WKYC Honored With Salvation Army Award

WKYC was presented a special award from the Salvation Army of Greater Cleveland Thursday evening at the Bertram Inn & Conference Center in Aurora for our ongoing support of the organization.

The award was given to the station at its annual fundraising dinner.

WKYC Vice President and General Manager Brooke Spectorsky and his wife, Micki Byrnes, Vice President of Marketing and Promotions for WKYC, accepted the award on behalf of the station.

The Salvation Army continues to see the need grow for its services which include emergency food and utility assistance.

May Sweeps "Golden" For Channel 3 News at 6 & 11 PM

By Frank Macek

May Sweeps came to an official end Wednesday Night...and despite some stiff network competition and a struggling NBC Network, WKYC proves once again our newscasts are the #1 choice for local viewers at 6 & 11 PM.

The biggest headline was Channel 3 News at 11 PM beating Fox 8 News at 10 PM, despite American Idol. WKYC was #1 in late news (which includes the 10 & 11 PM news time periods) in Adults 25 to 54, Men 25 to 54 and Women 25 to 54. Channel 3 News at 11 PM is anchored by Romona Robinson, Betsy Kling and Jim Donovan. The show is produced by Amanda Subler and directed by your blogger, Frank Macek.

In a head on race at 11 PM only, WKYC was #1 at 11 pm in ALL demographics.

The return of Jay Leno to "The Tonight Show" also had a major impact on late night viewing, as Jay was #1 in all key demos for his time period...beating Letterman, hands down.

Channel 3 News at 6 PM also held on to its #1 position on early newscasts with an increase of 14% in audience share over April. That show is anchored by Romona Robinson, Betsy Kling and Jim Donovan and produced by Jon Adkins and directed by Al Wohl.

Other results of the May book include Channel 3 News at 5 AM and 6 AM coming in a strong second place finish right behind WJW. Those shows are anchored by Mark Nolan and Hollie Strano, produced by Meg Brutoczky, Brooke Whitney and Eric Longville. The director is Jerry Albert.

And finally, the weekend morning shows from 9 - 10:30 a.m. retained its #1 position on Saturday and Sunday Mornings...with an audience growth of 8% from last May. Kim Wheeler and Bruce Kalinowski anchor the weekend mornings. The show is produced by Caitlin Kollar and Directed by Matt Babb.

Congratulations to WKYC News Director Rita Andolsen, Assistant News Director Howard Fencl and all the men and women who make WKYC the place to be.

WKYC Holds The Second Weather Education Day At Progressive Field May

Wednesday, May 26th, was another fun filled day of learning about weather over at Progressive Field in the second of Channel 3's annual Weather Education Days.

Kids from all over the area take this exciting field trip to the ballpark to observe weather experiments in motion.

Were you one of the 8,000 Northeast Ohio students who came down to join us this morning for the program, then the Cleveland Indians/Chicago White Sox game?

Did WKYC snap a photo of you and your classmates?

Check out our PHOTOGALLERY

News From the Network: NBC Devotes Day To Immigration Issues Wednesday

Special to the Director's Cut Blog
By David Bauder, AP Television Writer

NEW YORK -- NBC says it will devote much of its time on newscasts Wednesday [May 26th] to discussions of immigration.

NBC's "Today" show, "Nightly News" and "Dateline NBC" will explore the issue along with sister networks including MSNBC and the Spanish-language Telemundo.

MSNBC will devote portions of every show to immigration. Telemundo's morning program will air from Arizona, the first time the show has gone on location.

The issue has taken on new import recently with the passage of an Arizona law requiring authorities to question people about their immigration status if they are suspected of being in the country illegally.

NBC says the coverage will include release of a poll on American attitudes toward immigration.

NBC's "Law and Order" Ends Its 20 Year Run

It's the end of an era tonight on NBC. After 20 seasons, "Law & Order" airs its final episode at 10pm.

Coincidentally, one of the show's biggest and most famous fans, also makes an appearance on the series farewell.

Lindsey Vonn fulfilled a lifetime dream with Olympic gold at the Vancouver games. Tonight, she lives another dream...appearing on her favorite show, "Law & Order." "The first time they said action, I was shaking really bad," recalls Vonn.

That's because Vonn's been watching "Law & Order" since she was a kid, alongside her lawyer parents. But the Olympian's appearance also comes in what's turning out to be "Law & Order"'s final
episode.

Last week, NBC canceled its flagship drama after 456 episodes and a record tying 20 seasons. "When you got up from watching our show, you not only got a full story, you learned something too," says series star S. Epatha Merkerson.

The show survived 28 cast changes and became synonymous with the phrase "ripped from the headlines."
"Anything that happens anywhere in the planet you can set in New York and everyone accepts it immediately," says series creator Dick Wolf.

NBC's still in talks with Dick Wolf about potentially giving "Law & Order" some kind of sendoff episodes sometime next season. Meanwhile, the franchise, which has also spun off "SVU" and "Criminal Intent", will generate yet another series in the fall on NBC. "Law & Order: Los Angeles" will air Wednesday nights at 10pm.

Click on the video to watch:

Longtime NBC News Anchor Talks to John Carroll Class of 2010

NBC Newsman Tom Brokaw at John Carroll University

Special to the Director's Cut Blog
By Chris Tye

UNIVERSITY HEIGHTS -- Tom Brokaw came to Cleveland to honor his friend, the late Tim Russert, by giving the commencement address to Russert's alma mater, John Carroll University.

Before he left, he gave the class of 2010 a progress report on the work world they're trying to join.

"You are leaving the sanctuary of learning and innocence in a season of uncertainty and anxiety. Daily, there are painful reminders that the economic model that defined your life turned out to be too much of a house of cards," he said.

He spoke with Channel 3 News about a variety of topics before his speech about the challenges facing the class of 2010.

"A lot of young people are moving back home and living in their parents' home for awhile until they can deal with this tough economy. Marketing people are calling some of these 20-somethings 'neo-frugalists.'"

"They're lowering their sights in terms of what they want in life, now they're concentrating on what they need."

"The people who pay attention to consumer habits of young people have seen a profound shift in the last four years in the kind of fast food and how much they spend there, and what their expectations are."

Click to watch Chris' interview with Tom below:

Out of Control Satellite May Affect Cable TV Service Starting This Weekend

Special to the Director's Cut Blog
By Dave Summers

 PARMA -- If you can't find your favorite show this weekend, don't adjust your television set. The trouble may be...22 thousand miles above the earth.

Last month Intelsat lost control of its communications satellite called "Galaxy 15". Since then it has been floating eastward and this weekend or next, it is expected to drift into the orbit of another communications satellite. That could interfere with cable programing across the U.S.

Cable networks that could be affected are MTV, Discovery Communications, Comcast Network groups, and A&E Television.

Cox Communications in Parma says there is no need to panic here in Northeast Ohio.

"We don't anticipate needing to use our contingency plans but we do have them in place to make sure our customers are taken care of. We will do anything in our power to keep service on for our customers," Cox Communications Programing V.P. Tim Tanda said.

We received a statement by email from Warner Cable indicating much the same thing.

It says we're monitoring the situation and have a series of solutions that will be implemented if programming is disrupted

Director's Cut Spotlight: The Importance of Interning in TV

By Frank Macek

The Director's Cut Blog gets regular emails from students about doing internships at WKYC as many of our readers are interested in getting into the business. So, your blogger thought this would be a good chance to take a look at internships at our station or those offered by other broadcast stations.

For those aspiring to work in television news, an internship program is essential on the "must do" list of projects while you are going to college, a community college or a broadcasting school, like the Ohio Center for Broadcasting. Most station programs require students to get credit for participating in their programs, so you shouldn't wait too long to apply. Stations can only handle a limited amount of students during each term.

The biggest benefit of interning in an economy that's challenging for both pros and graduates fo find work is getting your "foot in the door." Sometimes, that is half the battle. Make sure while you are interning, you take the opportunity seriously and act professionally. Show up on time, work hard and learn everything you can!

Many of the interns who have passed through the Channel 3 Newsroom have been hired by WKYC, or have found great opportunities at other stations because they have real experience on their resume. Any experience gives you an advantage over someone with none.

The internship program at WKYC usually lasts a semester or quarter (depending on the school) and gives the intern a complete overview of many different positions and job expectations found at our station. This includes working on the newsdesk, answering viewer calls, assisting producers, writing stories, observing control room team work and working on web based projects. Some interns even get the chance to go out into the field and work with our reporters and videographers.

One of the coolest projects we have kicked off recently is for interns to get multi-media experience working on our social media pages including Facebook and Twitter. With the advent of Flipcams into our daily news lives, we offer interns the chance to document their work experiences and come up with creative ideas for videoblogging.

WKYC has created its own WKYC Intern Facebook Fan page that was developed by and updated by our current and former interns. This allows our interns to post their experiences and work for others to see. Plus, the page allows those interested in an internship program to see what interning is like.

If you are currently enrolled in college or a broadcasting school and are interested in the television industry, we invite you to follow our Facebook Internship Fan Page and to apply for an internship opportunity either at WKYC or any broadcaster that offers them

You'll get valuable experience to list on your resume and get to work directly with those currently employeed in the industry to learn as much as you can about the ever changing media landscape. And, it is changing

WEB LINKS:

*WKYC's Internship Page on Facebook: CLICK HERE
*WKYC's Internship Program: CLICK HERE

WKYC Weather Education Day at Progressive Field - 5/20/10

CLEVELAND -- The sun was shining as more than 3,000 students from Northeast Ohio spent the morning at Progressive Field for WKYC's Weather Education Day.

WKYC Meteorologists Betsy Kling, Hollie Strano and AJ Colby, with Meteorologist Bruce Kalinowski joining them from back at the TV station's weather center, spent the morning making learning fun for the students.

WKYC Weather Education Day was held before the Cleveland Indians took on the Kansas City Royals on the field.

Click to check out our photo gallery of today's big event

New Blog: Indians on Deck

As part of the WKYC Information Center, several of our staff members are doing a little bloggin' of their own.

Here is another new blog to check out when you get a little web surfing time.

• Indians on Deck - STO Producer Mike Bachmann has a cool look behind the scenes of the Indians Pregame Show with Al Pawlowski.

For more blogs from the WKYC Digital Broadcast Center: CLICK HERE

Many of our staff members also have profiles on Facebook. You can sign up for a free account and join our Fan Pages to interact with many of us online about the station and the news stories we cover. Check out our main WKYC page:

http://www.facebook.com/WKYC.Channel3

From the Mailbag: Indians Games Pre-empting Other WKYC and NBC Programming

From: Richard (city unknown)

Q: I hate that Channel 3 runs Indians games in place of other NBC programming when the Indians aren't that good this year - and haven't been for several years. It really annoyed me when hockey was supposed to air or was joined in progress.

A: As the over the air television home of the Cleveland Indians, we are under contract with the Indians to carry 20 games per season. Unfortunately, the station can only pre-empt so many hours of regular NBC programming. So, we must carry mainly afternoon games on the weekends and select games during primetime we felt would be the most interest to our viewers.

Whether the Indians are contenders or not, we hope you can appreciate being able to receive some of the games free on broadcast TV. The options are not pretty for those without cable or satellite. Go Tribe!
---

Have a question for us? Email us anytime: fmacek@wkyc.com

From the Mailbag: Your New Interactive HD Radar

From: Betheny in Cleveland

Q: I noticed your new interactive radar on your website. I love it, but think it's too big. Could you make it smaller?

A: We are currently experimenting with all the new weather tools we got with our recent upgrade to all HD weather. As part of that, we are putting the Interactive HD Radar right on our homepage only when severe weather threatens the area.

We have received many comments for people grateful that it's easy to find and easy to use, so we hope you'll give it a chance. Again, we are building our website to better serve you when the weather turns bad, so we don't have to cut in as much and interrupt your regularly scheduled programming like the other stations do.
---

Have a question for us? Email us anytime: fmacek@wkyc.com

NBC Announces Fall 2010 Primetime Lineup With Plenty of New Shows

NBC has announced its 2010-11 primetime schedule that is highlighted by five new comedies, seven new drama series and one new alternative program, including shows from such innovative hit-makers as J.J. Abrams, Jerry Bruckheimer and David E. Kelley, among others.

The high-quality series include new comedies such as "Outsourced," Love Bites," "Perfect Couples," "Friends With Benefits" and "The Paul Reiser Show." The new dramas are "The Cape," "Harry's Law," "Outlaw," "Undercovers," "The Event," "Chase" and "Law & Order: Los Angeles."

The schedule features all-drama lineups on Mondays and Wednesdays and five comedies on Thursdays. Tuesdays will continue to combine the similar appeal of "The Biggest Loser" with "Parenthood," and Fridays will team "Who Do You Think You Are?" and the new series "School Pride" with "Dateline NBC" and the new legal drama "Outlaw."

NBC will also broadcast a 35th anniversary "Saturday Night Live" special that will celebrate the iconic late-night series’ long and eventful run on NBC since 1975.

The announcements were made by Jeff Gaspin, Chairman, NBC Universal Television Entertainment, and Angela Bromstad, President, Primetime Entertainment, NBC and Universal Media Studios.

"This new schedule brings NBC back to basics with its commitment to quality scripted programming," said Gaspin. "Our new shows are distinctive and feature a combination of the biggest talent, the brightest new stars and the strongest auspices in television. With this new schedule, we're poised to take the next step toward our long-term goals with a lineup that has stabilized and has been building solid momentum through the second half of the season."

"Our team has been working tirelessly to achieve our ambitious goals and we are so pleased to see that these new series demonstrate tremendous upside for NBC," said Bromstad. "We feel that this development season introduces shows that will become part of the great programming legacy of our network."

NBC FALL 2010 SCHEDULE
(New Programs indicated in Red)

MONDAY
8-9 p.m. - "Chuck"
9-10 p.m. - "THE EVENT"
10-11 p.m. - "CHASE"

TUESDAY
8-10 p.m. - "The Biggest Loser"
10-11 p.m. - "Parenthood"

WEDNESDAY
8-9 p.m. - "UNDERCOVERS"
9-10 p.m. - "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit"
10-11 p.m. - "LAW & ORDER: LOS ANGELES"

THURSDAY
8- 8:30 p.m. - "Community"
8:30-9 p.m. - "30 Rock"
9-9:30 p.m. - "The Office"
9:30-10 p.m. - "OUTSOURCED"
10-11 p.m. - "LOVE BITES"

FRIDAY
8-9 p.m. - "Who Do You Think You Are?"/"SCHOOL PRIDE"
9-10 p.m. - "Dateline NBC"
10-11 p.m. - "OUTLAW"

SATURDAY
Repeats

SUNDAY
7-8:15 p.m. -- "Football Night in America"
8:215-11:30 p.m. -- "NBC Sunday Night Football"

SUNDAY (beginning March 2011 after football)
7-8 p.m. - "Dateline NBC"
8-9 p.m. - "Minute to Win It"
9-11 p.m. - "The Celebrity Apprentice"

Director's Cut Changes RSS Feed Address

With some recent changes to the way we are able to run the Director's Cut Blog, we have a new RSS feed address.

Please update your readers if you currently get the blog in this fashion.

Our new RSS feed is: http://feeds.feedburner.com/WkycsDirectorsCutWithFrankMacek

Director's Cut Alert: NBC Axes 20 Year Old "Law & Order"

NEW YORK -- The venerable court-police drama "Law & Order" has been axed.

NBC announced Friday that the show would end its historic 20-year run on May 24.

The show starred an ensemble cast of S. Epatha Merkerson, Jeremy Sisto, Anthony Anderson, Linus Roache, Alana De La Garza and Sam Waterston.

NBC Orders 4 New Series For The Upcoming Season

NEW YORK -- NBC says it is renewing its cult favorite "Chuck" for another season and has ordered four more new series for the upcoming season.

The fourth-place network has been aggressively rebuilding. Even before NBC officially announces its new fall schedule on Monday, the network has publicly committed to 11 new scripted series.

The new series announced Friday includes one comedy that sounds something like one of its classics. "Friends With Benefits" is about a group of friends in their 20s as they navigate the dating world.

New NBC dramas include "The Cape," about a framed cop who turns into a comic-book superhero. Jimmy Smits will star in "Outlaw," about a Supreme Court justice who quits the job to work as a lawyer representing the "little guy."

"Harry's Law" stars Kathy Bates as a disillusioned lawyer who starts a new practice with a young man out of a rundown shoe store.