Sinclair’s St. Louis ABC affiliate is giving local news another try.
KDNL is launching what it calls a “non-traditional newscast” starring local conservative radio host Jamie Allman, starting January 2015.
The show will air at 5:00 and 10:00 p.m. nightly. In a press release, KDNL promised, “The newscast will be an informative, debate-driven format focusing on the topics of the day with guest commentators and a wide social media presence.”
“The goal is to go beyond the headlines and provide context and perspective of a particular issue,” said Sinclair Broadcast Group VP of news Scott Livingston. “We know that there is an appetite for a more in-depth conversation on the issues. We want to engage our viewing audience and get St. Louis talking.”
GM Tom Tipton told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the station would be hiring “a reporter and at least a dozen people in other roles.”
Allman is host of a conservative talk radio show, “Allman in the Morning,” on KFTK (97.1 FM). Tipton said “it would be fair” to say the show would have a conservative spin. “You could call this an extension of his radio show,” he said.
“We’ll have guests on, local and national, some who’ll share Jamie’s views and some who’ll disagree with him, so there will be spirited debate,” Tipton said.
KDNL stopped airing a KSDK produced newscast at the end of 2013.
[St. Louis Dispatch]