- WALA-TV
Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WALA-TV
city =
station_
station_slogan = Mobile's News Leader
station_branding = Fox Ten
analog = 10 (VHF)
digital = 9 (VHF)
other_chs =
affiliations = Fox
network =
founded =
airdate =January 14 ,1953
location =Mobile, Alabama /Pensacola, Florida
callsign_meaning = We
Are
Loyal
Alabamians
(ALA is also an abbreviation for the state of Alabama)
former_callsigns =
former_channel_numbers =
owner = LIN TV Corporation
licensee = LIN of Alabama, LLC
sister_stations =WBPG
former_affiliations = Primary:NBC (1953-1996)
Secondary:
ABC (1953-1959)CBS (1953-1955)
DuMont (1953-1955)
effective_radiated_power = 316 kW (analog)
29 kW (digital)
HAAT = 381 m (both)
class =
facility_id = 4143
coordinates = coord|30|41|16.7|N|87|47|53.6|W|type:landmark_scale:2000
homepage = [http://www.myfoxgulfcoast.com/ www.myfoxgulfcoast.com]WALA-TV ("Fox Ten") is the
Fox Broadcasting Company affiliate for southernAlabama and the western Panhandle area ofFlorida . The station is owned byLIN Television . The station offers a news-intensive general entertainment format. In addition to Fox programming, newscasts air from 5:00-9:00 a.m., 5:00-6:00 p.m., and 9:00-10:00 p.m. on weekdays. The station also runs a blend of syndicated programming. As a Fox affiliate, WALA has the rare distinction of airing some of the strongest syndicated programming fromKing World (nowCBS Television Distribution ) which the "Big Three" affiliates in other markets would normally air: this includes "The Oprah Winfrey Show ", "The Dr. Phil Show ", "Jeopardy! ", and "Wheel Of Fortune".History
WALA signed on for the first time on
January 14 ,1953 as Mobile's second television station to go on the air and the oldest station in the area. The station aired programs fromNBC , ABC,CBS , and DuMont. The station was locally owned by W. O. Pape along with WALA 1410 AM. WhenWEAR-TV signed on, ABC and CBS programming moved there, and CBS programming would move toWKRG in 1955. As the most established station, WALA got the strongest syndicated programming and had the top-rated newscasts.Pape sold WALA in 1964 to the Roywood Corporation. In 1969 WALA would be sold to the Universal Communications Corporation, the television arm of the "
Detroit News ." Through the years, WALA was the leading station in a three-station race.Gannett bought out Universal Communications in the merger with the Detroit News' publisher The Evening News Association, but due to the company's ownership of the "Pensacola News Journal " andFederal Communications Commission regulations on common ownership of television stations and newspapers, Gannett owned WALA for only one day in 1986. Gannett sold WALA toKnight Ridder Broadcasting, who, in turn, sold it to Burnham Broadcasting in 1989.The Fox network wanted to upgrade affiliates in many markets when it acquired rights to broadcast NFL Football's NFC games in the mid-1990s. In 1994, Fox announced affiliation deals with
New World Communications stations in larger markets. The deal involved switching all the stations which were former "Big Three" affiliates to Fox in the fall of 1994. More stations would switch to Fox in 1995 when New World bought out two more conglamerate broadcast groups: Argyle Television and Citicasters. In turn,Newscorp purchased New World to merge it with theFox Television Stations Group in 1997.As a result of Fox's influence on gaining more VHF affiliations to establish itself as a "Big Four" network, more upgrades were still sought out -- this time in smaller markets. The formation of SF Broadcasting with Savoy Broadcasting was the result of the smaller markets due in part to Fox owning a voting stock in Savvoy. SF then announced the purchase of WALA, along with
WVUE inNew Orleans, Louisiana ,KHON inHonolulu, Hawaii , andWLUK inGreen Bay, Wisconsin . Aside from WVUE, then an ABC affiliate, the other three were NBC affiliates. The deal stipulated that all four stations should convert to Fox affiliation. Before the sale became final in 1995, it was determined that Fox's stock in SF would not be considered voting stock.On
January 1 ,1996 , WALA, along with KHON and WVUE, switched to Fox. WLUK changed its network affiliation back in September 1995. NBC affiliation moved to former Fox affiliate WPMI, owned byClear Channel Communications . WALA airedFox Kids Network programming, unlike the New World Fox affiliates. On weekdays where NBC's daytime dramas previously aired, Fox Kids would run from 1:00-4:00 p.m -- an hour earlier than most of its Fox counterparts. Fox Kids aired on Saturday mornings in pattern. WALA, now rebranded "Fox 10", also expanded its local news on weekdays, to 5:00-8:00 a.m., 12:00-1:00 p.m., 5:00-6:00 p.m., and 9:00-10:00 p.m. Since then these times have changed only slightly.WALA, KHON, WVUE, and WLUK were sold in a group deal to Silver King/USA Broadcasting in 1997 and then to
Emmis Communications in 1998. Fox dropped weekday afternoon programming, then running for only two hours before the end of 2001, and retained its Saturday morning programming. In 2002, that was revamped as the Fox Box, and then in 2003 the programming line-up was renamed 4 Kids TV.At this point WALA, like most Fox affiliates, would purchase more talk and reality-based shows to fill timelots that once had "Big Three" network programming (in WALA's case, NBC). Emmis bought
WBPG , an affiliate ofWB Television Network in 2003, creating a newduopoly in the Mobile-Pensacola market.Emmis put all of its television stations up for sale in 2005. WALA and WBPG were sold to
LIN Television in 2005 and 2006 respectively.Until March of 2007, one of WALA's digital subchannels simulcasted WBPG, now a CW affiliate, as WBPG has no digital signal of its own. The CW is currently shown over-the-air in analog only for the time being.
On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that could result in the sale of the company. [http://www.lintv.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=298&Itemid=114]
In mid-June 2007, following the lead of most of the other LIN-owned Fox affiliates, WALA launched a new website using Fox Interactive's myFox interface.
Digital television
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