New Orleans

At the Promax Station Summit last week in Las Vegas, attendees filled the room for the session Zero Budget Magic, to see how imagination, and little more, is the only currency allowed in spots submitted from stations across the country. Here are all 40 of them.

Matthew Lebowitz, the station’s creative services director, sent me a note about what the station is doing to celebrate. “We wanted to celebrate the 70 year milestone, while keeping our eye on the future,” said Lebowitz.

WGAL, Hearst’s NBC affiliate in Lancaster, Pa., is partnering with nearby Millersville University to preserve and digitize 30 years of the station’s news footage from 1949 through 1979. “When I first saw a portion of the archive in WGAL’s basement, I knew they had an unmatched treasure of historically significant material,” said Dr. Daniel Wubah, Millersville University’s president.

Several local TV affiliates in Philadelphia are making sure that Eagles fans are getting as much double coverage of the game as they can handle. Special programming before and after the game, and live reports from New Orleans are just some of the coverage fans can enjoy.

My first job at a TV station was as a writer/producer in promotions at WDSU. Then, in 1988, the station was located in the French Quarter. The historic building stretched an entire block from Royal to Chartres streets. The front entrance sat in a beautiful courtyard, said to be the most photographed in the city.

WVUE’s late fringe sports programming is a hit for viewers, beating the kings of comedy, Kimmel, Colbert and Fallon. See how WVUE is promoting these sports specials almost every night of the week.

The donations collected will go toward food, water and cleaning supplies for families as they reclaim their homes from Hurricane Michael. “This city knows how devastating it can be to lose everything,” said Joel Vilmenay, WDSU’s general manager.

“Producers are the heart of a television station,” said Mike Smith, Gray’s director of talent recruitment and retention, “and we recognize that some of the most crucial parts of their development start in the classroom. We’re excited to be training tomorrow’s newsroom leaders.”