The MediabistroTV crew got an inside look at Meredith’s Midtown Manhattan lair.  While you may know Meredith for its 12 local TV Stations, it also publishes magazines like Better Homes and Gardens and Fitness and also produces a nationally syndicated lifestyle show called, the “Better Show.”

“Better” co-host Audra Lowe showed off Meredith’s state-of-the-art TV studio that comes complete with a Mohawk red carpet that can withstand the nastiest celebrity spill, a green room the size of some Manhattan apartments and a test kitchen where Meredith’s staff of chefs dream up recipes to rival what mom used to make, only ‘Better.’

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Meredith’s local media group brought in $78 million during the period, with a 5% rise in non-political advertising revenue and a 70% increase in digital advertising.

“Our Local Media group is doing an excellent job of increasing ratings and translating them into advertising revenues, consistently ranking us among the leading station groups in advertising revenue gains,” Meredith local media group president Paul Karpowicz said in a statement. continued…

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Stations are forecasted to blow past the $2 billion threshold this year. Borrell Associates forecasts $2.7 billion in local TV online revenue, a 35% increase over 2011. Borrell revealed the numbers in its new Benchmarking Local Online Media survey.

“Local TV broadcasters continue to grow online ad revenue at an impressive clip,” said the study, which singled out Gray Television and Meredith for growing revenue at a 50% rate in the last half of 2011, along with LIN, Nexstar and Gannett for their digital gains as well.

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Daniels first joined the Hartford CBS-affiliate in 2005, working as a general assignment reporter before becoming a weekend anchor in 2008. She left in 2010 for a reporting job at WGCL (both WFSB and WGCL are owned by Meredith).

Daniels had been filling in at the WGCL anchor desk recently but she says that the offer of a full-time anchor spot is what persuaded her to return to WFSB.

“I’m thrilled to be back,” Daniels told TVSpy today via email. continued…

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WADL issued a press release this week announcing O’Brien’s termination, saying that he had violated “numerous corporate policies.”

“I am deeply saddened that in this day and age this type of behavior still exists,” WADL CEO Kevin Adell said in a statement, without going into specifics.  “I have zero tolerance for this, and I will personally disgorge any money paid to Mr. O’Brien as a consultant for the past two months.”

So what happened? continued…

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Meredith’s local unit took in $84 million for the period, compared to $97 million for its Q2 last year.  The company attributes the decline to a decrease in political advertising compared to a year ago–Meredith recorded  $21 million less of political advertising revenue for the quarter.

Non-political advertising revenues rose 9% in the second quarter, with Meredith’s stations in Atlanta (WGCL), Hartford (WFSB), Las Vegas (KVVU), and Portland (KPTV) performing the best. continued…

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Meredith, which owns 12 stations across the country including WGCL in Atlanta and KPHO in Phoenix, reported $69 million in total revenues for its local media group, compared to $76 million brought in during the same period last year.

In announcing financial results for the quarter, Meredith was quick to point out that its TV stations recorded approximately $11 million less in political advertising revenues than in the same period last year. Excluding political advertising, revenues rose 3%. continued…

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Meredith’s local media group, which encompasses 12 stations and their websites, saw respectable gains in fiscal 2011, driven by an overall increase in automotive advertising as well as a big boost from political advertising. Meredith set a company record for political advertising revenues last year with $35 million, sparked by strong spending at stations in Hartford, Las Vegas, Portland, and Kansas City.

Non-political advertising revenues were up 4% for the year at $256 million.

For the fourth quarter, Meredith’s local media group saw revenues of $78 million–a $1 million increase over the same period last year. Although political advertising dipped $3.2 million from Q4 2010, non-political advertising was up 3%.

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Meredith chairman and CEO Stephen Lacy said that the local media division, which includes 12 stations across the country, posted “solid growth” in the quarter.

Looking forward to the next quarter, Lacy pointed out that on March 28th, Meredith’s Atlanta CBS-affiliate (WGCL) began managing the day-to-day operations of Turner Broadcasting’s Peachtree TV (WPCH).  “This strategic partnership with Turner provides Meredith with access to a larger share of the growing Atlanta advertising marketplace because of Peachtree’s younger viewership; a strong lineup of sports programming; and increased inventory in both access and prime-time dayparts,” Lacy said.  “Additionally, it raises our overall profile in Atlanta, the No. 8 television market in the country.”

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WSHM

Ward, who most recently worked as assignment manager at WFSB in the nearby Hartford-New Haven market, succeeds Doug Lezette as news director.  Lezette left WSHM earlier this year to join Providence’s WJAR.

“Dave’s depth of experience and talents will enhance CBS 3 Springfield’s continued growth and success,” said WSHM (channel 3) station manager John Hesslein. “He has played a major role in developing strong and lasting community relationships in Connecticut and I look forward to that same success in Springfield.”

Ward, a native of Massachusetts, said that he is looking forward to working with the “talented professionals” at WSHM to “engage the community with a wide range of stories.”

Both WSHM and WFSB are owned by Meredith.

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Doreen Wade

“Doreen possesses extensive local experience and a successful track record in broadcasting management. She is a loyal and committed leader, and I have no doubt that she will mesh well with our dedicated employees at WSMV,” said Paul Karpowicz, president of Meredith’s Local Media Group, in announcing the move.

Most recently Wade served as president of Freedom Broadcasting, which owns eight stations across the country including West Palm Beach’s WPEC, where she previously worked as vice president and GM.

“WSMV-TV has a long history of strong ratings and service to the people of Mid-Tennessee,” said Wade. “I look forward to continuing this legacy.”

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Meredith reported results for its second quarter and the numbers show that local TV stations continue to provide steady gains for broadcasting companies.

Meredith’s Local Media Group brought in $97 million during the quarter, with an operating profit of $39 million.

Meredith chairman and CEO Stephen M. Lacy said that the company is “extremely pleased” with the results and predicts “continued long-term growth.”

Much of the success can be attributed to a spike in political advertising.  Meredith owns stations in areas that were key battlegrounds during the 2010 election season, including KVVU in Las Vegas and WFSB in Hartford.  Non-political advertising, however, was up 3% from last year.

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Meredith, which owns Atlanta CBS-affiliate WGCL, will begin managing the Turner Broadcasting-owned independent station by the end of 2011′s first quarter. The plan is for WGCL to oversee WPCH’s operations, including advertising sales and marketing.

“This strategic partnership provides our advertisers new and innovative ways to reach their target audiences and will generate additional local advertising revenues for both stations,” said Paul Karpowicz, president of the Meredith Local Media Group.

Peachtree TV launched in 2007 and is probably best known to local viewers for its sports coverage, including Atlanta Braves baseball games.

Peachtree employees will be given the opportunity to interview for positions with Meredith. continued…

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