KGMB-9 shifts to 'clock time' Monday for 10 p.m. newscast

KGMB-9 will institute "clock time" starting Monday, delivering its 10 o’clock news at 10 p.m.

It joins KHON-2 and KITV-4 on "clock time," television industry jargon for airing shows on time, rather than squeezing more ads into commercial breaks, pushing back the start of programming, including the late news.

"I couldn’t be happier," said Jim Lemon, KGMB news director. "It gives us, and the viewer, more content time. . . . Our news hole will now be 17 or 18 minutes, excluding sports, compared to 12 or 13 minutes before, because of ads."

Lemon said the station has been weaning itself of padded ad breaks, to the point that on some nights the 10 o’clock news has started at 10:02 or 10:04, improving its performance from a "worst" of 10:12 or 10:13 p.m.

The decision leaves KHNL-8, the NBC station, the lone holdout. "Our plans are to keep an eye on the situation," said John Fink, general manager of KHNL. He said the station will "see what makes business sense for us; there are promotional and advertising considerations. But this wouldn’t be the first time we’ve been the maverick."

"It’s the right move for us, and the right time," said KGMB’s Lynne Mueller, general manager of the CBS affiliate. "There will be revenue implications (some loss of advertising dollars) but the catalyst was support from our ownership to move forward.’’

Marty Schiller of The Schiller Group advertising agency said that the KGMB decision "brings down clutter in various pods between the 6 and the 10 o’clock news. It will be more effective for the ads in place."

KHON-2, the Fox station and perennially the No. 1 news station, was first to go on "clock time," inaugurating the policy Jan. 1, 1999. Although first to announce that it would go to clock time, KITV, the ABC station, kicked off its "clock time" news a few days later, on Jan. 4.

"Clock time" has long been the practice at Mainland stations.

Meanwhile, KHON is seeking a second six-month extension on a waiver (the first ends April 1) from the Federal Communications Commission, asking for more time to put together its plans for parent company Emmis Communications Group’s purchase of a group of TV stations that includes KGMB.

FCC regulations prohibit a single owner from owning two top-rated TV stations in a market. Emmis bought 15 stations, including KGMB, at a price tag of $559.5 million, from Lee Enterprises in 1999.

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