NewsNation: Expands programming, "Donlon Report" ending

NewsNation TV News 

           Nexstar owned, Chicago-based news channel, NewsNation  is making programming expansions and changes once again. 

             Already expanded on weekends as of March 5, "NewsNation Prime" weekend version is on for 3 hours 7 to 10pm Eastern.  

  

          Since February 24th, News Nation had been doing a special report news cast at 11pm Eastern  with Prime anchor Marni Hughes and "On Balance" host Leland Vittert. This program is now permeant and will be anchored by  Hughes and Vittert. 

     

     "Morning in America" which launched in September 2021, as a 7-10am Eastern morning show will be expanding to four hours from 6am Eastern come June.  This will be replacing an hour of off-network dramas that currently air in the hour. 

           Also another NewsNation original host is leaving, Joe Donlon, who started when the network launched as a news program in primetime as co-anchor in September 2020, moved to his show in March 2021, "The Donlon Report", will be leaving on March 25. 

   

   Starting March 28, early evening news program, "Rush Hour" will be running 2 hours from 5 to 7pm Eastern.

     For Clarity:

     

• "News Nation Prime" weekends expanded to 7 to 10pm Eastern from March 4th 
• Live newscast at 11pmet to continue, anchored by Marni Hughes and Leland Vittert
• "Donlon Report" is set to end on March 25, and will be replaced by a 2nd hour of "Rush Hour on March 28
• "Morning in America" will expand to 4 hours from June (planned)

  "On Balance with Leland Vittert", "News Nation Prime with Marni Hughes" ,"Dan Abrams Live "and "Banfield" will be staying at their times and hosts from 7-11pmET.  

Press release after the jump

    

NewsNation Further Expands News Programming

March 14, 2022

11 PM Newscast Joins Schedule, Morning News Block Adds Fourth Hour

RUSH HOUR Expands to Two Hours, Weekend Evening Newscasts Expand to Three Hours

NewsNation to Offer More Than 60 Hours of Live News, Analysis, and Talk Every Week

CHICAGO, IL – NewsNation, Nexstar Media Inc.’s wholly-owned news and entertainment cable network reaching 75 million U.S. television households, today announced its latest expansion plans, adding 12 hours of live news programming weekly by early June.  Once the expansion is complete, the network’s weekly original programming will increase from 21 hours at its launch in September 2020, to a total of 61 hours of live news, analysis, and talk every week.

The programming expansion got underway in late February, when the network added an hour to its weekend newscast, “NEWSNATION PRIME,” which now airs from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET on Saturdays and Sundays.  NewsNation’s live late evening national newscast, which debuted with the outbreak of war in Ukraine, will permanently join the network’s programming line-up weeknights from 11 p.m. to 12 a.m. ET.  The show will continue being anchored by Marni Hughes and Leland Vittert and feature the latest developments from the war and other late-breaking news, as well as in-depth reporting by some of Nexstar’s more than 5,500 journalists across the country.  In June, NewsNation’s live, national morning news programming will expand to four hours each weekday. This expanded block of programming will now begin at 6 a.m. ET, with “MORNING IN AMERICA” airing from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. ET.

“NewsNation is well down the path to becoming a 24-hour, seven-days-a-week cable news network, and this latest expansion is a clear demonstration of our commitment to making that a reality,” said Sean Compton, President of the networks division of Nexstar Media Inc.  “The appetite for balanced, unbiased news has never been greater, especially in light of the war in Ukraine.  Thanks to our incredible staff, we’re able to provide ongoing live coverage from the war zone and special programming regarding the latest developments in the region.  As a result, more and more viewers are relying on NewsNation for the kind of news, analysis, and talk that they can’t get anywhere else.”

Beginning Monday, March 28, “RUSH HOUR,” NewsNation’s early evening newscast anchored by Nichole Berlie, will expand one hour and air weeknights from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. ET.  Joe Donlon, who has anchored “THE DONLON REPORT” since spring of 2021, has decided to leave NewsNation; his last show will be Friday, March 25.  The show’s staff will be redeployed to “RUSH HOUR” and other NewsNation broadcasts.

“It has been an honor to occupy this seat for the past year. Not many people get to host a national show like this, and I will always appreciate the opportunity. I have learned more than I ever could have imagined. I want to thank the incredible team at ‘The Donlon Report’ for all their hard work. I have the utmost respect for what everyone at NewsNation is trying to accomplish, and I wish my friends there nothing but the best moving forward.”

About NewsNation
NewsNation is a national news and entertainment cable network reaching 75 million television households across the United States. Formerly known as WGN America, the network is owned and operated by Nexstar Media Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Nexstar Media Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXST). NewsNation is America’s source for unbiased news, where engaged citizens get news that represents the full range of perspectives across the country. The network draws on the local market, regional and national expertise of Nexstar’s 5,500 local journalists in 110 local newsrooms across the country. NewsNation is available across a variety of cable and satellite providers, streaming platforms, online, and on the NewsNationNow app.

Media Contact:
Gary Weitman
EVP & Chief Communication Officer
Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
972/373-8800 or gweitman@nexstar.tv

Investor Contact:
Joseph Jaffoni or Jennifer Neuman
JCIR
212/835-8500 or nxst@jcir.com