WWCP-TV
Encyclopedia
WWCP-TV is the Fox
-affiliated television station
for the Allegheny
area of Pennsylvania
that is licensed to Johnstown
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on VHF channel 8 from a transmitter on Laurel Mountain
along U.S. 30
. Owned by Peak Media, the station operates ABC
affiliate WATM-TV
(owned by Palm Television, L.P.) through a local marketing agreement
(LMA) and the two share studios on Scalp Avenue (PA 56
) in Johnstown along U.S. 219
. In addition to the main studios, the station operates sales offices in State College
(on West Beaver Avenue) and Altoona
(on East Walton Avenue).
WWCP can also be seen on translator W59AI (analog channel 59/digital channel 17) in State College
from a transmitter southeast of Unionville
and WATM's second digital subchannel (UHF channel 24.2 or 23.2) in HD from a transmitter on Wopsy Mountain east of Dysart
.
Initially, the analog VHF channel 8 facility was to be licensed to Pittsburgh but the owners petitioned the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) to move the license to Johnstown. Programming prices were lower in this area and more shows would be available to the station here as opposed to Pittsburgh. Another likely consideration was the need to protect WJW-TV in Cleveland (now a fellow Fox affiliate). The FCC approved the move under the condition that Pittsburgh would need to receive a Grade B signal.
This posed a problem for the new station, as this stipulation meant that its signal would be all but un-viewable in the eastern portion of the market
(including Altoona and State College) although this was also done to protect WGAL-TV in Lancaster
. WWCP's owners solved this problem by buying the dormant license of Altoona's former ABC affiliate, WOPC-TV. It moved the WOPC license from UHF channel 38 to 23 and changed the calls to WWPC-TV. As a result, WWCP signed-on October 13, 1986 as an Independent with WWPC as a full-time satellite.
Originally, both stations aired a general entertainment format running cartoons, classic sitcoms, old movies, recent sitcoms, and drama shows. Finding itself in the unusual position of being an Independent on the VHF band, WWCP immediately took most of the stronger shows from the only other independent in the market, WFAT (channel 19). That coup effectively spelled the end for the latter station (it went dark
in 1991, returned in 1996, and is now Pittsburgh's CW affiliate WPCW
). Within ten months of going on-the-air, WWCP and WWPC obtained a Fox affiliation. Since WOPC had gone dark in the early-1980s, the eastern portion of the market had received ABC programming from WHTM-TV
in Harrisburg
while the western portion was served by WTAE-TV
in Pittsburgh. At the time, both stations preempted a moderate amount of network shows. It soon became obvious that Johnstown needed its own ABC affiliate.
In 1988, WWCP converted WWPC to a separate station (with new calls WATM-TV) which then took the ABC affiliation. That station was soon sold-off to a separate licensee in order to comply with FCC regulations on station ownership but the commission allowed WWCP to continue to control that channel under a local marketing agreement. WWCP successfully contended that if operated separately, both stations may have been in danger of going dark. For a time, a repeater was set up that allowed WWCP to be received on UHF channel 57 in the Altoona area. This was not effective, however, because the transmitter was twenty miles away near Martinsburg
. Altoona viewers who did not possess a high-powered antenna could not receive this signal. Throughout most of the city, viewers only saw a picture with no sound.
WWCP was the first Fox affiliate in the nation to refuse to air O.J. Simpson's two-night interview special with Judith Regan
on November 27 and 29, 2006. The controversial program, called If I Did It, Here's How It Happened
, resulted in the station owner saying it was inappropriate for Simpson to profit from his infamy. A special on St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
in Memphis, Tennessee
would have aired on the 27th with a locally produced program about domestic abuse, When Violence Hits Home, produced by WWCP/WATM Executive Producer, Josh Bandish, and anchored by Jim Penna, airing on the 29th had Fox not pulled the special from air on November 21. WWCP-TV shut down analog transmissions on June 12, 2009 , and moved its digital broadcasts back to its previous analog channel number, 8. WWCP also airs the locally produced Catholic
news show Proclaim!
on Sundays.
On November 17,2010, A trio of partners in the firm of Media Venture Partners formed a license company to acquire WWCP-TV, and a satellite in State College and an LMA with WATM-TV, which is an Altoona PA-based ABC affiliate. The license company formed by MVP is Horseshoe Curve Communications LLC, and the three MVP execs who comprise Horseshoe are Elliot B. Evers, Brian Pryor and Gregory D. Widroe. On January 4, 2011 the FCC granted transfer of control from Peak Media Holdings LLC to Horseshoe Curve Communications LLC.
, Clarion
and Indiana
.
and WTAJ-TV
who had market-wide coverage. Due in part to continued ratings struggles, WATM's separate news department was shut down in December 2002 and merged with WWCP in Johnstown.
On November 28, 2007, The Tribune Democrat reported that the shared news department of WWCP and WATM was going to shut down. According to a written statement, the two stations had been operating at a loss for years and the move was needed. The closure resulted in all reporters being released from their contracts. NBC
affiliate WJAC had on-air positions open but no personalities from these two stations were hired. Effective January 14, 2008, WJAC assumed production responsibility of the prime time show (still known as Fox 8 News at 10) which was reduced to 35 minutes on weeknights and thirty minutes on weekends. The WJAC-produced news uses the same music package and some voice-overs seen during segment opens as the former operation did. A new graphics package slightly different from WJAC and new logos similar to the WWCP promo logo introduced in 2007 were created specifically for the 10 o'clock program.
Since WJAC has prior commitments with news and weather cut-ins during Today, WATM still produces its own Good Morning America
news and weather cut-ins that are seen Tuesday through Saturday mornings. Former WWCP co-anchor Sherry Stalley, who was still under contract when the news department shut down, anchored the updates. The cut-ins use news video from the previous day's WJAC-produced WWCP broadcast and the same graphics package. On Sunday and Monday, the cut-ins are filled by WATM promos. In October 2010, Stalley was hired by WJAC to return as the anchor for Fox 8 News but on Monday March 14, 2011, Stalley's picture was removed from the Fox 8 Website and is no longer with the station. While a replacement for Stalley was sought, WJAC anchor Marty Radovanic served as anchor for the station's 10:00p.m. newscast, and the Good Morning America
news and weather cut-ins still produced by WATM were filled by former WWCP/WATM Executive Producer, Josh Bandish. On March 22, 2011 former WWCP/WATM reporter Christine Strugala, returned to the station to take on anchoring duties for the Fox 8 News at 10 along with Good Morning America news and weather cut-ins on abc 23 .
Fox 8 News at 10
(weeknights 10 to 10:35)
(weekends 10 to 10:30 p.m.)
Additional personnel from WJAC are seen on WWCP. See that article for a complete listing.
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...
-affiliated television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
for the Allegheny
Allegheny Mountains
The Allegheny Mountain Range , also spelled Alleghany, Allegany and, informally, the Alleghenies, is part of the vast Appalachian Mountain Range of the eastern United States and Canada...
area of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
that is licensed to Johnstown
Johnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
. It broadcasts a high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
digital signal on VHF channel 8 from a transmitter on Laurel Mountain
Laurel Mountain, Pennsylvania
Laurel Mountain is a borough in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The borough is located at the foot ofLaurel Mountain and is convenient to skiing, hiking and other outdoor activities...
along U.S. 30
U.S. Route 30 in Pennsylvania
In the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, U.S. Route 30 runs east–west across the southern part of the state, passing through Pittsburgh and Philadelphia on its way from the West Virginia state line east to the Benjamin Franklin Bridge over the Delaware River into New Jersey...
. Owned by Peak Media, the station operates 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 WATM-TV
WATM-TV
WATM-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Allegheny area of Pennsylvania that is licensed to Altoona. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 24 from a transmitter on Wopsy Mountain east of Dysart. Owned by Palm Television, the station is operated by Peak Media...
(owned by Palm Television, L.P.) through a local marketing agreement
Local marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
(LMA) and the two share studios on Scalp Avenue (PA 56
Pennsylvania Route 56
Pennsylvania Route 56 is a major long state highway located in central Pennsylvania. Its western terminus is at the eastern approach to the C.L. Schmitt Bridge in New Kensington. Its eastern terminus is U.S. Route 30 west of Bedford.- Route description :...
) in Johnstown along U.S. 219
U.S. Route 219 in Pennsylvania
From near Grantsville, Maryland north to Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. Route 219 is Corridor N of the Appalachian Development Highway System. From Somerset, Pennsylvania to just south of Carrolltown, Pennsylvania, US 219 is a limited-access highway...
. In addition to the main studios, the station operates sales offices in State College
State College, Pennsylvania
State College is the largest borough in Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Centre County. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 42,034, and roughly double...
(on West Beaver Avenue) and Altoona
Altoona, Pennsylvania
-History:A major railroad town, Altoona was founded by the Pennsylvania Railroad in 1849 as the site for a shop complex. Altoona was incorporated as a borough on February 6, 1854, and as a city under legislation approved on April 3, 1867, and February 8, 1868...
(on East Walton Avenue).
Digital programming
WWCP-TV's signal is multiplexed, with WWCP carries local ABC affiliate WATM in HD on 8.2.| Digital Channel | Programming | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 8.1 | 1280x720p 720p 720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan... |
16:9 16:9 16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ... |
main WWCP-TV programming / Fox HD |
| 8.2 | 1280x720p 720p 720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan... |
16:9 16:9 16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ... |
main WATM-TV programming / ABC 23 HD |
WWCP can also be seen on translator W59AI (analog channel 59/digital channel 17) in State College
State College, Pennsylvania
State College is the largest borough in Centre County in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the State College, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Centre County. As of the 2010 census, the borough population was 42,034, and roughly double...
from a transmitter southeast of Unionville
Unionville, Pennsylvania
Unionville is the name of some places in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania:*Unionville, Centre County, Pennsylvania*Unionville, Chester County, Pennsylvania*Neffs, Pennsylvania in Lehigh County, historically called Unionville...
and WATM's second digital subchannel (UHF channel 24.2 or 23.2) in HD from a transmitter on Wopsy Mountain east of Dysart
Dysart, Pennsylvania
Dysart is a small town located in Dean Township, Cambria County, Pennsylvania. It lies along the railroad that runs parallel to the Clearfield Creek between Ashville and Frugality. The town grew up around the extraction of timber and when that was exhausted, bituminous coal...
.
History
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) to move the license to Johnstown. Programming prices were lower in this area and more shows would be available to the station here as opposed to Pittsburgh. Another likely consideration was the need to protect WJW-TV in Cleveland (now a fellow Fox affiliate). The FCC approved the move under the condition that Pittsburgh would need to receive a Grade B signal.
This posed a problem for the new station, as this stipulation meant that its signal would be all but un-viewable in the eastern portion of the market
Media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
(including Altoona and State College) although this was also done to protect WGAL-TV in Lancaster
Lancaster, Pennsylvania
Lancaster is a city in the south-central part of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. It is the county seat of Lancaster County and one of the older inland cities in the United States, . With a population of 59,322, it ranks eighth in population among Pennsylvania's cities...
. WWCP's owners solved this problem by buying the dormant license of Altoona's former ABC affiliate, WOPC-TV. It moved the WOPC license from UHF channel 38 to 23 and changed the calls to WWPC-TV. As a result, WWCP signed-on October 13, 1986 as an Independent with WWPC as a full-time satellite.
Originally, both stations aired a general entertainment format running cartoons, classic sitcoms, old movies, recent sitcoms, and drama shows. Finding itself in the unusual position of being an Independent on the VHF band, WWCP immediately took most of the stronger shows from the only other independent in the market, WFAT (channel 19). That coup effectively spelled the end for the latter station (it went dark
Off-the-air
In telecommunication, the term off-air or off-the-air has the following meanings:# In radio communications systems, pertaining to a radio station or television station that is completely shut down, i.e. that is not transmitting any signal, not even an un-modulated carrier wave...
in 1991, returned in 1996, and is now Pittsburgh's CW affiliate WPCW
WPCW
WPCW is a The CW-affiliated television station for Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that is licensed to Jeannette. WPCW is owned by the CBS Corporation and serves as an affiliate of The CW Television Network for the television market...
). Within ten months of going on-the-air, WWCP and WWPC obtained a Fox affiliation. Since WOPC had gone dark in the early-1980s, the eastern portion of the market had received ABC programming from WHTM-TV
WHTM-TV
WHTM-TV "ABC 27" is the ABC-affiliated television station for South Central Pennsylvania that's licensed to Harrisburg. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter on the ridge north of I-81 along the Cumberland and Perry County line...
in Harrisburg
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 49,528, making it the ninth largest city in Pennsylvania...
while the western portion was served by WTAE-TV
WTAE-TV
WTAE-TV is the ABC affiliated television station for Western Pennsylvania that is licensed to Pittsburgh, broadcasting on UHF channel 51 and identifying via PSIP as channel 4 . It also serves as an ABC affiliate for the Wheeling/Steubenville and Clarksburg/Weston, West Virginia market areas...
in Pittsburgh. At the time, both stations preempted a moderate amount of network shows. It soon became obvious that Johnstown needed its own ABC affiliate.
In 1988, WWCP converted WWPC to a separate station (with new calls WATM-TV) which then took the ABC affiliation. That station was soon sold-off to a separate licensee in order to comply with FCC regulations on station ownership but the commission allowed WWCP to continue to control that channel under a local marketing agreement. WWCP successfully contended that if operated separately, both stations may have been in danger of going dark. For a time, a repeater was set up that allowed WWCP to be received on UHF channel 57 in the Altoona area. This was not effective, however, because the transmitter was twenty miles away near Martinsburg
Martinsburg, Pennsylvania
Martinsburg, in Morrisons Cove, is a borough in Blair County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 2,236 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Altoona, PA Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:Martinsburg is located at ....
. Altoona viewers who did not possess a high-powered antenna could not receive this signal. Throughout most of the city, viewers only saw a picture with no sound.
WWCP was the first Fox affiliate in the nation to refuse to air O.J. Simpson's two-night interview special with Judith Regan
Judith Regan
Judith Regan is an American editor, producer, book publisher and television and radio talk show host. She is the mother of a son and a daughter and lives in New York City and Los Angeles.-Early life:...
on November 27 and 29, 2006. The controversial program, called If I Did It, Here's How It Happened
If I Did It
If I Did It is a book by O. J. Simpson, in which he puts forth a hypothetical description of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. Simpson was tried and acquitted of the murders in a criminal trial but later found financially liable in a civil trial...
, resulted in the station owner saying it was inappropriate for Simpson to profit from his infamy. A special on St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital
St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, founded in 1962, is a leading pediatric treatment and research facility focused on children's catastrophic diseases. It is located in Memphis, Tennessee. It is a nonprofit medical corporation chartered as a 501 tax-exempt organization under IRS regulations.In...
in Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
would have aired on the 27th with a locally produced program about domestic abuse, When Violence Hits Home, produced by WWCP/WATM Executive Producer, Josh Bandish, and anchored by Jim Penna, airing on the 29th had Fox not pulled the special from air on November 21. WWCP-TV shut down analog transmissions on June 12, 2009 , and moved its digital broadcasts back to its previous analog channel number, 8. WWCP also airs the locally produced Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
news show Proclaim!
Proclaim!
Proclaim! is a Catholic news and discussion broadcast aired on Fox affiliate WWCP-TV in the Johnstown/Altoona/State College PA Television Market since December 2, 2001. They also produce Johnstown-Altoona Diocese Mass live from St. John Gualbert Cathedral in Johnstown. The Mass telecast has aired...
on Sundays.
On November 17,2010, A trio of partners in the firm of Media Venture Partners formed a license company to acquire WWCP-TV, and a satellite in State College and an LMA with WATM-TV, which is an Altoona PA-based ABC affiliate. The license company formed by MVP is Horseshoe Curve Communications LLC, and the three MVP execs who comprise Horseshoe are Elliot B. Evers, Brian Pryor and Gregory D. Widroe. On January 4, 2011 the FCC granted transfer of control from Peak Media Holdings LLC to Horseshoe Curve Communications LLC.
Out of market coverage
WWCP-TV is carried on various cable systems in several counties that are located outside of the Johnstown-Altoona market. These counties include ArmstrongArmstrong County, Pennsylvania
Armstrong County is a county located in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the population was 68,941. It is located northeast of Pittsburgh and Allegheny County. Armstrong County was added to the Pittsburgh Metropolitan Statistical Area in 2003.The county seat is Kittanning...
, Clarion
Clarion County, Pennsylvania
As of the census of 2000, there were 41,765 people, 16,052 households, and 10,738 families residing in the county. The population density was 69 people per square mile . There were 19,426 housing units at an average density of 32 per square mile...
and Indiana
Indiana County, Pennsylvania
-Government and politics:As of November 2008, there are 58,077 registered voters in Indiana County .* Democratic: 26,653 * Republican: 24,159 * Other Parties: 7,265 -County commissioners:*Rodney Ruddock, Chairman, Republican...
.
Newscasts
WWCP and WATM began airing local newscasts in 1992. This channel produced an hour-long broadcast every night at 10 from Johnstown while the latter aired a nightly program at 11 from State College. As a result, these newscasts focused on the respective areas and barely registered as a blip in the ratings against longer-established WJAC-TVWJAC-TV
WJAC-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Allegheny area of Pennsylvania that is licensed to Johnstown. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 34 from a transmitter northwest of the city in Laurel Ridge State Park along the Cambria and Westmoreland County line....
and WTAJ-TV
WTAJ-TV
WTAJ-TV is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Allegheny area of Pennsylvania that is licensed to Altoona, Pennsylvania. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 32. It is owned by Nexstar Broadcasting Group...
who had market-wide coverage. Due in part to continued ratings struggles, WATM's separate news department was shut down in December 2002 and merged with WWCP in Johnstown.
On November 28, 2007, The Tribune Democrat reported that the shared news department of WWCP and WATM was going to shut down. According to a written statement, the two stations had been operating at a loss for years and the move was needed. The closure resulted in all reporters being released from their contracts. 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...
affiliate WJAC had on-air positions open but no personalities from these two stations were hired. Effective January 14, 2008, WJAC assumed production responsibility of the prime time show (still known as Fox 8 News at 10) which was reduced to 35 minutes on weeknights and thirty minutes on weekends. The WJAC-produced news uses the same music package and some voice-overs seen during segment opens as the former operation did. A new graphics package slightly different from WJAC and new logos similar to the WWCP promo logo introduced in 2007 were created specifically for the 10 o'clock program.
Since WJAC has prior commitments with news and weather cut-ins during Today, WATM still produces its own Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
news and weather cut-ins that are seen Tuesday through Saturday mornings. Former WWCP co-anchor Sherry Stalley, who was still under contract when the news department shut down, anchored the updates. The cut-ins use news video from the previous day's WJAC-produced WWCP broadcast and the same graphics package. On Sunday and Monday, the cut-ins are filled by WATM promos. In October 2010, Stalley was hired by WJAC to return as the anchor for Fox 8 News but on Monday March 14, 2011, Stalley's picture was removed from the Fox 8 Website and is no longer with the station. While a replacement for Stalley was sought, WJAC anchor Marty Radovanic served as anchor for the station's 10:00p.m. newscast, and the Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
news and weather cut-ins still produced by WATM were filled by former WWCP/WATM Executive Producer, Josh Bandish. On March 22, 2011 former WWCP/WATM reporter Christine Strugala, returned to the station to take on anchoring duties for the Fox 8 News at 10 along with Good Morning America news and weather cut-ins on abc 23 .
Fox 8 News at 10
(weeknights 10 to 10:35)
- Anchor:
- Christine Strugala
- Weather:
- Tony Martin
- Sports:
- Tim Rigby
(weekends 10 to 10:30 p.m.)
- Anchor:
- Nick Ruffner(Saturday) Janel Knight(Sunday)
- Weather:
- Tim Tender
- Sports:
- Matt Maisel
Additional personnel from WJAC are seen on WWCP. See that article for a complete listing.