Houston.BloggersPub

The Texas Rangers have entered an agreement with KTXA Channel 21:

The Rangers announced Friday they have entered into a five-year agreement with KTXA-TV (TXA 21) to broadcast 25 regular-season games starting next season. The station will broadcast “Texas Rangers Game of the Week” on Friday nights, as well as select Spring Training games in 2010. READ THE REST

Fox Sports Southwest gets the rest of the games.

TV Newsday reports that the Mexicanal network has hit Comcast Houston channel 539:

Mexicanal, which is also lining up broadcast affiliates on digital channels, features regional news, sports, popular entertainment and culturally relevant programs direct from regions all throughout Mexico, including the top four Mexican states-Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi, Guanajuato and Michoacán-from which the majority of Houston’s Hispanic population originates. READ THE REST

The Houston Business Journal paints a fuzzy picture for the DTV switchover:

If the Federal Communications Commission flipped the switch today for digital television, just under 100,000 households in the Houston area would not be ready, according to new figures by The Nielsen Co.

The figures show that 4.74 percent of Houston households still do not have the proper equipment for the transition to digital. There are 2.1 million television households in the Houston area, according to Nielsen. READ MORE

We can only imagine since 107.5 K-Hits has changed its call letters to KGLK that the station is changing its image. What a perfect time to change when Dean and Rog take over the morning show June 1.

Speaking of Dean and Rog, The Houston Chronicle’s David Barron had a long talk with the Houston morning radio show duo:

They do not shrink from the opportunity to spell out the differences between listening to Dean and Rog and to Walton and Johnson. “The problem with the show that has replaced us is that we all have opinions. We all have politics,” [Roger] Beaty said. “But our whole point when we go on the air is we realize there are a number of our listeners that really are dreading going to their jobs. And this is the truth. What is it that we say, Dean? ‘If we can make a few people laugh …’ ”

“We always said that if we could make just one person laugh out there … we would be fired because it’s not enough,” [Dean] Myers said. “We need more of them laughing. Really, we do try to take people away from the problems of the world. Man, there are a lot of problems in the world, and you don’t want to think about that stuff all day.” READ MORE

Barron says Dean and Rog will run from 5 to 10am followed by Suzi Hanks from 10am to noon.


RELATED
- Dean and Rog getting closer to hitting Houston radio
- Suzi Hanks to 107.5 K-Hits KHTC
- Dean and Rog to move to 107.5 K-Hits KHTC

Where does your state fall in the list?

(Thanks Murdock)

Uncle Barky points out how channel 33 KDAF in Dallas is now linking to stories from competitors on its Web site. Yes, that means story links from the likes of WFAA, KDFW, KXAS, KTVT, The Dallas Morning News and even the New York Times are on the bottom of the station’s Web site news page.

Why would KDAF do this?

There is a philosophy that it can help a station’s Web site to become an aggregator of everyone’s stories. The theory is that a reader will figure they can go to http://www.the33tv.com/news/ and see every media outlet’s stories as a one stop shopping type of scenario. So instead of going to all of the Dallas news Web site’s (unlikely someone would have the time to do that), the web user would just hit KDAF’s site everyday and click only on the stories that interest them from 33 news and everyone else.

You can be sure that KDAF opens a new browser window when you click on a competitor’s link. That’s more time spent on site data for KDAF that can be used to woo more advertisers. As one of the new kids in town, what does KDAF have to lose by adopting this strategy? If the station can get traffic by linking to others that is better than no traffic at all.

I doubt WFAA.com will employ this method anytime soon though.

Uncle Barky also reports that main anchor Walt Maciborski will take Dallas Cowboy cheerleader tryout photos. Who would ever want to do something like that?

I went to the Body Art Expo Houston last weekend at Reliant Center and snapped some photos of the tattoos and body art.

SEE THE PHOTOS

This was like taking photos while balancing on a tight rope! I obviously work for a family friendly site, but there was a lot of stuff around there that wasn’t necessarily family friendly! Don’t worry, I think I pulled it off.

RELATED
Sunday Afternoon at the Tattoo & Body Art Expo

Oh, I could just click on this over and over again. Each click produces a funny random cat photo from the Web.

SEE THE PHOTOS

There are some lolcats on there, but it is mostly just funny photos sans the text. I am personally tired of lolcats.

What about cat video? BTW, the photo was a failed attempt  in 2006 to provide readers with desktop wallpaper.  At least my wife downloaded it!

(Thanks Will-E)

I haven’t covered the Gallery Furniture fire situation since it was the top story for most Houston media for days. Those outside of Houston might think a furniture store’s warehouse fire wouldn’t be major news, but Gallery Furniture is actually a Houston icon. It is kind of hard to explain. Then again most furniture store owners don’t appear on MTV and own some of Princess Diana’s jewels.

Well out of all the coverage, I just found out today that the store’s owner Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale (I always thought it was Mac for some reason this whole time) is on Twitter:

http://twitter.com/MattressMack

Remember former KPRC Channel 2 morning meteorologist Byron Miranda? Sure you do if you read this blog . I won’t let you forget him. It has been my honor to track his every move around the country since leaving Houston. Why?  So many people come here to find news about him, I can’t let the public down. (See a recent weather update from him at KCRA )

Today we have an update.  Byron Miranda is now in San Diego at KGTV Channel 10:

Longtime local TV weather anchor Loren Nancarrow has left KGTV/Channel 10 after 11 years, the station announced Friday.

Nancarrow is being replaced by Byron Miranda, whose résumé includes stints at KTVU-TV in San Francisco, KCBS in Los Angeles, CNN and CNN International. Miranda is a member of the National Weather Association and winner of a Golden Mike Award for Best Weathercaster in Southern California. READ THE REST

What amazes me is how the station did not erase all mentions of Nancarrow from its Web site. In fact his bio page is now a goodbye letter to San Diego where he talks about starting a new company that deals in water conservation. Keeping traces of old talent is a rarity in TV news.

Enough about Nancarrow though. We don’t want Miranda to become jealous.

Full coverage of Byron Miranda through the years

The funny thing is, I don’t think I ever once watched Byron Miranda on television when he was in Houston. And I have to admit, Bob Martin, aka “The Accountant to the Stars” inspired this post’s headline. He emailed in something similar when alerting me about Matt Lavine returning to the Houston airwaves on KHOU Channel 11.

(Thanks Tim)
[Image courtesy of Flickr user jennifer_loring]