The standoff between NBC and its affiliate in Boston over Jay Leno’s forthcoming prime-time show has ended after the station agreed to air the show in the fall.
Ten days after WHDH-TV in Boston announced that it would air a local newscast at 10 p.m. rather than Leno’s show, the station and the network have settled their dispute. Both sides released conciliatory statements about how happy they were to resolve their differences, the showbiz trade papers report.
“Upon further consideration, we have decided to telecast Jay Leno at 10 p.m. starting in September,” WHDH owner Ed Ansin say. “Jay is from Andover [Mass.], where I went to school. I enjoy his humor. We hope the new show is a big success.”
In its own statement, NBC says it’s “very pleased that WHDH will carry Jay Leno’s new prime-time comedy show at 10 p.m. this fall on NBC. We look forward to working closely with the station on a successful launch in Boston of this show.”
After WHDH announced its intentions to shun Leno, NBC’s response was swift and harsh. The network threatened to take the station’s affiliation away and, according to Variety, had gone so far as to register an NBC web domain name for a Telemundo station in the area.
Source: Zap2It
