WABI-DT2

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WABI-DT2 | station_
station_slogan =
station_branding = Eastern and Central Maine's CW
TV 5 News
analog = cable (various)
digital = WABI-DT 19.2 (UHF)
affiliations = The CW (via The CW Plus)| founded = 1998
location = Bangor, Maine
callsign_meaning = see WABI-TV
owner = Diversified Communications
licensee = Community Broadcasting Service
former_callsigns = "WBAN" (1998-2006)
former_affiliations = The WB (1998-2006 via The WB 100+)
effective_radiated_power = 390.9 kW (digital)
HAAT = 363 m (digital)
facility_id = 17005 (digital)
coordinates = coord|44|42|11.6|N|69|4|45.1|W|type:landmark (digital)
homepage =

WABI-DT2 is the CW-affiliated television station for Eastern and Central Maine. The station is part of The CW Plus, a special CW feed that broadcasts on cable and / or over-the-air on a digital signal. The CW Plus serves smaller television markets with a DMA rank above 100 (the Bangor market has a rank of 152). WABI-DT2 is a second digital subchannel of CBS affiliate WABI-TV which is owned by Diversified Communications. Over-the-air, WABI-DT2 broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 19.2 from WABI's transmitter which is located on Peaked Mountain in Dixmont.

The station is also offered on various cable providers. On most Time Warner systems, it is located on channel 10. However, channel placement on other cable providers is variable. DirecTV also carries WABI-DT2 locally, on Channel 14. Dish Network does not offer WABI-DT2, though it does carry all other full power local stations. The station is known on the air as "Eastern and Central Maine's CW". WABI-DT2's parent station has studios on Hildreth Street in West Bangor.

History

WABI-DT2 started in 1998 and had the fictional call letters of "WBAN". It was part of The WB 100+ cable group as The WB required over-the-air affiliates above the top 100 markets to be on cable. WBAN gradually replaced WBGR-LP as the WB affiliate in Bangor. On Adelphia cable systems, WBAN was located on channel 4 and was known on-air as "Bangor's WB 4". In early-2006, it swapped channel positions with Fox affiliate WFVX-LP. On January 24, UPN and The WB announced that they would cease broadcasting and merge. The new combined network would be called The CW. The letters would represent the first initial of its corporate parents: CBS (the parent company of UPN) and the Warner Bros. unit of Time Warner. There was no UPN affiliate in Bangor.

Programming from the network was provided by cable via WPME from Portland and WSBK-TV from Boston. WPME is now Portland's MyNetworkTV affiliate while WSBK has become an independent station. As of December 6, the other new network (which is co-owned with Fox by News Corporation) MyNetworkTV is now seen through a secondary affiliation with WFVX. On July 28, WABI announced that it was to create a new second digital subchannel to become an affiliate of The CW. On the station's website, an announcement said that Time Warner, which was in the process of taking over coverage in the Bangor area for bankrupt Adelphia, would have WBAN on its system. WBAN would then become a simulcast of WABI's second digital subchannel. This was part of a three year deal with WABI which also let the main WABI channel be on the system as well.

On September 18, The CW debuted on WBAN (now known officially as having the WABI-DT2 call sign). On January 10, 2007, WABI introduced a redesigned website for itself as well as WABI-DT2. As of June 2008, WABI-DT2 airs on DirecTV channel 14. However, it is not yet offered on Dish Network. The CW Plus is a similar operation to The WB 100+. This service provides the affiliate with programming 24/7, but allows the affiliate to preempt certain blocks for local programs or locally-acquired syndicated programs. In addition to morning and primetime preemptions designated for local news, WABI-DT2 preempts the allowed two-hours in daytime (10 to 11 A.M. and 11:30 A.M. to 12:30 P.M.). The station also preempts some CW Plus overnight infomercials in order to provide additional syndicated entertainment programming and movies.

News operation

Like most WB 100+ affiliates, WBAN offered the nationally syndicated morning show, "The Daily Buzz", on weekday mornings from 6 to 9. When WBAN became WABI-DT2, it added local news and weather updates from WABI during that program. There was also a simulcast of WABI's weekday Noon newscast and a new weeknight 10 o'clock news (seen only on WABI-DT2) added to the lineup. In September 2008 WABI-DT2 began airing WABi-TV's noon newscast on a half-hour delay. The WABI-DT2 10 o'clock production is not the only one in the market. WFVX also airs one that is produced by ABC affiliate WVII-TV. However, back in mid-October of 2006, that newscast became taped with only the sports segment being produced live. In January of 2008, WABI began to produce a half hour long weekday morning newscast on WABI-DT2 at 7 A.M. This displaced the first half of the second hour of "The Daily Buzz" on the station. The first and third hours of that program are still seen on the station in their entirety. There is no weekend news on the station.

News team

"The Daily Buzz"
"(6 to 7 and 7:30 to 9 A.M.)"
*Anchors:
**Andy B. Campbell
**Andrea Jackson
*News Updates:
**Kia Malone
*Weather:
**Mitch English

"Local Updates"
*Anchor:
**Joy Hollowell
*Weather:
**Todd Simcox

"TV 5 Morning News on The CW"
"(7 to 7:30 A.M.)"
*Anchors:
**Wayne Harvey
**Joy Hollowell
*Weather:
**Todd Simcox

"TV 5 News at Noon"
"(12:30 to 1 P.M.)"
*Anchor:
**Jon Small
*Weather:
**Todd Simcox

"TV 5 Primetime News on The CW"
"(10 to 10:30 P.M.)"
*Anchor:
**Craig Colson
*Weather:
**Greg Dutra - Monday through Wednesday
**Chris Ewing - Thursday and Friday
*Sports:
**Tim Throckmorton

"WABI-DT2 features additional news personnel from WABI. See that article for a complete listing."

Logos

External links

* [http://www.wabi.tv/content/4031/cw/ WABI-DT2 "Eastern and Central Maine's CW"]
* [http://www.wabi.tv WABI-TV/DT]
* [http://www.cwtv.com The CW]