STATION TO STATION

ABC affiliate WFAA Dallas is about to give viewers a closer look at local news. The Belo Corp.-owned station is building a street-side studio next to the American Airlines Arena in downtown Dallas as part of a development called Victory Plaza. The area will also feature the trendy W Hotel and upscale shops and restaurants.

Plans call for WFAA to have ground-floor space with floor-to-ceiling windows and large video screens in the plaza carrying its newscasts. Some newscasts, most likely morning shows, will originate from the studio, which is slated to open in 2006. The space could also host sports and entertainment specials tied to events at the arena, such as Dallas Mavericks basketball games.

WFAA's 5,000-square-foot facility is among several street-side studios popping up across the country. In Salt Lake City, CBS-owned KUTV recently opened a windowed studio downtown, and Chicago will soon boast three. WMAQ, the NBC owned-and-operated station, has a Today-like facility, and ABC O&O WLS and CBS-owned WBBM are building their own. WLS plans to move all newscasts to a new 8,000-square-foot space next fall, and WBBM is relocating its entire operation to a new building on downtown Daly Plaza by the end of 2007.

“It will bring us closer to the viewers,” says WLS President/General Manager Emily Barr.

But at a cost. While no execs would give specific price tags, the studios typically cost $2 million to $5 million to build, and some might run as much as $10 million.

WFAA isn't giving up its current digs. The station shares a facility with sister newspaper The Dallas Morning News in a less-trafficked part of downtown. Like Barr, Kathy Clements, WFFA's president/general manager, says the new studio will bring the station closer to viewers. “We can talk to viewers, interact with them and turn the cameras on them,” she says. “They can watch the making of local TV.”

Of course, a live audience creates security concerns, whether it's a streaker or someone with a profane sign getting on live TV, particularly given the heightened concern about indecency and possible fines from the FCC. Clements says WFAA will employ guards to keep an eye on the crowds and use overhead cameras to film them from a distance when necessary.

Atlanta residents can now take their news to go through a new mobile news service from CBS affiliate WGCL. The free service, billed CBS46ToGo.com, features news, weather, sports, finance and movie headlines, and can be downloaded to any cellphone or PDA with Internet capability.

Meredith-owned WGCL Atlanta is the first outlet in the 13-station group to roll out a mobile product. Its sister stations are studying WGCL's experience and may soon follow suit.

Across town, Gannett station WXIA delivers more-limited news to PDAs. Its free 11 Alive News features news, sports, weather and money headlines but works only on Windows CE-enabled devices.

So far, response to WGCL's news-to-go has been strong, says VP/General Manager Andy Alford. More than 10,000 users tried the system on its inaugural day July 25.

Local automobile dealer Tim Stewart Ford has signed on as a sponsor, and Alford says the station is courting other advertisers to buy sections, such as movie listings: “This is a great opportunity for us to expand our news product and create additional opportunities for our viewers and advertisers.”

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