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Coronavirus
As a new strain of coronavirus (COVID-19) swept through the world in 2020, preparedness plans, masking policies and more public policy changed just as quickly. WVXU has covered the pandemic's impact on the Tri-State from the very beginning, when on March 3, 2020, Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine barred spectators from attending the Arnold Sports Festival in Columbus over concerns about the virus, even though Ohio had yet to confirm a single case of COVID-19.

WLWT-TV Moves 'Dr. Oz' Show To 11 A.M.

Courtesy WLWT-TV
Dr. Mahmet Oz's daytime show moved to 11a.m. weekdays on Monday so it would not be pre-empted by Gov. Mike DeWine's news conferences.

Dr. Mehmet Oz, who has become a frequent guest on the Fox News Channel during the pandemic, got a big boost from WLWT-TV starting today.

The Dr. Oz Show moved from 2 p.m. to 11 a.m. to follow NBC's four-hour Today show. The switch prevents Dr. Oz from being pre-empted by Gov. Mike DeWine's 2 p.m. press conferences about COVID-19. The Real moved to 2 p.m.

"Dr. Oz is a trusted source for coronavirus news and information, and WLWT is committed to providing our viewers the latest on the pandemic from every source available," said Branden Frantz, Channel 5 president and general manager, in an announcement Monday.

"We're also committed to carrying important press conferences from the president, area governors, the mayor and local officials. We feel we can better serve the public during this health emergency by moving Dr. Oz to 11 a.m. immediately before WLWT News 5 At Noon," he said.

Oz's topic Monday was "Coronavirus Stay-At-Home Guide."

The cardiac surgeon and director of Columbia University's Integrative Medical Center has appeared in recent weeks on Sean Hannity, Fox & Friends, America's Newsroom, President Donald Trump's virtual town hall on the Fox News Channel, and Lou Dobb's Fox Business Network show. He's been "an unpaid guest" on Fox, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

Trump, a habitual Fox News viewer, "has been intrigued by Oz's appearances on Fox News in which he has talked up the potential effectiveness of the anti-Malaria drug hydroxychloroquine as a way to treat the novel coronavirus," a White House official told CNN. "The White House official added that Trump has mentioned Oz's television appearances to aides when discussing the drug. Trump has obsessed as of late over hydroxychloroquine, repeatedly hyping the unproven drug at news conferences as a potential 'game changer,' " CNN reported.

The Trump-Oz connection goes back to 2016, when candidate Trump exclusively shared his medical records on the doctor's daytime show. After the election, Trump appointed Oz to a two-year term on the President's Council on Sports, Fitness and Nutrition.

Oz, of Turkish descent, was born June 11, 1960, in Cleveland, Ohio.

John Kiesewetter, who has covered television and media for more than 35 years, has been working for Cincinnati Public Radio and WVXU-FM since 2015.