WAFB
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| WAFB | |
|---|---|
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| Baton Rouge, Louisiana | |
| Branding | 9 News MyBRTV (on DT4) |
| Slogan | Louisiana's News Channel |
| Channels | Analog: 9 (VHF) |
| Affiliations | CBS MyNetworkTV |
| Owner | Raycom Media (WAFB License Subsidiary, LLC) |
| First air date | April 19, 1953 |
| Call letters’ meaning | American Family Broadcasting (former owner) |
| Sister station(s) | WBXH-CA |
| Former callsigns | WAFB-TV (1953-1988) |
| Former channel number(s) | 28 (1953-1960) |
| Former affiliations | NBC (1953-1955) DuMont (1953-1955) ABC (1953-1971) all secondary The Tube (on DT3, until 2007) |
| Transmitter Power | 316 kW (analog) 46 kW (digital) |
| Height | 509 m (analog) 146 m (digital) |
| Facility ID | 589 |
| Transmitter Coordinates | (analog) (digital) |
| Website | www.wafb.com |
WAFB, channel 9, is the CBS-affiliated television station in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Its analog transmitter is located southwest of Arlington. The station's digital transmitter is located in downtown Baton Rouge. Owned by Raycom Media, WAFB is sister to MyNetworkTV affiliate WBXH-CA. The two stations share studios on Government Street in downtown Baton Rouge.
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[edit] History
The station began broadcasting on April 19, 1953 as the second television station in the state of Louisiana. Originally broadcasting on channel 28, WAFB moved to channel 9 in 1960. The station has always been a CBS affiliate but carried some NBC programming until WBRZ-TV signed on in 1955. WAFB also carried some ABC programming until WRBT (now WVLA) signed on in 1971 and some programming from DuMont until that network folded. In 1988, the station dropped the -TV suffix from its call letters.
[edit] Digital television
WAFB's digital signal is multiplexed. On WAFB-DT2 is a 24-hour local weather channel which can also be seen on Cox cable channel 9. on WAFB-DT4 is a full power standard definition digital signal of MyNetworkTV affiliate WBXH-CA. Due to its Class A status, that station does not broadcast a digital signal of its own. In 2009, WAFB's digital signal will leave channel 46 and move to channel 9 when the analog to digital conversion is complete.[1]
| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 9.1 / 46.1 | Main WAFB programming / CBS HD |
| 9.2 / 46.2 | WAFB 24/7 Weather (24-hour local weather channel) |
| 9.4 / 46.4 | Main WBXH programming - MyBRTV / MyNetworkTV HD |
[edit] Programming
WAFB is one of a handful of stations that shifts the air times of various CBS programming. The Price Is Right airs at 11 A.M. instead of 10 (back-to-back episodes of Family Feud airs from 10 to 11 A.M.) and The Young and The Restless airs at 4 P.M. instead of 11 A.M.
The station's current syndicated library includes: Montel, Friends, CSI, Soul Train, Taxi, The Odd Couple, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and others. The station aired Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune until 1995 (they have since aired on WBRZ), plus Live with Regis and Kelly and Oprah until the late-1990s (Oprah moved to WBRZ, but since then, it has aired on WVLA while Regis was the other way around). It used to also air The Phil Donahue Show, Hard Copy, and Sally Jesse Raphael, among other syndicated shows.
One locally produced show that brought years of enjoyment to children was hosted by Buckskin Bill Black (William Black) that ran from 1955 until 1990. There were several characters that were regulars on the show including Senor Puppet (a marionette voiced by Sid Crocker) and Whatsyourname (another puppet voiced by Mary Hiller). The show had a way of educating young children while making it fun to learn. Two games many adults can remember Buckskin playing were called "Hully Gully", which helped to teach counting numbers, and the "Monday Morning March". The two shows he hosted were called "Storyland" (for younger children during A.M. broadcasting) and "The Buckskin Bill Show" (for older children during the afternoons). The Buckskin Bill Show was also one of the first shows in the United States to have a sign-language interpreter for hearing-impaired viewers prior to closed-captioning. Through two gracious campaigns from his show, Buckskin Bill helped to start the Baton Rouge Zoo and asked children to bring in their pennies to buy an elephant. The penny campaign was successful enough to purchase two. He is now involved with the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board.
WAFB also airs the Sunday services from the First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge.
[edit] News operation
The station's news department produces 25 hours of news programming each week including newscasts for sister station WBXH-CA.
WAFB newscasts had the second-highest ratings at 10 P.M. in any of the country's biggest television markets according to The Des Moines Register in Iowa. Nielsen Media Research ratings for November showed that 16.2% of all households in the Baton Rouge market watched the newscast. The only station to get a bigger share of the local audience was KCCI, the CBS affiliate in Des Moines, which was watched by 17.9% of area households. ([1])
Currently, WAFB is the top rating channel in the Baton Rouge viewing area. In the recent ratings period, the station beat the others ones combined at 5, 6, and 10. On March 3, 2008, WAFB became the first in Baton Rouge and the 3rd in Louisiana to broadcast their news in high definition. The station is the only one in the market to broadcast local news at Noon on the weekends.
[edit] News team
Anchors
- Donna Britt - weeknights at 6 and 10
- Paul Gates - weeknights at 5
- investigative reporter
- WAFB Editorial Board chairman
- Kellee Henessey - weekend mornings and Noon
- Greg Meriwether - weeknights at 9
- weeknight "Street Beat" reporter
- Phil Rainier - weekdays at Noon
- weeknight 5 and 10 o'clock health reporter
- George Sells - weeknights at 6 and 10
- Matt Williams - weekday mornings
- crime reporter
Meteorologists
- Steve Caparotta - weeknights at 5 and 9
- Diane Deaton - weekday mornings and Noon
- Jay Grymes - Chief seen on weeknights at 6 and 10
- Scott Oswalt - weekend mornings/evening
Sports
- Erin Cofiell - sports reporter
- sports photographer
- Jacques Doucet - weekend evenings
- Steve Schneider - Sports Director seen on weeknights at 6 and 10
Reporters
- Anna Adair
- Jack Jackson - weeknight 9 o'clock fill-in anchor
- Cheryl Mercedes
- Caroline Moses
- Keitha Nelson
- Jim Shannon
- Allen Tumey - "Tumey's Travels" segment reporter
- Tyana Williams
[edit] Former on-air staff
- Julie Baxter - now practicing law with Moore, Walters, Thompson in Baton Rouge; adjunct Media Law professor at LSU's School of Mass Communication
- Glynn Boyd - now at WGNO New Orleans
- Tim Brando - sports. Now broadcasts for various sports outlets, including CBS Sports and Jefferson Pilot Sports.
- George Caldwell (Sells) - now at News 12 Long Island in New York
- Isaiah Carey - now at KRIV Houston
- Marie Centanni - former member of LA Governor Kathleen Blanco's staff
- Matt Clough - KUSA, Denver, CO
- Avery Davidson - now at LA Farm Bureau
- Jennifer Donelan - ABC7/WJLA, Washington D.C.
- Jay Gormley - filmmaker
- Mike Graham - retired meteorologist, has since become active in performance arts.
- Jennifer Hale - WVTM, Birmingham, AL
- Victor Howell - now a basketball analyst at Cox Sports Television. He is also the host of the "CST Tonight!" and "Saints Tonight!" studio shows.
- Cyndi Nguyen - now at WGNO in New Orleans
- Nancy Parker - now at WVUE New Orleans
- Vernon Roger - anchor of 12pm and 5pm broadcasts. Remembered for his cajun cooking segments and his "taste test." Committed suicide in 2002.
- Pat Simon - now anchoring evening news at WLOS in Asheville, North Carolina
- Sylvia Weatherspoon - now at WBRZ-TV
- Valentina Wilson - now at WVLA-TV
[edit] References
- ^ WAFB Post-Transitional plans as proposed to the FCC. Federal Communications Commission.
[edit] External links
- WAFB "9 News"
- WBXH-CA "MyBRTV"
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WAFB
- BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WAFB-TV
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