Super Bowl Update

President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will take their oaths of office for their second term on Monday.*  The inaugural, our nation's fifty-seventh, will be covered extensively by the broadcast and cable news networks, as you'd expect.

* The constitutionally-mandated date for a Presidential Inauguration - January 20 - falls on Sunday this year.  This will be the seventh time since the 20th Amendment was ratified in 1933 that this is the case, and following historical precedent, the public ceremony will be held at the U.S. Capitol on Monday, January 21. The White House will likely arrange a private swearing in before noon on January 20, 2013. [Source: The Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies]

ABC News will launch GMA Live, a 15-minute extension of Good Morning America starting Monday, Dec. 10.

The daily, web-only program will stream live across Goodmorningamerica.com on Yahoo! and ABCNews.comfollowing the GMA broadcast at 8:15 a.m. CT. GMA Live will be anchored by GMA’s Josh Elliott, Lara Spencer, Sam Champion and Amy Robach with special guests and contributors from the ABC family joining the conversation. The anchors and contributors on the show will vary day to day.

“This is a chance for our gang to put their feet up and bring everyone backstage right after we get off the air. We are going to have a great time pulling back the curtain a bit,” said Tom Cibrowski, GMA senior executive producer.

From pop-culture news to trending topics and lifestyle tips, GMA’s all-star team will discuss the hottest stories of the day in a more conversational matter. “GMA Live is just one more example of ABC News’ commitment to delivering excellent content and a live, video experience to our growing digital audience,” said Joe Ruffolo, senior VP of ABC News Digital.

 

Ryan Seacrest hosts the year's biggest celebration at the crossroads of the world when Carly Rae Jepsen and Neon Trees join headliner Taylor Swift performing live in Times Square on Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2013, Monday, Dec. 31 on ABC.

Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas returns to host the west coast party, featuring performances by Brandy, Flo Rida, Karmin, OneRepublic, Pitbull and even more artists to be announced at a later date for both east and west coast parties.

The New Year's festivities kick off at 7 p.m. CT (8 ET) with a two-hour celebration of Dick Clark hosted by Fergie and Jenny McCarthy. The special, entitled New Year's Rockin' Eve Celebrates Dick Clark, celebrates, through clips and reminiscences, the legendary television personality and producer who rang in the New Year for four decades and launched and nurtured the careers of countless artists. Ryan Seacrest makes a special appearance.

Beginning at 9 p.m. CT (10 ET), Ryan Seacrest will host Dick Clark's Primetime New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest 2013 from New York, with Jenny McCarthy returning to interview the revelers in Times Square. Some of America's hottest artists and groups will perform throughout the night. The bi-coastal events will include over 5 1/2 hours of special performances and reports on New Year's celebrations from around the globe, and Ryan Seacrest will lead the traditional countdown to midnight from Times Square in New York City.

NBC pulled off the unthinkable - it won November for the first time in nine years.  But beneath that nearly unbelievable headline, others did well in other ways.  CBS' The Big Bang Theory set audience records twice during the month, and ABC's Good Morning America firmed up its new-found dominance in the mornings.  [MediaLife]

He brought NBC to its knees, but some still feel that Jeff Zucker is a genius.  Count among those folks the powers at CNN.  They're looking for a replacement for Jim Walton, and, for whatever reason, they seem to feel that Zucker is the perfect candidate.  Will he be?  Only time will tell. [NYT]

ABC, CBS and Fox, having fallen behind NBC in the early going this season, have turned their attention to their coming midseason programs to give them a shot at the top spot once again. [Adweek]

While inflation rose 28% over the past decade, the median salary for all local TV news workers rose just 21.6%. [Variety]

It's going to cost $6-7 billion over 25 years, but Fox Sports is said to have a deal almost done that would lock up the Los Angeles Dodgers' TV coverage. [Deadline Hollywood]

ESPN and the group that will administer the new college football playoff have reached an agreement to present the playoff games and selected other games for 12 years on an exclusive basis across ESPN's platforms, including ESPN Radio. [Radio Online]

On a day that saw CBS put its struggling Monday night comedy, Partners, out of its misery, ABC is also doing some plug-pulling, according to a TVGuide.com report.

ABC has decided, the site reports, to send Last Resort and 666 Park Avenue to its scrap heap.

The new shows debuted to ratings barely above a 2, and more recently both have hovered in the 1.3 range.

The network's decision on 666 Park Avenue was probably made easier by the fact that the show's New York set was heavily damaged by Hurricane Sandy late last month.

WHAS11 will be airing the University of Louisville/Bellarmine exhibition game live at 7 p.m. ET tonight, and that means tonight's ABC primetime programs will air later tonight following the game.

Episodes of The Middle and The Neighbors will be moved to air overnight after Jimmy Kimmel Live. The Middle will air at 1:05 a.m. ET and The Neighbors will air at 1:35.

Modern Family, Suburgatory and Nashville will air in their entirety immediately after the game.

UPDATE, 6:02 p.m.:  None of the Evansville network affiliates are airing the expanded Hurricane Sandy coverage.

UPDATE, 4:30 p.m.:  CBS44 WEVV will NOT air the expanded half-hour of the CBS Evening News with Scott Pelley.  The station WILL air the special report at 9 p.m. CT which CBS has planned to broadcast.

ABC, CBS and NBC have decided to make adjustments to their programming this evening as Hurricane Sandy makes its way ashore somewhere near Atlantic City, N.J.

All three networks will expand their evening newscasts to one hour tonight.  ABC will also extend Nightline to one hour following its affiliates' late newscasts.

Other changes may be made to programming this evening ... stay tuned to your favorite network for the latest information.

ABC has decided to retire Private Practice after a short, 13-episode sixth season.

The move, which was announced Friday, came as the network was ordering more episodes of Grey's Anatomy, Modern Family, The Middle and Castle.

The show's creator, Shonda Rhimes, said she's "sad" that the show won't make it through another full season. "There was a lot of discussion and debate but, in the end, the guys at the network and the studio and I all decided that (the show) was reaching its finish line," she wrote on Twitter. 

Rhimes did admonish her followers to watch the remaining episodes, which she called "a creative renaissance."

ABC's Good Morning America is about to win its third week in a row in both total viewers and the all-important group of viewers who are ages 25 to 54, and the folks at NBC's Today are left to wonder just what happened.

Claire Atkinson of the New York Post wastes no time speculating - she jumps right in with both feet and writes, simply, that it's a direct result of "the curse of Ann Curry."

But is it really that simple?  Maybe not.  While Curry's ouster was unpopular with viewers, it's by far not the only problem the show has.

There's evident discord among those who remain.  Al Roker made that clear when he quipped about the show's "tradition" of "throw(ing) one of us under the bus."  NBC had to quickly put out that fire, but few really bought the explanation.

And then there was last week.  While ABC and CBS took their viewers to the moment of silence for the September 11 victims, NBC blithely showed Kardashian mama Kris Jenner talking about her latest boob job instead.  And then refused to apologize ... until NBC News president Steve Capus did so - to the affiliates - anyway.

In his apology, Capus took great pains to point out how "brilliant" Savannah Guthrie (Curry's replacement) and Matt Lauer are together.  If that were really true, there would be no reason to point it out. Others would be doing so ... yet no one is, has or will, because they're really not.

Meanwhile, over at ABC, despite the absence of Robin Roberts (who is dealing with a serious health issue), GMA continues to roll.  Why?  They've taken adversity and turned it into a positive, through the use of celebrity guest co-hosts, and continuing to do what they do seamlessly and without strife.

CBS, too, seems to have finally found a niche for itself with CBS This Morning.  While the show is still behind both ABC and GMA, it's making strides, and with good reason - while the combination of Norah O'Donnell, Charlie Rose and Gayle King may seem strange, it just plain works.

Maybe NBC needs to watch ... and learn.

ABC has announced a major shift in its late-night strategy that will go into effect in January.

On Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2013, Jimmy Kimmel Live will move to 10:35 p.m. CT, putting the show in head-to-head competition with NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and CBS' The Late Show with David Letterman.

Proven late-night performer Nightline will shift to 11:35 p.m. CT, allowing viewers to begin and end their broadcast day with news.  In addition, Nightline will expand its programming commitments with a move into primetime, Friday nights at 8 p.m. CT beginning Mar. 1, 2013. Given its success and growth, the ABC News series What Would You Do? will also find a new home on the schedule.

"Given the passionate fan base 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' has built over the past decade and the show's ratings and creative momentum this season, the time is right to make this move," Anne Sweeney, co-chair, Disney Media Networks and president, Disney/ABC Television Group, said. "There is the potential for far greater upside over the long term with this shift, (which) allows us to bookend our programming day with compelling news content."

For the complete 2011-12 broadcast TV season, Jimmy Kimmel Live grew its overall audience over the prior season by 3% in total viewers to generate its most-watched season in 5 years. In addition, JKL was the only late-night broadcast talk show to grow year over year in total viewers.

The shift for Nightline in late-night and the addition of a new hour in primetime continues the momentum of ABC News, which has enjoyed a banner year of success and growth. From a resurgent Good Morning America to the groundbreaking, innovative digital deal with Yahoo that immediately catapulted ABC News to the top of digital news delivery, to the recently completed joint venture with Univision for a 24-hour culturally relevant lifestyle and news channel for U.S. Hispanics - the fastest growing demographic in the nation - ABC News has gone from strength to strength and success to success.

"Nightline has proven its ability to grow over three decades on the air, with the show currently enjoying some of its highest ratings and best editorial work ever," said Ben Sherwood, president of ABC News. "The Nightline team will now bring its excellent journalism to new time periods, and we especially welcome the chance to produce an hour every Friday in primetime, where new audiences will be introduced to the program's signature storytelling, interviewing and investigations. I'm confident Nightline and its dynamic anchors, correspondents and staff will enjoy many successes for years to come."

ABC News and Univision announced Monday morning that they have completed a definitive agreement to enter into a joint venture that will create a 24/7 English-language network geared toward the 50 million Hispanics now living in the U.S.

The as-yet-unnamed network, which was first announced in May, will make its TV debut in 2013, and will capitalize on Univision’s news leadership and expertise in reaching U.S. Hispanics and ABC’s global news leadership, Univision said in a statement.

"ABC News and Univision News share a goal of serving the thriving Hispanic audience that makes up such an influential and essential part of America," said Ben Sherwood, president of ABC News.  "Our new joint venture will empower Hispanic Americans and connect audiences of all kinds to culturally relevant news, information and lifestyle programming.  The signature of the definitive agreement is an important, exciting first step toward achieving our vision."

Isaac Lee, president of Univision News, concurred with Sherwood. "We are pleased to come one step closer to our goal of delivering a new English-language news offering to U.S. audiences," he said. "Together, Univision News and ABC News will inform, engage and empower the thriving Latino community as well as provide news and information from a Latino perspective to a broader audience."

Today, Hispanics represent 16 percent of the total population in the United States, and that number is projected to nearly double by 2050.  Hispanics are the fastest-growing segment of the population, and have an increasing impact on social, economic and political trends.

A website for the new network, as well as mobile and social media content, are expected to debut soon. Editorial coverage will focus on the issues most relevant for U.S. Hispanics.

Robin Roberts, co-host of ABC's Good Morning America, will undergo a bone marrow transplant in late August, and while she will have to be away from the surging morning show for a few weeks thereafter, she's going to be getting a little help from her friends at the network, with substitute hosts including Katie Couric, Diane Sawyer, Kelly Ripa, Barbara Walters, and other panelists from ABC's The View.

Roberts, who recently announced that she has MDS, formerly known as pre-leukemia, told reporters in Los Angeles on Thursday that GMA's resurgence against NBC's Today of late has been encouraging and healing for her personally.  "The run that we've had has truly energized me," she said. "It's pretty good medicine, I gotta say, to be taking!"  [AP via TVNewsCheck]

Also at ABC, there's a departure in the news division as Yunji de Nies, a former ABC News White House correspondent during the Bush Administration and part of the Obama administration, is leaving the network to join Hearst's ABC station, KITV, in Honolulu.  She'll co-anchor the station's 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts. [TVNewsCheck]

When you ask "What's new?" for TV this fall, the almost-universal answer is comedy.  Lots of comedy.  The Denver Post's Joanne Ostrow doesn't seem overly impressed, either, with at least some of the efforts. [The Denver Post]

Boston's WGBH has purchased Public Radio International (PRI), the Minnesota-based distributor of radio programs such as This American Life, The World and The Takeaway.  Terms of the purchase haven't been revealed. [Current.org]

ABC has officially announced its premiere dates for the 2012-13 fall season.

The action on the Alphabet Network kicks off on Friday, Sept. 14 with new episodes of Shark Tank, What Would You Do? and 20/20, before the heart of the lineup comes into play starting Sept. 24 with the new season of Dancing with the Stars and Castle.

All of the network's shows will make their fall debuts between that date and Nov. 2, when Last Man Standing and Malibu Country enter the scene and Shark Tank moves to a new time.

You can see the full list of premieres after the jump.

Louisville police are on the hunt for a man who broke into a WDRB news van at Riverfront Park late last month and stole credit cards and other items belonging to one of the station's reporters.  WDRB reports that the man used the cards at several locations in Louisville and Southern Indiana, and you can find information and photos of the suspect at their website. [WDRB]

ABC is said to be switching two of its shows on Wednesday nights this fall.  Returning Suburgatory and freshman comedy The Neighbors will swap timeslots, with Suburgatory moving to 8:30 p.m. CT and The Neighbors, which was to air at that time, moving to 7:30 p.m. CT. [Deadline Hollywood]

As I told you yesterday, the Senate Commerce Committee is opening a hearing to examine the 20-year-old Cable Act, and like most things in Washington, it could get ugly.  On one side, you have the folks who don't seem to mind people losing channels, like Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), who said, “We should remove unnecessary government interference from a mature and increasingly competitive video marketplace,” and on the other, folks like Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who are tired of the repeated blackouts when companies can't reach new agreements.  “Playing games of chicken during college bowl games, the World Series or the Oscars just seems like it’s the new norm,” Kerry said. “Can’t we do better than that?” [Politico]

It looks like the replacement of Ann Curry with Savannah Guthrie at NBC's Today show hasn't worked out quite like the folks at the Peacock Network had hoped.

Last week - Guthrie's first full week on the program - ABC's Good Morning America delivered a fairly decisive blow, beating Today by some 357,000 viewers, according to early numbers from Nielsen.  The final figures, to come later this week, may change ... but not by enough to give NBC back the win.

It's ABC's third straight weekly win over NBC in the morning, and the biggest one for GMA in more than 17 years.

You may recall that Today had held down an astounding 852 weeks (that's a stretch way back to 1995, folks) as the top-rated morning show on TV before falling to GMA several times earlier this year. NBC execs all but called it a fluke, saying they were satisfied with the team they had in place and all was well.

Then they shunted Curry aside.

This time around, "We are incredibly confident in the new Today anchor team," executive producer Jim Bell told the AP's Frazier Moore. "Although it's premature to look at one week of unofficial numbers and draw any conclusions, we just made a big change that we didn't take lightly, and we are in this for the long run."

But we've heard that before, too.

Of course, it's still early, and anything could happen.  Stay tuned ...