Best case scenario? 90 days. Worst-case? The show could be a goner by the end of the year. That's nine days, I know.
The reason: nobody's watching. Moreover, few, if any of KPIX's coveted demo that was its prime target is watching Night Beat. Furthermore, when those few people watch, they tend to take a look and click their remote.
When Night Beat debuted back in July, KPIX had a plan; albeit sketchy and terribly hard to attain, but a plan nonetheless. More of an experiment actually--but it was simple enough: develop a tech-oriented, soft-news, airy alternative to the traditional newscast and gear it toward a younger audience. Internally, KPIX knew it would have NO chance to compete with KTVU's dominant "10 o'clock News" that is currently the ratings king in that time period.
But KPIX went forward with a blueprint: attract a loyal, if small, audience to build on and acquire a core millennial-oriented demo; the 20-30-something tech types on their laptops and smartphones --precisely the demo that is ON THEIR phone!, checking texts, facebooking, twittering, Instagramming --do you sense a problem here? The type of people that are doing anything BUT watching their TV at the moment--great research boys and girls!
Worse yet, PIX brought out talented, but clearly not seasoned, Veronica De La Cruz to work the new show, (in addition to co-anchoring the 6 PM News). De La Cruz, at first glance, looks more splash than dash; that said, her captaining of the Night Beat has been fraught with technical issues, out-of-place gimmicks, yelling "GAME ON" to open the sports segment is plain silly and sophomoric. The weather "quiz" is cheesy --and the frequent "TRENDING" and reliance on Facebook and Twitter has been a disaster. No.One.Is.Watching.
Worse yet, PIX brought out talented, but clearly not seasoned, Veronica De La Cruz to work the new show, (in addition to co-anchoring the 6 PM News). De La Cruz, at first glance, looks more splash than dash; that said, her captaining of the Night Beat has been fraught with technical issues, out-of-place gimmicks, yelling "GAME ON" to open the sports segment is plain silly and sophomoric. The weather "quiz" is cheesy --and the frequent "TRENDING" and reliance on Facebook and Twitter has been a disaster. No.One.Is.Watching.
Night Beat has had six months to generate an audience but nothing has transpired. Ultimately, KPIX could have brought forth Masterpiece Theatre and if not enough people watched, that would have been blown up too. Unfortunately, Night Beat is no Masterpiece Theatre but it might as well be blown up because nobody's watching. And with that, the show is in dire straits.
*Don't invite KQED Forum host, Michael Krasny and KGO Weekend 10 AM -1PM talkie, Angie Coiro to dinner.
*Bernie Ward, just released from Lompoc will NEVER appear on KGO Radio, either as a host or as a guest. That's my guess.
*The amount of technical glitches that has plagued KRON since its move to 900 Front has ignited rumors about sabotage and the like--from where? Imagine.
*If KOIT gets a huge lift in the ratings from playing 24/7 Christmas music there's something wussy about that, sorry, sincerely, 415 Media Scrooge.
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There is still a third wasy that Bernie Ward could wind up on KGO on live air; I expect him to be a frequent caller to certain shows that will accept his calls. Bernie could losely disquise his voice. or not disquise at all, just use an obviously phone name; "Yeah, my name is Ernie Ford, and have I got a bone to pick with YOU!" The radio host can feign surprise "I am shocked, shocked that there is deception going on here!!"
ReplyDeleteWhy would you want a Registered Sex Offender on the radio?
DeleteIf KGO was smart, they would at least interview Ward about his prison experience.
DeleteIt would get great ratings.
Reading his blog, he has not truly expressed remorse. Still arrogant and complaining about his conditions and not being able to choose which prison he's locked up in... He's been the victim of a political witch hunt... Whine, whine, whine.
What a tool.
If Ronn Owens had any guts he would conduct an interview with Bernie Ward. Maybe he'll do it on his last day. That would befit a man of Ronn's stature.
DeleteFor those who would like to hear what Bernie has to say, Christine Craft will interview him in the new year. KGO is not involved.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad to hear that. Evidently, they have kept in touch, during Bernie's sentence. She'll be respectful, and those who listen with an open mind, and give him credit for the good works that he has done, will probably learn a great deal.
DeleteSabotage? Are you suggesting North Korea is behind KRON's tech woes?
ReplyDeleteAren't KRON's tech woes over? I haven't seen glitches in the last two days.
DeleteI think North Korea is behind North Korea's internet outage. Just think of another deranged dictator, a fellow with a funny mustache, who set the Reichstag on fire and then blamed the Jews for it. Now substitute funny haircut for funny mustache. (They're both about the same height, though Hitler was wearing jackboots.)
LOL
DeleteI was watching KRON news early this morning. They have a weather bug on the left side of the screen, and it was saying it would be something like 106 F at noon and 156 F at 4 PM. That was up there for at least 45 minutes.
DeleteWhile I don't disagree with what you say about Nigh Beat I'll mention that you've been predicting imminent doom for four months and nothing's happened. Not that it won't someday, but it's not exactly a surprise. I wonder if they actually asked any of the target audience what they wanted to see. I'm sure they thought they knew them better than they know themselves. These idiots, who go by the title of "Managers," will fail at everything they try but still walk around the office acting as though they know something. And since they're the ones who decide if they know something, it's never questioned.
ReplyDeleteIt would have been interesting if PIX had gotten some serious people from that market segment into a room and said to them, "Design the newscast that you want to see." It'd have to be a real newscast, and certain parameters would have to be laid down, but contrary to what a lot of those cynical managers (and many on this blog) think, Gen Y and Millennials DO want news and information. They just don't trust the usual "gates," and with all the bullshit spin on everything from jobs to the wars in the Middle East that the suit-and-tie wearing newscasters soak up and repeat without skepticism, just because they don't want to lose "access," who can blame them. They have known from the earliest age what a lot of "worldly" people on this blog took several recessions to realize: the news is now spun, as much as it is in Russia or any other country that isn't free. Just go to European sources to read more about what's really happening--something anyone can do in this internet age but which very few people still bother doing.
And then you have to promote that newscast differently. How would a Millennial even know about Night Beat? It's mostly been promoed on the regular PIX cast, but--newsflash!--Millennials aren't watching that, which is the reason for the new one, so how are they going to know about this one?!?
Duh!
If they wanted to do some savvy marketing, they should have looked to hire some recently laid-off Starbucks marketer or runaway employee from Facebook or whatever. Someone who didn't like Marissa Mayer's autocratic style and left Yahoo. They'd be far better than the middle-aged stuffed shirts sitting in the conference rooms now who know nothing outside their own four walls.
Anybody who thinks getting a hoochie chick and having her shout "GAME OOOON" and take an "Airport quiz" (because Millennials are so into airports, you know...the most popular Apple Store download for the iPhone is the Airport Quiz Game!) is what this generation wants is beyond retarded. They're not even bright enough to see how dumb they are--a recurring paradox in the business world. (You need at least a base level of intelligence to see you don't have intelligence.) But I'm sure they'll eventually be promoted with a bump in pay, while the actual writers and editors and producers who tried their best to make this turkey fly will be fired.
excellent post 10:53.....the problem as stated very well by 10:53am is that the "experts" start with the assumption that because the viewers they are going after are young, they must have short attention spans, like flashy graphics, and lightweight puff piece tech stories.
DeleteAn intelligent person in the demographic KPIX wanted probably watches BBC America, Al Jazeera, and or reads Salon, Drudge, Huff etc..
Of course, KPIX/CBS and the local middle managemnt hacks would have found that out if they bothered to actually question a random sampling of the desired demographic. This failure really exposes broadcast T.V. for what it is, and that is an out of touch, bought and paid for, doomed for extinction dinosaur.
The whole night beat debacle calls to mind the Bob Dole campaign, where in their pathetic attempt to prove how "young and hip" they were, a campaign spokesman proudly announced to the press that Dole and his inner circle were going to watch 'Animal House" to get in touch with "today's youth". Hilariously out of touch, and the people that uttered it were clueless as to how pathetic they just revealed they were. A candidate in 1996 is going to proudly announce that they will watch a movie released in 1978 about college experiences from the early 60's...........as the middle management suck ups on Battery Street would say, but of course only after a consultant told them so...."GAME ON!"
You mentioned in an earlier item - this week as I recall - that Liz Cook would be at KPIX for ANOTHER YEAR !!
ReplyDeleteHopefully you don't have a link for that.
20 and 30 somethings are out chasing girls who look like De La Cruz instead of home watching TV news.
ReplyDeleteThis.
DeleteBerne Ward and Brent Walters should team up for a holy rollers tent revival
ReplyDeleteHey 1:00 pm: Ward and Walters are about as different from each other as night and fricken' day. We can only hope (and pray? prey?) that Rich is correct about Ward...that he never darkens KGO's door in ANY capacity. I mean, Cumulus has messed up, and KGO has a world of trouble - but, even THEY don't deserve the likes of this convict.
ReplyDeleteHey, 2:00PM, no shit? Next you will say that the earth is round.
DeleteBernie Ward has paid for whatever he did wrong. I believe that he should be able to work on radio again if he desires. I am still a fan of Mr. Ward. Hurry and get a radio show.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Bernie has paid for whatever he did wrong, and just as he should be able to get a radio show again, companies have every right not to hire him. He should launch a podcast, and if by some stroke of luck he ends up garnering an audience then someone will hire him or he can just keep doing that. I think the odds are stacked against him.
DeleteWhen and where can we hear Christine interview Bernie?
ReplyDelete