WDCW
Encyclopedia
WDCW, channel 50, is the CW
-affiliated television station
for Washington, D.C.
It transmits from the Hughes Memorial Tower
located in the Brightwood
section of the city. Owned by the Tribune Company
, the station has studios on Wisconsin Avenue Northwest in the Glover Park
section of Washington D.C.
subscription programming at night and live pictures of Washington D.C. from above its broadcasting tower
by day. Early in the day, WCQR also ran some basic computer still images with music called "Morning Muse". The live pictures were soon replaced with programming from the Financial News Network
. Hill Broadcasting purchased both channel 50 and WHLL-TV (now WUNI
) in Worcester, Massachusetts
in 1985. On July 1, the call letters were changed to WFTY to match the Channel FifTY allocation. The station then became a full-time independent station
in early-1986. Initially, the station ran a lineup of classic off-network sitcoms, dramas, cartoons, movies, and some religious shows.
However, it was airing mostly religious, infomercials, low budget (but copyrighted movies), and a few off-network dramas by 1988. Ratings were very low in addition to the programming costs. WFTY did pick up a few cartoons for the weekday 7 to 9 A.M. slot in June 1990 when Fox affiliate WTTG
dropped its children's block for a morning newscast. In 1993, WFTY (along with WHLL) were purchased by the Jasas Corporation. In the Fall of that year, WFTY added more cartoons, barter sitcoms, some low priced syndicated shows, and cut back on paid programming. On January 11, 1995, WFTY became a charter affiliate of The WB. On September 6, the call letters were changed to WBDC to reflect its network status, since the callsign was a portmanteau of WB and Washington DC. In 1996, the Tribune Company (which had an interest in the WB Network) began managing the station and purchased the station outright from the Jasas Corporation in 1999. On January 24, 2006, The WB and UPN
announced that they would cease broadcasting and merge into a new network
called The CW. WBDC was listed as one of the first CW affiliates as Tribune signed a 10 year affiliation agreement foe its WB stations. On May 1, WBDC's call letters became the current WDCW to reflect the coming switch.
On July 20, the station began airing a promotional item that featured a new logo and branding as "The CW Washington". The station's web address changed to "thecwdc.com". WDCW began airing The CW on September 18. Until it ceased operations on October 1, 2007, The Tube
(a 24-hour digital music channel) was broadcast on WDCW's second digital subchannel. It was aso available on digital cable systems including: Comcast
channel 207, Verizon FiOS
channel 863,Directv channel 50 and Cox
channel 804. In August of 2008, WDCW became known on-air as "DC50" reducing the promotion of The CW to just the tagline. On August 14, Tribune launched a new logo for the station. It also launched a new website located at "dc50tv.com". The logo (used above in the infobox) was being used on-the-air while the previous logo was being used on their website. This changed on August 19 when the new "dc50tv.com" website launched and the current logo was used both on-air and online. On-air, the station used "DC 50" as their branding and at some points "Home of The CW" as their slogan while online they continued to use "The CW Washington" as their branding. In recent press releases seen online, WDCW is also using "Home of The CW". The slogan began being used on-air and online on August 22. The CW logo has returned to the station's branding in Jan 2009.
WDCW is currently available on DirecTV
as Standard Definition only "CW-E" in markets without a CW affiliate on the system.
, WDCW returned its digital broadcasts to its analog channel frequency, 50.
103.5, WTOP-AM 1050, WTLP-FM 103.9, WWWT-FM 107.7, and 104.3 FM.
WDCW, in association with the Redskins
Broadcast Network, airs a weekly football program highlighting the team leading up to game day. The program, hosted by Justin Jackson and Rebecca Mejia, airs on Saturday nights at 6:30 with a repeat on Sunday mornings at 10. WDCW also airs a community affairs show called The Inner Loop that is hosted by Lillie Hamer.
WDCW is also the terrestrial home of the Washington Nationals
. The station regularly broadcasts the Nationals' Sunday afternoon games.
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
-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 Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
It transmits from the Hughes Memorial Tower
Hughes Memorial Tower
The Hughes Memorial Tower is a radio tower located in Washington, D.C. at 6001 Georgia Avenue, near the intersection of 9th Street, NW, and Peabody Street, NW. Built on January 15, 1989, the tower is positioned at and at an elevation of above mean sea level. The tower is owned by the District of...
located in the Brightwood
Brightwood, Washington, D.C.
Brightwood is a neighborhood located in the northwestern quadrant of Washington, D.C. Brightwood and the rest of Ward 4 are represented in the Council of the District of Columbia by Muriel Bowser.- Geography :...
section of the city. Owned by the Tribune Company
Tribune Company
The Tribune Company is a large American multimedia corporation based in Chicago, Illinois. It is the nation's second-largest newspaper publisher, with ten daily newspapers and commuter tabloids including Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles Times, Hartford Courant, Orlando Sentinel, South Florida...
, the station has studios on Wisconsin Avenue Northwest in the Glover Park
Glover Park
Glover Park is a neighborhood in northwest Washington, D.C., about a half mile north of Georgetown and just west of the United States Naval Observatory and Number One Observatory Circle...
section of Washington D.C.
History
The channel 50 license was first assigned to WGSP. That station ran test patterns in early-1972 but never signed on. On April 6, 1981, channel 50 finally signed on as WCQR. Beginning on November 1, WCQR aired SuperTVSuperTV
Super TV was an early form of subscription television which was offered to the public as either an additional viewing alternative to HBO & Showtime, or, like many in the area at that time who did not have cable service in their area. To many, Super TV served as the only choice to see recently-run...
subscription programming at night and live pictures of Washington D.C. from above its broadcasting tower
Hughes Memorial Tower
The Hughes Memorial Tower is a radio tower located in Washington, D.C. at 6001 Georgia Avenue, near the intersection of 9th Street, NW, and Peabody Street, NW. Built on January 15, 1989, the tower is positioned at and at an elevation of above mean sea level. The tower is owned by the District of...
by day. Early in the day, WCQR also ran some basic computer still images with music called "Morning Muse". The live pictures were soon replaced with programming from the Financial News Network
Financial News Network
The Financial News Network was a television network that operated throughout the United States during the 1980s.-Founding:Financial News Network was founded in 1981 by two men: Rodney Buchser, who had been general manager of KWHY, Channel 22 in Los Angeles and Glenn Taylor. The concept originated...
. Hill Broadcasting purchased both channel 50 and WHLL-TV (now WUNI
WUNI
WUNI, digital channel 29, is the Univision television affiliate for the Greater Boston market. Licensed to Worcester, Massachusetts, the station runs general Spanish entertainment programs as well as news and information programming...
) in Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester, Massachusetts
Worcester is a city and the county seat of Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. Named after Worcester, England, as of the 2010 Census the city's population is 181,045, making it the second largest city in New England after Boston....
in 1985. On July 1, the call letters were changed to WFTY to match the Channel FifTY allocation. The station then became a full-time independent station
Independent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
in early-1986. Initially, the station ran a lineup of classic off-network sitcoms, dramas, cartoons, movies, and some religious shows.
However, it was airing mostly religious, infomercials, low budget (but copyrighted movies), and a few off-network dramas by 1988. Ratings were very low in addition to the programming costs. WFTY did pick up a few cartoons for the weekday 7 to 9 A.M. slot in June 1990 when Fox affiliate WTTG
WTTG
WTTG, channel 5, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Fox Broadcasting Company, located in the American capital city of Washington, D.C...
dropped its children's block for a morning newscast. In 1993, WFTY (along with WHLL) were purchased by the Jasas Corporation. In the Fall of that year, WFTY added more cartoons, barter sitcoms, some low priced syndicated shows, and cut back on paid programming. On January 11, 1995, WFTY became a charter affiliate of The WB. On September 6, the call letters were changed to WBDC to reflect its network status, since the callsign was a portmanteau of WB and Washington DC. In 1996, the Tribune Company (which had an interest in the WB Network) began managing the station and purchased the station outright from the Jasas Corporation in 1999. On January 24, 2006, The WB and 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...
announced that they would cease broadcasting and merge into a new network
2006 United States broadcast TV realignment
Between winter-fall 2006, the United States broadcast television industry was realigned. In September 2006, the country's two "second-tier" television networks, UPN and The WB Television Network, both shut down on September 15 and 17 respectively, and their operations were transferred to a new...
called The CW. WBDC was listed as one of the first CW affiliates as Tribune signed a 10 year affiliation agreement foe its WB stations. On May 1, WBDC's call letters became the current WDCW to reflect the coming switch.
On July 20, the station began airing a promotional item that featured a new logo and branding as "The CW Washington". The station's web address changed to "thecwdc.com". WDCW began airing The CW on September 18. Until it ceased operations on October 1, 2007, The Tube
The Tube (TV channel)
The Tube Music Network was a music video network carried on free-to-air satellite television, select digital television subchannels and digital cable systems. The network's president and founder was Les Garland, a veteran of MTV and VH1. The Tube was a wholly owned subsidiary of The Tube Media Corp...
(a 24-hour digital music channel) was broadcast on WDCW's second digital subchannel. It was aso available on digital cable systems including: Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
channel 207, Verizon FiOS
Verizon FiOS
Verizon FiOS is a bundled Internet access, telephone, and television service which operates over a fiber-optic communications network. It is offered in some areas of the United States by Verizon Communications. Verizon was one of the first major U.S...
channel 863,Directv channel 50 and 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 804. In August of 2008, WDCW became known on-air as "DC50" reducing the promotion of The CW to just the tagline. On August 14, Tribune launched a new logo for the station. It also launched a new website located at "dc50tv.com". The logo (used above in the infobox) was being used on-the-air while the previous logo was being used on their website. This changed on August 19 when the new "dc50tv.com" website launched and the current logo was used both on-air and online. On-air, the station used "DC 50" as their branding and at some points "Home of The CW" as their slogan while online they continued to use "The CW Washington" as their branding. In recent press releases seen online, WDCW is also using "Home of The CW". The slogan began being used on-air and online on August 22. The CW logo has returned to the station's branding in Jan 2009.
WDCW is currently available on DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
as Standard Definition only "CW-E" in markets without a CW affiliate on the system.
Digital television
On June 12, 2009DTV transition in the United States
The DTV transition in the United States was the switchover from analog to exclusively digital broadcasting of free over-the-air television programming...
, WDCW returned its digital broadcasts to its analog channel frequency, 50.
| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 50.1 | Main WDCW programming / CW |
| 50.2 | Antenna TV Antenna TV Antenna TV is an American digital broadcast television network, primarily featuring classic television series from the 1950s to the 1990s, along with some feature films. It is owned by Tribune Broadcasting, a division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company... |
| 50.3 | This TV This TV This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies.... |
Local programming
Chris Core hosts a news program on the station called Weekend News with Chris Core. The show can be seen on Saturday nights at 6 with a re-broadcast Sunday mornings at 9:30. The 30-minute program provide news and analysis of local and national events. It is taped at Tribune's national news bureau. Each broadcast concludes with the "Core Values" editorial segment that is also heard on WTOP-FMWTOP-FM
WTOP is an all-news formatted broadcast radio station licensed to Washington, D.C., serving Metropolitan Washington, DC area. WTOP is owned by Hubbard Broadcasting.WTOP is one of two all-news stations in the Washington, D.C...
103.5, WTOP-AM 1050, WTLP-FM 103.9, WWWT-FM 107.7, and 104.3 FM.
WDCW, in association with the Redskins
Washington Redskins
The Washington Redskins are a professional American football team and members of the East Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team plays at FedExField in Landover, Maryland, while its headquarters and training facility are at Redskin Park in Ashburn,...
Broadcast Network, airs a weekly football program highlighting the team leading up to game day. The program, hosted by Justin Jackson and Rebecca Mejia, airs on Saturday nights at 6:30 with a repeat on Sunday mornings at 10. WDCW also airs a community affairs show called The Inner Loop that is hosted by Lillie Hamer.
WDCW is also the terrestrial home of the Washington Nationals
Washington Nationals
The Washington Nationals are a professional baseball team based in Washington, D.C. The Nationals are a member of the Eastern Division of the National League of Major League Baseball . The team moved into the newly built Nationals Park in 2008, after playing their first three seasons in RFK Stadium...
. The station regularly broadcasts the Nationals' Sunday afternoon games.