WEHT Sends Reporter to Haiti

January 21, 2010, Greencastle, Ind. — "WEHT sent reporter Courtney Fischer to the devastated island nation of Haiti yesterday," notes an item in the Evansville Courier & Press. "She is traveling with Bible Center Cathedral members, who are there to assess and repair damage to the orphanage the church sponsors there, as well as prepare it for use as a relief station for those displaced by the massive earthquake that struck the island recently. Fischer is expected to report live from Haiti this week via broadband."

http://www.depauw.edu/news/?id=24769

Evansville TV Updates in Sports, Programming, and Haiti Live Shots

Friday night promises to be another great night for fans of high school sports, as WEHT-News25's sports team will broadcast the Class 3A boys basketball matchup between the Washington Hatchets and the Princeton Tigers live from Princeton's historical gym.

The game will air at 7 p.m. Friday on RTV25 (channel 25.2), which is available over the air and also on a number of cable outlets in the Tri-State. For those of you who can't get the channel, it also will be streamed live on the station's Web site.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/jan/21/high-school-basketball-coverage-tips-off-on-weht/

WFIE GM Happy Leno's Back to Late Night

After watching its affiliates' late news ratings tank since the September debut of "The Jay Leno Show," NBC finally has capitulated to the stations' demands and announced that the show will move from that slot soon.

Network officials announced Sunday that Leno's last show will be Feb. 11.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/jan/14/affiliates-thrilled-nbc-moving-leno-to-later/

WEVV Resolves Basketball Conflict

It's nice to see other stations step up to the plate when sporting (and other) events of local interest get bumped elsewhere. WEVV-My44 is doing so this coming weekend with the SEC basketball games on Saturday.




Here's the official press release from the station:

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2010/01/wevv-my44-to-air-sec-basketball.html

Evansville Anchor and Producer Heads to Louisville

There isn't much news to bring you this week because not much happens in local TV over the holidays, but I do have a couple of items to pass along, so let's get right to it.

First up this week, our loss is Louisville's gain as WEHT-News25 bids farewell to two team members: Daybreak anchor Jon Chrisos and newscast producer Ryan Nash are leaving the station for new positions at WAVE-3, the Raycom Media-owned NBC affiliate in Louisville, Ky.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2010/jan/07/local-tv-station-bids-farewell-to-anchor/

Evansville Ratings - Leno Effect at Play?

Well, folks, the numbers are in, and as I suspected, there's good news and bad news for just about everyone at the local news stations.



Get the full details after the jump ... the graphic is just part of the story!

When I wrote recently that I wasn't sure if WFIE's 14NEWS at 10 would overcome the inertia of Jay Leno's almost complete failure at 9:00, I told you that I thought NEWS25 had the opportunity to take the time slot.

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/12/ratings-are-in-wfie-maintains-lead-in.html

Local HD News Coming to Evansville

Last week, I mentioned that 14WFIE-NBC intends at some point to broadcast its newscasts in high definition. That would make WFIE the first station here to broadcast local news in HD.

However, when it comes to network and syndicated programming in HD, the fine folks at 44 Main St. took up the task of converting their station to "all-HD, all the time" just about a year ago — and they did a fantastic job.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/oct/08/wfie-taking-first-leap-into-high-definition-news/

Blogger Shows Folks How to Build Their Own Antenna

I'd like to start off this week by thanking everyone who took the time to get in touch with me. I've answered 25 to 30 e-mails from readers.
Probably the top concern of those who've written to me involves problems getting certain stations. WEHT-ABC25 is, as I figured it would be, the hardest station for most folks to get. There is some good news to report: The station has taken delivery of its new transmission antenna, and hopefully that will solve many problems. But we won't know for sure until it's installed and operational.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/sep/17/build-your-own-antenna-from-things-around-the/

WEVV Goes Pink

There's a reason for the pinkish hue you're about to see on Evansville's CBS affiliate.In a press release, WEVV says their station IDs and spots for syndicated programming will be pink and bear the signature pink ribbon of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation, signifying the station's support for the "Race for the Cure" on September 19 and also for Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is the month of October.
http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/09/wevv-is-going-pink.html

Local TV Still Ironing Out Digital Lineups

Growing up in the Tri-State means I've witnessed a lot of memorable TV moments over the years.
Strikes.
Plane crashes.
Personnel changes.
Severe weather.
The 1995 "great affiliate switch" that saw WTVW, WEHT and WEVV all change networks.
But nothing has captured my attention the way that the recent switch to digital television has.
Television in the Tri-State today is, if anything, even more interesting than it's ever been. Even for those — such as myself — who refuse to subscribe to cable, the choices available to us are great.
http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/sep/10/no-headline---10b10tv-col/

Fox 7 Announces New Anchor

When Julie Dolan was a third grader growing up in Cincinnati she’d make up her own newscasts at home. Play anchorwoman.
“I’d interview my brother and make him dress up as different people,” the 25-year-old journalist said this afternoon, sitting at the anchor desk of WTVW-Fox7 in Downtown Evansville prior to delivering her first official broadcast as the station’s permanent co-anchor.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/aug/24/fox-7-introduces-its-new-anchorwoman/

Evansville Celebrates 1 Year of RTN-TV

August 25 will mark RTV's first anniversary in the Evansville market on WEHT 25.2.If you've been with us from the earliest days of JDTVB, you may remember my excitement at being able to watch the classic programming on what was then known as RTN TV 25.

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/flashback-1-evansvilles-rtv-then-rtn.html

WEHT's Work on Antenna Shuts Them Down

It looks like WEHT [25.1 ABC/25.2 RTV] is about ready to take the next step in their new antenna project, but, according to the following message on their website, they'll have to spend most of Saturday off the air (and, for safety purposes for those working on the tower, it's understandable):
http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/getting-you-closer-weht-tower-work.html

Significant Signal Issues at WEHT?

Evansville ABC/RTV affiliate WEHT is mentioned throughout this post. I'm fairly blunt in my own assessment of the station's (significant) signal issues, and I am also firm in my belief that what they're doing now will, more than likely, not be sufficient to take care of the problems at hand.

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/08/vhf-vs-uhf-revisited-why-weht-just-wont.html

Jake's DTV Blog - Poll for Evansville Market Readers

Good morning, readers! I have now posted the August poll questions, which for this month will be geared to our Evansville-market readers who watch OVER THE AIR only, so for those of you who read us in the Bowling Green, Louisville and Nashville markets, please do not vote this month.Of course, if you have a poll question you'd like to submit for a station or topic in your area, you are most welcome to do so.

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/august-polls-now-up-and-running.html

WTVW's Jackie Monroe Moves to WFIE

Viewers won't be seeing television news anchor Jackie Monroe on Evansville's airwaves any time soon — but she's still around and plans to return.
Monroe, who formerly co-anchored the 6, 6:30 and 9 p.m. newscasts at local Fox affiliate WTVW, has left that station to work for Evansville's NBC affiliate, 14WFIE-NBC. Monroe's last day of employment at WTVW was Friday, and her last day on the air was July 10.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/jul/21/anchor-monroe-leaves-fox-for-nbc/

The Peggy Mitchell Show Memorabilia on Display

Fans of “The Peggy Mitchell Show” can get a close-up look at puppets, pictures and other memorabilia from the show in an exhibit at Central Library.
Mitchell, who died in April at age 73, hosted “The Peggy Mitchell Show” on WEHT Channel 25 from 1961-86. The show’s puppet characters included Ezmarelda, Terrible Tilly and Monkey Shine, and Mitchell often invited Tri-State children to join her on the show.
Other items in the exhibit include Mitchell’s puppet house, news stories and music. All of the items are on loan from Mitchell’s son, Kirk.

The exhibit is on display in the library’s lobby through the end of August.

http://www.courierpress.com/news/2009/jul/17/peggy-mitchell-show-memorabilia-display-central-li/

Criticism of WEHT Promos Sparks Lively Online Debate

Last Friday, I posted an entry about WEHT's new station promos, and my feelings about them.If nothing else, it's certainly sparked a lively discussion, based on the comments that have been posted since then. Earl Waitman, whose job it is to make the promos for WEHT, had this to say:

There was a time in TV when all stations took shots at each other. Almost all competitors in every line of work invite direct comparison. If you are proud of your product you have nothing to fear. These promos do nothing more than invite the viewer to make a direct comparison between the tv newscasts and not be brainwashed into watching a certain station's news. If this wish of free will and independent thought is somehow disturbing to you, I would suggest that you are completely missing the point of WEHT's promos.

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/07/weht-promos-revisited.html

Evansville's Jimmy Mack Inducted into Indiana Hall of Fame

Entertainment defines Jim McDowell's life. The 86-year-old Far-Northside resident will be inducted into the Indiana Broadcast Association Hall of Fame on Oct. 1.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20090611/LOCAL1802/906110328/1195/LOCAL18/+Jimmy+Mack++joins+Hall+of+Fame

Some WTVW Viewers to Lose Signal with Switch to Digital

In watching Evansville Fox affiliate WTVW over the past several days, I noticed that some viewers will lose that station's signal as well, and in southeastern Illinois, some residents of the following counties won't be able to watch Fox programming at all if they have no cable or satellite service:

http://jakesdtvblog.blogspot.com/2009/05/some-wtvw-viewers-to-lose-signal-with.html