Senators Show Skepticism Towards Comcast Deal

/

Many people including FTVLive think that Comcast's proposed takeover of Time Warner is not a good idea.

Yesterday, a Senate Judiciary Committee held its hearing on the proposed Comcast-Time Warner Cable merger and many Senators seemed to be very skeptical about the deal.

The most combative moments in the hearing came courtesy of Minnesota senator Al Franken, who has made no secret of his opposition to the deal.

“There is no doubt that Comcast is a huge influential corporation, and I understand that there are over 100 lobbyists making the case for this deal to my colleagues and our staffs,” Franken said as he was called to ask question. He then noted that he had petitions signed by “over 100,000 people” questioning the deal. “I am against this deal, because I believe it does not meet other tests.”

Later in the hearing, Franken questioned Comcast’s business strategy to “upsell” consumers into bundles of services, as well as its “neighborhooding" dispute with Bloomberg TV.

Senators on both sides of the aisle seemed skeptical of some of the claims made by Comcast.

"Some of my friends here have never met a merger they didn’t like,” said Senator Orrin Hatch during the hearing.

Mike Lee, who also expressed generally support for the merger, with one caveat:

“Given well known political leanings of NBC, Comcast-Time Warner Cable might have the ability to discriminate against content, in particular conservative political content,” Lee said, referring to MSNBC, the left-leaning cable news channel owned by NBCUniversal. (Of course Comcast is also one of the closest cable partners to Fox News.)

H/T Capital NY

Nurse Sues Owner of WOWK

/
Nurse Sues Owner of WOWK

A nurse has sued the owner of WOWK (Charleston, WV) after she made a trip to the station for an insurance company.

Melinda Heiss claims she had a violent encounter with WOWK owner Bray Cary during an insurance physical at the station. Cary was seeking to buy a life insurance policy and an examination was required.

Heiss said she checked Cary’s vital signs and drew a vial of blood after he signed the various permission forms, but he grew hostile after she began asking him questions, the lawsuit claims. Cary refused to answer her questions, saying he’d already given the answers to the insurance agent.

The nurse explained that she was a medical professional and that her company had protocols that she had to follow. The lawsuit alleges that Cary still would not answer her questions and became “very hostile and belligerent” toward Heiss.

The lawsuit said Heiss tried to end the examination because of Cary’s uncooperative behavior and began to pack up her things. But Cary, Heiss claims, stood in front of the door and told her she was “not going anywhere” until she gave him back the vial of blood she’d drawn.

More after the jump.  

Read More

Now what Exactly is his Job?

/

Grand Rapids WZZM has announced Greg Ghering as the new nightside Connection Desk Editor.

FTVLive has no clue what "nightside Connection Desk Editor" is or does. 

Ghering is currently the news director at WOOD radio.

“We are thrilled that Greg is joining the WZZM 13 News Team,” said WZZM President and General Manager Janet Mason. “Greg combines a wealth of experience in news reporting, social media and knowledge of the area with a passion for our community.”

Ghering declined to comment.

Maybe he isn't commenting because he also has no clue what a "nightside Connection Desk Editor."

His final day at the radio station will be April 21.

H/T MLive.com

Seattle Reporter Headed to the Big D

/

Zahid Arab, who’s been with NBC affiliate KING-TV in Seattle since August 2012, has joined Dallas-based KDFW as a general assignment reporter.

His first day will be April 25th, news director Robin Whitmeyer announced Wednesday.

Arab also has worked at KLAS-TV in Las Vegas, KHNL/KFVE-TV in Honolulu and KCAU-TV in Sioux City, Iowa.

Let's see what quote the Creative Servives Department made up for Arab:

“When it comes to engaging and responsible reporting, KDFW (Fox4) sets the standard,” said Arab.

H/T Ed Bark

KC Reporter Heads to Houston

/

A Kansas City Reporter is packing up her bags and is headed to Houston.

Mike McGuff says that Alice Barr is joining KHOU 11 as a reporter from KCTV5 in Kansas City where she has been since April 2012.

"I can't wait to get started at KHOU," Barr told mikemcguff.com. "I'm thrilled to be joining a team of journalists with a reputation for uncovering the big stories and telling them well.

"I'm also looking forward to exploring Houston and the Lone Star State. I'll be taking recommendations for any hidden treasures to visit, as well as story ideas. I know there is so much happening in the news, and in the city, in Houston and I'm excited to dive in."

Barr previously served as a reporter for KGAN and KFXA, the CBS and FOX affiliates in Cedar Rapids, IA, from 2009 to 2012. Before that she was as an MMJ Reporter for WIFR, the CBS affiliate in Rockford, IL, from 2006 to 2009.

Back on the Air in San Francisco

/

KPIX Reporter Mike Sugerman returned to the air yesterday after being M-I-A for the past 6 months.

Last August, Sugerman felt a pain in his side, as if he'd been shot with an arrow. Three months and six specialists later, all the while continuing to work, he was hospitalized with aortitis, an extremely rare condition that involves inflammation of the aortic wall.

"There are doctors that have never seen this before and they can't figure it out," says Sugerman, who likes to put a light touch on his news stories, including the one about his own health. This started 13 years ago when he collapsed at the station after covering the Giants opening day for KPIX. He ended up in six hours of surgery for a torn aorta. This recent infection is linked to that, though nobody seems to know how or why.

"The aorta is a likely culprit," says Sugerman, 59, who spent three weeks in the hospital and has been on intravenous antibiotics at his home near West Portal in San Francisco. He is married to Janice Wright, a weekend anchor for KCBS, the all-news KPIX radio affiliate where Sugerman works one day a week. Wright took a month off to help her husband convalesce.

One week before he entered the hospital, last November, Sugerman was inducted into the Bay Area Radio Hall of Fame. He has been on the air for 42 consecutive years, starting with the college station KCSB on his first day at UC Santa Barbara. He is now in his 30th year at KCBS, where his show "About the Bay," airs Monday mornings.

"I've gone from KCSB to KCBS," he says. "I've never changed call letters."

H/T SFGate.com

KUSA is NPPA Station of the Year

/

KUSA (Denver) has done it again.

For an unprecedented 12th time, the National Press Photographers Association has named KUSA 9NEWS its 2014 Large Market Station of the Year.

The award, which honors excellence in television photography and editing, was announced by judges of the annual NPPA contest from the Michigan State University School of Journalism.

"The best photographers are able to reduce big stories, fires and floods, our triumphs and tragedies, to singular, meaningful and memorable moments," said 9NEWS Vice President and News Director Patti Dennis. "9NEWS photographers intuitively capture the small moments in the midst of big stories which help provide clarity and understanding and, more often than not, move our viewers. It's extremely gratifying to me to see this new generation of journalists honor our 35 year tradition of excellence in photojournalism while constantly pushing the medium."

Since the NPPA awarded its first Station of the Year honor in 1958, no other station has earned the award more than seven times. Including this year's honor, 9NEWS has now won the title 12 times – in 1977 as KBTV, in 1984, 1986, 1987, 1990, 1992, 1997, 1998, 2000, 2005 and 2009.

9NEWS Director of Photography, Eric Kehe, himself a former NPPA Ernie Crisp Photographer of the Year said, "Winning Station of the Year for the 12th time speaks to the commitment 9NEWS has made to photojournalism by placing an emphasis on quality production and creative storytelling to deliver news and information to our viewers. We are passionate about our craft. We push and challenge ourselves every day to put the best possible stories on the air for our viewers. We take great pride in being a part of a tradition of excellence in photojournalism."

That Didn't Last Long

/

Maybe Hearst took a clue from the Weather Channel's debacle with DirecTV.

As FTVLive told you, last night Dish pulled the plug on the Hearst stations after the two sides could not agree on a retrans deal.

Now Hearst is back on the bird after reached a retransmission agreement with Dish Network.

“We appreciate the support and patience of our viewers, advertisers and local communities served by our stations,” Hearst said in a statement. “We regret the inconvenience they’ve experienced over the past several hours. We are pleased the interruption was brief and that our stations have been restored on Dish Network systems.”

Hearst Stations Fall off the Dish

/

Dish Network Viewers trying to watch KOCO in Oklahoma City are being greeted with this message on their screen.

KOCO isn't the only station to fall from the dish. KOCO is owned by Hearst and more than two dozen other Hearst stations, including WCVB in Boston and stations in top 25 markets Sacramento, Pittsburgh and Tampa all went dark on Dish. 

Hearst and Dish have reached an impasse on a retrans agreement. 

MSNBC's Sharpton Talks about Snitching for the FBI

/

Two days ago, FTVLive told you how a new report said that MSNBC host Al Sharpton was a confidential informant for the FBI.

Sharpton said the report was false told the NY newspapers that the report was false and he was no rat.

Last night, NBC Nightly News sat down with Rev. Al and he said he did snitch for the FBI.

If you're confused, you're not alone.

Here is the report from Nightly:

No Boo Hoos for Babs

/

Barbara Walters promises that when she signs off from TV next month, she will not pull a Jay Leno and start crying.

“I’m not going to cry,” Walters says said to Variety. She recalls watching Jay Leno’s misty final appearance on “The Tonight Show” in February. “I think Jay felt that he was pushed out,” Walters says. “I don’t feel like I’m being pushed out. This was my decision.” Walters says she settled on a timeline for her departure three years ago, as rumors about her retirement began to swirl.

It’s been a long goodbye. With Disney chairman-CEO Bob Iger in the “View” audience last spring, Walters first announced she would step down in 2014; this week she told viewers her final day on the show would be May 16. The send-off will include a two-hour primetime documentary about her career. Walters’ longevity is notable in that she was a driving force in the rise of the superstar TV news personality, and she has endured into an era when that kind of authoritative star power is waning. (Just ask Katie Couric or Brian Williams.)

As she prepares to leave, Walters admits she doesn’t feel sad. “I should really be depressed, but I’m not,” she says. “So maybe there’s something wrong with me. What’s wrong with this woman that she’s not depressed about leaving television?”

The Hottie of Motown Media

/

Sports Radio Detroit ran one of those very shallow contests to see who was the favorite female media personality in Motown.

Amy Andrews of Fox 2 Detroit walked away the "winner".

“I’m very honored to have been voted favorite female media personality,” says Andrews. “Detroit is home to so many exquisitely talented and intelligent female broadcasters; I feel blessed to work in such an amazing place.”

The inaugural contest with a March Madness twist featured hard-working women of Detroit in the fields of radio and TV media. The contest highlighted 32 of metro-Detroit’s finest based on media presence, quality of work and likability. Voting was open to the public between March 16 – April 7, 2014.

13,226 votes were cast. We're not sure how many of those were from Amy Andrews herself.