WIAT
Encyclopedia
WIAT, virtual channel
42, is the CBS
-affiliated television station in the Birmingham
/Tuscaloosa
/Anniston
/Gadsden, Alabama
television market. Licensed to Birmingham, it broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 30, although through the use of PSIP, the station's virtual channel number is displayed as 42.1. Its transmitter is located on Red Mountain
, just by the city's southern edge. The station can also be seen on Bright House Networks
channel 3 and HD channel 623.
.
As was the case at the time with most UHF stations in markets served by at least two commercial VHF stations—in Birmingham's case, NBC
/CBS
affiliate WAPI-TV, now WVTM-TV
; and then-ABC
affiliate WBRC-TV--WBMG experienced considerable competitive disadvantages from the outset. Many households did not have TV sets capable of viewing UHF signals without a converter. Television set manufacturers had only begun including UHF tuning a year earlier, per a 1962 directive from the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC). The station's signal also left much to be desired. This was particularly problematic since central Alabama
is a fairly large market geographically, stretching across nearly the entire width of the state. Much of this area's terrain is hilly to mountainous. This was a major reason that it took longer for Birmingham to get a third station than other cities of its size; Birmingham had been big enough to support a third station since the 1950s. The FCC had actually allocated four VHF channels to what would become the Birmingham market, but two of them—channels 7 and 10—had been snapped up by Alabama Educational Television
. At the time, UHF stations usually didn't get good coverage in areas with rugged terrain. As a result, only Birmingham itself and some inner-ring suburbs over Red Mountain received a decent signal from channel 42.
On paper, WBMG took the CBS affiliation from WAPI-TV. However, CBS continued to allow channel 13 to air some of its more popular programming. WBMG was left with CBS' news programming and numerous lower-rated CBS shows, and filled the schedule with some NBC shows that WAPI-TV turned down. One of them was, strangely given its popularity elsewhere in the country, The Tonight Show
. Another example is the Heidi Game
, the infamous American Football League
game played in 1968. One benefit, though, was that the CBS Evening News
returned to Birmingham after several years' absence. After the networks expanded their national newscasts to half an hour, NBC's The Huntley-Brinkley Report was the only national newscast seen in Birmingham for much of the 1960s. Both stations listed their affiliation as "CBS/NBC." By 1970, though, WAPI's owners, the Newhouse
family, opted for an exclusive contract with NBC, leaving WBMG to take a full CBS affiliation more or less by default.
With a poor signal, the lack of sets with UHF capability and two of the South's oldest and most respected stations as competition, WBMG found the going very difficult. Due in part to WBMG's weak signal, CBS opted to affiliate with two other central Alabama stations, WCFT-TV in Tuscaloosa
and WHMA-TV (later WJSU-TV) in Anniston
. Both stations signed on roughly around the same time as WBMG, and reached some Birmingham homes with UHF rooftop antennas. But many of WBMG's problems were of its own making. Its newscasts often—inadvertently or not—became comedy shows. Examples of this include mid-1970s sportscaster (and local radio personality) Tommy Charles wadding up scripts and tossing them over his shoulder after reading them, as well as even letting balloons fly around the set for no apparent reason.
Furthermore, CBS' decision in 1971 to cancel many of its rural-oriented sitcoms and variety shows, especially the country music
showcase Hee Haw
and shows hosted by Sylacauga
native Jim Nabors
, in order to comply with the Prime Time Access Rule
may have hurt WBMG's ability to attract viewers in rural Alabama, where those programs were highly popular among viewers.
Still, WBMG gained publicity in central Alabama for some local shows, such as live studio wrestling, and the children's show Sergeant Jack, which featured former WSGN disc jockey
Neal Miller, who donned the uniform of a sheriff's deputy (and actually was sworn in as an honorary deputy by the Jefferson County
sheriff himself) and engaged in fanciful banter with puppets. Sergeant Jack ran on weekdays from 1965 to 1976 and on weekends from that point until 1982. Mother Angelica
, who would later launch the Christian cable network
EWTN
from Irondale
in 1981, began her career by taping faith-related programs at the WBMG studios for distribution on the station and other cable networks.
Park Communications bought WBMG in 1973. Park significantly boosted the station's signal, erecting a new tower in 1974. It also tried to professionalize the newscasts, with little success. WBMG had no local newscasts at all from 1980 until 1987, aside from hourly cut-ins. During this time, the station broadcast syndicated shows at both 5 and 10 p.m. Even when local news returned in 1987, WBMG had no luck whatsoever competing with WVTM and WBRC. It was perennially one of CBS' weakest affiliates, in marked contrast to its competitors, who were two of their networks' strongest affiliates. It even trailed WTTO
, an independent station (and later a Fox
affiliate) that had only been on the air since 1982.
WBMG's signal was still rather weak after the signal boost, effectively limiting its coverage area to Birmingham itself and close-in suburbs in Chilton
and Shelby
counties. As a result, many cable systems in the western and eastern portions of the market wouldn't carry it. With this in mind, CBS kept its affiliations with WCFT and WHMA/WJSU, which regularly trounced WBMG in their respective regions. This was especially true in Anniston since WBMG's signal didn't cover east central Alabama well at all during that period, again because of high elevations from the Appalachian foothills.
By the early 1990s, WBMG was only ahead of WABM
in the Birmingham ratings. Despite this, the station managed to make a name for itself while John Harrod was news director from 1990 to 1995. He launched a very aggressive and hard hitting news department, concentrating exclusively on local stories and investigative reporting. During Harrod's tenure, the station won awards from the Associated Press
for its reporting. Unfortunately, critical acclaim was not rewarded with a ratings win.
In 1995, Fox purchased WBRC. ABC's affiliation with WBRC did not expire until September 1996, so Fox continued to run WBRC as an ABC affiliate while ABC looked for a new affiliate in the central Alabama area. It first approached WTTO, but broke off talks after WTTO would only offer a secondary affiliation, carrying just prime time and sports programming. ABC then approached WBMG, which at least had a news department. Despite channel 42's anemic ratings, ABC saw enough promise that it even offered to buy the station. Instead, WBMG re-signed a long-term deal with CBS. ABC then opted for a unique arrangement with WCFT and WJSU. The two stations would combine to act as full-powered satellites of WBMA-LP
, a low-powered station whose signal did not carry outside of Jefferson and Shelby counties.
The switch took place in September. At that time, CBS decided to affiliate with yet another central Alabama station, WNAL-TV (now WPXH
) in Gadsden
, which put a fairly decent signal into the eastern portions of the Birmingham area, as well as eastern Alabama. However, WNAL simulcasted WBMG's newscasts during this time. WBMG also boosted to full power at this time, finally giving it a signal comparable to those of the other major stations in the market.
In 1997, Park Communications merged with Media General
. However, WBMG stayed in the ratings basement with a mere 1% market share, trailing not only WVTM and WBRC but also WTTO and at times even WABM. At one point in 1997, 42 News scored lower ratings than reruns of Sanford and Son
.
After only a few months, new general manager Eric Land had seen enough. On December 15, 1997, he fired eight anchors and ten other news staffers, including all of its on-air reporters. On New Year's Day
1998, he canceled all newscasts and fired all but one news staffer. Over the next month, channel 42 rebuilt its news department from scratch with input from focus groups and market research. During that time, the station showed a countdown clock at 5 and 10 p.m. – the slots where news would air once the product was re-launched. In order to signify a new start, Media General had the station's callsign changed to WIAT, which stood for It's About Time, the station's new slogan (which took effect on February 1). The station, even without a running newscast, sent coverage of Eric Rudolph's bombing at a Birmingham abortion clinic on January 29 to CBS Newspath, CNN, and to neighboring stations.
The new format debuted on February 5, 1998—the same day as the start of the Winter Olympics
--with a new name, "42 Daily News". Land was seen just before the countdown clock expired speaking to an unseen audience, then throwing a switch that blew up an image of the WBMG logo, with the new WIAT logo emerging. Land later said that even with its AP awards earlier in the decade, the station's research "found that our people were so closely identified with a poorly performing product that we had to create a new brand and start over again". Don Fitzpatrick, a TV news analyst, called the drastic changes an "extremely rare [...] act of desperation".
The transformation of the station's newscast and image was startling. At first, the station did not have any on-air reporters, using crews of photographers with reporters, photographers with field producers, and one-man bands. All stories were narrated by the anchors, much as was the case for most television stations until the 1960s. Strict time limits were imposed on story lengths, leading to segments such as "Top Story in a Minute," "Weather Minute," "Neighborhood Minute," a "2-Minute Drill" sportscast, etc. One anchor manned the anchor desk, while the other read stories from various places on the new set. Al Primo
, who created the "Eyewitness News
" format at KYW-TV
back in 1965, delivered sharp criticism of what he felt was "a product that was generated solely by research and implemented by people who don't know anything about the news business" and "the most disjointed presentation [of a newscast] that I have ever seen in my life". Land responded to Primo's scathing remarks by comparing the format to the "Al Schottelkotte
News", a longtime staple of WCPO-TV
in Cincinnati, for which he'd been a reporter: "[The Al Schottelkotte News] was very nontraditional, but jampacked with information."
The new anchor team was mostly made up of talent from out of town (Keith Cate, the first anchor to be seen on the new WIAT, jumped from being the main anchor at WMAR-TV
in Baltimore; his reaction to the fast-paced news style was, according to him, "This looks like 'Headline News' gone local"), except for the two-person sports team. Sports Director Paul Finebaum
's established popularity from his highly-opinionated column in the Birmingham Post-Herald
and radio show on WERC sparked some interest from sports fans. However, his sportscasts were often seen as incomplete since he had only two minutes to convey the day's sports. Weekend sports anchor Sam Smith was the only on-air holdover from the old WBMG; however, he soon departed. Later, the station hired its first female sports reporter and weekend sports anchor at Finebaum's urging, Beth Adubato. She left in June 2000.
The timing was chosen for a reason. The Tuscaloosa and Anniston areas, long separate markets, were merged into Birmingham as the result of the 1996 merger of WCFT, WJSU, and WBMA-LP into an ABC affiliate for the Birmingham market, causing it to grow in market size by 12 (from 51 to 39). At the same time, Nielsen converted Birmingham to a metered market in the fall of 1998 for ratings purposes.
Even with the time constraints, WIAT was seen as making a more credible effort at news than ever before. Ratings increased immediately (for the 10 p.m. news, to a 7 share in February from a 1/3 in 1997, partly due to the Winter Olympics) but were still not enough to overtake the competition. Ratings also increased once Birmingham became a metered market, moving to 3 and 4 shares most nights early in the fall of 1998. However, that year the station received its first two Emmy Awards in station history. The station later updated its image to become "News 42". It also began adding reporters, and gradually eased its strict time limits on story lengths.
In 2003, Bill Ballard, who took over as President and General Manager, created a new path for the station which included numerous changes such as stronger programming like Dr. Phil, Jeopardy!
, Entertainment Tonight
, and later Wendy Williams and a much more aggressive approach to news coverage. The moves which were implemented have dramatically altered the landscape of Central Alabama television.
In April 2006, Media General bought four NBC owned and operated stations, including WVTM. Since the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) does not allow one company to own two of the four largest stations in a single market, Media General opted to keep the then higher-rated WVTM and sell WIAT to another owner. On August 2, 2006, New Vision Television
, LLC announced its purchase of WIAT and sister station KIMT
in Mason City, Iowa
for $35 million. The sale was finalized on October 12, 2006.
Untamed Sports TV was added on a subchannel in 2009. WIAT promotes 42.2 as a separate channel on the air and the station's website. In addition to Untamed Sports, 42.2 also carries live and tape-delayed local high school sports and the Rick and Bubba
show.
On April 5, 2010, the FCC granted WIAT a construction permit for a digital fill-in translator on their pre-analog allotment Channel 42. The translator will serve the Tuscaloosa area.
In 2001, several former reporters sued the station for racial discrimination; they lost in various decisions, culminating when U.S. District Judge James Hancock granted WIAT a summary judgment. Among the allegations were unequal pay and even a racially-charged e-mail message circulating through the station.
WIAT has seen some of the largest ratings gains in its history since the sale to New Vision, posting higher late news ratings than WVTM since 2006. WIAT is now considered one of the strongest CBS affiliates in the nation; only a decade ago, it was one of the weakest. Additionally, CBS' broadcasts of Southeastern Conference
football garner higher ratings on WIAT than anywhere else in the nation.
In October 2005, WIAT teamed with former WB affiliate WTTO
, now a CW affiliate (as of September 2006) to begin producing a 9 p.m. newscast. Using the same set and anchors as WIAT and a modified graphics package, the CW21 News at 9 (formerly WB21 News at 9) aired seven days a week. However, the newscasts were discontinued on October 13, 2006, after the finalization of the Media General/New Vision deal, therefore leaving WTTO with no evening newscasts, as WVTM opted not to continue them under the previous Media General agreement.
In 2007 and 2008, WIAT won more Alabama Broadcasters Association Awards than any other station, as well as numerous Associated Press Awards, including the following:
On April 9, 2010, WIAT began broadcasting its local newscasts in High Definition, making WIAT the third station in the Birmingham-Tuscaloosa-Anniston market after WVTM and WBRC to do so. The news set and the graphics were also redesigned in the transition to HD. Their graphics are very similar to the current CBS O&O graphics package.
CBS 42 Weather Team
Sports Team
Reporters
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....
42, is the CBS
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...
-affiliated television station in the Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham is the largest city in Alabama. The city is the county seat of Jefferson County. According to the 2010 United States Census, Birmingham had a population of 212,237. The Birmingham-Hoover Metropolitan Area, in estimate by the U.S...
/Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
/Anniston
Anniston, Alabama
Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...
/Gadsden, Alabama
Gadsden, Alabama
The city of Gadsden is the county seat of Etowah County in the U.S. state of Alabama, and it is located about 65 miles northeast of Birmingham, Alabama. It is the primary city of the Gadsden Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a population of 103,459. Gadsden is closely associated with the...
television market. Licensed to Birmingham, it broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 30, although through the use of PSIP, the station's virtual channel number is displayed as 42.1. Its transmitter is located on Red Mountain
Red Mountain, Birmingham, Alabama
Red Mountain is a long ridge running southwest-northeast and dividing Jones Valley from Shades Valley south of Birmingham, Alabama. It is part of the Ridge-and-Valley region of the Appalachian mountains...
, just by the city's southern edge. The station can also be seen on 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 3 and HD channel 623.
As WBMG
Although the construction permit for the station was issued in 1956, it did not sign on until October 17, 1965 as WBMG (standing for BirMinGham). It was owned by Bill DuBois, a local investment banker. A minority owner was Southern Broadcasting, owners of radio station WSGNWAGG
WAGG is a radio station licensed to Birmingham, Alabama. It broadcasts at a daytime power 5,000 watts, and at nighttime, it broadcasts at 1,000 watts. WAGG is a gospel music station that targets Birmingham's African-American population. It is owned by Cox Radio, which also owns six other...
.
As was the case at the time with most UHF stations in markets served by at least two commercial VHF stations—in Birmingham's case, NBC
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...
/CBS
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...
affiliate WAPI-TV, now WVTM-TV
WVTM-TV
WVTM-TV, channel 13, is the NBC-affiliated television station in the Birmingham-Anniston-Tuscaloosa-Gadsden, Alabama television market. The station is owned by Media General...
; and then-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 WBRC-TV--WBMG experienced considerable competitive disadvantages from the outset. Many households did not have TV sets capable of viewing UHF signals without a converter. Television set manufacturers had only begun including UHF tuning a year earlier, per a 1962 directive from the Federal Communications Commission
Federal 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). The station's signal also left much to be desired. This was particularly problematic since central Alabama
Central Alabama
Central Alabama is the region in the state of Alabama that stretches approximately 170 miles from the western border with Mississippi to eastern border with Georgia and 136 miles from the northern border of Cullman County to the Alabama River in southern Autauga County. With a...
is a fairly large market geographically, stretching across nearly the entire width of the state. Much of this area's terrain is hilly to mountainous. This was a major reason that it took longer for Birmingham to get a third station than other cities of its size; Birmingham had been big enough to support a third station since the 1950s. The FCC had actually allocated four VHF channels to what would become the Birmingham market, but two of them—channels 7 and 10—had been snapped up by Alabama Educational Television
Alabama Public Television
Alabama Public Television is a state network of Public Broadcasting Service member non-commercial educational Public television stations serving the US state of Alabama. The television stations are licensed by the Alabama Educational Television Commission, which was created by the Alabama state...
. At the time, UHF stations usually didn't get good coverage in areas with rugged terrain. As a result, only Birmingham itself and some inner-ring suburbs over Red Mountain received a decent signal from channel 42.
On paper, WBMG took the CBS affiliation from WAPI-TV. However, CBS continued to allow channel 13 to air some of its more popular programming. WBMG was left with CBS' news programming and numerous lower-rated CBS shows, and filled the schedule with some NBC shows that WAPI-TV turned down. One of them was, strangely given its popularity elsewhere in the country, The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show
The Tonight Show is an American late-night talk show that has aired on NBC since 1954. It is the longest currently running regularly scheduled entertainment program in the United States, and the third longest-running show on NBC, after Meet the Press and Today.The Tonight Show has been hosted by...
. Another example is the Heidi Game
Heidi Game
The Heidi Game or Heidi Bowl was an American football game played on November 17, 1968. The home team, the Oakland Raiders, defeated the New York Jets, 43–32. The game is remembered for its exciting finish, as Oakland scored two touchdowns in the final minute to overcome a 32–29 New York lead...
, the infamous American Football League
American Football League
The American Football League was a major American Professional Football league that operated from 1960 until 1969, when the established National Football League merged with it. The upstart AFL operated in direct competition with the more established NFL throughout its existence...
game played in 1968. One benefit, though, was that the CBS Evening News
CBS Evening News
CBS Evening News is the flagship nightly television news program of the American television network CBS. The network has broadcast this program since 1948, and has used the CBS Evening News title since 1963....
returned to Birmingham after several years' absence. After the networks expanded their national newscasts to half an hour, NBC's The Huntley-Brinkley Report was the only national newscast seen in Birmingham for much of the 1960s. Both stations listed their affiliation as "CBS/NBC." By 1970, though, WAPI's owners, the Newhouse
Advance Publications
Advance Publications, Inc., is an American media company owned by the descendants of S.I. Newhouse Sr., Donald Newhouse and S.I. Newhouse, Jr. It is named after the Staten Island Advance, the first newspaper owned by the Newhouse family...
family, opted for an exclusive contract with NBC, leaving WBMG to take a full CBS affiliation more or less by default.
With a poor signal, the lack of sets with UHF capability and two of the South's oldest and most respected stations as competition, WBMG found the going very difficult. Due in part to WBMG's weak signal, CBS opted to affiliate with two other central Alabama stations, WCFT-TV in Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
and WHMA-TV (later WJSU-TV) in Anniston
Anniston, Alabama
Anniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...
. Both stations signed on roughly around the same time as WBMG, and reached some Birmingham homes with UHF rooftop antennas. But many of WBMG's problems were of its own making. Its newscasts often—inadvertently or not—became comedy shows. Examples of this include mid-1970s sportscaster (and local radio personality) Tommy Charles wadding up scripts and tossing them over his shoulder after reading them, as well as even letting balloons fly around the set for no apparent reason.
Furthermore, CBS' decision in 1971 to cancel many of its rural-oriented sitcoms and variety shows, especially the country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...
showcase Hee Haw
Hee Haw
Hee Haw is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with fictional rural Kornfield Kounty as a backdrop. It aired on CBS-TV from 1969–1971 before a 20-year run in local syndication. The show was inspired by Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, the major difference being...
and shows hosted by Sylacauga
Sylacauga, Alabama
Sylacauga is a city in Talladega County, Alabama, United States. At the 2000 census the population was 12,616.Nicknames for Sylacauga include: "The Marble City," "Buzzard's Roost" and "Sly Town"....
native Jim Nabors
Jim Nabors
James Thurston "Jim" Nabors is an American actor and singer. Born and raised in Sylacauga, Alabama, Nabors moved to Southern California because of his asthma. While working at a Santa Monica nightclub, The Horn, he was discovered by Andy Griffith and later joined The Andy Griffith Show, playing...
, in order to comply with the Prime Time Access Rule
Prime Time Access Rule
The Prime Time Access Rule was instituted by the Federal Communications Commission in 1970 to restrict the amount of network broadcast programming that a local television station, Owned-and-operated station by or affiliated with a television network may air during "prime time"...
may have hurt WBMG's ability to attract viewers in rural Alabama, where those programs were highly popular among viewers.
Still, WBMG gained publicity in central Alabama for some local shows, such as live studio wrestling, and the children's show Sergeant Jack, which featured former WSGN disc jockey
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
Neal Miller, who donned the uniform of a sheriff's deputy (and actually was sworn in as an honorary deputy by the Jefferson County
Jefferson County, Alabama
Jefferson County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Alabama, with its county seat being located in Birmingham.As of the 2010 U.S. Census, the population of Jefferson County was 658,466...
sheriff himself) and engaged in fanciful banter with puppets. Sergeant Jack ran on weekdays from 1965 to 1976 and on weekends from that point until 1982. Mother Angelica
Mother Angelica
Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, PCPA is an American Roman Catholic nun who founded the Eternal Word Television Network. In 1944 she entered the Poor Clares of Perpetual Adoration, a Franciscan religious order for women, as a postulant, and a year later she was admitted to the order as a...
, who would later launch the Christian cable network
Cable network
A cable channel is a television channel available via cable television. Such channels are usually also available via satellite television, including direct broadcast satellite providers such as DirecTV, Dish Network and BSkyB...
EWTN
Eternal Word Television Network
The Eternal Word Television Network is an American cable television network which presents Catholic-themed programming. It was founded in 1980 by Mother Mary Angelica of the Annunciation, PCPA...
from Irondale
Irondale, Alabama
Irondale is a city adjacent to Birmingham, Alabama, United States northeast from Homewood and Mountain Brook. At the 2010 census the population was 12,349. The book Fried Green Tomatoes, by Irondale native Fannie Flagg, is loosely based around the town and the landmark Irondale Cafe, known as The...
in 1981, began her career by taping faith-related programs at the WBMG studios for distribution on the station and other cable networks.
Park Communications bought WBMG in 1973. Park significantly boosted the station's signal, erecting a new tower in 1974. It also tried to professionalize the newscasts, with little success. WBMG had no local newscasts at all from 1980 until 1987, aside from hourly cut-ins. During this time, the station broadcast syndicated shows at both 5 and 10 p.m. Even when local news returned in 1987, WBMG had no luck whatsoever competing with WVTM and WBRC. It was perennially one of CBS' weakest affiliates, in marked contrast to its competitors, who were two of their networks' strongest affiliates. It even trailed WTTO
WTTO
WTTO is a CW affiliate for the Birmingham/Anniston/Tuscaloosa, Alabama market. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 28, however through the use of PSIP technology, digital television receivers display WTTO's virtual channel as 21. It is licensed to Homewood, a Birmingham suburb...
, an independent station (and later a Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...
affiliate) that had only been on the air since 1982.
WBMG's signal was still rather weak after the signal boost, effectively limiting its coverage area to Birmingham itself and close-in suburbs in Chilton
Chilton County, Alabama
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*84.1% White*9.7% Black*0.4% Native American*0.3% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.2% Two or more races*7.8% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
and Shelby
Shelby County, Alabama
Shelby County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama and a part of the Birmingham–Hoover–Cullman Combined Statistical Area. It is named in honor of Isaac Shelby, Governor of Kentucky. The county seat of Shelby County is Columbiana. As of 2010 U.S. Census the population was 195,085. Shelby...
counties. As a result, many cable systems in the western and eastern portions of the market wouldn't carry it. With this in mind, CBS kept its affiliations with WCFT and WHMA/WJSU, which regularly trounced WBMG in their respective regions. This was especially true in Anniston since WBMG's signal didn't cover east central Alabama well at all during that period, again because of high elevations from the Appalachian foothills.
By the early 1990s, WBMG was only ahead of WABM
WABM
WABM, channel 68, is the My Network TV affiliate for the Birmingham/Anniston/Gadsden/Tuscaloosa, Alabama television market. WABM is owned by Sinclair Broadcasting Group, which also owns the market's CW affiliate, WTTO. WABM broadcast in ATSC digital format on channel 36...
in the Birmingham ratings. Despite this, the station managed to make a name for itself while John Harrod was news director from 1990 to 1995. He launched a very aggressive and hard hitting news department, concentrating exclusively on local stories and investigative reporting. During Harrod's tenure, the station won awards from the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
for its reporting. Unfortunately, critical acclaim was not rewarded with a ratings win.
In 1995, Fox purchased WBRC. ABC's affiliation with WBRC did not expire until September 1996, so Fox continued to run WBRC as an ABC affiliate while ABC looked for a new affiliate in the central Alabama area. It first approached WTTO, but broke off talks after WTTO would only offer a secondary affiliation, carrying just prime time and sports programming. ABC then approached WBMG, which at least had a news department. Despite channel 42's anemic ratings, ABC saw enough promise that it even offered to buy the station. Instead, WBMG re-signed a long-term deal with CBS. ABC then opted for a unique arrangement with WCFT and WJSU. The two stations would combine to act as full-powered satellites of WBMA-LP
WBMA-LP
WBMA-LD, channel 58, is the ABC television affiliate for Birmingham and central Alabama. Its transmitter is located in Birmingham, while its studio is in Hoover, a suburb of Birmingham....
, a low-powered station whose signal did not carry outside of Jefferson and Shelby counties.
The switch took place in September. At that time, CBS decided to affiliate with yet another central Alabama station, WNAL-TV (now WPXH
WPXH
WPXH-TV, digital channel 45, is the Ion Television network affiliate for the Birmingham/Gadsden/Anniston/Tuscaloosa market. The station's city of license is Gadsden. The station is owned by ION Media Networks...
) in Gadsden
Gadsden, Alabama
The city of Gadsden is the county seat of Etowah County in the U.S. state of Alabama, and it is located about 65 miles northeast of Birmingham, Alabama. It is the primary city of the Gadsden Metropolitan Statistical Area, which has a population of 103,459. Gadsden is closely associated with the...
, which put a fairly decent signal into the eastern portions of the Birmingham area, as well as eastern Alabama. However, WNAL simulcasted WBMG's newscasts during this time. WBMG also boosted to full power at this time, finally giving it a signal comparable to those of the other major stations in the market.
As WIAT
Media General
Media General, Inc. is a media company based in the Southeastern United States. Its major properties include newspapers such as The Tampa Tribune, the Winston-Salem Journal, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch, as well as numerous television stations, such as flagship station WFLA-TV.The company was...
. However, WBMG stayed in the ratings basement with a mere 1% market share, trailing not only WVTM and WBRC but also WTTO and at times even WABM. At one point in 1997, 42 News scored lower ratings than reruns of Sanford and Son
Sanford and Son
Sanford and Son is an American sitcom, based on the BBC's Steptoe and Son, that ran on the NBC television network from January 14, 1972, to March 25, 1977....
.
After only a few months, new general manager Eric Land had seen enough. On December 15, 1997, he fired eight anchors and ten other news staffers, including all of its on-air reporters. On 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...
1998, he canceled all newscasts and fired all but one news staffer. Over the next month, channel 42 rebuilt its news department from scratch with input from focus groups and market research. During that time, the station showed a countdown clock at 5 and 10 p.m. – the slots where news would air once the product was re-launched. In order to signify a new start, Media General had the station's callsign changed to WIAT, which stood for It's About Time, the station's new slogan (which took effect on February 1). The station, even without a running newscast, sent coverage of Eric Rudolph's bombing at a Birmingham abortion clinic on January 29 to CBS Newspath, CNN, and to neighboring stations.
The new format debuted on February 5, 1998—the same day as the start of the Winter Olympics
1998 Winter Olympics
The 1998 Winter Olympics, officially the XVIII Olympic Winter Games, was a winter multi-sport event celebrated from 7 to 22 February 1998 in Nagano, Japan. Seventy-two nations and 2,176 participans contested in seven sports and 72 events at 15 venues. The games saw the introduction of Women's ice...
--with a new name, "42 Daily News". Land was seen just before the countdown clock expired speaking to an unseen audience, then throwing a switch that blew up an image of the WBMG logo, with the new WIAT logo emerging. Land later said that even with its AP awards earlier in the decade, the station's research "found that our people were so closely identified with a poorly performing product that we had to create a new brand and start over again". Don Fitzpatrick, a TV news analyst, called the drastic changes an "extremely rare [...] act of desperation".
The transformation of the station's newscast and image was startling. At first, the station did not have any on-air reporters, using crews of photographers with reporters, photographers with field producers, and one-man bands. All stories were narrated by the anchors, much as was the case for most television stations until the 1960s. Strict time limits were imposed on story lengths, leading to segments such as "Top Story in a Minute," "Weather Minute," "Neighborhood Minute," a "2-Minute Drill" sportscast, etc. One anchor manned the anchor desk, while the other read stories from various places on the new set. Al Primo
Al Primo
Albert T. Primo is a television news executive who was credited with creating the Eyewitness News format.-Biography:He was born in 1937 and raised in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania...
, who created the "Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
" format at KYW-TV
KYW-TV
KYW-TV, virtual channel 3, is an owned and operated television station of the CBS Television Network, located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. KYW-TV shares a studio facility with its sister station, CW flagship WPSG just north of Center City Philadelphia...
back in 1965, delivered sharp criticism of what he felt was "a product that was generated solely by research and implemented by people who don't know anything about the news business" and "the most disjointed presentation [of a newscast] that I have ever seen in my life". Land responded to Primo's scathing remarks by comparing the format to the "Al Schottelkotte
Al Schottelkotte
Albert J. "Al" Schottelkotte was a long-time news anchor/reporter for WCPO-TV in Cincinnati, Ohio for 27 years, and later served as President/CEO of the Scripps Howard Foundation from 1986 until three weeks before his death in December 1996.-Early career:...
News", a longtime staple of WCPO-TV
WCPO-TV
WCPO-TV, virtual channel 9 , is an ABC-affiliated television station in Cincinnati, Ohio. WCPO's studio is located in the Mount Adams neighborhood of Cincinnati, just outside of Eden Park. Its transmitter is located along Symmes Street, just south of East McMillan Street in Cincinnati.The station...
in Cincinnati, for which he'd been a reporter: "[The Al Schottelkotte News] was very nontraditional, but jampacked with information."
The new anchor team was mostly made up of talent from out of town (Keith Cate, the first anchor to be seen on the new WIAT, jumped from being the main anchor at WMAR-TV
WMAR-TV
WMAR-TV, channel 2, is the ABC affiliate television station in Baltimore, Maryland, owned by the broadcasting division of the E.W. Scripps Company...
in Baltimore; his reaction to the fast-paced news style was, according to him, "This looks like 'Headline News' gone local"), except for the two-person sports team. Sports Director Paul Finebaum
Paul Finebaum
Paul Finebaum is an American sports author, television and radio personality and former columnist based in Birmingham, Alabama. His primary focus is sports, particularly those in the Southeast. Finebaum was born in Memphis, Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee, where he received a...
's established popularity from his highly-opinionated column in the Birmingham Post-Herald
Birmingham Post-Herald
The Birmingham Post-Herald was a daily newspaper in Birmingham, Alabama with roots dating back to 1850, before the founding of Birmingham. The final edition was published on September 23, 2005...
and radio show on WERC sparked some interest from sports fans. However, his sportscasts were often seen as incomplete since he had only two minutes to convey the day's sports. Weekend sports anchor Sam Smith was the only on-air holdover from the old WBMG; however, he soon departed. Later, the station hired its first female sports reporter and weekend sports anchor at Finebaum's urging, Beth Adubato. She left in June 2000.
The timing was chosen for a reason. The Tuscaloosa and Anniston areas, long separate markets, were merged into Birmingham as the result of the 1996 merger of WCFT, WJSU, and WBMA-LP into an ABC affiliate for the Birmingham market, causing it to grow in market size by 12 (from 51 to 39). At the same time, Nielsen converted Birmingham to a metered market in the fall of 1998 for ratings purposes.
Even with the time constraints, WIAT was seen as making a more credible effort at news than ever before. Ratings increased immediately (for the 10 p.m. news, to a 7 share in February from a 1/3 in 1997, partly due to the Winter Olympics) but were still not enough to overtake the competition. Ratings also increased once Birmingham became a metered market, moving to 3 and 4 shares most nights early in the fall of 1998. However, that year the station received its first two Emmy Awards in station history. The station later updated its image to become "News 42". It also began adding reporters, and gradually eased its strict time limits on story lengths.
In 2003, Bill Ballard, who took over as President and General Manager, created a new path for the station which included numerous changes such as stronger programming like Dr. Phil, Jeopardy!
Jeopardy!
Griffin's first conception of the game used a board comprising ten categories with ten clues each, but after finding that this board could not be shown on camera easily, he reduced it to two rounds of thirty clues each, with five clues in each of six categories...
, 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...
, and later Wendy Williams and a much more aggressive approach to news coverage. The moves which were implemented have dramatically altered the landscape of Central Alabama television.
In April 2006, Media General bought four NBC owned and operated stations, including WVTM. Since the Federal Communications Commission
Federal 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) does not allow one company to own two of the four largest stations in a single market, Media General opted to keep the then higher-rated WVTM and sell WIAT to another owner. On August 2, 2006, New Vision Television
New Vision Television
New Vision Television is a broadcast company based in Los Angeles, California. The company owns or manages 18 television stations in medium sized markets.-New Vision I:...
, LLC announced its purchase of WIAT and sister station KIMT
KIMT
KIMT is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Driftless Area of North Central Iowa and Southeastern Minnesota. Licensed to Mason City, Iowa, it broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 42 from a transmitter near Meyer, Iowa south of the Minnesota state line...
in Mason City, Iowa
Mason City, Iowa
Mason City is the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 28,079 in the 2010 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro Gordo and Worth counties....
for $35 million. The sale was finalized on October 12, 2006.
Previous owners of Channel 42
- 1965–1973: William DuBois, Southern Broadcasting
- 1973–1997: Park Communications
- 1997–2006: Media GeneralMedia GeneralMedia General, Inc. is a media company based in the Southeastern United States. Its major properties include newspapers such as The Tampa Tribune, the Winston-Salem Journal, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch, as well as numerous television stations, such as flagship station WFLA-TV.The company was...
- 2006–present: New Vision TelevisionNew Vision TelevisionNew Vision Television is a broadcast company based in Los Angeles, California. The company owns or manages 18 television stations in medium sized markets.-New Vision I:...
Digital television
| Channel | 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 42.1 | 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 WIAT programming / CBS |
| 42.2 | 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 | Untamed Sports TV |
| 42.3 | CBS 42 Weather | ||
Untamed Sports TV was added on a subchannel in 2009. WIAT promotes 42.2 as a separate channel on the air and the station's website. In addition to Untamed Sports, 42.2 also carries live and tape-delayed local high school sports and the Rick and Bubba
Rick and Bubba
Rick Burgess and Bill "Bubba" Bussey are cohosts of The Rick & Bubba Show—a syndicated comedic radio program based in Birmingham, Alabama...
show.
On April 5, 2010, the FCC granted WIAT a construction permit for a digital fill-in translator on their pre-analog allotment Channel 42. The translator will serve the Tuscaloosa area.
News operation
Currently, WIAT broadcasts a total of 19½ hours of local newscasts each week (with 3½ hours on weekdays and one hour each on weekends). Unlike most CBS affiliates in the Central Time Zone, WIAT does not air local news during the weekday noon timeslot.In 2001, several former reporters sued the station for racial discrimination; they lost in various decisions, culminating when U.S. District Judge James Hancock granted WIAT a summary judgment. Among the allegations were unequal pay and even a racially-charged e-mail message circulating through the station.
WIAT has seen some of the largest ratings gains in its history since the sale to New Vision, posting higher late news ratings than WVTM since 2006. WIAT is now considered one of the strongest CBS affiliates in the nation; only a decade ago, it was one of the weakest. Additionally, CBS' broadcasts of Southeastern Conference
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
football garner higher ratings on WIAT than anywhere else in the nation.
In October 2005, WIAT teamed with former WB affiliate WTTO
WTTO
WTTO is a CW affiliate for the Birmingham/Anniston/Tuscaloosa, Alabama market. It broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 28, however through the use of PSIP technology, digital television receivers display WTTO's virtual channel as 21. It is licensed to Homewood, a Birmingham suburb...
, now a CW affiliate (as of September 2006) to begin producing a 9 p.m. newscast. Using the same set and anchors as WIAT and a modified graphics package, the CW21 News at 9 (formerly WB21 News at 9) aired seven days a week. However, the newscasts were discontinued on October 13, 2006, after the finalization of the Media General/New Vision deal, therefore leaving WTTO with no evening newscasts, as WVTM opted not to continue them under the previous Media General agreement.
In 2007 and 2008, WIAT won more Alabama Broadcasters Association Awards than any other station, as well as numerous Associated Press Awards, including the following:
- Best Anchor: Sherri Jackson
- Best Reporter: Stephen Hauck
- Best Website: www.cbs42.com
- Best Feature News Story (twice running)
- Best Station Promotion
- Best Commercial Production (twice running)
- Best Public Service Announcement
- Best Web Journalism
On April 9, 2010, WIAT began broadcasting its local newscasts in High Definition, making WIAT the third station in the Birmingham-Tuscaloosa-Anniston market after WVTM and WBRC to do so. The news set and the graphics were also redesigned in the transition to HD. Their graphics are very similar to the current CBS O&O graphics package.
Newscast titles
- 42 News (1960s–1974 and 1992–1997)
- 42 NewsPlus (1974–1980)
- Metro News (1980–1987)
- TV-42 News (198?–1982)
- Action NewsAction NewsAction News is a local television newscast format in the United States. It was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV by then-news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format used on rival station KYW-TV...
42 (1980s–1997) - Action NewsAction NewsAction News is a local television newscast format in the United States. It was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV by then-news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format used on rival station KYW-TV...
Birmingham 42 (1987–1992) - 42 Daily News (1998–2004)
- News 42 (2004–2007)
- CBS 42 News (2007–present)
Current on-air staff
Anchors- Cynthia Gould - Sundays at 5:30 and 10 p.m. & Executive Producer of Special Projects
- Stephen Hauck - weekday mornings "Wake Up Alabama"
- Sherri Jackson - weeknights at 5, 6, and 10 p.m.
- Ken Lass - weeknights at 5, 6, and 10 p.m.
- Shanisty Myers - Saturdays at 6 and 10 p.m., also weeknight reporter
- Brooke Smith - weekday mornings "Wake Up Alabama"
CBS 42 Weather Team
- Mark Prater (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...
and 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...
Seals of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 6, and 10 p.m. - Kalee Dionne - weather anchor; weekday mornings "Wake Up Alabama"
- Ted McInerney - meteorologist; weekend evenings
- David Neal - meteorologist; fill-in
Sports Team
- Jim Dunaway - sports anchor; weeknights at 6 and 10 p.m.
- Scott Griffin - sports analyst and fill-in sports anchor
- Patrick Claybon - sports anchor/reporter
- Lauren Sisler - sports anchor/reporter
- Alex Corddry - sports reporter
- B.J. Millican - sports producer
Reporters
- Leigh (Kim) Garner - general assignment reporter
- Rick Jackson - morning reporter
- Mike McClanahan - general assignment reporter
- Phillip Ohnemus - general assignment reporter
- Al Ratcliffe - general assignment reporter
- Scott Packard - general assignment reporter
- Kaitlin McCulley - general assignment reporter
- Stephanie Salvatore - general assignment reporter
- Chris Womack - general assignment reporter
- Adrian Pittman - general assignment reporter
- Tiffany Westry - general assignment reporter
- Melissa Crabtree - general assignment reporter
Former on-air staff
- Dale CardwellDale CardwellWilliam Dale Cardwell is a consumer advocate and journalist based in Atlanta, Georgia. Cardwell has a long history of putting himself between consumers and reputedly unscrupulous individuals or companies...
- investigator reporter (1984-1987) - Hank ErwinHank ErwinHenry Eugene "Hank" Erwin, Jr. is a Christian evangelical broadcaster and a former Republican State Senator in Alabama , representing the 14th District since 2002. He represented portions of Jefferson, Shelby, Bibb and Chilton Counties.- Biography :...
- anchor (late 1970s-early 1980s; later became a news reporter on WYDEWXJC (AM)WXJC is a radio station licensed to serve Birmingham, Alabama. The station is licensed to Kimtron, Inc. and owned by Crawford Broadcasting Company...
, formerly a member of the Alabama State Legislature) - Paul FinebaumPaul FinebaumPaul Finebaum is an American sports author, television and radio personality and former columnist based in Birmingham, Alabama. His primary focus is sports, particularly those in the Southeast. Finebaum was born in Memphis, Tennessee and attended the University of Tennessee, where he received a...
- sports director (1998–2001; currently hosting syndicated sports talk show based at WJOX)
Transmitter
The WIAT-TV Tower is a 365.8 meter high guyed mast, located at 30°41'17.0" N and 87°47'54.0" W. The WIAT-TV Tower was built in 1974.- http://www.skyscraperpage.com/diagrams/?b17269