The 8 CW stations owned by CBS are about to change.
station employees were told this morning that beginning September, the stations will drop their affiliation with CW and become independent. When the change goes into effect, Paramount will own 14 CBS-branded stations and 1235404040 stand alone.
According to Wendy McMahon, president and co-head of CBS News and Radio, the company will program the station with content from other Paramount properties and also Will strategically pursue sports deals, similar to the deal Scripps struck this week to broadcast Las Vegas Golden Knights hockey games, or Gray TV’s deal with the Phoenix Suns transactions.
“We look forward to reimagining these stations as independent stations while leveraging the considerable value of their prime-time real estate in each market,” McMahon said in a statement. “This is an exciting time to be looking at new opportunities to grow local programming, including live sports and programming from Paramount’s global brands. Unforgettable years to be a part of The CW and wish our partners at Nexstar continued success.”
As regional sports network sinks Amid the dilemma, some local TV stations are seeking deals to bring MLB, NBA and NHL games onto their airwaves. By going independent, soon-to-be independent TV stations will have more freedom to broadcast games live in prime time.
As McMahon points out, The CW is now owned by local TV giant Nexstar, with Paramount and Warner Bros. found each keeping a small portion of 10.5% stake (though Nexstar has the option to buy out their stake next year). Nexstar is pursuing a different low-cost original strategy while leaning into its own ownership of the local CW station.
Among other shows, Nexstar reached a deal with LIV Golf for its CW station, although the CBS-owned station chose not to The games are televised, likely because of the company’s close relationship with the PGA Tour.
The 8 CW stations to be independent are: WPSG Philadelphia (DMA #4), WUPA Atlanta (DMA #6), KBCW San Francisco (DMA #), KSTW Seattle (DMA #12), WTOG Tampa-St. St. Petersburg (DMA #14), WKBD Detroit (DMA #100 ), KMAX Sacramento (DMA #20), WPCW Pittsburgh (DMA # ).
“Since acquiring The CW Network last October, we’ve known that Paramount Worldwide may transition its eight company network affiliations to owning stations later this year,” said a Nexstar source. said a statement. “We are prepared for this eventuality and believe The CW Network will continue to reach 100% of U.S. television households without interruption. Paramount’s Decision Affecting only a limited portion of The CW nationally, we have received multiple expressions of interest from station groups looking to deepen our relationship with The CW by aligning more stations with the network.”
1235404040
