Web Media - TVSpy

After Gaining Access to KXRM Email Server, Hacker Demands Money

Merrill Knox — Mon, 06 May 2013 10:03:27 +0000

A hacker has gained access to the server that stores emails at Colorado Springs Fox affiliate KXRM. The hacker is demanding money in exchange for returning control of the servers to the station:

Sometime overnight Sunday the server that stores our emails was hacked, and the person(s) responsible is literally holding our information for ransom, asking for $5,000 to unlock the data he scrambled.

Our engineers did some research and found this hacker hit a number of servers around the globe, but the FBI has not been able to find him because he is using ghost addresses.

KXRM is asking viewers to “bear with us if you are trying to contact us by email.”

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KUSA Apologizes For ‘Coarse Language’ on Twitter

Merrill Knox — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 11:48:40 +0000

Denver NBC affiliate KUSA tweeted an apology for using “coarse language” Tuesday evening:

Apologies to all offened by our earlier coarse language. New snow reports continue to validate forecast.#9wx twitter.com/9NEWSWeather/s…

— 9NEWS Weather (@9NEWSWeather) April 10, 2013

KUSA has deleted the original tweet, but a tipster tells us (and this retweet confirms) it read “What’s all the bitching about?”, apparently a reference to the fact that the storm was living up to its hype — and therefore validating KUSA’s extensive weather coverage Tuesday.

KUSA has yet to return TVSpy’s request for comment.

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WDRB Hires Columnist John David Dyche

Merrill Knox — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 17:17:40 +0000

John David Dyche, a former columnist for the Louisville Courier-Journal, is joining Louisville Fox affiliate WDRB as an opinion columnist for the station’s website. He will also occasionally deliver commentary on WDRB newscasts.

“We see John’s participation as an additional enhancement to a revamped and expanded ‘Opinion’ webpage that we believe will provide even more relevance to the many people who have made WDRB.com the fastest-growing website for news and opinion in the Louisville market,” WDRB news director Barry Fulmer said in a statement.

Dyche was a conservative columnist for the Courier-Journal for almost 10 years. He is expected to contribute two columns a week to WDRB beginning April 15.

Fulmer said the station “announcing the name of yet another regular contributor who will represent the more liberal side of things” in the coming days.

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Former KTXL Web Producer Charged With Helping Anonymous Hack Tribune Sites

Merrill Knox — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 11:36:40 +0000

A former web producer at KTXL, Tribune’s Fox affiliate in Sacramento, has been charged with helping the group Anoymous hack into Tribune websites. Matthew Keys, who is currently a social media editor at Reuters, is accused of providing credentials for the group to gain access to the KTXL computer server in 2010, according to the Tribune-owned Los Angeles Times:

The indictment says Keys provided members of the hacker group Anonymous with log-in credentials for a computer server belonging to KTXL FOX 40’s corporate parent, the Tribune Co.

According to the indictment, Keys identified himself on an Internet chat forum as a former Tribune Co. employee.

After providing log-in credentials, Keys allegedly encouraged the Anonymous members to disrupt the website. According to the indictment, at least one of the computer hackers used the credentials provided by Keys to log into the Tribune Co. server, and ultimately that hacker made changes to the web version of a Los Angeles Times news feature.

Keys, who has been suspended by Reuters, is also a former producer at KGO in San Francisco. Last year, he broke the news that the ABC O&O would be canceling “7 Live,” an interactive local talk show.

Keys faces up to 10 years in prison if he is convicted. “I am fine. I found out the same way most of you did: From Twitter,” Keys tweeted Thursday evening. “Tonight I’m going to take a break. Tomorrow, business as usual.”

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Luis Cruz Jumps to San Diego’s New Media Venture U-T TV

Kevin Eck — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 10:30:26 +0000

Luis Cruz, former news director for Yuma, AZ, NBC affiliate KYMA, will be joining U-T TV as executive producer of afternoon news and programming, according to Media Moves.

“J.R. Mahon, U-T TV’s Director of News and Programming was an Executive Producer at KGTV in San Diego when I worked there briefly as a reporter and fill-in anchor in between the second and third time I was News Director at KYMA,” Luis told Media Moves. “Bless his heart for giving me the opportunity to come back to San Diego!”

U-T TV is the new TV station launched by the San Diego Union-Tribune. The station is a streaming web/cable TV hybrid originating from a new studio built in the newspaper’s newsroom. continued…

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The 24/7 Newsroom Blog To Go Dark

Kevin Eck — Tue, 22 Jan 2013 11:21:30 +0000

Tom Petner, editor and publisher of The 24/7 Newsroom has announced he is shutting down the news blog at the end of the month.

On his “about us” page, Petner wrote his mission for the blog, “I will strive to make the content timely, without the name calling, put downs and bad mouthing about our business. While I believe there are many things wrong in the broadcast industry and our newsrooms, local news is far from dead – it’s changing. My hope is that the247newsroom will help you stay ahead of the curve and keep you informed about the changes and trends.”

Petner wrote for ShopTalk/TVSpy.com until being laid off by the blog’s then parent company Vault.com. WebMediaBrands acquired TVSpy in November 2010, adding it to its mediabistro blog network. You can read Petner’s goodbye column by clicking here.

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WMAQ Launches Web-Only Newscast

Merrill Knox — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 11:25:47 +0000

WMAQ, the NBC-owned station in Chicago, launched a web-only newscast this week (video above).

“The Daily” will be hosted by Marcus Riley, a digital producer and online entertainment reporter for WMAQ’s website. It will be delivered to subscribers by email each day at noon.

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Study: Sometimes a TV is Just a TV

Kevin Eck — Fri, 28 Dec 2012 11:10:27 +0000

Despite a growing trend of connecting TV sets to the internet so viewers can watch TV and surf the web, a recent study shows consumers are using their new connected TVs to do one thing, watch TV.

The study, conducted by consumer research company NPD, shows that six out of ten consumers who own a connected HDTV are watching what they call “Over the Top” video services through the TV instead of using the device to tweet, post on facebook or read books or magazines. The culprit? Too much choice.

There are six or more types of devices bringing the Internet to HDTVs: the TV itself, video game consoles, Blu-ray Disc players, streaming media set top boxes, TiVo, and a few audio/video receivers. While 15 percent of HDTV displays are connected directly to the Internet, that number increases to 29 percent of HDTVs screens due to these other devices. This is driving the availability of around two connected eco-systems on the same TV screen, leading to a confused user-experience as consumers have more than one way of accessing their favorite TV apps. continued…

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A Look Back at ‘Cubes’ TV News Tours

Kevin Eck — Wed, 26 Dec 2012 15:37:30 +0000

The week before the new year begins is a good time to review what you’ve learned over the last year and to plot your course for the next 365 days. For MediabistroTV, 2012 gave us an interesting look at the present and possible future of TV news.

Former “CBS This Morning” anchor Erika Hill showed us around the CBS Broadcast Center in New York before she went to NBC’s “Today Show.” While “ABC World News” anchor, David Muir was gracious enough to give us a look at ABC News.

“Cubes” CBS News Behind-the-Scenes

continued…

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Salt Lake City’s KSL Suspends Online Gun Ads

Merrill Knox — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 10:19:42 +0000

KSL, the NBC affiliate in Salt Lake City, has announced a suspension of firearms listings on the classified section of its website as the “broader societal issues” of guns are examined in the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. KSL posted a statement online:

Like everyone else in the country, the management of KSL is profoundly saddened by the tragedy in Connecticut. In the wake of this and other similar incidents, important questions have been raised about the ease of access to guns. These questions deserve time for careful consideration and we are confident that an appropriate resolution will be found. Accordingly, KSL has temporarily suspended firearms listings on KSL.com classifieds. We recognize that this may inconvenience responsible citizens who have used this service, but we feel this is an important step while these broader societal issues are examined.

KSL is owned by Bonneville International Corporation, which is in turn owned by the Church of Jesus Chris of Latter Day Saints. [h/t The Huffington Post]

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Frank Mungeam Promoted to Director of Digital Media at KGW

Merrill Knox — Fri, 07 Dec 2012 15:04:40 +0000

Frank Mungeam has been promoted to director of digital media at KGW, the NBC affiliate in Portland, Ore.

Mungeam has led KGW.com since joining the station in 2006. The website recently received a regional Emmy award for interactivity in Election Night coverage.

“Frank richly deserves this promotion to the director of digital media and becoming a member of our executive leadership team at the KGW Media Group,” KGW president and general manager DJ Wilson said in announcing the promotion. “Frank has been instrumental in developing and managing our digital strategy and our ever expanding portfolio of digital products.”

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KENS Shines a Spotlight on Military Issues in Week Long Web Series

Merrill Knox — Tue, 20 Nov 2012 14:01:26 +0000

TVNewsCheck speaks to Jan Boyd, director of digital media at KENS, about the station’s recent web-exclusive series, “Seven Days in Military City, USA.” In San Antonio, where 18 percent of the population has military ties, Boyd said the seven-part series is part of the station’s quest for a digital identity:

The series — using video, photo slideshows and written stories — included stories about the “wounded warriors” who for the second year rode bikes 500 miles across Texas; homeless veterans who reportedly make up nearly one-quarter of the homeless in San Antonio counted as head of households; and Tim Williams, a veteran who now is a maintenance crew work leader at Fort Sam Houston Cemetery, the country’s seventh busiest national cemetery.

The series was filmed, photographed, written and posted entirely by KENS5.com’s four-person digital content-creation team, says Jan Boyd, the station’s director of digital media. It reflects Boyd’s vision of a TV station website that has its own editorial voice while still meeting its obligations of supporting, and supplementing, on-air content. continued…

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LIN Media Expands in New York

Chris Ariens — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 11:11:24 +0000

It is Advertising Week here in New York City, so what better time to make some ad news. This morning, LIN Media announced it is opening a new digital sales headquarters at Grand Central Plaza (as it happens, about 10 blocks from TVSpy HQ).

LIN Media owns or operates 32 television stations in 15 markets across the country. Opening a new base for RMM — LIN Media’s digital operations — furthers the company’s digital objectives.

Jamie Elden, RMM’s new SVP of Sales says, “The opening of our digital sales headquarters in New York City is key to advancing our growth strategy and building upon the valuable relationships we have with advertising agencies and brands, as well as establishing new relationships.”

RMM is also launching new entertainment initiatives out of the company’s LA office for social and mobile.

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WRC Hires New Digital Manager

Kevin Eck — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 14:53:52 +0000

NBC owned station, WRC has hired Wendy Warren as its Editorial Manager, Digital.

WRC president and general manager, Jackie Bradford announced Warren will oversee the Washington, D.C. station’s website, NBCWashington.com as well as its social media and digital platforms.

Warren comes to WRC from Philly.com, the website of both the Philadelphia Inquirer and Daily News.

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Lost Remote Joining Mediabistro Team

Andrew Gauthier — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 10:02:06 +0000

WebMediaBrands, the parent company of Mediabistro and TVSpy, has acquired the popular social TV blog Lost Remote.

Cory Bergman, who founded Lost Remote 13 years ago, will continue to play an active role in the site, as will longtime contributor Natan Edelsburg.

“This is an exciting new chapter for Lost Remote,” Bergman said. “Few people had heard of social TV two years ago, but today it’s driving more innovation in television than we’ve seen in the last decade. WebMediaBrands will leverage its network, resources, and expertise to help take Lost Remote to the next level at an incredible time in the business.” Read more at Lost Remote

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