WNYF-CA

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WNYF-CA / WNYF-LP
city =
station_
station_slogan = Your North Country's Fox
station_branding = Fox 28
analog = 28 (UHF)
digital = 35 (UHF, WWNY-DT 7.2)
other_chs =
affiliations = Fox
network =
founded =
airdate = 2001
location = WNYF-CA: Watertown, New York
WNYF-LP: Massena, New York
callsign_meaning = Watertown, New York Fox
former_callsigns = WNYF-LP: W28BC (until 2002)
former_channel_numbers =
owner = United Communications Corporation
licensee =
sister_stations = WWNY-TV
former_affiliations = ABC (WNYF-LP had formerly been a WWTI repeater)
UPN (secondary until 2006)
effective_radiated_power = WNYF-CA: 2,610 watts
WNYF-LP: 950 watts
WNYF-CD: 15000 watts
HAAT = WNYF-CA: 50 m
WNYF-LP: 91 m
WNYF-CD: 150 m
class =
facility_id = WNYF-CA: 16743
WNYF-LP: 16744
WNYF-CD: 168478
coordinates = WNYF-CA: coord|43|57|23|N|75|50|26|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
WNYF-LP: coord|44|54|14|N|74|53|01|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
WNYF-CD: coord|43|57|15|N|75|50|45|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
homepage = http://www.wwnytv.net

WNYF-CA is a Class A television station that is licensed to Watertown, New York. The station broadcasts an analog signal on UHF channel 28 from a transmitter in East Watertown. WNYF-LP is another television station licensed to Massena. This station also broadcasts an analog signal on UHF channel 28 with no digital signal of its own. Its transmitter is located located south of Massena Springs. Together, the two stations serve as the area's Fox affiliates.

Owned by United Communications Corporation, the stations are sister to CBS affiliate WWNY-TV. All three stations are based at studios on Arcade Street in downtown Watertown. WNYF-CA and WNYF-LP do not yet broadcast digital signals of their own; Fox 28's digital signal is offered as a WWNY digital subchannel. WNYF can be found on Time Warner Cable channel 12 and high definition digital channel 878.

Syndicated programming on the station includes: "According to Jim", "Two and a Half Men", "Everybody Loves Raymond", "Scrubs", and "That '70s Show".

History

Before becoming a separate full-time Fox affiliate, WNYF was a translator for ABC affiliate WWTI. At that point, WWTI and WWNY had secondary affiliations with Fox. While WWTI broadcasted Fox Sports Sunday NFL games, WWNY broadcast most of the Fox programming lineup. In 2001, United Communications Corporation entered into an agreement with Smith Broadcasting to make WNYF-CA a separate full-time Fox affiliate. WNYF-LP, a full-time low-powered satellite station, was established in Massena to expand WNYF-CA's signal reach. An agreement with Time Warner in the Fall of 2001 placed the station on cable channel 2.

Eventually, it moved to channel 12. After a year of joint operation of WNYF by Smith Broadcasting, United Communications Corporation took complete ownership of the station and made it sister to WWNY. Until September 18, 2006 when UPN shut down and merged with The WB, WNYF also ran some programming from that network.

On August 25, 2008 WWNY received FCC approval to reasssign its existing digital channel (UHF 35) and associated antenna facilities to WNYF in 2009. WNYF-CD will carry a digital high definition signal after WWNY-DT returns to its former analogue position, VHF 7.

Newscasts

On April 11, 2001, WWNY began producing a weeknight 10 o'clock newscast on WNYF. However, because the station was not carried on cable yet, the news was only seen by only a handful of viewers that could receive the over-the-air signals of WNYF. The 10 P.M. newscast debuted for the rest of the area on October 4.

"7 News Tonight on Fox"
"(Weeknights 10 to 11 P.M.)"
*Anchor:
**Chris Onorato
*Weather:
**Rick DeFranco
*Sports:
**Mel Busler

"WNYF uses additional news personnel from WWNY. See that article for a complete listing."

Digital transition

WNYF is currently carried via a standard-definition digital subchannel of WWNY. WNYF-CA holds an FCC-issued construction permit to build independent digital HDTV facilities on UHF channel 35 using WWNY-DT's existing antenna structure after WWNY returns to VHF channel 7. [ [http://dtvtransition.blogspot.com/2008/08/more-info.html WWNY/WNYF DTV Transition: Information and answers to questions about the transition from analog television broadcasts to digital.] ]

As of 2008, no plans have yet been announced to convert WNYF-LP Massena to digital.

External links

* [http://www.wwnytv.net WNYF-CA/LP "Fox 28"]
* [http://www.fox.com Fox]
*TVQ|WNYF-CA
*TVQ|WNYF-LP
*TVQ|WNYF-CD