Not many TV advertisers air 60-second commercials on local television. If you do see a 60-second spot, it’s usually in network programming, especially the network news. And the majority of those are pharmaceutical ads, with the first 15 seconds usually extolling the benefits of taking the drug while the remaining 45 list the possible side […]

I’ve never seen so many potholes in my life as I’m seeing on the roads around my house. And it’s a subject everybody’s talking about. In Michigan, WXYZ, the ABC affiliate in Detroit, is getting city officials to fix the potholes that residents report in 48-72 hours. They sign the Pothole Pledge on a road construction […]

My blog post about the experiences I encountered calling every creative services director in the country garnered quite a few comments. Doug wrote a tongue-in-cheek comment about his answering machine calling your answering machine. But most of the public comments left on the site were more serious. …it is also just about as impossible to […]

Creative services directors in local television mostly toil away in anonymity. No one is asking for our autographed picture or a selfie with us at any community event, like they might with the on-air talent. But when a latenight talk show host mentions you by name on national TV, that’s a big deal. And so […]

When Charlotte Mayor Patrick Cannon walked out of the federal courthouse immediately after his arrest on public corruption charges on Wednesday, March 26, only one reporter was waiting to question him, WCNC’s Senior Reporter Rad Berky from the Gannett-owned NBC affiliate. And within a few hours, Luanne Stuart, WCNC’s creative services director, had turned the scoop […]

I suppose it was inevitable. Comcast approves the first network medical marijuana ad. The ad is airing in New Jersey and Chicago on networks including AMC, Comedy Central, ESPN, and Fox among others. Look for it to be shown between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m. but don’t expect to see it on networks that specialize […]

Perhaps no other American has had more influence on modern culture than the late Apple co-founder, Steve Jobs. His authorized biography, Steve Jobs, by Walter Isaacson, is a fascinating read about the genius and eccentricities of Jobs. What was it like to work with him? Check out this video interview with Allison Johnson, former Apple […]

Tracy Rowlett, a fixture on local TV news in the Dallas market for 34 years, came out of retirement for a day to talk about his favorite news anchor now that he’s ‘just a news viewer’. “The spot was totally ad-libbed, no script,” said Rowlett. Rowlett says the new spot for KTVT, the CBS affiliate […]

  Maryam Banikarim has been the senior vice president and chief marketing officer at Gannett since March 2011. In a recent article she penned about her job, Banikarim reveals what drew her to her role at Gannett, why other executives say she isn’t a typical CMO, and the one area every CMO ought to focus […]

I have been calling every creative services director in the country to introduce myself and tell them that my weekly Market Share column is now a daily blog that will be updated several times during the course of the day. I go to each station’s website, find the main number and call. Here’s what I’ve […]