IIRC, TV Guide gave stations free ad space in exchange for airing the magazine's
TV commercials. In a relatively small edition like Atlanta, a station might take out
several ads; once, when WAGA was checkerboarding 7:30, it took out ads for all
of its programs in that timeslot--one per night.
But as to stations that were in more than one edition, I'm not so sure. Prior to 1980,
Charlotte was listed in the North Carolina and Carolina/Tennessee editions and its
stations ran ads in both. OTOH, Greensboro/Winston-Salem/High Point stations were
in the North Carolina and Central Virginia editions, but they never ran ads in Central
Virginia. Later on, from 1980 to the end of the digest-size TV Guide, Greenville/Spartanburg/
Asheville's big three (WYFF, WSPA, WLOS) were listed in the Charlotte edtion, and WBTV, WSOC,
WCCB, WCNC, and WJZY were in the Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville edition,
but neither market's stations ran ads in any but their own editions. Likewise, WRAL and WTVD
were listed in Eastern North Carolina, Charlotte, and Central Virginia, but ran ads only in Eastern
North Carolina (I suppose that, given the relative coverage area of the latter two editions, relatively
few people would be watching Raleigh and Durham stations, even if they could pick them up).
After Rupert Murdoch bought TV Guide, I think only Fox stations got free advertsising; I remember
seeing their ads but not those of stations affiliated with other networks. Likewise, Murdoch tended
to promote Fox programs in both ads and articles.
Dallas/Fort Worth stations advertised for years in both the Dallas/Fort Worth and North Texas editions,
because the editions were split: the immediate Metroplex got the Dallas/Fort Worth edition while outlying
counties still in the DMA got North Texas. IIRC, New Orleans had the same situation, with its stations
advertising in the New Orleans and Louisiana editions.
