The Post-Gazette answers reader questions online every Friday in Tuned In Journal blog at post-gazette.com/tv. Here’s a selection of recent queries.
Q: What has happened to Brenda Waters on KDKA-TV? I haven't seen her on TV for some time.
-RUTH VIA EMAIL
Answer: In late October Waters says she had back surgery for spinal stenosis, a condition she’s had since childhood, after the pain became unbearable.
“[I’m] getting stronger each day,” Waters writes, noting she’s in physical therapy three days a week and is tentatively scheduled to return to work Dec. 9. “Thank you for noticing my absence.”
Q: Can you tell me if WTAE will decide to air the second hour of the “GMA” weekend morning show? And if not, do local viewers really like all the local (depressing) Friday and Saturday news?
-JUDY, MOON
Answer: I asked this question — several times! — of WTAE news director Jim Parsons and general manager Charles Wolfertz as soon as ABC announced the expansion earlier this fall. Neither one responded. I asked again on Judy’s behalf. Again, they did not respond.
WTAE has not added the extra hour to its schedule so I think it’s safe to assume they don’t plan to add it.
As for the local weekend morning news, it doesn’t matter what viewers like or want. TV stations don’t program for viewers, they program for advertisers and what advertisers will buy. Local TV news is a profit center, that’s why we get more and more of it.
Q: It's interesting how the TV news business cycle operates in relation to long-term on-air personalities here in Pittsburgh. Through the years, one should expect the unexpected.
With the departure of Kevin Benson from WPXI, is there a possibility that Jeff Verszyla would be hired at Channel 11? If he had a non-compete clause in his contract, we're coming up on a year in mid-December since Jeff left. If Jeff does get hired at Channel 11, would Stephen Cropper remain Channel 11's chief meteorologist? Would the other current on-air meteorologists get shifted around to accommodate Jeff's 25 years of experience?
- JIM, JEFFERSON COUNTY
Answer: My immediate thought after the news of Benson’s DUI charge was that the person in Pittsburgh who stands to gain the most, potentially, is Verszyla. We previously reported his non-compete is up in January 2020.
Now, how would he fit in at WPXI? Who knows. Stations do research on how viewers react to assorted news anchors and weathercasters so it might depend on what that research shows as to whether WPXI would even hire Verszyla and what newscasts they might assign him to.
Q: I've seen two sporting contests on TV recently in which players dropped the f-bomb when they got too close to the field mics. My question is does the networks that broadcast these games get fined by the FCC when this happens?
-JARED VIA E-MAIL
Answer: My understanding has always been for the FCC to consider levying a fine, someone has to complain. No one from the government is monitoring the airwaves for profanity.
Even if viewers were to complain, there’s this: In 2012 the Supreme Court diluted the FCC’s ability to issues fines for fleeting obscenities by rescinding fines levied against networks for cursing and brief nudity. So in practicality, it seems unlikely fleeting obscenities during a live football game will result in a fine.
Ask TV questions by e-mailing rowen@post-gazette.com, including your first name and location.
First Published: November 27, 2019, 2:36 p.m.
