WTNZ

Last updated

WTNZ
Wtnz 2014.png
WTNZ-DT2 Bounce Knoxville.png
Channels
Branding
  • Fox 43
  • Bounce TV Knoxville (on DT2)
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
WKNX-TV
History
First air date
December 31, 1983(40 years ago) (1983-12-31)
Former call signs
WKCH-TV (1983–1994)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 43 (UHF, 1983–2009)
  • Digital: 34 (UHF, until 2019)
Independent (1983–1986)
Call sign meaning
Tennessee
Technical information [1]
Licensing authority
 FCC
Facility ID 19200
ERP 280 kW
HAAT 529 m (1,736 ft)
Transmitter coordinates 35°59′44.4″N83°57′23.1″W / 35.995667°N 83.956417°W / 35.995667; -83.956417
Links
Public license information
Website wtnzfox43.revrocket.us

WTNZ (channel 43) is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group alongside independent station WKNX-TV (channel 7). The two stations share studios on Executive Park Drive (along I-75/I-40) in Knoxville's Green Valley section; WTNZ's transmitter is located on Sharp's Ridge in North Knoxville.

Contents

History

Knoxville Family Television, Limited Partnership, was granted a construction permit on November 3, 1982, to build a station on Knoxville's channel 43; the proposal from Knoxville Family beat out another by Marvin E. Palmquist, who owned WQRF-TV in his hometown of Rockford, Illinois. [2] Channel 43 had previously been used for several years by WBIR-TV as a UHF relay to aid areas in the city of Knoxville that did not receive a satisfactory picture on VHF and was discontinued upon an upgrade to the VHF facility. [3]

From studios on Central Street, [4] WKCH-TV made its debut on the evening of December 31, 1983—with introductory remarks that then had to be repeated because the audio was not broadcast the first time. [5] It was the city's first independent station (WINT-TV was on the air in Crossville, but its plans to move into Knoxville were delayed by more than a decade). It was also the first new full-market commercial station in Knoxville since WBIR-TV signed on 27 years earlier.

Like a number of other independent stations, management affairs were primarily controlled by Media Central, which provided consulting and other services to independent stations and owned much of channel 43. Media Central's independent stations, WKCH-TV included, spurned Fox when it launched in 1986, [6] but it joined the network the next year. [7]

Media Central filed for bankruptcy protection in 1987, and channel 43 would remain in that status for more than two years. [8] A bankruptcy court judge approved the sale of WKCH-TV to NewSouth Broadcasting, owned by Timothy S. Brumlik, in June 1989. However, as the deal was pending at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the proceedings were jolted when Brumlik was arrested by federal and Florida officials on money laundering charges connected to Colombian drug interests. [9] Officials alleged that Brumlik's ownership of TeleOnce in Puerto Rico was a front for two important Latin American media men: Remigio Ángel González, reported to be a business partner with Manuel Noriega in a Panamanian television station, and Julio Vera Gutiérrez, a Peruvian citizen. [10] In November 1989, a motion was filed by WKCH-TV's trustee to cancel the proposed sale to Brumlik, citing the uncertainty created by the money laundering case. [11] Even despite the continued uncertainty over channel 43's future ownership, the station grew and was recognized as one of the fastest-growing Fox affiliates. [12]

FCVS Communications, which owned WACH in Columbia, South Carolina, bought WKCH-TV in 1990. [13] Under FCVS, the station increased its community involvement and improved its transmission facilities. [14] In 1993, FCVS received an "offer it could not refuse" from Ellis Communications and sold its broadcast holdings: WKCH-TV, WACH, and WEVU-TV in Naples, Florida. [15]

Ellis made further improvements, including changing the call sign to WTNZ and relocating the studio to Executive Park Drive in 1994. [16] [17] Ellis Communications was then folded into Raycom Media in late 1996.

On June 25, 2018, Raycom Media announced that it agreed to be sold to Gray Television. [18] Gray kept its existing duopoly of WVLT-TV and WBXX-TV and sold WTNZ to a third party; [19] on August 20, 2018, Gray sold WTNZ, along with fellow Fox affiliates WFXG in Augusta, Georgia, WPGX in Panama City, Florida, and WDFX-TV in Dothan, Alabama, to Lockwood Broadcast Group (owner of independent station WKNX-TV). [20] The sale was completed on January 2, 2019. [21]

Newscasts

Not long after going on the air, channel 43 began producing short news breaks. [22]

In 1998, WTNZ established a news share agreement with WVLT-TV to produce its first local newscast, the Fox 43 Ten O'Clock News. Liz Tedone, Patrick McMurtry, Nick Paranjape, and Craig Edwards anchored the news, weather and sports for the half-hour nightly newscast; the talent, separate from the presenters for WVLT's own newscasts, were absorbed by channel 8 itself in 2000. In 2001, Fox 43 ended its agreement with WVLT and entered into a similar contract with ABC-affiliated WATE-TV; channel 8 thought it was not financially feasible to continue, while WATE thought it was. [23]

After 10 years, the WTNZ-WATE collaboration ended, and WTNZ entered into an agreement with NBC affiliate WBIR-TV to produce local news. On March 28, 2011, WBIR took over production of the nightly newscast and expanded it to one hour on weeknights. Later that year, a two-hour morning show produced by WBIR-TV was also added. [24] Prior to producing the WTNZ newscasts, WBIR had produced a 10-minute 10 p.m. newscast for WBXX-TV (channel 20); WATE-TV took over those duties from WBIR and expanded that program to a full 35 minutes. [25] A half-hour 6:30 p.m. newscast from WBIR-TV was added in 2017. [26]

Technical information

Subchannels

The station's signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of WTNZ [27]
Channel Res. Aspect Short nameProgramming
43.1 720p 16:9 WTNZ-DTMain WTNZ programming / Fox
43.2 480i WTNZ-BN Bounce TV
43.3WTNZ-GT Grit

Analog-to-digital conversion

WTNZ shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 43, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 34, using virtual channel 43. [28]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Interstate 640</span> Highway in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States

Interstate 640 (I-640) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway in Knoxville, Tennessee. It serves as a bypass for I-40 around Downtown Knoxville and is also an alternative route for traffic passing between I-40 and I-75. All trucks carrying hazardous cargo through Knoxville are required to use I-640. It has a total length of 10.80 miles (17.38 km) and runs approximately three miles (4.8 km) north of downtown through the northern neighborhoods of Knoxville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WMC-TV</span> NBC affiliate in Memphis, Tennessee

WMC-TV is a television station in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC. It is owned by Gray Television alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WTME-LD. The two stations share studios on Union Avenue in midtown Memphis; WMC-TV's transmitter is located in northeast Memphis, near the suburb of Bartlett, Tennessee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WATE-TV</span> ABC affiliate in Knoxville, Tennessee

WATE-TV is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Nexstar Media Group. The station's studios are located in the Greystone mansion on North Broadway/SR 33/SR 71/US 441, and its transmitter is located on Sharp's Ridge in North Knoxville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBIR-TV</span> NBC affiliate in Knoxville, Tennessee

WBIR-TV is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with NBC. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Bill Williams Avenue in Knoxville's Belle Morris section, and its transmitter is located on Sharp's Ridge in North Knoxville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WBXX-TV</span> CW affiliate in Crossville, Tennessee

WBXX-TV is a television station licensed to Crossville, Tennessee, United States, serving the Knoxville area as an affiliate of The CW and Telemundo. It is owned by Gray Television alongside dual CBS/MyNetworkTV affiliate WVLT-TV. The two stations share studios on Papermill Drive on the west side of Knoxville; WBXX-TV's transmitter is located at Windrock, Buffalo Mountain outside Oliver Springs, Tennessee.

KOLD-TV is a television station in Tucson, Arizona, United States, affiliated with CBS. It is owned by Gray Television, which provides certain services to Fox affiliate KMSB and MyNetworkTV affiliate KTTU under a shared services agreement (SSA) with Tegna Inc. The three stations share studios on North Business Park Drive on the northwest side of Tucson. KOLD-TV's primary transmitter is atop Mount Bigelow, with a secondary transmitter atop the Tucson Mountains west of the city to fill in gaps in coverage.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WYMT-TV</span> CBS affiliate in Hazard, Kentucky

WYMT-TV is a television station licensed to Hazard, Kentucky, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Eastern Kentucky Coalfield region. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains studios on Black Gold Boulevard off the KY 15 bypass in Hazard, and its transmitter is located south of the city in the Perry County community of Viper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WVLT-TV</span> CBS/MyNetworkTV affiliate in Knoxville, Tennessee

WVLT-TV is a television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with CBS and MyNetworkTV. It is owned by Gray Television alongside Crossville-licensed dual CW/Telemundo affiliate WBXX-TV. The two stations share studios on Papermill Drive on the west side of Knoxville; WVLT-TV's transmitter is located on Sharp's Ridge in North Knoxville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WJHL-TV</span> CBS/ABC affiliate in Johnson City, Tennessee

WJHL-TV is a television station licensed to Johnson City, Tennessee, United States, serving the Tri-Cities area as an affiliate of CBS and ABC. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group, and maintains studios on East Main Street in downtown Johnson City; its transmitter is located on Holston Mountain in the Cherokee National Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WEMT</span> Fox affiliate in Greeneville, Tennessee

WEMT is a television station licensed to Greeneville, Tennessee, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Tri-Cities area. It is owned by Cunningham Broadcasting, which maintains a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of Bristol, Virginia–licensed dual NBC/CW affiliate WCYB-TV, for the provision of certain services. However, Sinclair effectively owns WEMT; the majority of Cunningham's stock is owned by the family of deceased group founder Julian Smith. The two stations share studios on Lee Street on the Virginia side of Bristol ; WEMT's transmitter is located at Rye Patch Knob on Holston Mountain in the Cherokee National Forest.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WACH</span> Fox affiliate in Columbia, South Carolina

WACH is a television station in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. Owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, the station maintains studios on Pickens Street in downtown Columbia, and its transmitter is located on Rush Road, in rural southwestern Kershaw County.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFXG</span> Fox affiliate in Augusta, Georgia

WFXG is a television station in Augusta, Georgia, United States, affiliated with the Fox network and owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group. The station's studios are located on Washington Road/GA 104 in the Lamkin section of Martinez, and its transmitter is located in Beech Island, South Carolina's Spiderweb section.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WKNX-TV</span> Independent TV station in Knoxville, Tennessee

WKNX-TV is an independent television station in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. It is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group alongside Fox affiliate WTNZ. The two stations share studios on Executive Park Drive in Knoxville's Green Valley section; WKNX-TV's transmitter is located on Sharp's Ridge, near the city's Oakwood section.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WFXR</span> Fox affiliate in Roanoke, Virginia

WFXR is a television station licensed to Roanoke, Virginia, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Roanoke–Lynchburg market. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Lynchburg-licensed CW station WWCW. Both stations share studios at the Valleypointe office park on Valleypoint Parkway in northeastern Roanoke County, while WFXR's transmitter is located on Poor Mountain in southwestern Roanoke County. WWCW broadcasts WFXR's Fox programming from its transmitter on Thaxton Mountain in Bedford County as one of its subchannels and vice versa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WPGX</span> Fox affiliate in Panama City, Florida

WPGX is a television station in Panama City, Florida, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. The station is owned by Lockwood Broadcast Group, and maintains transmitter facilities on Blue Springs Road in unincorporated Youngstown, Bay County. Its studios are located on West 23rd Street/SR 368 in Panama City, though most of its on-air master control operations originate from Gray Television's WBRC in Birmingham, Alabama, its former sister Fox affiliate until the start of 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">KYOU-TV</span> Fox/NBC/CW affiliate in Ottumwa, Iowa

KYOU-TV is a television station licensed to Ottumwa, Iowa, United States, serving Ottumwa and Kirksville, Missouri, as an affiliate of Fox, NBC and The CW Plus. The station is owned by Gray Television and maintains studios on West 2nd Street in Downtown Ottumwa; its transmitter is located one mile (1.6 km) east of Richland, Iowa. A translator, K30MG-D, offers additional coverage in the Kirksville area.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sharp's Ridge</span> Geologic feature in Knoxville, Tennessee

Sharp's Ridge is a steep ridge in Knoxville, Tennessee, north of the city's downtown. A 111-acre (45 ha) area of the 7-mile (11 km) ridge is maintained as Sharp's Ridge Memorial Park, a city park dedicated to the honor of the area's war veterans. The ridge also is the site of a transmitting antenna farm that serves most of Knoxville's broadcasters. The highest ground point on the ridge is an abandoned fire tower located at 1,391 feet (424 m) above mean sea level. The ridge itself averages 200 to 300 feet above the surrounding valley floor, allowing panoramic views of the Great Smoky Mountains and adjacent ranges to the east and the Cumberland Plateau and Cumberland Mountains to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Murders of Channon Christian and Christopher Newsom</span> 2007 carjacking, rape, and murder of a couple in Knoxville, Tennessee

Channon Gail Christian, aged 21, and Hugh Christopher Newsom Jr., aged 23, were from Knoxville, Tennessee, United States. They were kidnapped on the evening of January 6, 2007, when Christian's vehicle was carjacked. The couple were taken to a rental house. Both of them were raped, tortured, and murdered. Four males and one female were arrested, charged, and convicted in the case. In 2007, a grand jury indicted Letalvis Darnell Cobbins, Lemaricus Devall Davidson, George Geovonni Thomas, and Vanessa Lynn Coleman on counts of kidnapping, robbery, rape, and murder. Also in 2007, Eric DeWayne Boyd was indicted by a federal grand jury of being an accessory to a carjacking, resulting in serious bodily injury to another person and misprision of a felony. In 2018, Boyd was indicted on state-level charges of kidnapping, robbery, rape, and murder.

WETP-TV and WKOP-TV, together branded as East Tennessee PBS, are public television stations serving Knoxville and the Tri-Cities in East Tennessee, United States. The stations are owned by the East Tennessee Public Communications Corporation and broadcast from studios and offices on East Magnolia Avenue in downtown Knoxville. WETP-TV, licensed to Sneedville, Tennessee, is broadcast from a transmitter atop Short Mountain near Mooresburg, while WKOP-TV's transmitter is situated on Sharp's Ridge in North Knoxville.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">One Knoxville SC</span> American soccer club

One Knoxville Sporting Club is an American soccer team based in Knoxville, Tennessee that competes in USL League One, the third tier of the United States soccer league system.

References

  1. ↑ "Facility Technical Data for WTNZ". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ↑ Mink, Ken (October 26, 1980). "New TV Station for Knox Would feature Golden Oldies". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. 84. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  3. ↑ "He Applauds WBIR-TV For Adding UHF channel 43 to Its Telecasting". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. February 22, 1975. p. 4. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  4. ↑ "TV Station Due Shortly". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. November 4, 1983. p. 18. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "New Station Goes on Air". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. January 1, 1984. p. B10. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ Carter, Reon (August 15, 1986). "Some viewers will see Joan Rivers". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. B5. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Carter, Reon (June 25, 1987). "WKCH joins fourth network". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. B7. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Carter, Reon (July 8, 1987). "WKCH-TV parent bankrupt". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. A10. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Prospective WKCH buyer charged in sting". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. September 18, 1989. p. A3. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  10. ↑ Powelson, Richard (September 19, 1989). "Prospective WKCH buyer linked to alleged partner of Gen. Noriega". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. A1, A2. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ Powelson, Richard (November 7, 1989). "Motion filed to cancel sale of WKCH to drug suspect". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. C7. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  12. ↑ Pickle, Betsy (February 13, 1990). "WKCH hopes to bring stability to Fox's rising star". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. B1, B2. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  13. ↑ "S. Carolina partnership seeks federal approval to purchase WKCH-TV". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. June 3, 1990. p. B1. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ Pickle, Betsy (April 23, 1992). "WKCH owners happy with strides". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. B4. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  15. ↑ Gold, Lara (July 24, 1993). "WEVU sold". News-Press. p. 7A. Archived from the original on October 26, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  16. ↑ "WKCH-TV now WTNZ". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. April 27, 1994. p. D7. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  17. ↑ "WTNZ upgrades facilities". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. December 30, 1994. p. B2. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  18. ↑ Miller, Mark K. (June 25, 2018). "Gray To Buy Raycom For $3.6 Billion". TVNewsCheck. NewsCheckMedia. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
  19. ↑ "Gray and Raycom to Combine in a $3.6 Billion Transaction". Raycom Media. June 25, 2018. Archived from the original on June 25, 2018.
  20. ↑ Aycock, Jason (August 20, 2018). "Gray sets divestitures in eight more markets for Raycom deal". Seeking Alpha . Retrieved August 20, 2018.
  21. ↑ "Gray Completes Acquisition of Raycom Media and Related Transactions" (PDF). Gray Television. January 2, 2019. Archived (PDF) from the original on January 3, 2019. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
  22. ↑ Segroves, Gerry (February 26, 1984). "Mystery Solved: Truck Blocked WKCH-TV Signal". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. Knoxville, Tennessee. p. TV1. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 30, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  23. ↑ Morrow, Terry (August 27, 2001). "WATE set to take over production of WTNZ news". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. p. C3. Archived from the original on November 25, 2021. Retrieved November 25, 2021.
  24. ↑ "WBIR To Produce HD Newscasts For WTNZ". TVNewsCheck. February 28, 2011. Archived from the original on November 30, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  25. ↑ Malone, Michael (July 14, 2011). "WATE Knoxville to Produce WBXX Newscast". Broadcasting & Cable. Archived from the original on April 19, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  26. ↑ Zimmerman, Lee (March 13, 2017). "WDVX rolls out plans to celebrate 20th anniversary". Knoxville News Sentinel. Archived from the original on February 28, 2021. Retrieved November 29, 2021.
  27. ↑ "RabbitEars TV Query for WTNZ". rabbitears.info. Archived from the original on March 16, 2016. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  28. ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
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.