Comedian David Alan Grier was in Baltimore to promote his latest film, “Peeples.” He showed up on WBFF in a segment the FOX Baltimore morning show calls “Funny Fridays.”

After stopping the interview to tell them his name was misspelled, Grier said, “This is the raggediest TV studio I’ve ever been in in my life.”

“The sequester hit you hard,” he told the anchors after insulting the camera crew.  He then said, “I call this Criticism Fridays.” Watch the video by clicking here.  The station’s website does not allow embedding.

Sinclair Broadcast Group has announced it will begin broadcasting mobile capable signals from ten of its stations in nine markets.

“The pace of technology makes it imperative for broadcasters to continue to lead in serving our communities,” said Mark Aitken, vice president of Advanced Technology for Sinclair and chairman of the ATSC A/153 MobileDTV standardization activity. “Broad adoption of MobileDTV, as a part of our local broadcast television offering, is the next step. We are confident our Network partners will see the value mobile simulcasting brings in building station and Network brands, audience share, and local television relevancy.”

Mobile DTV, as the service is called, allows viewers to watch their favorite local broadcast stations, for free, on portable devices like smart phones and tablets by adding a plug-in adapter. Read more

Marianne Banister, a longtime anchor at WBAL in Baltimore, is joining rival WBFF, according to The Baltimore Sun‘s David Zurawik.

Bannister spent 16 years at NBC affiliate WBAL. The station declined to renew her contract in 2011. At Fox affiliate WBFF, Banister will anchor the weekend morning newscast slated to launch on January 19.

Zurawik also reports WBFF has hired Tony Pagnotti, a former meteorologist for ABC affiliate WMAR.

“We recognize outstanding talent and wanted both Marianne and Tony on our staff,” WBFF news director Mike Tomko told The Sun. “Their professionalism and long history in the market made for a perfect match here at Fox45.

Baltimore’s FOX affiliate, WBFF, plans to launch a weekend morning newscast beginning January 20, according to the Baltimore Sun.

WBFF General manager Bill Fanshawe told the Sun, “”We haven’t named any talent yet.  We will start the interviewing process shortly.”

The news will air from 6 to 8 a.m. Saturdays and fits itself around the FOX News broadcast Sundays with a 7 to 9 a.m. and 10 to 11 a.m. show.

In April, the station added a 5 p.m. newscast to its lineup.

Maryellen Pann has been promoted to chief meteorologist at WPMT, the Fox affiliate in Harrisburg-Lancaster, Penn.

Pann has worked as a meteorologist at WPMT since 1990, when she began as the station’s weekend weathercaster. She handles the forecasts on the 6, 6:30, 10 and 11 p.m. newscasts.

Pann received her certificate in meteorology from Mississippi State University. She has also worked at WBFF in Baltimore and WMDT in Salisbury, Md. [TVNewsCheck]

Husband-and-wife meteorologists Jonathan Myers and Dawn Brown are leaving New Orleans for Baltimore.

Myers will join WBFF, the Fox-affiliate in Baltimore, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune. In New Orleans, Myers works at CBS-affiliated WWL and and Brown works at Fox-affiliate WVUE. The couple had their first child last month, and Brown will stay at home with him, at least temporarily.

“We love New Orleans. It was probably the most difficult decision we have ever made,” Myers told the Times-Picayune. “We love the people here. We love the support we’ve had. We love the city, and we may be back someday.”

Steve Weinstein has been named general manager of KERO in Bakersfield, CA.

KERO was acquired by E.W. Scripps at the end of last year, and Weinstein has served as news director at KJRH, Scripps’ NBC-affiliate in Tulsa, since 2006.

“Steve has the ability to inspire quality journalism while addressing business opportunities in the vibrant market of Bakersfield,” Brian Lawlor, senior vice president of the Scripps television division.  “He is an award-winning video journalist who has strong business acumen, so he can effectively manage content issues while helping our sales executives devise customer-driven solutions on multiple platforms.” Read more

Sinclair Broadcast Group announced today that it has reached a new, long-term deal with Fox to renew the affiliation agreements for 19 stations that Sinclair owns and/or programs.

The new agreements go into effect at the beginning of next year and run through 2017.

“We are very pleased to have reached agreement to renew all of our affiliations with Fox Broadcasting, allowing us to continue as the largest Fox affiliate group,” Sinclair CEO David Smith said in a statement. Read more

Baltimore Fox-affiliate WBFF is reportedly trying to revive its regular “Fugitive Files” segment in the wake of a controversy involving a high-profile suspect’s on-camera apology.

In April, WBFF drew the ire of the Baltimore Police Department after it taped an interview with a man wanted for a brutal St. Patrick’s Day assault and failed to notify the authorities about it.  The man turned himself in following the interview, but police felt that the station’s failure to tell them about it was a breach of trust.

Now, according to the Baltimore Sun, WBFF is trying to get back in the good graces of the department in an effort to revive “Fugitive Files,” which it has been airing since 2007. Read more

The Baltimore Police Department is reportedly cancelling a partnership with Fox-affiliate WBFF after the station did not tell police it was taping an interview with a man suspected of a brutal beating.

Aaron Jacob Parsons turned himself in to the Baltimore Police Station at 7:30 p.m. Friday night. Police said they had made arrangements for Parsons to turn himself in earlier in the day, but he disappeared after taping an interview with WBFF.

The Baltimore Sun reports police “were angered” with WBFF for not communicating Parsons was at their studio, and said they would cancel a weekly segment on fugitives that the two organizations produce together.

“We were told Parsons would turn himself in after making a statement, and we had no reason to believe otherwise,” WBFF news director Mike Tomko said. Read more