CNN Plus Won’t Launch Until 2022. Ads For The Streaming Service Start Now (EXCLUSIVE)

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorViacomCBS said third-quarter profit declined as it invested in more content for streaming audiences, but noted that its revenue from just that consumer activity was on the rise, with 4.3 million new subscribers to its broadband outlets added during the period.The New York owner of the CBS broadcast network, the Showtime premium cable network and outlets such as Nickelodeon and Comedy Central said third-quarter net income  fell to $538 million, or 80 cents a

Sinclair Broadcast Group CEO Chris Ripley said the company’s regional sports networks division has “ample liquidity” to keep operating and reaffirmed plans for a major streaming launch next spring.

Big news for A$AP Rocky fans!

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorTamron Hall’s new murder mystery is pure fiction, but it’s built out of many of the elements of her real life.In “As the Wicked Watch,” TV reporter Jordan Manning works to track down the killer of a young Black teenager, and in doing so, takes readers on an investigation that examines not only crime, but cultural perceptions about race, gender and class.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorChuck Todd and Kristen Welker hope to learn a few things by anchoring an Election Night special in a year when there really isn’t supposed to be a special Election Night.Voters won’t decide on November 2 who wins the White House or whether Republicans or Democrats gain control of Congress, but Welker and Todd will lead coverage that evening which could prove to be a harbinger for programming to come: a two-hour streaming show, “Meet The Press: Election Night

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThe former top producer of ABC’s “Good Morning America” has asked that a sexual-assault lawsuit filed against him be dismissed, citing New York’s statute of limitations on harassment claims and alleging the plaintiff in the case has fabricated claims against him.A lawsuit filed in August in the Supreme Court of the State of New York by ABC News producer Kirstyn Crawford raised troubling allegations that Michael Corn, a longtime senior producer at ABC News who

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorAfter mounting glitzy presentations to advertisers at a stately Lincoln Center auditorium for decades as part of the TV industry’s annual upfronts, Disney now plans a big break with Madison Avenue tradition.The owner of ABC, ESPN and Hulu intends to ask advertisers and buyers to convene at a new, as-yet-undisclosed location where executives can interact with the company’s entire media portfolio in a more hands-on way, says Rita Ferro, president of Disney

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorThere’s a new wind blowing through the building that houses Fox News Channel.Amy Freeze and Craig Herrera spent a recent weekday afternoon in a TV studio at the company’s New York headquarters rehearsing, but not for a new opinion program or roundtable show, but for a streamcast focused on the most-up-to-date news about the weather. They talked about oil spills, wildfires and abrupt changes in temperature.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorIf you didn’t watch last night’s “Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” you’ll still be able to listen to it.The CBS late-night program will launch on Monday a “showcast” that will be called “The Late Show Pod Show With Stephen Colbert,” essentially an “audio lift” of the linear program.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorViewers of ABC are accustomed to seeing George Stephanopoulos each weekday morning on “Good Morning America” and on Sundays on “This Week.” Soon, they may be able to see more of his work at many different times.Stephanopoulos will debut two long-form programs on Hulu, all part of a new production company ABC News is launching with him.  George Stephanopoulos Productions is expected to specialize in nonfiction projects that include news-making interviews as well

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorNBCUniversal is on a quest to find something often believed elusive: a new system of measuring TV audiences who don’t always use traditional television to watch their favorite shows.

K.J.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau ChiefWalt Disney has confirmed that its direct-to-consumer streaming service Disney Plus will launch in Hong Kong from Nov.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorBomani Jones, the versatile ESPN personality who has gained traction with appearances on shows like “Highly Questionable” and “Around the Horn,” has found a new outlet for his work. But it’s not ESPN.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorRashida Jones learned a while ago to live with pressure.At the tail end of the runup to the 2020 presidential election, Jones was the NBC News executive supervising two of the most scrutinized events in a chaotic news cycle. First came a town hall meeting between anchor Savannah Guthrie and then-president Donald Trump, a session that sparked backlash after NBC decided to air it opposite a similar ABC News telecast with then-candidate Joe Biden.

Here’s to new beginnings! Joe Amabile proposed to Serena Pitt on the Tuesday, October 5, episode of Bachelor in Paradise — after his ex Kendall Long made a surprise return to the beach.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorFans of ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” might get something next week they won’t be expecting — a tribute to hockey.The Disney-backed sports-media giant expects to spend part of its next halftime show treating viewers to a concert as well as a surprise visit from someone who is emblematic of the icy pastime, says Mark Gross, senior vice president of production and remote events, in an interview. He declined to name the person likely to appear.

Brian Steinberg Senior TV EditorA bevy of big media players are eager to win a growing battle to provide consumers with streaming news, but John Heilemann has a message for them: Don’t count out smaller competitors.Heilemann’s “The Recount,” a media outlet founded with entrepreneur John Battelle in 2019, is hiring its first chief content officer in a bid to gain new traction with streaming-news aficionados eager for smarter analysis in critical news categories like politics and sports.

Sign up for our daily newsletter to get the day's biggest stories sent direct to your inbox