Look In The Eye While You Can

There's been a lot of talk in recent months about WBBM-TV possibly ditching its streetfront studio at Block37 (1 West Randolph Street) and moving the whole shebang upstairs.  Since a lot of our readers don't get to the Loop very often, here's some pictures of CBS2's studio before it goes bye bye.  As always, click on a photo to embiggen it.

Chicago's Seven Storefront Studios

The banners promise that Loyola University's new $400,000 streetfront television studio in The Clare at Water Tower (55 East Pearson Street) will open in autumn 2009, but I think we can safely say that isn't going to happen.  Especially considering that Loyola only got its permit to build the studio on October 2nd.

Loyola's will be the seventh streetfront studio in Chicago.  WGN radio was the modern pioneer with this in Chicago (though it's been done in other cities since the 50's).  720 was quickly followed by WMAQ, WLS-TV and eventually WBBM-TV.   I always thought WFLD had a great opportunity to open one when the Bennigans at Michigan Plaza closed, but that opportunity was missed.

Of course, WGN-TV (2501 West Bradley Place) and WTTW are half-way to the suburbs, so there's no point in them even trying.

Sometimes these are called "storefront" studios instead of "streetfront."  In that case, WLUP and WKQX are actually the leaders, since they have had a storefront presence in the Merchandise Mart (222 Mart Plaza) for years.

Storefront studios in Chicago:

• Loyola University: The Clare at Water Tower (55 East Pearson Street)
• WBBM-TV (2): Block 37 (22 West Washington Street)
• WGN (720): Tribune Tower (435 North Michigan Avenue)
• WKQX (101.1): Second floor, Merchandise Mart (222 Merchandise Mart Plaza)
• WLS-TV (7): 190 North State Street
• WLUP (97.9): Second floor, Merchandise Mart (222 Merchandise Mart Plaza)
• WMAQ (5): 401 North Michigan Avenue

WLUP's storefront at the Merchandise Mart

WKQX's storefront at the Merchandise Mart

Opportunity Missed: Block 37

We already know that Hizzonor is not happy at all with CBS backing out of its pledge to turn its Block 37 space into a public spectacle.  Surely, he's probably even less happy with recent reports that WBBM-TV wants to dump its streetfront studio in favor of a cheaper facility on the second floor.

The first sign that things weren't going to turn out right at 22 West Washington Street ("22!" Get it?) was the giant screen placed above the showcase studio.

The architects of the building specifically designed it so that WBBM-TV would put screens all around the corner of the building.  Instead, the people in charge of channel 2 at the time cheaped out and only put one small screen in the center of one side.  The result is the mess of exposed beams that Chicagoans are exposed to each day:

If there's any shame left in the television industry, this should be rectified.  There are new people in charge of the channel 2 newsroom these days and fixing this monstrosity should be on their project list.

Here's a mockup of what it should look like:

Even neon advertising billboards would be better than what's there now.  If CTA buses can have LED boards, why can't channel 2 fill this space?  Just lease it out to Clear Channel like the CTA did.

(Full disclosure: I am a former employee of WGN-TV, and many moons ago worked for CBS in a couple of other cities.  I also know a couple of people who work at WBBM-TV, but hold no particular ill will for the station.)

WBBM-TV manages to screw up a landmark

It's been a couple of decades since WBBM-TV ("CBS2" in consultant-speak) made much of an impact on the city of Chicago.  It's ratings have been in the crapper for years.  Its analog signal is barely visible even just a mile away from the transmitter.  And digital?  Forget about it.

As a former CBS -> Westinghouse -> CBS employee, I have a soft spot for the Tiffany Network.  I looked forward to a new age of Eye greatness starting with the opening of the new CBS2 Broadcast Studios at 22 West Washington.  I should have known I would be disappointed.

The Skyline lets us know that CBS has chickened out.  Again.  Instead of giving us an 80-foot-wide video screen wrapping around its corner of Block 37, WBBM-TV will instead have a video screen that's less than half that wide.  And it doesn't wrap.  Oh, and it's shorter, too.

I never worked for CBS in Chicago, but I have several friends who have and do.  They say it's typical of the way things run there these days -- take a big, important, brilliant plan and beat it into a homogenized, non-offensive, piece of who-gives-a-crap.  They say the video screen is emblematic of the state of the news that comes out of there:  small, lackluster, full of potential, but ultimately a child of compromise.

The Trib says there were complaints about the screen.  It's typical of local television stations to be hyper-sensitive to any little fringe group with an acronym and a word processor, but it's unclear if that's the reason CBS changed its great plans into mediocre plans.  Even the architects presented CBS with several dramatic alternatives if a smaller screen must be used.  Not surprisingly, these experts were ignored and the station decided to play architect and stick the screen centered above its studio.

Good job, WBBM-TV.  Once again you've proven to Chicago that you're a non-factor.