WBFF
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| WBFF | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Baltimore, Maryland | |
| Branding | Fox 45 |
| Channels | Analog: 45 (UHF) |
| Affiliations | Fox "Good TV" (on digital subchannel 45.2) |
| Owner | Sinclair Broadcast Group (Chesapeake Television Licensee, LLC) |
| First air date | April 11, 1971 |
| Call letters’ meaning | Baltimore Forty-Five |
| Sister station(s) | WNUV |
| Former affiliations | Independent (1971-1986) |
| Transmitter Power | 1290 kW (analog) 550 kW (digital) |
| Height | 386 m (analog) 372.8 m (digital) |
| Facility ID | 10758 |
| Transmitter Coordinates | |
| Website | www.foxbaltimore.com |
WBFF, channel 45, is a Fox-affiliated television station located in Baltimore, Maryland. WBFF is the flagship station of the Sinclair Broadcast Group, which also operates Baltimore's CW affiliate, WNUV-TV (channel 54), through a local marketing agreement. The two stations share studios and transmission facilities in the Woodberry section of Baltimore.
WBFF also broadcasts "Good TV" on its second digital subchannel (45.2) and on local Comcast cable systems on digital cable channel 206.
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[edit] History
WBFF signed on on April 11, 1971, founded by what was then called Chesapeake Television Corporation, which was controlled by Julian Sinclair Smith. At once, it was Baltimore's second commercial UHF station and second independent station, signing-on four years after WMET-TV (channel 24) began operations. Both stations aired general-entertainment programming, but WMET's owners experienced financial problems and were forced to take their station off the air in 1972.
Even without direct competition, and operating on a small budget, WBFF still struggled for programming during the 1970s as Baltimore's network affiliates (WBAL-TV, WJZ-TV, and WMAR-TV) continued to acquire syndicated, off-network programs during this period. Channel 45 did find an advantage in having a decent library of movies and sitcoms at its disposal. Like other independent stations of that era, WBFF also ran network programs pre-empted by the local afflilates, local public-affairs programs, and played cartoons in the afternoon in a show hosted by Captain Chesapeake (played by George Lewis), who was a fixture on WBFF until 1990.
Despite its financial restraints, WBFF became enough of a profitable operation that Julian Smith decided to expand his broadcast interests. Through a Chesapeake Television subsidiary, Commercial Radio Institute, Smith launched a new independent station in Pittsburgh, WPTT (now WPMY), in 1978. In 1984, Commercial Radio Institute signed-on Smith's third station, independent WTTE in Columbus, Ohio. That same year, WBFF received local competition again when WNUV-TV, then a two-year-old subscription television outlet, began to adopt a general-entertainment schedule.
In 1985, Julian Smith merged his companies and renamed them as the Sinclair Broadcast Group, and around this time his eldest son, David D. Smith, took a prominent role in the operations of the three stations. In 1986 Sinclair agreed to affiliate WBFF and WTTE with the fledgling Fox Broadcasting Company. The growth and rise of Fox coincided with that of Sinclair Broadcast Group, which expanded its reach during the 1990s. But first, Sinclair attempted to exand the reach of its flagship station in a big way.
In early 1991 Sinclair announced plans to purchase WMAR-TV with the intent to move WBFF into WMAR's channel 2 allocation, and subsequently selling the channel 45 license. However, those plans never materialized, and WMAR-TV (then affiliated with NBC) was sold to the E.W. Scripps Company instead. Stuck on channel 45, Sinclair refocused on strengthening that station, and in June 1991 opened up WBFF's news department with Baltimore's first 10:00 p.m. newscast.
Sinclair purchased Abry Communications, owner of WNUV, in 1994. As duopolies weren't allowed at the time, channel 54 was spun off to Glencairn Ltd., a company owned by former Sinclair executive Edwin Edwards. However, Glencairn's stock was almost entirely owned by the Smith family. In effect, Sinclair now had a duopoly in Baltimore -- and had emasculated its major rival in its hometown. Sinclair further circumvented the rules by taking over WNUV under a local marketing agreement, with WBFF as senior partner. Sinclair tried to buy Glencairn outright in 2001, but was unable to buy WNUV because the Baltimore market has only seven full-power stations, too few to legally permit a duopoly. Glencairn changed its name to Cunningham Broadcasting and retained ownership of WNUV. However, nearly all of Cunningham's stock is held in trusts owned by the Smiths. This de facto duopoly continues to this day, while the larger one between Sinclair and Glencairn/Cunningham has led to claims that Cunningham is merely a corporate shell Sinclair uses to evade FCC ownership restrictions.
While WBFF entered the new century thriving as both locally and as a Fox affiliate, its network partner threatened the station's immediate future. In 2001 Fox's parent company, the News Corporation, became the new owner of Baltimore's UPN affiliate WUTB (the former WMET-TV) through its purchase of Chris-Craft Industries. Rumors abounded that Fox was considering moving its programming from WBFF to WUTB. In a move made clearly to protect its home interests, Sinclair persuaded Fox to sign a longterm contract to keep WBFF with the network.
The same threat re-emerged in January 2006, when WUTB lost its status as a UPN affiliate when UPN and the WB Television Network announced their merger. However, WBFF breathed a sigh of relief when Fox announced that WUTB would become an affiliate of their new MyNetworkTV service.
On May 2, 2006, the same day Sinclair committed its eight remaining WB and independent stations to the CW, Sinclair and Fox agreed to a six-year affiliation extension for Sinclair's 19 Fox affiliates. As a result, Fox will remain on WBFF at least through the 2011-2012 television season. WBFF remains the only Baltimore television station that has never changed its network affiliation.
[edit] Digital television
The station's digital signal is multiplexed.
| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 45.1 / 46.1 | main WBFF/Fox programming |
| 45.2 / 46.2 | Good TV |
[edit] Post-analog shutdown
After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17, 2009, [1] WBFF will remain on its current pre-transition channel number, 46. [2] However, through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers will display WBFF's virtual channel as 45.
[edit] "Good TV"
On May 1, 2006, WBFF started a new network on its second digital subchannel (45.2 or 46.2) originally called WBFF-2. It was later renamed Good TV. This digital-only channel features classic television programms like Magnum P.I., Mission: Impossible, All in the Family, Sanford and Son, In the Heat of the Night, and Good Times. In addition, "Good TV" offers expanded coverage of church services on Sunday mornings, local events, syndicated shows, and paid programming. Also, the channel simulcasts WBFF's weekday morning newscast until 7:00 a.m. and rebroadcasts its 10:00 p.m. newscast.
[edit] News Operation
WBFF launched a 10 P.M. newscast on June 3, 1991. The station added a weekday morning newscast in March of 2000. In February of 2003, it added a weeknight 11 o'clock newscast that broadcasted from Sinclair's now-defunct centralized news service, News Central, located in Hunt Valley. Newscasts at 5:30 A.M. and 5:30 P.M. were subsequently added to the schedule in January of 2005. On June 2, 2008, WBFF the first Baltimore television station to broadcast their local newscast in high definition.
Jeff Barnd, a WBFF news anchor, also hosts and provides commentary for the syndicated Sinclair news program American Crossroads. WBFF was featured in an episode during the third season of The Simple Life. On that episode, Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie took control of the station's weekday morning newscast. The two read the weather forecast and messed with the teleprompter. Tony Harris, later a CNN anchor, was once WBFF's lead anchor.
Every Wednesday morning during the regular school year, a randomly selected child nominated by his or her teacher is selected to help meteorologist Steve Fertig during the 6:30 and 6:40 A.M. forecast segments. The child usually helps with the weather report, gets a tour of WBFF, and receives a video copy of their performance. The segment is called "Weather Kid Wednesday".
[edit] News Team
Anchors
- Jeff Abell - Saturdays (also reporter)
- Jeff Barnd - weeknights 5:30 and 10:00 p.m.
- Jennifer Gilbert - weeknights 5:30 and 10:00 p.m.
- Jennifer Gladstone - weekday mornings
- Patrice Harris - weekday mornings
- Joy Lepola - weeknights at 11:00 p.m.
- Karen Parks - weekends (also reporter)
Weather
- Steve Fertig - weekday mornings
- Vytas Reid - chief meteorologist/weeknights
- Jessica Starr - weekends (also weekday "Hometown Hot Spot" segment reporter)
Sports
- Bruce Cunningham - weeknights
- Amy Fadool - weekends (also sports reporter)
Reporters
- Kathleen Cairns
- Keith Daniels
- Candace Dold - weekday morning traffic reporter
- Megan Gilliland - weekday mornings
- Steve Levine - crime and justice investigative reporter
- Melinda Roeder
- John Rydell
- Christy Wicks - weekends
[edit] Notable alumni
- Gabrielle Abiera
- Brent Harris
- Tony Harris
- Greg Starddard
- Jon Lieberman
- Jenna Maloney
- Brian Morrin
- Amber Theoharis
- George Lewis ("Captain Chesapeake")
- Lisa Teachman
- Alison Kosik
- Megan McHale
- Lori Stokes
- Josh Thomas
- Lisa Willis
- Lori Pinson
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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