Tuesday, March 15, 2011

No Anchor Newscast Debuts Saturday

Houston's Channel 39 reconfigures newscast
NewsFix, Channel 39's much-ballyhooed effort to re-imagine and reconfigure daily newscasts, will launch Saturday with an additional, unexpected twist: Harris County Constable Victor Trevino delivering the station's nightly crime report, according to David Barron at the Houston Chronicle.

The use of an elected official in an on-camera role for the 5 and 9 p.m. shows is perhaps the most jarring of the nontraditional elements of NewsFix, designed by former Tribune Co. executive Lee Abrams as an effort to blow up traditional newscast forms by eliminating anchors and most on-camera reporters.

Keith Monahan, KIAH's longtime meteorologist, left the station last week, and sports anchor Jorge Vargas' final day with the station will be Friday, general manager Roger Bare said. Anchor Mia Gradney, the center of 39's "Watch me at 9" ad campaign, will remain with the station to deliver news updates throughout the day but will not have an on-camera role with NewsFix.

"We are reallocating the screen time that used to go to anchors and reporters and using that to give the viewer more content," Bare said Monday.

"This will still be serious news. We'll start with local and have national and international segments, and each segment will end with some sort of feature. The tone of the newscast will depend on what the stories of the day are."

NewsFix will be narrated by Gregory Onofrio, who has hosted radio shows in Dallas and Houston under the name Grego. Onofrio also will appear on camera for a segment called "Closing Comments."

Read more here.

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