Broadcasting & Cable
One year ago, Mission Broadcasting’s WYOU Wilkes- Barre/Scranton announced that it was scrapping local news. With the nation–and local television in general–mired in a crippling recession, many industry insiders thought the CBS affiliate would be the first of many low-rated news outfits to shutter their newsrooms (see WYOU’s Disbanded News Operation May Be the First of Many ).
But a year later, that’s hardly been the case. If anything, with network-affiliate relations becoming increasingly creaky, syndication giants like Oprah Winfrey preparing their exit from broadcast TV, and a blockbuster political season just around the corner, local news is looking more robust than it has in years.
Instead of disbanding news, numerous stations are taking significant strides to be 24/7 news outlets across all means of digital devices. More…