KHON jumps into news battle at 5 p.m.

By Wayne Harada
Advertiser Entertainment Writer

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The buzz Unconfirmed rumor: That Rick Blangi-ardi, formerly with KGMB and KHNL, may become KGMB general manager, succeeding Lynne Mueller, who resigned. Blangi-ardi is president of the Telemundo Stations Group. Vacancy filled: Mahealani Richardson will become a weekend anchor at KITV, replacing Ann Botticelli; she is with KGW in Portland, Ore., but previously was with KGMB. Expect a September arrival. New arrival: KGMB anchor Kim Gennaula and meteorologist Guy Hagi welcomed a son, Luke Ichiro, born June 23 at Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women & Children; he weighed 6 pounds, 13 ounces and measured 19 1/2 inches, but mom was in labor for 30 hours. Gennaula will be on maternity leave until September, returning in time for election season.

In joining the fray for viewers at 5, KHON is reuniting Wilcox and Mizutani; they previously were hosts of the morning news show. Mizutani until recently was a sports anchor.

With a No. 1 overall ranking for two decades, fueled by Joe Moore's popularity as the ratings champ at 6 and 10 p.m., KHON hopes news junkies will click on early and stay with a 90-minute block of locally produced news, because Moore also anchors the 5:30 p.m. world news while the other stations air pre-recorded national network feeds.

Lori Kimura, media director at Milici Advertising, sees the addition of another 5 p.m. newscast as a positive for the viewing and business communities.

"For viewers, there will be more choice; for the TV stations, more competition," Kimura said. "For advertisers, it's another outlet for us to take a look at, from the standpoint of a local news product."

She also said the news departments would have to update stories between the 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. newscasts to continue to hang on to viewers.

"As far as news trends and ratings go, there seems to be more of a parity, a flattening out of ratings," she said. That notion is reflected in the three-way second-place tie at 6 p.m. of KHNL, KITV and KGMB in the May Nielsen ratings.

In the TV news war, KHON is perceived as the perennial champ in the three-times-yearly Nielsen (February, May and November) ratings, though its lead has eroded somewhat, particularly at 10 p.m. Because the Fox station does not benefit from prime-time hit shows as a lead-in, its dominance in news reflects the brand loyalty KHON developed when it previously was an NBC station.

KHNL, the current NBC affiliate, has evolved as a serious challenger. Formerly fourth in the news derby, KHNL was part of the three-way tie for second place at 6 p.m. in the last ratings sweep. KHNL eked out a win at 10 p.m. over KHON in the February ratings, helped by the network's Winter Olympics coverage, but the reign was brief; Channel 2 has reclaimed is first-place ranking.

KITV, the ABC outlet, had been the unquestioned No. 2 finisher for years; for 10 years, it has dominated the 5 p.m. slot with Gary Sprinkle and Pamela Young as anchors. But KITV has dropped to fourth place at 10 p.m. and now faces a challenge at 5 p.m.

Further, the impending departure of Dan Cooke, one of its prime anchors at 6 and 10 p.m., adds to KITV's internal woes of building a loyal viewership.

KGMB, the CBS station, is the wild card with an uncertain future. It is one of two stations owned by Emmis Communications Corp. of Indianapolis, which also owns and operates KHON. That duopoly — one owner of two stations in the top four in the marketplace — is a violation of Federal Communications Commission rules, which Emmis is challenging. While an extension to continue as a duopoly had been granted, the clock is ticking on some kind of a showdown. (A spokesman for KGMB was not available, with the news director on vacation; the station manager's position is vacant).

Everyone's gearing up for an all-out battle in November, the next ratings period. Channel 2 expects to retain its leadership, despite cable TV robbing some viewers from affiliates.

"When you're No. 1, everyone will come after you," said KHON news director Jim McCoy. "Certainly, it's a concern that we've been No. 1 for so long, we don't want to be complacent. Our competitors will watch us and we'll watch what they're doing, too. ...

"We're the last guys in the 5 o'clock game. So what's the expectation? We intend to be No. 1. Is this too much news for Hawai'i? I don't know. We will have 30 hours of local news a week, surpassing our competitors. But we think the more choices viewers have, the better."

Mizutani said he was ready to abandon sports and return to the news front. "I love reporting and will be able to do some of that, for 6 and 10 p.m. news, too," he said. He's already contributed news and features while doing "dress rehearsals" for his 5 p.m. launch.

"I'm thinking we're No. 4, since we're brand new, and there's nowhere to go but up," he said. "But I'm confident that we'll put together a quality product, and ratings will come. I've been at the station 18 years, and we were already No. 1 then, but I've watched how this newsroom operates. We work for the numbers (ratings)."

The 5 p.m. leaders aren't expected to fix what's not broken. "For us, it will be business as usual," said Young, who, with husband Sprinkle, will return to the 5 p.m. news desk today after a week's vacation. "We're not changing; we're going for consistency. I had a boss years ago who said that ratings aren't won during a ratings period; they're not sprints, they're marathons."

News departments are aware of the changes.

"I think we will remain No. 1 at 5 p.m.," said Mike Rosenberg, vice president and general manager of KITV. "Our audience is loyal to Pam and Gary; and Leslie (Wilcox) has not done an evening news since 1992. I feel we'll be No. 2 at 6 and 10 in November, with a little help from ABC; 'Monday Night Football' (an ABC staple) will help."

KHNL earlier this year introduced "News on Demand," an option for viewers to call up the station's news the way a movie can be ordered via cable TV.

"The numbers (response) has been significant, and we see it as providing additional service to our viewers," said John Fink, vice president and general manager at KHNL. "I think Hawai'i needs to be responsive to viewers, be more accountable and more relevant to the viewers. The days of perfunctory, static, parochial, institutional news reporting is gone; viewers expect coverage to be interesting and relevant.

"I think more news at 5 p.m. will make everyone sharpen their pencils. We've chosen the team coverage way to approach our news and the others are starting to do that, too. We've been the station that continues to show growth."

Reach Wayne Harada at wharada@honoluluadvertiser.com or 525-8067.