This is not a duplicate story: yet another television station is slated to open in Charlottesville. Gray Television, who is already planning to launch CBS affiliate WCAV, is now planning to simultaneously launch an ABC affiliate, WVAW, in the same building. Both of these stations will feature their own local broadcasts, although WVAW’s news will “deliver the news, I guess you could say, in a nontraditional way,” according to a representative. Both are scheduled for an August launch. Note that both of these are in addition to Channel 9, which is shooting to launch in late November, having been pushed back from their previous date of September. Elizabeth Nelson has the story in today’s Progress.
News and meta-news about Charlottesville, VA, since 2001.
Sideblog
Police announced this afternoon that their investigation into what was initially believed to be a fatal fire on Rugby Avenue is now a homicide investigation. #
The Virginia Supreme Court has denied George Huguely’s appeal. His second-degree murder conviction will stand, WRIC reports. #
In a carefully worded story, and not citing specific sources, WTVR reports that forensic evidence belonging to Jesse Matthew Jr., the main suspect in the disappearance of Hannah Graham, matches forensic evidence collected during the investigation of Morgan Harrington’s 2009 murder. #
In the wake of Hannah Graham’s disappearance, and the evidence that came from private security footage, city officials are revisiting the question of installing security cameras on the downtown mall. #
Both Charlottesville Registrar Sheri Iachetta and former Electoral Board member Stephanie Commander have turned themselves in to the police on
foursix and four felony counts of embezzlement, respectively. #Ten years ago, the National Institutes of Health budget doubled and schools like the University of Virginia built massive new research facilities. A decade later, those buildings remain largely underutilized. NPR visits UVA in this story on the effect of federal binge and spurge spending in the sciences. #
In 2012, Council approved a new student housing complex on West Main—now some council members are questioning whether what they were shown matches what was built. #
The Architectural Review Board has approved a bike-themed mural on West Market, below the McGuffey Art Center, although at least one member expressed concerns that it might look like the bicyclists were riding away from Charlottesville’s downtown. #
City Police Chief Tim Longo is meeting with city leaders to work on protocols regarding the use of military surplus police weapons in Charlottesville. #
A 100-year-old Colonnades resident received military honors for her service in the WWII Women’s Army Corps #
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22blitz submitted this story last night, saying that he’d read about this in The Observer. I smugly e-mailed him back, saying that The Observer had obviously gotten this wrong, because there’s just no way that the company that owns the Harrisburg ABC station would be starting an ABC station here, because they’re already starting a CBS station here! He replied this morning, calmly pointing out that the story was in the Progress today. :)
Truth is, indeed, stranger than fiction.
woot
3 primetime channels. GOOD LORDIE!
so where are the protesters againist the growth now. Since our little town will have 3 channels, that means GROWTH.
OH NO!
This has been "out" for at least several weeks.
Also the progress had several glaring errors.
Look for no more than a cable size rating/share the first year or so for both of these stations. Also the Denny and Bob show might not make it at all now………..no cable position unless the city gives theirs up.
Let’s not forget WADA PAX55 which made a go of it as a local station………still has local taglines but I believe they have closed their local office.
This has been “out” for at least several weeks.
Really? What outlets have covered it?
are all these channels going to be on Adelphia ?
i guess we’ll look for another substantial price increase from Adelphia.
I may be wrong, but aren’t cable companies required by law to rebroadcast local broadcase channels? I would imagine Adelphia will drop either the Richmond (please!) or the D.C. (NO!!!!!!!!!!!) CBS afilliate, and either the Richmond (NO!) or the Harrisonburg (PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!) ABC afilliate. I imagine Gray may offer some sort of incentive to Adelphia to keep their Harrisonburg ABC channel.
I don’t expect to see any rate hikes because of this.
That said, if the new CBS and ABC stations have local news operations on a par with what we see out of Harrisonburg, that will give us three completely lame local TV news operations instead of one. Lucky us.
no way can you compare channel 29’s news coverage and talent to the level of the harrisonburg outfit. For a small town market ,we’re lucky to have a good news team such as wvir.
You know, it’s true. I’ve complained just as much as the next guy about WVIR, but, man, Harrisonburg’s station is really, really lame. I have to watch that every so often, just to gain a little perspective.
I’ll agree with that. It’s sometimes difficult to watch WVIR’s news, and it will become much worse when Dave Cupp takes his leave, but the Harrisonburg’s station’s news is off-the-chart awful.
to carry the closest network affiliates to their coverage area. which is why we currently get CBS and ABC from harrisonburg and richmond.
i may be way off base here, but it seems to me that the reason why we have 2 CBS and 2 ABC affiliates currenlty is b/c adelphia’s coverage area reaches towards richmond and the valley. but, once there are CBS and ABC affiliates smack in the middle, we’ll most likely lose the richmond, h’burg and DC stations.
i’ve always wondered, though, why we get fox out of DC and not richmond.
i just realized we have a 2nd NBC affiliate out of richmond in addition to WVIR. maybe they’ll keep one of each from in town, and one of each from out of town. hopefully they’ll keep the richmond stations. i could care less what goes on in DC or the valley.
maybe they’ll keep one of each from in town
Since they’re only required to carry the local afilliates, as badly as Adelphia needs cash it wouldn’t surprise me if they get rid of all the non-essential duplicate D.C., Harrisonburg, and Richmond stations and give us three more of those indespensible shopping channels.
I believe our cable company has contracts (up to three years in some cases) with each of these stations……may not be as easy as saying we’re aking you off. I’m sure whsv will say take us out and put in wvaw-lp as their replacement. As for the rest..who knows??
That’s why I wouldn’t count on Denny king’s station getting a cable spot unless out city council lets one of their’s go.
Actually, Adelphia can be compelled under “must-carry” regulations to carry ANY local broadcast station:
“The Communications Act prohibits cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors from retransmitting commercial television, low power television and radio broadcast signals without first obtaining the broadcaster’s consent. This permission is commonly referred to as “retransmission consent” and may involve some compensation from the cable company to the broadcaster for the use of the signal. Alternately, local commercial and noncommercial television broadcast stations may require a cable operator that serves the same market as the broadcaster to carry its signal. A demand for carriage is commonly referred to as “must-carry.” If the broadcast station asserts its must-carry rights, the broadcaster cannot demand compensation from the cable operator. While retransmission consent and must-carry are distinct and function separately, they are related in that commercial broadcasters are required to choose once every three years, on a system-by-system basis, whether to obtain carriage or continue carriage by choosing between must carry and retransmission consent. “