WTAT-TV

Last updated

WTAT-TV
LOGO WTAT FOX24 solid legal big.png
Channels
BrandingFox 24
Programming
Affiliations24.1: Fox
for others, see § Subchannels
Ownership
Owner
WCIV (news share agreement)
History
First air date
September 7, 1985(38 years ago) (1985-09-07)
Former channel number(s)
Analog: 24 (UHF, 1985–2009)
Digital: 40 (UHF, until 2009), 24 (UHF, 2009–2019), 25 (UHF, temporary share with WCIV, 2019–2020 [1] [2] )
Independent (1985–1986)
UPN (secondary, 1995–1997)
Call sign meaning
Terry A. Trousdale (original owner)
Technical information [3]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 416
ERP 450 kW
HAAT 599.4 m (1,967 ft)
Transmitter coordinates 32°56′25″N79°41′44″W / 32.94028°N 79.69556°W / 32.94028; -79.69556
Links
Public license information
Website foxcharleston.com

WTAT-TV (channel 24) is a television station in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. The station is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, a partner company of the Sinclair Broadcast Group. However, although Sinclair effectively owns WTAT-TV (as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith), it is one of two Cunningham-owned stations not to be operated by Sinclair (the other is fellow Fox affiliate WYZZ-TV in Peoria, Illinois, which is operated by the Nexstar Media Group as virtual sister station of that market's CBS affiliate WMBD-TV). WTAT-TV's studios are located on Arco Lane in North Charleston (with a Charleston postal address), and its transmitter is located in Awendaw, South Carolina.

Contents

History

The station began operations on September 7, 1985, as Charleston's first independent station, under the ownership of Charleston Television Community Ltd., a local group led by Terry Trousdale, who also had the construction permit for the station. It aired an analog signal on UHF channel 24 from a transmitter near Awendaw. On October 9, 1986, as part of a deal between WTAT's owner and News Corporation, it became a charter affiliate of the fledgling Fox network. WTAT would have been the obvious choice as Charleston's Fox affiliate even without that affiliation deal, as it was the area's only general-entertainment independent station at the time.

In 1987, Charleston Television Community Ltd. sold WTAT-TV to Act III Broadcasting, owner of WNRW-TV in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, for $3.3-$3.7 million; this was Act III's second station acquisition. [4]

Abry Communications bought the Act III group in 1995, and formed Sullivan Broadcasting to operate the stations. [5] WTAT carried UPN as a secondary affiliation from 1995 until 1997 when former WB affiliate WMMP joined UPN. In 1998, Sullivan Broadcasting sold its stations to Sinclair Broadcast Group, which in turn, had to sell WTAT-TV, along with WRGT-TV and WVAH-TV to Glencairn, Ltd. [6]

By the time Sinclair tried to acquire Sullivan's stations outright in 2001, it already owned WMMP, which it had purchased outright from Max Media Properties (a company partially related to the present-day Max Media) in July 1998. Sinclair could not legally own both WTAT and WMMP because Charleston has only six full-power stations—too few to legally permit a duopoly. Although WTAT was longer-established, Sinclair opted to keep WMMP and sold WTAT to Glencairn, Ltd. That company was owned by Edwin Edwards, a former Sinclair executive, and appeared to be a minority-owned company. However, nearly all of Glencairn's stock was controlled by the Smith family, founders of Sinclair. In effect, Sinclair now had a duopoly in the Charleston market in violation of FCC regulations. Glencairn and Sinclair further circumvented the rules by crafting a local marketing agreement with WMMP as the senior partner, allowing Sinclair to continue operating WTAT.

In 2001, the FCC fined Sinclair $40,000 for illegally controlling Glencairn. Later that year, this was renamed Cunningham Broadcasting. However, nearly all of Cunningham's stock is still controlled by trusts in the names of the children of the Smith brothers. Then as now, all of Cunningham's stations are located in markets where Sinclair cannot legally form a duopoly, and are operated by Sinclair stations via LMAs. Glencairn, and later Cunningham, have been accused of serving as a shell corporation that allows Sinclair to circumvent FCC ownership rules. On May 15, 2012, Sinclair and Fox agreed to a five-year extension of the network's affiliation agreement with Sinclair's 19 Fox stations, including WTAT, allowing them to continue carrying Fox programming until at least 2017. [7]

On March 20, 2014, as part of a restructuring of Sinclair's August 2013 deal to purchase Allbritton Communications (owner of ABC affiliate WCIV, then on channel 4) in order to address ownership conflicts with the deal involving WMMP's local marketing agreement with WTAT, Sinclair announced that it planned to terminate the shared services agreement with Cunningham Broadcasting (which would have made WTAT the first Cunningham station in which Sinclair would not hold any operational interest). Cunningham, which was to have acquired the non-license assets of WTAT, sought a shared services agreement with the prospective owner of WMMP, which Sinclair was to have sold in order to receive approval of its purchase of WCIV. [8] [9] This plan never materialized as Sinclair retained WWMP (to which Sinclair moved the WCIV intellectual unit including its call sign), and WTAT continued to be operated by Sinclair until some point in 2019 or 2020, when Cunningham took full control of the station although it continues its news share agreement with WCIV.

News operation

This is the current look of the FOX 24 News set after leaving WCSC's studios. FOX 24 News Set.jpg
This is the current look of the FOX 24 News set after leaving WCSC's studios.

In the early-1990s, Fox required most of its major market affiliates to add local newscasts or face disaffiliation. As a result, WTAT entered into a news share agreement with CBS affiliate WCSC-TV (channel 5, then owned by Crump Communications). The partnership resulted in a nightly half-hour prime time broadcast to debut on this station (currently titled The Fox 24 News at 10).

That program was one of the first prime time newscasts in South Carolina along with fellow Fox affiliate WACH in Columbia which established a similar outsourcing arrangement with NBC affiliate WIS in that market several years later. Eventually, an hour-long extension of WCSC's weekday morning show was added to WTAT. Known as The Fox 24 News at 7, this was seen until 8 offering the area's only local alternative to the national morning broadcasts aired on the big three networks.

WTAT's shows had no WCSC branding and originated from the CBS affiliate's studio (studio 2) on Charlie Hall Boulevard in Charleston's West Ashley section along Glenn McConnell Parkway. The music package and graphics scheme used on all newscasts can be seen on other Sinclair-owned television stations that operate their own in-house news departments. Although WTAT featured the majority of WCSC's on-air personnel, this station maintained a separate second news anchor on weeknights that also contributes to WCSC. This outlet was one of many company-owned stations (including WGME, WICS, WLOS, and KGAN along with others) that did not participate in the wider implementation of Sinclair's now-defunct, controversial News Central format. This centralized operation had national news segments, all weather forecasts, and some sports coverage based at company headquarters on Beaver Dam Road in Hunt Valley, Maryland that supplemented local content at most of Sinclair's in-house news departments. WTAT did air The Point (a one-minute conservative political commentary) that was also controversial and a requirement of all company-owned stations with newscasts until the series was discontinued in December 2006.

On September 29, 2008, WCSC set a broadcasting benchmark in the area when it became the first television outlet to offer newscasts in high definition. The upgrade included new custom Raycom Media corporate graphics, a re-designed HD logo, and updated music package. The WTAT broadcasts at that time, however, were still only aired in pillarboxed 4:3 standard definition as this station lacked a high definition-capable master control at its separate facility in order to receive the newscast in HD.

On August 31, 2009, the weeknight prime time show at 10 was expanded to an hour while the weekend edition remained 35 minutes in length. It would not be until January 24, 2011, when the station completed a master control upgrade allowing the reception and transmission of local programming, including local news, in high definition. During weather forecasts, WTAT features WCSC's own Collins ADC Doppler weather radar (known as "Live Super Doppler MAX") in addition to NOAA's National Weather Service radar images from several regional sites.

Since January 1, 2016, WTAT's newscasts have been produced by WCIV. This change also came with a new anchor for the 10 p.m. news hour and an expanded morning news (7–9 a.m.).

On January 9, 2017, WTAT's newscasts expanded to include a traditional newscast at 6:30 p.m. and a news magazine-type program at 11 p.m. (FOX 24 News NOW) which is broadcast from their studios on Arco Lane in North Charleston.

Technical information

Subchannels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of WTAT-TV [10]
Channel Res. Aspect Short nameProgramming
24.1 720p 16:9 WTATFOXMain WTAT-TV programming / Fox
24.2 480i CrimeTV True Crime Network
24.3COMET Comet
24.4Charge! Charge
24.5TBD TBD
4.1 720p16:9MeTV MeTV (WGWG)
  Broadcast on behalf of another station

Analog-to-digital conversion

WTAT-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 24, on February 17, 2009, to conclude the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television. [11] The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 40 to channel 24.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTTE</span> TBD affiliate in Columbus, Ohio

WTTE is a television station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, airing programming from the digital multicast network TBD. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of ABC/MyNetworkTV/Fox affiliate WSYX, for the provision of certain services. However, Sinclair effectively owns WTTE as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Sinclair also operates Chillicothe-licensed CW affiliate WWHO under a separate LMA with Manhan Media. The stations share studios on Dublin Road in Grandview Heights, while WTTE's transmitter is located in the Franklinton section of Columbus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WKEF</span> ABC affiliate in Dayton, Ohio

WKEF is a television station in Dayton, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC, Fox, and MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to Dabl affiliate WRGT-TV under a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Cunningham Broadcasting. However, Sinclair effectively owns WRGT-TV as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Both stations share studios on Corporate Place in Miamisburg, while WKEF's transmitter is located off South Gettysburg Avenue in southwest Dayton.

WRGT-TV is a television station in Dayton, Ohio, United States, affiliated with the digital multicast network Dabl. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of ABC/Fox/MyNetworkTV affiliate WKEF, for the provision of certain services. However, Sinclair effectively owns WRGT-TV as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Both stations share studios on Corporate Place in Miamisburg, while WRGT-TV's transmitter is located off South Gettysburg Avenue in southwest Dayton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBFF</span> Fox/MyNetworkTV affiliate in Baltimore

WBFF is a television station in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, affiliated with Fox and MyNetworkTV. It is one of two flagship stations of Sinclair Broadcast Group, alongside ABC affiliate WJLA-TV in Washington, D.C. Sinclair maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Cunningham Broadcasting, owner of CW affiliate WNUV, and a shared services agreement (SSA) with Deerfield Media, owner of TBD affiliate WUTB.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WGWG</span> MeTV affiliate in Charleston, South Carolina

WGWG is a television station in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with the multicast network MeTV. The station is owned by Howard Stirk Holdings. WGWG's transmitter is located near Awendaw, South Carolina.

In North American broadcasting, a local marketing agreement (LMA), or local management agreement, is a contract in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another party. In essence, it is a sort of lease or time-buy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WTTO</span> CW affiliate in Homewood, Alabama

WTTO is a television station licensed to Homewood, Alabama, United States, serving the Birmingham area as an affiliate of The CW. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside MyNetworkTV affiliate WABM and ABC affiliate WBMA-LD. The stations share studios at the Riverchase office park on Concourse Parkway in Hoover, while WTTO's transmitter is located atop Red Mountain, near the Goldencrest neighborhood of southwestern Birmingham.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCSC-TV</span> CBS affiliate in Charleston, South Carolina

WCSC-TV is a television station in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with CBS and owned by Gray Television. The station's studios are located in the West Ashley section of Charleston, and its transmitter is located in Awendaw, South Carolina. Both the studio and road are named for long-time WCSC personalities: Bill Sharpe, a news anchor from 1973 until his retirement in 2021, and Charlie Hall, the station's original personality who died just months before its relocation to the current facilities in 1997.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCIV</span> Television station in South Carolina, United States

WCIV is a television station in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with MyNetworkTV and ABC. The station is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, and maintains studios on Allbritton Boulevard along US 17/701 in Mount Pleasant and a transmitter in Awendaw, South Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCBD-TV</span> NBC/CW affiliate in Charleston, South Carolina

WCBD-TV is a television station in Charleston, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with NBC and The CW Plus. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, the station has studios on West Coleman Boulevard in Mount Pleasant, and its transmitter is located in Awendaw, South Carolina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WGWW</span> Heroes & Icons affiliate in Anniston, Alabama

WGWW is a television station licensed to Anniston, Alabama, United States, serving the eastern portion of the Birmingham market as an affiliate of the digital multicast network Heroes & Icons. The station is owned by Howard Stirk Holdings, a partner company of the Sinclair Broadcast Group. WGWW's transmitter is located at Bald Rock Mountain, near Moody in unincorporated southern St. Clair County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KABB</span> Fox affiliate in San Antonio

KABB is a television station in San Antonio, Texas, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside dual NBC/CW affiliate WOAI-TV ; Sinclair also provides certain services to Kerrville-licensed Dabl affiliate KMYS under joint sales and shared services agreements (JSA/SSA) with Deerfield Media. The three stations share studios between Babcock Road and Sovereign Drive in northwest San Antonio, while KABB's transmitter is located in northwest Wilson County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPBN-TV</span> NBC affiliate in Traverse City, Michigan

WPBN-TV is a television station licensed to Traverse City, Michigan, United States, serving as the NBC affiliate for the northern Lower and eastern Upper peninsulas of Michigan. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to ABC affiliate WGTU and Sault Ste. Marie–licensed full-time satellite WGTQ under a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Cunningham Broadcasting. However, Sinclair effectively owns WGTU/WGTQ as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Both stations share studios on M-72 just west of Traverse City, while WPBN-TV's transmitter is located east of Kalkaska, Michigan. The station also operates a low-power digital fill-in translator on UHF channel 22 from a transmitter south of Harrietta in the Manistee National Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WCHS-TV</span> ABC affiliate in Charleston, West Virginia

WCHS-TV is a television station licensed to Charleston, West Virginia, United States, serving the Charleston–Huntington market as an affiliate of ABC and Fox. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to WVAH-TV under a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Cunningham Broadcasting. However, Sinclair effectively owns WVAH-TV as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Both stations share studios on Piedmont Road in Charleston, while WCHS-TV's transmitter is located atop Coal Mountain, south of Scott Depot, West Virginia.

WVAH-TV is a television station licensed to Charleston, West Virginia, United States, serving the Charleston–Huntington market as an affiliate of the digital multicast network Catchy Comedy. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of dual ABC/Fox affiliate WCHS-TV, for the provision of certain services. However, Sinclair effectively owns WVAH-TV as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. Both stations share studios on Piedmont Road in Charleston, while WVAH-TV's transmitter is located atop Coal Mountain, south of Scott Depot, West Virginia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KOCB</span> Independent station in Oklahoma City

KOCB is an independent television station in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group alongside Fox affiliate KOKH-TV. The stations' studios and transmitter facilities are co-located on East Wilshire Boulevard and 78th Street on the city's northeast side.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Allbritton Communications</span> American media company

The Allbritton Communications Company was an American media company. Based in Arlington, Virginia, Allbritton was the leading subsidiary of Perpetual Corporation, a private holding company owned by the family of company founder and former Riggs Bank president Joe L. Allbritton. Joe’s son, Robert L. Allbritton, was the Chairman and CEO of Allbritton Communications from 2001 to 2014. He is currently the owner of Capitol News Company, the parent company of political newspaper and website Politico.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WSYX</span> ABC/MyNetworkTV/Fox affiliate in Columbus, Ohio

WSYX is a television station in Columbus, Ohio, United States, affiliated with ABC, MyNetworkTV and Fox. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which provides certain services to TBD station WTTE and Chillicothe-licensed CW affiliate WWHO under separate local marketing agreements (LMAs). However, Sinclair effectively owns WTTE as the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. The stations share studios on Dublin Road in Grandview Heights, while WSYX's transmitter is located in the Franklinton section of Columbus.

Act III Broadcasting was a company that owned several television stations that started as independents, and later became Fox affiliates. The stations were located in medium-sized DMA's (markets) and were primarily UHF stations. Act III Broadcasting was in business from 1986 to 1995 when it was sold to ABRY Partners/Sullivan Broadcasting for $500 million. Television producer Norman Lear owned a controlling stake in Act III Broadcasting through his company Act III Communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cunningham Broadcasting</span> American media company

Cunningham Broadcasting Corporation is an owner of broadcast television stations in the United States. The company currently owns fifteen stations – eight affiliated with Fox, three affiliated with The CW, two affiliated with ABC, and two affiliated with MyNetworkTV.

References

  1. ↑ "DTV Engineering STA Application". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. September 10, 2019. Retrieved September 24, 2019.
  2. ↑ WTAT Request for STA
  3. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WTAT-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  4. ↑ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting Magazine . July 27, 1987. p. 97. Retrieved December 20, 2021.
  5. ↑ Flint, Joe (October 2, 1995). "ABRY CHOICE IS CLEAR; SULLIVAN TO TOP ACT III". Variety. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  6. ↑ Morgan, Richard (February 25, 1998). "Sinclair closes Sullivan buyout". Variety. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  7. ↑ Sinclair Reups With Fox, Gets WUTB Option, TVNewsCheck, May 15, 2012.
  8. ↑ Sinclair Offers to Sell Stations Ahead of FCC Decision, TVSpy , March 21, 2014.
  9. ↑ Sinclair Proposes Restructuring Of Allbritton Transaction In Order To Meet Objections Of The Federal Communications Commission, The Wall Street Journal (via PRNewswire), March 20, 2014.
  10. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for WTAT
  11. ↑ List of Digital Full-Power Stations
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.