WBKP

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WBKP
Calumet/Marquette, Michigan
Branding	CW 5
Channels	Analog: 5 (VHF) Digital: 11 (VHF)
Affiliations	The CW
Owner	Stephan Marks (Lake Superior Community Broadcasting Corporation)
First air date	October 28, 1996
Call letters’ meaning	Beautiful Keweenaw Peninsula
Sister station(s)	WBUP
Former affiliations	ABC (1996-2007)
Transmitter Power	100 kW (analog) 96.2 kW (digital) 6400 watts (post-transition)
Height	295 m (analog) 388 m (digital)
Facility ID	76001
Transmitter Coordinates	47°2′11.4″N, 88°41′43″W (analog) 46°26′17″N, 88°2′58″W (digital)

WBKP is a television station in Calumet, Michigan, serving the Marquette market on channel 5 as an affiliate of The CW Television Network. The station formerly simulcast with WBUP channel 10 in Ishpeming.

The transmitter for WBKP is located on Tolonen Hill near the town of Painesdale, approximately 12 miles (20 km) south of Houghton. The transmitter site at one time was a United States Air Force radar station.

The stations over the air signal can be received across Lake Superior in Thunder Bay, Ontario and the surrounding area.

[edit] History

WBKP first went on the air on October 28, 1996 as an affiliate of ABC, with Monday Night Football as their first televised program. In 1997, the station began airing weekday newscasts at 6pm and 11pm, with Dick Reynolds as news anchor.

Shortly thereafter, in August 1997, the station set up a repeater station in Marquette, W28BX. The low power repeater's over-the-air signal was very weak and could only be picked up in the city of Marquette and Negaunee.

In 2001, the station moved its studios from their old home in Calumet, to the Marquette Mall. However, in March 2002, the station dropped its local newscasts, due to low ratings and budget cuts. In January 2003, the station replaced its low-power repeater with a full-power satellite, WBUP channel 10 in Ishpeming, Michigan, and the stations took the branding "ABC 5 & 10."

The original owner, Tom Scanlon sold both stations to Lake Superior Community Broadcasting, a company owned by Stephan Marks of Maryland, in January 2004. Shortly afterward, a new newscast, UGN News (with "UGN" meaning "Upper Great Lakes News Network"), debuted, originating from both WBUP and WBKB-TV in Alpena, featuring news from the entire Upper Peninsula and northern Michigan regions. (In addition to WBKP, WBUP, and WBKB, Marks also owns KYUS-TV in Miles City, Montana and KXGN-TV in Glendive, Montana.)

In July 2007, the two stations split. WBKP switched affiliation to The CW, carrying the feed from The CW Plus. WBUP is still carrying ABC programming as "ABC 10" (including UGN News).[1]

[edit] External links

• Query the FCC's TV station database for WBKP
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WBKP-TV

v • d • e Broadcast television in the Marquette market (Nielsen DMA #179) WJMN 3 (CBS) - WBKP 5 (The CW) - WLUC 6 (NBC) - WDHS 8 (Infomercials) - WBUP 10 (ABC) - WNMU 13 (PBS) - WMQF 19 (Fox) - W40AN 40 (Fox) Significantly Viewed Out-of-Market Broadcast Stations Reception may vary by geographical location; some stations may be available only on cable Traverse City/Cadillac: WFQX 33 (Fox) | Green Bay: WLUK 11 (Fox) | Duluth: KDLH 3 (CBS) - KQDS 21 (FOX) | Wausau/Rhinelander: WJFW 12 (NBC) - WYOW 34 (ABC) - WLEF 36 (PBS/WPT) | Montreal: CBMT 6 (CBC) Defunct television stations: WUPT 25 (UPN) Local cable television stations FSN Detroit

v • d • e CW Network Affiliates in the state of Michigan Alpena's CW (Alpena) • WWMT-DT 2.2 (Kalamazoo) • WBKP 5 (Marquette) • WBSF 46 / WEYI-DT 30.2 (Saginaw / Bay City) • WKBD 50 (Detroit) • WLAJ-DT 51.2 (Lansing) • "WBVC" 61 (Traverse City) See also: ABC, CBS, Fox, MyNetworkTV, NBC, PBS and Other stations in Michigan