the picture.

KAIT GM Named GM of New South Carolina Station

KAIT employees learned today their GM would be heading to South Carolina to head up a new station there. Below is a copy of the e-mail sent to staffers:

I’m pleased to announce that Ted Fortenberry, V.P. General Manager of KAIT-TV, Jonesboro, Arkansas has been appointed V.P. General Manager of soon to be constructed, WMBF-TV, Myrtle Beach/Florence, South Carolina. Before heading KAIT, Ted was its General Sales Manager. Prior to that, he served in various sales management positions at stations in Charlotte, NC, Greenville, SC, as well as cable sales in New Orleans. Ted started his career in broadcasting at our very own WDAM-TV, Hattiesburg, MS.

Ted has done an outstanding job managing KAIT. We’re confident that his multi-station experience with News, Marketing, and particularly Sales will serve Raycom well in building WMBF into a competitive NBC affiliate in the growing Myrtle Beach/Florence market. WMBF is scheduled to sign on the air summer of 2008. Ted and his family will be moving to Myrtle Beach this summer.

Ted is a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi, with a BS Degree in Television, Radio and Film. Please joining me in wishing he and his family well in his new endeavor.

Marty Edelman
Senior Vice President - Television
Raycom Media

Morkert to Portland

Well, we now know what station former KATV Jessica Morkert moved to. Morkert is now a reporter at KOIN in Portland, Oregon. Morkert had been with KATV since September 2004.

KARK on KARN

This from a tipster: "KARK 4 started providing weather reports for KARN Newsradio on Monday March 12. KARN is also using clips from KARK's news broadcasts."

KARK Makes News

A blog reader sent in this screen grab from a KARK newscast earlier in the week. Notice the label on the interstate.

Owners of KMSS and KSHV Told to Sell Some of its Stations Under Bankruptcy Reorganization Plan

Communications Corp. of America, the parent company of KMSS/Shreveport, and White Knight Broadcasting, parent company of KSHV/Shreveport have been told by a bankruptcy court to sell some of their stations. Below is a excerpt from an article from The Advocate:

Bankruptcy court records show Communications Corp. of America and White Knight Broadcasting hope to raise as much as $100 million by selling two or three of the companies’ 23 TV stations in Louisiana, Texas and Indiana.

“It’s more likely that the sale will generate $75 million to $80 million,” said William Patrick III, the attorney for Communications Corp.

Among its holdings, White Knight owns WVLA-TV Channel 33 and independent KZUP-TV Channel 19 in Baton Rouge.

Communications Corporation of America owns Fox affiliate WGMB-TV Channel 44 and WBRL-TV Channel 21 in Baton Rouge and Fox affiliate KADN-TV Channel 15 and KLAF-TV Channel 17 in Lafayette.

The companies say they operate independently but say the firms are connected through a variety of arrangements, including sharing service agreements. In addition, Communications Corporation provides accounting and billing services for White Knight.

By selling the stations, the companies will be able to reduce the $230 million owed senior lenders to a manageable level, Patrick said. The companies can then refinance the remaining debt or work with another lender to take on the secured debt.

Shreveport FOX Affiliate Starting a Local Newscast?

KMSS FOX 33 in Shreveport is advertising for a news reporter and a photographer...could only make one wonder if the station is gonna start up a local newscast. KMSS is owned by Communications Corporation of America.

THV's Ed, Tom and Becky Head Out to the Ballgame

Looks as though you'll be seeing Ed, Tom and Becky of THV everytime you head out to the new home of the Arkansas Travelers. According to an article at Arkansas Business.com, KTHV has signed a deal making KTHV the official weather station of Dickey-Stephens Park. According to the article, weather forecasts will be shown on the big screen at the park before and during ballgames.