Stations "Gone to Jesus"?

[only1moore]

KAAH/Honolulu. They first signed on in 1982 as KSHO, an independent, before being born again in 1992 as a TBN station.

 

[RadioDze]

WLXI in Greensboro, NC. Channel 61 signed on in 1984 with a music video format, but later became (and is to this day) a Christian station.

 

[notalkallstatic]

It hasn't happened yet, but it could very well happen:

WPGA-TV Macon, GA.

Right now, it's an ABC affiliate, but on 1/1/10, it will be switching to independent (and probably religious in the very near future) because the president of WPGA says that the soaps on WPGA are to risque, and that "running a good bit of gay and lesbian stuff on it" is not appropriate.

You can read the full article at: http://www.macon.com/149/story/897611.html

 

[mleach]

It hasn't happened yet, but it could very well happen:

WPGA-TV Macon, GA.

Right now, it's an ABC affiliate, but on 1/1/10, it will be switching to independent (and probably religious in the very near future) because the president of WPGA says that the soaps on WPGA are to risque, and that "running a good bit of gay and lesbian stuff on it" is not appropriate.

You can read the full article at: http://www.macon.com/149/story/897611.html

You may be right.

I read the article, me thinks there is much more to this story than just "too much gay stuff".

Besides as witnessed in the past with former Miss California Carrie Prejean, actor Seth Rogen, Fred/Shirley Phelps, James Dobson, Oklahoma's Sally Kern, the late Jerry Falwell, Virginia's WFQX-FM Radio in the 90's, etc.....to bring up the "gay" angle..one can expect to be talked about from coast to coast ..at least temporary anyway.

 

[Ultimajock]

Besides as witnessed in the past with former Miss California Carrie Prejean, actor Seth Rogen, Fred/Shirley Phelps, James Dobson, Oklahoma's Sally Kern, the late Jerry Falwell, Virginia's WFQX-FM Radio in the 90's, etc.....to bring up the "gay" angle..one can expect to be talked about from coast to coast ..at least temporary anyway.

...perhaps I've missed something, but what exactly did Rogen do to warrant listing him among these stellar homophobes? ;-) ...

 

[mleach]

Besides as witnessed in the past with former Miss California Carrie Prejean, actor Seth Rogen, Fred/Shirley Phelps, James Dobson, Oklahoma's Sally Kern, the late Jerry Falwell, Virginia's WFQX-FM Radio in the 90's, etc.....to bring up the "gay" angle..one can expect to be talked about from coast to coast ..at least temporary anyway.

...perhaps I've missed something, but what exactly did Rogen do to warrant listing him among these stellar homophobes? ;-) ...

About two years ago Denver's Rocky Mountain News reporter Penny Parker and KHOW-AM talk show host Peter Boyles both had reported that just after Seth wrapped up the movie "Pineapple Express" in New Mexico, Seth said he didn't like working beside those who were gay and how he was against gay marriage and civil unions. Seth Rogen never did deny any of it.

 

[trusty]

* KTGF ch.16, Great Falls Montana -- was an NBC affiliate until 2005, when it flipped to Fox, later becoming independent. In Steptember 2009, financial problems led KTGF to be flipped to JCTV, TBN's young adult network. That station was what inspired me to start this thread, especially since this station, once a Big 3 affiliate, "fell" the farthest.

Going the other way, in the early-to-mid 70's, Pat Robertson built his 2nd station in Atlanta (WHAE/46), which is now the CBS affiliate (with a little help from the great New World (Order) swaps that included WAGA to Fox)

 

[Markxxx]

WJYS (Channel 62 licensed to Hammond, Indiana) started out as shopping channel, showing Home Shopping Network 2. Then WEHS Channel 60 (licensed to Aurora, IL, but broadcasting from Sears Tower) which was the main station to show HSN, wanted to buy it but the FCC rules then wouldn't allow it.

So WJYS tried a whole bunch of formats and they went to mainstream programs showing reruns of "Laverne & Shirley" and "The Odd Couple" among others. But because WJYS had it's transmitter in Tinley Park (the south suburbs of Chicago) unlike other Chicago TV stations who were on John Hancock or Sears Tower, the signal of WJYS could never even reach to downtown Chicago.

So then WJYS turned to mostly religious programs with infomercials thrown in between them. Now that WJYS has it's digital signal on Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), who knows if they'll try to go mainstream again.

 

[dave73]

WJYS (Channel 62 licensed to Hammond, Indiana) started out as shopping channel, showing Home Shopping Network 2. Then WEHS Channel 60 (licensed to Aurora, IL, but broadcasting from Sears Tower) which was the main station to show HSN, wanted to buy it but the FCC rules then wouldn't allow it.

So WJYS tried a whole bunch of formats and they went to mainstream programs showing reruns of "Laverne & Shirley" and "The Odd Couple" among others. But because WJYS had it's transmitter in Tinley Park (the south suburbs of Chicago) unlike other Chicago TV stations who were on John Hancock or Sears Tower, the signal of WJYS could never even reach to downtown Chicago.

So then WJYS turned to mostly religious programs with infomercials thrown in between them. Now that WJYS has it's digital signal on Willis Tower (formerly Sears Tower), who knows if they'll try to go mainstream again.

I believe WJYS will go mainstream as more ministries seek to get their masses on the air. With WJYS on the Sears Tower (I refuse to call it the Willis Tower), and WMVT Milwaukee no longer on 36, WJYS should be a full market signal now, which will allow the station to be viewed in the northern suburbs, and get churches up north to consider buying airtime for their masses.

Prior to going digital, they had a translator on channel 34 on the Sears Tower (ironically, they carry their former translator on PSIP 62.2) in order to cover parts of the northern suburbs (& parts of the north side of Chicago) since 62 was transmitting out of Tinley Park along I-80, near Harlem Avenue, where the analog tower still stands.

 

[Stanislav]

It hasn't happened yet, but it could very well happen:

WPGA-TV Macon, GA.

Right now, it's an ABC affiliate, but on 1/1/10, it will be switching to independent (and probably religious in the very near future) because the president of WPGA says that the soaps on WPGA are to risque, and that "running a good bit of gay and lesbian stuff on it" is not appropriate.

You can read the full article at: http://www.macon.com/149/story/897611.html

The actual quote from the station prez (Lowell Register) is:

"I had somebody tell me they’re running a good bit of gay and lesbian stuff on it, that’s really just in-your-face so to speak, and I’m not sure that’s appropriate. That’s happening in prime time," he said. "I’m not really happy with it."

So, the head honcho of the station isn't even familiar with his own programming? He's acting on the basis of others' perceptions and reports -- or more accurately, apparently one person? (He does use the singular "I had somebody tell me," not "I've had many [or even several] people tell me.")

Given the timing (the article is dated October 29), I wonder if it was the relatively mild lesbian scenes in the previous week's episode of FlashForward that caused someone to blow a fuse and get Register all riled up?

So, once again, as it did for many years, Macon will lack a full compliment of dedicated network affiliates, with ABC programming going to Fox affiliate WGXA (who will put it on a subchannel). At least with digital, a station doesn't have to tape-delay and juggle schedules to try to accommodate two networks -- they can pretty much carry the full schedule for both now.

 

[mleach]

The actual quote from the station prez (Lowell Register) is:

"I had somebody tell me they’re running a good bit of gay and lesbian stuff on it, that’s really just in-your-face so to speak, and I’m not sure that’s appropriate. That’s happening in prime time," he said. "I’m not really happy with it."

So, the head honcho of the station isn't even familiar with his own programming? He's acting on the basis of others' perceptions and reports -- or more accurately, apparently one person? (He does use the singular "I had somebody tell me," not "I've had many [or even several] people tell me.")

And chances are I bet this dude believes ABC's "Cougar Town" is an educational show about cats and how they live in the jungles of Africa so therefor "Cougar Town" is very appropriate to show in school to a second grade geography class.

Anyway, as I pointed out earlier I still believe there is more to this story than just "gay and lesbian stuff".

 

[mjlarochelle]

* KTGF ch.16, Great Falls Montana -- was an NBC affiliate until 2005, when it flipped to Fox, later becoming independent. In Steptember 2009, financial problems led KTGF to be flipped to JCTV, TBN's young adult network. That station was what inspired me to start this thread, especially since this station, once a Big 3 affiliate, "fell" the farthest.

Going the other way, in the early-to-mid 70's, Pat Robertson built his 2nd station in Atlanta (WHAE/46), which is now the CBS affiliate (with a little help from the great New World (Order) swaps that included WAGA to Fox)

As was the case with WXNE/25 in Boston, which was originally owned by CBN when it signed on in 1977. It gradually became a conventional independent during the early 80s, and CBN sold it to FOX in January 1987. Although the station affiliated with FOX in October 1986, CBN refused to air the Joan Rivers show, and FOX ended up airing the show not on another TV station such as WSBK, but on a radio station. The station is now WFXT.

 

[Matt]

We can add one more here . . . .

Multicultural Broadcasting sold WRAY-30 in Wilson, NC (Raleigh-Durham Market) to Tri-State Christian Television. I'm not sure if an LMA was involved, but sooner or later it will flip to TCT's network feed.

Later . . . .

 

[Tim from Springfield IL]

Also Dubuque, IA's KFXB-40, which was previously, from about 1995-2007, a repeater for Fox affiliate KFXA-28 in Cedar Rapids, IA (Cedar Rapids/Waterloo/Dubuque market). Before that, from 1970-95, it was the market's second standalone ABC affiliate as KDUB (KCRG-9 Cedar Rapids is the market's main ABC station). It was sold to a religious broadcaster in 2007 (and IIRC now carries programming from CTN).