ALPENA – Morgan Murphy Media’s WBKB will greatly expand its local news coverage through a partnership with UpNorthLive news from WPBN/WTOM in Traverse City.

The hours of local news will expand from the current 7.5 hours of news per week without any weekend coverage to 24.5 hours per week over seven days a week.

Through the unique partnership, WBKB becomes part of the UpNorthLive news network and all newscasts produced by WPBN/WTOM will be provided to the Alpena market. At the same time, nearly every newscast will include segments anchored and produced by journalists in Alpena and on-screen graphics will continuously provide news headlines and weather information customized for the Alpena viewers.

The newscast schedule is outlined here:

• Monday – Friday: 4:30 to 7 a.m.

• Monday – Friday: 5 to 6 p.m.

• Monday – Friday: 6 to 6:30 p.m.

• Monday – Friday: 11 to 11:35 p.m.

• Saturday – Sunday: 6 to 6:30 p.m.

• Saturday – Sunday: 11 to 11:35 p.m.

The new newscasts and program schedule are expected to be available by the end of April.

For any questions, contact Brian Burns, Morgan Murphy Media EVP & COO, at brian@morganmurphymedia.com or 608-277-5109. To learn more, visit morganmurphymedia.com