CBS is asking its affiliates to pay for programming, according to TVNewsCheck.

In an interview with CBS Affiliates Relations President Diana Wilkin, our good friend who runs the editorial product on TVNewsCheck, the veteran journalist Harry Jessell, says Wilkin claims "that most, if not all, the CBS affils have accepted the fact that they they will have to pay to air ‘NCIS,’ ‘The Big Bang Theory’ and ‘Survivor.’ Some have already cut deals, she says, declining to discuss terms."

When Jessell asks Wilkin if these payments for programming are a function "of the  retransmission consent dollars that the stations receive," Wilkin replies, "Are we specifically tying our agreements to a retrans share? No we’re not. But we believe that CBS represents a substantial portion of the retransmission consent fees that stations and groups receive."

–Chuck Ross