TV Q&A: Why isn’t ‘Miracle on 34th Street’ on TV this year?

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: Looking at the Trib’s holiday television schedule and noticed no listing of the 1947 Christmas classic “Miracle on 34th Street”!!! How come?

— John, Leechburg

Rob: When the Walt Disney Co. bought 20th Century Fox it also bought the Fox library of films, including 1947’s “Miracle on 34th Street.” This year the original “Miracle” is not available on linear TV but is offered on streaming service Disney+.

If you don’t subscribe to Disney+ the film is also available for rent on multiple streaming platforms including Amazon, Apple TV, Google Play and YouTube for $3.99.

Q: When will the 2020 edition of HGTV’s “White House Christmas” special air?

— Karen via voicemail

Rob: On Dec. 4 HGTV announced “White House Christmas 2020,” narrated by Alison Victoria (“Windy City Rehab”), will air at 6 p.m. Dec. 13.

Q: Will they be presenting “Poldark” on PBS again this year?

— Mary Ann, Natrona Heights

Rob: I’m afraid not. The “Masterpiece” production ended its run a year ago.

Q: I’ve noticed that two recent PBS “Masterpiece” series have just disappeared! Both the World War II series “World on Fire” with Helen Hunt and the more recent “Flesh and Blood” with Imelda Staunton. Neither one seemed to have a conclusion. Can you explain why this is occurring? Any insight would be appreciated.

— Betty, Baldwin

Rob: Each series finished its first season but the endings were cliffhangers.

“World on Fire” has been renewed for a second season but production has not started due to the pandemic. “Flesh and Blood” was canceled by its British broadcaster and won’t be back.

Q: When WPXI moved “The Kelly Clarkson Show” from its 3 a.m. time-slot to the much more desirable 1 p.m., what was the reasoning?

— Joey via email

Rob: “The Kelly Clarkson Show” was a ratings winner out-of-the-gate nationally in September 2019 but due to existing programming commitments, WPXI had no available daytime slots for the show. When Channel 11 was able to move the show to daytime this fall, they did. Who wouldn’t want a ratings hit in a more desirable time period?

Somewhat surprisingly, “Kelly Clarkson” did worse in 1 p.m. the time period in November than “Right This Minute” did a year ago in both household ratings and the key demo of adults ages 25-54.

Q: How have the ratings been for ABCs “GMA3: What You Need to Know” versus who they replaced in “Strahan, Sarah, and Keke”?

— Vic via email

Rob: In Pittsburgh in November, the reconstituted “GMA3” performed better in household ratings compared to the “Strahan, Sarah and Keke” version a year ago although demo ratings were pretty similar.

Nationally, “GMA3” saw total viewer ratings rise 18% compared to November 2019 and the show was up 9% among women ages 25-54.

Q: I live in Ligonier and like to watch the evening news on WJAC, Johnstown, which is Comcast Channel 192. My question is why is it not available in HD?

— Dave, Ligonier

Rob: Similar to a question in this column last month, Ligonier is in Westmoreland County which is part of the Pittsburgh media market. Comcast is obligated to carry the NBC affiliate out of Pittsburgh, WPXI, on its Westmoreland County cable systems. Comcast is not obligated to carry out-of-market station WJAC and opts to only carry that station’s SD signal.