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WXLV-TV

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WXLV-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Piedmont Triad area of North Carolina and parts of Southwest Virginia that is licensed to Winston-Salem. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 29 (virtual channel 45) from a transmitter in Randleman along I-73/U.S. 220. Owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group, the station is sister to MyNetworkTV affiliate WMYV and the two share studios on Myer Lee Drive in Winston-Salem along I-40. Syndicated programming on WXLV includes: Frasier, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, and Family Feud. It can be found on channel 7 on most cable systems in the market. WXLV's numeric "45" logo is similar to Sinclair flagship WBFF in Baltimore, Maryland.

History

The station signed-on in September 1979 as independent station WGNN-TV. It aired an analog signal on UHF channel 45 from a transmitter west of Gap in Stokes County. The station was bought by the TVX Broadcast Group in 1980 and changed its call letters to WJTM-TV. Over the years, the station ran a general entertainment format consisting of cartoons, movies, sitcoms, and dramas. It changed its call letters to WNRW in 1984 in memory of a station employee who was murdered in a shooting at the station that year. It became the market's Fox affiliate when the network premiered on October 9, 1986. During its Fox affiliation, WNRW would be known on-air by either "TV 45" or, later, "Fox 45".

TVX sold-off many of its smaller stations in 1988, including WNRW, which it sold to Act III Broadcasting. Meanwhile, the other major independent in the market, WGGT (channel 48) filed for bankruptcy in the late-1980s and still had not emerged from it by 1991. At that time, Act III bought WGGT's stronger programming and merged it onto WNRW's lineup. WGGT then began to simulcast WNRW, creating a strong combined signal with over 60% overlap. This was known as the "Piedmont Superstation". The two stations took on a secondary UPN affiliation when that network debuted on January 16, 1995.

The simulcast continued after Act III Broadcasting was bought by Abry Broadcast Partners in 1995.[1] That September, when Fox acquired longtime ABC affiliate WGHP, WNRW and WGGT swapped affiliations with WGHP, and all Fox programming (including Fox Kids) went to WGHP. WNRW also changed its calls to the current WXLV-TV.

In 1996, Sinclair acquired WXLV through its merger with Abry. It then had Glencairn purchase WGGT from Guilford Broadcasters. In 1997, WGGT's simulcast of WXLV was discontinued and the two stations entered into a local marketing agreement (LMA) with WXLV as senior partner. As part of the LMA, all UPN programming moved to channel 48, which changed its calls to WUPN-TV. Since the Smith family (founders of Sinclair) owned most of Glencairn's stock, Sinclair effectively had a duopoly in the Triad. A similar situation existed in the Triangle where Sinclair owned WLFL and Glencairn-owned WRDC. Sinclair bought WUPN outright in 2000.

On February 2, 2009, Sinclair told cable and satellite television providers via e-mail that regardless of the exact mandatory switchover date to digital-only broadcasting, the station would cease airing in analog on February 17. [2] At 11:59 p.m. on that date, WXLV's analog signal switched to "nightlight" service and went dark permanently during the week ending March 13. This move made WXLV and WMYV the first digital-only broadcast stations in the market.

Disputes with Time Warner Cable

In early-2006, some viewers complained about WXLV's high definition signal not being carried on Time Warner Cable. However, the station noted that Sinclair's company wide policy is to not allow cable providers to carry HD signals without compensation. With NASCAR on ESPN broadcasts as part of the Chase for the Nextel Cup on WXLV, there was a dilemma for the Triad area because it is regarded as the highest-rated NASCAR television market. However, after Sinclair and Time Warner came to a nationwide compensation/retransmission deal in 2007, WXLV-DT and WMYV-DT began to be carried on Time Warner systems.

Sinclair was later involved in a retransmission dispute with Time Warner Cable, whose original agreement ended on December 31, 2010.[3] Both parties have extended talks for another two weeks, with a new deadline set for January 15, 2011. If an agreement was not reached, ABC network programming would remain available on Time Warner Cable through feeds coming from neighboring stations such as WSOC-TV in Charlotte and WTVD in Raleigh/Durham.[4] An agreement was reached on February 2, 2011, with no disruption to carriage of WXLV and WMYV. [5]

Newscasts

The station established a news department after becoming an ABC affiliate in 1995. At the operation's height, it aired local news weeknights at 6 and 11 as well as on weekends under the branding News 45 (subsequently changed to ABC 45 News). There were also weather cut-ins during Good Morning America on weekday mornings. WXLV's sports department produced a local high school sports show known as Friday Night Football. The station could not gain significant viewership and compete with WFMY-TV, WGHP, and WXII-TV. WXLV ended its weekday morning cut-ins and weekend newscasts in 2000. The weeknight broadcasts and entire news operation was shut down completely on January 11, 2002.

In 2003, sister station WUPN began airing a prime time newscast every night at 10. As part of Sinclair's News Central operation, local news originated from the Winston-Salem studios while national news, weather, and sports were based at company headquarters on Beaver Dam Road in Hunt Valley, Maryland. In 2004, an identical 11 p.m. newscast, ABC 45 News Late Edition, was launched on WXLV. It also aired "The Point", a one-minute conservative political commentary, that was controversial and a requirement of all Sinclair-owned stations with newscasts (regardless of whether it carried the News Central format or not). Both newscasts were pulled in August 2005 as a result of poor ratings; the News Central format would be phased out entirely in its other markets by March 2006.

For a time afterward, News Central still provided WXLV with weekday morning weather cut-ins during Good Morning America featuring meteorologist Tony Pagnotti. Eventually, production of the cut-ins was shifted to its Asheville sister station, WLOS, with meteorologist Julie Wunder providing the updates; this continues to this day. Currently, Eric Gabriel produces various entertainment, sports, and community features that can be seen on-air as well as on WXLV's website. In addition, there is a taped public affairs show called Triad Today that airs Friday mornings at 6:30 hosted by Jim Longworth.

As part of the settlement of Time Warner's latest retransmission consent agreement with Sinclair, Time Warner Cable will begin to produce newscasts for WXLV beginning in January 2012, likely using the resources of local cable news channel News 14 Carolina, which is owned by TWC. WXLV will air traditional 6pm and 11pm news shows from Time Warner, along with a 6:30am morning newscast before Good Morning America (it is unknown if this will include the :25/:55 local cut-in segments and weather cut-ins). [5][6]. Although in the past local Time Warner news channels have produced news and sports content for broadcast stations (such as a now-expired agreement between Kansas City's KCTV and Metro Sports for the latter to compile and produce their sports coverage), the WXLV/News 14 agreement would be the second time in the United States (after a 10 p.m. newscast in the Boston market produced by New England Cable News that aired on Fox affiliate WFXT from 1993 to 1995 and on UPN affiliate WSBK-TV from then to 1998) a cable news channel will produce all of the local newscasts for a broadcast station. Like the cable channel, the newscasts on WXLV will likely be in 16:9 enhanced definition widescreen.

References

  1. ^ "Norman Lear's Company Selling 8 TV Stations". The New York Times. June 22, 1995. Retrieved February 17, 2011.
  2. ^ Hearn, Ted (February 2, 2009). "Sinclair Sticks To Feb. 17 Analog Cutoff". Digital Video Report. Retrieved February 24, 2009. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  3. ^ "Sinclair/Time Warner Cable - Frequently Asked Questions". Sinclair Broadcast Group. Retrieved December 13, 2010. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  4. ^ "Sinclair, Time Warner talks continue; contract now expires at midnight Saturday". Winston-Salem Journal. Retrieved January 15, 2011. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
  5. ^ a b "Sinclair, Time Warner Reach Retrans Deal". Retrieved 2011-03-10.
  6. ^ "WXLV to resume newscasts as TWC, Sinclair reach deal". News & Record. 2011-02-02.
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