WCJB-TV
WCJB-TV, virtual channel 20 (UHF digital channel 16), is a dual ABC/CW+-affiliated television station licensed to Gainesville, Florida, United States. The station is owned by Gray Television. WCJB-TV's studios are located on Northwest 43rd Street in Gainesville, and its transmitter is located near Micanopy, Florida.
 | |
| Gainesville, Florida United States | |
|---|---|
| Channels | Digital: 16 (UHF) Virtual: 20 (PSIP) |
| Branding | WCJB-TV 20 (general) TV 20 News (newscasts) |
| Slogan | Your Local Station |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Gray Television (Gray Television Licensee, LLC) |
| History | |
First air date | April 7, 1971 |
Former channel number(s) | Analog: 20 (UHF, 1971–2009) |
| NBC (1971–1973) | |
Call sign meaning | Casey, JoAnn, and Bill Minshall (original owners) |
| Technical information | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 16993 |
| ERP | 343.6 kW |
| HAAT | 254.4 m (835 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 29°32′11.5″N 82°24′0″W |
| Links | |
Public license information | Profile LMS |
| Website | www |
On cable, the station is available on Cox channel 7 in Gainesville and channel 3 in Ocala, and on Altitude Communications channel 3 in High Springs. There is a high definition feed offered on Cox digital channel 1007 in Gainesville and channel 1003 in Ocala.
History
WCJB began broadcasting April 7, 1971 as an NBC affiliate owned by William E. "Bill" Minshall. Originally broadcasting an analog signal on UHF channel 20, its call sign bears the first initials of his family members: Casey (daughter), JoAnn (wife), and himself, Bill. In 1973, just two years after its first broadcast, the station switched its affiliation to ABC, probably because that network held at the time exclusive rights to college football telecasts (which sometimes featured the local Florida Gators). In 1976, WCJB was sold to Diversified Communications. In 2001, it began airing its digital signal on UHF channel 16. WCJB was one of the ABC affiliates that did air Saving Private Ryan in 2004, as Cox-owned Orlando affiliate WFTV preempted the film.
On September 18, 2006, WCJB launched a new second digital subchannel to be the area's The CW affiliate as part of the national CW Plus service, replacing the cable-only WB 100+ affiliate "WBFL" after the WB-UPN merger.
Its coverage area includes Lake City (within the Jacksonville market), Ocala (in the Orlando DMA) and most of North Central Florida. It is also the sole ABC affiliate on cable systems in Live Oak and Jasper (both within the Tallahassee area). Until July 2006, WCJB was the only ABC affiliate seen on Cox systems in Ocala. Even though that city is part of the Orlando market, this station had exclusivity on that system for ABC programming. This kept in-market affiliate WFTV off the system for several years. In that month, the cable company received the green light to pick up WFTV's standard and high definition feeds in Ocala. WFTV and WCJB are also both seen on Charter Spectrum in Belleview and unincorporated Marion County.
On February 16, 2017, it was announced that WCJB and its sister station WABI-TV in Bangor, Maine would be sold to Gray Television for $85 million.[1] The sale was completed on May 1, 2017.[2] It made WCJB a sister station to WCTV (Gray Television's flagship station) in Tallahassee and WJHG-TV and WECP-LD in Panama City.
Digital television
Digital channels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[3] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20.1 | 720p | 16:9 | WCJBabc | Main WCJB-TV programming / ABC |
| 20.2 | WCJB-CW | Gainesville CW | ||
| 20.3 | 480i | MeTV | MeTV | |
| 20.4 | Circle | Circle | ||
| 20.5 | True Crime | True Crime Network | ||
| 20.6 | Blank | Dabl (soon) |
WCJB-DT2 upgraded its signal to 720p in June 2012.[4]
In January 2018, WCJB added MeTV to its subchannel lineup on channel 20.3, marking the first new subchannel added to WCJB since adding Gainesville CW in September 2006. MeTV had been aired on NBC affiliate WNBW's subchannel 9.4 prior to the change.
On January 1, 2020, WCJB launched a new subchannel, Circle, on channel 20.4.
In March 2020, WCJB added another new subchannel, Justice Network (now True Crime Network), on channel 20.5.
Analog-to-digital conversion
WCJB-TV discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over UHF channel 20, on February 17, 2009, the original target date in which full-power television stations in the United States were to transition from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate (which was later pushed back to June 12, 2009). The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 16.[5] Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 20.
Programming
Syndicated programming on the station (as of September 2020) includes Entertainment Tonight, Dr. Phil, Inside Edition, The Drew Barrymore Show, Tamron Hall, and Right This Minute (co-produced by Gray Television), among others. The latter two shows are distributed by ABC's corporate cousin, Disney-ABC Home Entertainment and Television Distribution. The station was among the handful of ABC affiliates to have aired the syndicated Who Wants to Be a Millionaire, which aired first-run on the network, until the show's cancellation in 2019.
News operation
WCJB presently broadcasts 24 hours, 55 minutes of locally produced newscasts each week (with 4 hours, 35 minutes each weekday and an hour each on Saturdays and Sundays).
Originally, WCJB was the only station to operate a news department covering the Gainesville area. As a result, it held the number one spot in Nielsen ratings by a wide margin for most of the station's existence. In addition to its main studios, this station operates a Marion County Bureau on Northeast 1st Avenue in Ocala.
Until the establishment of GTN News in 2010 (now CBS 4 News), WCJB had the only local news department on a commercial station – non-commercial WUFT television airs a nightly newscast produced by University of Florida journalism and broadcasting students; and Fox affiliate WOGX simulcasts newscasts from sister station WOFL in Orlando, with no separate local inserts targeted to the Gainesville area.
On April 19, 2009, WCJB debuted a new set complete with updated graphics and music theme (identical to that of Des Moines CBS affiliate KCCI in the late '90s) which had not changed in almost ten years. The graphics are yellow and orange instead of blue and white. Its updated logo now includes ABC in it unlike the previous two. WCJB began airing local newscasts in high definition on January 9, 2010. Its music theme was later updated in 2012, with a background graphics color change to blue and red. The music theme and news set was then modified on October 22, 2015, and the background graphics was updated on February 1, 2016, showing photos relating to Gainesville and North Central Florida.
From September 18, 2006 until February 2010, it produced a weeknight prime time show on WCJB-DT2. Known as WCJB-TV 20 News at 10 on Gainesville CW, this aired for thirty minutes. The live broadcast was dropped in favor of a repeat of the main channel's 6 o'clock show, but the repeat was later dropped as well (it was replaced with a rerun of Seinfeld). Like all CW Plus affiliates in the Eastern Time Zone, WCJB-DT2 continues airing the nationally syndicated show The Daily Buzz on weekday mornings from 6 until 9. During the program, there are local weather cut-ins.
On January 18, 2016, WCJB started airing early evening news at 5:00 p.m. instead of 5:30.[6] The 6:00 newscast remains as scheduled.
On June 26, 2017, for the first time in over eight years, WCJB updated a new logo. On December 3, 2018, WCJB updated its news set with photos relating to Gainesville and North Central Florida in background.
Florida–Dayton recreation
On March 29, 2014, the Florida Gators beat the Dayton Flyers 62-52 in the NCAA basketball tournament. Since WCJB is an ABC affiliate and CBS owned the broadcast rights, the network could not show highlights until the day after per NCAA regulations. The news team instead recreated the highlights inside a conference room at the station's studios, using a mini-hoop attached to the wall and the station staff doubling as players.[7]
See also
References
- Diana Marszalek, Gray Buys Diversified's Stations in Bangor, Gainesville Broadcasting & Cable, February 16, 2017
- Consummation Notice, CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, Retrieved May 2, 2017.
- RabbitEars TV Query for WCJB
- http://www.rabbitears.info/blog/index.php?post/2012/06/20/CW-HD-and-TSReader-Data
- "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2012.
- https://changingnewscasts.wordpress.com/2016/01/08/wcjb-expanding-early-evening-news-500-pm/
- TV station acts out Florida-Dayton highlights on mini-hoop