SYRACUSE -- For the first time in almost 40 years, the National Football League is relaxing its TV blackout policy. But Buffalo Bills fans in Syracuse and Utica won't notice anything different: the Bills announced today that they won't be exercising a new option to reduce the team's "blackout threshold."
CENTRAL NEW YORK -- If you enjoy our Picture of the Week (and many who took our recent survey said they do), you're in luck in this Friday the 13th: we've got a "four pack" of photos to share today. We begin with a radio host in a Syracuse-area Independence Day parade and we continue with three shots from last Sunday's 35th running of the Boilermaker Road Race in Utica.
ROCHESTER -- Although it's been a slow week in CNYTVNews.com territory, there's notable news to the west: a corporate stalemate has resulted in Rochester CBS affiliate WROC-TV getting piped into cable systems in Louisville, Kentucky -- and some viewers there are having some fun with the swap.
OSWEGO -- Just shy of three years since leaving WRVO, Tom Herbert has rejoined the NPR affiliate's underwriting sales team. Since leaving WRVO in 2009, Herbert had been working in a similar role for the Mars Hill Christian Radio Network, which is headquartered in Syracuse.
ITHACA/CORTLAND -- There will be plenty of radio options for football fans in Ithaca this fall. Saga rocker I-100 (WIII) announced today it has inked a deal to carry New York Giants games this season. Less than a month earlier, the cluster revealed sister station Progressive Talk 1470 WNYY will carry Buffalo Bills games.
ITHACA -- The Cayuga Radio Group, owned by Saga Communications, is seeking an Administrative Assistant / Receptionist for its cluster of seven stations. We have the full description submitted by the company:
UTICA-ROME -- After actor Stephen Baldwin's appearance at the Boilermaker Expo in Utica on Saturday, he needed access to a studio to co-host his nationally-syndicated "Baldwin / McCullough" radio show. Much to the surprise of Townsquare Media staff, Baldwin stopped by to set-up shop in the studio of news/talker 950 WIBX.
UTICA -- Nationally, the name Robert Earle might ring a bell as the former host of GE College Bowl on NBC from 1962-1970. But before he "went network," Bob Earle started his career in Utica. His was the very first voice heard on WKTV in 1949, and Earle recently returned to the NBC affiliate's Smith Hill studios.
SYRACUSE -- Jason Benetti logs most of his on-air hours as play-by-play announcer for the Syracuse Chiefs. If you're not a baseball fan, you might know his name from televised local high-school and college sports. You might not have known much else about Benetti until now -- he's this week's Syracuse NewTimes cover story.
UTICA/ROME -- The long-anticipated arrival of ESPN Radio on the FM dial in Utica is a step closer to reality. The FCC recently approved a request to move translator W256AJ from the roof of Hotel Utica to a more advantageous perch atop Smith Hill.