Post-Gazette TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions online every Friday in Tuned In Journal blog at post-gazette.com/tv. Here’s a selection of recent queries.
Q: WTAE is my station of choice for news and weather. It occurred to me that Jackie Cain is now a field reporter (if that is the proper description). When she was first hired she received quite a bit of publicity, local girl from Elizabeth, etc. I believe she had an anchor desk for a while, no? Now it's all Kelly Sasso. Was Jackie demoted? — RON, VERSAILLES
Rob: Jackie Cain has always been a field reporter, notes news director Jim Parsons.
“She is also an anchor,” he said. “Jackie co-anchors Saturday and Sunday evening newscasts with Ryan Recker.”
Ms. Cain was hired as weekend morning anchor so the evening anchor slot definitely offers a better time to start the work day.
Q: I am a regular viewer of the KDKA morning news but missed any announcement of Sarah Arbogast's departure. Do you know why she left? — JOETA, GREEN TREE
Rob: As my colleague Maria Sciullo reported, Ms. Arbogast took another job. The North Versailles native left KDKA-TV to work as director of communications for Serra Catholic High School in McKeesport.
Q: I watch both Hallmark channels and like both. I noticed that there was no mention of future “Murder She Baked” movies for 2018 and no “Aurora Teagarden” either.
Did these series come up in your interview? Any idea why they would stop making these series, especially the “Murder She Baked”? They seem to be pretty popular. — BARB VIA EMAIL
Rob: My understanding is there are many more “Aurora” movies planned. A new one aired earlier this month and another one airs in May. There may be as many as four new ones total in 2018.
“Murder She Baked” is not producing new installments this year as star Alison Sweeney works on developing a potential series for Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
Q: Do you know if there will be more remake TV shows for the fall schedule? — TIM VIA EMAIL
Rob: It’s too early to say what will end up on fall schedules — networks just started ordering their pilot episodes last month — but executives’ interest in familiar brands — TV show, movie and book properties — continues unabated.
So far CBS ordered a new season of “Murphy Brown” with Candice Bergen along with reboots of “Magnum P.I.” and “Cagney & Lacey.” NBC has ordered a “Bad Boys” TV show pilot, The CW has its “Charmed” reboot and “Wayward Sisters” (a potential “Supernatural” spinoff), and Fox has “The Passage,” a vampire pilot based on a book series.
Q: After watching an episode last fall, it seemed apparent that Bebe Neuwirth has left “Madam Secretary.” Has she decided to move on to other things? — GLADYS, BALDWIN BOROUGH
Rob: Yes. Around that time she tweeted, “So grateful to @CBS for accepting my request to depart @MadamSecretary and writing a beautiful exit for me.”
If I have to guess, I imagine she’ll return to her Broadway roots.
Ask TV questions by emailing rowen@post-gazette.com, including your first name and location, or submitting the form at post-gazette.com/tv.
First Published: February 25, 2018, 2:51 p.m.
