LITTLE ROCK – Get ready for a new outdoor adventure coming from the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission this fall. Arkansas Wildlife Television will be replacing the long-running Talkin’ Outdoors program as the official outdoors show of the AGFC.
Trey Reid, executive producer of Arkansas Wildlife Television and co-host of Talkin’ Outdoors says the new show is more an evolution of the previous program than an entirely new package.
“We moved out of the studio and into the field a few years ago,” Reid said. “The new format will put viewers right into the action much faster.”
There’s no doubt Steve “Wild Man” Wilson,” former host of Talkin’ Outdoors, had the gift for gab, but the show’s format will take a different focus, playing to the strengths of the new crew.
“There’s no replacing Wild Man, but we think today’s viewers will enjoy being thrown into the action without so much of the ‘Talkin’ portion of the show,” Reid said.
The talk has been cut out so much that the show will have a new name.
“We wanted the new name to better reflect what we’re about,” said Scottie Wyatt, videographer and assistant producer for the show. “When you look at the title now, there’s no mistaking that you’re getting a local product that’s all about hunting, fishing and conservation in Arkansas.”
Reid says the new name was an easy choice. The video team would be hard-pressed to find a better flag to wave than the title of the AGFC’s award-winning magazine, Arkansas Wildlife.
“We want to be more consistent with all our outreach products,” Reid said. “The sharing of the titles creates a stronger brand that will be easier to promote together and share the AGFC’s message.”
The new 13-show season will begin Oct. 8-9 on KARZ and KARK in the Little Rock market and on KFTA in Northwest Arkansas. Check local listings for airing times.
“Viewers will get a new show every week that coincides with outdoors activities available during that fall season,” Reid said. “The episodes will re-air, beginning in January, while we reload for the spring season that begins in April.”
The show also will be aired in its entirety through its own YouTube channel. Viewers can tune in each Monday after the season begins to catch the latest show.
“We will still feed segments of the show to the AGFC’s YouTube channel, but this channel will be filled with nothing but full-length episodes of the show,” Reid said.
Reid and Wyatt are both excited to launch the new show, and even a little nervous.
“This kind of feels like the first day of duck season with 30 minutes to go before shooting time,” Reid said. “We’ve been here before, but the anticipation is almost too much to bear. We just hope we’re shooting true when it’s time for that first airing.”