WFIE is the NBC-afifliated television station for the Tri-State area of Southwestern Indiana, Northwestern Kentucky and Southeastern Illinois that's licensed to Evansville, Indiana. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 46 (Ex-Analog Channel 14) from a transmitter in the Wolf Hills section of Henderson, Kentucky. Owned by Raycom Media, the station has studios on Mount Auburn Road in Evansville. Syndicated programming on WFIE includes: Wheel of Fortune, Oprah, Dr. Phil The Dr. Oz Show, and The World's Funniest Moments.
| |
| Evansville, Indiana/Owensboro/Henderson, Kentucky | |
|---|---|
| Branding | 14 WFIE
14 News 14xtra (on DT2) This Evansville (on DT3) |
| Slogan | The Tri-State's News
& Weather Leader |
| Channels | Digital: 46 (UHF) |
| Subchannels | 14.1 NBC
14.2 local news & weather 14.3 This TV |
| Owner | Raycom Media
(WFIE License Subsidiary, LLC) |
| First air date | November 15, 1953 |
| Call letters' meaning | We're First
In Evansville |
| Former callsigns | WFIE-TV (1953-2003) |
| Former channel number(s) | Analog:
62 (1953-1961) 14 (1961-2009) |
| Former affiliations | DuMont (1953-1956, secondary)
ABC (1953-1956, secondary) NBC Weather Plus (2005-2008, on DT2) The Tube (2006-2007, on DT3) |
| Transmitter power | 521 kW |
| Height | 311 m |
| Facility ID | 13991 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 37°53′14.3″N87°31′7.7″W |
| Website | www.14wfie.com/ |
Digital programming
On WFIE-DT2, WOW! digital channel 104, and Insight digital channel 436 is a 24-hour local news and weather channel known as "14xtra". On weeknights, this also airs repeats of Oprah,Dr. Phil, and The Dr. Oz Show from the main channel. To satisfy the Federal Communication Commission (FCC) educational programming requirement, the channel airs shows targeted toward the age group on Sunday mornings. On WFIE-DT3, WOW! digital channel 112, and Insight digital channel 194 is This TV.
| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 14.1 | main WFIE programming/NBC HD |
| 14.2 | WFIE-DT2 "14xtra" |
| 14.3 | WFIE-DT3 This TV |
History
The station began broadcasting on November 15, 1953 on analog UHF channel 62 originally co-owned by Jesse, Isadore, and Oscar Fine. Although WFIE is indeed the first television station inEvansville, the market's first true station (though it's located in nearby Henderson, Kentucky was actually WEHT (then affiliated with CBS) which began operations on September 27.
WFIE was the sixth television station in the state of Indiana. The channel signed-on as an a primary NBC outlet with secondary ABC (shared with WEHT) and DuMont affiliations. [1]
Both of those networks were dropped in August 1956 with the launch of WTVW (which took ABC) and the shutdown of DuMont. Also in that year, WFIE became the area's first channel to telecast color programming. The Fine family sold the station to the Norton family of Louisville, Kentucky (owners of fellow NBC affiliate WAVE-TV) in 1956. The Nortons' broadcasting holdings would eventually become known as Orion Broadcasting.
With FCC approval, it moved to channel 14 in August 1961. It was the first station in Evansville to telecast live and local color programs beginning on March 10, 1966. In October 1981, Orion merged with Cosmos Broadcasting Corporation which was a subsidiary of insurance and broadcasting conglomerate Liberty Corporation. WFIE became the first television station in the market to broadcast in stereo in September 1985. Liberty bowed out of the insurance business in 2000 bringing WFIE directly under the company banner. In May 2002, the station began broadcasting digitally on channel 46.
On February 1, 2006, the Liberty Corporation merged with Raycom Media. In November 2006, WFIE added The Tube (a 24-hour music video channel similar to the early years of MTV) on digital channel 14.3 in accordance with many Raycom Media stations. In Summer 2007, The Tube shut down from the lack of advertiser support and this station ceased programming on 14.3 for the time. WFIE, along with many Raycom Media stations, added This TV to 14.3 on February 4, 2009.
News operation
News open.
On April 3, 2006, WFIE abandoned 615 Music's popular "News One" theme music in favor of "NBC Flagship" as part of "The NBC Collection" by Gari Communications. This marked the station's first theme change since 1996. In early-August 2006, it began branding its newscasts as "14 News" dropping the "NewsWatch 14" identity. In a further transition, the station rebranded the weather department under the "First Alert" label on September 22, 2006. This is a departure from the "Storm Team" brand used since the mid-1990s.In August 1977, the station became first in Evansville to remotely broadcast local news, sports, and weather outside its studios. It was the second station in Indiana (first in Evansville) to build its own Doppler weather radar system (located adjacent to the studios) in February 1988. In Fall 2005, it launched a 24-hour local weather channel on digital channel 14.2. Known as "First Alert Weather Now", it was part of NBC Weather Plus and featured continuous weather and news information, with local and national forecasts, as well as metro Evansville and regional traffic updates. With the shutdown of the national service in 2008, WFIE-DT2 remained as a local weather channel.
On April 16, 2007, WFIE introduced "Dual Doppler" to the market with the debut of a second weather radar in Owensboro, Kentucky atop theOwensboro Medical Health System Hospital main building on East Parrish Avenue (KY 54). In addition to its main studios, the station operates a Western Kentucky Newsroom in Owensboro. It is the only channel in the area to have a weekday morning show that begins at 4:30. There is an additional hour of the broadcast seen at 7 on WFIE-DT2. That channel also airs a prime time newscast weeknights at 9 which competes with an hour-long show on Fox affiliate WTVW.
Newscast titles
- The Tri-State News Report (1953-1958)
- The Marlboro News (1958-1961)
- The Runyan/Etzel Report a.k.a. Channel 14 News (1961-1971)
- Newslens (1971-1978)
- NewsWatch (1978-1994)
- NewsWatch 14 (1994-2006)
- 14 News (2006-present)
Station slogans
- "(This is) 14 Country" (1971-1981)
- "14 Country, Proud As A Peacock!" (1979–1981; local version of NBC network advertising campaign)
- "14 Country, Our Pride Is Showing" (1981-1982; localized versions of NBC network advertising campaign)
- "We`re Channel 14, Just Watch Us Now" (1982-1983, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "14 Country, Be There" (1983-1984, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "14 Country, Let's All Be There!" (1984-1986, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "Come Home to Channel 14" (1986-1987, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "Come on Home to Channel 14" (1987-1988, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "14 Country's the 1-4 All!" (1987–present; used during period station used Frank Gari's "The One For/4 All", general slogan)
- "Come Home To The Best, Only on Channel 14" (1988-1990, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "WFIE, The Place To Be!" (1990-1992, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "The Tri-State's News Leader" (1991-2006, primary)
- "It's A Whole New Channel 14" (1992-1993, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "The Stars Are Back on 14 Country" (1993-1994, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
- "Live. Local. Latebreaking." (1994-1999, secondary)
- "The Tri-State's News & Weather Leader" (2006-present, newscasts slogan)
- "14 Country, More Colorful." (2010-present, localized versions of NBC ad campaign)
News team
Anchors
- Dan Katz - weekday mornings and "Katz Case File" segment producer
- Beth Sweeney - weekday mornings and 11 a.m.
- Ann Komis - weeknights at 5 and 6
- David James - Managing Editor seen weeknights at 5, 6, 7:30 (The James/Monroe Report) and 10
- Jackie Monroe - weeknights at 7:30, (The James/Monroe Report) 9 and 10
- Brandon Bartlett - weekends and weeknight reporter
- Mike Blake - Midday with Mike host
14 News First Alert Meteorologists (all have NWA Seal of Approval)
- Jeff Lyons (AMS Seals of Approval) - Chief seen weeknights
- Byron Douglas - weekday mornings and 11 a.m.
- Chad Sewich - weekends and news reporter
Sports (both seen on Touchdown Live!)
- Joe Danneman - weeknights at 6, 9 and 10
- Bo McFall - weekends
Reporters
- Nick Ulmer - Vice President and General Manager
- "Taking a Stand" segment producer
- Jasmin Embers - Western Kentucky Newsroom
- Tony Maslan - "Fit With 14" segment producer
- Laura Forbes - weekday mornings
- Becky Graham
- Gretchen Ross
Notable former staff
- Chet Behrman, "Uncle Dudley", Lunch hour kid's show host, 1956-1964
- Liza Danver, weekend anchor (now at WISH-TV Indianapolis, Indiana)
- Nicole DiDonato - former Anchor / 14 News Weekend
- Tanya Jourdain (as Tanya Spencer), Reporter and weekend anchor (now at WRTV-TV, Indianapolis, Indiana)
- Jack McLean, News Director 1957-1967, Sports Director 1957-1971
- Kennan Oliphant, Reporter (now at WDTN-TV, Dayton, Ohio)
- Drew Speier, Weekday Anchor/Reporter, 2005-2008, (now weeknight anchor at WBRE-TV, Wilkes-Barre, Scranton, Pennsylvania)
- David Wilson, Weather and News Man - 1960s
- Marcia Yockey 1953 off-and-on through 1990s
Logos
References
- ^ "The History of WFIE-TV". The Boneyard. Retrieved 2007-02-12.