Local HD News Offered By 24 Stations

[Poke]

http://www.tvpredictions.com/localhdnews112506.htm

And a new high-def launch is scheduled in January, TVPredictions.com has learned.
By Phillip Swann
Washington, D.C. (November 25, 2006) -- Approximately 24 local stations are now broadcasting their news and/or sports programs in High-Definition TV.

That's according to an article just published by Broadcasting and Cable magazine.

In addition to the B&C list below, TVPredictions.com has learned that KFMB, the CBS affiliate in San Diego, will begin airing the local news in high-def in January. We have also learned that several NBC "owned and operated" affiliates are expected to switch to local HD news in the coming months.


WUSA-TV is one of about two dozen stations doing the news in HD.

According to B&C, some broadcasters believe that local HD news is a necessary step although the majority of viewers still do not own high-def sets. Stations switching to HD news formats are investing heavily in equipment and production studios.

"Our viewers are moving to HD at a rapid rate. We want to be there to serve them, and we want to be first to do it," says John Misner, general manager of KPNX, the NBC affiliate in Phoenix.

Here is the B&C list of stations that are broadcasting news and/or local sports in high-def:

KABC (Los Angeles, ABC affiliate)
KARE (Minneapolis, NBC affiliate)
KING (Seattle, NBC affiliate)
KLAS (Las Vegas, CBS affiliate)
KOMO (Seattle, ABC affiliate)
KPNX (Phoenix, NBC affiliate)
KSDK (St. Louis, NBC affiliate)
KTVU (San Francisco, Fox affiliate)
KTVD (Denver, My Network TV)
KUSA (Denver, NBC affiliate)
WFTV (Orlando, ABC affiliate)
WJW (Cleveland, Fox affiliate)
WKYC (Cleveland, NBC affiliate)
WNBC (New York, NBC affiliate)
WPVI (Philadelphia, ABC affiliate)
WRAL (Raleigh-Durham, NC, CBS affiliate)
WRAZ (Raleigh-Durham, Fox affiliate)
WSB (Atlanta, ABC affiliate)
WTHR (Indianapolis, NBC affiliate)
WTXF (Philadelphia, Fox affiliate)
WUSA (Washington, D.C. CBS affiliate)
WXIA (Atlanta, NBC affiliate)
WXYZ (Detroit, ABC affiliate)

Coming in January: KFMB in San Diego.

 

[gjh3260]

get KARE here in Mpls. I used to watch the news on another local channel but switched to KARE since it went HD last April

 

[hpman247]

WRAL/ WRAZ in Raleigh is AMAZING. My DMA is Roanoke/Lynchburg, but i pick up these stations better. I refuse to watch my local news, but the NC news is a nice substitute just because it is in HD.

 

[Petrovich]

Atlanta My Network TV (WATL) has 10 p.m. HD news produced by WXIA (local NBC).

 

[PeggyD]

KOMO (ABC) in Seattle has been HD for local news for several years. KING (NBC) does some in-studio HD but not all, constantly switching between HD & SD even for studio shots. KIRO (CBS) doesn't do HD nor does KCPQ (Fox, but we don't get that in HD on Dish).

 

[Neutron]

Funny, no Dallas/Ft. Worth on the horizon. That's interesting considering that 3 of the 4 big networks are O&O.

 

[rad]

Watching one of the HD Net HD industry shows a few months ago, I seem to remember a VP from CBS saying that they have in work upgrades to all their O&O stations to get them to HD local news in 2007.

 

[Cyclone]

In DC we have Gannet owned WUSA in HD.

The NBC and FOX O&O stations are rumoured to be next to go to HD. But I think that our NBC affiliate was at the bottom of NBC's list to be upgraded. But it would still be cool to have 3 HD local news broadcasts to choose from.

WUSA was panned a few years ago when they fired several very long time quality anchors and replaced them with infotainment attractive talking heads. But now that they are in HDTV, heck, I turn to them when its news time.

Its funny, they have 16:9 HD Weather graphic software. When the weather guy is going over the map reading off those temp numbers that are centered over local towns, he'll mention the ones off in the 16:9 pillar area as "For our viewers with HDTV, they'll see that it was 64 in Cumberland and 66 in Dover". Those towns don't show up on the screen for the 4:3 SD broadcast.