In Indianapolis, for nearly sixty years, if you wanted CBS, you headed to WISH, Channel 8. That marriage ends December 31, after CBS decided to pull its programming and bring it to Tribune-owned WTTV. WISH general manager Les Vann, with plenty of hours to fill, tells the Indianapolis Star the first priority is to expand news programming–by four hours each weekday. “We want to ultimately be the No. 1 independent television station in the country,” Vann said. “With our rich heritage, we can build to that point. We’re not starting from scratch here. This has been a very good television station for six decades.”
The breakup comes amid a huge power shift in the relationships between stations and networks. “Networks decided that what they offer is the distinguishing product, other than local news, that attracts an audience,” Phil Bremen, associate professor of telecommunications at Ball State University, told the Star. “Les Moonves knew he was playing a winning hand. He knew he could extract maximum pound of flesh from the affiliates. Their affiliation was of enormous value.”