Judge Judy Re-Signs

"Judge Judy" will remain on TV at least through the 2011-2012 season, reports the Daily News. The article points out that the court show is the only original syndicated program to post year-to-year gains. The 4:00-5:00 p.m. timeslot on CBS 2 is said to be part of the renewal deal.

In other syndication news, CBS 2 will pick up "The Doctors" this fall to run at 9:00 a.m. That slot has been devoted to "The Insider" and "Entertainment Tonight" reruns. According to Broadcasting & Cable, the new show is a spinoff from "Dr. Phil" and will consist of five doctors talking about health-related topics.

"Weak" Ratings at 4pm; First News @ 4:30 to be Canceled?

The Daily News reports that airing the syndicated version of "The Weakest Link" at 4:00pm had negative results on the ratings. It loses 21% of "Crossing Over"'s viewership, and has a 42% less audience than "First News @ 4:00" had in November. The newspaper also reports that the syndicated version of "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" will air back-to-back with Weakest Link this fall, which appears to mean that "First News @ 4:30" is next on the line to be canceled.

NY Post Article Confirms Anchor Switch Effective on January 7th, 2002

In today's NY Post, an article confirmed the new afternoon/evening anchor lineup since the day-time version of Weakest Link premieres a week from today reducing the amount of airtime for First News. The article reads:

In other local TV news, Ch. 2 is making some timeslot changes with its anchor teams, since it's slicing its 4 p.m. newscast in half to accommodate the 4 p.m. syndicated, half-hour version of "Weakest Link" hosted by George Gray.

Beginning Jan. 7, Angela Rae and Todd McDermott will now anchor from 4:30 to 5 p.m., with Ernie Anastos and Dana Tyler moving from 5 to 5:30 p.m. It will be Rae and McDermott again from 5:30 to 6 p.m., with Anastos and Tyler remaining at 6 p.m.

(Thanks to David for sending me this article!)

-Michael

First News @ 4:30

Brian notified me that CBS 2 has updated their "Weakest Link" press release:

Immediately following, CBS 2 broadcasts FIRST NEWS @ 4:30 PM. Featuring a look at the day’s breaking news and headlines from the tri-state area and around the world, First News @ 4:30 PM remains the only local newscast broadcast in the time period.

It now seems as if the 4:00 newscast will be reduced to a half-hour and will begin at 4:30, on January 7th.

BREAKING NEWS: First News @ 4:00 To Be Canceled

The promo for "The Weakest Link" has been updated. It now says it will premiere at 4:00pm on January 7th, as opposed to 3:00pm as it had said earlier. This means that CBS 2 First News @ 4:00 will be canceled. Crossing Over will air at 3:00pm, just as it is right now. More on this story as soon as possible.

"Weakest Link" Coming To CBS 2

CBS 2 began airing promos today for "The Weakest Link", which will debut next month. The syndicated version of the popular NBC television game show will premiere Monday, January 7th at 3:00pm. The new daily version will be hosted by George Gray. And according to the commercial, "CBS 2 First News @ 4:00" will follow the program. This appears to disprove the rumors that the nearly-two-year-old 4:00 newscast will be canceled early next year. "Crossing Over with John Edward" currently airs in the 3:00pm slot, and could replace "Martha Stewart Living" at 9:00am. It has been reported that the syndicated version of ABC's "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?" game show will premiere on CBS 2 in September, along with Dr. Phil McGraw's upcoming syndicated talk show. No word yet on exactly what the new program schedule will look like.

Robyn Carter On Hollywood Squares

Unfortunately, Robyn Carter lost the four games on Hollywood Squares, which aired on CBS 2 this evening. In game two, she did win a "Secret Square" question for a viewer of the show at home. After she lost the second game, host Tom Bergeron tried to calm Robyn down by telling her, "just relax!" After game three, he said, "the curse of the circle chair continues" (Robyn played "O", and her opponent David Sheehan was "X"). When Robyn took a while to respond to a question, Tom told her, "You have to agree or disagree, and you have to decide if you're going back to New York." She replied, "I'm definitely going back to New York!" They ran out of time in the fourth game, but Robyn was given $5,000 for the charity which she was playing for: the Twin Towers Fund. Tomorrow on CBS 2 First News @ 4:00, Robyn Carter will tell us more about her appearance on Hollywood Squares.

Robyn Carter To Appear On Hollywood Squares Tonight

CBS 2's entertainment reporter Robyn Carter will appear on Hollywood Squares tonight. She will face-off against David Sheehan, entertainment reporter for KCBS-TV in Los Angeles (his "Blockbuster Entertainment Reports" air Thursdays on WCBS).

Robyn joined Dana Tyler and Ernie Anastos on CBS 2 First News @ 4:00 today to talk about her appearance with a behind-the-scenes report. She said, "I was a wreck," adding that it's much easier to go in front of the studio cameras for CBS 2 than to answer questions in front of a live studio audience. As for how well she did, she commented, "Let's just say that it was memorable."

In April, CBS 2 sports director Brett Haber played against KYW's sports anchor Beasley Reece (this episode was actually repeated this weekend). Robyn Carter's show, which was originally supposed to air last Monday but was postponed due to the crash of Flight 587, airs tonight at 7:00pm on CBS 2.s

"America Fights Back" Coverage

This morning on CBS 2, Cindy Hsu and Lou Young anchored special coverage from 7:00-9:00. This week, "Hollywood Squares" returns to CBS 2, but this time at 7:00pm. "Entertainment Tonight" had been occupying the 7:30pm slot for the past two weeks. And "Crossing Over" appears to be returning at 3:00pm Monday (this is according to the CBS 2 Program Guide, but no commercials have been aired announcing this yet). And Kevin tells me that Sports Rap Live has moved to Saturday Nights.

CROSSING OVER WITH JOHN EDWARD Debut a Ratings Success

A CBS 2 Press Release:

CROSSING OVER WITH JOHN EDWARD, featuring renowned physic medium John Edward, debuted on CBS 2 on Monday, Aug. 27 (3:00-4:00 PM, ET) with a 2.0/5 average household rating/share, a marked increase of 186% over what the time period averaged for the prior four weeks (7/30-8/24).

The success of CROSSING OVER WITH JOHN EDWARD propelled CBS 2’s FIRST NEWS @ 4 to its highest ratings, a 2.7/6 household rating/share, since July 6. This 2.7 is also 93% higher than the average for the prior four weeks (7/30-8/24). In addition, CBS 2’s News at 5PM (3.3/7) and 6PM (2.7/5) also saw household ratings increases, 57% and 35%, respectively, compared to their averages for the prior four weeks (7/30-8/24).

Edward, a Long Island native, is one of the country’s foremost psychic mediums and author of the critically acclaimed New York Times bestsellers One Last Time and What if God Were the Sun. Since its debut on the SCI FI channel in July 2000, his talk show has become a breakout hit and a national fascination. Edward uses his unique abilities to connect people with loved ones who have passed on. Deeply fascinating, often startling and frequently humorous, Edward’s down-to-earth approach to psychic phenomena has made the show appointment viewing for even the staunchest of skeptics.

CROSSING OVER WITH JOHN EDWARD, broadcast Monday-Friday (3:00-4:00 PM, ET) on WCBS-TV, is produced by SCI FI. Paul Shavelson and John Edward serve as executive producers. Shirley Abraham is co-executive producer and Dana Calderwood directs.

(Thanks to Kevin and David for sending this press release to me!)