WFTV

:"For the defunct television station in Duluth, Minnesota, see WFTV (Duluth)."Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WFTV
city =
station_
station_slogan = Orlando's News Leader
Coverage You Can Count On
station_branding = "Channel 9" (general)
"Channel 9 Eyewitness News" (newscasts)
analog = 9 (VHF)
digital = 39 (UHF)
other_chs =
subchannels = 9.1 ABC 9.2 Weather radar
network =
founded =
airdate = February 1, 1958
location = Orlando, Florida
callsign_meaning = Florida TeleVision
former_callsigns = WLOF-TV (1958-1963)
former_channel_numbers =
owner = Cox Enterprises, Inc.
licensee = WFTV, Inc.
sister_stations = WRDQ
former_affiliations =
effective_radiated_power = 316 kW (analog)
1000 kW (digital)
HAAT = 479 m (analog)
492 m (digital)
class =
facility_id = 72076
coordinates = coord|28|36|8.5|N|81|5|36|W|type:landmark_scale:2000 (analog)
coord|28|34|8.3|N|81|3|15.6|W|type:landmark_scale:2000 (digital)
homepage = [http://www.wftv.com/ www.wftv.com]

WFTV channel 9 is a television station based in Orlando, Florida, affiliated with the ABC network. It transmits its analog signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter located in Bithlo, Florida, and its digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter located in Christmas, Florida. It is owned by Cox Enterprises along with independent station WRDQ TV 27.

Syndicated programming on the station includes "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?", "Family Feud", "The Oprah Winfrey Show", "Jeopardy!" and "Wheel of Fortune".

History

The station signed on the air on February 1, 1958 as WLOF-TV (for "We Love Orlando, Florida"). It had been an ABC affiliate since its launch. For years, the station was owned by a consortium of local investors. It changed its call letters to WFTV in 1963. The SFN Companies purchased the station in 1984. SFN, in turn, sold the station to Cox Communications in 1985.

Alongside its own "Eyewitness News" broadcasts, WFTV also produces a nightly 10pm newscast ("Eyewitness News at 10", formerly known as "Action News at 10") for sister station WRDQ since 2000, and a weekday morning newscast ("Eyewitness News This Morning") for said station since 2007.

For most of the time since the 1980s, WFTV has been the dominant TV news station in the Central Florida market. Although NBC affiliate WESH made some temporary advances in the 1990s, WFTV often enjoys ratings higher than the combined rating of the other network affiliates in the Central Florida market. In some newscasts it has been the highest rated ABC television station in the Southeast US.

Ocala

As of July 2006, WFTV and WFTV-DT is now seen on the co-owned Cox Cable system in Ocala (WFTV on cable channel 9 and WFTV-DT on channel 729) in addition to Gainesville's WCJB-TV. Ocala and Marion County are both part of the Orlando market. Prior to July 2006, Cox in Ocala only offered WCJB, due to contractual obligations, even though Ocala is not in the same television market as Gainesville.

Personalities

News Anchors

*Bob Opsahl, weekday evening anchor
*Martie Salt, weekday evening anchor
*Darrell Greene, weekday evening anchor
*Barbara West, weekday Noon and evening anchor
*Greg Warmoth, weekday morning anchor
*Vanessa Echols, weekday morning and Noon anchor
*Elizabeth Artz, weekend morning and Noon anchor
*Robert Maxwell, weekend evening anchor

evere Weather Center 9 Meteorologists

*Tom Terry, weekday evening chief meteorologist (AMS-CBM)
*Brian Shields, weekday morning meteorologist (AMS-CBM/NWA)
*Ben Smith, weekend morning meteorologist (AMS-CBM/NWA)
*Matt Makens weekend evening meteorologist (AMS-CBM/NWA)

News Reporters

*Jason Allen, Volusia County reporter
*Gustavo Almodóvar, general assignment reporter
*Steve Barrett, general assignment reporter
*Gregg Beck, Skywitness 9 Pilot
*Kathi Belich,, general assignment reporter
*Mark Boyle, general assignment reporter
*Andrea Conklin, general assignment reporter
*Jeff Deal, general assignment reporter
*David Dean, traffic reporter
*Melonie Holt, general assignment reporter
*Daralene Jones, general assignment reporter
*Sean Lavin, general assignment reporter
*Kenneth Moton, general assignment reporter
*Derrol Nail, general assignment reporter
*Mary Nguyen, general assignment reporter
*Kevin Oliver, Brevard County reporter
*Berndt Petersen, general assignment reporter
*Eric Rasmussen, general assignment reporter
*George Spencer, general assignment reporter
*Todd Ulrich, Action 9 investigator
*Vanessa Welch, general assignment reporter
*Tim Wetzel, general assignment reporter

ports Anchors

*Phil Burton, weekday sports anchor
* Joe Kepner, weekend sports anchor/reporter

Digital television and HDTV

On June 29, 2006, WFTV became the first Florida television station to offer newscasts in 720p HD (High Definition). It is the first Cox owned and operated station and the 10th U.S. station to offer it. With the switch to HD came a new HD set from FX Group and HD graphics from Giant Octopus. This switch had also later changed the stations news music package to Eyewitness News, which WFTV had previously used from 1995-1997.

After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17, 2009 http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf] , WFTV will continue digital broadcasts on its current pre-transition channel number, 39. [http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101231092&formid=387&fac_num=72076 CDBS Print ] ] However, through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers will display WFTV's virtual channel as 9.

Preemptions

WFTV was one of the few ABC affiliates that pre-empted Jimmy Kimmel Live. WFTV's sister stations in Atlanta (WSB-TV) and Charlotte (WSOC-TV), as well as Sinclair Broadcast Group affiliate WEAR-TV in Pensacola, also did not air the program. On November 21, 2005, however, the station did start airing the late night talk show, and now airs almost the entire ABC schedule with little preemption.

These preemptions are currently limited to some of ABC's weekend morning programming. Three out of four hours of the ABC Kids lineup are shown. The station began carrying the weekend edition of Good Morning America in the beginning of July 2007, along with its sister stations in Atlanta (WSB-TV) and Charlotte (WSOC-TV).

In the early 1980s, WFTV preempted the soap opera "The Edge of Night", which was preempted by many other ABC affiliates as well.

From 1994 thru 1996, WFTV did not air ABC's 11:00 AM program while it was "The Home Show" and "Mike and Maty". The station began to carry such programming overnights starting in 1996, not starting to air it in its proper timeslot until "The View" debuted in 1997.

In 1992, WFTV dropped two of the five hours of ABC's Saturday morning cartoons in order to add a two hour newscast. The next year, when the newscast expanded to three hours, the station ceased airing the block completely.

In 1996 an hour of ABC cartoons was restored on Sunday mornings. A year later, WFTV began to carry two hours of the lineup that were under the One Saturday Morning banner. In 1999, WFTV began its current practice to run three hours of the lineup, likely as a way to comply with federal E/I regulations.

In 2004, all Cox-owned ABC affiliates preempted the movie "Saving Private Ryan", due to the graphic violence and profanity in the film, after the FCC stepped up its vigilance following the Janet Jackson / Justin Timberlake Super Bowl incident that year. The FCC declared the film as not indecent, after the fact.

News/Station Presentation

Newscast Titles

*"Newsline 9" (1972-1974)
*"Mid-Florida News" (1974-1976)
*"Eyewitness News" (1976-1997)
*"Channel 9 Eyewitness News" (1997-Present)

References

External links

* [http://www.wftv.com/ WFTV Official Website]
*TVQ|WFTV
*BIA|WFTV|TV|TV