World Series Wager with KYW

The CBS 2 News This Morning crew has a lot at stake in the outcome of the World Series, which begins this evening. Maurice DuBois led the team in some trash talk with Ukee Washington and KYW Philadelphia's CBS 3 Eyewitness News This Morning. If the Yankees win, CBS 3 will have to sing Frank Sinatra's "New York, New York." CBS 2 will have to sing Elton John's "Philadelphia Freedom" if the Yanks somehow lose to the Phillies.

Check out video from the 5:40 simulcast this morning from the CBS 2 perspective and the KYW perspective.

Oh, and someone please tell the KYW anchors that her name is Katie McGee.

Yankees Pep Rally Coverage

CORRECTION: 12:33 P.M. WEDNESDAY: It looks like the coverage is only on wcbstv.com and not on the air. So if you go check out the live stream right now, you can watch video of the rally complete with audio of "The Young and the Restless."

CBS 2 News just announced that they will provide live coverage of the Yankees pep rally tomorrow. The rally takes place in Times Square the day the Yankees return to the World Series for the first time since 2003. CBS 2's coverage begins at 12:30, just after CBS 2 News at Noon.

Where's the Bacon?

It was just last week when CBS 2 debuted a new promotional campaign for the morning newscasts. Soon after, eagle-eyed viewers of the station noticed that one of the eight promos, "It's Like Bacon," stopped running. Fans of the "mmm mmm tasty tasty bacon" promo held a massive protest outside of the CBS Broadcast Center. CBS 2's John Slattery reports on the outrage...

Inside WCBS Newsradio 880

NewsByte2 paid a visit to the other WCBS in the CBS Broadcast Center yesterday afternoon. Check out this video and the following pictures for a behind-the-scenes look at WCBS Newsradio 880.

Looking toward the entrance of the WCBS Newsradio 880 newsroom on the eighth floor.

Steve Scott anchoring the 2:00 hour. Scott joined WCBS 880 on September 11, 2006 after 20 years in Chicago.

Scott using his finger to scroll down on his script. The busy newsroom is on the other side of that window.

A closer look at the board with the WCBS Newstime clock ticking away. The anchors on WCBS 880 engineer their own newscasts, including turning on and off their microphones, playing reporters' packages, and running commercials.

Wayne Cabot, who's been with WCBS 880 since 1988, joins Steve Scott at 2:59. The team brings the tri-state area the news for the commute home through 7:00. The coverage streams live on wcbs880.com and continues even when the Yankees are airing on 880 AM.

WCBS Newsradio 880 has quite a history, having done all-news for over forty years.

Special thanks to Steve Scott for making this visit possible and for both Scott and Cabot for being great hosts (and for allowing the pictures and video).

Dr. Phillips Joins "The Doctors"

It's just for one day but CBS 2's medical reporter Dr. Holly Phillips will be on national TV next week. She will guest on the panel of syndicated show "The Doctors" Monday. Among the topics mentioned in the promo: how to know whether you're taking the right vitamins and the FDA studying using LSD to treat headaches.

"The Doctors" airs weekday mornings at 9:00 on CBS 2.

1:03 p.m. Update: Here's the promo that was likely customized for WCBS:

We've also been sent this shot of Dr. Phillips walking onto the set on Monday's show:

Storytelling Promos Coming Monday

CBS 2 News will "launch a powerful series of on-air spots pitching its correspondents as storytellers" Monday, according to the Daily News. Jennifer McLogan, Pablo Guzman and Jennifer McLogan will be seen in the "first wave." In one, McLogan speaks of covering the 1996 crash of TWA Flight 800:

"I reported on the story, every day for two months. It was a very sad day, and it was hard to report, but that's my job, and it's a day I'll never forget."

Columnist Richard Huff says the promo "is poignant without being cheesy."

This might be the first time the station has given a newspaper a heads-up about a campaign before it began airing. It's also interesting that Jennifer McLogan, who has been with the station since 1993 and originally joined in 1982, is featured in her own promo as she is almost always left out of such spots.

(Photo from the Daily News.)

Shorter, Music-less Teases

CBS 2 News is following in the steps of cable news networks in the way they tease stories in the newscasts. Beginning on today's 5:00 newscast, teases have been cut to just one or two stories. Most notably, there is no music playing underneath. The regular "Coming Up" animation wasn't used at 5:00; instead, a lower-third banner usually used in promos. "Coming Up" was used in the 6:00 newscast, though it likely appeared to be in error.

The station had been tinkering with the way they teased stories since last week. The first story was often done with the anchors still on camera and using the alternate banner before promoting the other stories with the regular animation. The usual music was still being used.

This style seems to have been copied from channels like CNN and FOX News. Many of those cable newscasts employ the short and music-less teases with the theory being that viewers tune out whatever an anchor says after the words "coming up" or the news theme begins playing. Unfortunately, this style is also rather boring as much of the urgency is taken away. This blogger hopes CBS 2 was just doing this as a test today and doesn't do it again.

New Morning Campaign

CBS 2 News just debuted a new promotional campaign for the morning newscast. The eight spots feature the team of Kate Sullivan, Maurice DuBois, John Elliott and Katie McGee in front of that familiar white background comparing their morning news to different parts of the morning routine.

Here's one of the spots: "It's Like Coffee"

Here are links to the others:

"It Just Fits"

"A Real Pick Me Up"

"It Just Goes"

"It's Minty"

"It's Like Bacon"

"Fresh is Better"

"Something to Smile About"

NewsByte2 contributor and eagle eye David notes that these look similar to promos done a month ago by Boston's WBZ: "It's Like Coffee," "Fresh is Better" and "It's Like Bacon." We tweeted this on @NewsByte2 and heard back from Lee Grossman, executive producer of CBS 2 Promos:

wbz spots inspired our campaign... we created 5 new spots and cbs-2-ified 3 of theirs. i'm very happy and proud of this campaign

The promos began airing today.

CBS 2 News #1 at 11:00

There's more ratings news to report today and once again it's good news for CBS 2: For the first week of October, CBS 2 News came in first place at 11:00, thanks in part to a strong CBS primetime. Crain's New York Business reports that WCBS earned a 5.5 rating, up 31% over the same time last year. By comparison, the other stations are down: WABC is down 16% to a 5.4 and WNBC is down 19% to a 2.9.

CBS 2 News at 5:00 Up 20%

We're getting our first look at how WNBC's decision to drop its 5:00 newscast and replace it with a lifestyle program is affecting ratings. According to the Daily News, WNBC is down 45% in the 5:00 hour in the first five weekdays of October when compared to last year. WABC is still number one but down 12%. WCBS is in second and up 20%, WNYW is up 21%, and WPIX's "Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader" is up 22% in the timeslot.

Garcia Leaves

According to Lou Young's Twitter, reporter Deborah Garcia is leaving CBS 2. Her last report aired on the 6:00 newscast. For many weeks in 2007, she and Sean Hennessey anchored the Saturday and Sunday morning newscasts in what appeared to be an attempt to groom the pair but that ended by the summer. Garcia joined CBS 2 in October 2006 from WKMG, the CBS affiliate in Orlando.

Morrison's First Day

Rob Morrison appeared on CBS 2 for the first time this evening at 5:08. His story on Afghanistan strategy can be viewed here on wcbstv.com.

"You're welcome to be here," Don Dahler said to Morrison after his package aired. "You're a familiar face in New York so we're glad to have you here."

"It's a pleasure to be here with people who take local news so seriously, so thank you for having me," Morrison said.

By the way, Morrison just tweeted this news:

Wonderful welcome at CBS 2 today. Many familiar faces. Anchoring the 5 pm tomorrow.

Don't Worry About The Facts

Accuracy apparently doesn't matter these days. Check out two examples in stories about Rob Morrison becoming an anchor/reporter at CBS 2:

Michael Starr, New York Post, today:

Morrison was one of several high- profile staffers -- including Jim Rosenfield, Scott Weinberger and Andrew Kirtzman -- cut loose by Ch. 4 last year in a cost- cutting move.

WNBC has cut many big names in the last year but those guys weren't among them. Rosenfield left CBS 2 after three years in May 2008. He had been at NBC 4 before that and after his first stint at CBS 2. CBS 2 cut Weinberger and Kirtzman in March 2008. Weinberger also joined from NBC 4 but Kirtzman never even worked at that station at all. It's unclear where Starr got his info from.

Jerry Barmash, examiner.com, Saturday:

It’s been four months since was Rob Morrison was cut from his “Today in New York” duties, weekday mornings at WNBC.

Actually, Morrison left "TINY" late May 2008, not 2009, so it's more like one year and four months. What's worse is that this was Barmash's lead and it only took three words to be wrong. Oh, and in the same piece:

Cindy Hsu, who filled in for Calvi in recent weeks, will go back to a Monday to Friday reporting schedule.

Hsu was anchoring weekend mornings alongside Calvi in recent months, not filling in for her.

As they say, don't let the facts get in the way of a good story... but these aren't even good stories.

CBS 2 at JDRF Walk

CBS 2 sponsored today's JDRF Walk to Cure Diabetes in Battery Park and over the Brooklyn Bridge. NewsByte 2 was there and took these pictures:

Meteorologist Megan Glaros did the weather all morning from 6:00 to 9:00 from Battery Park.

CBS 2's live truck with its microwave mast up.

Anchors Dana Tyler and Cindy Hsu hosting the kick-off program before the walk began.

Cindy's daughter Rosie taking pictures of the crowd with her mom's phone.

Morrison Tweets

Rob Morrison, who will join CBS 2 News on Monday, sent this message to NewsByte2 on Twitter this morning:

Thrilled to be part of an organization that still believes in the value of community and local news.

You can follow Morrison on Twitter @robmorrison1... and you can follow this blog @NewsByte2.

Rob Morrison To Join CBS 2 News

NewsByte2 has learned that Rob Morrison, formerly of WNBC, will join CBS 2 News. His first day is scheduled to be Monday, according to an e-mail sent out this afternoon to staffers. Morrison will be anchoring Saturday and Sunday mornings with Mary Calvi and report three days a week. He previously anchored WNBC's "Today in New York" until May of 2008. Late last year, Morrison authored this blog post on The Huffington Post about suddenly being a stay-at-home dad.

Cindy Hsu, who had been co-anchoring with Calvi since Steve Bartelstein abruptly resigned March 17th, will return to weekday reporting with a focus on families.