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]

Good news, soap fans: NBC has extended its long-running daytime drama Days of our Lives for an additional year, taking the show through September 2014 and past its 48th anniversary in November 2013. The extension was announced Wednesday by Jennifer Salke, president of NBC Entertainment.

The announcement was made as the show prepares to air its 12,000th episode on Friday.

“We are thrilled to announce that Days of our Lives is not going anywhere. It is NBC's longest-running drama series by far and is one of the most historic brands in television,” said Salke. “We commend Ken Corday and the entire creative team on continuing to keep the stories and characters fresh, exciting and relevant year after year.”

Executive producer Ken Corday follows in the tradition of his parents, Betty and Ted Corday, who co-created Days of our Lives and helmed the series for many years.

“After so many years in the homes and hearts of our loyal fans, I’m both humbled and elated to say it’s 2013 and we’re still going strong,” said Corday. “I am equally proud that the sense of family which my mom and dad established in our show 48 years ago, is still what drives it today. As we celebrate our 12,000th episode with an amazing cast and great support from our network, we look forward to what’s yet to come!”

In the 12,000th episode, Sami (played by Alison Sweeney, who coincidentally celebrates her 20-year anniversary on Days this week) and Rafe (Galen Gering) start getting close again. Chloe (Nadia Bjorlin) finds an ally in her quest to win Daniel (Shawn Christian) away from Jennifer (Melissa Reeves). Meanwhile, Gabi (Camila Banus) prepares to marry Nick (Blake Berris) while carrying the baby of Will (Daytime Emmy winner Chandler Massey). All three continue to struggle with what role Will should play in the baby’s life. Before the episode’s end, someone throws a huge wrench into the wedding proceedings.

Days of our Lives (Mon.-Fri. at noon CT/1 p.m. ET) first premiered as a half-hour drama in 1965 and expanded to an hour 10 years later.

In its 47-plus years, the show has garnered 215 Daytime Emmy nominations and 32 wins, including a recent Emmy win for Outstanding Writing as well as a GLAAD Award win for Outstanding Daily Drama. The show, set in the fictitious midwestern town of Salem, focuses on three core families ― the Bradys, the Hortons and the DiMeras.

WGN America needs a heavy-duty makeover, and it looks like that's exactly what Peter Liguori plans to take on once Tribune Co. makes its way out of bankruptcy. [New York Post]

As he closed out NBC's halftime program during the Sunday Night Football matchup between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles, Bob Costas did something most sports commentators try to avoid: He made himself part of a news story.

Some background, first:  On Saturday morning, Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Jovan Belcher shot and killed his 22-year-old girlfriend, Kasandra Perkins, a tragedy compounded when Belcher drove to the Chiefs' practice facility near Arrowhead Stadium and ended his own life in front of the team's head coach and general manager, among others.

It is sorrowful enough that two people - two young people, seemingly in the prime of their lives, are gone.  More so that they shared an infant daughter, who will now grow up without both of her parents.

As the Chiefs and the families of Belcher and Perkins have struggled mightily in the 48 hours since to find some reason for what happened, others have chosen to use this sad situation as an excuse to drag out their respective soapboxes, upon which they are calling for greater gun control.  It started with Fox Sports' Jason Whitlock, and it continued with Costas - who, in 90 seconds, managed to set social media ablaze - mostly negatively - with his take on things.

Here's the thing, folks:  It's not up to Whitlock and/or Costas to sort out what happened on the east side of Kansas City on Saturday.  Nor is it up to you or me.  But what is clear is this:  The gun Jovan Belcher used two days ago was no more responsible for what happened than Maura Weis' good silverware and china are responsible for making her husband, Charlie, one of college football's most morbidly obese coaches.  Let me be clear:  Jovan Belcher made a conscious, clear choice to do what he did.  The weapon wasn't important.

And the fact is, we simply don't know, if that gun hadn't been available to this young man, whether or not he and Kasandra Perkins would still be alive.  To speculate that such might be the case is, in one word, irresponsible.

Bob Costas and everyone else pontificating over this sad affair need to knock it off, unless they have something constructive to add.

And that's my two cents.

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]

In today's edition of Headlines, I told you that NBC was moving Today executive producer Jim Bell to NBC Sports to oversee the company's Olympic coverage.

Now we know who will replace him at the network's struggling morning show - Today's senior broadcast producer, Don Nash - and that Nash will report to Rock Center executive producer Alexandra Wallace, who has been appointed Executive in Charge of the show.

“Don Nash deserves to be at the helm of Today. He is a beloved member of the Today family who brings vision, commitment and a deep familiarity to all aspects of the broadcast,” said NBC News president Steve Capus. “The formidable individual talents of Alex, Don and the Today leadership are now combined and I’m confident our team is well positioned for success.”

We'll see.

NBC Peppered by Online Critics in Shuffle of Hosts
Last week's news that Erica Hill was leaving CBS to shove Jenna Wolfe aside at NBC's Weekend Today hasn't gone over quite as well as NBC might have hoped.  Numerous critics have taken up their pitchforks on social media, the blogosphere and elsewhere to trash the Peacock Network's latest screw job. [NY Times]

Roosevelt Tried To Abolish the FCC
The Communications Act of 1934 established the Federal Communications Commission.  Despite having signed the law that did so, President Franklin D. Roosevelt soon began trying to shut it down. [The Technology Liberation Front]

Retrans Fees Seen Hitting $6B By 2018
This year, SNL Kagan has forecast that TV station owners will reap $2.36 billion from cable and satellite companies.  By 2018, that amount could nearly triple, ballooning to somewhere north of $6 billion.  If you don't think your cable bill is quite high enough yet, hang on. [TVNewsCheck]

Netflix Adopts Anti-Takeover Plan Designed To Thwart Carl Icahn
Noted corporate raider Carl Icahn said last week he's bought up nearly 10% of Netflix.  Upon learning this, the streaming/DVD-by-mail company has put in place mechanisms that make sudden and not-so-wise takeovers a bit more difficult to pull off.  Will it work?  We'll see. [Deadline Hollywood]

NBC News President Steve Capus announced Thursday that Erica Hill will be joining Weekend Today as co-anchor. The weekend anchor team of Lester Holt, Hill, Jenna Wolfe, and Dylan Dreyer officially debuts Saturday.

Hill, who briefly served as co-anchor of CBS This Morning, was replaced there earlier this year by Norah O'Donnell.  CBS reportedly tried to find a suitable niche for Hill but couldn't.

NBC had no such problem, Capus explained.
 

“Erica’s extraordinary track record as a journalist has proven that she can cover everything from hard news to pop culture with ease and professionalism,” he said.

Hill has been also been named an NBC News national correspondent. She will report on all platforms of NBC News including Today, NBC Nightly News and MSNBC. Hill will co-anchor both Saturday and Sunday editions of Weekend Today alongside Lester Holt. Holt has served as co-anchor of Weekend Today since 2003 and is the longest-running anchor of the broadcast.

Jenna Wolfe has been named news anchor of Weekend Today and will expand her role to both Saturday and Sunday editions. Wolfe has been with the morning broadcast since 2007. In addition, Wolfe will continue as Today correspondent, reporting feature stories for both the weekday and weekend broadcasts.

Meteorologist Dylan Dreyer was named weather anchor of Weekend Today upon joining NBC News in September. Dreyer will remain in that role, also providing weekend weather reports on MSNBC.

Prior to joining NBC News, Hill served as co-host of CBS News' CBS This Morning in 2012 and The Early Show in 2011. She was news anchor of The Early Show in 2010, while also co-hosting The Early Show Saturday from 2008 to 2010. Hill joined The Early Show Saturday while working at CNN, where she served as anchor and correspondent for CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 from 2008 to 2010.

Hill also spent seven years at CNN, joining the network at its Atlanta headquarters in 2003. She served in various roles at CNN and HLN. From 2006 to 2008, she was the anchor of HLN's Prime News with Erica Hill, a live two-hour news and interview program. She co-anchored Prime News Tonight from 2005 to 2006, and served as national correspondent for CNN Newsource in Washington in 2004.

If you're a fan of Community, good news, sort of:  NBC announced on Tuesday that the show will have a fourth season, but it's not going to start any time soon.

The show's season premiere has been scheduled for Feb. 7 - more than 3 months away.

NBC also announced its midseason schedule, which includes the return of shows like The Biggest Loser (Jan. 6), Betty White’s Off Their Rockers (Jan. 8), Smash (Feb. 5), The Celebrity Apprentice (Mar. 3), The Voice and Revolution (both Mar. 25).

Series premiere dates have also been set for mystery soap Deception (Jan. 7), White House-set comedy 1600 Penn (Jan. 10), and the Eva Longoria-produced reality show Ready for Love (Mar. 31).

Parks and Recreation will move up an hour on Thursdays starting Jan. 17. Up All Night is going on hiatus while the single-camera comedy transforms into a multi-camera comedy that’s shot in front of a live audience.

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.

UPDATE, 2:30 a.m. FRIDAY: I goofed, folks. Animal Practice is actually the third show of the season to be canceled.  Last Friday, while my wife and I were celebrating our 10th anniversary, NBC pulled the plug on a show it hadn't even brought to air!  Perhaps we can take this as a good sign that NBC is finally figuring out which shows are going to bomb before they ruin our TV viewing.  It's about damn time.

PREVIOUSLY: NBC announced this afternoon that it's canceled the low-rated sitcom Animal Practice, although the network has decided to burn off a couple more episodes.

Starting Nov. 14, Whitney - a fairly popular show that NBC had delayed just last week - will return and take over the 7 p.m. CT Wednesday slot.

Interestingly, Animal Practice is only the second show of the season to be canceled so far.  CBS was first to kill one of its progeny when it sent Made in Jersey packing last week.

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.

On Tuesday, while the rest of the world watched the moment of silence in remembrance of those lost in the attacks of September 11, 2001, NBC's Today show instead showed an interview with Kardashian mama Kris Jenner.  It was, as I wrote Tuesday, "Unbelievable.  Simply unbelievable."

But if viewers are looking from an apology from NBC, they won't find one, because the network has said that it won't offer one.

In the tradition of NBC's left hand not knowing what its right hand is doing, however, there's this:  NBC News president Steve Capus sent an apology in the form of a memo to the network's affiliates.  Radar Online got hold of the memo and you can read it in full by clicking here.

Capus wrote that the decision to put Jenner on instead of the moment of silence was an "editorial call."  He also took great pains to point out "how brilliant Savannah [Guthrie] and Matt [Lauer] are together" (they're not) and how NBC News is "mindful" of the "legacy" of 9/11 and NBC's "responsibilities" to cover it (and failed anyway).

I can use those three words, too, Mr. Capus.

Viewers are becoming more and more mindful of the growing legacy of ruin that seems to be spreading from NBC's entertainment division to the news division.  What you and your people need to do is take your precious responsibilities seriously and fix that.

Now.

Otherwise there's no telling what we might see next September 11 instead of the moment of silence.

Unbelievable.  Simply unbelievable.

Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts has checked into the hospital to prepare for her bone-marrow transplant.  Roberts, 51 and a survivor of breast cancer, is now battling a rare blood disorder previously known as pre-leukemia.  She's been on medical leave since Aug. 30. [UPI]

‘Good Afternoon America’ ends, but may be back
Meanwhile in the afternoon at ABC, Good Afternoon America has ended its trial run, but its success means that it could very well return at some future point.  [NY Daily News]

Like many people in this part of the country, it was a little bittersweet for me to see Peyton Manning in a different team's uniform, but it was good to see him back doing what he loves.  And NBC loved it, too:  Sunday night's game between Manning's Denver Broncos and the Pittsburgh Steelers was the highest-rated primetime regular-season game in NBC history, scoring an 18.0 rating in the Nielsen metered markets. [Media Life]

President Obama and his Republican challenger, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, will meet for three primetime debates beginning Oct. 3, and with the race for all intents and purposes a dead heat, the debates are seen as critical. [AP via TVNewsCheck]

Cable's original sports network has inked a new deal with the Big 12 Conference, and it's a costly one: $1.3 billion through 2024-25. [L.A. Times]

In the latest of a depressingly long string of failures, NBC has pulled the plug on its freshman medical drama, Saving Hope.

The Canadian show (which will continue for a second season in the Great White North) simply couldn't find enough viewers south of the 49th parallel to keep a spot in the lineup. Last week's episode drew only 2.5 million viewers, a 0.5 rating and a 1 share among viewers 18 to 49.

NBC plans to make the final two episodes of Saving Hope available on its website, NBC.com.

Major League Baseball is a huge, huge property for Fox and Turner Broadcasting.  And it's entirely possible that they could remain in command of the game when new deals are put in place with MLB.

Or, as the L.A. Times' Joe Flint reports, what happens when those deals are done could "radically alter the media landscape."

It's believed that Turner's TBS wants to expand its territory.  But to do that, they'd have to partner with a broadcast network (CBS is said to have been approached) for the World Series and possibly the All-Star Game, as MLB is adamant that those remain on broadcast TV.

And then there's NBC, which could use something besides football to shore up its miserable ratings (the network's mediocre slate of new fall shows won't help; let's be honest about that).  The issue there would be football, which NBC airs on Sunday nights.  That's sure to be a sticking point.

Fox seems likely to hang on to what it has now and Flint speculates that the network could spin some of its regular-season games to its Fuel cable network, which could be rebranded and recast as a broad-based sports network to rival ESPN.

One thing's for sure:  MLB wants a new deal in place before this year's champion is crowned.  That means we'll see who's serious and who's just looking soon enough.

NBC's popular series The Office will end after its upcoming ninth season, according to a report in The Hollywood Reporter.

Greg Daniels, the show's executive producer for its first five seasons, is returning to run the show for its valedictory season, replacing Paul Lieberstein, who's working on a spinoff.

Daniels told reporters it should be a great last go-around.  "As we head into the homestretch, we have a lot of exciting things I've been wanting to do since season two," he said. "The end should be pretty cool."

Turner Broadcasting, the television unit of Time Warner, is spending around $200 million to buy sports website Bleacher Report, Reuters reports.  Bleacher Report posts about 1,000 articles each day and was read by more than 10 million visitors in June, good for ninth on the list of U.S. sports websites.  The site will be operated by Turner Sports. [Reuters]

While it's been pilloried for its Olympic coverage this year, NBC has a special relationship with the sporting events it televises, and that's certainly true of the French Open tennis tournament, which it's carried since 1983.  Now the network has reached a new agreement with the French Tennis Federation to continue that relationship through 2024. [The Hollywood Reporter]

For every bit of good news NBC gets (see above), there's some bad.  Such is the case with America's Got Talent judge Sharon Osbourne, who is walking away from the show after the network cut ties with her son, Jack, following his recent diagnosis with multiple sclerosis.  This one's gonna be ugly before it's all said and done. [New York Post]