WPXA

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WPXA
city =
station_
station_slogan =
station_branding = ION Television
analog = 14 (UHF)
digital = 51 (UHF)
other_chs =
affiliations = ION Television
network =
founded =
airdate = 1988 [The "Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook" says January 15, while the "Television and Cable Factbook" says February 29.]
location = Rome/Atlanta, Georgia
callsign_meaning = PaX TV Atlanta
former_callsigns = WAWA-TV (1988-1990)
WTLK-TV (1990-1998)
former_channel_numbers =
owner = ION Media Networks, Inc.
licensee = Paxson Atlanta License, Inc.
sister_stations =
former_affiliations = independent (1988-1994)
inTV (1994-1998)
Pax TV (1998-2005)
i (2005-2007)
effective_radiated_power = 3800 kW (analog)
1000 kW (digital)
HAAT = 607 m (analog)
622 m (digital)
class =
facility_id = 51969
coordinates = coord|34|18|47.3|N|84|38|55.6|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
homepage = [http://www.ionline.tv/ www.ionline.tv]

WPXA is a television station on channel 14 in the metro Atlanta area, and carries ION Television network programming. The station's transmitter and antenna are located north-northwest of Atlanta on Bear Mountain near Waleska, near the Cherokee/Bartow county line. The TV studio is located in Marietta, next to Six Flags White Water along U.S. 41 (Cobb Parkway). It is owned by ION Media Networks, and Rome is its city of license.

The station's broadcast range extends into parts of Alabama and Tennessee and even the southwest corner of North Carolina. However, terrain shielding not accounted for in radio propagation models prevents this from regularly occurring, due to the north Georgia mountains.

Digital Television (Over The Air)

The station's over the air digital channel is multiplexed:

History

The station was issued a construction permit in 1984 on Channel 14 as WZGA but never went on air. The station went on-air in 1988 as WAWA with studios on Shorter Avenue in Rome GA and tower on Mt. Alto in Rome GA. The station was owned by American Communications. It had a general entertainment format of low budget shows, public domain movies,local news and pre-empted network programs. WAWA/WTLK occasionally carried ABC/CBS/NBC pre-empted shows from the Atlanta TV market. In 1990, the station launched "Talk TV" as WTLK-TV and moved its studios to Marietta GA and transmitter to Bear Mountain(near Canton). Along with national talk shows(Phil Donahue/Sally Jessey Raphael) the station did local shows(with studio audiences) with WSB radio's Neal Boortz, former Miss America Suzette Charles, Hosea Williams, Michael Young, WVEE's Mike Roberts, WGST's Brian Wilson and others. The station never took off in Metro Atlanta as WTLK was not a must-carry on cable. WNGM TV-34 also had the same issues as Floyd and Clarke counties were not in the Atlanta ADI. Near the end of the American WTLK era blocks of country music were run as "Country Music Time" along with many infomercials.

In 1996 the station was sold to Paxson Communications. The must-carry rules for cable systems took effect about the same time. Channels 14,34 and 57 would be added to most metro cable systems immediately. The station's format consisted of infomercials by day and Worship TV at night. Pax TV was launched in 1998 and WTLK became WPXA as a charter affiliate. Pax-TV later became i and ION television. During the Pax era, WPXA aired a late-night newscast replay of local NBC affiliate WXIA. Most Pax stations had similar arrangements with the NBC stations in their markets.

The station's broadcast tower on Bear Mountain was also the first location for WCHK-FM 105.5, now WWVA-FM 105.7.

Trivia

Rome GA also had a full power TV station (ABC/CBS/NBC/Dumont) WROM-TV Channel 9, from 1953-1957.

External links

* [http://www.ionline.tv/ ION Television website]
* [http://www.fcc.gov/fcc-bin/FMTV-service-area?x=TV252498.html FCC map of WPXA]
*TVQ|WPXA
*BIA|WPXA|TV|TV

References