Affiliates in the past - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

MA · 11-05-2018, 10:08 AM

I just found out that WHDH based in Boston used to be a CBS affiliate from 1982-1995 and thought it was always an NBC affiliate. WBZ used to be an NBC affiliate from 1948-1995.

What were your affiliates like back in the day? Were they always still what they are now? Or have they changed and are now different affiliates?

MA · 11-05-2018, 10:15 AM

Fox 25 used to be known as WXNE TV, which happened to be an independent station until 1987 when it became WFXT.

WLVI was also independent from 1966 until 1995 when it became The WB. It is now a CW affiliate and has been that way since 2006.

WSBK: Independent from 1964-1993 and again in 2006 until 2011. Used to be a PTEN affiliate from 1993 until 1995 until it became a UPN affiliate which lasted until its closure in 2006. It's now a myTV affiliate.

MA · 11-05-2018, 10:18 AM

WMUR used to have an affiliation with Fox from 1994 until 2001. It was secondary on the main channel, but primary on two repeaters. Until December 19, 2001, two of the stations were primarily affiliated with Fox but simulcast channel 9's newscasts (the third repeater carried all WMUR programming, including ABC network programs). The two Fox stations started simulcasting WMUR when WMTW (at that time separately owned) relocated its transmitter away from Mount Washington.

In 1994, WMUR became both a primary and secondary affiliate of Fox in which they also launched 3 low-powered repeaters in the Northern portion of New Hampshire, one of them (W38CB in Littleton) carried WMUR's full ABC schedule, while the other two (W27BL in Berlin & WMUR-LP in Littleton) were full-time primary affiliates of Fox, all of them including its main channel carried WMUR's newscasts as well as FOX Sports telecasts. While WMUR and W38CB managed to retain its full-time ABC schedule, W27BL & WMUR-LP offered a different lineup than that of WMUR's actual lineup, even though W27BL & WMUR-LP retained WMUR's newscasts and syndicated fare, the ABC programs were replaced with more syndicated programming, including programs from Fox itself including FOX Sports telecasts, FOX News shows, the Fox Kids children's block, and of course the network's full primetime lineup. However on December 19, 2001, WMUR dropped its primary/secondary affiliation with Fox after the Hearst acquisition (Hearst has never affiliated any of their stations with Fox, a rarity in American broadcasting), and has since replaced the full Fox lineup on W27BL & WMUR-LP with a full-time simulcast of WMUR's ABC programming itself.

bmasters9 · 11-05-2018, 02:39 PM

None of the stations in my area have changed from what they were (albeit the Fox station in my area [WHNS 21] is Fox Carolina now).

MA · 11-05-2018, 02:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmasters9

None of the stations in my area have changed from what they were (albeit the Fox station in my area [WHNS 21] is Fox Carolina now).

That's interesting.

bmasters9 · 11-05-2018, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MikaelaArsenault

That's interesting.

Just a name change-- it's still the Fox station of the area. The others are of the same affiliations as they were as I grew up around them.

stevea · 11-05-2018, 09:03 PM

On 6/1/1979 WTHR Indianapolis changed from ABC to NBC.

At the same time WRTV changed from NBC to ABC.

On 1/1/2015, WISH changed from CBS to the CW.

At the same time WTTV changed from the CW to CBS. (this swap was a REALLY big deal--you don't want to go from CBS to the CW.)

Reading on Wikipedia, there are affiliation changes for WTTV that go back into the 1950s, and other later changes which are less important (UPN to the WB.)

TV Guy · 11-05-2018, 09:32 PM

In Boston, Channel 5 was originally called WHDH (the same call letters used for Channel 7 now) and was a CBS affiliate. The Boston Herald-Traveler, which owned Channel 5, lost the license. Boston Broadcasters, Inc was awarded the license for Channel 5, with the promise that they would do more local programming than any other station in the country. CBS wanted no part of the new WCVB, because they didn’t want any of their programming preempted. So they made a deal with Channel 7, which was an ABC affiliate. And ABC made a deal with WCVB.

WBZ was the longtime NBC affiliate that switched to CBS when its parent company, Westinghouse, made a long-term affiliation deal with CBS.

WXNE was owned by the Christian Broadcasting Company, which also owned CBN cable. They shared some programming (X= Christ; N= New; E=England).

Plater of Everything · 11-05-2018, 09:35 PM

WMNT Toledo used to be an affiliate of The Box Music Network, then UPN, and now MyNetwork TV.

WJBK Detroit used to be a CBS affiliate, it's now a Fox O&O.

stevea · 11-05-2018, 10:18 PM

All of these pale in comparison to KYW-TV in Philadelphia. Try reading some of its history on Wikipedia.

Hawkee · 11-06-2018, 02:59 AM

In my area my CBS station has had different names but the CBS programming has always been the same and has had the same lineup for a long time. But my city lost their ABC station in 2000 and the ABC station became a WB "Now The CW" channel but when my NBC station got a sister station in 2003 the sister channel became an ABC station and it has a different lineup including Who Wants To Be A Millionaire which originally was bought over from the CBS station before ABC carried it and the NBC and ABC stations share the exact same newscast. Fox has always had the same station in my area for a long time but they were a sister channel to my CBS station until another station bought them but the Fox lineup remains the same after these years. But in my city I don't have any independent channels but I used to have a channel that came from the San Francisco area that used to carry game shows and sitcoms and show movies every afternoon but I think they went broke and I never saw it again and I have two Spanish language stations that is an Univision station and the other Spanish language station is also owned by the NBC station as well. I think that cities should have more local stations in addition to ABC NBC CBS The CW and FOX because it seems that when you live in a big city such as Boston New York Phoenix and Austin or Miami you have stations that are big money makers but it seems that California especially Northern California has no interest in getting stations such as Buzzr TV Antenna TV Decades Channel and Me TV and that would make California TV fans happy. But I think the biggest money makers are stations owned by Hearst and Clear Channel because they seem to get all the glory in states like Texas and Arizona and California but if California could get Me TV and Decades added to the Northern California lineups of Direct TV fans would be very overjoyed
Bestie

Yong Fang · 11-06-2018, 05:36 AM

In Memphis in the 1990's, for some reason, the ABC affiliate (Channel 13) and the FOX affiliate (Channel 24) swapped their networks. Took me a long time to get into the habit that 13 is not ABC anymore, with me wondering why they did this?

BigManMike · 11-06-2018, 09:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yong Fang

In Memphis in the 1990's, for some reason, the ABC affiliate (Channel 13) and the FOX affiliate (Channel 24) swapped their networks. Took me a long time to get into the habit that 13 is not ABC anymore, with me wondering why they did this?

In 1994 and 1995, Fox bought a lot of VHF (2-13) stations to help expand their coverage since UHF (14-69) didn’t have as good of coverage, so 13 in Memphis was part of that deal.

MA · 11-06-2018, 12:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bmasters9

Just a name change-- it's still the Fox station of the area. The others are of the same affiliations as they were as I grew up around them.

I meant that how they are the same and nothing changed.

MA · 11-06-2018, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TV Guy

In Boston, Channel 5 was originally called WHDH (the same call letters used for Channel 7 now) and was a CBS affiliate. The Boston Herald-Traveler, which owned Channel 5, lost the license. Boston Broadcasters, Inc was awarded the license for Channel 5, with the promise that they would do more local programming than any other station in the country. CBS wanted no part of the new WCVB, because they didn’t want any of their programming preempted. So they made a deal with Channel 7, which was an ABC affiliate. And ABC made a deal with WCVB.

WBZ was the longtime NBC affiliate that switched to CBS when its parent company, Westinghouse, made a long-term affiliation deal with CBS.

WXNE was owned by the Christian Broadcasting Company, which also owned CBN cable. They shared some programming (X= Christ; N= New; E=England).

WMFP and WWDP have some interesting affiliate history.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WMFP

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWDP

11-05-2018, 10:08 AM	#1
MA Member Moderator Forum Idol Join Date: May 20, 2017 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 127,375	Affiliates in the past I just found out that WHDH based in Boston used to be a CBS affiliate from 1982-1995 and thought it was always an NBC affiliate. WBZ used to be an NBC affiliate from 1948-1995. What were your affiliates like back in the day? Were they always still what they are now? Or have they changed and are now different affiliates?
	__________________ ~-Mikaela-~

11-05-2018, 02:39 PM	#4
bmasters9 Member Senior Member Join Date: Jan 06, 2007 Posts: 2,550	None of the stations in my area have changed from what they were (albeit the Fox station in my area [WHNS 21] is Fox Carolina now).
	__________________ "CBS Sports presents...The Prudential College Football Report, sponsored by The Prudential, offering a full range of insurance and other financial services. The Prudential: the Rock...it's strong, it's on the move, it's bigger than life." (Don Robertson's spiel for The Prudential College Football Report in the 1986 season; modified from what it was in 1985)

11-05-2018, 09:35 PM	#9
Plater of Everything Member Frequent Poster Join Date: Jul 08, 2017 Posts: 387	WMNT Toledo used to be an affiliate of The Box Music Network, then UPN, and now MyNetwork TV. WJBK Detroit used to be a CBS affiliate, it's now a Fox O&O.
	__________________ Jackie Rush > Sara Rush

11-06-2018, 02:59 AM	#11
Hawkee Michael Fassbender Fanatic Moderator Forum Star Join Date: Jan 17, 2016 Location: California Posts: 10,779	In my area my CBS station has had different names but the CBS programming has always been the same and has had the same lineup for a long time. But my city lost their ABC station in 2000 and the ABC station became a WB "Now The CW" channel but when my NBC station got a sister station in 2003 the sister channel became an ABC station and it has a different lineup including Who Wants To Be A Millionaire which originally was bought over from the CBS station before ABC carried it and the NBC and ABC stations share the exact same newscast. Fox has always had the same station in my area for a long time but they were a sister channel to my CBS station until another station bought them but the Fox lineup remains the same after these years. But in my city I don't have any independent channels but I used to have a channel that came from the San Francisco area that used to carry game shows and sitcoms and show movies every afternoon but I think they went broke and I never saw it again and I have two Spanish language stations that is an Univision station and the other Spanish language station is also owned by the NBC station as well. I think that cities should have more local stations in addition to ABC NBC CBS The CW and FOX because it seems that when you live in a big city such as Boston New York Phoenix and Austin or Miami you have stations that are big money makers but it seems that California especially Northern California has no interest in getting stations such as Buzzr TV Antenna TV Decades Channel and Me TV and that would make California TV fans happy. But I think the biggest money makers are stations owned by Hearst and Clear Channel because they seem to get all the glory in states like Texas and Arizona and California but if California could get Me TV and Decades added to the Northern California lineups of Direct TV fans would be very overjoyed Bestie
	__________________ Hawkee and Aguilar, Hoping to be a great team

11-05-2018, 10:15 AM	#2
MA Member Moderator Forum Idol Join Date: May 20, 2017 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 127,375	Fox 25 used to be known as WXNE TV, which happened to be an independent station until 1987 when it became WFXT. WLVI was also independent from 1966 until 1995 when it became The WB. It is now a CW affiliate and has been that way since 2006. WSBK: Independent from 1964-1993 and again in 2006 until 2011. Used to be a PTEN affiliate from 1993 until 1995 until it became a UPN affiliate which lasted until its closure in 2006. It's now a myTV affiliate.

11-05-2018, 10:18 AM	#3
MA Member Moderator Forum Idol Join Date: May 20, 2017 Location: New Hampshire Posts: 127,375	WMUR used to have an affiliation with Fox from 1994 until 2001. It was secondary on the main channel, but primary on two repeaters. Until December 19, 2001, two of the stations were primarily affiliated with Fox but simulcast channel 9's newscasts (the third repeater carried all WMUR programming, including ABC network programs). The two Fox stations started simulcasting WMUR when WMTW (at that time separately owned) relocated its transmitter away from Mount Washington. In 1994, WMUR became both a primary and secondary affiliate of Fox in which they also launched 3 low-powered repeaters in the Northern portion of New Hampshire, one of them (W38CB in Littleton) carried WMUR's full ABC schedule, while the other two (W27BL in Berlin & WMUR-LP in Littleton) were full-time primary affiliates of Fox, all of them including its main channel carried WMUR's newscasts as well as FOX Sports telecasts. While WMUR and W38CB managed to retain its full-time ABC schedule, W27BL & WMUR-LP offered a different lineup than that of WMUR's actual lineup, even though W27BL & WMUR-LP retained WMUR's newscasts and syndicated fare, the ABC programs were replaced with more syndicated programming, including programs from Fox itself including FOX Sports telecasts, FOX News shows, the Fox Kids children's block, and of course the network's full primetime lineup. However on December 19, 2001, WMUR dropped its primary/secondary affiliation with Fox after the Hearst acquisition (Hearst has never affiliated any of their stations with Fox, a rarity in American broadcasting), and has since replaced the full Fox lineup on W27BL & WMUR-LP with a full-time simulcast of WMUR's ABC programming itself.

11-05-2018, 09:03 PM	#7
stevea 22 Years On Sitcoms Moderator Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 13, 2003 Location: Indy Posts: 44,516	On 6/1/1979 WTHR Indianapolis changed from ABC to NBC. At the same time WRTV changed from NBC to ABC. On 1/1/2015, WISH changed from CBS to the CW. At the same time WTTV changed from the CW to CBS. (this swap was a REALLY big deal--you don't want to go from CBS to the CW.) Reading on Wikipedia, there are affiliation changes for WTTV that go back into the 1950s, and other later changes which are less important (UPN to the WB.)

11-05-2018, 09:32 PM	#8
TV Guy Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Jun 25, 2001 Location: Boston, MA, USA Posts: 3,419	In Boston, Channel 5 was originally called WHDH (the same call letters used for Channel 7 now) and was a CBS affiliate. The Boston Herald-Traveler, which owned Channel 5, lost the license. Boston Broadcasters, Inc was awarded the license for Channel 5, with the promise that they would do more local programming than any other station in the country. CBS wanted no part of the new WCVB, because they didn’t want any of their programming preempted. So they made a deal with Channel 7, which was an ABC affiliate. And ABC made a deal with WCVB. WBZ was the longtime NBC affiliate that switched to CBS when its parent company, Westinghouse, made a long-term affiliation deal with CBS. WXNE was owned by the Christian Broadcasting Company, which also owned CBN cable. They shared some programming (X= Christ; N= New; E=England).

11-05-2018, 10:18 PM	#10
stevea 22 Years On Sitcoms Moderator Forum Legend Join Date: Aug 13, 2003 Location: Indy Posts: 44,516	All of these pale in comparison to KYW-TV in Philadelphia. Try reading some of its history on Wikipedia.

11-06-2018, 05:36 AM	#12
Yong Fang Member Forum 3000 Club Member Join Date: Aug 04, 2009 Location: Memphis Tennessee Posts: 3,073	In Memphis in the 1990's, for some reason, the ABC affiliate (Channel 13) and the FOX affiliate (Channel 24) swapped their networks. Took me a long time to get into the habit that 13 is not ABC anymore, with me wondering why they did this?