Well.... It's Not Like We Didn't Tell You

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Back in February, FTVLive reported that CBS was showing interest in buying CNN.

A number of people said our report was off the mark and that CBS had "absolutely no interest in CBS."

Well, we hate to say we told you so (no we don't) but, CBS head Les Moonves told reporters at the Television Critics Association event in Beverly Hills, that CBS  IS interested in buying CNN.

Estimated value of the cable news network, based on a typical multiple of 12 to 15 times earnings for media assets, could go for as much as $10 billion.

Of course if it keeps going the way Jeff Zucker is taking it, that price could be much lower.

Stay tuned.... 

H/T Bloomberg

NBC Kind of Admits to Screwing Up....kind of

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After a lot of backlash, NBC has decided to return Foreign Correspondent Ayman Mohyeldin to Gaza.

This comes 4 days after network management told him to leave the conflict zone amid breaking news coverage.

His exit from Gaza had caused an uproar among his fans and fellow correspondents, some of whom wondered if Mohyeldin, the network's only Arab-American correspondent in the region, was being censored by the network?

Ultimately, NBC caved to the public backlash and Mohyeldin was sent back to Gaza. 

Last week, Mohyeldin witnessed an Israeli strike on a Gaza City beach in which four children were killed.

Yet, when it came to NBC Nightly News, Mohyeldin's story was retraced by Chief Foreign Correspondent Richard Engel and Mohyeldin was told by his bosses to leave the area. 

One of the employees called it "completely unethical" to "take a story that somebody reported and give it to another reporter who's not even on the ground."

NBC started catching heat for giving Engel Mohyeldin's story and then pulling Mohyeldin from Gaza.

After an outcry on social Media, NBC basically said they were sorry, without saying they were sorry. "As with any news team in conflict zones, deployments are constantly reassessed," the network said. "We've carefully considered our deployment decisions and we will be sending Ayman back to Gaza over the weekend. We look forward to his contributions in the coming days." i.e. "we fucked up"

Now, that NBC has sent Mohyeldin back to Gaza, don't be surprised if you see one or two of his stories on Nightly News this week. 

Stay tuned.... 

H/T CNN Money

Another One Getting Out, Before Sinclair Comes In

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When Sinclair announced that they were buying WJLA in Washington as part of the Allbritton deal, a number of WJLA staffers have left the station for new jobs.

As one WJLA staffer told FTVLive, "people are trying to get out before Sinclair takes over the station."

The latest to bolt the DC station is weekend Morning News Anchor Kathy Park.

Park is a DC native and has worked at WJLA for the past 6 years.

Word is that Park is headed to the Left Coast and KCRA in Sacramento.

 Before WJLA, Park worked for WCYB in Virginia. Park was the former DC-chapter president of the Asian American Journalists Association, and a current board member.

After Tweet, CNN Reporter is Reassigned

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On Friday, FTVLive told you about CNN international correspondent Diana Magnay tweets that she sent out, where she called a group Israelis “scum.”

Magnay quickly deleted the tweet, but as TV talent learn time and time again, you can't undo the Internet. 

After the Twitter controvesy, CNN pulled reporter Magnay out of the Middle East and reassigned her to Moscow. 

CNN released a statement saying that Magnay was referring specifically to those who threatened her. CNN said the network and Magnay are sorry if anyone was offended.

We're guessing that Magnay's tweets will be a little more tame from this point forward. 

Blame it on the Intern

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Viewers looking to watch the Raycom stations in Tucson, were out of luck on Friday.

The station did post a message on their website saying, "Crews are currently working to get the signal for KOLD, KMSB and KTTU back on the air.  Customers with antenna, Dish or Directv are not able to see any of our stations.   Customers with Cox and Comcast are not affected by this technical difficulty.   Stay with Tucson News Now online or via mobile for more updates on when we will be back on air."

No word as to what caused the outage, so will just blame either automation or the intern. 

We Told You

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We hate to say we told you.....oh hell who are we kidding, of course we like saying that. 

FTVLive FIRST told you that ABC was hiring Rob Marciano from Entertainment Tonight. 

After FTVLive broke the news, others were scrambling and calling ABC to try and catch up with FTVLive.

This morning, ABC News boss James Goldston emailed the staff to tell them what they already knew by reading FTVLive.

Look for a similar email and more scrambling by the other sites in regards to the Paula Faris story we broke this morning. 

Here's the internal email on Marciano:

Team -

I’m pleased to announce that Rob Marciano is joining ABC News as Senior Meteorologist.

A veteran weather anchor and an award-winning journalist, Rob will join GMA Weekend and report on the latest weather headlines throughout the week as well as partner with our talented Chief Meteorologist Ginger Zee and the Extreme Weather Team for weather coverage across all ABC News broadcasts and platforms.

Rob is a versatile storyteller with the ability to effortlessly engage with viewers. He joins us from Entertainment Tonight where he has been co-anchor since January 2013.

Prior to his role on ET, Rob spent nearly a decade working at CNN as a news and weather anchor. From tornadoes and blizzards to avalanches and mudslides, Rob has covered some of the biggest weather events and natural disasters in recent memory. His riveting reports from the field during Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil spill were recognized with the prestigious Peabody award.

A graduate of Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in meteorology, Rob holds the American Meteorological Society Seal of Approval and is a Certified Broadcast Meteorologist (CBM). He began his career in journalism as a weather anchor at WVIT in Connecticut and later went on to work as a meteorologist for KPLC-TV in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Rob was chief meteorologist for KATU-TV and 750 KXL News Radio in Portland, Oregon before joining CNN in 2003.

An avid outdoorsman and major sports fan, Rob is thrilled to return to his roots in the Northeast with his wife Eryn and daughter Madelynn.

The Extreme Team has deftly covered every major breaking weather event and their impact on Americans including the crippling Polar Vortex, the flooding in Colorado, the wildfires in California, and the start of hurricane season. Their dedication, focus and willingness to go to whatever corner of the country severe weather is happening has made our team the best in the business.

Rob is a superb reporter with wide-ranging experience and true passion for weather and I look forward to watching him work alongside Ginger and the GMA team.

Please join me in welcoming him to ABC News.

James

Lazy TV Anchors are Just Doing What the Job Description Says

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Nexstar owned  KAMC and KLBK (Lubbock) have posted a job for main Anchors.

Now, if you're thinking this is a job you can do, you better think again.

According to the job description, applicants must be able to sit and talk on the phone. 

Now, I have been around TV news for longer than I want to remember, but I have to say in all those years that's all the Anchors I worked with ever did, sit and talk on the phone. 

I just never knew it was part of their job.

I apologize to all those anchors I bitched about at work. After all, you were just doing your job. 

Here's the job posting: