In this episode of the “Pittsburgh Pop” podcast, host Tim Benz and TV Talk columnist Rob Owen discuss Pittsburgh pop culture news of the moment, including KDKA-TV’s newly-appointed weekend evening and late news anchor, Erika Stanish. Paul Martino had anchored those newscasts for years before he was pulled from the desk in early 2021, which led, in part, to his retirement. After Martino, KDKA reporters Bryant Reed and Royce Jones frequently anchored in the time period before John Shumway was tapped for the role in summer 2021. KDKA news director Shawn Hoder said the position was open when he arrived at KDKA this summer with Stanish “doing it and doing it well. So — just made it official!” In addition to anchoring weekends, Stanish will report Wednesday through Friday for the station’s 4, 5, 6 and 7:30 p.m. newscasts.
Benz and Owen also discuss DirecTV’s failure to stream Sunday Ticket online and via app for two consecutive weeks and where to find Thursday’s Amazon Steelers game (on WPXI-TV, Channel 11) and NBC’s “Law Order” shows (Channel 11.2, which normally carries MeTV, at the same time as the Steelers game Thursday).
They also talk about the Emmys and the return of Emmy-winning “Abbott Elementary,” NBC’s much-hyped “Quantum Leap” reboot and Hulu’s “Reboot,” co-starring a Carnegie Mellon grad.
Listen to Pittsburgh Pop on the TRIBLive Podcast Network or on iTunes.
