In what many Orlando viewers — and those who work in TV news — might see as an uplifting way to end the week — after almost two months of near non-stop Casey Anthony coverage — all the Orlando stations produced their own special reports for the final liftoff of the Space Shuttle Atlantis, the final mission of the shuttle program.
Kennedy Space Center is in the Orlando-Daytona Beach market and stations have long made it a practice to cover the Shuttle launches and, in some cases, the landings, live.
After a slight delay, and holding at :31, Atlantis lifted off into the cloudy Florida sky, “the start of a sentimental journey into history,” as it was described by the NASA announcer.
A few other Florida stations, including WFTS, WTVT and WTSP in Tampa/St. Pete produced their own special reports, over those offered by their networks, ABC, FOX and CBS.