News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida • Page 157

38 SUNDAY, APRIL 7, 1991 TELEVISION Picture iis rosy for television stations By CHRISTY BERG MCCLURE Fort MyersMaples television market Out of the 200 TV markets nationwide, the Fort MyersNaples market ranked 178th in 1968, 101st in 1986 and 93rd in 1991. The total market value for the top three Fort MyersNaples stations is between $35 million and $37 million. elevision once was labeled a vast wasteland. Ask a local broadcast advertiser if he or she thinks so. Advertisers pour $35 million to $37 million into the three major Fort MyersNaples TV stations, according to a report from the National Association of Broadcasters.

To that coffer add dollars gleaned from cable and independent TV sources, and you see a rosy picture on the tube. "Healthy" is definitely the operative word when station general managers depict the local TV market. However, the local TV scene was not always so robust. Steve Roberts, an economist with the Federal Communications Commission, said the Fort MyersNaples TV market actually Waterman Broadcasting Corporation Fort Myers Broadcasting Corporation Home News Company TipifjirinrTXi (sisipnisa gup AUDIENCE SHARE AUDIENCE SHAKE AUDIENCE SHAM 24 22 quickly, going from cumbersome, heavy equipment to more portable remote units. Of course, this advanced technology contributed significantly to an improved broadcast product.

"There's been a continuing increase in production value over the past seven years," said Tweed, who, like Firestone, specializes in broadcast advertising. Competition has upgraded the whole television business. "The ratings race in news programming in Fort Myers has resulted in a better news product on all the stations," he said. Hefty price tag Ken Sneeden, station manager at WINK-TV, the first Southwest Florida station and front-runner in the ratings race, said the growth of the local-television market "parallels the news coverage of the gulf war vs. the Vietnam War." The on-the-spot, satellite newscasts of the gulf war antiquated the day-old news coverage of the Vietnam era.

However, all this wonderful, ever-changing technology carries a hefty price tag. WBBH-TV recently purchased a half-million-dollar satellite truck, which general manager Steve Pontius said would enable the station to cover the upcoming Noriega trial in Miami for its NBC network. A "little black box" used to increase production quality cost $50,000. "Local stations must spend lots of money to give the viewers the best possible news coverage," he said. "As the local stations try to outdo one another, the viewers are the beneficiaries." Besides stiff competition among themselves, the big th ree TV stations are well-aware that cable television reaching 75 percent to 80 percent of the market and independent stations are fiercely nipping at their heels.

Keeping up with the TV Joneses or should we say Simpsons is no easy feat. After all, catering to a fickle public has its risks. As Pontius said, "When purchasing programs, we must make decisions on what people will be watching three or four years from now." For example, WBBH plans to run currently popular Wheel of Fortune through 1994. Human factor The human factor plays a key role in local programming. "To many viewers, WINK-TV is its local news anchor personalities," said Sneeden.

Additionally, each station has a strong link to the people in the community via "pet projects," such as telethons, family-relief programs and health fairs. "TV stations are still licensed by the FCC to operate in the public interest," Sneeden said. "The license is owned by the general public and the TV station gets to use it to do a commercial enterprise. We, as commercial entities-for-prof it, need to prove that we are operating in the public interest, or our licenses don't get renewed." WEVU's Landaker said, "The big job of our station is to address itself locally. The vehicle for that is news.

"The station connected to the community in solving key needs is the station that will be on top," he said. The Fort MyersNaples television industry, fueled by the diurnal forces of a burgeoning viewership, innovative technology and station competition, has certainly risen to new heights. Fortunately, the bountiful fruit that falls from TV airwaves nourishes the public as Full-time a employees Full-time employees Full-time employees was losing money just iu years ago. In 1980, the three major stations had expenditures of nearly $10.5 million while revenues trickled in at $9,150,000. Since then, the FCC has stopped compiling data on TV market revenues.

As a result, revenue data is difficult to come by. AH three major stations are privately held companies. (See chart.) Although station managements were forthright in sharing market strategies and ratings for this report, they were tight-lipped on the subject of annual advertising revenues. Larry Landaker, general manager of WEVU-TV, did say, however, independent accounting reports indicated the Fort MyersNaples broadcast market, excluding cable TV, grew 5 percent in 1990. "The local TV market has had its ups and downs over the years," said Landaker.

"The advertising tax flattened the market a few years ago, but ad revenue has grown between 5 to 8 percent a year." If the local TV market continues to gain 5 percent a year, ad revenues would surpass $57 million by the year 2000. The area's TV-revenue rank, according to Landaker, scores higher than its TV-market rank. Based on the latest ratings from A.C. Nielsen Co. (February 1991), the Fort MyersNaples market is 93rd out of 270 TV markets nationally.

To those relocating here from top-contending markets such as New York, Chicago and Boston, 93rd may seem like small potatoes. But, consider this. Fort Myers climbed to 93rd from 178th in 1968, and 101st just five years ago. "Over the past 10 years I don't think you'll find a market as aggressive and progressive as this little market," said Gary Firestone of Firestone Imagery Advertising, Fort Myers. Firestone, whose past broadcast experience includes productionoperations stints at each of the three major local TV stations, said, "The Fort Myers TV market is in the top 40, attitude-wise." Firestone trekked here from New York via Boston in search of a freer television-production rein.

Weary of unionized, restrictive network conditions, he started at WBBH-TVin 1972. "At that time WBBH was very small and had the oldest technology in TV," he said. "The market was growing quickly, and the station had the foresight to see it coming. It bought new equipment; updated and naiiw nnA nAAaA rtut tfMim William Boyd Edward J. McBride, Arthur B.

McBride Jr. Bernard ji and Edith Waterman SOURCE: A.C- Nielsen ratings, Feb. 1991 National Association ol Broadcasters PAUL A. FRESTYNews-Press well as the stations. Is television a vast wasteland? Bountiful fruit doesn't grow in a wasteland.

"Television reporting saved lives during Hurricane Hugo and helped us address social ills like the police-beating in Los Angeles," said WBBH's Pontius. "TV is one of America's greatest resources that can be used or abused," he said. "Through TV, we are able to deliver information to the public unparalleled anywhere else on earth." WINK-TV, Channel 11 The March 18, 1954, issue of the Fort Myers News-Press marked the arrival of Southwest Florida's first TV station this way: "TV in Fort Myers goes on the air at 5 o'clock this afternoon at the new WINK studios on First Street just east of Billy's Creek. Daily thereafter programs will be broadcast from 5 o'clock until 1 1 p.m. or The article also advised viewers where to place a TV set and what to do orllghting.

"If 1 your set is placed against a light-colored wall all the better. If the wall is too dark, lighten the background with a light focused behind the set. should be 6 to 12 feet from the screen take periodic glances away from the screen to help keep the eyes fresh. Children shouldn't get any nearer than 4 feet from the image." That same newspaper issue carried ads for a 21-inch "Bigger than Life" Sears Silvertone TV for $1 99 and a Philco for $179.95. Ad copy didn't specify that these were black-and-white televisions because, of course, color TVs were undreamed of then.

WINK started operating with seven employees in 1 954 and now has 1 1 9. It is the oldest TV station in the market and ranks No. 1 with an audience share of 24 percent from sign-on to sign-off. Besides its emphasis on its local news product with news updates every hour, 24 hours a day -r- WINK has the most locally produced half-hour news segments, Monday through Friday, six times a day. "Besides what we do on the air," said station manager Sneeden, "we are very See TELEVISION, page 39 CAaiiucu tut iicns, auu auucu uui-m-iuwii talent to start being aggressive." It is probably large capitalization expenses like these that contributed to the local TV industry's red ink in the early '80s, said Tom Tweed of Tom Tweed Advertising, Fort Myers.

Television technology was changing so.