WGSA (TV)
 | |
| Baxley/Savannah, Georgia | |
|---|---|
| Branding | Savannah's CW 13 (cable channel) |
| Channels | Digital: 35 (UHF, PSIP 34) |
| Subchannels |
34.1 The CW 34.2 The CW Plus 34.3 This TV 34.4 Telemundo |
| Translators |
WGSA-CA 50 Savannah (city) W25CQ Statesboro W41CR Hinesville W32BJ Beaufort SC |
| Owner | Southern TV Corporation |
| First air date | May 1, 1992 |
| Call letters' meaning | Georgia SAvannah |
| Former callsigns | WUBI (1992-1998) |
| Former channel number(s) | 34 (UHF analog, 1992-2009) |
| Former affiliations |
independent (1992-1996) The WB (1996-1997) UPN (1997-2006) |
| Transmitter power | 1000 kW |
| Height | 349 m |
| Facility ID | 69446 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 32°2′46.2″N 81°20′26.2″W / 32.046167°N 81.340611°W |
| Website |
www.wgsa.tv www.wgcw.tv |
WGSA ("CW 13") is The CW affiliate serving the Savannah, Georgia market.
History
The station, whose city of license is Baxley, Georgia, signed on the air as WUBI in 1992. It was an independent station at first, joining The WB in 1996 as WB 34, and later becoming a UPN affiliate in early 1997 as "UPN 13", using the station's cable channel for branding. WGSA is owned by Southern TV Corporation and is the only locally owned full power television station in Savannah. WGSA recently launched an HD feed of their station - over-the-air channel 35 and on digital cable in Savannah on Comcast's digital tier (on channel 435). . WGSA also programs an affiliate of the outdoor network, Untamed Sports TV and an affiliate of NBC's Spanish Network, Telemundo on its digital channels as well as CW Plus affiliate WGCW formerly WB 15, a former WB 100+ cable-only channel.
WGSA is located on the western fringe of the Savannah market, too far away to provide most of the market with a good signal. As a result, it is seen in Savannah itself on WGSA-CA channel 50, a low-powered repeater. Savannah's cable provider, Comcast, places WGSA in its channel lineup as cable channel 13. WGSA-CA was originally W34BO, assigned in mid-November 1992 on channel 34 but the frequency proved problematic. It became WUBI-LP on channel 38 (The WB) in late April 1996 but there were still problems. It became WGSA-LP on channel 50 in mid-September 1998. The upgrade to class A (-CA) came in August 2001.
It operates three other low-powered repeaters to cover its large coverage area: W25CQ in Statesboro, W41CR in Hinesville and W32BJ Beaufort, South Carolina. The station relies mainly on cable and satellite for its viewership.
In January 2006 it was announced that the WB and UPN would end operations in September 2006 to form The CW, a combination of the best programs from UPN and the WB. It was announced on April 23 that WGSA TV and WGSA-CA will affiliate with The CW. In response to this announcement, Comcast removed WB15, a cable-only station not affiliated with WGSA, from its station lineup. WB15 served Savannah as part of the WB100+ network. Its successor, The CW Plus, is affiliated with WGCW, a low power station co-owned with WGSA on channel 38, and available to Comcast Savannah customers only as part of their digital lineup on channel 240. WGCW is also available OTA on channel 35.2.
WGSA TV 34 now has a modified construction permit for digital television on 35, which makes it high-power and puts the station's transmitter site just west of Savannah. This would trigger additional must-carry requirements. WGSA-CA might then continue analog television transmission even after the U.S. Congress and FCC force full-power analog stations off-air. Because WGSA-CA is licensed separately and not as a broadcast translator, it could also become an independent digital at a later date.
On Friday, September 28, 2007, Savannah Morning News reported that, after years of being the only local station Comcast rebroadcast from an over-the-air signal, WGSA has had a fiber-optic cable placed into their master control connecting directly to the cable company, giving the station a much clearer signal. The newspaper article also reported that WGSA plans to add a digital transmitter in the next 30 days.[1]
Digital television
Digital channels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[2] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 34.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | WGSA-HD | Main WGSA programming / The CW |
| 34.2 | 480i | 4:3 | WGCW-CW | Simulcast of WGCW-LP |
| 34.3 | WGSA-SD | This TV | ||
| 34.4 | WGSA-4 | Telemundo |
Analog-to-digital conversion
WGSA shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 34, on February 17, 2009, the original date in which full-power television stations in the United States were to transition from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 35.[3][4] Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 34.
References
- ↑ Savannahnow.com
- ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for WGSA
- ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-03-24.
- ↑ CDBS Print
External links
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