• by Sara Guaglione , December 14, 2018

The Los Angeles Times has expanded its TV footprint.

The prime-time show, called “L.A. Times Today,” will air in February on Spectrum News 1, a local channel launched by pay-TV company Charter Communications last month for those in the Los Angeles area.

The new TV show is the latest expansion for the newspaper company since biotech billionaire Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong bought LA Times and the San Diego Union-Tribune for $500 million in June.

Soon-Shiong stated the show “marks another milestone on our journey to revitalizing a great media brand and a new way to share the important work of the largest newsroom west of the Potomac.”

The decision to air the show on a TV channel available only to those who pay for it, and not stream it on the Los Angeles Times’ digital channels, is an interesting move for a publisher trying to reach new, local audiences.

But it’s not the first media company to move into television.

The New York Post, for example, expanded its Page Six gossip column into TV with its syndicated show that debuted in 2017. It now airs in 98% of the country, according to the company.

The Los Angeles Times’ one-hour, news magazine-style program will air four days a week, Monday-Thursday. It will cover top news, politics, business, entertainment and sports stories, and feature interviews with the newspaper’s journalists and photographers.

The show will also have commentary from columnists such as Steve Lopez, Robin Abcarian, David Lazarus, Frank Shyong and Patt Morrison.

“L.A. Times Today” will feature local travel recommendations from longtime LAT writer Christopher Reynolds, as well as movie reviews from critics Kenneth Turan and Justin Chang and food segments with editor Jenn Harris and reporter Lucas Peterson.

Spectrum News 1 anchor Lisa McRee (and former co-anchor of ABC’s “Good Morning America”) will host the series.