Quinn Permanent on "The Saturday Early Show"

NewsByte2 contributor David points out this mention in today's ShopTalk On The Move:

Ken Lindner & Associates is pleased to announce the following:

LONNIE QUINN joins "The Saturday Early Show" on CBS as the weathercaster. Lonnie will continue his duties as the main evening weathercaster for WCBS.

February Sweeps Begins

Nielsen's four-week February Sweeps ratings period begins today. CBS 2 News at 11:00 will feature an exclusive interview Pablo Guzman got with convicted murderer Danny Pelosi in a report titled "Murder in the Hamptons: The Next Chapter."

Two big news events happen to fall within the next few days. Sunday is the Giants' first appearance in the Super Bowl since 2001 and, while the game won't air on CBS 2 this year, CBS 2 News has been covering the Giants extensively. Ducis Rodgers' sportscasts have been originating from outside the University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, AZ, where John Discepolo has also been reporting. Hazel Sanchez has provided reports from around the region as well.

And Tuesday is the largest Super Tuesday primary election in U.S. history with more than 20 states, including New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, holding presidential primaries and caucuses. Political reporters Marcia Kramer and Andrew Kirtzman have been reporting on the latest campaign news and the station will undoubtedly provide extensive coverage on Tuesday. As for network coverage, CBS News will break in with updates during the 8:00 p.m. hour and air a two-hour special report beginning at 9:00 p.m.

Drossel Promoted to EP

Kelly Drossel has been promoted to executive producer of CBS 2 News at Noon, 5:00 and 6:00, according to the New York Post.

Drossel was recently profiled in this package about the Norovirus.

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.

CBS 2 Presents "Arts & Leisure Week"

CBS 2 will air an hour-long special tomorrow night with highlights from The New York Times' annual "Arts & Leisure Week." The forum took place earlier this month at the TimesCenter on 41st Street. According to the press release, the celebrities include Mel Brooks, Sidney Lumet, Josh Brolin and Wynton Marsalis.

Dana Tyler hosts the broadcast, which begins tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. Video from the 2007 and 2006 shows is available on wcbstv.com.

Here's a preview:

New Weather Factoid Promos

Due to popular demand, here's a look at some of the new weather factoid promos that began rolling out last month. They feature the CBS 2 weather team of Lonnie Quinn, John Elliott and Elise Finch. You'll find out why sunglasses are important in the winter, how to forecast winter weather by looking at spider webs, and the difference between sleet and freezing rain. These are winter updates to the ten spots that began airing back in June.

CBS 2 HD Fills the Screen

For the first time yesterday, some of CBS 2 News' video from the field filled the 16:9 screen. Since the changeover to high definition on April 11th, only CBS 2's studio shots and graphics did this. For the video that was not yet 16:9, CBS 2 used new pillar bar graphics on the sides (though the original ones were also used).



The on-air change comes as CBS 2 invests in some new technology behind-the-scenes. According to this Broadcasting & Cable article, the station has purchased 10 new Sony XDCAM HD cameras, which now allows for those widescreen field reports. Eventually, field video will be broadcast in high definition and 16 more XDCAMs will also be put into use. Additionally, CBS 2 has installed BitCentral's Precis server-based production system. Check out the article for more technical information from Kris Binder, the director of broadcast operations and engineering.

CBS 2 News Covers Giants Win

The New York Giants upset the Green Bay Packers in the NFC Championship Game Sunday night, advancing to the Super Bowl in two weeks. CBS 2 News at 11:00, anchored by Mary Calvi (Don Dahler was off), had team coverage: Sports director Ducis Rodgers was in the studio with highlights; Jackie Hyland was live at a sports bar in Park Slope, Brooklyn with fan reaction; and sports anchor Sam Ryan was live at Lambeau Field in Green Bay with player interviews. Rodgers had another 30 minutes of Giants coverage on Sports Sunday beginning at 11:35 and Sam Ryan provided more reports from Green Bay.






CBS 2 News announced yesterday that Ducis Rodgers, John Discepolo and Hazel Sanchez will file reports from Phoenix, site of this year's Super Bowl, beginning Monday.

Bartelstein: "Unfortunately, the chemo has not worked"

The Daily News' Richard Huff reports disappointing news in anchor Steve Bartelstein's battle with testicular cancer: Not only have his four rounds of chemotherapy not been effective, but doctors worry that the cancer has spread to his brain.

Here are some of Bartelstein's quotes from the article:

• "I don't want to make it sound more dramatic than it is. I'm a little worried; it's somewhere else."
• "I'm not scared. I hate to say it, it sounds like a commercial for [Memorial] Sloan-Kettering, but they say not to be worried."
• "In their [the doctors'] words, 'We're disturbed, we're curious, we don't know why this is happening; if it was terrible, we would have seen something before this.'"
• "When I say I'm worried, I just want to find out. I'm still pretty upbeat about it. I've said this before; in some ways, it's been kind of this great gift, I've met so many amazing people."
• "I might have had one of those days last week, when word got back it didn't work. I'm really, really tired of being sick. For the most part, I haven't had many of those days, but I'm tired of being sick."

Update: Kristine Johnson spoke with Bartelstein at the end of CBS 2 News at 5:00... That segment is available on wcbstv.com.

"Eye on the Storm" Saturday

CBS 2 will air a half-hour special Saturday on winter weather. "Eye on the Storm: Extreme Winter Weather" will feature the CBS 2 weather team of Lonnie Quinn, John Elliott and Elise Finch. It begins at 7:00 p.m. For more information, check out this press release or watch this promo:



The special will re-air Sunday morning at 11:30.

CBS 2's last weather special was "Eye On The Storm: The Hurricane Threat," which first aired back in June.