WPEC

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WPEC
West Palm Beach, Florida
Branding	News 12
Slogan	The 1-2 Turn To
Channels	12 (VHF) analog, 13 (VHF) digital
Affiliations	CBS
Owner	Freedom Communications
Founded	January 1, 1955
Call letters meaning	Photo Electronics Corporation (owner of WPEC from 1973 to early-1990s)
Former callsigns	WEAT-TV (1955-1973)
Former affiliations	ABC (1955-1989)
Website	news12now.com/

WPEC is the CBS-affiliated television station in West Palm Beach. Licensed to the city, the station broadcasts its analog signal on VHF channel 12 and its digital signal on VHF channel 13. Its transmitter is located southeast of the Wellington section of West Palm Beach. WPEC is owned by Freedom Communications and has studios that are located on Fairfield Drive in the Mangonia Park section of West Palm Beach. The station is known on-air as "News 12".

Contents 1 History 2 Newscasts 3 News Team 4 Administration 5 External Links

[edit] History

The station first signed on as an ABC affiliate with the call letters of WEAT-TV on January 1, 1955. In 1973, the WEAT-TV call letters were changed to the current WPEC-TV, which stood for Photo Electronics Corporation in reference to the station's then-current owner. In 1989, it switched affiliations to CBS after CBS purchased WCIX in Miami from TVX Inc. WCIX's (now WFOR) over-the-air signal is weaker than the other Miami VHF stations north of Miami. The WEAT callsign is currently used by an area radio station owned by the CBS Corporation.

[edit] Newscasts

WPEC has a news share agreement with the area's FOX affiliate WFLX, which is owned by Raycom Media. On September 11, 1991, WPEC began to produce a daily half-hour 10 PM newscast on WFLX which quickly expanded to a full hour. In 2000, an hour-long weekday morning newscast began to air at 7 AM which, on September 6, 2006, expanded to two hours.

In addition to their main studios, WPEC operates two news bureaus. The "Treasure Coast Bureau" is located in Port Saint Lucie while the "South Bureau" is located in Delray Beach.

WPEC is the only television station in the market to air a weeknight and Saturday 7 PM newscast.

In April of 2004, WPEC started using "Doppler 12000 Storm Trac" regional weather radar technology similar to the "VIPIR" system used by rival NBC affiliate WPTV.

According to Comcast cable listings, WPEC operates a 24-hour weather channel known as News 12 Now. It is located on Comcast digital cable channel 212. [1]

Weekdays

• News 12 Daybreak (5 to 7 AM)
• FOX 29 Morning News (7 to 9 AM on WFLX)
• News 12 at Noon (12 to 12:30 PM)
• News 12 at 5 (5 to 5:30 PM)
• News 12 at 5:30 (5:30 to 6 PM)
• News 12 at 6 (6 to 6:30 PM)
• News 12 at 7 (7 to 7:30 PM)
• FOX 29 Ten O'Clock News (10 to 11 PM on WFLX)
• News 12 at 11 (11 to 11:35 PM)

Saturdays

• News 12 at 5 (5 to 6 PM)
• News 12 at 6 (6 to 6:30 PM)
• News 12 at 7 (7 to 7:30 PM)
• FOX 29 Ten O'Clock News (10 to 10:30 PM on WFLX)
• News 12 at 11 Saturday (11 to 11:35 PM)

Sundays

• News 12 at 6:30 (6:30 to 7 PM)
• FOX 29 Ten O'Clock News (10 to 11 PM on WFLX)
• News 12 at 11 (11 to 11:35 PM)
• Sports Plus (11:35 PM to 12 AM)

[edit] News Team

Anchors

• Ric Blackwell - weekday mornings and Noon, weekday mornings on WFLX (also reporter)
• Tara Cardoso - weekday mornings (also reporter)
• Claudia Shea - weekday mornings on WFLX, weekdays at Noon on WPEC
• Suzanne Boyd - weeknights at 5 and 5:30 PM, weeknights at 10 PM on WFLX (also investigative reporter)
• Eric Roby - weeknights at 5:30 PM, weeknights at 10 PM on WFLX (also investigative reporter)
• Curt Fonger - weeknights at 6 and 11 PM (also anchors the weekday webcast)
• Liz Quirantes - weeknights at 6 and 11 PM
• Alan Gerstel - weekends (also reporter)
• Stephanie Dukes - weekends (also reporter)

Doppler 12000 Storm Trac Weather Team

• John Matthews - Chief seen weeknights
• Chris Farrell - weekday mornings and Noon
• Michael Ehrenberg - weekends

Sports

• Pat Murphy - Director seen weeknights (also anchors "Sports Plus" on Sundays at 11:35 PM)
• Nick Foley - weekends (also sports reporter)

Reporters

• John Bachman
• Lindsay Cohen
• Jana Eschbach - based at the "Treasure Coast Bureau"
• Dana Palley - based at the "South Bureau"
• Al Pefley
• Chuck Weber

[edit] Administration

• Donn Colee - Station Manager
• Steve Hunsicker - Executive News Director
• Bebe Novick - Assistant News Director
• Keith Betts - Director of Engineering
• Craig Davenport - Promotion Manager
• Mary Gregg - National Sales Manager
• Laura Fulton - Local Sales Manager
• Cindy Sheldon - Business Manager
• Jim Posey - General Sales Manager
• Valerie Hinnegan - Executive Assistant to the General Sales Manager
• Kristine Jupe - Assistant to the National Sales Manager

[edit] External Links

• Station Website
• WFLX Website
• CBS Website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WPEC