Hearst-Argyle Television Stations Launch News Series Addressing Economic Issues

Hearst-Argyle Television Stations Launch News Series Addressing Economic Issues

NEW YORK, Jan. 21 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- With a special news series to be launched this evening throughout its station group, Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc. will seek to establish a new template for local TV journalism on economic issues.

The ongoing series, "Project Economy" will appear throughout 2009 on Hearst-Argyle Television's TV stations, and associated websites, stretching from Portland, Maine, to Honolulu.

The on-air/online series will address not only money-saving tips but will document job-seekers' paths to finding employment and report on local businesses' struggles to weather the recession. Local stories will be supported by national reporting provided by Hearst-Argyle's Washington, DC, bureau.

All of the stations also will conduct job fairs, many in partnership with their respective state unemployment offices, in an effort to help their viewers and online users find jobs.

During the course of the project, stations will have the flexibility of creating online communities to help bolster their audiences' engagement with the latest economic news and trends. Interactive components -- which may include resume-writing advice, user-generated content, and the participation of guest bloggers -- will complement local economic headlines and aggregated content from the most poignant stories gathered by Hearst-Argyle stations.

"The emphasis will be on localism, and our objective is to serve as the local source in our markets for economic news and information," noted Brian Bracco, Hearst-Argyle Television Senior Vice President, News. "The economic downturn has impacted various regions differently, and each station will be focusing on its local viewers' needs and concerns with a daily commitment to economic coverage within newscasts and other forums.

"What differentiates this project from much of the economic reporting on TV is that it goes well beyond both the 'Your Money' format and the usual recitation of statistics," Bracco added. "The objective is to provide a robust presentation featuring a wide variety of advice on savings, job search and other economic topics."

"Project Economy" is Hearst-Argyle's second major group-wide ongoing public-interest series. Its bi-annual "Commitment" election-coverage series, also characterized by daily news reports and other features, has earned four consecutive national Walter Cronkite Awards for TV political journalism from the University of Southern California's Annenberg School.

Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc., a leading local media company, owns 26 television stations, and manages an additional three television and two radio stations. The Company's television stations reach approximately 18% of U.S. TV households, making it one of America's largest television station groups. It also owns 30 websites and 19 digital multicast channels providing news, weather and entertainment programming. Hearst-Argyle is majority-owned by Hearst Corporation. Hearst-Argyle Series "A" shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "HTV." The company's Web address is www.hearstargyle.com.

First Call Analyst:
FCMN Contact: tcampo@hearst.com

Source: Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc.

CONTACT: Tom Campo, Campo Communications, LLC, +1-212-590-2464, for
Hearst-Argyle Television, Inc.

Web Site: http://www.hearstargyle.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment