Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review.

Q: Can you explain why KDKA insists on running three hours of local news between 4 and 7 p.m.? There is never that much actual news to report, so we end up getting perhaps 30 minutes of real news and the rest is just boring filler and repeats of news from the day before. I can remember when the local news came on at 6 p.m., ran for 30 minutes and then the network news came on at 6:30 and ran for another 30 minutes. That was more than adequate. Is it a matter of the station getting to keep all the ad revenue generated during those three hours or is it just a matter of no other quality programming to run, given that most TV shows are generally low-quality these days? I would prefer “Leave it to Beaver” reruns over all that extraneous filler.

— Ed, via email

Rob: Easy part first: TV stations program many hours of news because news is a profit center. With news, TV stations get to sell all the commercials and keep all the commercial income. With network and syndicated programming, they get to keep a small portion of ad income.

Every viewer has a choice whether to watch the news or not. If you don’t like it, don’t watch. The current TV environment – broadcast/cable/streaming — boasts an endless supply of options. Even “Leave it to Beaver” is playing on Roku Channel.

Q: What is going on with the merger of Showtime and Paramount? I get Showtime as part of my cable package. What will happen in January with Comcast if these two merge? Am I going to get Paramount+ free as part of my Showtime subscription or will I have to pay more and resubscribe?

— Peter, via voicemail

Q: I was wondering if you could explain the Paramount+/Showtime merger. I’m confused. I have Showtime and I’m not sure what’s going to happen.

— Andy, via email

Rob: For folks subscribed to linear Showtime through a cable company, not a lot will change on Jan. 8 other than the branding of Showtime on cable will change to Paramount+. Showtime and some Paramount+ shows will air on linear Showtime and be available via Paramount+ with Showtime On Demand, including “Mayor of Kingstown” (season one and filmed-in-Pittsburgh season two), “Star Trek: Discovery” (seasons one through four), “Wolf Pack,” the upcoming “Sexy Beast” and season two of “Halo.”

Subscribers to linear Showtime won’t have to do anything to maintain their current linear service. (The Showtime Anytime stand-alone streaming service already shut down on Dec. 14.)

Per Paramount+ with Showtime, some customers “will receive a subscription to the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan on [streaming service] Paramount+ at no extra cost! You’ll activate your Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan on Paramount+ by going to paramountplus.com and creating an account using your TV provider username and password. Please note that this access will not be available until the channel rebrand on Jan. 8, and differs by provider.”

Current Showtime cable subscribers will need to check with their cable/satellite provider to see if this is an option for them. Comcast Xfinity and Verizon FiOS cable customers are not eligible for the free Paramount+ streaming service promotion.

Q: Did the guy (Kapil Talwalkar) playing the law clerk Neil on the “Night Court” reboot leave the series? He was not in last month’s Christmas episode.

— Peter, via Facebook

Rob: Talwalkar did not return for the second season of NBC’s “Night Court” reboot. Per NBC, the reason is the usual “creatively the show wanted to take things in a different direction, very much in the tradition of the original version, which showcased so many different personalities, characters and perspectives.”

Actor Gary Anthony Williams joins the “Night Court” cast for season two on a recurring basis.

Q: Any thoughts on what caused digital subchannel Dabl to drastically change their programming without warning?

— Cynthia, via email

Rob: Dabl, which is owned by Paramount Global and available locally on Channel 2.3 (Comcast Channel 176/182/196/1166), previously billed itself as a lifestyle channel and aired unscripted reality shows (“Hotel Hell,” “Martha Stewart Living”) but on Dec. 29 filpped to comedies with African American casts including reruns of “The Parkers,” “Moesha,” “The Game,” “One on One” and “Sister Sister.”

Almost all changes in TV come down to what will be more financially lucrative for a media company. Scripted programming can command higher ad rates than unscripted so that might be a reason for Dabl’s strategic change.

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