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Wheel Of Fortune and Jeopardy on non big 3 stations
jjman920:
--- Quote from: aaron sica on March 10, 2025, 05:41:46 PM ---Baltimore also airs them on a FOX affiliate. I believe Nashville does too.
--- End quote ---
I honestly still can't believe this. Literally the two most watched shows in syndication and WMAR (Scripps) dropped them. There's taking a risk, and I hoped for the best with Let's Ask America, but wow. And now, the 7pm hour is filled by a half hour of news (competing with CBS affiliate WJZ in that regard) and Flip Side (formerly Pictionary and Funny You Should Ask).
aaron sica:
--- Quote from: jjman920 on March 11, 2025, 01:50:10 AM ---I honestly still can't believe this. Literally the two most watched shows in syndication and WMAR (Scripps) dropped them. There's taking a risk, and I hoped for the best with Let's Ask America, but wow. And now, the 7pm hour is filled by a half hour of news (competing with CBS affiliate WJZ in that regard) and Flip Side (formerly Pictionary and Funny You Should Ask).
--- End quote ---
IIRC, WMAR aired both of them from the start. I believe it was a Scripps decision (Phoenix did the same thing too). I'm thinking WMAR wasn't thrilled to get rid of them.
MikeK:
--- Quote from: aaron sica on March 11, 2025, 08:04:58 AM ---
--- Quote from: jjman920 on March 11, 2025, 01:50:10 AM ---I honestly still can't believe this. Literally the two most watched shows in syndication and WMAR (Scripps) dropped them.
--- End quote ---
IIRC, WMAR aired both of them from the start. I believe it was a Scripps decision (Phoenix did the same thing too).
--- End quote ---
Definitely a Scripps cost-cutting decision. WEWS in Cleveland did likewise.
BrandonFG:
I remember when Let’s Ask America was announced, Scripps hoped it would lead to more original programming and that it was - as Mike said - a cost-cutting move given how expensive Wheel and J! were. Ambitious idea that was maybe five years too early. Would’ve been perfect in the Zoom era.
steveleb:
Scripps did indeed drop the shows because CBS, in their view, was asking way too much for something they saw as old-skewing and past its prime. They had a good relationship with Warner Brothers and their head of first-run production Jim Paratore, who had come from the station community and had championed LAA as a demographic and technological breakthrough. It was being pitched as being capable of doing for game show audience sales what TMZ (another show Jim championed) did for magazine shows, and they bought into the possibility hook, line and sinker.
Tragically, Jim died shortly after the deals were done and before the series went into production (far too young at 58, may I add) and without his stewardship it ultimately floundered and never did become what he had envisioned it.
Regarding some of the other markets--aside from the stations willing to pay CBS (or the Kings') price in some of those cases the ratings and time slot potential for the barter quality were as good, if not better, than traditional affiliates may have offered. At the time KCOP licensed them they had such potential and they had done OK enough with JOKER/TIC when they had them to warrant consideration. And by the mid 90s the growth of FOX made those affiliates truly viable as well.
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