One of the last remaining on-air elements from KIAH 39's former newscast is no longer with the station. Former 39 News anchor Mia Gradney tells me she has left the station.
“For the past twelve years, I’ve been blessed with wonderful opportunities and achievements at CW 39," Gradney told mikemcguff.com. "It’s been quite the professional journey but it’s time for me to move on.“
KIAH-TV’s vice president and general manager Roger Bare told me, the station is now re-branding those Eye Opener local cut-ins.
"We're re-branding the local news segments in Eye Opener as NewsFix Morning," Bare revealed.
The award-winning Gradney is a native Houstonian who returned home in 2000 to launch the last incarnation of 39's traditional news. She started as a reporter and was eventually promoted to the solo main anchor.
Gradney started in television behind the scenes at KTRK 13. She later became a reporter/anchor at KBMT in Beaumont before returning to Houston.
740 KTRH reporter Joe Gomez is leaving for NewsRadio 1080 KRLD in Dallas Fort-Worth. He will continue his role as a reporter for the CBS owned station.
"I had many great times at KTRH and got the opportunity to get my feet wet in a major market," Gomez told mikemcguff.com. "I'll take away some valuable lessons about the business from my time there and thank all the amazing people I worked with."
According to his bio, Gomez is a regular on the CBS and Fox Radio Networks. Some of the hightlights of his time on KTRH include going undercover in Juarez, Mexico and traveling into the pirate-infested waters of Falcon Lake.
Previously CultureMap Houston teamed up with KTRK 13's website abc13.com in a content sharing agreement. However today, I received this release from KHOU 11 about teaming up with Culturemap:
KHOU 11, the CBS affiliate in Houston, and CultureMap, Houston’s daily digital magazine, announced today that they will embark on a content sharing partnership spanning television, web, digital and social media platforms.
“We are very excited to kick-off this collaboration with CultureMap,” said Susan McEldoon, KHOU 11 President and General Manager. “We are always looking for fresh, new ways to better serve our local audience. This relationship provides both of our organizations the opportunity to enhance our product with quality content that is relevant, unique and local.”
“CultureMap is pleased to work with KHOU 11 on such a dynamic partnership with such a great partner,” said Stephen Newman, CEO of CultureMap. “Our goal as Houston’s daily digital magazine is to provide the most up-to-date news and information on Houston culture, lifestyle and quality of life. As a result of this partnership, we will heighten our audience experience of the site, providing deeper insider intelligence and a platform for discussion.”
Starting immediately, KHOU 11 will feature CultureMap content in live programming, including the “CultureMap Moment” in newscasts and segments on its morning talk show Great Day Houston. KHOU 11 will also expand its digital offerings by linking to CultureMap content.
“KHOU 11 digital users will have immediate access to the latest information from CultureMap, including what’s hot on the social scene, the best in local cuisine, home & design, fashion – the list goes on. Headlines will be updated daily and available with a click on KHOU.com and by downloading the KHOU 11 app for smartphones and iPad,” added Christine DiStadio, KHOU 11 Director of Digital Media.
Likewise, CultureMap will feature the latest news and featured videos from KHOU 11 on its homepage and throughout the site. Plus, breaking news from KHOU 11 will be updated instantaneously on CultureMap as it happens. Culturally relevant content from the TV station will appear on the site in other areas such as fashion, art, sports and food/drink.
“Our highly regarded editorial team and contributors will work closely with KHOU 11’s award-winning news teams to report on stories, places and people that matter in the greater Houston area,” said Clifford Pugh, Editor-in-Chief of CultureMap. “Our goal is to establish a network of information sharing that is mutually beneficial to both news organizations.”
“We both know Houston and are dedicated to telling compelling stories about this great city,” said KHOU 11’s Executive News Director Philip Bruce. “It’s really like two old friends coming together to share things they’ve learned about a place they love. And the great thing about it is that we’ll never run out of stories to tell.”
Houston radio's Sam Malone has been a very popular topic on this blog lately. You might have heard he was let go from 700 KSEV The Voice - replaced by The MACK Show with Richard Mack Machowicz a couple of weeks ago.
So then I bring you this...Doing my best impression of TMZ or the Gawker Stalker for the Houston radio royalty set, here is photographic evidence of Malone with his "radio wife" and former 104.1 KRBE partner, Maria Todd (current News92FM KROI weekend anchor).
"Had dinner [the other] night at Grotto with my radio wife Maria Todd," Malone told mikemcguff.com. "We sat there for 3 hours drinking Scotch and eating stuffed peppers! What a great evening."
No doubt it is Grotto from the unmistakable paint decorations on the wall.
So what's going on here? Is this just two friends catching up or are they teasing us with a possible radio reunion? We've been teased with this possibility before.
(Click play to see photos, click on a photo to see the caption)
I told you over Twitter how I was heading off to the Kroger’s Sixth Annual Bringing Hope to the Table Cake-off benefiting the Houston Food Bank Wednesday morning. That's right, lots of Houston media members and me stormed the West U. Kroger on Buffalo Speedway at Westpark for a big competition in the name of charity. It was just like that big fight scene in Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy except KHOU's Lily Jang didn't bring a trident...this time. There were also no blows to the face for on camera reasons.
We were packed in tightly, with our game faces on and a talented Kroger pastry chef to assist (I needed the help). To my left were KHOU's Jang and Katherine Whaley...to my right were Fox 26 KRIV's Natalie Bomke and Chris Stipes. TV cameras in our faces and flashes going off couldn't distract us.
This year’s cake-decorating theme centered on family, hope and happiness so I did a Twitter theme complete with a mother and baby bird plus the #KrogerBringsHope hashtag. While my effort got props (my wife's idea actually), I couldn't pull off the decoration.
Morning news anchor Lizzet Lopez of Univision 45/Telefutura 67 took the top prize, followed by Jang/Whaley and Stipes.
Here is the full list of the Houston media/blogger participants:
Lily Jang, KHOU 11 Morning News Anchor Katherine Whaley, KHOU 11 Reporter Kat Cosley, Live Well Network "Deals" Host Natalie Bomke, FOX 26 Morning News Anchor and Reporter
Chris Stipes, FOX 26 Morning News Anchor and Reporter Vicki Powers, Houston on the Cheap founder and blogger Amy Davis, KPRC 2 Investigative Reporter
Lizzet Lopez, Univision 45/Telefutura 67 Morning News Anchor
Caroline Evans, Examiner Newspaper Group Reporter
Mike McGuff, mikemcguff.com
Kroger tells me according to the latest Feeding America report, Texas has the second highest rate of childhood hunger in the nation – one in four children in the state do not know where their next meal will come from.
The Cake-off brings attention to Kroger’s citywide Bringing Hope to the Table fundraising campaign that takes place late May-June. During the fundraiser, select products are marked with a special campaign tag in greater Houston Kroger stores. Each time a customer purchases a marked item, a portion of the sale goes to the Houston Food Bank to help the organization provide food assistance to more than 137,000 Southeast Texas residents weekly.
Tomorrow is NewsRadio 740 KTRH anchor Lois Melkonian's last day at the Clear Channel Houston station.
"I'm joining my husband in Denver, preparing to care for my parents, then branching out to explore new opportunities," Melkonian told mikemcguff.com over email. "The people here at KTRH have been wonderful."
Melkonian, an accomplished journalist, came from KOA radio in Denver. Before Denver, she was a TV reporter/anchor at KGO 7 in San Francisco. Ahead of the TV gigs, she worked at KCBS Radio in San Francisco.
In other KTRH news, All Access is reporting that the station's web reporter Samantha Jordan is leaving the station in June. Jordan has emailed me to say this is not true.
Christian Radio Group Buys 103.7 FM
KHJK 103.7, the station known as "Houston's Adult Alternative" and the only place on Houston commercial radio to hear artists such as Mumford & Sons and the Avett Brothers, has been sold to a group of Christian-music radio stations.
Mark Davis returning to DFW radio on KSKY
Mark Davis, whose talk show was taken off the air in early April after 18 years at WBAP/820 AM/96.7 FM and ultimately replaced, will return to the air June 4 with a 7-10 a.m. show on KSKY/660 AM, which can also be heard on 99.9 FM in Fort Worth, 95.5 FM in Arlington and 92.9 FM in Dallas.
Buffolino reveals story behind departure from KENS
Former KENS-TV anchorwoman Vicki Buffolino, a favorite of local viewers for nearly two decades, has had an inordinately tough year. Plus, reporter Noelle Gardner leaves KENS 5 too.
Scott Murray joins weekend lineup on KLIF-AM 570 in Dallas
KLIF-AM 570 announced the addition of broadcaster Scott Murray to its weekend lineup: The Scott Murray Show will debut on Sunday at 7 p.m. to focus on "difference-makers, athletes, entertainers, and other individuals who give back to the local community."
KEYE ending ‘We Are Austin Live,’ adding 5 p.m. newscast
KEYE will tweak its afternoon lineup next month. The station plans to scrap its 4 p.m. “We Are Austin Live” show and, at the same time, revive its 5 p.m. newscast, which was nixed about three years.
You Can Change the Channel, but Local News Is the Same
SAN ANGELO, Tex. — Call a reporter at the CBS television station here, and it might be an anchor for the NBC station who calls back. Or it might be the news director who runs both stations’ news operations.
I hear KTRK 13 reporter Andy Cerota's contract is up and he is most likely moving on from the Houston ABC owned station. But the talk does not stop there.
The BIG rumor is that Cerota could end up behind the anchor desk down the freeway at KPRC 2.
I contacted Cerota's agent Rick Ramage of N.S. Bienstock, Inc. about this potential "move across the street" as they say. Ramage told me Andy is currently weighing several job offers, but it is his policy to not comment on client contract negotiations.
Cerota has been at channel 13 since 2003. According to his bio, Cerota came to Houston from Los Angeles TV. Before that, he worked in Phoenix, Austin and Abilene. He graduated from the University of Northern Colorado and is originally from New York. One thing in his bio that sticks out is Cerota freelanced for NBC News and filed reports for The Geraldo Rivera Show.
In recent years it has not been common for Houston talent to jump from one local station to another but is has happened (much more common for behind the scenes folks as demonstrated on this blog).
Here are some names that are currently on Houston TV that come to mind though:
KHOU 11's Shern-Min Chow has also worked at KTRK and KPRC.
KHOU 11's Jeff McShan used to be a sports reporter at KTRK.
KTRK 13's Christi Myers worked for KPRC and KHOU.
Katishia Cosley has moved between KTRK and KIAH 39.
KTRK 13's Katie McCall used to work at KIAH.
KHOU 11's Vicente Arenas used to work at KTRK.
KHOU 11's Sherry Williams used to work at KIAH.
KHOU 11's Gene Norman used to work at KTRK.
KPRC 2's Frank Billingsley used to work at KTRK
Fox 26 KRIV's Ford Atkinson used to work at KPRC.
Fox 26 KRIV's Emily Akin used to work at KPRC.
Cerota declined to comment for this post.
UPDATE
I've been alerted that Cerota's bio has been removed from abc13.com.
KHOU 11 has let me know things went for the Belo owned station during May 2012 sweeps:
"May delivered momentum for KHOU 11. While the majority of other stations showed year to year declines among the A25-54 demo, KHOU maintained or grew viewers. In fact, at 10pm, KHOU was the only English language newscast to experience growth over the last year in the all-important A25-54 segment. When it comes to households at 10pm, KHOU is just 2/10th (0.2) of a HH rating point shy of the #1 position (KTRK 6.1, KHOU 5.9, KPRC 4.7).
In addition to the 10pm news, other standout newscasts include KHOU 11 News at 5a, 4p and 6p. In these peak periods KHOU is ranked #2 – a solid showing for the 4pm newscast in particular, which is still less than a year old. Another bright light, KHOU’s morning news is up among A25-54 and showing growth compared to other station numbers that are either flat or down from the previous year."
May 2012 TV sweeps are over and now everyone can exhale. In February, you might remember how three Houston TV stations claimed a victory at 10pm. From what I understand, things aren't that close this time. This is the reason I don't even pretend to understand ratings. There are too many variable to be taken.
Apparently KTRK 13 did very well this time. Sorry, I don't subscribe to Nielsen so most likely you will be able to read an article in the Houston Chronicle that goes into more detail.
KIAH 39 tells me it has good news. On Adults 25-54, NewsFix weeknights at 5pm doubled in the ratings year to year and the station's 9pm edition grew 25%.
