WRDQ
Encyclopedia
WRDQ is an Independent
television station
in Orlando, Florida
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on UHF channel 27 from a transmitter in Christmas
. Owned by Cox Enterprises
, the station is sister to ABC
affiliate WFTV
. The two share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando. Syndicated
programming on WRDQ includes: South Park
, Scrubs
, and Oprah
. The station can be considered an alternate ABC affiliate.
As such, it may take on the responsibility of airing ABC programs whenever WFTV may not be able to do so as in a news-related emergency or a local sporting event. For example on January 1, 2009, WFTV aired pre-game festivities of the 2009 Capital One Bowl
while WRDQ aired ABC's coverage of the Rose Bowl Parade. WRDQ is seen on Bright House Networks
cable channel 10.
on its second digital subchannel and Bright House digital cable channel 465, replacing RTV
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:>
Channel
Video
Aspect
Programming
27.1
720p
16:9
Main WRDQ programming
27.2
480i
4:3
Antenna TV
(a.k.a. LMA). However, it was not ready to broadcast by the time the FCC
began allowing duopolies of commercially-licensed television stations. This allowed Cox to purchase WRDQ outright before it signed-on for the first time on January 1, 2000. On April 14, 2008, the station launched a new second digital subchannel to carry the Retro Television Network. On February 17, 2009, WRDQ shut off its analog signal ahead of the June 12 analog shutoff deadline.
As of May 24, 2011, Cox decided to use WRDQ to carry coverage of the Casey Anthony trial in full from 9 a.m.–4 p.m., with WFTV airing the last hour from 4–5 p.m., pre-empting the station's weekday programming schedule. High interest in the trial eventually led to coverage being increasingly shifted to WFTV (with WRDQ generally only airing "more procedural" and "more dry or technical" portions); as of June 8, coverage was moved to WFTV for good, after ABC granted Cox permission to move ABC Daytime
programming to WRDQ for the trial's duration. It returned to WFTV upon the trial's conclusion.
at 10. This title was derived from WRDQ's general station branding ("Action TV 27") at the time of the launch ("Action" had ceased to be used as an overall station branding term several years before the newscast was renamed). WRDQ also airs The Daily Buzz
a nationally syndicated morning news program / infomercial produced in Orlando, Florida by ACME Communications
. The first hour of The Daily Buzz airs at 6:00 am on 27.1. The second and third hours of the Daily Buzz are aired from 7 to 9 in the morning on sub channel 27.2.
Eyewitness News
This Morning
(Weekday Mornings 7 to 9)
Eyewitness News at 10 (10 to 10:30 P.M.)
Weeknights
Weekends
WRDQ features additional news personnel from WFTV. See that article
for a complete listing.
Independent station
An independent station is in the category of television terminology used to describe a television station broadcasting in the United States or Canada that is not affiliated with any television network....
television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
in Orlando, Florida
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...
. It broadcasts a high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
digital signal on UHF channel 27 from a transmitter in Christmas
Christmas, Florida
Christmas is a census-designated place and an unincorporated area in Orange County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,162 at the 2000 census. Christmas is home to the world's largest alligator shaped building,...
. Owned by Cox Enterprises
Cox Enterprises
Cox Enterprises is the successor to the publishing company founded in Dayton, Ohio, United States, by James Middleton Cox, who began with the Dayton Daily News. He was the Democratic candidate for the President of the United States in the election of 1920...
, the station is sister to ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate WFTV
WFTV
WFTV, channel 9, is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central Florida that is licensed to Orlando. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter between Bithlo and Christmas. Owned by Cox Enterprises, WFTV is sister to Independent WRDQ. The two stations...
. The two share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando. Syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
programming on WRDQ includes: South Park
South Park
South Park is an American animated television series created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone for the Comedy Central television network. Intended for mature audiences, the show has become famous for its crude language, surreal, satirical, and dark humor that lampoons a wide range of topics...
, Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
, and Oprah
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
. The station can be considered an alternate ABC affiliate.
As such, it may take on the responsibility of airing ABC programs whenever WFTV may not be able to do so as in a news-related emergency or a local sporting event. For example on January 1, 2009, WFTV aired pre-game festivities of the 2009 Capital One Bowl
2009 Capital One Bowl
The 2009 Capital One Bowl was held on January 1, 2009 at the Citrus Bowl in Orlando, Florida. The Georgia Bulldogs of the Southeastern Conference defeated the Michigan State Spartans of the Big Ten Conference by a score of 24–12. The game was televised to a national audience on ABC...
while WRDQ aired ABC's coverage of the Rose Bowl Parade. WRDQ is seen on Bright House Networks
Bright House Networks
Bright House Networks is a cable television company, the seventh largest cable operator and the sixth largest traditional multiple system operator in the United States owned by Advance/Newhouse, headquartered in Syracuse, New York...
cable channel 10.
Digital programming
On September 5, 2011, WRDQ added Antenna TVAntenna TV
Antenna TV is an American digital broadcast television network, primarily featuring classic television series from the 1950s to the 1990s, along with some feature films. It is owned by Tribune Broadcasting, a division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
on its second digital subchannel and Bright House digital cable channel 465, replacing RTV
Retro Television Network
The Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs...
Aspect ratio
The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,...
720p
720p is the shorthand name for 1280x720, a category of High-definition television video modes having a resolution of 1080 or 720p and a progressive scan...
16:9
16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ...
480i
480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC...
Antenna TV
Antenna TV is an American digital broadcast television network, primarily featuring classic television series from the 1950s to the 1990s, along with some feature films. It is owned by Tribune Broadcasting, a division of the Chicago-based Tribune Company...
History
The station's original construction permit was issued as early as 1990. Initial plans called for WRDQ's license to be held by a locally-based owner with WFTV (which has been owned by Cox since 1985) operating the station under a local marketing agreementLocal marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
(a.k.a. LMA). However, it was not ready to broadcast by the time the FCC
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
began allowing duopolies of commercially-licensed television stations. This allowed Cox to purchase WRDQ outright before it signed-on for the first time on January 1, 2000. On April 14, 2008, the station launched a new second digital subchannel to carry the Retro Television Network. On February 17, 2009, WRDQ shut off its analog signal ahead of the June 12 analog shutoff deadline.
As of May 24, 2011, Cox decided to use WRDQ to carry coverage of the Casey Anthony trial in full from 9 a.m.–4 p.m., with WFTV airing the last hour from 4–5 p.m., pre-empting the station's weekday programming schedule. High interest in the trial eventually led to coverage being increasingly shifted to WFTV (with WRDQ generally only airing "more procedural" and "more dry or technical" portions); as of June 8, coverage was moved to WFTV for good, after ABC granted Cox permission to move ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime
ABC Daytime is a programming block on the ABC Network which has historically encompassed soap operas, game shows and talk shows.-Schedule:...
programming to WRDQ for the trial's duration. It returned to WFTV upon the trial's conclusion.
Newscasts
WRDQ airs a nightly half-hour 10 o'clock newscast that is produced by WFTV. Since January 2007, that station has also been producing a weekday morning newscast from 7 to 9 on 27.1. Prior to the morning news premiere, the 10 P.M. news was branded as Action NewsAction News
Action News is a local television newscast format in the United States. It was conceived in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at WFIL-TV by then-news director Mel Kampmann in 1970 as a response to the "Eyewitness News" format used on rival station KYW-TV...
at 10. This title was derived from WRDQ's general station branding ("Action TV 27") at the time of the launch ("Action" had ceased to be used as an overall station branding term several years before the newscast was renamed). WRDQ also airs The Daily Buzz
The Daily Buzz
The Daily Buzz is a nationally syndicated breakfast television news and infotainment program. The show is produced by Fisher Communications and is owned and distributed by ACME Communications; it is broadcast every weekday morning from studios at Full Sail University in Winter Park, Florida...
a nationally syndicated morning news program / infomercial produced in Orlando, Florida by ACME Communications
ACME Communications
ACME Communications is a United States-based television broadcasting company. The company was co-founded by current Chairman and former CEO Jamie Kellner, who previously served as a Fox Television Network executive and was founding CEO of The WB Television Network. Kellner used the name Acme as a...
. The first hour of The Daily Buzz airs at 6:00 am on 27.1. The second and third hours of the Daily Buzz are aired from 7 to 9 in the morning on sub channel 27.2.
Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
This Morning
(Weekday Mornings 7 to 9)
- Anchors:
- Greg Warmoth(7-8am)
- Vanessa Echols(7-8am)
- George Spencer(8-9am)
- Bianca Castro(8-9am)
- Weather:
- Kassandra Crimi
- Traffic:
- Bob Baxa
- Reporters:
- Mark Boyle, Ryan Hughes, and Daralene Jones
Eyewitness News at 10 (10 to 10:30 P.M.)
Weeknights
- Anchors:
- Josh Benson
- Martie Salt
- Weather:
- Tom Terry
- Reporters:
- Jeff Deal
- Steve Barrett
- Blaine Tolison (Mon.-Tue.)/Kenneth Moton (Wed.-Fri.)
Weekends
- Anchor:
- Nancy Alvarez
- Weather:
- Brian Monahan
- Reporters:
- Kenneth Moton
- Q. McCray
WRDQ features additional news personnel from WFTV. See that article
WFTV
WFTV, channel 9, is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central Florida that is licensed to Orlando. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter between Bithlo and Christmas. Owned by Cox Enterprises, WFTV is sister to Independent WRDQ. The two stations...
for a complete listing.