Tonight’s Finales
NBC: New Amsterdam at 9p
VH1: Nick Cannon Presents: Wild ‘n Out at 8p

IN THE NEWS

Broadcast TV is the most relied upon source for coronavirus news among all age demos, according to a new study from trade association TVB. Four out of five U.S. adults say they trust their local TV news stations, beating out cable news and government websites, and more 18-34-year-olds are turning to broadcast TV compared to social media or cable news for COVID-19 information, said “The Coronavirus Media Usage Study,” which surveyed 10,000+ adults in the 10 states.

TEGNA is crying fake news on statements made by Standard General ahead of an upcoming proxy fight. “At a time when steady, experienced leadership is needed more than ever, Standard General is seeking to destabilize TEGNA’s Board of Directors and is misleading TEGNA shareholders with a campaign of disinformation and disregard for the truth,” said Chairman of the Board Howard D. Elias. “The numerous errors, false statements and mischaracterizations demonstrate that [Standard General Founding Partner Soohyung] Kim either does not understand our business or is intentionally trying to mislead our shareholders to get their votes. Based on the facts, as well as the strong track record of our Board and management team, the choice is clear – and we thank our shareholders for their support.” Kim is seeking seats on the TEGNA board.

Among the facts listed were: TEGNA “has substantially outperformed its peers since becoming a pure-play broadcasting company”; the company has top-of-the-market Big Four retransmission rates; its EBITDA margin is above the peer median; and TEGNA “has leading station productivity.” Shareholders are casting their votes ahead of the annual meeting on April 30.

Good Morning America anchor George Stephanopoulos revealed during Monday’s show that he tested positive for COVID-19. He said he has experienced no symptoms and is “feeling great.” Stephanopoulos has been doing the show from home as he cares for his wife, Ali Wentworth, who is recovering from the virus.

Gray Television has a campaign to promote local businesses that stay open during the COVID-19 pandemic. Gray stations have launched interactive, free online directories that include information for about 4500 businesses; over 10,000 businesses are expected to be included by the end of the month.

The 2020 NFL Draft will be presented across ABC, ESPN and NFL Network, April 23-25, the second year that The Walt Disney Company has worked with the NFL to offer a multi-network presentation for all seven rounds. ESPN and NFL Network will air a presentation across both networks, while ABC will present its own prime-time telecasts for Rounds 1-3, in addition to simulcasting the ESPN and NFL Network telecast of Rounds 4-7. The event will serve as a virtual fundraiser benefitting six charities that are battling the spread of COVID-19, and the telecasts – originally scheduled to be on-site in Las Vegas – will now originate from ESPN’s Bristol, Connecticut, studios.

With live sports on hold amid coronavirus carnage, ESPN is asking about 100 of its higher-paid commentators to join network executives and take a temporary salary cut. “These are challenging times and we are all in this together,” said the sports net in a statement. On April 2, Disney announced all employees whose jobs “weren’t immediately necessary” as of April 19 would be furloughed.

Add Dish to the list of companies forced to lay off employees. “Due to the current economic climate, combined with changing needs of our customers and how we best serve them, Dish has made the difficult decision to reevaluate our organization. This includes a focused set of staffing reductions to align our workforce with the current and future needs of the business,” said the company. “It is not a step we took lightly. Our goal is to best serve our Dish and Sling customers, position the company to support our future wireless aspirations, and create long-term opportunity for our teams.”

On again: The decision to withhold streaming rights for last year’s Celebrating 25 Magical Years of Disney on Broadway concert has been reversed. Streaming of the concert, planned as a benefit for Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS COVID-19 Relief Fund, was slated to start streaming at 7p last night, until Ray Hair, the head of the American Federation of Musicians, argued that in a time of unemployment, musicians should be paid for their work and withheld permission. After union musicians took to a Change.org petition to offer to forego payment since it was a charitable event, Hair changed his tune.

The International Olympic Committee will be on the hook for “several hundred million dollars” of costs related to moving the Tokyo Games to 2021, IOC President Thomas Bach told German newspaper Die Welt. The rest of the $2-$6 billion it will cost for the postponement due to the COVID-19 crisis will be borne by Japan, per the agreement signed in 2013 when Tokyo won the Games, said Bach.

Announcing The Cynopsis Adtech Awards: From outstanding ad and brand safety solutions to deft achievements in strategy and implementation, Cynopsis is shining a well-deserved spotlight on those who are making a difference in the digital media supply chain. Check out categories here.

A+E Networks has rolled out a variety of initiatives to share information to help audiences during the pandemic. The campaign includes #WeAreHereWithYou talent-led PSAs and network spots; the support of the work of non-profit organizations, with a special focus on first responders; and free programming. “A+E Networks has a long-standing commitment to social responsibility that we are leaning into now more than ever,” said Paul Buccieri, Group President, A+E Networks. “Through our PSAs and brand messages, it is our hope to add to the nationwide chorus and encourage us all to stay safe and stay home.”

The campaign for President Trump sued Wisconsin TV station WJFW-TV for airing a super PAC ad with comments Trump has made downplaying the COVID-19 crisis. The ad “takes audio clips of candidate Trump and pieces them together to manufacture a false statement that was not made by the president: ‘The coronavirus, this is their new hoax,’” says the lawsuit. The campaign previously sent cease and desist letters to stations threatening lawsuits if they continued to air the ad, also warning stations that their licenses could be put “in jeopardy.”

Deirdre Bolton has joined ABC News as a business correspondent. Bolton joins from Fox Business Network and Fox News Channel, where she covered business, finance and the economy, and for three years anchored Risk & Reward with Deidre Bolton. In 2018, correspondent Will Carr also moved from Fox News to ABC.

The White House Correspondents’ Association dinner has been rescheduled for August 29, with host Kenan Thompson and featured entertainer Hasan Minhaj still onboard. “For most of us, the COVID-19 pandemic has been the most important story of our lifetimes,” said Jonathan Karl, President of the WHCA and ABC News’ Chief White House correspondent. “We hope our rescheduled 2020 dinner will be a chance to celebrate the kind of important journalism we have seen throughout this crisis.” The annual event was originally slated for April 25.

Also rescheduled was the StreamTV Show, which moved from June 1-3 to October 5-7 in Denver. “We recognize the impact that the postponement has on the next gen video programming distribution community,” said Kevin Gray, VP, Telecom, Media & Technology Group, Questex. “However, the health and safety of the next gen video programming distribution community, and the broader community, is vitally important and it makes the event postponement unavoidable.”

Be there for the fourth annual Cynopsis Measurement & Data Conference on November 17th from 9:30AM – 4:30PM at Edison Rooftop in New York City. Join experts in measurement and data to address the issues of safe data handling, attribution, storytelling with data, and more (view the day’s agenda). Thought leaders will join us from CBS, Comcast, Dentsu, Publicis, OMD, Starcom, USIM and more.

Sponsored by: Gamut – Tubular Labs – Premion – Tunity

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Capital One, L’Oreal USA, Molson Coors Beverage Company, Subaru of America and Verizon have joined the lineup of sponsors for the launch of NBCUniversal streaming service Peacock. “At a time when people all over the world are turning to our content for comfort, entertainment, and connection, a consumer-first platform has never been more vital,” said Laura Molen, President, Advertising Sales and Partnerships, NBCUniversal. “Thanks to our launch partners, that’s exactly what we’ve created together. Peacock will not only redefine the industry’s conception of what is possible for ad-supported streaming services, it will open the door to new opportunities for viewers and marketers alike.” Peacock – with five minutes of ad loads per hour or less – begins rolling out tomorrow, April 15 for free for Comcast customers.

The impact of the health crisis on the ad business is intensifying, according a new biweekly report from Advertiser Perceptions. In the past two weeks, 29% more advertisers have canceled a campaign pre-launch (total now 44%), and 31% more advertisers have held back media spending (total now 64%), while 24% of advertisers have launched a new campaign to respond to the crisis, says the report, “The Coronavirus Effect on Advertising.” New campaigns are prioritizing brand vehicles, particularly social media, digital video, cable and OTT/CTV, while brands reallocating existing budgets are favoring broadcast TV, ecommerce and search. “It’s hard to tell a brand story in many performance channels, and advertisers often lack premade assets appropriate for different channels, so we’re seeing a bifurcation in media,” said Justin Fromm, EVP/Business Intelligence at Advertiser Perceptions. “On one hand, finance demands performance, so advertisers are moving money into social and search. On the other hand, advertisers need to resonate, so they’re also focusing on brand and purpose messaging appropriate for the moment and allocating to digital video, linear cable and OTT.”

After their introductory free trial period ends, is Quibi counting on subscribers to pay $4.99/month for the version of the short-form streaming service with ads, or fork over $7.99/month to go ad-free? In an interview with Fox Business Network’s Varney & Co., Quibi CEO Meg Whitman predicted about 75% of people will opt for ads. “It’s a little cheaper, and the ads are 15-second, non-skippable prerolls in front of every piece of content that we call Quadis,” said Whitman. “And we have 10 of the greatest brands that have decided to launch with us, and they make ads very differently. They make it with our patented Turnstyle, which shows full screen video portrait to landscape. So, yes, there’s an advertising business that’s an important part of our revenue stream.” Whitman also reports Quibi had 1.7 million downloads of the app its first week.

Publics Groupe reported 1Q20 earnings ten days early, including net revenue of $2.71 billion, up 17.1% for the period, and a $546 million cost reduction plan to be enacted in 2020 as the company deals with the impact of COVID-19. Cost-cutting includes short-term salary cuts and reduced and delayed dividend payments for senior execs. “We are now all facing a crisis that will be unparalleled in terms of magnitude, complexity and probably length,” said CEO Arthur Sadoun.

TECH NEWS

Consumers who watch movies or TV programs on smartphones reported higher levels this year of smartphones being “very easy” to use for streaming and having an “excellent” variety of streaming content/apps, according to Hub Entertainment Research’s “Connected Home 2020” study. The share of TV households with a Roku OS smart TV grew from 18% (2019) to 22% (2020) while the share with a Fire OS increased from 14% to 15%. Overall, the net share of Roku-enabled TVs (either smart TV OS or connected stick/box) rose from 30% to 35% of TV households, while a similar share of Amazon FireTV rose from 23% to 26%. “Consumers and their homes are getting smarter all the time, whether it’s for entertainment, comfort or security,” said David Tice, senior consultant to Hub and co-author of the study. “Although fielded prior to the main impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, this US snapshot shows how well most households were equipped to deal with both work-at-home and entertainment needs during the lockdown.”

National Geographic released its first augmented reality-enabled cover on Monday, conveying a cautionary outlook at climate change. On Instagram, users are able to see climate data in 12 major cities across the globe, as well as see what those locations might feel like 50 years from now.

STREAMING SCOOP

Discovery, Inc. announced it is offering “Family Favorites” content across its portfolio of 13 TV-everywhere streaming GO apps and sites. The initiative includes full seasons of series and specials from Discovery Channel, HGTV, Food Network, TLC, Animal Planet, Science Channel, Cooking Channel and DIY, commercial-free with no MVPD sign-in required. “As families are spending more time at home, we know parents are looking for premium content they can watch with their children, content that will bring them together,” said Peter Faricy, CEO, Direct-to-Consumer, Discovery, Inc. “We are excited to team up with our affiliate and distribution partners to offer them the best of our family-friendly programming, free and uninterrupted through our GO apps and sites and our partners’ consumer experiences.”

Syncbak streaming service SBTV is expanding its coverage of the pandemic with the launch of the Survivors and Heroes Channel. With the support of local broadcasters across the country, the channel curates stories of individuals who are overcoming some of the biggest health challenges of their lives. SBTV features content from more than 115 local broadcast stations across the country; the service is free for local stations to upload content to, and free for viewers to watch.

AVOD Tubi is headed to Rogers Ignite TV. “We’re excited to make premium content even more accessible to Canadians,” said Andrea Clarke-Hall, VP of Business Development, Tubi. “With this partnership, Rogers Ignite TV customers can enjoy thousands of titles from our library at no additional cost.”

PRODUCTION & DISTRIBUTION

Netflix ordered zombie series All of Us Are Dead, based on the webtoon Now At Our School. Lee JQ (Beethoven Virus) will produce. Story centers on teens locked in their high school as a zombie virus spreads. Netflix also signed a first-look deal with comic book publisher BOOM! Studios (Mouse Guard) for live-action and animated series.

Fox Entertainment picked up 9-1-1 for a fourth season and spin-off 9-1-1: Lone Star for a second. Both are produced by 20th Century Fox Television in association with Ryan Murphy Television and Brad FalchukTeley-Vision.

Quibi is developing Good Boys and True, a drama from Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa (Riverdale, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Katy Keene), based on his play. Aguirre-Sacasa will co-write with Greg Murray (Riverdale). The drama about class, sexuality and identity is being produced by Aguirre-Sacasa’s Muckle Man Productions in association with Warner Bros. Television.

Thursday’s the day! Be sure to complete your Top Women in Media nomination before April 16th to save $150 on your entry. The process is simple and done entirely online. Have someone in mind? Click here to get started.

NEW & RETURNING SERIES

The mysterious massacre of settlers in what is now Quebec is explored in Nat Geo limited series Barkskins, based on the novel by Annie Proulx. Eight-parter premieres Monday, May 25 with back-to-back episodes over four weeks.

USA’s Dirty John: The Betty Broderick Story premieres Tuesday, June 2 at 9p with back-to-back episode. Season two of the based-on-real-life messy breakup series stars Amanda Peet (Brockmire) and Christian Slater (Mr. Robot).

Short-form series Old Guy, about ageism in Hollywood, launches Thursday, April 23 on Vimeo, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram TV. Comedy from Five Sisters Productions stars the sisters’ father, Roger Burton (Fargo), their mother, Gabrielle Burton and Peri Gilpin (Frasier).

Season 32 of CBS’s Amazing Race (filmed pre-COVID-19) takes off Wednesday, May 20 with 11 new teams competing across Trinidad and Tobago, France, Germany, Kazakhstan and Brazil. That’s a week after the three-hour season finale for season 40 of the net’s Survivor airs.

Season two of Private Lives of the Monarchs launches Monday, May 18 at 9p on Smithsonian Channel. First episode focuses on Napoleon Bonaparte, including the self-appointed emperor’s private relationships and string of affairs.

A new ID series, Southern Gothic, makes its debut Monday, April 27 at 10p, exploring mysterious murders in the American South.

Another new show, Mummy Mysteries, is also unwrapped Monday, April 27 at 10p, on Travel Channel. Using forensic science, experts uncover horrific tales from a vicious empire. Two days later comes the season bow of the net’s Destination Fear, where road trips turn to terrifying sleepovers.

Macabre British dramedy Dead Still drops on Acorn TV on Monday, May 18 with two episodes, followed by weekly installments through June 15. Original series follows the adventures of an 1880s memorial photographer and his loyal assistant.

COMING UP

Netflix set May 26 as the debut date for stand-up comedy special Hannah Gadsby: Douglas, starring Hannah Gadsby (Douglas is her dog). “You can expect your expectations to be set and met by Douglas: a tour from the dog park to the renaissance and back guided by one of comedy’s most sparkling and surprising minds,” said the streamer.

Meanwhile, Amazon Studios announced the launch date for another stand-up special: Jimmy O. Yang: Good Deal. The special starring Yang, who will appear in Netflix’s upcoming Space Force, drops Friday, May 8 on Amazon Prime.

A two-part documentary focused on President George W. Bush will air on PBS’s American Experience on May 4-5 at 9p. “Twenty years after the dramatic Bush-Gore election of 2000 that introduced the term ‘hanging chad’ to our lexicon, this new film explores the evolution of George W. Bush’s character and how it stamped his presidency,” said Susan Bellows, American Experience acting executive producer.

Also on PBS: This summer, PBS celebrates the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment, protecting women’s right to vote, with a slate of multiplatform content that’s part of strategy to present thematically connected programming each quarter. “From the people who fought for the ratification of the 19th Amendment to present-day changemakers, we are honored to share the inspiring stories of trailblazing women who have changed the course of history,” said Paula Kerger, PBS President and CEO.

REVOLT is re-airing Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Town Hall, “State of Emergency: The State of Black America & The Coronavirus. Its United Effect but Unequal Burden” today, April 14 at 12p and 7:15p, and Thursday, April 16 at 12:30p.

GOING GLOBAL

Sweetwood Films inked a worldwide distribution deal with Rive Gauche Television for The Beer Jesus From America, a documentary that chronicles Stone Brewing’s rock n’ roll co-founder,Greg Koch’s tumultuous journey to become the first American to build, own and operate his own large-scale independent craft brewery in Europe.

Answer to Our Last Trivia Question
Who was the first host of Meet the Press? Martha Rountree. Kudos to: John Ferlazzo/London, Charles Lore/NYC, Steve Daniloff-WBRE-TV/Wilkes-Barre, PA, Mike May-R2 Innovative Technologies/Wellington, FL, David Garber-Loyola Marymount University/Playa Vista, CA, Beth Tallent-TallentPR/Nashville, Susan Nessanbaum-Goldberg-M and S Entertainment, David Westberg-SAG-AFTRA Credit Union/Burbank, Susie Romano-Tennis Channel/LA

Today’s Trivia Question
No Googling Week: Which 1985 prime time soap focused on a family that owned a department store? (Email [email protected] with your answer and be sure to include your name, company, city and time zone. Unofficial rules: a limit of four per time zone.)