The Heartwrenching Story Of Brittany Maynard

 If you think you have problems you might want to reconsider and read this-- the tragic story of Brittany Maynard, who's been diagnosed with stage 4 brain cancer.

As SFist points out, Ms. Maynard is going to Oregon to legally commit suicide on November 1.

My first account of this woman's life situation came via CNN--I have not seen any local story about her on TV News which is curious since she's from San Francisco. Other media entities have published her story --but again, not in the Bay Area. Not on TV, not on radio.

Maybe this will change the current state of affairs.

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Note: An e-mailer informed me KGO and KRON did stories.

San Francisco Bay Area: Who's Your Favorite TV News Anchor? Monday Poll

 

Monday Kicker:

Who's you favorite Bay Area News Anchor?

Vote early and often. This is an unscientific poll.

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KPIX Launches New Newscast on Duopoly KBCW; 10 PM Show Will Go After Younger Audience; Monday Night Debut

KPIX's duopoly station, KBCW, (KPIX sister outlet on the CW Network), launches a new newscast on Monday Night at 10 PM. The program will be anchored by Veronica De La Cruz, who also co-anchors KPIX 6 PM newscast. 

De La Cruz has been anchoring only the 6 PM news this week as station officials have been dialing down the set and finalizing programming chits on the new show.


PIX has a simple strategy with this new venture: they acknowledge KTVU is still king at that time slot with its signature, ratings-dominant "Ten O'clock News".  They're not going to challenge 2 for overall viewers --simply impossible.


What they are trying to do is to capture a younger audience; the 18-49 demo coveted by advertisers as a prime buying entity. How successful, (or not), the venture becomes is anyone's guess but PIX is devoting a lot of manpower and analytics to the newscast, with more stories catered to the younger crowd, a quicker, shorter pace with an emphasis on health, sports, pop culture and the like. I'm guessing you're going to see a lot of music videos and entertainment features. Lite faire with some heady mixture-- something interesting to grab 10 seconds from an Amy in Pleasanton or Jack in Mill Valley.


Of course the usual top news of the day, breaking news, and sports and weather will be a part of the program but both the look and feel of the show will be readily different from the other "traditional" newscasts.


Experiments like this do not create winners overnight and I'm sure the powers-that-be over at 855 Battery are aware of that. Word is that this is not a short-term project and that KPIX is in it for the long haul. They'll be helped by the CW Network's younger audience as a lead-in and hope, with an emerging presence like De La Cruz that their 10 PM missive can ultimately carve a small, but loyal and younger viewership --or at least a whole of lot folks not glued to the Internet watching a Netflix offering.


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5 Reasons to Love Betty Yu of KPIX

Betty Yu

 1. Reads well and can ad-lib like, damn!


2. Doesn't care Martin can't stand Cook.


3. Gives great dinner tips.


4.  Wouldn't dare be tweeting American Idol tidbits.


5. Loves the Jeffrey Osbourne Woo-Woo song.




In short, spectacular Betty Yu.






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Sorry, but KTVU is a Mess; The Real Powow at 55 Hawthorne; The New Guy at KSFO with the Fake Name

 Those were the days...


Remember the time when Dennis Richmond and Elaine Corral graced your screen? Do you miss Rita Williams grilling Gavin Newsom? Recall Lloyd LaCuesta doing a live shot from the Santa Cruz Mountains? The late Bob Shaw's lucid movie reviews. Bob McKenzie's brilliant commentaries on anything. Fred Zehnder commanding the ship. KTVU in its heyday.


Now: A zombie-like workforce. A bunch of misfits that have wreaked havoc on a once-prestigious TV News outlet. Good people still on the payroll with an uneasy acknowledgement that this place is really gone to hell. A new reporter every other day. Over-worked producers and writers. A management that sits in denial unwilling and unable to provide any adequate vital communications not just for bloggers but so-called, "legitimate news-gathering" operations who seek some semblance of inquiry.


Question: Has anyone ever even heard a whiff out of News Director, Lee Rosenthal, the boy wonder? And Tom Raponi, the allegedly good-guy GM from the sales dept. no less, become a virtual ghost in the upstairs back office? It's called basic public relations that has been lost in the shuffle or maybe the teleprompter is providing bad names again.


Channel 2 is a mess. I have no axe to grind because those who know me wish remnants of the old KTVU were in place. Thank God Sal Castaneda is still there, ditto Somerville and Rob Roth and Ken Wayne. There's others too but unfortunately they're in the minority. The place looks old. The newscasts lack spark and energy. The feuding sports guys on the weekend jealous of Mark Ibanez. The once-congenial weeknight weatherman who suddenly has an attitude and is befuddled by the slightest bit of constructive criticism.


The "10' O' Clock News" is still king but has lost considerable luster. There's more teases than a strip joint on Broadway. The jaw-dropping obscene amount of fake "Breaking News" sounders that has become an industry-wide joke in an industry that is overload on fake breaking news.


They're still good. They have some fine people. But they continue to destroy and marginalize the brand. Part of that is not their fault because of the nature of the business but a lot of their current look and feel has been fast-forwarded by a clueless management team that has brought forth a system-wide dysfunctional and frankly, lackluster news operation.


Sorry to say nothing even remotely resembles the old place. And that's too bad.


*That Cumulus-KGO/KSFO meeting that took place regarding programming the other day was NOT the "powwow" some of you thought I was referring to; a couple of people, one, whose name is Bloomquist, had their own meeting and you don't even wanna know what they were talking about, then again, it's Cumulus and nothing is a surprise when it comes to the cloud people.


**Oh, they named a new horrible morning guy with a fake name at KSFO. Brilliant move, does he get to bring his dog into the studio?


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Delivering the Goods on KPIX: Betty Yu; Tuesday Looker; GA Reporter Knows Her Stuff

 Betty Yu, the KPIX5 GA Reporter --via Miami and we're pleased to report: hard-nosed, rugged, aggressive yet polite and pleasant.

She has an innocent look but don't be fooled and don't think she's here for a simple ride down the crooked street.


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The Walnut Creek fountain where the SF TV News people like to interview a whole bunch of White People

Local TV news operations love this fountain in Walnut Creek. It's where they do a lot of MOS's, (Man on street interviews).

Let's take Walnut Creek straight up with a fast ball.

Have you noticed that a lot of the interviewees are women in their 30's? They tend to be perky blonds and brunettes. That's popular, as is the token minority that is asked what he or she thinks about the war in Iraq or the war on terror too. Invariably, in the background, there's a lot more white people though and they might be eating an ice cream bar or sipping coffee. That's what the TV guys love.

Better yet, that's what the station marketing people love and want. The consultants get big bucks too for this world-changing philosophy. I'm trying to be sarcastic here. I think you get my drift.

Walnut Creek is demo nirvana for the Bay Area TV media minions --Walnut Creek has a lot of younger, white, professional people with disposable income that like to buy cars, mattresses, high-def TV monitors, computers and go to the movies and ostensibly, watch local TV news and have IPhones. At least that's what the consultants want you to see.

When's the last time you saw an MOS interview in, say, Oakland? Maybe Jack London Square or the Rockridge Safeway but that's it. Berkeley? Never. Emeryville? Nope. San Carlos? Get real. Richmond? Yeah, so long as it's Point Richmond and that's even a stretch.

Draw your own conclusion. I have.



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