WAPT

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WAPT
Jackson, Mississippi
Branding	16 WAPT News
Slogan	Building Our Station Around You
Channels	16 (UHF) analog, 21 (UHF) digital
Affiliations	ABC
Owner	Hearst-Argyle Television
Founded	October 1970
Call letters meaning	W American Public Television (reference to American Public Life Insurance Company)
Former affiliations	none
Website	http://www.wapt.com

WAPT (analog channel 16; digital channel 21) is Jackson, Mississippi's longtime ABC affiliate.

[edit] History

The station began broadcasting in October 1970 with, appropriately enough, ABC's coverage of an Ole Miss football game; newscasts debuted in 1971. Prior to its debut, Jackson was one of the largest, if not the largest, markets in the U.S. to have only two television stations (WLBT and WJTV). It is likely (although no direct evidence exists) that the FCC delayed granting licenses to any potential broadcasters in central Mississippi until WLBT, which had a long history of discrimination against African-Americans in news coverage and advocacy against Civil Rights, either changed its ways or lost its license. The latter happened in 1969, and the following year saw this station and Mississippi Educational Television (now Mississippi Public Broadcasting) debut, doubling viewing choices for central Mississippians within a year's time.

When Argyle Television restructured in the wake of its deal to sell its pre-1995 stations to New World Communications, it acquired the Northstar Television Group (which included WAPT and then-sister stations WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan and WNAC-TV in Rehoboth, Massachusetts). In August 1997, Argyle merged with the Hearst Corporation's broadcasting unit to form Hearst-Argyle Television.

In the 1990s, WAPT became one of many ABC affiliates (mostly in rural and Southern markets like Jackson) to ban Steven Bochco's controversial crime drama NYPD Blue. However, in January 1995, some sixteen months after its premiere, the station lifted its ban on the show.

In 2005, WAPT was the victim of a prank by Sacha Baron Cohen for the mockumentary Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan.[1]

[edit] News Staff

Anchors

• Joyce Brewer - 6 and 10 pm weekdays
• Don Champion - weekends
• Stephanie Doss - weekday mornings and 5 pm weekdays
• Desare Frazier - 5 pm weekdays; also does the "Restaurant Report"
• Brad McMullen - weekday mornings; also does the "Pothole Patrol" report
• Scott Simmons - 6 and 10 pm weekdays
• Christian Steckel - sports director; weekday evenings
• Jamie Tripplet - sports; weekends

Meteorologists

• Jennifer Cook - weekends
• David Hartman - chief meteorologist; weekday evenings
• Ken Johnson - weekday mornings

Reporters

• Greg Flynn
• Havonnah Jordan
• Chantee Lans - also is a producer
• Megan West

Newscasts

• 16 WAPT News This Morning: 5:30-7 am weekdays
• 16 WAPT News at Five: 5-5:30 everyday
• 16 WAPT News at Six: 6-6:30 pm weekdays
• 16 WAPT News at Ten: 10-10:35 pm everyday

[edit] External links

• Official website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WAPT