Super Bowl Update

The voting in JDTVB's weeklong unscientific reader poll is now at an end, and the overwhelming majority of respondents say that they want Local 7 WTVW to pick up the CW network affiliation lost in the Evansville market when WAZE "temporarily" went off the air eight days ago.

With 144 votes cast, 105 or 72.9% of the total said that they preferred for WTVW to pick up the network.  Coming in a distant second was WTSN/WYYW, the area's Me-TV affiliates, with 13 votes (9.0%).

WEVV placed third in the voting with nine votes (6.3%); "none of the above" took fourth place with seven votes (4.9%), followed by 14 WFIE at six votes (4.2%) and WEHT Local last with four votes (2.7%).

So, what happens now?  It's anyone's guess, really.  While I've ensured that WTVW station management is aware of the poll and its results, they've yet to comment — so we don't yet know if there is interest on their part for such a change.

There is a chance another station could pick up the affiliation, too.  And while it's about the longest of possible longshots, Roberts Broadcasting could somehow put WAZE back on the air.

The thing to remember is this:  At this early stage in the game, anything can happen.  All I can do is be here to tell you what that "anything" will be, and you can count on me doing just that, as soon as it happens.

Well, Roberts Broadcasting can follow the rules after all.  (Believe me, I'm as surprised as you are.)

As required, the company has filed a Notification of Suspension of Operations and Request for Silent STA (Special Temporary Authority) with the FCC regarding WAZE-LP and its other translators.  This form is used to let the Commission know when and for what reason a station goes off the air.

Interestingly, Steven Roberts ― one of the stations' owners ― states on the form that WAZE has "temporarily" ceased operations because of the company's bankruptcy proceedings.  However, it appears that the receiving equipment at the stations' transmitter site was removed when the stations were taken off the air last Thursday, which would indicate that the cessation is anything but temporary.

And, as noted in a previous story, WAZE's licenses are set to expire on Aug. 1.  As mentioned, no renewals for WAZE-LP, WJPS-LP or WIKY-LP were filed within the application window that all other stations used last year, which would indicate that things here are at an end.

Stay tuned ...

UPDATE,  10:30 a.m. TUESDAY:  NewWave Communications has obtained another Roberts Broadcasting station ― WZRB out of Columbia, S.C. ― to replace WAZE for its customers in Southeastern Illinois and Southwestern Indiana.  No word yet on why the cable company chose that one.

When WAZE-CW19 went off the air unexpectedly this past Thursday afternoon, it left not just viewers in a lurch, but cable and satellite providers as well.

One Tri-State cable company, WOW!, reports via its website that it is "working on alternative means" of delivering CW network programming for its customers.

With the unexpected (OK, not really unexpected, but still somewhat surprising) and sudden end of WAZE's television operations yesterday, the CW network is without a home in Evansville for the first time in its six-year history.

Where will it end up?  That question may not be answered for a while, but several people have already offered opinions on the subject.

And now, that's where you come in:  In a new poll (which you'll find at the upper right corner of this page), you tell me:  Where would you like to see the CW in the Tri-State?

I'll compile the results at the end of next week and share them with the surviving local stations, and then we'll see what happens from there.

UPDATE, 2:50 p.m. FRIDAY:  I've sought comment from both the Roberts Companies (the St. Louis-based owners of WAZE) as well as the CW network. At this time, neither entity has replied.

UPDATE, 7:35 p.m.:  An anonymous reader left the following comment regarding the very slim possibility of a new owner purchasing what remains of WAZE:

A new owner is all but impossible for several reasons:

1. Any sale would likely have to be approved by the bankruptcy judge overseeing the Roberts' case. This takes some time.
2. The FCC would have to approve the transfer before April 1 in order to allow the new owner to immediately file for a license renewal.
3. A license renewal is extremely uncertain, considering these stations are required by their licenses to air 3 hours per week of programming produced in Evansville, a requirement they have not met for many years.

All of the above makes sense to me.

PREVIOUSLY ― It appears the end is at hand for WAZE-TV.

Earlier today, without explanation, the Evansville CW affiliate's last remaining over-the-air operations ― its low-power stations WJPS-LP (ch. 4), WIKY-LP (ch. 5) and WAZE-LP (ch. 17) ― were shut down by Roberts' contract engineer.

The station has also gone dark on cable and satellite systems across the area.

The Roberts Broadcasting-owned stations, along with their sister stations in St. Louis, Columbia, S.C. and Jackson, Miss., have languished in bankruptcy protection for well over a year with no resolution in sight.  When the other Evansville-market TV stations applied for new Federal Communications Commission broadcast licenses last year, Roberts did not do so, which means that the licenses for channels 4, 5 and 17 are scheduled to expire Aug. 1.

WAZE's former main station, licensed to Madisonville, Ky. ― which was reduced to an 1,100-watt "temporary" digital operation after the 2009 analog shutdown ― was itself shuttered by the FCC in 2011 after Roberts failed to build-out its planned full-power operation within the required timeframe.

Just days after finally finding a buyer for one of their bankrupt TV stations (WRBJ-TV in Jackson, Miss.), WAZE-TV undertakers owners Mike and Steve Roberts are at long last getting some help with their flagship real estate properties in downtown St. Louis.

The Post-Dispatch reports that UrbanStreet Group of Chicago and North American Properties of Cincinnati have agreed to spend about $16.5 million to develop new uses for Roberts Tower, Mayfair Hotel, Roberts Lofts on the Plaza and several empty buildings adjoining the lofts property.

The deal, which was put together by CBRE, comes five months after the properties were put up for sale.  It's not clear if the $16.5 million infusion from UrbanStreet and North American indicates a sale of the properties or if the brothers will retain some ownership stake.

At this point, all that is decided for certain is that the long-unfinished Roberts Tower - originally planned with 55 luxury condominiums - will instead be completed as 132 rental apartments, and design work on that project has already begun.

With two bits of good news emanating from the Roberts empire in one week (yeah, I know ... unbelievable, right?), could this mean that WAZE is getting closer to finding a white knight of its own as well?

We'll just have to wait and see.

UPDATE #2, WEDNESDAY 3:15 p.m.:  The latest word on the sale of WRBJ is that the judge in the Roberts Broadcasting bankruptcy case - presumably Judge Barry Schermer, who was handling the case at last check - will have to approve the deal.  That's in addition to the usual FCC scrutiny that station sales receive.

UPDATE, 12:45 p.m.:  According to today's roundup of station sales at TVNewsCheck, TBN is paying $1.5 million for WRBJ. Of course, WRBJ has been fully built-out and is a digital operation, unlike WAZE, which is analog-only and consists - for legal purposes, anyway - of three low-power stations (channels 4, 5 and 17).

PREVIOUSLY: It's been months since we've heard anything from Roberts Broadcasting, the bankrupt St. Louis-based owner of WAZE-LP, Evansville's CW affiliate, but that changed Tuesday morning with a report from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch that the company is selling its Jackson, Miss. station, WRBJ-TV, to California-based Trinity Christian Center, which is better known as Trinity Broadcasting Network or TBN.

WRBJ, the newspaper reports, will drop CW programming in favor of TBN's Christian fare, although it's not immediately apparent when that will happen.  It's also not known how much TBN is paying for the station.

Like its sister stations in St. Louis, Evansville and Columbia, S.C., WRBJ has been a big money loser for Roberts Broadcasting; when it filed bankruptcy around this time last year, the owners listed that the station had $1.23 million in debts and a mere $174,000 in assets.  It's been reported that WRBJ has lost as much as $30,000 a month for the past several months.

Media Venture Partners, a San Francisco-based firm specializing in media transactions, handled WRBJ's sale and is also in charge of trying to sell WAZE and Roberts' Columbia station, WZRB.  No word yet on if any deals are in the offing for those.

Get ready, folks:  Bill Cunningham is coming to your TV screen.

The attorney and conservative talk radio host, whose Sunday night radio program, Live on Sunday Nights It's Bill Cunningham, is distributed nationally to over 300 radio stations, is bringing his TV talk show to the CW television network and its more than 200 affiliates nationwide beginning Sept. 17.

The Bill Cunningham Show debuted last fall on Tribune Broadcasting's TV stations throughout the country as well as two Local TV, LLC-owned stations and Raycom's WXIX in Cincinnati (Cunningham's hometown).  The expansion to the CW stations means that viewers in the Tri-State will now get to experience what's been described as a traditional conflict-resolution style tabloid show with Cunningham's viewpoints blended in.

Stations which will carry the show in and around the Tri-State include WAZE-LP (Evansville); WQWQ, WQTV and KFVS 12.2 (Paducah/Murray/Cape Girardeau); WBKO 13.3 (Bowling Green); WBKI and WMYO 58.3 (Louisville); KPLR (St. Louis*) and WNAB (Nashville).  In the Indianapolis market, WXIN-Fox 59 carried the show last season, and it's not yet known if it will remain there or be moved to its sister station, WTTV/WTTK, which can be seen in Terre Haute and nearby communities.

“We are very pleased to add The Bill Cunningham Show to our weekday afternoon block,” said John Maatta, chief operating officer at the CW, when the network announced Cunningham's addition earlier this year. “Bill is a talented host with a fascinating program, and we know he’ll be a terrific asset for the CW and our affiliated stations.”

Local air times for the show have not yet been announced; I'll bring you those in early September when they become available.

Michael and Steven Roberts, the St. Louis media/hotel/property development moguls who own CW affiliate WAZE-TV in Evansville, have solved one of their myriad financial crises.

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported late Wednesday that the brothers have reached an agreement with Bank of America, which sued them in April for $34 million, the balance of a defaulted loan for renovations to their hotels outside the St. Louis area.

As part of the agreement, the Roberts' six hotels in Atlanta; Dallas; Houston; Shreveport, La.; Spartanburg, S.C; and Tampa are to be sold by year's end. The proceeds from the sales will go to Bank of America.  Thomas DeWoskin, attorney for the Roberts brothers, says B of A will recoup more of its money in this fashion ... and when all is said and done and the money's counted up, the bank is expected to drop the suit.

At least that's what the defendants expect.

“The Roberts certainly hope so (that the suit will be dropped),” DeWoskin told the newspaper. “I think everybody would feel better if this was resolved.”

Interestingly, this development comes just days after the Roberts' hotel and property companies made Black Enterprise's list of the top 100 African-American-owned businesses in the nation (Roberts Properties was ranked 36th, the hotel group 40th).  As the Post-Dispatch points out, however, after the six hotels up for grabs are gone, the hotel group will likely be much lower on next year's list.

Next up on the Roberts' plate: What to do with their bankrupt TV operation and several of their other languishing properties, at least one of which (a hotel in St. Louis) is in receivership because of another lawsuit.

The four Roberts Broadcasting TV stations have been in the protection of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Eastern Missouri since late last year, and a reorganization plan was supposed to be submitted several months ago.  There was some talk from DeWoskin earlier this year that the stations would be sold (and rumors of a potential buyer for WAZE have even surfaced), but nothing further has come along.

At least not yet.