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WRAZ (TV)

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WRAZ (channel 50), branded Fox 50, is a television station licensed to Raleigh, North Carolina, United States, serving as the Fox affiliate for the Research Triangle area. It is locally owned by the Capitol Broadcasting Company alongside NBC affiliate WRAL-TV (channel 5) and WNGT-CD (channel 34), which airs local news programming. The stations share studios at Capitol Broadcasting headquarters on Western Boulevard in Raleigh; WRAZ's transmitter is located near Auburn, North Carolina.

WRAZ
CityRaleigh, North Carolina
Channels
Branding
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
WRAL-TV, WNGT-CD, WRAL, WCMC-FM, WCLY, WDNC
History
First air date
September 7, 1995 (29 years ago) (1995-09-07)
Former call signs
WACN (CP only, 1993–1995)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 50 (UHF, 1993–2009)
  • Digital: 49 (UHF, 2000–2019)
The WB (1995–1998)
Call sign meaning
variation of WRAL-TV
Technical information[2]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID64611
ERP805.4 kW
HAAT607 m (1,991 ft)
Transmitter coordinates35°40′29″N 78°31′39″W / 35.67472°N 78.52750°W / 35.67472; -78.52750 (WRAZ)
Links
Public license information
WebsiteWRAZ schedule page on wral.com

Though a construction permit was issued for channel 50 in 1986, it did not sign on until September 7, 1995. WRAZ, originally owned by Tar Heel Broadcasting but programmed by WRAL-TV from its first day on air, offered The WB as well as syndicated shows and a WRAL-produced 10 p.m. newscast. The station had been on the air only for several months when Fox—in the middle of a dispute with Sinclair Broadcast Group, owner of its local affiliate, WLFL—decided to change local stations from WLFL to WRAZ beginning in 1998. Coinciding with the switch, Capitol Broadcasting moved operations of WRAZ from Raleigh to an office building it owned in Durham to give the station a separate identity. In the 2000s, WRAZ gained a reputation for preempting Fox programming it found contrary to family values, including such reality shows as Temptation Island and Married by America.

After initially moving to give WRAZ a separate identity in the community, Capitol slowly folded it back into the main operation. In 2003, the newscasts were brought in line with those on WRAL, and the station returned from Durham to Raleigh in 2012. The station offers 48+1⁄2 hours a week of dedicated and simulcast newscasts from WRAL-TV.

History

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Construction and WB affiliation

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In March 1985, five applicants were placed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) into comparative hearing to determine which one would receive a construction permit to build channel 50 in Raleigh.[3] The commission awarded the permit to the L Broadcasting Company, owned by Fred and Evelyn Barber and Eleanor J. Brown. Fred Barber and Brown had broadcasting connections; the former was the general manager of WTAE-TV in Pittsburgh after previously serving in that post at WRAL-TV in Raleigh, and the latter was director of personnel for Gannett's television stations. The loser in the original decision was Cotton Broadcasting Company, whose owner, Grant Cotton, had put WLFL (channel 22) on the air and pledged to divest his interests in that station if awarded channel 50.[4] This initial decision was appealed to the FCC review board by Cotton. The board overturned the initial decision and granted channel 50 to Cotton, finding that administrative law judge James Tierney had made a mistake in not accounting for his divestiture pledge.[5] By 1990, Cotton had secured a transmitter site in Apex, North Carolina, and was about to search for studio space to put channel 50 into operation. He believed that the station's location in Raleigh would be an advantage over the region's second independent station, Fayetteville-based WKFT (channel 40).[6]

Cotton filed to transfer the permit to Tar Heel Broadcasting, a not-for-profit company founded by Jim Layton,[7] in 1994.[8] The station announced its forthcoming existence as WRAZ in July 1995, including an affiliation with The WB. Tar Heel entered into a local marketing agreement (LMA) with the Capitol Broadcasting Company, owner of WRAL-TV, which provided its transmitter tower, programming, and facilities to operate the new station.[9] It signed on the air on September 7, 1995, with a 50-episode marathon of The Andy Griffith Show.[10]

The WRAZ license was sold by Tar Heel Broadcasting in 1996 to Carolina Broadcasting System, owned by former state deputy treasurer Thomas H. Campbell. The ownership change meant little in practice, as the LMA with Capitol Broadcasting remained intact.[7] The owners did some public service programming independent from WRAL; in 1998, WRAZ began airing the Carolina Broadcasting System–produced NC Spin, a weekly political roundtable.[11]

Fox affiliation

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WLFL had been the Fox affiliate in the Raleigh–Durham market since the network started in 1986. By 1995, however, it was owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group. In late November of that year, Fox announced that it would move its network affiliation in Norfolk, Virginia, from Sinclair-owned WTVZ to WVBT, a station that—like WRAZ—was a WB affiliate programmed by one of the market's established stations, when its current affiliation agreement with Sinclair expired in September 1998.[12] Three weeks later, Sinclair revealed in a terse announcement, citing nothing more than "different philosophical views about the future", that Fox had decided to replace WLFL with WRAZ in the network beginning in 1998; Sinclair apparently had little confidence in Fox plans to expand to daytime and late night slots as well as in the area of news.[13] The additional network shows threatened to encroach on lucrative fringe periods where the Sinclair stations made money.[14] Even though relations improved between Sinclair and Fox, the network had already signed affiliation agreements with its new Raleigh and Norfolk stations and carried out the switch on August 1, 1998,[15] with WRAZ becoming the new Fox affiliate and WLFL switching from Fox to The WB.[16]

 
The Diamond View I office building, beyond right field of the Durham Bulls Athletic Park, housed WRAZ from 1998 to 2012.

After the affiliation switch, WRAZ was moved from the WRAL facilities in Raleigh to 18,000 square feet (1,700 m2) on the first floor of the Diamond View I office building in Downtown Durham, next door to the Durham Bulls Athletic Park and the American Tobacco Campus—all owned and developed by Capitol. Capitol CEO James Goodmon deliberately moved WRAZ from Raleigh to Durham in order to give it a separate identity.[17][18] After the FCC legalized duopolies in 1999, Capitol acquired the WRAZ license from Carolina Broadcasting for $1 million.[19]

In the 2000s, WRAZ earned a track record of preempting Fox programming it deemed too risky or controversial. It was one of the few stations in the United States to refuse to air portions of Fox reality shows Temptation Island and Who Wants to Marry a Multi-Millionaire? The former was pulled after two contestants on the show were revealed to be parents to a young child. Tommy Schenck, WRAZ's general manager, told The News & Observer, "We're not going to support a program that could break up a family. We're not going to be a part of making light of an institution." Temptation Island instead aired on WKFT.[20] After Capitol pulled Married by America from the WRAZ lineup, it eventually earned FCC plaudits as 169 other Fox affiliates were fined for airing an episode featuring strippers.[21] Capitol viewed the programs as anti-family. In 2005, the station refused to air the Fox series Who's Your Daddy?, citing its treatment of adoption.[22] In 2009, the station delayed the series premiere of Osbournes: Reloaded from its prime time slot to 11:35 p.m. and substituted episodes of Andy Griffith and Seinfeld.[23]

WRAZ left Durham and returned to WRAL's facilities in 2012 in conjunction with a new joint master control facility handling both stations. To accommodate the relocation of 35 employees, an additional 15,000 square feet (1,400 m2) was added to the WRAL studios.[17] In 2013, Capitol sold its other Fox affiliate, WJZY in Charlotte, to the network and received a renewal of its affiliation agreement for WRAZ.[24]

Newscasts

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The WRAL studios in Raleigh, where WRAZ-TV has been based since 2012
Further information: WRAL-TV § News operation

Concurrently with its 1995 sign-on, WRAZ began airing a nightly prime-time newscast from WRAL-TV at 10 p.m.[25] The half-hour newscast competed with WLFL's hour-long 10 p.m. news, which debuted two years prior. As with the rest of the station after the affiliation switch of 1998, Capitol decided to separate WRAZ's news presentation and talent from that of WRAL-TV, though it continued to come from the WRAL studios, to better match the Fox network's imaging and serve a different audience.[16] After becoming the Fox affiliate, WRAZ's newscast doubled its viewership share year-over-year while WLFL slumped.[26] In 2002, WRAZ debuted a 7 a.m. extension of WRAL-TV's morning show, Fox Morning Connection.[27]

In 2003, Capitol Broadcasting opted again to tie WRAZ's news brand to WRAL's, rebranding the newscasts as WRAL News on Fox 50 and reintegrating it with WRAL's pool of on-air personalities.[28] WLFL, whose newscast had remained a steady competitor to WRAZ's, slipped definitively behind when Sinclair converted the WLFL news operation to its News Central hybrid format;[29] WLFL ceased producing newscasts in March 2006 and months later entered into an agreement with WTVD for local news coverage.[30][31]

The morning newscast was extended to three hours with a 9 a.m. hour in 2019.[32] By 2024, WRAZ aired 9+1⁄2 hours a day of news on weekdays, including an hour-long 10 p.m. newscast and simulcasts with WRAL-TV from 4:30 to 7 a.m., at noon, and at 4 p.m., plus a half-hour 10 p.m. newscast on Saturdays and Sundays for a total of 48+1⁄2 hours a week of news.[33][34]

Technical information

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Subchannels

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Subchannels of WRAZ and WRTD-CD[35]
License Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
WRAZ 50.1 720p 16:9 WRAZ-HD Fox
50.2 MeTV MeTV
50.3 480i DABL Dabl
50.4 WRAZ4 Heroes & Icons
WRTD-CD 54.1 WRTD-CD Telemundo

The WRAZ multiplex also includes a subchannel for WRTD-CD, the region's Telemundo owned-and-operated station.[1]

Analog-to-digital conversion

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WRAZ began digital broadcasting on May 1, 2000,[36] from a transmission tower near Garner. WRAZ discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over UHF channel 50, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 49.[37]

The station was repacked from channel 49 to channel 15 on September 11, 2019, as a result of the 2016 United States wireless spectrum auction.[38]

References

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  1. ^ a b "WZGS / WRAZ Channel Share Agreement" (PDF). Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. April 27, 2018. Archived from the original on May 1, 2018. Retrieved April 30, 2018.
  2. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WRAZ". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  3. ^ "Notice". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. April 4, 1985. p. 5C. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Jeffries, Charles (March 14, 1986). "New television station approved for Raleigh". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 7C. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Washington Watch: Reversal". Broadcasting. July 21, 1986. p. 49. ProQuest 963256037.
  6. ^ Langford, Bob (March 7, 1990). "Channel 50 will be market's third independent". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 5D. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ a b Eisenstadt, Steven (August 30, 1996). "WRAZ bought by Carolina Broadcasting". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 10C. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Notice". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. April 12, 1994. p. 1F. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ "Triangle to get new TV station". The Herald-Sun. Durham, North Carolina. July 26, 1995. p. D5. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Langford, Bob (September 8, 1995). "'Visions' a look at N.C. films". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. 1D, 3D. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (November 20, 1998). "A polite spin on N.C. issues". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. 1E, 4E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ Bonko, Larry (November 30, 1995). "Fox to change affiliation: In September 1998, Fox plans to move from WTVZ in Norfolk to WVBT in Virginia Beach". The Virginian-Pilot. p. D1.
  13. ^ Dresser, Michael (December 23, 1995). "Sinclair reveals breach with Fox Network". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. p. 10C, 17C. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Gimein, Mark (January 1, 1996). "Fox knocks out affiliates". Mediaweek.
  15. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (July 31, 1998). "Stations swap nets Saturday". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 1E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ a b Johnson, Adrienne M. (June 28, 1998). "Changing channels". The News and Observer. p. 1G, 8G. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ a b Hoyle, Amanda (January 13, 2012). "Fox50 on the Move: TV station operations will join sister station WRAL in Raleigh". Triangle Business Journal. Archived from the original on March 12, 2012. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  18. ^ DeForest, Lee Ann (May 1999). "Systems design showcase: WRAZ/WNOL". Broadcast Engineering. pp. 68–76. ProQuest 204160622.
  19. ^ "Changing Hands". Broadcasting & Cable. December 20, 1999. p. 60. ProQuest 1014773488.
  20. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (November 9, 2001). "'Island' still doesn't tempt WRAZ". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. 1E, 7E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ Hui, T. Keung (October 14, 2004). "FCC notes Fox station's good taste: Decision to ditch 'Married By America' saves WRAZ from indecency fine". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 1B. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ Hooley, Danny (December 31, 2004). "Fox 50 won't air 'Daddy'". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 2E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ Johnson Martin, Adrienne (April 1, 2009). "Why You Didn't See 'Osbournes Reloaded'". The News & Observer. Archived from the original on April 6, 2009.
  24. ^ Halonen, Doug (January 29, 2013). "Charlotte Move Puts Fox Affiliates On Edge". TVNewsCheck. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  25. ^ Tew, J. Cameron (September 17, 1995). "New news and more:Raleigh audiences have more airwaves to surf, thanks to the offerings of two stations". The Herald-Sun. Durham, North Carolina. pp. Raleigh Extra 9, 10, 11, 12. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (December 18, 1998). "NBC-17 gets a boost". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. 1E, 5E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (April 24, 2002). "Good day, WRAZ; Fox station picks up wacky news show spinoff". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 1E. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ Johnson, Adrienne M. (January 29, 2003). "Sports anchor returns to WRAZ". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. pp. 1E, 12E. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ "Central casting: Company hopes its local news hybrid will fly. But at WLFL it's barely fluttering". The News and Observer. December 14, 2003. pp. 1G, 10G. Retrieved March 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ Ranii, Danny (March 17, 2006). "WB22 newscast signing off: 23 jobs to be cut as Sinclair ends show this month". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 1D, 8D. Archived from the original on March 30, 2023. Retrieved March 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ Ranii, David (May 4, 2006). "WB 22 to get new newscasts". The News and Observer. Raleigh, North Carolina. p. 1D, 3D. Archived from the original on January 18, 2022. Retrieved March 30, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. ^ Miller, Mark (May 16, 2019). "WRAL Expands 'Morning News On Fox 50' By An Hour". TVNewsCheck. Archived from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  33. ^ Malone, Michael (November 8, 2021). "Local News: Pep Raleigh". Broadcasting & Cable. Archived from the original on February 13, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  34. ^ Capitol Broadcasting Company (April 4, 2024). "WRAZ-TV Issues/Programs Quarterly Report, January 1, 2024 through March 31, 2024" (PDF). Public Inspection File. Federal Communications Commission. Archived (PDF) from the original on April 22, 2024. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
  35. ^ "TV Query for WRAZ". RabbitEars. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved June 15, 2013.
  36. ^ "WRAZ-DT". Television and Cable Factbook. 2006. p. A-1656.
  37. ^ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. May 23, 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved August 29, 2021.
  38. ^ "Behind the Scenes at CBC: How Rescan Day Meant Changes at WRAL-TV Transmitter Site". Capitol Broadcasting Company. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved April 22, 2024.
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