• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Markets without all big four networks OTA

A

azumanga

This was inspired by a thread about the unavailability of UPN -- which markets don't have all four "big four" affiliates over-the-air?

One nominee is Kirksville-Ottumwa has local ABC and CBS (KTVO, on different subchannels), as well as Fox (KYOU). NBC in Ottumwa is covered by a repeater carrying WHO-TV from Des Moines, while in Kirksville, the local cable system there carries KSHB from Kansas City. Of course, this will change soon when the former local TBN repeater returns to air as the local NBC station.

Another is Alpena, Michigan, which has CBS and Fox on WBKB, plus NBC coverage from WTOM -- no local ABC, which is on cable from WJRT Flint or WGTQ Traverse City.

There's also Presque Isle, Maine, which has local CBS and Fox from WAGM -- NBC and ABC come from Bangor.

Any others?
 
St. Joseph MO only has one network affiliate (KQTV 2 ABC) but most of that area can get the networks OTA from Kansas City, Topeka, or Omaha
 
Jackson, TN has WBBJ (ABC) and WJKT (Fox) and will be getting NBC on an LP station soon, but no CBS. The only likely way Jackson will get CBS is possibly on a subchannel, since WBBJ and WJKT are the only two full power stations, but with how they've been sitting on their backsides about doing anything worth watching with their subchannels I'm not holding my breath.
 
Bowling Green, KY, has their own ABC station, and we watched their news while we were staying there a couple of weeks ago. I was able to watch channel 5 (CBS) out of Nashville, so it felt like home to me. I was not able to find NBC on the TV in our motel room, but I believe it was a subchannel. I found Fox (I think), but they didn't have a 9:00 p.m. newscast, to which I have become accustomed, since I must get up early. I was able to watch a program or two over the local PBS station.

Agreed that this should be moved over to the national TV board.
 
Bowling Green KY has had a full powered NBC affiliate for many years on channel 40. I believe CBS and Fox are both on subchannels there now.
 
While South Bend, IN has all big 4 networks OTA, ABC is only available OTA if you live within 30 or 40 miles of South Bend, due to WSJV dropping ABC for Fox back in 1994 or 1995, & ABC had to affiliate with low power station WBND-LP (now WBND-LD). Terre Haute, IN doesn't have their own ABC affiliate right now, but WFXW (which used to be an ABC affiliate) has requested new call letters after they dropped Fox to re-affiliate with ABC. So now, Fox isn't available OTA in Terre Haute, except for maybe those close enough to some of Indianapolis's signals. Terre Haute only has 4 full power stations licensed to their market.
 
Springfield, MA was one of those markets for many, many years. They had NBC (WWLP-22), ABC (WGGB-40), and PBS (WGBY-57), but the CBS and Fox stations received were out of Hartford, CT. The area is now served by WSHM-LP 67, and WGGBDT2 is now a Fox affiliate.

I know that Watertown, NY was very similar, with only CBS (WWNY-7), ABC (WWTI-50), and PBS (WPBS-16), but the NBC that was received was out of Syracuse (WSTM-3).
 
Salisbury, MD has ABC (WMDT-47), CBS (WBOC-16), FOX (WBOC-16.2, picked up through PSIP as 21.2 and branded as "FOX 21"), but no NBC of their own. WBOC carried a part-time NBC affiliation until 1980 when WMDT signed on and picked up the part-time affiliation, keeping it until 1992. Depending on where one lives on the Eastern Shore explains what NBC affiliate comes (WRC in Salisbury, WBAL in Ocean City MD, WCAU in Rehoboth Beach DE, etc.).
 
Dave said:
While South Bend, IN has all big 4 networks OTA, ABC is only available OTA if you live within 30 or 40 miles of South Bend, due to WSJV dropping ABC for Fox back in 1994 or 1995, & ABC had to affiliate with low power station WBND-LP (now WBND-LD). Terre Haute, IN doesn't have their own ABC affiliate right now, but WFXW (which used to be an ABC affiliate) has requested new call letters after they dropped Fox to re-affiliate with ABC. So now, Fox isn't available OTA in Terre Haute, except for maybe those close enough to some of Indianapolis's signals. Terre Haute only has 4 full power stations licensed to their market.
Click to expand...

38 is rebranding as WAWV ("ABC for the Wabush Valley"):
http://mywabashvalley.com/images/Multi_Media/mywabashvalley/nxd_media/dox/pdf/2011_07/GM%20Letter%20WAWV.pdf

This is a homecoming of sorts as they were ABC prior to 1995, the changeover happens September 1st...
 
The Florence-Myrtle Beach South Carolina market was without a local NBC affiliate until August 8, 2008, when Raycom signed on digital-only WMBF, channel 32, from Myrtle Beach, and has only had a local FOX affiliate since 1997 when another Myrtle Beach station, WFXB, channel 43, got the affiliation.

For NBC, the market relied on either Columbia's WIS-TV 10 in the west or Wilmington, NC's WECT-TV 6 in the east. As for FOX (at least over the air), that came from Wilmington's WSFX-TV 26 from 1994-1997.

Speaking of Wilmington, that market, with only three full-power commercial outlets, was also late to the Big-4 game, not getting its own CBS affiliate until channel 26 signed on in 1984 (as WJKA-TV). WECT-TV had a joint affiliation with NBC and CBS until that time. In 1994, WJKA dumped CBS to become Fox affiliate WSFX, bringing Fox over-the-air to Wilmington for the first time (FOX had been seen cable-only as "Fox 9 Wilmington" before this). As for CBS, that would be seen on either FLorence's WBTW, Greenville's WNCT or Raleigh's WRAL until 2000, when WRAL owner Capitol Broadcasting bought low-power WSSN, channel 10, rebranding it as CBS 10 WILM. Though a low power station, in the geographically condensed Wilmington DMA and with cable, coverage is somewhat on-par with the full-power stations.
 
fortmill said:
Bowling Green KY has had a full powered NBC affiliate for many years on channel 40. I believe CBS and Fox are both on subchannels there now.
Click to expand...
I remember looking at the channel guide at the motel and not being able to find those. (I found Fox.) At any rate, it would be better for them to just receive the CBS and NBC from Nashville. I found CBS from Nashville while in BG, and watched my own local news from there, in addition to local Bowling Green news over WBKO (ABC).
 
For decades Lima, Ohio had only one commercial television station WLIO(NBC) and its predicessors WIMA-TV and WLOK-TV on Channel 35 analog now DT-8.1 with Fox on DT-2

But for the past decade some newcomes have finally arrived...although they are mostly low-power stations which have been recently aquired by WLIO's owners.

WOHL (former Fox affilliate now airing ABC)
WLQP (ABC..later moved to WOHL)
WLMO (CBS..also on WOHL's DT-2)

not counting WBGU-TV (PBS..though licensed to Lima until recently)but broadcasts in Bowling Green, Ohio
 
Limp73 said:
not counting WBGU-TV (PBS..though licensed to Lima until recently)but broadcasts in Bowling Green, Ohio
Click to expand...

As far as I know, WBGU was always licensed to Bowling Green, broadcasting from Bowling Green State University.
 
Bluenoser said:
Dave said:
While South Bend, IN has all big 4 networks OTA, ABC is only available OTA if you live within 30 or 40 miles of South Bend, due to WSJV dropping ABC for Fox back in 1994 or 1995, & ABC had to affiliate with low power station WBND-LP (now WBND-LD). Terre Haute, IN doesn't have their own ABC affiliate right now, but WFXW (which used to be an ABC affiliate) has requested new call letters after they dropped Fox to re-affiliate with ABC. So now, Fox isn't available OTA in Terre Haute, except for maybe those close enough to some of Indianapolis's signals. Terre Haute only has 4 full power stations licensed to their market.
Click to expand...

38 is rebranding as WAWV ("ABC for the Wabush Valley"):
http://mywabashvalley.com/images/Multi_Media/mywabashvalley/nxd_media/dox/pdf/2011_07/GM%20Letter%20WAWV.pdf

This is a homecoming of sorts as they were ABC prior to 1995, the changeover happens September 1st...
Click to expand...

Any word on whether a replacement Fox "affiliate," even if it was a subchannel of WTHI or a LPTV, might be launched in the Terre Haute area?
 
Tim from Springfield said:
Bluenoser said:
Dave said:
While South Bend, IN has all big 4 networks OTA, ABC is only available OTA if you live within 30 or 40 miles of South Bend, due to WSJV dropping ABC for Fox back in 1994 or 1995, & ABC had to affiliate with low power station WBND-LP (now WBND-LD). Terre Haute, IN doesn't have their own ABC affiliate right now, but WFXW (which used to be an ABC affiliate) has requested new call letters after they dropped Fox to re-affiliate with ABC. So now, Fox isn't available OTA in Terre Haute, except for maybe those close enough to some of Indianapolis's signals. Terre Haute only has 4 full power stations licensed to their market.
Click to expand...

38 is rebranding as WAWV ("ABC for the Wabush Valley"):
http://mywabashvalley.com/images/Multi_Media/mywabashvalley/nxd_media/dox/pdf/2011_07/GM%20Letter%20WAWV.pdf

This is a homecoming of sorts as they were ABC prior to 1995, the changeover happens September 1st...
Click to expand...

Any word on whether a replacement Fox "affiliate," even if it was a subchannel of WTHI or a LPTV, might be launched in the Terre Haute area?
Click to expand...

WTHI's Wikipedia article mentions that it's unclear as to what will happen with Fox after September...the station currently runs TheCoolTV on 10.2 and weather on 10.3 .
 
ssetta said:
Springfield, MA was one of those markets for many, many years. They had NBC (WWLP-22), ABC (WGGB-40), and PBS (WGBY-57), but the CBS and Fox stations received were out of Hartford, CT. The area is now served by WSHM-LP 67, and WGGBDT2 is now a Fox affiliate.

I know that Watertown, NY was very similar, with only CBS (WWNY-7), ABC (WWTI-50), and PBS (WPBS-16), but the NBC that was received was out of Syracuse (WSTM-3).
Click to expand...

Watertown still is... The only additions are Fox is on a Class A station (also on WWNY-DT2) and CW is on WWTI-DT2. NBC is mainly from WSTM out of Syracuse.

Utica, NY is another one... NBC (WKTV-2), CW (WKTV-DT2), ABC (WUTR-20), MyNetworkTV (WUTR-DT2, WPNY-LP 11 and W53AM), Fox (WFXV-33). CBS is WTVH out of Syracuse. PBS is on W59AU (a LP Translator of WCNY-TV, Syracuse)
 
Harrisonburg VA has only one OTA commercial station, WHSV/3, RF 49. WHSV carries ABC HD on 3.1, FOX SD on 3.2, ABC SD for Winchester VA on 3.3, and MY TV on 3.4! Meanwhile, WVIR/29, RF 32 in nearby Charlottesville is the ad hoc local NBC and CW. WVIR has two digital translators in the market. There is no CBS in the Harrrisonburg market at all. Comcast Cable:

Analog---ABC-WHSV
CBS-WUSA
NBC-WVIR
Fox-WTTG
CW-WVIR2
MY-WHSV4
HD------ABC-WHSV
CBS-WUSA
NBC-WVIR
Fox-WTTG
digtial--ABC-WRIC
tier CBS-WTVR
NBC-WRC
Fox-WHSV2
Direct and Dish Network
ABC-WHSV
CBS-WUSA
NBC-WRC
Fox-WHSV2
CW--WDCW
 
I've always found it curious that Harrisonburg and Charlottesville didn't end up together in a hyphenated TV market. Both communities are about 55 miles apart by interstate, similar to Roanoke-Lynchburg, and a common mountaintop transmitter site in Shenandoah National Forest for WHSV, WVIR, and, later, WCAV, would have allowed coverage of the two core cities in such a market. I'm guessing either terrain concerns or maybe WVIR not wanting a VHF competitor (and a powerful low band one at that) kept things separate?
 
harrisburgpatv said:
Salisbury, MD has ABC (WMDT-47), CBS (WBOC-16), FOX (WBOC-16.2, picked up through PSIP as 21.2 and branded as "FOX 21"), but no NBC of their own. WBOC carried a part-time NBC affiliation until 1980 when WMDT signed on and picked up the part-time affiliation, keeping it until 1992. Depending on where one lives on the Eastern Shore explains what NBC affiliate comes (WRC in Salisbury, WBAL in Ocean City MD, WCAU in Rehoboth Beach DE, etc.).
Click to expand...

Some of the Delmarva viewers can pick up WMGM from South Jersey for NBC over the air.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom