THE FUTURE OF LOCAL NEWS

February 2001
		WBBM Chicago recently ended its experiment with no-frills, content-driven local news. Is news without fluff stories or flashy graphics a thing of the past? Three experts respond to your questions.

Forum introduction What can viewers do to improve local news quality? Why are there so many remote broadcasts on TV news? Should newspapers monitor local TV quality? Should Marin's broadcast have been given more time? What role should PBS stations play? When will broadcasters return to "broadcasting" rather than "narrow-casting"?     Online Special Changing Local News Feb. 7, 2001: Carol Marin and two analysts on the future of local news. Browse the NewsHour's coverage of the media

Last October, newscaster Carol Marin ended a nine-month experiment at Chicago's WBBM with a new local news format: toned-down, straight news. No fluff, no frills, no flash. Just serious in-depth news. It was a gamble; no one was sure such a program could compete in Chicago's fierce five-way evening news battle. After a brief ratings surge following its nationally-covered debut, the bottom fell out of Marin's evening newscast. It dropped from a 3.8 rating in February to a 2.7 in May and a 1.8 in July among the 25 to 54-year-old viewers coveted by advertisers. By October, WBBM's 10 p.m. news was at the bottom of the ratings heap. Despite its commercial losses, the program was a favorite among those who disliked the flashy graphics and forced banter that seemed increasingly unavoidable in many cities. But for Marin, who won a Peabody Award in 1997 for her news ethics, it was important that the news be unfettered by flashy presentation. When WBBM retooled its 10 p.m. program in October, Marin moved on to report for CBS News. Is there a market for no-frills local news? What can be learned from the ratings failures of WBBM's Marin experiment? Carol Marin, former WBBM anchor and correspondent for CBS's "60 Minutes" and "60 minutes II", Marty Haag of Audience Research and Development and Carl Gottlieb of the Project for Excellence in Journalism respond to your questions.