Saturday, December 20, 2014

Wong and Mibach on KTVU "MO2" Can't Stop Chatting; Fox Infusion Underway; Station Re-Brand Can be Seen and Heard

 FIRST YOU NEVER HEARD 'EM UTTER a slight ad lib, hardly ever; now, they won't SHUT UP.

Nothing wrong with that either --it's nice to see that Claudine Wong and Mike Mibach are human and that KTVU's Weekend "Mornings on Two" isn't some local TV News zombie zone.

The suddenly chatty-on-the-couch twosome, along with slightly, less-chatty weatherwoman, Rosemary Orozco, have delved into a very noticeable format alter --call it the official FOX version of what the program has become--the first major tweak from the Murdock media people. It is, after all, their Bay Area baby now, but the difference is startling and different, to say the least. Some of that is good and perfectly acceptable--but it also can be grating and artificial. Not contrived and forced, mind you, but potentially awkward. We're so used to watching KTVU News devoid of chatter; at least inane chit-chat--the banal back-and-forth offered by others.

It's a very subtle sign of the changing style at KTVU, which FOX took over in October. It's not only the very overt chit-chat between the anchors; you can also see it by the more cheery stories, the relentless live shots, the ubiquitous sensational "pieces." Matter of fact, KTVU is being altered by the day. This wasn't part of the early master plan as the basic tenet of KTVU's very successful "Keep it simple" approach to their news brand was and still is a ratings winner. Nevertheless, one need only take a glance at the product and see for themselves the early major twist.

It's first significant test is taking place on the morning show--and now, it's more a show than it is a newscast. I like the fact the growing-powerful Wong has a personality and it's engaging and quite refreshing at times--same too with Mibach, although there's times where Mibach seems a bit wooden and forced. It's not that big a deal but if this is the beginning of the new KTVU brand re-image, then it should be candid and convincing --after all, they have couches now. Party on.

*Follow me Twitter

NOTE: You can now SUBSCRBE  to 415 Media! For $5.99/ year --you'll get 415 Media in your e-mail box every morning and an exclusive extra dose of Bay Area Radio/TV --just click on the Pay Pal icon on the right of the blog and get your membership today--Help support independent media. All subscriptions are confidential as is the Pay Pal transaction. You also do not have to have a Pay Pal account to subscribe. 


12 comments:

  1. Yep,I noticed that change,and my first thought too -FOX. I missed today's show. Was Claudine in a mini skirt and dyed blonde hair?. If not,that's next.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If she'd prefer to skip bathing, and wear birkenstocks and ill fitting floral prints, maybe she can get a job at MSNBC...

      Delete
    2. Does Fox direct their anchors to have dramatic 'sighs' after reporting something they don't like? The mini skirts, bleached hair and toupees for the men we already know about.

      Delete
    3. We know about their through-the-roof ratings, also. They must be doing something right.

      Delete
  2. FOX has put Tori and Dave on the couch at 7:55am as well. OMG! They can barely read the news let alone opine on it. I just turn it off.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Chit chat with a guy and two hot women on a couch. Sounds like the beginning of a bad porno movie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 3:58 PM....."Bob Carol, Ted and Alice" was close to that type of movie.; from 1969, with Dyan Cannon, Natalie Wood, Elliot Gould, and Robert Culp....All about wife swapping. Not that I saw it. I was too young then,

      Delete
  4. As soon as it was announced that KTVU was to become a FOX O&O station I predicted this change would occur. Now let's see who will cut the mustard and morf into the bubbly right wing (not that there's anything wrong with that!) couch residents. My money is that this time next year MO2 will have a minimum of one new face. Last week when Rich shot his wadd about Wong I mentioned that she'll not be the recipient of any significant raise but that FOX will continue to reduce and cap salaries with a planned move to SF taking priority in the budget - look for the move and re-brand to be complete in time for the 2016 California primary.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I doubt if the 2016 California Primary has much to do with it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. They need to do something about the furniture when they have these "chats." Take a look at the coffee table and end table. Looks like a garage sale. That, and the dingy pillows.

    ReplyDelete
  7. There should be a regular feature on this blog called "KTVU Foxification Watch." I've watched KTVU for 30+ years and the metamorphosis from "Cox" to "Fox" is becoming more apparent every day. (1) "Happy Talk" Taking Over - Dennis Richmond almost NEVER made any comment about a story, especially inane chatter such as "Nice story." However, now Frank Somerville and Julie Haener now ask as if it's their duty to make idle chatter after every other piece. It's extremely annoying and mostly pointless. Some nights I feel as if they should re-title the "Ten o'clock News" - "The Frank & Julie Show." Extrapolating this trend out a few months, I foresee the anchor desk being abandoned and the entire "newscast" consisting of Frank 'n Julie sitting on a stereotypical morning show couch. They would languidly introduce reporters who would do pointless live shots. Frank 'n Julie would regularly interrupt the reporters to say stupid things like, "It looks cold out there - get a jacket" and "There's a great ice cream shop a block from you. Why don't you drop the story, grab a scoop and we'll return to you live in 15 minutes for you to describe how great the ice cream is." KTVU is headed for "News L-I-T-E." (2) Proliferation of "Good News" Stories - That story about the youth football team from Richmond headed to Florida was a good one -- but it did not require nightly updates from Florida. I like "good news", too, but not at the expense of hard news. I'd feel better if KTVU was investing such energy in the Bay Bridge construction scandal, how wealth "trickles down" from Silicon Valley, etc. (3) Cross Promotion of FOX Productions/Programming - A week or so before Christmas the "Ten o'clock News" interviewed some personality from "TMZ" as some sort of expert about the Sony/North Korea movie controversy. It was incredibly weird to see some "TMZ" host placed on a pedestal as if he had any great insight into the motion picture industry and international relations. I suspect that KTVU News received "The Memo" that said that "TMZ Live" is now the lead-in to the 5 p.m. newscast, so all KTVU News programs need to promote TMZ at every opportunity. (4) "KTVU as KTTV North" - It's only a matter of time before KTTV Los Angeles starts infecting KTVU. It will begin in earnest with the next major story out of southern California when KTTV live reports will appear on KTVU. Eventually we'll see L.A. Kens & Barbies more regularly on KTVU - maybe KTTV producers will move to KTVU and accelerate the assimilation of KTVU into the FOX universe. Before we know it, every female appearing on KTVU will be wearing sleeveless tops. The descent of KTVU News will be a sad, sad one to witness.

    ReplyDelete