Gloria Neal and Bobby Kaple are the new morning team for CBS46. CREDIT: CBS46

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Monday, June 15, 2015

Over a decade covering local TV, I have seen managers and on-air staff come and go.

Monica Pearson and John Pruitt of Channel 2 Action News transitioned smoothly to Jovita Moore and Justin Farmer. 11 Alive added the Wizometer and survived. Fox 5 revamped “Good Day Atlanta.” CBS46 shuffled through multiple general managers and news directors. Three stations saw new chief meteorologists in a span of a few months.

Yet ratings haven’t changed much. Channel 2 Action News remains the dominant No. 1. Fox 5 is the 10 p.m. king and is a solid No. 2. 11 Alive usually maintains a distant third while CBS46 typically finds traction only at 11 p.m.

Meredith Corp., which owns CBS46, has found nothing remotely close to stability in its efforts over the past 16 years to dig the station out of the ratings basement. But new general manager Mark Pimentel and news director Larry Perret, who built reputations for cleaning house and rebuilding TV stations, have revamped the station in a way that nobody in local TV news has seen before in such a short time.

That means on Monday, June 15, the station introduces an almost entirely new anchor lineup. In recent months, CBS46 has brought in a new chief meteorologist, revived its sports department, revamped its digital group, hired new producers and introduced a raft of new reporters. Virtually the only department that went relatively unscathed was its camera crew.

A broader overview of CBS46’s changes.

Pimentel acknowledged such a radical revamp was not ideal, that any positive impact on ratings will take a long time. But they both said they believe their bosses will show patience and has given them the financial resources to turn things around this time. If anything, they have certainly hired some firecrackers from out of town and created a cool new daily “Just a Minute” commentary from a vast array of mostly former journalists from other stations. (Details of that here.)

Here’s an edited Q&A I had with Pimentel (who came to Atlanta in January) and Perret (who arrived in September) this past Friday at CBS46’s midtown offices.

Q: So tell me what CBS46’s situation is in your view.

Pimentel: We’re currently a fourth-place operation here. Both the research and ratings point to the fact we were having trouble attracting viewers and keeping viewers that might be provided by lead ins to our shows. It called for an examination of where we were and what we’re doing and who were key players in our operations both on screen and off screen.

Q: What’s your background?

Pimentel: I worked at WSB as an executive producer (in 1988-89) and at 11 Alive as news director (from 1992-95). I’ve worked as a GM at five TV stations. But I’ve never done anything quite like this. This is unique.

Perret: I was last in our Kansas City station. We were both promoted from within the company. Last place stations are very similar. You have variables you can control: people, story selection and content and production. At last-place stations, you usually have problems in all those areas. You have to evaluate them.

Pimentel: I don’t want to overlook the content issue. It’s critical. We are working to improve our content. We feel in many ways that has been our biggest failing. At least when I got here, when Larry got here, it wasn’t compelling content. There was not a reason to stay tuned to the newscasts. That’s been a big focus. But it’s an evolution. It’s not a flip a switch and your content is where you want it to be. You’ll really see things in a year, year and a half.

Me: Meredith hasn’t shown a lot of patience with past management. Will you be given the breathing room?

Pimentel: We both feel secure. We’re supported. We’re not worried about a timetable.

Me: I’m amazed that no matter how many changes stations make in this market, ratings and rankings don’t change much. Is there anything special about Atlanta?

Pimentel: It’s a highly transient market which opens the door a little wider than in St. Louis [his last market.]. An improved product, a compelling product might draw them in. We find there are dissatisfied viewers who watch other TV stations. We’ve seen the research. We have strong competitors but we know there are opportunities.

It’s a very diverse market with a growing Hispanic population and a very strong African-American population in both the power structure and the middle and upper class. It’s also younger than many cities.

Me: How do you get anybody to pay attention nowadays?

Pimentel: Breaking through the clutter. I have so many resources available to me. How in the hell do I break through? The Pew study said local TV is still important but only on the basis of doing it on multiple platforms.

Perret: I’m putting an emphasis on enterprise stories that are hard news, stories that are not on the other stations. If things were perfect, I’d want 50 percent enterprise stories.

Me: Where are you at now?

Perret: 20 percent. I think there is too many crime coverage that is not relevant to people’s lives. We are trying to reduce the amount of two-bit crime coverage, nickel-and-dime coverage. We have to differentiate ourselves and not do pack journalism… I said right from the beginning, we are not going to play the gimmick game.

Me: No Wizometer?

Perret: We respect our competitors.

Pimentel: We respect the intelligence of our viewers. That’s why we know content is king.

Me: What makes your new hires special? You seem to have hired some interesting characters.

Perret: We have real people, authentic people you can relate to. We don’t want to be vanilla.

Me: So what’s up with Bobby Kaple, the new morning cohost?

Pimentel: Bobby has a diverse background in both news and sports. He’s glib, he’s quick on his feet.

Me: How about his co-host Gloria Neal?

Perret: She has described herself as unorthodox. She has the ability to draw people to the set because she’s real. We couple that with good content and that should increase ratings.

Me: You kept [meteorologist] Jennifer Valdez, who I know is very popular.

Pimentel: We like Jennifer. She’s one our most well-recognized personalities. We think her personality is a great fit for the mornings. Mornings are the toughest period to get people to change their habits. Personalities are the most important.

Me: What’s your take Kim Passoth, your new mid-day anchor?

Perret: She’s a hard news reporter from Oklahoma City. She covered a lot of tornadoes. She anchors but she is very much interested in going out every day and reporting for our 4, 5 and 6 o’clock news.

Me: Let’s get to the evenings. You kept Tracye Hutchins. She’s your last anchor standing

Pimental: Tracye’s very popular. She’s a great talent. She’s nicely paired with Ben and Sharon.

Ben Swann and Sharon Reed are part of the new 4, 5 and 6 p.m. anchor team with Tracye Hutchins. CREDIT: CBS46

Me: And Ben Swann in the evening?

Pimentel: He’s a strong journalist, a compelling journalist. I think when he talks, you want to listen. That’s what we saw.

Me: Finally, there’s Sharon Reed, who is paired with Ben.

Pimentel: I worked with her in St. Louis for the past two and a half years. She was one of the reasons we were able to lift KMOV from third to first. She’s a compelling anchor and reporter.

Me: So isn’t that a big loss for St. Louis?

Pimentel: Meredith encourages growth within the company to move on to bigger and better things. This is a bigger market. I feel the success we had in KMOV will continue even without her.

Me: With younger viewers now watching more TV not on the TV, what’s your digital plans?

Pimentel: We’ve also transformed our digital efforts. We will double our staff. This is an area we have to be better in. We’ve hired a very strong managing editor [Kelly Frank] already. She’s overseeing content across all platforms. Our content digitally is 500 percent than it was a year ago. It will get even better. It’s a work in progress.

Me: With so many new faces, was the “Just a Minute” commentary idea a way to bring in familiar faces as well?

Pimentel: I came up with that idea long before all the talent changes. I had that idea last October before I even got here. I didn’t know it would come to fruition but enough people on my wish list said yes. I’m excited. I hope we can stir things up.

Me: You brought in Fred Kalil recently from 11 Alive. How’s that going?

Perret: We’re encouraging Fred to give his take on sports, to give his opinion on plays and events. There’s more opportunity for opinion in sports.

Fred Kalil worked at 11 Alive since 1993 but moved to CBS46 earlier this year. CREDIT: 11 Alive

Pimentel: We’re in the midst of rebuilding a sports department. [CBS46 got rid of it sports department in 2009, outsourcing sports to 790/The Zone, then fired them in 2013.]… I think there is space within our broadcasts for sports again… No reason we can’t devote a couple of minutes a night to sports, which is part of American culture. I don’t think they should have gotten rid of it. I don’t know why they did it. Candidly, I don’t know why they did a lot of things here.

New chief meteorologist Jim Kosek worked under the current CBS46 news director in Kansas City.

Me: And I know Markina Brown left on her own. Why did you hire Jim Kosek (as chief meteorologist)?

Perret: He has personality and 25 years of experience at AccuWeather. He knows what he’s doing.

Pimentel: We’re really tried to focus on the accuracy of weather… We’ve launched our guaranteed forecast. The more accurate we are, the more we give to charity…

Me: Before we go, anything else you wanted to add?

Pimentel: We would have liked not to have made as many changes as we made. If we could have done this with what we had in terms of staff, it would have been much easier. … No one here is happy. We know lives have been disrupted. It’s not taken lightly.

A Fulton County judge cleared Amanda Davis of the most serious charges related to a vehicular accident she was in in November, 2012. But she was arrested again on June 15 ,2015.  CREDIT: Fox 5

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Monday, June 15, 2015

Former Fox 5 anchor Amanda Davis, as my colleague Tyler Estep reported this morning, was arrested earlier today for driving under the influence and failure to maintain lane.

Davis was set to debut as part of the CBS46’s new “Just a Minute” commentary team at 5:56 p.m. today.

But CBS46 released a statement at 10:49 a.m.:

For personal reasons Amanda Davis has requested leave from the Just a Minute Project.  We at CBS46 respect her decision.

The commentaries are pre-taped so the station will sub her commentary out. CBS46 has a set of 10 mostly former Atlanta journalists doing one-minute commentaries, including Sally Sears, Ken Watts and Kimberley Kennedy. Cynthia Tinsley, formerly of 11 Alive, will be heard first tonight instead.

Based on a poll I posted when I first wrote about “Just a Minute” on June 4, Davis was by far the most highly anticipated contributor with nearly half of those who took the poll looking forward to seeing her the most.

CBS46 general manager Mark Pimentel, the day “Just a Minute” was announced earlier this month, said contributors are compensated but acknowledged it wasn’t a lot.

Davis retired from Fox 5 after 26 years in 2013 and several months after being arrested for DUI while driving in the wrong lane and hitting another vehicle. In 2014, she was cleared of all charges and assigned 20 hours of community service. She has not been able to get another full-time job in Atlanta TV. Presumably, the “Just a Minute” part-time gig was a way to get back in the spotlight.

She talked to Maria Boynton of V-103 last week. “I thought I was done. Got a call from CBS46 and I’m back,” she told Boynton. She was going to talk about Caitlyn Jenner and how so many others don’t have his resources.

She also addressed the reaction to her 2012 DUI for the first time in public:

“It was awful,” she said. “People don’t think about you as a person. They were hateful. They were mean.” She said she couldn’t address the case because of the legal case. She said the night of the accident she had a single drink but didn’t think that was the problem. She blamed her driving the wrong way down a one-way street less on drinking and more on “distracted” driving. She refused to take a sobriety test because she was afraid, she told Boynton.

Davis admitted she was depressed and isolated for a period of time after that.

She did not acknowledge any drinking problems to Boynton although to be fair, Boynton never asked that question directly.

Estep got a hold of the police report in the afternoon of the latest DUI arrest. The details were sparse.

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Wednesday, June 16, 2015

The latest departure at CBS46 is reporter Jeff Chirico.

Chirico joined the station in March, 2010. He announced his voluntary move on Twitter last night. He said he’ll be going to another job in another city but didn’t state where.

In 2013, a video of Chirico getting punched out by a man he was trying to interview went viral.

Fredericka Whitfield, the only regular CNN anchor based in Atlanta who anchors on weekends, inserted foot in mouth last Saturday by calling a gunman “courageous and brave” after attacking a Dallas Police headquarters.

She said on Sunday she “misspoke” but went on full-out apology mode Monday with this statement:

I misused those words terribly. And I sincerely apologize for making this statement, and I understand now how offensive it was, and I want to reiterate that in no way do I believe the gunman was courageous or brave. I sincerely apologize.

Conservative news sites had a field day.

***

The 17th edition of CBS’s “Big Brother” debuting June 24 features three contestants with local ties, all vying for half a million dollars [I said $1 million earlier. It’s been $500K since the beginning, inflation be damned] by being locked in a house for weeks at a time with 11 others.

Audrey Middleton will try to win $500K against 13 others on “Big Brother.” CREDIT: CBS

Audrey Middleton, 25

Hometown and current city: Villa Rica, GA.
Occupation: Digital Media Consultant

UPDATE: TMZ reported she is transgender. Details here.

Jace Agolli is from the same town as Ryan Seacrest: Dunwoody. CREDIT: CBS

Jace Agolli, 23
Hometown: Dunwoody, Georgia
Current City: Venice Beach, California
Occupation: Personal Trainer

Shelli Poole is a UGA grad. CREDIT: CBS

Shelli Poole, 33
Hometown: Marietta, Georgia
Current City: Atlanta
Occupation: Interior Designer

Tracy Humphrey is moving back to weekend work at 11 Alive. CREDIT: 11 Alive

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Friday, June 19, 2015

Meteorologist Tracy Humphrey, who arrived at 11 Alive a year ago as the weekend meteorologist and weekend feature reporter, was moved soon after to the weekday Atlanta Alive team with Vinnie Politan.

She’s now going to do a hybrid, working with Atlanta Alive three days a week and joining Blayne Alexander on weekend mornings reporting weather and feature news.

Humphrey has previously worked in Philadelphia, Buffalo, Syracuse and Savannah.

11 Alive’s weather team, dubbed “Storm Trackers,” include chief meteorologist Chris Holcomb, Chesley McNeil, Samantha Mohr and Humphrey. Julie Martin will continue in a freelance role along with Allison Chinchar, who also works with CNN.

***
CBS46 General Manager Mark Pimentel has brought in a gaggle of new faces to CBS46 but also a few older ones from his past including Fred Kalil from 11Alive. His latest pickup: CB Hackworth as new producer for special projects, the same job he had at 11 Alive in the early 1990s when Pimentel was the news director there.

Hackworth is not a household name among average viewers, being a behind-the-scenes guy. But he’s been in Atlanta media for several decades.

He began working in TV at Channel 2 Action News from 1987 to 1990 as an associate producer, became a producer of special projects from 1991 to 1997 at 11 Alive.  He became a senior producer for local programming at WSB from 1997 to 2005.

For the past deacde, Hackworth partnered with Andrew Young, the former United Nations Ambassador, two- term Atlanta Mayor and civil right leader. They created and launched a series of syndicated Emmy-winning television specials. Their program “Andrew Young Presents,” is now in its seventh season and is seen in 100 markets in the U.S. and worldwide on American Forces Network.

Clearly, this hire is an effort by CBS46 to create more original programming.

***

Courtney Rushing of Powder Springs with Nene Leakes and Michael Strahan during the production of “Live! with Kelly and Michael” in New York on Tuesday June 16, 2015. Photo: Rob Tannenbaum/Disney ABC Home Entertainment and TV DistributionCourtney Rushing, Nene Leakes and Michael Strahan are pictured during the production of “Live! with Kelly and Michael” in New York on Tuesday June 16, 2015. Photo: Rob Tannenbaum/Disney ABC Home Entertainment and TV Distribution

Courtney Rushing of Kennesaw appeared this morning on “Live with Kelly and Michael” on WSB at 9 a.m.

Atlanta’s NeNe Leakes was filling in for Kelly Ripa.

She is the fourth semi-finalist in “LIVE’s Search for America’s New Grill Star.” Courtney got in the kitchen with Michael Strahan and Leakes to make her pineapple, avocado and shrimp salsa.

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally Monday, June 29, 2015

Karyn Greer, who officially left 11 Alive in March but was off air since January, has landed a freelance gig with CBS46. She began reporting, this morning confirmed news director Larry Perret.

Greer, in a text, said she is happy to get to work again although she is bummed she missed a bunch of big stories the past two weeks.

She departed the NBC affiliate after 15 years. I had heard that 11 Alive did not give her a good renewal offer.

“I am stepping out on faith but I know in the end God has my back. Keep me and my family in your prayers,” she wrote on Facebook at the time.

Greer worked at WGNX-TV (now WGCL-TV and CBS46) from 1989 to 1999 as an anchor.

CBS46 has picked up two veteran reporters full time: Karyn Greer and Sally Sears. CREDIT: publicity photos

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Monday, November 9, 2015

CBS46 has hired Karyn Greer and Sally Sears full time as part of their new investigative unit. Art Harris, Harry Samler and anchors Sharon Reed and Ben Swann are also part of the team.

They are led by veteran media man CB Hackworth, who joined CBS46 as executive producer of special projects in June and has won 22 Emmys.

“We’re all about hard news, enterprise reporting, investigative and broad impact relevant content,” texted Larry Perret, news director, on Monday night. “That’s our future moving forward.”

When the station made a massive makeover in June, Perret said the emphasis would be on finding original news stories nobody else has. It has been reporting heavily on the subject of guns, which included a piece about 6,000 guns the Atlanta police are sitting on, a story that our own Jim Galloway followed up on a few days ago. Now all four broadcast stations in town have investigative teams.

“It’s a team with not only years of television reporting experience but a team with a number of years in the Atlanta market. They have contacts and sources that will help us do some incredible investigative work,” Perret said in a press release.

The station, he said, is placing emphasis on its morning show and its 11 p.m. newscast, both of which are  making headway in building audience. Perret noted that CBS46 – which is usually in fourth place in most dayparts – beat 11Alive at 11 p.m. in October.

In recent years, 11 p.m has been CBS46’s strongest rated program, fueled in part by a strong prime-time lineup. Greer, who left 11 Alive earlier this year after 15 years, joined CBS46 as a freelancer in June filling in mornings as an anchor and doing some spot reporting. She recently broke the story of the Georgia Tech student lying about getting robbed after jumping and falling off a moving train.

Sears worked for a combined 26 years as a reporter at WAGA-TV (1984-1995) and Channel 2 Action News (1995-2010) before retiring. CBS46 first lured her back on air a few months ago as part of their daily “Just a Minute” segment featuring commentaries by former journalists. She did a piece a few weeks back on prisoners who have their own Facebook pages and Web access behind bars.

Samler is one of the station’s veteran reporters, having been there a decade and focused on consumer investigations under the phrase “Better Call Harry.” Harris joined CBS46 in August as an investigative reporter. Reed and Swann joined the station five months ago as new anchors. Swann has done several pieces under his signature “Reality Check With Ben Swann,” a type of journalism he did before he joined the station.

By RODNEY HO/ rho@ajc.com, originally filed Tuesday, July 12, 2016

FTVLive earlier today posted three Facebook rants by an Emmy-winning CBS46 photojournalist Charles Beau Menefee in which he insulted the Black Lives Matter movement, calling them “unevolved, uncivilized turds” and wondering if the protesters could be boxed in and bombed.

In fact, he wished death upon members of the group at least twice.

Mark Pimental, general manager at CBS46, said Menefee has been fired, sending me a note informing the staff of his departure with his employee photo included.

I redacted the obvious curse word…

Menefee had previously worked at 11Alive (WXIA-TV). He was nominated for a 2015 Emmy for Ferguson coverage in the category of “General Assignment Report Within 24 Hours” with Matthew Pearl but did not win. (One employee at 11Alive told me the station beefed up security today after the station heard he had lost his job at WGCL-TV. Interpret that as you will.)

In 2012, when Menefee worked at the CBS affiliate WTVR-TV in Richmond, VA, he won an Emmy for best investigative report with Catie Beck.

This is unlikely to help his career, but he had a reel of his work on YouTube from 2013, which was taken down soon after I posted it:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gw4uZD5Sc2k&w=640&h=390]

This was posted by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

TV news consultant Steve Doerr has been hired as the latest news director at CBS46 in what has become a revolving-door position.

He replaces Frank Volpicella, who was let go last month after less than a year on the job. Doerr will be the seventh news director at the station in less than a decade.

“Steve comes to us with a rich history and both news and upper station management,” General Manager Mark Pimental wrote to staff today, “and is uniquely qualified to take on this important role here.”

Doerr has had a slew of management jobs in local TV over the years. He has worked as a news director in Philadelphia (WCAU-TV), Washington D.C. (WRC) and Columbus, Ohio (WSYX). He has been senior vice president of news, promotion and programming for all NBC own-and-operated stations. And he has been general manager in Providence, R.I. (WLNE) and Dallas (KXAS).

Most recently, he has been vice president of client development for a broadcast consulting firm Crawford Johnson & Northcott. The description of him on the website is as follows:

The brand is everything. Steve has built some of the most distinctive brands in local media because of his sharp focus on becoming distinctive. His experience in news, management and corporate strategy provide you uncommon insight. His knowledge of digital content and strategy will help you forge new paths. Plus, Steve cuts right to the point. Just what you want when the goal is to win.

The CBS affiliate has seen regular turnover of top management for many years as the station has struggled to improve ratings.

Here are the previous six news directors: Frank Volpicella (11, months, July, 2016-June 2017), Larry Perret (20 months, September 2014- May,  2016), Lane Michaelson (15 months, April, 2013- July, 2014), Eric Ludgood (22 months, March, 2011-January 2013), Steve Schwaid (two years, 10 months, May, 2008-March, 2011) and Rick Erbach (three years, four months, January 2005-May 2008).

Michael Castengera, who teaches broadcast news at the Grady School at the University of Georgia and does broadcast consulting, said Doerr had a decent reputation back in the day but he hadn’t tracked him recently. He does not envy Doerr’s task at hand.

“I quite frankly don’t understand how anybody with decent credentials would want to take that station on,” he said.

Castengera said he’s friends with Volpicella, Doerr’s predecessor, and knew he made a concerted effort to meet with publicists and VIPs in town to help build the affiliate’s reputation. Pimental and Volpicella had worked together before successfully, Castengera noted, “so it was a shock to me when Mark let him go after such a short time.”

Doerr also worked with current CBS46 evening anchor Sharon Reed before in Cleveland in the mid-2000s at WOIO. That was a period of time when Reed posed nude with hundreds of others as part of a photo installation in 2004, garnering her headlines nationwide. According to a wire story at the time, Doerr as news director said the story was aimed at bringing in ratings during November sweeps when audiences are measured to set advertising rates.

Above: WOIO anchor Sharon Reed. Below WOIO news director Steve Doerr (with Reed) tapes a response to viewers after Reed disrobed at the scene of a mass nude photo installation in Cleveland as part of her first-person report. Photo via WOIO, Cleveland Ohio less

This was posted on Thursday, September 21, 2017 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

Subscribers of AT&T and DIRECTV might lose access to Meredith-owned CBS46 (WGCL-TV) and Peachtree TV (WPCH-TV) tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 22, if the two sides can’t come to an agreement.

CBS46 and Peachtree TV have begun notifying viewers of this possibility Thursday.

[UPDATE: As of 10:27 a.m. EST Friday, Meredith has not pulled its programming off AT&T and DIRECTV.]

[UPDATE: As of 6:43 p.m. EST Friday, an AT&T representative said it appears the two sides have resolved their issues and a blackout won’t happen.]

“WGCL/WPCH have been trying for months to get AT&T and DIRECTV to negotiate seriously,” said General Manager Mark Pimental in a statement. “Reaching a deal and preventing a blackout is our top priority.  We know the vital local news, emergency information, and top-rated sports and entertainment programming we provide are important to AT&T’s and DIRECTV’s customers, and we hope AT&T and DIRECTV will make it a priority to reach a deal too.”

Here’s AT&T and DIRECTV’s response:

First and foremost … we (AT&T/DirecTV) will not “drop” these stations.

We want to keep WGCL and WPCH in our Atlanta customers’ local lineups. Doing so requires permission from their owner, Meredith Corp., since FCC rules grant WGCL and WPCH exclusive control over whether either station remains available on either DIRECTV or U-verse. Meredith is currently threatening to block WGCL and WPCH from reaching our local customers’ homes unless Meredith receives a significant increase in fees even though the same people can still watch its shows for free over-the-air on channels 46 and 17 and, typically, at cbs.com or using the CBS app. Meredith has blocked its stations from reaching different providers’ customers before and also threatened to disconnect others.

We’d like to resolve this matter quickly and reasonably, and appreciate our Atlanta customers’ patience while we attempt just that.

Companies that own TV channels typically sign deals with carriers such as Xfinity and Charter every few years to allow them to carry their networks. This happens both locally and nationally. Occasionally, these disputes bubble out publicly, and both parties try to get customers to call in and complain.

It’s impossible to know which side is right or wrong from the outside. Usually, each side tries to pin the blame on the other in public statements for being greedy/unreasonable/uncaring to the customers. Typically after they resolve the issue, they shake hands and act like this never happened.

If a blackout happens Friday, AT&T and DIRECTV subscribers would not be able to watch shows such as “The Young & the Restless,” “The Talk” and “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert.” If it drags into Sunday, viewers would miss some NFL games (Steelers/Bears and Packers/Bengals) and the debut of “Star Trek: Discovery.” Monday includes the season premieres of “The Big Bang Theory,” “Kevin Can Wait” and “Scorpion” and the series debuts of “Young Sheldon” and “Me, Myself & I.” On Tuesday, “NCIS,” “Bull” and “NCIS: New Orleans” return. On Wednesday, the 35th season of “Survivor” and “Criminal Minds” come back, plus a new series “SEAL Team.”

Obviously, anyone can access these two channels locally via a proper antenna since they are broadcast networks.

Ben Swann and Sharon Reed are adding 9 p.m. newscast duties on Peachtree TV. They will be on air for 3.5 hours a day. CREDIT: CBS46

Posted on Monday, October 2, 2017 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

CBS46 is adding a 9 p.m. newscast on sister station Peachtree TV starting October 16 and it will run seven days a week.

Sharon Reed and Ben Swann – regular evening anchors on CBS46’s 4 p.m., 6 p.m. and 11 p.m. newscasts – will anchor the 9 p.m. as well.

There are no other 9 p.m. newscasts in the market.

“We know Atlanta is an early commuter market due to traffic and the 9 p.m. news will be a great opportunity for viewers to get a complete newscast and get a full night’s rest,” said CBS46 & Peachtree TV Vice President/General Manager Mark Pimentel in a press release.

Chief meteorologist Paul Ossmann, meteorologist Ella Dorsey and sports director Fred Kalil will join the newscast as well.

With the added responsibility, both Swann and Reed will be on the anchor desk for three and a half hours per day, a relatively heavy on-air workload for anchors.

CBS46 airs local news from 4 to 6:30 p.m and Reed works two of those hours, except for the 5:30 to 6 p.m. slot, when Tracye Hutchins spells her. Swann works the 4 p.m. hour and from 5:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Hutchins anchors only the 5 p.m. hour, sharing chair time with Swann for 30 minutes, then Reed for another 30.

On weekdays, the newscast will supplant repeats of “Law & Order: Criminal Intent” on Peachtree TV. 

Meredith, which owns CBS46, recently purchased Peachtree TV from Time Warner/Turner as Time Warner tries to complete a merger with AT&T. Over the previous six years, Meredith had been operating the station in a lease agreement.

In recent years, local broadcasters have found adding newscasts is cost efficient and brings in more revenue than buying syndicated programming. Fox 5 now airs 10.5 hours of local news on weekdays, including repeats, more than any other broadcaster in town. NBC affiliate 11Alive features two evening newscasts on its sister WATL-TV station at 7 p.m. for 30 minutes and 10 p.m. for an hour. The 7 p.m. newscast debuted this spring. It also airs a morning show on WATL at 7 a.m. called “The Morning Rush.”

RELATED: Ben Swann resurrects “Pizzagate” story 

RELATED: Sharon Reed said baby is not Lebron’s

Gurvir Dhinda on her first day on air on CBS46’s early morning news October 23, 2017.

Posted Thursday, October 19, 2017 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

Gurvir Dhindsa, who departed Fox 5’s “Good Day Atlanta” last year, will be joining CBS46’s morning news team starting Monday but it’s not being framed as a permanent addition.

“Gurvir will start appearing on the CBS46 morning news next Monday on a temporary basis,” wrote general manager Mark Pimental to me. “No decision has been made regarding the [full-time] replacement of Bobby Kaple.  We are happy to add someone of Gurvir’s depth of experience in the Atlanta market to the team.”

She will be paired with Amanda Davis, who joined the team earlier this year and had previously spent 26 years at WAGA-TV from 1987 to 2013.

“I welcome Gurvir,” Davis said in a text. “She’s a consummate professional with a lovely spirit and a good heart.”

If this ends up being permanent, it would be a rare combo or one I can’t recall ever seeing on Atlanta news: two women helming a morning show with a female meteorologist Jennifer Valdez and traffic reporter Julie Smith as well. Notably, they are all minorities as well.

Kaple left a few weeks ago and is running for the Sixth District House seat currently held by Karen Handel.

Dhindsa was a host at “Good Day Atlanta” twice.

She first worked at “Good Day” from 1997 to 2000 before moving to D.C. to work at a Fox affiliate there.

Dhindsa returned to Atlanta in 2011, replacing Suchita Vadlamani, who is no longer in the business and is raising a daughter.

She did not immediately state why she left Fox 5 last year. 

In a Facebook messenger note, she merely said, “I left Fox 5 because the time was right for me to leave Fox.”

For her, she said she’s excited to be at CBS46. “I love the energy and momentum of the station and its management and staff. After meeting with the new news director Steve Doerr, we both felt it was the right fit and the right time.”

She added: “I have had the rare and wonderful gift of time with my family since leaving. Now I am ready to get back in the saddle. One of the things I’m looking forward to the most is reconnecting with all those folks who wake up early in Georgia!”

Dhindsa’s “Good Day Atlanta” replacement was Alyse Eady.

CBS46 recently added a new slogan: “Local, Real, Everywhere.”

Gurvir Dhindsa and Jennifer Valdez on the CBS46 newscast October 24, 2017 on CBS46.

Posted Tuesday, October 24, 2017 by RODNEY HO/rhhis AJC Radio & TV Talk blogo@ajc.com on 

The CBS46 morning newscast from 5 a.m. to 7 a.m. this week has featured the usual elements: breaking news, weather, traffic.

But it’s also unusual and possibly unprecedented: the two primary anchors, the traffic reporter and the meteorologist are all minority females.

That would be Amanda Davis (hired earlier this year), Gurvir Dhindsa (hired on a temporary basis starting this week), Julie Smith and Jennifer Valdez.

Mark Pimental, the general manager, wrote me this morning to say what they had done in terms of racial and gender composition hadn’t even entered his brain. “To us,” he wrote, “it was four talented women who are good at their job.”

“I can’t imagine it was on purpose,” said Will Frampton, a reporter who recently left CBS46 after six years and moved to Boston for personal reasons. “If I had been watching, it wouldn’t have occurred to me. Everyone I know on that show are good people. Julie Smith is phenomenal. Jennifer Valdez is awesome. I only got to know Amanda Davis a little bit but she seems like a nice person.”

Nonetheless, it could very well be a first, at least in the Atlanta market.

“That qualifies as a ‘holy mackerel,’ ” said Michael Castengera, a senior lecturer at the University of Georgia’s Grady School and consultant for local TV news stations. “As far as I know, that has not happened in any TV market.”

CBS46 certainly has nothing to lose in its effort to stand out. Its morning newscast typically finishes fourth in a market where viewers are deeply loyal to their existing newscasts.

Just having two women anchors at the same time is relatively uncommon. Most newscasts in Atlanta feature a male-female combo. The chief meteorologists at all four stations are also all men though every weather team has at least one woman. (CBS46 had the first black female chief meteorologist Markina Brown, who worked there from 2010 to 2014.)

In recent years, CBS46 has hired several veteran newscasters who used to work at other stations. Both Davis and Dhindsa used to work at Fox 5.

The fact Dhindsa is “temporary” is unusual, Castengera said. Personally, I’ve covered local TV here for 12 years and don’t recall an anchor hire ever being tagged with with the phrase “temporary.”

Posted Tuesday, January 9, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

This morning, CBS46 (WGCL-TV) ousted its general manager Mark Pimentel, replacing him with Lyle Banks.

The station, owned by Meredith, has a reputation for chronic turnover.

Pimentel joined CBS46 three years ago. His predecessor Trey Fabacher was in that role two years. Before him, Kirk Black had the job for two years, nine months. Andy Alford prior to him was general manager for four years.

Pimentel’s replacement Banks describes himself as a turnaround expert. According to his Linkedin page, Banks is part of a team of executives that goes into companies on an interim basis seeking rapid and significant changes. It’s called the Association of Interim Executives.

“We are like the Navy Seals of operating executives,” Banks told the Chicago Tribune in 2016. “When a company loses a CEO or an executive, they would hire someone like me to parachute in to run or fix the company, and then we parachute out.”

It’s unclear how long Banks is committed to the station.

Meredith Local Media Group President Paul Karpowicz said in a press release: “Lyle is a proven leader who has achieved tremendous success in both news and sales. Lyle is a strategic thinker who isn’t afraid to take chances, and we are looking forward to great things at CBS46 and Peachtree TV under his leadership. He understands what it takes to win.”

Banks ran his own TV company Banks Broadcasting from 1998 to 2010. In the 1990s, he managed an NBC station in Chicago and a station in Norfolk, VA.

Pimentel lost his job despite the fact ratings had improved in the most recent November sweeps, making the station competitive with typical third-place station 11Alive, the NBC affiliate, during several time slots.

CBS46’s morning show had been picking up new viewers, especially since former “Good Day Atlanta” host Gurvir Dhindsa joined Amanda Davis at the desk in October. But that momentum is in doubt since Davis passed away from a stroke two weeks ago.

Pimentel made a raft of changes at the station while he was there, overturning much of the staff and bringing in a new news director last July.

Earlier in his career, Pimentel was an executive news producer at Channel 2 Action News and news director at 11Alive.

Banks will also oversee sister station Peachtree TV (WPCH-TV), which runs a heavy mix of judge shows and sitcoms but simulcasts the early morning CBS46 news programs. Pimentel recently added a 9 p.m. newscast on that station using CBS46 news personnel.

Posted Friday, January 26, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

CBS46 evening anchor Ben Swann has been taken off the air after his efforts to revive his independent investigative operation he called Reality Check came to light today.

On Thursday night, Swann posted a video on Vimeo teasing about an upcoming new project he planned to announce next Tuesday. He only identified himself as an “investigative journalist” and did not reference his ties to CBS46.

UPDATE: Swann was fired on Monday, January 29

The video by Friday morning had been seen more than 2,000 times. After CBS46 learned of the video, he was suspended and the video removed from Vimeo. (The video is still available on Twitter.)

Prior to arriving at CBS46 in 2015, Swann had built a national following, largely among alt-right conservative types, with his Truth in Media “Reality Check” stories that delved into issues, he said, the mainstream media ignored.

While at CBS46 from 2015 into early 2017, he continued to do those stories on his website, sometimes airing pieces for the station as well.

Swann a year ago did a six-minute story during the 11 p.m.CBS46 newscast as part of his “Reality Check” series about the debunked Pizzagate conspiracy theory wondering why there was no further investigation. He had done no independent reporting and the story had no connection to Atlanta. Media Matters and the Daily Beast soon went after him and he was taken off the air for a few days.

The Daily Beast reported at the time that his Truth in Media site was tied to a Republican PAC. Plus, he had previously done work for the Russian-government supported Russia Today before coming to Atlanta.

After the media backlash, Swann pulled his Truth in Media website down as well as most of his social media accounts. Through the rest of 2017, he largely stayed quiet beyond reporting local news with Sharon Reed in the evenings.

But according to stories on dashforcenews.com, steemit.com, and activistpost.com, Swann last month began posting on the forums of Dash, a new crypto-currency along the lines of Bitcoin pitching a way to revive his Reality Check operation. (The Dash logo appears in his video that was taken down today.) Through that arena, the stories say, he was able to raise enough crypto-money to fund future Reality Check news stories.

Posted Monday, January 29, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

CBS46 has fired Ben Swann, the evening anchor three days after the station discovered he had tried to revive his Reality Check news reports without their knowledge.

The station’s general manager Lyle Banks released a brief press release today: “Ben Swann is no longer an employee of WGCL-TV, effective immediately. We thank Ben for his contributions and wish him well.”

His Reality Check reports over the years have often veered into alt-right conspiracy theories. His last one focused on PizzaGate, which aired on CBS46 a year ago, led to his first suspension and removal of his Truth in Media website and most of his social media platforms.

Swann recently began raising funds to bring back his Reality Check stories using cyber currency Dash. He posted a video Thursday night teasing a big announcement on Tuesday, January 30. When CBS46 found out about the video Friday morning, management suspended him.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nJsufPZj_4&w=640&h=390]

His Reality Check operation preceded his arrival at CBS46 in 2015. Echoing right-wing conspiracy sites, he has questioned everything from the origins of ISIS to the veracity of the Sandy Hook elementary school shootings to whether Russia was actually involved in the DNC email hacks.

His Truth in Media site was connected with the Republican Liberty Caucus at one point. Before joining CBS46, he worked for Russia Today, an international television network funded by the Russian government.

He appeared in 2013 on InfoWars where he talked about Democrats wanting to take your guns and how irrelevant mainstream media is.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2i2eOSwOnxc&w=640&h=390]

RELATED: Swann suspended over effort to bring back Reality Check

RELATED: Swann returns after Pizzagate suspension

Posted Wednesday, February 7, 2018 by RODNEY HO/rho@ajc.com on his AJC Radio & TV Talk blog

CBS46 has named a replacement for Amanda Davis as morning anchor: Shon Gables, last seen in Shreveport, La. as an anchor and investigative reporter.

Gables, who has also worked at TV stations in Oklahoma City, Detroit, New York and Dallas, joins the team next month. Her first day at work will be March 5 and she will being anchoring soon after.

Veteran anchor Davis died suddenly of a stroke in December.

News director Steve Doerr, in a follow-up email, said Gables has been on his radar for awhile.

In related news, Gurvir Dhindsa will remain and become a permanent co host with Gables. Dhindsa – a former Fox 5 “Good Day Atlanta” host over two stints – joined the morning show last October on a temporary basis.

Karyn Greer, who has been subbing in during mornings since Davis passed, has been named head of community outreach. The new general manager Lyle Banks, who joined the station a month ago, has told staff that community engagement will be a top priority and Greer fits the bill. “Karyn’s contact list is a who’s who of Atlanta,” wrote Doerr in a memo to staff today.

Greer, who has been an investigative reporter and noon anchor for the station the past three years, will stay on as noon anchor. She worked at what was known as WGNX-TV (which became CBS46) from 1989 to 1999 and 11Alive from 1999 to 2015.

Gables was once married to a member of 1990s R&B group Color Me Badd (“I Wanna Sex You Up,” “I Adore Amour”) named Bryan Abrams. In 2005, she  fought him for child support.

She spent three years at WCBS-TV in New York from 2003 to 2006 and four years at WFAA8 in Dallas from 2010 to 2014. She has been with a Shreveport station KTBS-TV for about 19 months as evening anchor.

From 2007 to 2010, she was also host of Black Enterprise magazine’s nationally syndicated program “Black Enterprise Business Report,” reaching black households in more than 200 markets.

Here’s a sampling of Gables off YouTube:

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tug_fX3CzTo&w=640&h=390]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WRquCjRQ4M0&w=640&h=390]

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkWDE6u6_Jc&w=640&h=390]