Alan Pergament: WIVB to grab broadcast rights to Bills-Jags MNF game; JP on personal leave from WECK (2024)

This is what I’m thinking:

WIVB-TV (Channel 4) is expected to announce shortly that it has the broadcasting rights to the Buffalo Bills game against the Jacksonville Jaguars at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 23 that is being simulcast on cable’s ESPN.

The NFL sells the rights to cable and streaming games to a broadcast station in the local markets of participating teams so nobody in those markets will be shut out from watching the game.

Unfortunately for Bills fans in Rochester, the game isn’t sold to a broadcast station in that nearby market.

WKBW-TV (Channel 7), the local ABC affiliate, is unable to carry the Bills-Jaguars game because ABC is carrying an 8:15 p.m. game the same night between Washington and Cincinnati.

Channel 7 is expected to get the rights to the Bills’ second “Monday Night Football” date against the New York Jets on ESPN on Oct. 14.

Channel 4 carries the most Bills games every season because of its affiliation with CBS, the network of the AFC. The Bills-Jaguars game will be the 10th Bills game on the channel this season.

Inquiring minds want to know: What has happened to JP (John Piccillo) at WECK (1230 AM, 100.1, 100.5, 102.9 FM) during weekdays?

Station owner Buddy Shula reports that he is on an extended leave of absence from his midday show for personal reasons.

JP still is doing “Breakfast with the Beatles” from 10 a.m. to noon Sundays. Roger Christian and Glenn Topolski are handling weekday midday duties in JP’s absence.

In a text, JP said he is taking time off to be the caretaker for his mother.

“I’m hoping to (at some point) get back on daily,” he added. “At least, that’s the plan. But what do they say, we make plans and God laughs.”

Buffalo Toronto Public Media has expanded its musical choices since Tom Calderone took over as president and chief executive officer three years ago.

The latest example is the announcement by Sin Fronteras WNY and the public broadcasting company of the launch of Radio Bilingue, a Latino radio station on 88.7 WBFO HD3.

According to a release, Radio Bilingüe is the leading Latino public radio network and Spanish content producer in United States public media.

The plan is to add local shows and sponsors to the lineup in the coming months.

“This is a monumental step forward to bring Hispanic/Latino programming to our growing Hispanic community here in WNY, and we are grateful for the partnership with Buffalo Toronto Public Media,” Casimiro Rodriguez, president and founder of the Hispanic Heritage Council of Western New York and of Sin Fronteras WNY, said in a release. “We’ve already got a local talk show program in production and several sponsors signed on. It won’t be long before our local community will hear local voices on the station.”

According to the release, the round-the-clock programming on Radio Bilingüe “is produced by and for diverse Latinos and includes vibrant music, news and information, and forums for Latino voices and centers on Latino arts, culture and languages as the fabric of our communities, and puts critical information in the hands of audiences often ignored by other media.”

“Similar to our Adaptive Sports initiatives and WBFO’s What’s Next, Radio Bilingüe aligns closely with Buffalo Toronto Public Media’s mission to support communities typically overlooked by traditional media,” Calderone said in the release.

Listeners will be able to stream Radio Bilingüe through a website, smart speakers and mobile phones later in the summer.

Calderone, whose resume includes leadership positions at MTV, VH1 and Spotify, also has added “The Bridge,” an alternative music service that can be heard on WBFO HD-2, WNED HD-2, or streamed on wbfo.org/the-bridge, smart speakers or its apps.

While the additions of the new musical choices is admirable, WBFO has had a noticeable decline in its local news radio coverage.

These days, it seems that just about everybody working in local news gets a chance to anchor news on the weekdays, with some better than others.

Derek Heid was impressive Saturday when he anchored Channel 7 newscasts. He seemed very smooth and comfortable, especially for someone who is so young and has rarely anchored.

He joined Channel 7 a year ago after previously working in Toledo, Ohio. A Pittsburgh native, he is a 2022 graduate of Penn State University.The third season premiere of the Emmy Award-winning FX series “The Bear” starring Jeremy Allen White, Ayo Edebiri, Ebon Moss-Bachrach and Abby Elliott has been moved up three hours to 9 p.m. Wednesday on Hulu.

While my review can’t appear until Thursday after the embargo for it to run is lifted, I suppose I can tell you one thing without revealing any spoilers: If you start watching the almost six hours of episodes Wednesday night, you just might decide to continue watching until the early morning hours.