WFIE
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| WFIE | |
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| Evansville, Indiana | |
| Branding | 14 WFIE / 14 News |
| Slogan | The Tri-State's News & Weather Leader |
| Channels | Analog: 14 (UHF) |
| Translators | 14.2 ([24/7 Weather Now]) |
| Affiliations | NBC |
| Owner | Raycom Media, Inc. (WFIE License Subsidiary, LLC) |
| First air date | November 15, 1953 |
| Call letters’ meaning | We're First In Evansville |
| Former callsigns | WFIE-TV (1953-2003) |
| Former channel number(s) | 62 (1953-1961) |
| Former affiliations | Both secondary: DuMont (1953-1955) ABC (1953-1956) |
| Transmitter Power | 2510 kW (analog) 250 kW (digital) |
| Height | 310 m (both) |
| Facility ID | 13991 |
| Transmitter Coordinates | |
| Website | www.14wfie.com |
WFIE, owned and operated by Raycom Media, is the NBC network affiliate serving the Evansville, Indiana metropolitan area, known as the "Tri-State" area of Indiana, Kentucky, and Illinois. It operates on UHF channel 14 and in high definition on channel 46, also on the UHF dial.
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[edit] History
The station began broadcasting on November 15, 1953 on channel 62, originally co-owned by Jesse, Isadore, and Oscar Fine. It was the sixth television station in Indiana. The station, with FCC approval, moved to channel 14 in August of 1961. The station was an affiliate of NBC, ABC, and DuMont.[1] The station's call letters mean "We're First In Evansville". While it was the first station with its main studio in Evansville, WEHT had actually beaten it to the air by a few months from its studios in Henderson.
The Fines sold WFIE to the Morton family of Louisville, owners of fellow NBC affiliate WAVE-TV, in 1956. The Mortons' broadcasting holdings would eventually become known as Orion Broadcasting. In October 1981, Orion merged with Cosmos Broadcasting Corporation, a subsidiary of insurance and broadcasting conglomerate Liberty Corporation. Liberty bowed out of the insurance business in 2000, bringing WFIE directly under the Liberty banner. On February 1, 2006, Liberty merged with Raycom.
In May of 2002, WFIE began broadcasting digitally on channel 46.
In Fall 2005, WFIE launched a 24 hour, local, weather channel on digital channel 14.2. "First Alert Weather Now" features an L-shaped display, and continuously shows doppler weather radar and local and national forecasts. It is very similar to NBC Weather Plus.
On April 3, 2006 WFIE abandoned 615 Music's popular "News One" theme music in favor of "NBC Flagship," part of "The NBC Collection," by Gari Communications. This marked the station's first theme change since 1996.
In early August 2006, WFIE began branding their newscasts as "14 News," dropping the "Newswatch 14" identity. In a further transition, WFIE rebranded their weather department under the "First Alert" label on September 22, 2006. This is a departure from the "Storm Team" brand used since the mid-nineties. Later, on April 16, 2007, WFIE introduced its "Dual Doppler" to the market, with weather radars in both Evansville and Owensboro.
In November 2006, WFIE added The Tube Music Network on digital channel 14.3, in accordance with many Raycom Media stations. In summer 2007, The Tube shut down and WFIE ceased programming on 14.3.
[edit] First in Evansville
WFIE claims to be the first television station in Evansville. While technically true, the market's first television station is actually WEHT, which began operations on September 27, 1953. Although WEHT is licensed to Evansville, its studios and transmitter are located across the Ohio River in Henderson, Kentucky. WFIE, like WEHT, also has its transmitter and tower in Henderson.
WFIE was the market's first television station to telecast color programs, in 1956. It was the first in Evansville to telecast live and local color programs, beginning on March 10, 1966. The station also became the first in the market to broadcast local news, sports and weather outside its studios in August 1977.
In the ensuing years, WFIE would have three more "firsts". It became the first television station in the market to broadcast in stereo in September 1985; it was the second station in Indiana (first in Evansville) to build its own Doppler weather radar system (located next to the television station building), in February 1988; and on April 16, 2007, WFIE introduced a second radar to the market, this time in Owensboro, Kentucky, on top of the Owensboro Medical Health System hospital building.
[edit] Programs
WFIE airs many syndicated programs such as Dr. Phil, The Oprah Winfrey Show, Jeopardy!, and Wheel of Fortune. Until the mid-2000s, it also carried Live with Regis & Kelly, before moving to WEHT. Like many other Evansville market stations, WFIE airs infomercials as part of its daytime schedule in the afternoons.
[edit] Notable WFIE Alumni
- Marcia Yockey 1953 off-and-on through 1990s
- Liza Danver, weekend anchor (now at WISH-TV Indianapolis, Indiana)
- David Wilson, Weather Man - 1960s
- Kennan Oliphant, Reporter (now at WDTN-TV, Dayton, Ohio)
[edit] External links
- 14 WFIE, The Tri-State's News Leader: Home
- The History of WFIE-TV, 50th Anniversary
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WFIE
- BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WFIE-TV
[edit] References
- ^ The History of WFIE-TV. The Boneyard. Retrieved on 2007-02-12.
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