Bio

Bay News 9 is a 24-hour cable news network providing up-to-the-minute news, weather, and sports to viewers in the Tampa Bay/St. Petersburg, FL area. Launched in September 1997, Bay News 9 was the first of Florida's four news channels to be launched, just a little more than a month before Orlando's Central Florida News 13. Segments consist of a graphic billboard to introduce each piece, a pre-taped anchor lead, and the news component. Producers put together newscasts by stacking these segments, which can be easily moved or updated as needed. These newscasts then run in one-hour blocks, 24 hours a day. The morning and afternoon blocks feature traffic reports, and weather updates appear every 10 minutes. In addition to its regular newscasts, Bay News 9 features a series of special reports known as the Extra series. These reports cover topics such as dining and entertainment opportunities around town, local heroes, Internet tips and women’s interest pieces. PR professionals are advised to fax press releases to the network's assignment desk. Information related to one of the Extra segments should be faxed to the executive producer of special projects. Pitches and press releases can also be e-mailed to the appropriate assignment editor. Lead times vary depending on the nature of the story idea. Some features take weeks to produce, while breaking news can be processed in minutes. Be brief, but specific and include appropriate contact information. All information sent to Bay News 9 should be of interest to viewers in the Tampa/St. Petersburg area. The network does not accept e-mail attachments. Bay News9 provides news coverage for the Pinellas, Hillsborough, Manatee, Polk, Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties. Bay News 9 operates in partnership with the Citrus County Chronicle, where they also have a satellite office. Main emails include: desk@charter.com, tips@charter.com, and phoneCam9@charter.com