WCJB-TV
Encyclopedia
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 (PSIP virtual channel
20.1) from a transmitter in Wacahoota. The station can also be seen on CommuniComm Services channel 3, Cox
channel 7, and Bright House Networks
channel 20. There is a high definition feed offered on Cox digital channel 1007 and Bright House Networks digital channel 1023. Owned by Diversified Communications
, WCJB has studios on Northwest 43rd Street in Gainesville. Syndicated
programming on the station includes Entertainment Tonight
, Inside Edition
, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
, and The Nate Berkus Show
among others.
, CommuniComm Services channel 6, and Cox channel 10 is the area's CW affiliate. Known on-air as Gainesville CW 10, it receives all programming through The CW Plus
.
affiliate owned by William E. "Bill" Minshall. Originally broadcasting an analog signal on UHF channel 20, its call sign bears the first initials of his family members: Casey (daughter), JoAnn (wife), and himself, Bill. In 1973 just two years after its first broadcast, the station switched its affiliation to ABC, probably because that network held exclusive rights to college football
telecasts (which sometimes featured the local Florida Gators
). In 1977, WCJB was sold to current owner Diversified Communications. In 2001, it began airing its digital signal on UHF channel 16.
On January 24, 2006, UPN
and The WB announced the two networks would cease broadcasting and merge. The new combined operation would be called The CW. The letters would represent the first initial of corporate parents "C"BS
(the parent company of UPN) and the "W"arner Bros.
unit of Time Warner
. On February 22, News Corporation
announced it would establish another new network called MyNetworkTV. This new service, which would be a sister network to Fox, would be operated by Fox Television Stations and News Corporation syndication division Twentieth Television. MyNetworkTV was created in order to give UPN and WB stations, not mentioned as becoming CW affiliates, another option besides becoming Independent. It was also created to compete against The CW.
The area's primary WB and secondary UPN affiliate was operated by CBS station WGFL
on its second digital subchannel
. This used the fictional calls "WBFL" and was known on-air as "WB 10" after the Cox channel location. On September 5, low-powered WMYG-LP
(which had been repeating WGFL's main signal) became a separate station and joined MyNetworkTV. On September 18, WCJB launched a new second digital subchannel to be the area's CW affiliate as part of the national CW Plus service. This took the channel location of WGFL-DT2 on Cox systems. WCJB shut down its analog signal on February 17, 2009. The station said it did not want to wait until the June 12 deadline because it wanted to free up emergency airspace. With this change, WOGX
and WUFT continued broadcasting in analog until the new transition date. Continuing digital broadcasts on pre-transition channel 16, receivers still display the signal as channel 20 through the use of PSIP
.
Its coverage area includes Lake City
(within the Jacksonville
market
), Ocala
(in the Orlando
DMA) and most of North Central Florida
. It is also the sole ABC affiliate on cable systems in Live Oak
and Jasper
(both within the Tallahassee
area). Until July 2006, WCJB was the only ABC affiliate seen on Cox systems in Ocala. Even though that city is part of the Orlando market, this station had exclusivity on that system for ABC programming. This kept Orlando's affiliate, Cox-owned WFTV
, off the system for several years. In that month, the cable company received the green light to pick up WFTV's standard and high definition feeds in Ocala. WFTV and WCJB are also both seen on Bright House Networks in Belleview
and unincorporated Marion County
.
by a wide margin for the station's entire existence. In addition to its main studios, this station operates a Marion County Bureau on Northeast 1st Avenue in Ocala
. Unlike most ABC affiliates, it does not air a full two-hour weekday morning show or broadcast weeknights at 5.
In March 1998, Fox affiliate WOGX began simulcasting newscasts from sister station WOFL
in Orlando. As a semi-satellite of the latter, all news programs are seen except weeknights at 6. However, there are no separate local inserts targeted to the Gainesville area. On April 19, 2009, WCJB debuted a new set complete with updated graphics and music theme which had not changed in almost ten years. The graphics are yellow and orange instead of blue and white. Its updated logo now includes ABC in it unlike the previous two. WCJB began airing local newscasts in high definition on January 9, 2010.
From September 18, 2006 until February 2010, it produced a weeknight prime time show on WCJB-DT2
. Known as WCJB-TV 20 News at 10 on Gainesville CW, this aired for thirty minutes. The live broadcast was dropped in favor of a repeat of the main channel's 6 o'clock show. Like all CW Plus affiliates in the Eastern Time Zone
, WCJB-DT2 continues airing the nationally syndicated show The Daily Buzz
on weekday mornings from 6 until 9. During the program, there are local weather cut-ins.
Storm Track 20 Meteorologists
Sports
Reporters
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 North Central Florida
North Central Florida
North Central Florida is a region of the U.S. state of Florida which comprises the north-central part of the state and encompasses the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area , Bradford, Columbia, Hamilton, Lafayette, Madison, Marion, Putnam, Suwannee and Union counties...
licensed to Gainesville
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...
. 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 UHF channel 16 (PSIP virtual channel
Virtual channel
In telecommunications, a logical channel number , also known as virtual channel, is a channel designation which differs from that of the actual radio channel on which the signal travels....
20.1) from a transmitter in Wacahoota. The station can also be seen on CommuniComm Services channel 3, Cox
Cox Communications
Cox Communications is a privately owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises providing digital cable television, telecommunications and wireless services in the United States...
channel 7, and Bright House Networks
Bright House Networks
Bright House Networks is a cable television company, the seventh largest cable operator and the sixth largest traditional multiple system operator in the United States owned by Advance/Newhouse, headquartered in Syracuse, New York...
channel 20. There is a high definition feed offered on Cox digital channel 1007 and Bright House Networks digital channel 1023. Owned by Diversified Communications
Diversified Communications
Diversified Communications is a broadcasting company, headquartered in Portland, Maine. Among the various publications and broadcast outlets, the company organizes trade shows, publishes magazines, produces digital business and operates broadcast stations....
, WCJB has studios on Northwest 43rd Street in Gainesville. 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...
programming 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...
, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?
Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? is a television game show which offers large cash prizes for correctly answering a series of multiple-choice questions of increasing difficulty. The format is owned and licensed by Sony Pictures Television International. The maximum cash prize is one million pounds...
, and The Nate Berkus Show
The Nate Berkus Show
The Nate Berkus Show, commonly referred to as The Nate Show, is a syndicated talk show hosted by interior designer Nate Berkus, which premiered on September 13, 2010....
among others.
Digital programming
On WCJB-DT2WCJB-DT2
WCJB-DT2 is the CW-affiliated television station for Gainesville, Florida. The station is part of The CW Plus, a special CW feed that broadcasts on cable and/or over-the-air on a digital signal. It is a second digital subchannel of ABC affiliate WCJB-TV that is owned by Diversified Communications...
, CommuniComm Services channel 6, and Cox channel 10 is the area's CW affiliate. Known on-air as Gainesville CW 10, it receives all programming through The CW Plus
The CW Plus
The CW Plus is a group of primarily digital sub-channels, analog, and non-broadcast cable television outlets for the CW Television Network, for markets below the top 99 television media markets in the United States....
.
| Channels (physical/virtual) | Video | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16.1/20.1 | 720p 720p 720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan... |
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 WCJB programming/ABC (HD) |
| 16.2/20.2 | 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 | WCJB-DT2 "Gainesville CW 10" (SD) |
History
WCJB began broadcasting April 7, 1971 as an NBCNBC
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...
affiliate owned by William E. "Bill" Minshall. Originally broadcasting an analog signal on UHF channel 20, its call sign bears the first initials of his family members: Casey (daughter), JoAnn (wife), and himself, Bill. In 1973 just two years after its first broadcast, the station switched its affiliation to ABC, probably because that network held exclusive rights to college football
College football
College football refers to American football played by teams of student athletes fielded by American universities, colleges, and military academies, or Canadian football played by teams of student athletes fielded by Canadian universities...
telecasts (which sometimes featured the local Florida Gators
Florida Gators
The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Florida located in Gainesville, Florida. The "Lady Gators" is an alternative nickname sometimes used by the Gators women's teams...
). In 1977, WCJB was sold to current owner Diversified Communications. In 2001, it began airing its digital signal on UHF channel 16.
On January 24, 2006, UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
and The WB announced the two networks would cease broadcasting and merge. The new combined operation would be called The CW. The letters would represent the first initial of corporate parents "C"BS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
(the parent company of UPN) and the "W"arner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
unit of Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
. On February 22, News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
announced it would establish another new network called MyNetworkTV. This new service, which would be a sister network to Fox, would be operated by Fox Television Stations and News Corporation syndication division Twentieth Television. MyNetworkTV was created in order to give UPN and WB stations, not mentioned as becoming CW affiliates, another option besides becoming Independent. It was also created to compete against The CW.
The area's primary WB and secondary UPN affiliate was operated by CBS station WGFL
WGFL
WGFL is the CBS-affiliated television station for North Central Florida licensed to High Springs. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 28 from a transmitter in Newberry. The station can also be seen on Cox and CommuniComm Services channel 4. There is a high definition feed...
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...
. This used the fictional calls "WBFL" and was known on-air as "WB 10" after the Cox channel location. On September 5, low-powered WMYG-LP
WMYG-LP
WMYG-LP is the MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station for North Central Florida licensed to Lake City. It broadcasts a low-powered analog signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter in the city's Lacymark section. The station can also be seen on CommuniComm Services and Cox channel 11...
(which had been repeating WGFL's main signal) became a separate station and joined MyNetworkTV. On September 18, WCJB launched a new second digital subchannel to be the area's CW affiliate as part of the national CW Plus service. This took the channel location of WGFL-DT2 on Cox systems. WCJB shut down its analog signal on February 17, 2009. The station said it did not want to wait until the June 12 deadline because it wanted to free up emergency airspace. With this change, WOGX
WOGX
WOGX is the Fox owned-and-operated television station for North Central Florida that is licensed to Ocala. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 31 from a transmitter along CR 316 west of I-75/FL 93 and the Heijahs Town section of Reddick...
and WUFT continued broadcasting in analog until the new transition date. Continuing digital broadcasts on pre-transition channel 16, receivers still display the signal as channel 20 through the use of PSIP
Program and System Information Protocol
The Program and System Information Protocol is the protocol used in the ATSC digital television system for carrying metadata about each channel in the broadcast MPEG transport stream of a TV station and for publishing information about television programs so that viewers can select what to watch...
.
Its coverage area includes Lake City
Lake City, Florida
Lake City is the county seat of Columbia County, Florida, in the United States. In 2009, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 12,614. In addition, it is the Principal City of the Lake City Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is composed of Columbia County, and had an...
(within the Jacksonville
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
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...
), Ocala
Ocala, Florida
Ocala is a city in Marion County, Florida. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 53,491. It is the county seat of Marion County, and the principal city of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated 2007 population of 324,857.-History:Ocala...
(in the Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
DMA) and most of North Central Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...
. It is also the sole ABC affiliate on cable systems in Live Oak
Live Oak, Florida
Live Oak is a city in Suwannee County, Florida. The city is the county seat of Suwannee County and is located east of Tallahassee, Florida. The population was 6,480 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 6,828 ....
and Jasper
Jasper, Florida
Jasper is a city in Hamilton County, Florida, United States. The population was 1,780 at the 2000 census. As of 2004, the population estimated by the U.S. Census Bureau is 1,848 . It is the county seat of Hamilton County. The United Methodist Church in Jasper, Florida is on the National Register...
(both within the Tallahassee
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...
area). Until July 2006, WCJB was the only ABC affiliate seen on Cox systems in Ocala. Even though that city is part of the Orlando market, this station had exclusivity on that system for ABC programming. This kept Orlando's affiliate, Cox-owned WFTV
WFTV
WFTV, channel 9, is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central Florida that is licensed to Orlando. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter between Bithlo and Christmas. Owned by Cox Enterprises, WFTV is sister to Independent WRDQ. The two stations...
, off the system for several years. In that month, the cable company received the green light to pick up WFTV's standard and high definition feeds in Ocala. WFTV and WCJB are also both seen on Bright House Networks in Belleview
Belleview, Florida
Belleview is a city in Marion County, Florida. The population was 3,478 at the 2000 census. According to the U.S Census estimates of 2009, the city had a population of 4,483. It is part of the Ocala Metropolitan Statistical Area. The name, Belleview, which means beautiful view, came from one of...
and unincorporated Marion County
Marion County, Florida
Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 316,183. Its county seat is Ocala....
.
News operation
Originally, WCJB was the only station to operate a news department covering the Gainesville area. As a result, it has held the number one spot in Nielsen ratingsNielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
by a wide margin for the station's entire existence. In addition to its main studios, this station operates a Marion County Bureau on Northeast 1st Avenue in Ocala
Ocala, Florida
Ocala is a city in Marion County, Florida. As of 2007, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau was 53,491. It is the county seat of Marion County, and the principal city of the Ocala, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area, which had an estimated 2007 population of 324,857.-History:Ocala...
. Unlike most ABC affiliates, it does not air a full two-hour weekday morning show or broadcast weeknights at 5.
In March 1998, Fox affiliate WOGX began simulcasting newscasts from sister station WOFL
WOFL
WOFL, channel 35, is the Fox owned-and-operated television station serving the Orlando, Florida metropolitan area. It is licensed to Orlando, with studios located in Lake Mary. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 22. On cable, WOFL-TV is currently seen on channel 3 for subscribers of...
in Orlando. As a semi-satellite of the latter, all news programs are seen except weeknights at 6. However, there are no separate local inserts targeted to the Gainesville area. On April 19, 2009, WCJB debuted a new set complete with updated graphics and music theme which had not changed in almost ten years. The graphics are yellow and orange instead of blue and white. Its updated logo now includes ABC in it unlike the previous two. WCJB began airing local newscasts in high definition on January 9, 2010.
From September 18, 2006 until February 2010, it produced a weeknight prime time show on WCJB-DT2
WCJB-DT2
WCJB-DT2 is the CW-affiliated television station for Gainesville, Florida. The station is part of The CW Plus, a special CW feed that broadcasts on cable and/or over-the-air on a digital signal. It is a second digital subchannel of ABC affiliate WCJB-TV that is owned by Diversified Communications...
. Known as WCJB-TV 20 News at 10 on Gainesville CW, this aired for thirty minutes. The live broadcast was dropped in favor of a repeat of the main channel's 6 o'clock show. Like all CW Plus affiliates in the Eastern Time Zone
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, WCJB-DT2 continues airing the nationally syndicated show The Daily Buzz
The Daily Buzz
The Daily Buzz is a nationally syndicated breakfast television news and infotainment program. The show is produced by Fisher Communications and is owned and distributed by ACME Communications; it is broadcast every weekday morning from studios at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida...
on weekday mornings from 6 until 9. During the program, there are local weather cut-ins.
Station slogans
- "Coverage You Can Count On" (1998-2004)
- "North Central Florida's News Leader" (2004-2009)
- "Your Home Team for North Central FloridaNorth Central FloridaNorth Central Florida is a region of the U.S. state of Florida which comprises the north-central part of the state and encompasses the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area , Bradford, Columbia, Hamilton, Lafayette, Madison, Marion, Putnam, Suwannee and Union counties...
" (2009-2010) - "Your Local Source" (2010-present)
News team
Anchors- Lisa Wolf - weekday mornings
- Bob Williams - Community Service Manager seen weekdays at noon
- David Snyder - weeknights and "Spotlight" segments producer
- Paige Beck - weeknights and "Cold Case Files" segment producer
- Natalia Martinez - weekends and Marion County Bureau reporter
Storm Track 20 Meteorologists
- Bill Quinlan (NWANational Weather AssociationThe National Weather Association is an American professional association with a mission to support and promote excellence in operational meteorology and related activities...
and AMSAmerican Meteorological SocietyThe 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...
Seals of Approval) - weeknights - Mike Potter - weekday mornings and noon
- Mike Gismondi - weekends
Sports
- Chris Price - 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 and 11 - Angelo Caruso - weekends
- Hubert Mizell - "Mizell Minute" segment producer
Reporters
- Alexandria Cowley
- Kristin Giannas
- Steve Campion
- Corrie Lovette
- Dan Larkin