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Nexstar To Air Primetime WGN America News

Y2kTheNewOldies

Y2kTheNewOldies

https://tvnewscheck.com/article/top-news/243394/nexstar-to-launch-primetime-wgn-america-news/

Yes WGN America has announced that they will air the News Nation on WGN America. This Newscast will use segments from the Nexstar owned stations for the show.

Nexstar Media Group said today that its wholly-owned cable network, WGN America, will launch a live daily three-hour national newscast. Beginning this summer, News Nation, will air in primetime, from 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. ET, and will draw on the local market, regional and national expertise of Nexstar’s 5,400 local journalists in 110 local newsrooms across the country. News Nation, Tegna emphasized, “will deliver news reporting that is fact-based, impactful, educational and unbiased.”

In addition to the live nightly newscast, News Nation’s digital team of reporters and producers will deliver news 24 hours a day online through News Nation’s digital properties and its soon-to-be-launched mobile app, newsnationnow.

Broadcasting live from a new, state-of-the-art newsroom and studio located at Nexstar’s WGN-TV Chicago, News Nation will bring viewers breaking news and live video on the most important national news stories and issues, as well as regional and local communities throughout the U.S
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https://www.wsj.com/articles/wgn-am...ons-11579093200?mod=lead_feature_below_a_pos1


I was able to read the article, but most WSJ content requires a subscription. WGN, under new owner Nexstar, is getting into the Cable News business. This was speculated as a strategy Nexstar might take. The 'News Nation' program appears to be more akin to the old Headline News format, will air during three hours of prime time and will not be a series of opinion shows as are found on the other cable news nets during that timeframe. Programming will originate from the WGN studios in Chicago.
 
umfan said:
The 'News Nation' program appears to be more akin to the old Headline News format, will air during three hours of prime time and will not be a series of opinion shows as are found on the other cable news nets during that timeframe. Programming will originate from the WGN studios in Chicago.
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We know news is expensive, but it's cheaper than scripted dramas. Scripted drama made sense for Tribune. It doesn't for Nexstar. They own lost of local TV stations, so this is what local TV stations do. If they can draw on the resources of those stations, they can do a pretty credible job of covering the news. I expect it to be better than Newsy.
 
WGN Anerica to Debut News Nation Summer 2020

Turns out NextStar has rather ambitious plans for their recently acquired Cable Network. TV News Check reports "News Nation", a new live three-hour newscast will debut sometime this Summer. It will originate from WGN-TV, and feature reports and coverage from affiliates across the country.
 
We know news is expensive, but it's cheaper than scripted dramas. Scripted drama made sense for Tribune. It doesn't for Nexstar. They own lost of local TV stations, so this is what local TV stations do. If they can draw on the resources of those stations, they can do a pretty credible job of covering the news. I expect it to be better than Newsy.
 
I would much rather watch the WGN local news which used to air on that channel than another national newscast that is completely unnecessary imo.
 
seatownmedia said:
I would much rather watch the WGN local news which used to air on that channel than another national newscast that is completely unnecessary imo.
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News nation on Nexstar is basically a ploy for Nexstar to go after Scripps Newsy and Gray's Investigate TV for viewers though. It's Basically Nexstar trying to get national relevance for their content though and they have to go after Sinclair, Scripps, Hearst and Gray for national syndicated content though for News programming.
 
RadioPatrol said:
It's Basically Nexstar trying to get national relevance for their content though and they have to go after Sinclair, Scripps, Hearst and Gray for national syndicated content though for News programming.
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That's one way of looking at it. Another is they own this cable channel that needs cheap content, and they own a lot of local stations that create it.

So this becomes a way to repurpose local news content, and replace existing WGN America programming.
 
So does this presage WGN-A's transition into a cable news station?
Perhaps they've milked long blocks of M*A*S*H* and Married with Children reruns
as far as they can take them.
 
if they need to do Dallas-Fort Worth stories, they need to reestablish a news division at KDAF, KDAF gutted it's news division years ago when they switched to the "Newsbreak"/"Eye Opener" formated shows, then those shows got canned thus giving KDFW the 5:30 PM, 9 PM and 7 AM to 10 AM (was 7 to 9 AM before KDFW expanded "Good Day Dallas") slots the extra ratings as they became the only one to do local news at those time (7 to 9 AM on KXAS, KTVT and WFAA goes to their networks respective morning shows, 5:30 PM goes to the networks evening news on thos channels and 9 PM is the last hour of prime time programming on CBS, NBC and ABC while Fox has no 3rd hour (or 4 hours on Sundays) of primetime programming). but seriously, if Nexstar wants DFW news to be covered on this new news show on WGN America, they need to relaunch the KDAF news division first (or team with Tegna to use WFAA's crew, ViacomCBS for KTVT's crew, "New Fox" for KDFW's crew or NBCUniversal for KXAS' crew).
 
umfan said:
I suspect this will just be a start and commentary shows or segments will be added.
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If that's the case who would Nexstar pick as their pundit if they really wanted to go in that direction?

I know Hearst has Jeff Rossen and Soledad O'Brien, Gray has Greta Van Susteren, Sinclair has Lara Logan and Boris Epsteyn, Scripps has the Newsy Crew,
 
WGN America has had mediocre ratings for the past year or two, and let's face it, the #1 and #2 most viewed cable networks in 2019 were so-called "news" networks (Fox News and MSNBC).

Americans' national news appetite will be stronger in 2020 than in 2019, I suspect. This change in direction will also avail WGN America of some national political spending ad dollars.

Will be interesting to see if news block remains by the time summer 2021 rolls around. It could quietly fade into the sunset, or this could mark the start of a complete makeover for the network.
 
MarkW said:
WGN America has had mediocre ratings for the past year or two, and let's face it, the #1 and #2 most viewed cable networks in 2019 were so-called "news" networks (Fox News and MSNBC).
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Then again, people aren't watching those stations for news. This channel is proposing straight news, no opinion.
 
It will be interesting how News Nation does on WGN America I may watch if there isn't anything else on at least part of it. I think it will compete more with Scripps Newsy.
 
Then again, people aren't watching those stations for news. This channel is proposing straight news, no opinion.
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I suspect there are some viewers of each network who would disagree with you. Some folks, sadly, are unable to separate opinion from journalism.

What truly saddens me is how few resources CNN devotes to real news coverage these days. Blathering talking heads have taken the place of reporters in the field across the country and around the world.
 
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