Re: WAXN-TV to go FOX?
Keep FOX on 18....the signal is better
> A few comments. WRAL wet on the air as a NBC affiliate, but
> switched to ABC by the very early 60s, and for good reason.
> Eastern NC was already well served by full-time NBCs (WITN)
> and CBSs (WNCT), but was virgin territory for ABC. They
> immediately became one of ABCs top stations while WTVD had
> to compete with both WITN and WNCT anywhere east of Garner.
> WTVD was about equally CBS and NBC, with a large percentage
> of their programs aired out of pattern. Much of Eastern NC
> became a four station market---ABC5, NBC7, CBS9, and
> CBS/NBC11, so its easy to see who the winner was. By the
> time 5 switched to CBS, conditions were different, but WRAL
> probably still was not all that thrilled about switching to
> CBS. Regarding WCCB in Charlotte, channel 18 was a horrible
> trainwreck during their ABC years. Signing on in 1965,
> WCCB/36 got quick acceptance from viewers. Bahakel quickly
> changed to 18 with 5000000watts, the first station in the US
> to broadcast at that high power, and they got the full time
> ABC quickly (1968)---probably because of the high power
> which, from what I recall, provided excellent reception
> throughout the area. But Bahakel would never invest
> anything else in the station. They had the worst syndicated
> programing you can imagine--stuff like Topper, Our Miss
> Brooks and lots of traveloges. They broadcast some kind of
> WW II documentary series at 7PM for years. Whereas WBTV and
> WSOC broadcast slick, major market newscasts, WCCB's efforts
> would have been more appropriate in market #300 and as a
> result never lasted long. Bahakel turned down the power of
> the transmiter, I am sure, to save on the electric bill and
> nothing else. When Turner/WRET-36 got the NBC affiliation,
> no one was surprised. They did produce a decent medium
> market newscast for a time, which was no match for 3 and 9's
> big time newscasts. For a while, they relied on the
> syndicated programing that WRET had used as an independent,
> which was fairly impressive. They made no effort to
> increase their 1500000 watt signal or upgrade the aging
> transmitter which was having lots of problems by that time.
> Within a year or two, Turner sold WRET to Westinghouse, at
> the time one of the most respected broadcasters in the
> country. Westinghouse renamed the station WPCQ and the
> community had great expectations. Westinghouse never
> followed through on any of their promises--gradually
> canceling all local newcasts and never updating their
> syndicated offerings. They did broadcast Oprah's first talk
> show which was produced at Westinghouse's Baltimore station.
> They did nothing to upgrade the seriously ailing
> transmitter. I remember once they were off the air for
> about a week when their old transmission line burned out.
> Ironically, it was almost as if Bahakel had taken over 36!
> Meanwhile WCCB/18 got by as an independent---which surprised
> everyone, who had expected them to go all "religous."
> (remember PTL was very big at the time and switched from 36
> to 18 when 36 went NBC) Within a few years Westinghouse
> sold out to a holding company who at least did replace the
> transmission system, but did not increase the power. They
> eventually put on a low-budget newscast and bought Dukes of
> Hazard reruns, but that was about it until Belo came along.
> BTW, WCCB refused to take the FOX affiliation for about a
> year after FOX started, making Charlotte the largest market
> in the country without the new network. Finally,just a
> month or so before WJZY/46 came on the air, they gave in and
> took the FOX affiliation.
>
