WALB
Encyclopedia
WALB is the NBC
- and ABC
-affiliated television station
for Southwestern Georgia
licensed to Albany
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter in Doerun
along the Colquitt
and Worth
County line. The NBC station can also be seen on Mediacom
channel 3 and in high definition on digital channel 803, while the ABC station can be seen on channel 9 and in high definition on channel 809. Owned by Raycom Media
, WALB has studios on Stuart Avenue in Albany. Syndicated
programing on the station includes Entertainment Tonight
, Inside Edition
, The Doctors
, and The Rachael Ray Show among others.
is the area's ABC
affiliate. Known on-air as WALB ABC, this can also be seen on Mediacom channel 9 and in high definition on digital channel 809. Syndicated programming on the station includes Access Hollywood
and Storm Stories
along with additional airings of syndicated shows from the main channel. On Saturday mornings from 2:30 until 5, WALB-DT2 airs as a weather channel known as "WALB 24/7 Weather".
grove. For its first three years on-air, WALB-TV transmitted an analog signal on VHF channel 10 from a tower at its studios. As the first television outlet in Albany, it was a primary NBC affiliate with secondary relations with ABC and DuMont
.
The latter network was dropped in 1955 when it shut down and ABC remained on WALB until 1980 when WVGA (now WSWG
) signed-on. The station's first tower near Doerun was built in 1957. The radio station was sold in 1960 to Allen Woodall Senior and became known as WALG
to distinguish itself from the television station. In March 1976, a fire destroyed WALB's main broadcasting facilities but did not damage its offices.
Until 1983, it was the default NBC affiliate for Tallahassee, Florida
. Although WTWC-TV
has been that area's affiliate since then, WALB still provides city-grade coverage to much of the Georgia side of the Tallahassee market
and Grade B coverage to the city itself. In January 1992 when a plane crashed into WVGA's transmission tower and knocked the station off-air, Southwestern Georgia
became one of the only areas on the East Coast
without an ABC affiliate. As a result, cable systems in the area piped in either WSB-TV
from Atlanta, current sister station WTVM
from Columbus
, WCJB-TV
from Gainesville, Florida
, or WTXL-TV
from Tallahassee (which technically served as the de-facto affiliate due to being the closest). WALB dropped the -TV suffix in 1993.
During the floods of 1994, WALB stayed on-air with non-stop 24-hour coverage to alert citizens and provide a vital link between the public and government agencies. The station operated as the flagship of the Gray Communications Corporation (now Gray Television
) until Cosmos Broadcasting bought the station in 1998. This later became known as the Liberty Broadcasting Corporation. Although Gray no longer operates WALB, the company still has administrative offices in Albany today and operates WSWG in Moultrie
that serves as a semi-satellite of co-owned WCTV
in Tallahassee. Its digital signal on UHF channel 17 signed-on from the Doerun site in 2001.
(FCC) rules regarding station ownership because Raycom already owned Fox affiliate WFXL
. As a result, the company announced the sale of that station and eleven others to Barrington Broadcasting
. On June 12, 2009, WALB shut-off its analog signal on channel 10 and relocated its digital signal from channel 17 back to channel 10 on the same day. It was announced November 19, 2010 WALB would begin airing ABC on its second digital subchannel
beginning New Year's Day
2011. The actual launch occurred April 27, 2011 at which point This TV was dropped.
The addition of the network brings back ABC to an Albany-based station since WVGA was closed down. If not for the delay, WALB-DT2 would have represented the network's 240th affiliate. However, NBC affiliate KSBW
in Salinas, California
launched its own ABC second
digital subchannel on April 18 as the network's actual 240th affiliate just one week ahead of WALB-DT2. That station is the second subchannel affiliate of ABC established in the state of Georgia after WGXA-DT2
in Macon
.
in Savannah, Georgia
to Fort Rucker
in Alabama
for a training mission hit a guy wire connected to WFXL's 1000 feet (304.8 m) tower resulting in a crash. While the tower remained standing and intact (other than the guy wire), the station was forced to temporarily cease its over-the-air signal although broadcasts on cable were not affected. If its tower collapsed, this could have also caused the tower of WALB to topple as both were only 150 feet (45 m) apart. As a result, Raycom (which at that time still operated WFXL while the sale to Barrington awaited FCC approval) acquired auxiliary transmitters and antennas for both WALB and WFXL which were installed at the tower at WALB's studios in Albany.
On June 7, WFXL's tower was demolished but in doing so one of the tower's guy wires wrapped around one for WALB's tower as feared. As a result, this channel's tower collapsed in an incident shown on live television. Since both stations were already transmitting signals from the tower at the WALB studios, the two were still on the air at low-power. Thirteen months later, the new WALB and WFXL state of the art mega-tower was completed and began broadcasting on July 3 at 11:35 p.m.
in Columbia, South Carolina
. The station also changed its music from a theme composed by Collier Concepts to "The Tower" composed by 615 Music
used by many other NBC affiliates. Continuing its modernization, WALB built a new set in 2005 replacing the previous one used for at least twelve years.
The station launched NBC Weather Plus
in 2005 on a new second digital subchannel. Known as "WALB 24/7 Weather", the service gave continuous forecasts for up to thirty cities around Southwestern Georgia. After NBC Weather Plus shut down in December 2008, WALB-DT2 became part of This TV. WALB's weekday morning show Today in Georgia was expanded to a full two-hours from 5 until 7 beginning September 10, 2007 coinciding with the expansion of Today to four hours. "WALB's Most Wanted" segment was launched the same year to showcase some of the area's most wanted fugitives.
With the introduction of ABC on WALB-DT2
, there are simulcasts of local news from the main channel. Specifically, this includes the second hour of Good Morning Georgia, midday show at noon, as well as weeknight newscasts at 6 and 11. The area's first prime time broadcast at 7 was added on weeknights exclusive to the ABC subchannel. Weekend newscasts are simulcasted on both channels although there may be delays or pre-emptions on one due to network obligations. In addition to its main studios, WALB operates bureaus in Thomasville
(on North Broad Street) and Valdosta
(on North Patterson Street). The station operates its own weather radar
known as "WALB 24/7 Radar" at Southwest Georgia Regional Airport
.
In June 2011, News Anchors Dawn Hobby and Ben Roberts, and Executive Producer Matt Marshall received an EMMY award for Outstanding Achievement Television News Gathering Excellence for the Coastal Crisis News Special.
WALB 24/7 Weather Team (all have AMS
Seal of Approval)
Reporters
Sports
Notable former staff
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
- and ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
-affiliated television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
for Southwestern Georgia
Southwest Georgia
Southwest Georgia is a thirteen-county region in the U.S. state of Georgia. A common acronym used is SOWEGA.The largest city is Albany. Counties include Baker, Calhoun, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Lee, Miller, Mitchell, Seminole, Terrell, Thomas, and Worth.In 1995, 25% of the...
licensed to Albany
Albany, Georgia
Albany is a city in and the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. It is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area and the southwest part of the state. The population was 77,434 at the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the...
. It broadcasts a high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter in Doerun
Doerun, Georgia
Doerun is a city in Colquitt County, Georgia, United States. The population was 828 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Doerun is located at ....
along the Colquitt
Colquitt County, Georgia
Colquitt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. It was created on February 25, 1856. As of 2000, the population was 42,053. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 45,744. The county seat is Moultrie...
and Worth
Worth County, Georgia
Worth County is a county located in the southwestern part of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 21,967. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 21,285...
County line. The NBC station can also be seen on Mediacom
Mediacom
Mediacom is a cable television and communications provider in the United States. Founded in July 1995, it serves primarily smaller markets in the Midwest and Southern United States. Formerly a publicly traded firm, it went private in a $600.0 million transaction in March 2011 and is, as of 2011,...
channel 3 and in high definition on digital channel 803, while the ABC station can be seen on channel 9 and in high definition on channel 809. Owned by Raycom Media
Raycom Media
- History :Although Raycom Media dates its birth to 1996, the core of the company was formed in 1992 when Atlanta native Bert Ellis formed Ellis Communications. He eventually controlled 13 television stations and two radio stations....
, WALB has studios on Stuart Avenue in Albany. Syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
programing on the station includes Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight
Entertainment Tonight is a daily tabloid television entertainment television news show that is syndicated by CBS Television Distribution throughout the United States, Canada and in many countries around the world. Linda Bell Blue is currently the program's executive producer...
, Inside Edition
Inside Edition
Inside Edition is a thirty-minute American television syndicated news program, first aired on CBS on October 9, 1988. It was originally similar to the programs Hard Copy and A Current Affair, but now more closely resembles a condensed version of breakfast television, exclusively with pre-recorded...
, The Doctors
The Doctors (2008 TV series)
The Doctors is an American syndicated talk show airing daily in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Sweden and Finland. It debuted on September 8, 2008. The hour-long daytime program is produced by Phil McGraw and his son Jay McGraw and is distributed domestically and globally by CBS Television...
, and The Rachael Ray Show among others.
Digital programming
On WALB-DT2WALB-DT2
WALB-DT2 is the ABC-affiliated television station for Southwestern Georgia. The station is a second digital subchannel of NBC affiliate WALB owned by Raycom Media. Over-the-air, it broadcasts a standard definition digital signal on VHF channel 10.2 from a transmitter in Doerun along the Colquitt...
is the area's ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate. Known on-air as WALB ABC, this can also be seen on Mediacom channel 9 and in high definition on digital channel 809. Syndicated programming on the station includes Access Hollywood
Access Hollywood
Access Hollywood is a weekday television entertainment news program covering events and celebrities in the entertainment industry. It was created by former Entertainment Tonight executive producer Jim Van Messel, and is currently directed by Robert Silverstein. In previous years, Doug Dougherty and...
and Storm Stories
Storm Stories
Storm Stories is a non-fiction television series aired on The Weather Channel and Zone Reality hosted and narrated by meteorologist and Storm-Tracker Jim Cantore. Storm Stories showcases various types of severe weather, such as tornadoes, hurricanes, and blizzards. Each episode features a famous...
along with additional airings of syndicated shows from the main channel. On Saturday mornings from 2:30 until 5, WALB-DT2 airs as a weather channel known as "WALB 24/7 Weather".
| Channel | Video Display resolution The display resolution of a digital television or display device is the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. It can be an ambiguous term especially as the displayed resolution is controlled by all different factors in cathode ray tube , flat panel or projection... |
Aspect Aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,... |
Programming |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10.1 | 1080i 1080i 1080i is the shorthand name for a high-definition television mode. The i means interlaced video; 1080i differs from 1080p, in which the p stands for progressive scan. The term 1080i assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a frame size of 1920×1080 pixels... |
16:9 16:9 16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ... |
Main WALB programming / NBC |
| 10.2 | 480i 480i 480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC... |
4:3 | WALB ABC |
| 10.3 | Bounce TV Bounce TV Bounce TV is a United States television network airing on digital terrestrial television stations. Promoted as "the first 24/7 digital multicast broadcast network created exclusively for African Americans," Bounce TV launched on September 26, 2011 and features programming geared toward blacks in... |
Early Years
The station signed-on April 7, 1954 as WALB-TV and was sister to WALB-AM 1590 as well as The Albany Herald. When the radio station's studios were built back in 1953, Stuart Avenue was a dirt road running through a pecanPecan
The pecan , Carya illinoinensis, is a species of hickory, native to south-central North America, in Mexico from Coahuila south to Jalisco and Veracruz, in the United States from southern Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana east to western Kentucky, southwestern Ohio, North Carolina, South...
grove. For its first three years on-air, WALB-TV transmitted an analog signal on VHF channel 10 from a tower at its studios. As the first television outlet in Albany, it was a primary NBC affiliate with secondary relations with ABC and DuMont
DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
.
The latter network was dropped in 1955 when it shut down and ABC remained on WALB until 1980 when WVGA (now WSWG
WSWG
WSWG is the CBS-affiliated television station for Southwestern Georgia, licensed to Valdosta. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 43 from a transmitter northeast of Adel in Cook County. The station can also be seen on Mediacom channel 6 and in high definition on digital...
) signed-on. The station's first tower near Doerun was built in 1957. The radio station was sold in 1960 to Allen Woodall Senior and became known as WALG
WALG
WALG is a radio station serving Albany, Georgia, and surrounding cities with a News/Talk format. This station is under ownership of Cumulus Media.-Programming:...
to distinguish itself from the television station. In March 1976, a fire destroyed WALB's main broadcasting facilities but did not damage its offices.
Until 1983, it was the default NBC affiliate for Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee, Florida
Tallahassee is the capital of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County, and is the 128th largest city in the United States. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2010, the population recorded by...
. Although WTWC-TV
WTWC-TV
WTWC-TV is the NBC affiliate television station for Tallahassee, Florida, owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group.-History:The station was started on April 21, 1983 by Guy Gannett Communications. This made Tallahassee one of the last markets in the country with full service from all three networks...
has been that area's affiliate since then, WALB still provides city-grade coverage to much of the Georgia side of the Tallahassee market
Media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
and Grade B coverage to the city itself. In January 1992 when a plane crashed into WVGA's transmission tower and knocked the station off-air, Southwestern Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
became one of the only areas on the East Coast
East Coast of the United States
The East Coast of the United States, also known as the Eastern Seaboard, refers to the easternmost coastal states in the United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada. The term includes the U.S...
without an ABC affiliate. As a result, cable systems in the area piped in either WSB-TV
WSB-TV
WSB-TV, virtual channel 2.1 , is the ABC affiliate in Atlanta, Georgia. It is the flagship television station of Cox Enterprises and its Cox Media Group subsidiary...
from Atlanta, current sister station WTVM
WTVM
WTVM is the ABC-affiliated television station for Columbus, Georgia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter in Cusseta. The station can also be seen on Charter, Knology, and Mediacom channel 10...
from Columbus
Columbus, Georgia
Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Muscogee County, Georgia, United States, with which it is consolidated. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 189,885. It is the principal city of the Columbus, Georgia metropolitan area, which, in 2009, had an estimated population of 292,795...
, WCJB-TV
WCJB-TV
WCJB-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for North Central Florida licensed to Gainesville. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 16 from a transmitter in Wacahoota. The station can also be seen on CommuniComm Services channel 3, Cox channel 7, and Bright House...
from Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
, or WTXL-TV
WTXL-TV
WTXL-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for Tallahassee, Florida. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 27 from a transmitter northwest of Monticello, Florida along the state line with Georgia. It can also be seen on Charter channel 3 as well as Mediacom and Comcast...
from Tallahassee (which technically served as the de-facto affiliate due to being the closest). WALB dropped the -TV suffix in 1993.
During the floods of 1994, WALB stayed on-air with non-stop 24-hour coverage to alert citizens and provide a vital link between the public and government agencies. The station operated as the flagship of the Gray Communications Corporation (now Gray Television
Gray Television
Gray Television, Inc. is a communications company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with administrative offices in Albany, Georgia.Established in 1946 by James H...
) until Cosmos Broadcasting bought the station in 1998. This later became known as the Liberty Broadcasting Corporation. Although Gray no longer operates WALB, the company still has administrative offices in Albany today and operates WSWG in Moultrie
Moultrie, Georgia
Moultrie is the county seat and largest city of Colquitt County and the third largest in Southwest Georgia behind Thomasville and Albany. As of 2009, Moultrie's population is 15,199 people. Since 2000, it has had a population growth of 6.07 percent....
that serves as a semi-satellite of co-owned WCTV
WCTV
WCTV is the CBS-affiliated television station for southwest Georgia and Tallahassee, Florida that is licensed to Thomasville, Georgia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 46 from a transmitter in Metcalf along the Georgia and Florida state line. This is 609.6 meters high...
in Tallahassee. Its digital signal on UHF channel 17 signed-on from the Doerun site in 2001.
WALB Today
In March 2006, the station was sold to Raycom Media after that company merged with Liberty. It violated Federal Communications CommissionFederal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC) rules regarding station ownership because Raycom already owned Fox affiliate WFXL
WFXL
WFXL is the Fox-affiliated television station for Southwestern Georgia that is licensed to Albany. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 12 from a transmitter in Doerun near the Colquitt and Worth County line. Owned by Barrington Broadcasting, the station has studios on...
. As a result, the company announced the sale of that station and eleven others to Barrington Broadcasting
Barrington Broadcasting
Barrington Broadcasting Company, LLC , headquartered in Hoffman Estates, Illinois is an entity wholly focused on broadcast television. The company's assets mainly consist of television stations in middle and small sized markets...
. On June 12, 2009, WALB shut-off its analog signal on channel 10 and relocated its digital signal from channel 17 back to channel 10 on the same day. It was announced November 19, 2010 WALB would begin airing ABC on its second digital subchannel
Digital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a means to transmit more than one independent program at the same time from the same digital radio or digital television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compression techniques to reduce the size of each individual...
beginning New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
2011. The actual launch occurred April 27, 2011 at which point This TV was dropped.
The addition of the network brings back ABC to an Albany-based station since WVGA was closed down. If not for the delay, WALB-DT2 would have represented the network's 240th affiliate. However, NBC affiliate KSBW
KSBW
KSBW is a television station in the United States and is the primary NBC affiliate for the Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz, California market. The station is owned by Hearst Television. KSBW has its studios on John Street in downtown Salinas, which is mentioned occasionally during commercial breaks...
in Salinas, California
Salinas, California
Salinas is the county seat and the largest municipality of Monterey County, California. Salinas is located east-southeast of the mouth of the Salinas River, at an elevation of about 52 feet above sea level. The population was 150,441 at the 2010 census...
launched its own ABC second
KSBW-DT2
KSBW-DT2, branded as Central Coast ABC, is the second digital subchannel of NBC affiliate KSBW, which is owned by Hearst Television. The second digital subchannel is the ABC affiliate for the Salinas–Monterey–Santa Cruz, California market, which began transmission on April 18, 2011...
digital subchannel on April 18 as the network's actual 240th affiliate just one week ahead of WALB-DT2. That station is the second subchannel affiliate of ABC established in the state of Georgia after WGXA-DT2
WGXA-DT2
WGXA-DT2 is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central Georgia. The station is a second digital subchannel of Fox affiliate WGXA that is owned by Frontier Radio Management. Over-the-air, it broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 16.2 from a transmitter on GA 87/U.S. 23/U.S. 129 Alternate...
in Macon
Macon, Georgia
Macon is a city located in central Georgia, US. Founded at the fall line of the Ocmulgee River, it is part of the Macon metropolitan area, and the county seat of Bibb County. A small portion of the city extends into Jones County. Macon is the biggest city in central Georgia...
.
WALB/WFXL towers crash
On June 1, 2006, a MH-47 Chinook military chopper traveling from Hunter Army AirfieldHunter Army Airfield
Hunter Army Airfield , located in Savannah, Georgia, United States, is a military airfield and subordinate installation to Fort Stewart.Hunter features a runway that is 11,375 feet long and an aircraft parking area that is more than 350 acres...
in Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
to Fort Rucker
Fort Rucker
Fort Rucker is a U.S. Army post located mostly in Dale County, Alabama, United States. It was named for a Civil War officer, Confederate General Edmund Rucker. The post is the primary flight training base for Army Aviation and is home to the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence and...
in Alabama
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
for a training mission hit a guy wire connected to WFXL's 1000 feet (304.8 m) tower resulting in a crash. While the tower remained standing and intact (other than the guy wire), the station was forced to temporarily cease its over-the-air signal although broadcasts on cable were not affected. If its tower collapsed, this could have also caused the tower of WALB to topple as both were only 150 feet (45 m) apart. As a result, Raycom (which at that time still operated WFXL while the sale to Barrington awaited FCC approval) acquired auxiliary transmitters and antennas for both WALB and WFXL which were installed at the tower at WALB's studios in Albany.
On June 7, WFXL's tower was demolished but in doing so one of the tower's guy wires wrapped around one for WALB's tower as feared. As a result, this channel's tower collapsed in an incident shown on live television. Since both stations were already transmitting signals from the tower at the WALB studios, the two were still on the air at low-power. Thirteen months later, the new WALB and WFXL state of the art mega-tower was completed and began broadcasting on July 3 at 11:35 p.m.
News operation
In 2004, WALB gave its news operation a complete makeover renaming itself from NewsCenter 10 to WALB News 10. It also changed its logo as part of a graphics change. However, it kept the "little one, big zero" 10 which has been part of the logo since the late-1970s at the earliest. This is similar to sister station WISWIS
WIS, channel 10, is an NBC-affiliated television station in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. Owned by Raycom Media, WIS has studios on Bull Street in downtown Columbia, and transmitter located in Lugoff, South Carolina.-History:...
in Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
. The station also changed its music from a theme composed by Collier Concepts to "The Tower" composed by 615 Music
615 Music
615 Music is a broadcast production music company based in Nashville, Tennessee. 615 Music composes television news music packages and custom image campaigns for many television networks around the world. 615 Music also operates out of Los Angeles...
used by many other NBC affiliates. Continuing its modernization, WALB built a new set in 2005 replacing the previous one used for at least twelve years.
The station launched NBC Weather Plus
NBC Weather Plus
NBC Weather Plus was a 24-hour, commercially sponsored, weather-oriented broadcast/cable television network jointly owned by NBC Universal and the local affiliates of the NBC network. It debuted on November 15, 2004 and shut down on December 31, 2008...
in 2005 on a new second digital subchannel. Known as "WALB 24/7 Weather", the service gave continuous forecasts for up to thirty cities around Southwestern Georgia. After NBC Weather Plus shut down in December 2008, WALB-DT2 became part of This TV. WALB's weekday morning show Today in Georgia was expanded to a full two-hours from 5 until 7 beginning September 10, 2007 coinciding with the expansion of Today to four hours. "WALB's Most Wanted" segment was launched the same year to showcase some of the area's most wanted fugitives.
With the introduction of ABC on WALB-DT2
WALB-DT2
WALB-DT2 is the ABC-affiliated television station for Southwestern Georgia. The station is a second digital subchannel of NBC affiliate WALB owned by Raycom Media. Over-the-air, it broadcasts a standard definition digital signal on VHF channel 10.2 from a transmitter in Doerun along the Colquitt...
, there are simulcasts of local news from the main channel. Specifically, this includes the second hour of Good Morning Georgia, midday show at noon, as well as weeknight newscasts at 6 and 11. The area's first prime time broadcast at 7 was added on weeknights exclusive to the ABC subchannel. Weekend newscasts are simulcasted on both channels although there may be delays or pre-emptions on one due to network obligations. In addition to its main studios, WALB operates bureaus in Thomasville
Thomasville, Georgia
Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The city is the second largest in Southwest Georgia after Albany.The city deems itself the City of Roses and holds an annual Rose Festival. The town features plantations open to the public, a historic downtown, a large...
(on North Broad Street) and Valdosta
Valdosta, Georgia
Valdosta is the county seat of Lowndes County, Georgia, United States. It is the principal city of the Valdosta Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 Census, the city had a total population of 54,518. The Valdosta metropolitan area, according to the 2010 estimate, has a population of 139,588...
(on North Patterson Street). The station operates its own weather radar
Weather radar
Weather radar, also called weather surveillance radar and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, estimate its type . Modern weather radars are mostly pulse-Doppler radars, capable of detecting the motion of rain droplets in addition to the...
known as "WALB 24/7 Radar" at Southwest Georgia Regional Airport
Southwest Georgia Regional Airport
Southwest Georgia Regional Airport is a public airport located three miles southwest of the central business district of Albany, a city in Dougherty County, Georgia, United States...
.
In June 2011, News Anchors Dawn Hobby and Ben Roberts, and Executive Producer Matt Marshall received an EMMY award for Outstanding Achievement Television News Gathering Excellence for the Coastal Crisis News Special.
Station slogans
- "Number One in South Georgia" (late 1970s)
- "The News Specialists" (early 1980s)
- "South Georgia's #1 News Source" (1991-2003)
- "Leading the Way for South Georgia" (2003-2009)
- "Live. Local. Latebreaking." (2009-present)
Weather branding
- "Super Doppler 10 Forecast" (1994-2004)
- "24/7 Weather Forecast" (2004-present)
News team
Anchors- Karla Heath-Sands - weekday mornings and Dialogue host
- Ruthie Garner - weekdays at noon and producer
- Dawn Hobby - weeknights at 5 and 6 (also Assistant News DirectorNews DirectorA news director is an individual at a broadcast station or network or a newspaper who is in charge of the news department. In local news, the news director is typically in charge of the entire news staff, including journalists, news presenters, photographers, copy writers, television producers,...
) - Ben Roberts - weeknights at 5, 6, 7, and 11 (also Executive Producer weeknights at 11)
- Jim Wallace - weeknights at 5:30 and reporter
- Stephanie Springer - weeknights at 5:30 and reporter
- Cade Fowler - weekends
WALB 24/7 Weather Team (all have AMS
American Meteorological Society
The American Meteorological Society promotes the development and dissemination of information and education on the atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic sciences and the advancement of their professional applications. Founded in 1919, the American Meteorological Society has a membership...
Seal of Approval)
- Yolanda Amadeo - Chief seen weeknights
- Chris Zelman - weekday mornings and noon
- Jay Polk - weekends
Reporters
- Jennifer Emert - Chief Investigative
- Stephen Abel - Thomasville Bureau
- Jade Bulecza - Valdosta Bureau
- Ashton Pellom
- Ryan Houston
- Gianna Caserta
- Sharinda Williams
- Dayne Young
Sports
- Robert Hydrick - DirectorSports DirectorA sports director is an individual at a television or radio station who is in charge of the sports department. In local news, the sports director is typically the station's primary sportscaster, and often anchors the primetime newscasts on weekdays. They are in charge of sports programming and...
seen weeknights at 6, 7, and 11 (also The Locker Room Report host)- "Player of the Week" and "Team of the Week" segments producer
- Shayne Wright - weekends
Notable former staff
- Pam OliverPam OliverPamela Donielle "Pam" Oliver is an American sportscaster known for her work on the sidelines for various NBA and NFL games.-Early life:...
- at Fox SportsFox Sports (USA)Fox Sports is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company . It was formed in 1994 with Fox's acquisition of broadcast rights to National Football League games... - Kristina Abernathy - now at The Weather Channel
- Chris ClarkChris Clark (reporter)Chris Clark was the lead news anchor at WTVF in Nashville, Tennessee. He had been a consistent anchor at the station since 1966, but retired on May 23, 2007 after 41 years, making him one of the longest-tenured anchors in American television history. In the earlier years of his tenure, Clark...
- retired in 2007 from WTVFWTVFWTVF is the CBS-affiliated television station for Middle Tennessee that is licensed to Nashville. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 5 from a transmitter north of downtown along I-24. Owned by Landmark Media Enterprises, the station has studios on James Robertson Parkway... - Jay BarbreeJay BarbreeJay Barbree is a correspondent for NBC News, focusing on space travel. Barbree is the only journalist to have covered every manned space mission in the United States, beginning with the first American in space, Alan Shepard aboard Freedom 7 in 1961, continuing through to the last mission of the...
- now at NBC NewsNBC NewsNBC News is the news division of American television network NBC. It first started broadcasting in February 21, 1940. NBC Nightly News has aired from Studio 3B, located on floors 3 of the NBC Studios is the headquarters of the GE Building forms the centerpiece of 30th Rockefeller Center it is...