The search has begun for a replacement for WTVI’s longtime President and CEO, Hal Bouton, who has announced that he’ll retire later this year. Bouton has been the honcho at Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s public television station for over two decades.
“After 36 years in the business, and 20 years of service to WTVI, and the completion of $21 million capital improvements, I felt like it was the right time to announce my retirement. I’ll finish out the remaining year managing the affairs of WTVI and helping to search for my replacement,” Bouton said.
He told the WTVI board of directors at its April 25 board meeting that he was stepping down.
WTVI has developed into a community station, though constantly competing on the dial with other PBS entities, including UNC-TV and South Carolina stations. The new WTVI will also face a changing public television climate, where dollars are harder to come by and sponsorships look more and more like commercials, which PBS stations have always tried to avoid. The challenge is also to develop programs that can be syndicated nationally, which is a revenue stream stations can depend on.
WTVI certainly has the facilities to pull that off in years to come, and talented staff to do it, as well. Add a bit more cooperation with local and regional filmmakers and some interesting things could happen.
One public television show with Charlotte ties isn’t being produced by WTVI, but is being seen on WUNC-TV in this market Saturday nights at 8pm. Carolina Calling is in its 13-week run showcasing homegrown musical talent from country to jazz to gospel.
If you recall, producers held talent searches statewide last year to discover the acts that are seen on these shows. They were taped at Spirit Square and hosted by 81-year-old Arthur Smith. The show’s a cooperative effort between UNC-TV and Smith Productions here in Charlotte, along with the Blumenthal Performing Arts Center.
For people new to Charlotte, or just too young to remember (ask your parents or grandparents), Smith hosted variety shows for years that originated from this city, but drew in acts from around the country. Flanked by his band the Crackerjacks, they were popular for over 30 years until the death of the variety show genre across the TV landscape. And no, Divas Live doesn’t count.
The goal was to showcase the Carolinas’ musical talent, show classic clips from past Smith shows, and add the Smith flavor to the stew. I was curious, though, as to the mix of musical styles we’d see, as was Clay Smith, Arthur’s son and executive producer of Carolina Calling.
“As far as the applications (for the statewide talent shows), the majority of the talent leaned toward country music,” Smith told me. “But we ended up being overwhelmed by the diversity out there. We have bluegrass, gospel, pop, jazz, and even opera on the show.”
Crowds at Spirit Square tapings were sometimes sparse due to some of the daytime tapings. “In large part, it was slim pickings for an audience ,” Smith said, “but on other occasions, we did have good crowds, and we worked with various groups to help fill it up.”
The final result is an hour-long show with an old-fashioned feel. In these times when music on television is presented with great haste and too many camera angles and cuts, the pace of the program is leisurely, and opens with Arthur Smith showing off his own still-fine chops on the various instruments he plays. There’s a house “orchestra,” and the talent search winners (I’d like to see more of them, as well as more audience shots) are presented on a simple set, introed and then chatted up by Smith. And the shocker: they perform two numbers, not just one.
Will the show return after this series runs its course? Clay Smith says “the jury’s still out on that.” But with some momentum, and audiences filling Spirit Square, it would be great to have a show that became a regular Saturday night entree. And oh, man, if it could be live!
Despite what you’ve read elsewhere, WBAV-FM was the big story in the recent Winter Arbitrons that measure who’s winning what in Charlotte radio. WBAV, which has Tom Joyner in morning drive and R&B elsewhere, shot up in all of its categories. More on that in a sec.
What I see is that listeners’ thirst for breaking news after September 11 has been quenched, and they’re back to real life. WBT-AM took the biggest hit because of that. Touting themselves as number one after the fall ratings, they’re back down to number nine on your hit parade. WBT has several programming issues to think about as well: how much longer will it stick with Dr. Laura in the mornings, and how long can it continue to have no women in power positions on the air?
As for WBAV, its rise is notable. For the “all persons over age 12” measurement in the Charlotte-Gastonia-Rock Hill metro area, it garnered a 41 percent increase in listeners to leapfrog over sister station WPEG to the number two spot behind KISS-FM. It’s also number one in people aged 25-54, and then, specifically, 25-54 year-old women.
Morning programs are moneymakers for stations, so their numbers are also looked at carefully. If you’re between the ages of 18-34, KISS-FM is tops, but runners-up WPEG and WRFX dropped, while WCHH is continuing to nosh on some of WPEG’s hip-hop audience.
Can’t wait till the next book to see what shakes out, but there are some changes in what you’re listening to out there.
SMALL BUT SIGNIFICANT. . .June 14 is the official launch date for News 14 Carolina, the Time Warner cable 24-hour news operation. An informational graphic is already running on that channel space on TWC here. If you remember, a similar operation in Raleigh launched earlier this spring. . .
The “Beating a Story to Death Award” goes to WBTV for their endless cut-ins about a car wreck near Albemarle Road last month. Teens were involved, and one was flown to Carolinas Medical Center, but as reader Sandy told me, “How much can you do on a stupid car wreck?” Also at Channel 3, investigative reporter Kristin Hill has left the station. . .
In the “we told you so” department, MTV’s The Osbournes is officially not a cult show anymore. Discussions about the rocker’s parenting skills on MSNBC and magazine covers about the strange reality show bear that out. It’s still worth a guilty laugh or two, though. . .
WTVI is looking for volunteers to help with the Antiques Roadshow production when it comes to the Charlotte Convention Center for tapings in August. Call Sharon McNeal at 704-371-8828. And get the Keno Brothers’ autograph for me, will ya?
Stay tuned. . .
Shannon Reichley is the executive producer of Talk2DIY on the DIY cable TV network and former news manager at WBTV. E-mail at Shannon.Reichley@cln.com *
This article appears in May 22-28, 2002.
