New Deuce Named in Indianapolis

KFVS (Cape Girardeau, MO) assistant news director Jeff Mulligan is keeping his job title but changing stations. MUlligan is headed to Indianapolis to become the Deuce at WISH.

Steve Bray, News Director for WISH-TV has announced Jeff Mulligan has been hired assistant news director of 24-Hour News 8.

Let's see what the Creative Services Department has come up with for Bray's soundbite: about the new hire:

“We are thrilled to have Jeff joining our newsroom,” said Bray.  “His knowledge, experience and journalistic integrity will continue to build on our already strong foundation and our mission to bring the very best news coverage to our viewers.”

Prior to being the assistant news director at KFVS, Mulligan was the executive producer for WDAF, in Kansas City, MO, where he served previously as producer for their morning and late newscasts.  He began his news producing career right here in Indiana at WTWO, in Terre Haute. 

"I'm looking forward to joining the 24-Hour News 8 team,” said Mulligan.  “I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work serving the viewers of Central Indiana."

Just Asking....

Is there anyone working in Houston TV News that is not pregnant?  

NBC is Fully Behind David Gregory (For what it's Worth)

Earlier this week, FTVLive told you that NBC's Meet the Press has watched their ratings to the lowest levels in two decades. 

One NY newspaper hinted that MTP host David Gregory could be on thin ice with the Peacock. Although it should be pointed out that Gregory did recently sign a new deal with the network. 

So what does NBC have to say about Gregory, his low ratings and reports he could be replaced? "There is absolutely zero truth to this. David Gregory and 'Meet the Press' have the full faith and support of NBC News," the spokesperson said.

So that should be good news for Gregory....right?

Yes...except I think I remember NBC saying the same exact thing about Ann Curry at the Today Show. 

How did that work out?  

No! You Can't Be serious?!

OK cable news networks, please tell us you guys are doing this on purpose and Ashton.....errrr Chris Kutcher is going to jump out of our TV set and say we've been punk'd.

A day after FTVLive showed you how MSNBC moved Buffalo, Syracuse and Binghamton across the state on a map, HLN does them one better. 

Nancy Grace's show didn't even get the city in the right state. The show moved  Morehead Lake, Idaho into the middle of Oklahoma. 

I'm sure there is a good Morehead joke to go along with this story, but it's too early.  

Ummmm..... I Think I Can Guess

WABC Reporter Sarah Wallace was covering the story of the NJ Transit bus driver that was accused of masturbating while driving the bus. 

According to her Twitter post, Wallace asked the guy "What were you thinking?" 

Let's see he was Masturbating... do you really want to know what he was thinking Sarah?

If the bus driver had not been caught, word is he would have gotten off at the next stop.

Thank you...... I'll be here all week.  

Newt already Rocking the Boat at CNN

Fresh new CNN employee Newt Gringich is taking his network to task and his show hasn't even hit the air.

Gingrich is complaining about CNN's planned Hillary Clinton documentary.

Though the CNN newsroom is not involved in the project, it will still air on the network -- something that has caused Republican National Committee chair Reince Priebus to pledge that CNN will be banned from any upcoming Republican debates.

Gringrich says that CNN should grant the RNC equal time if they run the Hillary documentary.

Newt isn't the only CNN staffer who doesn't like the idea of the doc. Candy Crowley has said that the documentary would make things "more difficult" for her and her colleagues.

But at least Crowley has been at CNN for years and maybe has more of a right to question her network. 

Newt hasn't even got his CNN employee idea and orientation packet yet.

Look out Jeff Zucker!

H/T HuffPo  

The Redhead on Today

Al Roker posted a Vine this morning showing Savannah Guthrie's new hairdo.  

Guthrie has gone with red as her new hair color.  

FTVLive likes it...in fact we like it so much with think Matt Lauer should change his hair colo......... errrrrrrrrr..... never mind.  

The Viewers Demanded It!

In our 20+ years of working in TV News, not one time (NEVER) have we heard a viewer says they wanted the station to add a newscast.

Yet it seems like every time a station does add a newscast, they claim it was because the viewer demanded it.  

The latest station to give us this baloney is WMTW in Portland, Maine. Starting Sept. 9th the station will start doing a 5PM newscast.

Why?  

"Viewers want more and continually tell us that they want News 8 earlier in the afternoon," GM Dave Abel said. "We're thrilled that WMTW is growing each year and across so much of our programming and platforms." Adding a 5 p.m. newscast was "a logical step," he said.

"By strengthening our product we will reward our longtime watchers with more local weather and news while attracting a growing audience seeking something new and fresh," Abel said.

Well it's good to know that the new newscast will be fresh and not just some news from like a month ago. 

Anchor Tracy Sabol and meteorologist Roger Griswold will be part of the news team for the new broadcast, Abel said.

We've heard from the GM, but doesn't Anchor Roger Griswold get an obligatory sound bite that says absolutely nothing and panders to the viewers?

The new newscast, "opens up a large opportunity for hard-working Mainers to watch our reports, our forecasts and prepare them for the rest of the day and the week," Griswold said.

Ahhhhh...now the press release is complete.  

Al Jazeera America to be Like NPR

If you are wondering (and aren't we all) what the new Al Jazeera America will be like?  

The net promises it won't be like it's middle eastern conutrepart that pissed many Americans off by broadcasting video messages from Al Qaeda terrorists including Osama Bin Laden.

No...this will be the kinder and friendlier Al Jazeera.  

AJA network officials are promising measured, down-the-middle news reporting more reminiscent of NPR than anything on TV.

Will this win over American viewers and brings ratings? 

Of course not, but you got to give them credit for trying.  

It Took 49 Years....

.....But Glenn Beck finally admitted that he is in fact a clown. 

Anchor Comes Out and is Promptly Fired

It didn't take long after breaking the news for a Russian anchor to lose his job.  

Anton Krasovsky, a host and editor-in-chief of the Kremlin-backed KontrTV, came out during a broadcast Aug. 9 and was promptly fired from his job.

"I’m gay, and I’m just the same person as you, my dear audience, as President Putin, as Prime Minister Medvedev and the deputies of our Duma," Kravosky said. 

"I have made a lot of money in television and I understood that I’d lose everything," the 37-year-old said about his decision to come out publicly. "But I also understood that I couldn’t do anything else. I didn’t do it so that I would get hundreds of likes on my Facebook page. I did it because I wanted them to hear it in the Kremlin. And they heard it, and were surprised."

Video of Kravosky’s coming-out announcement was deleted from KontrTV's website and YouTube. 

Anti-gay Russian laws have made it virtually impossible to be an out gay or lesbian. Violence against LGBT people, particularly gay teens, is on the rise among Russian neo-Nazi groups. Law enforcement implicitly condones the violence and often participates in it.

 Wisconsin Gazette 

Weatherman Being Phased out in Buffalo

WKBW is slowly kicking their longtime weatherman out the door. 

At the end of this month, Meteorologist Mike Randall will have been working at the station for 30 years.

So how is the station rewarding their longtime weatherman? 

But cutting his pay and taking away his title of Chief Meteorologist. 

Randall is now the station's "senior meteorologist."  Aaron Mentkowski is now being referred to as the station’s "chief meteorologist." 

Randall is also having his hours at the station cut by about 20%.  

Sources add that the plan to reduce Randall's hours isn’t his idea.

Channel 7 General Manager Mike Nurse this morning confirmed that Randall's hours are being reduced but painted a more positive picture about why it is happening than sources have told me.

Nurse said the reductions in hours in the new deal "gives Mike more time for his other endeavors."

Nurse declined to say whether Randall took a pay cut. 

Yeah, like we can't figure that one out. 

H/T Buffalo News

RIP

Sad news coming out of Egypt.

Sky News cameraman Mick Deane was shot and killed in Egypt this morning.

Mick had worked for Sky for 15 years, based in Washington and then Jerusalem.

He was part of the team covering the violence in Cairo. The rest of the team are unhurt.

The Head of Sky News John Ryley described Mick as the very best of cameramen, a brilliant journalist and an inspiring mentor to many at Sky.

Sky's Foreign Affairs Editor Tim Marshall called Mick "a friend, brave as a lion but what a heart… what a human being".

He added: "Micky was humorous in a dry way, he was wise and when you're on the road with small teams, people like that are diamonds to be with.

"Our hearts go out to his family. He died doing what he'd done so brilliantly for decades."

Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted: "I am saddened to hear of the death of cameraman Mick Deane, covering Egyptian violence.

H/T Sky News