WTVG
Encyclopedia
This is about the TV station in Toledo, Ohio for the former WTVG-TV in Newark, New Jersey see WFUT-DT.
WTVG, channel 13, is the ABC
-affiliated
television station for Northwest Ohio
and licensed in Toledo, Ohio
. WTVG's studios and offices are located in Toledo and its transmitter is located in Oregon, Ohio
. It is owned by SJL Broadcasting. Syndicated programming on WTVG includes Live! with Kelly, Rachael Ray, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
, Entertainment Tonight
, The Insider
and Cash Explosion
.
along with WSPD radio (AM 1370
and FM 101.5, now WRVF
). The studios were originally located at 136 Huron St. in downtown Toledo. It was Toledo's first television station, and the first television station in the Storer Broadcasting chain.
Originally, the station carried programming from all four television networks: NBC
, ABC, CBS
and DuMont
. However, it was a primary NBC affiliate, owing to its radio sisters' long affiliation with NBC radio. In 1955, Storer changed its primary affiliation to CBS, as Storer and CBS had strong corporate ties. DuMont shut down in 1956, leaving WSPD-TV as a primary CBS affiliate with a secondary ABC affiliation.
In 1958, however, CBS moved its affiliation to newly signed-on WTOL-TV, owing to its long affiliation with WTOL radio. Conventional wisdom suggested that WSPD-TV would go back to NBC. Instead, channel 13 switched its primary affiliation to ABC, while sharing NBC with WTOL. This was very unusual for a two-station market; ABC would not be on par with CBS and NBC in terms of programming until the 1970s. This didn't pose a problem for Toledo viewers, however, as Detroit's WWJ-TV (now WDIV-TV
) and WXYZ-TV
provided a fairly decent signal to most of the market. WSPD-TV became an exclusive NBC affiliate in 1970 when then-independent WDHO-TV, channel 24 (now WNWO-TV
), took over the ABC affiliation.
Storer also owned WJBK-AM
-FM
-TV
in Detroit and WJW-AM
-FM
-TV in Cleveland. Both WJBK-TV and WJW-TV were longstanding CBS affiliates. WSPD-TV provided city-grade coverage to most of Detroit's suburbs, while its grade B signal could be seen in Detroit and Cleveland. The Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) grandfathered this situation under its "one-to-a-market
" rule in the 1970s. Storer sold off WSPD-FM in the early 1970s and WSPD-AM in 1979, and channel 13 became WTVG.
The Storer stations were taken over by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) in 1985. As a result, WTVG lost its grandfathered protection and was not sold to Gillett Communications
along with the other Storer stations in 1987. Instead, it was sold to a local employee/investor group called "Toledo Television, Inc." Toledo Television, in turn was bought out by SJL Broadcast Management in 1991.
, the owner of most of WTVG's former sister stations, signed an affiliation deal with Fox Broadcasting Company
, resulting in most of New World's stations switching affiliation to Fox, but some stayed with NBC (which later bought the New World stations that did not go to Fox). Among the stations due to switch was WJBK, Detroit's longtime CBS affiliate. To avoid being consigned to UHF in what was then the ninth-largest market, CBS heavily wooed Detroit's longtime ABC affiliate, WXYZ.
WXYZ's owner, E.W. Scripps Company, then told ABC that unless it agreed to affiliate with Scripps-owned stations in four smaller markets, it would switch WXYZ to CBS. As a contingency, ABC approached SJL about buying WTVG and WJRT-TV
in Flint, Michigan
. As mentioned above, WTVG provides grade B coverage of Detroit itself and city-grade coverage to most of Detroit's suburbs, which would have come in handy had WXYZ switched to CBS. The deal closed on August 29, 1995. However, WTVG's affiliation contract didn't run out until October, so ABC had to run WTVG as an NBC affiliate for two months while NBC looked for a new affiliate in the area. On October 28, 1995, WTVG rejoined ABC, sending the NBC affiliation to WNWO-TV. As it turned out, ABC agreed to the affiliation deal with Scripps as well, and WXYZ retained its ABC affiliation. ABC chose not to trade its newly acquired stations for former O&O WXYZ-TV (because of ABC's ownership of WJR-AM
and two other FM stations in Detroit), and Scripps was looking to exit the radio business completely. In 1996, Capital Cities/ABC was acquired by Disney
.
WTVG was one of only two ABC-Disney owned-and-operated stations (the other being KTRK-TV
in Houston, Texas
; WJRT aired it into the early 90's, but lost it to CBS affiliate WNEM
by the time WJRT was acquired by ABC) which never aired The Oprah Winfrey Show
since its debut on September 8, 1986. Oprah aired on WTOL for its entire run in Toledo (as did fellow CBS affiliate KHOU in Houston).
WTVG was the smallest station in the country that was an O&O of any major network, not counting semi-satellites (this includes WOGX
in Ocala
/Gainesville, Florida
; which is a semi-satellite of WOFL
in Orlando
).
magazine announced that SJL Broadcasting, now owned by the principal owners of Lilly Broadcasting, made an agreement with Disney to buy back WTVG and WJRT, upon speculation that Disney may sell off ABC. Both stations are expected to retain their affiliations with ABC. SJL teamed up with a new private equity partner, Bain Capital
, whose affiliated offshoot Sankaty Advisors provided the capital for the purchases (which amounted to $16.8 million on WTVG's end of the $30 million deal). WTVG began being owned by SJL Broadcasting again beginning April 1, 2011. On April 12, 2011, the new management dismissed around 20 people from a pre-sale work force of approximately 100 -- all behind-the-scenes staff -- from the station, despite promising earlier that they would make no staff cuts. Similar cuts occurred at WJRT, though cuts there also involved that station's veteran newscasters Bill Harris and Joel Feick.
For nearly five months after SJL took ownership of the stations, the web sites of both WTVG and WJRT remained in the format of other ABC-owned stations until late August when WorldNow took over operations of the sites.
Digital channels>
Virtual
Channel
Video
Aspect
Programming
13.1
720p
16:9
Main WTVG programming / ABC
13.2
480i
4:3
(16:9
letterbox
)
Live Well Network
13.3
4:3
WTVG Weather Now
On June 12, 2009, at 12:32 AM, WTVG turned-off its analog signal forever. The station's digital signal relocated to channel 13 following the digital transition. Channel 13 DTV transmits at a lower power than it did on Channel 19 DTV, so in some locations, there has been a reduction in coverage. Many VHF stations are applying to the FCC for power increases to restore their coverage area after moving from UHF back to VHF.
On January 13, 2011, WTVG filed an application to the FCC to increase its power from 14.6 kW to 16.7 kW. The station granted a construction permit on the power increase on March 7.
, Cash Explosion
, Entertainment Tonight
and The Insider
drawings, and broadcast the game show Cash Explosion
on Saturday evenings. WTVG took over broadcasting the lottery drawings and game show from rival station WTOL.
WTVG ended the show Coffee with the Fords on June 19, 2011. The show was hosted by former Toledo mayor Jack Ford and his wife Cynthia. Coffee with the Fords was shown between 12:30-1:00 p.m. on Sunday mornings, and was on the air for over four years.
WTVG also airs two special Friday night sports programs, Football Friday showcasing High School football games across Northwest Ohio, during the High School football season and Basketball Friday showcasing girls and boys Basketball across Northwest Ohio during the High School basketball season.
WTVG utilizes the Sony
PDW510 XDCAM
Camcorder. All Toledo stations (WTVG, WTOL
, WNWO, and WUPW
) use the Jeep Liberty
as an ENG
vehicle, due to the fact that they are made locally by Chrysler
. WTVG also uses another Jeep-brand vehicle, the Jeep Commander
.
During every noon newscast, local experts in different fields answer questions sent in by viewers on WTVG's website, in a segment called "Ask the Expert". One of five different experts is featured every day.
WTVG owns and operates a 350,000 Watt Doppler Radar named Live Doppler 13000 HD.
Alexis Means won an Ohio Associated Press award for best spot news coverage for "Gunmen in the School," a breaking news story in which a gunman was allegedly seen walking into a Toledo Public School.
In 2011, WTVG received 6 Emmys from the Lower Great Lakes chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. WTVG also received over 15 nominations for their news, a record for the station.
In June 2011, news anchors at WTVG began using iPads
to read news stories instead of paper. WTVG is the first television station in Toledo to use the technology. WTOL began using iPads in late September 2011.
widescreen enhanced definition
. On July 2, 2010, WTVG became the first news station in Toledo and the ninth ABC-owned station to broadcast its newscasts in high definition
. The in-studio cameras are in 720p
high definition
, and field coverage is in 16:9
widescreen enhanced definition. WTVG, however, does not use HD graphics in their newscasts. Instead, WTVG uses the same graphics used for over three years, but made to fit the entire screen. WTOL channel 11 began broadcasting their newscasts in high definition on April 21, 2011. WNWO began broadcasting newscasts in 16:9 enhanced definition widescreen on August 15, 2011.
Anchors
Weather team
Sports team
Reporters
WTVG, channel 13, is the ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
-affiliated
Network affiliate
In the broadcasting industry , a network affiliate is a local broadcaster which carries some or all of the television program or radio program line-up of a television or radio network, but is owned by a company other than the owner of the network...
television station for Northwest Ohio
Northwest Ohio
Northwest or northwestern Ohio consists of multiple counties in the northwestern corner of the US state of Ohio. This area borders Lake Erie, southern Michigan, and eastern Indiana. Some areas in northwestern Ohio are also considered the Black Swamp area. The Toledo metropolitan area is also part...
and licensed in Toledo, Ohio
Toledo, Ohio
Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan...
. WTVG's studios and offices are located in Toledo and its transmitter is located in Oregon, Ohio
Oregon, Ohio
Oregon is a city in Lucas County, Ohio, United States. It is a suburb of Toledo, located on Lake Erie, just east of the city. The population was 20,291 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Oregon is located at ....
. It is owned by SJL Broadcasting. Syndicated programming on WTVG includes Live! with Kelly, Rachael Ray, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
, 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...
, The Insider
The Insider (TV series)
The Insider is an American tabloid television news program covering events and celebrities. It debuted on September 13, 2004 as a spinoff of Entertainment Tonight and started as a popular segment that took viewers "behind closed doors" and gave them "inside" information...
and Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion, known as Cash Explosion Double Play from 1989 until 2006, is an official Ohio Lottery TV game show, which is broadcast on television stations throughout Ohio...
.
History
The station signed on the air on July 21, 1948 as WSPD-TV, owned by Storer BroadcastingStorer Broadcasting
Storer Broadcasting, Inc. was an American company which owned several television and radio stations in the northeast United States. It was incorporated in Ohio in 1927, and sold its broadcasting properties in 1983.-1920s—1940s:...
along with WSPD radio (AM 1370
WSPD
WSPD — branded The Talk of Toledo - 1370 WSPD — is a news-talk radio station licensed to Toledo, Ohio. WSPD broadcasts on a full-time basis with 5,000 watts, including a directional signal pattern at night...
and FM 101.5, now WRVF
WRVF
WRVF is an American soft adult contemporary music formatted radio station in Toledo, Ohio, owned by Clear Channel Communications...
). The studios were originally located at 136 Huron St. in downtown Toledo. It was Toledo's first television station, and the first television station in the Storer Broadcasting chain.
Originally, the station carried programming from all four television networks: 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...
, ABC, 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...
and DuMont
DuMont Television Network
The DuMont Television Network, also known as the DuMont Network, DuMont, Du Mont, or Dumont was one of the world's pioneer commercial television networks, rivalling NBC for the distinction of being first overall. It began operation in the United States in 1946. It was owned by DuMont...
. However, it was a primary NBC affiliate, owing to its radio sisters' long affiliation with NBC radio. In 1955, Storer changed its primary affiliation to CBS, as Storer and CBS had strong corporate ties. DuMont shut down in 1956, leaving WSPD-TV as a primary CBS affiliate with a secondary ABC affiliation.
In 1958, however, CBS moved its affiliation to newly signed-on WTOL-TV, owing to its long affiliation with WTOL radio. Conventional wisdom suggested that WSPD-TV would go back to NBC. Instead, channel 13 switched its primary affiliation to ABC, while sharing NBC with WTOL. This was very unusual for a two-station market; ABC would not be on par with CBS and NBC in terms of programming until the 1970s. This didn't pose a problem for Toledo viewers, however, as Detroit's WWJ-TV (now WDIV-TV
WDIV-TV
WDIV-TV, virtual channel 4, is an NBC-affiliated television station based in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is owned by Post-Newsweek Stations and is the flagship station and home base of the group with the offices of the group located alongside WDIV's studios; the "Local" branding now...
) and WXYZ-TV
WXYZ-TV
WXYZ-TV, channel 7, is an ABC-affiliated television station in Detroit, Michigan, USA. WXYZ-TV is owned by the E.W. Scripps Company, and is the media company's largest-market TV station property...
provided a fairly decent signal to most of the market. WSPD-TV became an exclusive NBC affiliate in 1970 when then-independent WDHO-TV, channel 24 (now WNWO-TV
WNWO-TV
WNWO-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station in Northwest Ohio that is licensed to Toledo. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 49 from a transmitter northeast of Oregon. Owned by Barrington Broadcasting, the station has studios on South Byrne Road...
), took over the ABC affiliation.
Storer also owned WJBK-AM
WLQV
WLQV is a radio station serving the Detroit, Michigan market. The station's fifty-thousand watt daytime signal enables it to be heard from Michigan's Thumb area down to Northwest Ohio, and from Lansing, Michigan to Chatham, Ontario, Canada. WLQV has a Christian talk format.-WJBK:WLQV first signed...
-FM
WDRQ
WDRQ is an FM radio station in Detroit, Michigan. The station is branded as 93.1 Doug FM. Doug FM broadcasts from the Fisher Building just north of downtown Detroit and transmits its signal from an antenna 669 feet in length located at the intersection of Ten Mile and Greenfield Roads in suburban...
-TV
WJBK
WJBK is the Fox–owned and operated television station in Detroit, Michigan broadcasting on digital channel 7...
in Detroit and WJW-AM
WKNR
WKNR — branded ESPN 850 WKNR — is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Owned by Good Karma Broadcasting, WKNR is the primary Cleveland affiliate for ESPN Radio; together with sister station WWGK, WKNR is often referred to as ESPN Cleveland.WKNR is the Cleveland affiliate...
-FM
WQAL
WQAL — branded Q104 — is a commercial Adult Top 40 radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Studios are located at One Radio Lane along with CBS Radio sister station WDOK.-History:...
-TV in Cleveland. Both WJBK-TV and WJW-TV were longstanding CBS affiliates. WSPD-TV provided city-grade coverage to most of Detroit's suburbs, while its grade B signal could be seen in Detroit and Cleveland. 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) grandfathered this situation under its "one-to-a-market
Concentration of media ownership
Concentration of media ownership refers to a process whereby progressively fewer individuals or organizations control increasing shares of the mass media...
" rule in the 1970s. Storer sold off WSPD-FM in the early 1970s and WSPD-AM in 1979, and channel 13 became WTVG.
The Storer stations were taken over by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) in 1985. As a result, WTVG lost its grandfathered protection and was not sold to Gillett Communications
George N. Gillett Jr.
-Biography:George Gillett graduated from Lake Forest Academy in 1956. He attended Amherst College and is a graduate of Dominican College in Racine, Wisconsin....
along with the other Storer stations in 1987. Instead, it was sold to a local employee/investor group called "Toledo Television, Inc." Toledo Television, in turn was bought out by SJL Broadcast Management in 1991.
As an ABC-owned station
In 1994, New World CommunicationsNew World Communications
New World Pictures was an independent motion picture and television production company, and later television station owner in the United States from the late 1980s to the mid-1990s...
, the owner of most of WTVG's former sister stations, signed an affiliation deal with Fox Broadcasting Company
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...
, resulting in most of New World's stations switching affiliation to Fox, but some stayed with NBC (which later bought the New World stations that did not go to Fox). Among the stations due to switch was WJBK, Detroit's longtime CBS affiliate. To avoid being consigned to UHF in what was then the ninth-largest market, CBS heavily wooed Detroit's longtime ABC affiliate, WXYZ.
WXYZ's owner, E.W. Scripps Company, then told ABC that unless it agreed to affiliate with Scripps-owned stations in four smaller markets, it would switch WXYZ to CBS. As a contingency, ABC approached SJL about buying WTVG and WJRT-TV
WJRT-TV
WJRT-TV, channel 12, is the ABC-affiliated station for the Flint/Tri-Cities television market, owned by SJL Broadcasting. Its studios are located in Flint, Michigan, with offices and a second newsroom for the Tri-Cities located in Saginaw...
in Flint, Michigan
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
. As mentioned above, WTVG provides grade B coverage of Detroit itself and city-grade coverage to most of Detroit's suburbs, which would have come in handy had WXYZ switched to CBS. The deal closed on August 29, 1995. However, WTVG's affiliation contract didn't run out until October, so ABC had to run WTVG as an NBC affiliate for two months while NBC looked for a new affiliate in the area. On October 28, 1995, WTVG rejoined ABC, sending the NBC affiliation to WNWO-TV. As it turned out, ABC agreed to the affiliation deal with Scripps as well, and WXYZ retained its ABC affiliation. ABC chose not to trade its newly acquired stations for former O&O WXYZ-TV (because of ABC's ownership of WJR-AM
WJR
WJR is a radio station in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It broadcasts a news/talk format. It is a class A clear channel station whose broadcasts can be heard throughout most of the Midwest, eastern United States and Canada at night, making it one of the most powerful radio stations in the...
and two other FM stations in Detroit), and Scripps was looking to exit the radio business completely. In 1996, Capital Cities/ABC was acquired by Disney
The Walt Disney Company
The Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
.
WTVG was one of only two ABC-Disney owned-and-operated stations (the other being KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV, channel 13, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Houston, Texas...
in Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
; WJRT aired it into the early 90's, but lost it to CBS affiliate WNEM
WNEM-TV
WNEM-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Flint/Tri-Cities market in Michigan. It is licensed to Bay City, and broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 22 . Owned by the Meredith Corporation, the station has studios on North Franklin Street in downtown Saginaw, as...
by the time WJRT was acquired by ABC) which never aired The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
since its debut on September 8, 1986. Oprah aired on WTOL for its entire run in Toledo (as did fellow CBS affiliate KHOU in Houston).
WTVG was the smallest station in the country that was an O&O of any major network, not counting semi-satellites (this includes 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...
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...
/Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville, Florida
Gainesville is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Alachua County, Florida, United States as well as the principal city of the Gainesville, Florida Metropolitan Statistical Area . The preliminary 2010 Census population count for Gainesville is 124,354. Gainesville is home to the sixth...
; which is a semi-satellite of 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
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...
).
Sale back to SJL Broadcasting
On November 3, 2010, Broadcasting & CableBroadcasting & Cable
Broadcasting & Cable magazine is a television industry trade magazine published by NewBay Media. Previous names included Broadcasting/Telecasting, Broadcasting and Broadcast Advertising, and Broadcasting...
magazine announced that SJL Broadcasting, now owned by the principal owners of Lilly Broadcasting, made an agreement with Disney to buy back WTVG and WJRT, upon speculation that Disney may sell off ABC. Both stations are expected to retain their affiliations with ABC. SJL teamed up with a new private equity partner, Bain Capital
Bain Capital
Bain Capital LLC is a Boston-based private equity firm founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. Originally conceived as an early-stage, growth-oriented investment fund, Bain Capital today manages approximately $65 billion in assets, and its strategies include private...
, whose affiliated offshoot Sankaty Advisors provided the capital for the purchases (which amounted to $16.8 million on WTVG's end of the $30 million deal). WTVG began being owned by SJL Broadcasting again beginning April 1, 2011. On April 12, 2011, the new management dismissed around 20 people from a pre-sale work force of approximately 100 -- all behind-the-scenes staff -- from the station, despite promising earlier that they would make no staff cuts. Similar cuts occurred at WJRT, though cuts there also involved that station's veteran newscasters Bill Harris and Joel Feick.
For nearly five months after SJL took ownership of the stations, the web sites of both WTVG and WJRT remained in the format of other ABC-owned stations until late August when WorldNow took over operations of the sites.
Digital programming
The station's digital signal, now VHF channel 13, is multiplexed:Channel
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,...
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 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 ...
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...
(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 ...
letterbox
Letterbox
Letterboxing is the practice of transferring film shot in a widescreen aspect ratio to standard-width video formats while preserving the film's original aspect ratio. The resulting videographic image has mattes above and below it; these mattes are part of the image...
)
On June 12, 2009, at 12:32 AM, WTVG turned-off its analog signal forever. The station's digital signal relocated to channel 13 following the digital transition. Channel 13 DTV transmits at a lower power than it did on Channel 19 DTV, so in some locations, there has been a reduction in coverage. Many VHF stations are applying to the FCC for power increases to restore their coverage area after moving from UHF back to VHF.
On January 13, 2011, WTVG filed an application to the FCC to increase its power from 14.6 kW to 16.7 kW. The station granted a construction permit on the power increase on March 7.
High Definition Programming
WTVG currently broadcasts five of its syndicated programs in high definition. These programs are Live with Kelly, The Ellen DeGeneres ShowThe Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
, Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion, known as Cash Explosion Double Play from 1989 until 2006, is an official Ohio Lottery TV game show, which is broadcast on television stations throughout Ohio...
, 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 The Insider
The Insider (TV series)
The Insider is an American tabloid television news program covering events and celebrities. It debuted on September 13, 2004 as a spinoff of Entertainment Tonight and started as a popular segment that took viewers "behind closed doors" and gave them "inside" information...
Ohio Lottery
On July 1, 2011, WTVG began to broadcast the nightly Ohio LotteryOhio Lottery
The Ohio Lottery is run by the Ohio Lottery Commission. Its games include Pick 3 and Pick 4 , Rolling Cash 5, Ten-OH!, Keno, Classic Lotto, Powerball, Mega Millions, and scratch tickets. The marketing slogan is "Take a chance on education. Odds are, you'll have fun!" In 1973, the creation of the...
drawings, and broadcast the game show Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion
Cash Explosion, known as Cash Explosion Double Play from 1989 until 2006, is an official Ohio Lottery TV game show, which is broadcast on television stations throughout Ohio...
on Saturday evenings. WTVG took over broadcasting the lottery drawings and game show from rival station WTOL.
The 13th Frame
Every year, WTVG holds a 35-week long bowling series called "The 13th Frame", aired on Thursdays during the 11 p.m. newscast. Players are given two balls, and win $1 for each pin knocked down. If the player gets 2 strikes, the player can go for a Turkey to win a $250 jackpot. During times when there have been losing streaks, the jackpot has been known to become progressive.News operation
WTVG airs over one and a half hours of local news shows every Sunday morning from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The shows are each a half hour and talk about different types of topics. The shows include: Conklin and Company (11:00-11:30), Bridges (11:30-12:00), and Roundtable (12:00-12:30).WTVG ended the show Coffee with the Fords on June 19, 2011. The show was hosted by former Toledo mayor Jack Ford and his wife Cynthia. Coffee with the Fords was shown between 12:30-1:00 p.m. on Sunday mornings, and was on the air for over four years.
WTVG also airs two special Friday night sports programs, Football Friday showcasing High School football games across Northwest Ohio, during the High School football season and Basketball Friday showcasing girls and boys Basketball across Northwest Ohio during the High School basketball season.
WTVG utilizes the Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
PDW510 XDCAM
XDCAM
XDCAM is a a series of products for digital recording using random access solid-state memory media, introduced by Sony in 2003. Four different product lines — the XDCAM SD, XDCAM HD, XDCAM EX and XDCAM HD422 — differ in types of encoder used, frame size, container type and in...
Camcorder. All Toledo stations (WTVG, WTOL
WTOL
WTOL is the CBS- affiliated television station licensed in Toledo, Ohio. The station broadcasts on channel 11 and can be seen quite clearly throughout Northwest Ohio, Southeast Michigan , and southwest Ontario...
, WNWO, and WUPW
WUPW
WUPW is the Fox-affiliated television station for Northwestern Ohio that is licensed to Toledo. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 46 from a transmitter in Oregon. Owned by the LIN TV Corporation, the station has studios at Four SeaGate on North Summit Street in Downtown...
) use the Jeep Liberty
Jeep Liberty
Inspired by styling from the Dakar and Jeepster concept cars, the Liberty was intended as a replacement for the discontinued Jeep Cherokee . Three trim levels were initially offered; the top end Limited, a more rugged looking Renegade and the base Sport. All were made available with either 2WD or 4WD...
as an ENG
Electronic news gathering
ENG is a broadcasting industry acronym which stands for electronic news gathering. It can mean anything from a lone broadcast journalist reporter taking a single professional video camera out to shoot a story, to an entire television crew taking a production truck or satellite truck on location...
vehicle, due to the fact that they are made locally by Chrysler
Chrysler
Chrysler Group LLC is a multinational automaker headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan, USA. Chrysler was first organized as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925....
. WTVG also uses another Jeep-brand vehicle, the Jeep Commander
Jeep Commander
The Jeep Commander is a mid size SUV produced from 2006 to 2010. The first use of the Commander name on a passenger vehicle was the popular Studebaker Commander which was produced from the 1920s through 1966....
.
During every noon newscast, local experts in different fields answer questions sent in by viewers on WTVG's website, in a segment called "Ask the Expert". One of five different experts is featured every day.
WTVG owns and operates a 350,000 Watt Doppler Radar named Live Doppler 13000 HD.
Alexis Means won an Ohio Associated Press award for best spot news coverage for "Gunmen in the School," a breaking news story in which a gunman was allegedly seen walking into a Toledo Public School.
In 2011, WTVG received 6 Emmys from the Lower Great Lakes chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. WTVG also received over 15 nominations for their news, a record for the station.
In June 2011, news anchors at WTVG began using iPads
IPad
The iPad is a line of tablet computers designed, developed and marketed by Apple Inc., primarily as a platform for audio-visual media including books, periodicals, movies, music, games, and web content. The iPad was introduced on January 27, 2010 by Apple's then-CEO Steve Jobs. Its size and...
to read news stories instead of paper. WTVG is the first television station in Toledo to use the technology. WTOL began using iPads in late September 2011.
High Definition Newscasts
On April 13, 2010, WTVG became the last ABC-owned station (as well as the first station in the Toledo DMA) to have upgraded its news productions to 16:916:9
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 ...
widescreen enhanced definition
Enhanced-definition television
Enhanced-definition television, or extended-definition television, is a United States Consumer Electronics Association marketing shorthand term for certain digital television formats and devices...
. On July 2, 2010, WTVG became the first news station in Toledo and the ninth ABC-owned station to broadcast its newscasts in 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...
. The in-studio cameras are in 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...
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...
, and field coverage is in 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 ...
widescreen enhanced definition. WTVG, however, does not use HD graphics in their newscasts. Instead, WTVG uses the same graphics used for over three years, but made to fit the entire screen. WTOL channel 11 began broadcasting their newscasts in high definition on April 21, 2011. WNWO began broadcasting newscasts in 16:9 enhanced definition widescreen on August 15, 2011.
Newscast titles
- Your Esso Reporter (1948-1959)
- Big City News (1959-1962)
- The Big News (1962-1965)
- City Camera News (1965-1969)
- The Venner-Ward Report (1969-1973)
- 13 Nightly News (1973-1979)
- 13 Strong News (1979-1984)
- 13 News (1984–1993)
- 24-Hour News 13 (1993-1995)
- 13 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...
(1995–2001) - 13 ABC Action News (2001–present)
Station slogans
- 13 Strong (1979-1987)
- TV-13, The Winners!
- Your 24-Hour News Source (1989-1993)
- Where The Action Is (2001-2006)
- Get Connected (2010-present)
Current on-air staff
(as of December 2011)Anchors
- Sashem Brey - weekday mornings; also noon reporter
- Kristian Brown - weeknights at 5:30 p.m.; also weekday reporter
- Lee Conklin - weeknights at 5, 6 and 11 p.m.; also host of Conklin and Company
- Tony Geftos - weekend mornings; also weekday reporter
- Bill Hormann - weekend evenings; also weekday reporter
- Diane Larson - weeknights at 5, 6 and 11 p.m.
- Susan Ross-Wells - weekdays at noon and 5:30 p.m.
- Jeff Smith - weekday mornings and noon; also host of Roundtable
- Christina Williams - weekend mornings; also weekday reporter
Weather team
- Stan Stachak - (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...
Seal of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 11 p.m. - Jay Berschback (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) - meteorologist; weekday mornings and noon - Kristin Emery (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) - meteorologist; weekend mornings - "Blizzard" Bill Spencer (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) - senior meteorologist; weekend evenings - Susan Ware- weather caster; fill-in
Sports team
- Dave Holmes - sports director; weeknights at 6 and 11 p.m.
- Joe Nugent - sports anchor; weekend evenings
- Steve Slivka - sports reporter; also sports anchor fill-in
Reporters
- Elizabeth Choi - general assignment reporter
- Lissa Guyton - general assignment reporter
- Jenna Lento - general assignment reporter
- Christine Long - general assignment reporter
- Alexis Means - general assignment reporter
- Amy Montgomery - general assignment reporter
- Sanaa Orra - general assignment reporter
- Rebecca Regnier - "People, Places and Things" feature reporter
- Ashley Roth - general assignment reporter
- Katie Rydzewski- morning traffic reporter
Notable past on-air staff
- Jerry Anderson (now at WTOLWTOLWTOL is the CBS- affiliated television station licensed in Toledo, Ohio. The station broadcasts on channel 11 and can be seen quite clearly throughout Northwest Ohio, Southeast Michigan , and southwest Ontario...
in Toledo) - Melissa Andrews (now at WBGU-TVWBGU-TVWBGU-TV is a Public Broadcasting Service member Public television station in Bowling Green, Ohio operated by the Bowling Green State University. Unlike its companion radio station, WBGU , WBGU-TV is not primarily operated by students at the university.The station was founded in 1964 and currently...
) - Ryan BurrRyan BurrRyan Burr is a sports television journalist for ESPN. Burr works as an anchor on SportsCenter, and is a host for College Football Live & College Basketball Final.-Early life and career:...
(now at ESPNESPNEntertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
) - Frank Gilhooley (deceased; former Toledo Mud HensToledo Mud HensThe Toledo Mud Hens are a minor league baseball team located in Toledo, Ohio. The Mud Hens play in the International League, and are affiliated with the major league baseball team the Detroit Tigers, based approximately 50 miles to the north of Toledo. The current team is one of several...
announcer) - Efrem Graham (now at CBN News)
- Neil HartmanNeil HartmanNeil Hartman is an award-winning sports personality for Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia.Hartman was honored by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association as the state's Sportscaster of the Year in 2000. Hartman's career spans over 30 years...
(now at Comcast SportsNet Philadelphia) - Theresa Pollick (now with the Ohio Department of TransportationOhio Department of TransportationThe Ohio Department of Transportation is the organization of state government responsible for developing and maintaining all state and federal roadways in the state of Ohio with exception of the Ohio Turnpike. In addition to highways, the department also helps develop public transportation and...
) - Rob Powers (now at WABC-TVWABC-TVWABC-TV, channel 7, is the flagship station of the Disney-owned American Broadcasting Company located in New York City. The station's studios and offices are located on the Upper West Side section of Manhattan, adjacent to ABC's corporate headquarters, and its transmitter is atop the Empire State...
in New York) - Randy PriceRandy PriceRandy Price is a television newscaster with WCVB-TV in Boston, Massachusetts, after being the lead anchor at WHDH-TV from 1998 to 2009. He is considered the U.S.'s first openly gay newscaster....
(now at WCVB-TVWCVB-TVWCVB-TV, channel 5, is a television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Hearst Television and affiliated with the ABC Television Network. WCVB-TV's studios and transmitter are co-located in Needham, Massachusetts. WCVB is also one of six Boston television stations seen in Canada by...
in Boston) - Michael ReghiMichael ReghiMichael J. Reghi is an American television play-by-play announcer and radio sports talk show host. He is best known for being the former television play-by-play announcer of the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball , and the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association...
(now at WKNRWKNRWKNR — branded ESPN 850 WKNR — is a commercial sports radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio. Owned by Good Karma Broadcasting, WKNR is the primary Cleveland affiliate for ESPN Radio; together with sister station WWGK, WKNR is often referred to as ESPN Cleveland.WKNR is the Cleveland affiliate...
-AM; former Cleveland CavaliersCleveland CavaliersThe Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
play-by-play announcer)