Longtime sports anchor Rich Brenner passed away on Monday after suffering a heart attack while giving a speech to a group of firefighters. He was 65.
Brenner worked at both WRAL and WTVD in the 1970s and 1980s before moving on to WGHP/Fox 8 in Greensboro. He worked there until his retirement in 2008.
Read more about Rich Brenner in this story by Amanda James.
Photo from WGHP/Fox 8
WTVD is in the process of upgrading an antenna used for broadcasting over-the-air content to viewers. An auxiliary antenna will be used during the maintenance period, which could mean minor reception problems for some viewers. Read more about the new antenna at Happiness is a Warm TV.
If you're an over-the-air television viewer and having trouble picking up the Heat vs. Mavericks NBA showdown this week, the problem could be due to an antenna change at WTVD.
WTVD is in the process of replacing their current horizontal antenna with a circular polarized antenna, which general manager John Idler says will have double the power for over-the-air viewers.
“It will mean an improved signal for viewers, and we'll also be able to reach more of them," Idler said.
Maintenance workers took down the old antenna yesterday, but work on the new antenna won't be completed for about a week. In the interim, the station is using an auxiliary antenna to broadcast its signal.
Millions of people will tune in today for the final episode of "The Oprah Winfrey Show." One devoted Oprah fan who will be glued to the screen for every last minute is a local woman who met the talk show queen way back when.
Linda V. Eldridge of Four Oaks isn't just a casual Oprah fan. She was actually a guest on the show back in 1987, during the first week of Oprah's second season on air.
Eldridge says the topic of the show was something along the lines of "Don't be afraid to marry down" -- a look at women who picked mates based solely on their socio-economic status.
Governor Beverly Perdue's State of the State address will be broadcast live tonight beginning at 7pm.
News 14 Carolina, UNC-TV and WRAL will all air the speech, which is expected to last about an hour. WTVD will air the speech on their digital broadcast channel 11.2. News 14 will begin their coverage at 6:50. The speech will also stream live on the UNCTV.org, WTVD.com and WRAL.com websites.
The final moments of a bank robbery-turned-hostage situation in Cary were carried on the live local news this afternoon, and two local stations found themselves in a sticky situation when that scene turned deadly.
WRAL showed footage of the suspect leading a hostage from the Wachovia bank with a gun to the hostage's head, and then cut away right before the man was shot dead by police. WTVD also cut away from the scene, but when they returned, they say they accidentally showed a replay that included footage of the robber being shot. On subsequent replays, footage of the man being shot was not shown.
After a rocky start, Raleigh freelance copy editor Ashley Mason left "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" with $17,550, not bad for less than 15 minutes work.
With a $35,000 pot, Mason ended up taking the safe route and opting for leaving with half her jackpot. The question that stumped her:
In 1908 in the Superior Motel in Montana, what amenity was added to hotel service for the first time?
The answer was . . .
You know what's almost as scary as a cowering in your bathroom during a nearly statewide tornado watch? Missing an amazing "Modern Family" Halloween episode.
We're definitely not making light of tornados, but we were really looking forward to "Modern Family" last night, so that was a double bummer.
WTVD is making it right, though. They'll repeat the episode Friday from 2:05 am to 2:35 am (that means tonight after midnight for those of us who are time-challenged). Whatever your DVR or TIVO says is on during that time, record it.
All other ABC programming pretty much showed in its entirety last night, but if you're dying to see the first couple of minutes of "Cougartown," you can watch on the ABC website. And if you can't wait till tonight/tomorrow for "Modern Family, you can also watch that on the ABC website.
Another day, another Time Warner Cable fight. This time the dispute is between the cable giant and Disney, which owns ABC.
Alan Wolf over at the .biz blog wrote about it this morning and he has the details of the contract dispute.
The showdown would come at the end of August, which could mean a disruption in ABC blockbusters "The Bachelorette" and "Wipeout," as well as some new summer pilots the network is launching in June.
Personally, missing my morning Regis would hurt most of all.
There's a new financial feud brewing among two media titans that could disrupt local cable-TV viewers later this summer.
This time, the dispute could knock out ABC programming for thousands of Time Warner Cable customers in the Triangle.
This market's ABC station, WTVD, is one of 10 ABC affiliates across the country that's owned by the Walt Disney Co. And Disney ABC Television's contract with Time Warner Cable is set to expire at the end of August.
Disney and other broadcasters want to collect new fees from cable providers to boost revenue. Time Warner Cable isn't eager to hand over any money for what has been free programming. The battle looms as advertising revenue remains soft and viewers defect from traditional TV fare.
"I think they will likely go toe-to-toe to the end," said Todd Mitchell, an media analyst with Kaufman Bros. in New York. "This is a hard time for both parties."
An ABC blackout would upset fans of popular sitcoms such as "Modern Family," dramas such as "Desperate Housewives," talk shows such as "Jimmy Kimmel Live," sports programming and more.
