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Station group execs see multiple options if NBC exits 10 p.m. hour

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Station group execs see multiple options if NBC exits 10 p.m. hour

As NBC (US) considers exiting the 10 p.m. hour, top executives at broadcast station groups said they would welcome the opportunity to program that period on a local basis.

At the TV2025 conference within the NAB Show New York trade exhibition, Hearst Television Inc. President Jordan Wertlieb said stations have been preparing for the move for years, as NBC floated the idea back in 2003.

Wertlieb said today's viewing habits have changed, with a lot of streaming occurring during 10 p.m hour. That, in turn, has reduced the value of NBC's fare as a lead-in to stations' 11 p.m. newscasts.

The Hearst executive hoped that CBS (US) and ABC (US) would follow suit if NBC returned the 10 p.m. hour to local affiliates. However, CBS President and CEO George Cheeks said in a statement to various outlets that the network is committed to the 10 p.m. hour and its ratings strength in the time slot.

Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. President and CEO Chris Ripley said that with affiliates regaining the ad units, most stations would appreciate having the time back.

Catherine Badalamente, president and CEO of Graham Media Group Inc., would also embrace the change. Badalamente said Graham is assessing different streaming opportunities and currently experimenting with newscasts as the company looks to "reinvent what we do with our news hours."

For now, the panel of station group executives could only mull the potential change, as Comcast Corp.'s NBCUniversal Media LLC has yet to announce a final decision.

"We're discussing a lot of things. Obviously, it's our obligation to look forward and chart the course for the future," said Valari Dobson Staab, chairman of NBCUniversal Local. "If we do it, we would need to put together a really solid schedule from 8 to 10 p.m."

By cutting back on its broadcast programming commitment, NBCUniversal could also funnel some of those resources to support its own aggregate streaming service, Peacock.

As to how local stations would fill the hour, news is an option but not the only option.

Ripley said news has proliferated in the station world, with broadcasters offering about 50% more local coverage than they did a decade ago. Although that increased output is "good for us, good for localism," there is a limit, Ripley said. "You need to balance what you put out there."

To that end, Ripley discussed the deal Sinclair struck with Anthony Zuiker, under which the "CSI" creator is working on original content, some of which is tied to the station group's local news archives. In addition to the reimagined fare that might be licensed to third parties, the plan also calls for Zuiker to assemble docuseries. Additionally, Zuiker will consult with Sinclair's news executives and journalists on ways to enhance their storytelling, particularly in terms of how local fare can fit into stories of national interest.

Zuiker has already produced sizzle reels around docuseries and started pilots for a game show and talk show, genres that have historically performed well for broadcasters, Ripley said.

At Graham, Badalamente said the company is seeking more innovation. The CEO said the stations have been charged with helping to figure out a new path forward, and that 2023 will reflect a lot of that activity.

"If you are just repeating the same thing every half-hour, that is not enough either. We have a massive opportunity to fill those time periods," Badalamente said. "If we do it right, that is the heart of our future."

Staab said that NBC is tapping its NBCLX digital news platform to experiment with different ways to present local news, which has led to such fare as "Drag News" and "ASMR the News."

"We've already made several changes on our main stations based on things that we've seen and liked on LX News," Staab said, adding that younger employees are creating and producing stories and telling them in various ways.

Hearst's Wertlieb also cautioned that running standard newscasts is the easiest thing to do, but difficult to unwind.

The company has been delving deeper into its "Very Local" product, which has seen content produced around culinary delights, crafts and travelogues in Boston, Baltimore and other markets.

In the week between the final broadcast of "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" and the debut of "The Jennifer Hudson Show," Wertlieb said Hearst ran a cross-section of "Very Local" content that yielded improved viewership in the time slot.