Broncos spur Denver TV stations to run “specials”

[Colorado Media Newsroom]

From The Denver Post:

Broncos

Whether or not they contractually have access to players, whether or not they can legally show game footage, whether or not they are allowed inside the locker room, Denver TV stations will ride the Broncos to what they hope will be extra ratings and revenue this week. (At least they’ll cash in on the mania rather than seem lacking in team spirit.)
Sunday’s AFC title game telecast, the Broncos playing the New England Patriots on home turf at 1 p.m. on CBS4, will be surrounded by “specials” over the next several days. Expect lots of live coverage from the stadium starting Friday morning.
Channel 4 plans a preview show 6:30-7 p.m. Saturday and network and local specials Sunday morning leading in to the NFL show at noon, and the Broncos-Patriots telecast. After the game, 4:30-6 p.m., CBS4 will pre-empt the “CBS Evening News” for an extended local newscast. And there’s more after the late news, with a local 10:35-11:07 p.m. sports show.
9News has an edition of “Broncos Huddle” Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. and an hour-long Broncos special Saturday at 8 p.m. “Game Day Live” will broadcast at 9 a.m. Sunday from inside the stadium. Because 9News is the Broncos official partner, “we will be the only shows broadcast live inside the stadium,” said news boss Patti Dennis.
7News will air a special “John Fox Show” on Friday at 6:30 p.m. Looking ahead, news chief Jeff Harris said the station is “finalizing plans for two daily additional half-hour shows around the Super Bowl run,” one in the morning, one in the evening in the week leading to the Super Bowl.
KDVR-KWGN have been running two half-hour specials, 6-6:30 p.m. on Fox31 and 7:30-8 on Channel 2, every night this week. “We are in Super Bowl planning mode,” according to News Director Ed Kosowski. In the event of a win Sunday, those nightly specials would continue the week of Jan. 27, leading up to the Feb. 2 Super Bowl telecast on Fox.
And what does CBS4 say about all the supposedly special programming surrounding Sunday’s championship game, to which only they own broadcast rights? “The ratings really speak for themselves. The largest audience by far is during the game. Shows surrounding the game garner the next largest audience and everything else drops off dramatically from there, ” per CBS4 General Manager Walt DeHaven.
Last year’s AFC chammpionship game, Baltimore Ravens vs. New England Patriots, drew 47.7 million viewers nationally.


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