WSWB
Encyclopedia
WSWB is the CW-affiliated television station
for Northeastern Pennsylvania
licensed to Scranton
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on UHF channel 31 from a transmitter northwest of Scranton and I-476
. The station can also be seen on Comcast
channel 7 and Service Electric
channel 11. There is a high definition feed offered on Comcast digital channel 807 and Service Electric digital channel 511.
Owned by MPS Media, it is operated though a local marketing agreement
(LMA) by New Age Media. This makes it sister to Fox affiliate WOLF-TV
and MyNetworkTV
affiliate WQMY
. All three share studios on SR 315
in the Fox Hill section of Plains Township
. Syndicated
programming on WSWB includes: The Simpsons
, Family Guy
, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
, and 30 Rock
.
. This broadcasts on UHF channel 45.2 (channel 56.2 PSIP) from a transmitter on Penobscot Knob
near Mountain Top
. NextEra Energy Resources
operates a digital replacement translator on UHF channel 36 that is licensed to Waymart
with a transmitter in Forest City
. It exists because windmills run by NextEra at the Waymart Wind Farm
interfere with the transmission of full-power television signals.
. A few days later, it added WWLF-TV in Hazleton
as a full-time satellite. This channel was intended to improve WOLF-TV's coverage in the southern part of the market
because its transmitter is farther north than the other major stations in the area. After a little more than a year as an Independent, WOLF-TV became a charter affiliate of Fox on October 6, 1986. Two years later, WILF-TV in Williamsport
was launched as a second full-time satellite to improve coverage in the western and northern parts of the market.
In 1993, WOLF-TV's original owner Scranton TV Partners merged with Pegasus Communications. The latter immediately sought permission to move either the analog UHF channel 38 or channel 56 transmitters to the Northeastern Pennsylvania tower farm on Penobscot Knob. The move would help improve its signal that only provided Grade B coverage to much of the southern part of the market. Ultimately, Pegasus was allowed to move the WWLF transmitter.
On November 1, 1998, Pegasus activated the new analog channel 56 transmitter while moving the WOLF-TV call letters and Fox affiliation to that channel. Meanwhile, this station became a WB affiliate under new calls WSWB. This call sign was chosen because they could have meant "Scranton's WB" for its affiliation or the area it serves Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Originally, this channel was given the WSWB calls in 1981 but it were changed to WOLF-TV before the station went on-the-air in 1985. WILF in Williamsport remained as a full-time satellite.
At the time of the switch, WSWB also picked up a secondary affiliation with UPN
. It showed select programming from the network on Saturday nights (since there were no shows from The WB) without the branding. At 8 the station would air America's Next Top Model
and at 9 would be WWE Friday Night SmackDown. Whenever America's Next Top Model was in repeats, WSWB would air Veronica Mars
instead. All UPN programming in pattern was also available on cable in the area via WWOR-TV
from New York City
, WPSG
from Philadelphia, and WLYH-TV
from Harrisburg
.
On January 24, 2006, The WB and UPN announced that the networks would end broadcasting and merge. The new combined service would be called The CW. The letters would represent the first initial of corporate parents CBS
(the parent company of UPN) and the Warner Bros.
unit of Time Warner
. On February 22, News Corporation
announced that it would start up another new network called MyNetworkTV. This servive, which would be sister to Fox, would be operated by Fox Television Stations and its syndication division Twentieth Television. MyNetworkTV was created in order to give UPN and WB stations, not mentioned as becoming CW affiliates, another option besides becoming Independent. It was also created to compete against The CW.
On May 1, 2006, it was made public WILF would be a separate station and become the area's charter MyNetworkTV affiliate. Also at that point, it became known that WSWB would affiliate with The CW. This was due to both UPN and The WB being offered on the main station. Since there was a limitation of WILF's signal in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, it was also announced that it would be added to a new third digital subchannel of WOLF-TV. WILF changed its call sign to the current WQMY on July 7 to reflect the upcoming affiliation change. MyNetworkTV launched September 5 and that station introduced its first logo. As a WSWB full-time satellite, it did not have one. WSWB began airing The CW on September 18. On February 17, 2009, the channel shut down its analog signal and became exclusively digital.
WSWB launched the Me-TV network on May 3, 2011 on sub channel 38.2.
affiliate WNEP-TV
in 1991. This resulted in a nightly prime time newscast known as Newswatch 16 at 10 on Fox 38. It originated from WNEP's facilities on Montage Mountain Road in Moosic
. When the Fox affiliation moved to the new WOLF-TV (previously WWLF), the newscasts did as well. The show then became known as Fox 56 News at 10 with a secondary title of Newswatch 16 at 10 on Fox 56. In November 2009, it was announced that WNEP would move its production of the news at 10 to a second digital subchannel called "WNEP 2" that recently gained Retro Television Network
(RTV) affiliation.
That happened December 31, 2009 after which WOLF-TV and NBC
affiliate WBRE-TV
entered into an agreement. Taking over production of nightly prime time newscasts on WOLF-TV starting New Year's Day
2010, WBRE expanded the show to an hour each night and changed the title to Fox 56 News First at 10. It now originates from a secondary set at WBRE's studios on South Franklin Street in Downtown Wilkes-Barre which was previously used to air newscasts on CBS affiliate WYOU
. As was the case with the WNEP-produced broadcasts, if there are network obligations or overruns of Fox programming that prevent WOLF-TV from showing the current program, it is aired on WSWB.
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...
for Northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania
Northeastern Pennsylvania is a geographic region of Pennsylvania that includes the Pocono Mountains, the Endless Mountains and the industrial cities of Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, Pittston, Hazleton and Carbondale....
licensed to Scranton
Scranton, Pennsylvania
Scranton is a city in the northeastern part of Pennsylvania, United States. It is the county seat of Lackawanna County and the largest principal city in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre metropolitan area. Scranton had a population of 76,089 in 2010, according to the U.S...
. 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 31 from a transmitter northwest of Scranton and I-476
Interstate 476
Interstate 476 is a auxiliary Interstate Highway in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania designated between Interstate 95 near Chester and Interstate 81 near Scranton, serving as the primary north–south Interstate corridor through eastern Pennsylvania....
. The station can also be seen on Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
channel 7 and Service Electric
Service Electric
Service Electric Cable TV, Inc. is a cable television company serving eastern Pennsylvania and western New Jersey. Through three affiliates, the company operates systems in the Lehigh Valley and Wilkes-Barre , Kutztown, Hazleton, Sunbury, Mahanoy City and Bloomsburg , and Sparta, New Jersey...
channel 11. There is a high definition feed offered on Comcast digital channel 807 and Service Electric digital channel 511.
Owned by MPS Media, it is operated though a local marketing agreement
Local 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...
(LMA) by New Age Media. This makes it sister to Fox affiliate WOLF-TV
WOLF-TV
WOLF-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for Northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Hazleton. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 45 from a transmitter at the Penobscot Knob antenna farm near Mountain Top. Owned by New Age Media, the station is sister to CW...
and MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
affiliate WQMY
WQMY
WQMY is the MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station for Northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Williamsport. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 29 from a transmitter on top of Bald Eagle Mountain south of the city. The station can also be seen on Service Electric...
. All three share studios on SR 315
Pennsylvania Route 315
Pennsylvania Route 315 is an long state highway located in Luzerne County in Pennsylvania. The southern terminus is at PA 309 in Wilkes-Barre...
in the Fox Hill section of Plains Township
Plains Township, Pennsylvania
Plains Township is a township in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania in the greater metropolitan area of the city of Wilkes-Barre. The population was 10,906 at the 2000 census. Plains Township is the location of Pennsylvania's first casino, Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs...
. 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 WSWB includes: The Simpsons
The Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
, Family Guy
Family Guy
Family Guy is an American animated television series created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series centers on the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their children Meg, Chris, and Stewie; and their anthropomorphic pet dog Brian...
, Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit is an American police procedural television drama series set in New York City, where it is also primarily produced...
, and 30 Rock
30 Rock
30 Rock is an American television comedy series created by Tina Fey that airs on NBC. The series is loosely based on Fey's experiences as head writer for Saturday Night Live...
.
Overview
Although it operates its own over-the-air signal, this cannot be received in many parts of the Wilkes-Barre area. Therefore, the station can also be seen on WOLF-TV's second digital subchannelDigital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a means to transmit more than one independent program at the same time from the same digital radio or digital television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compression techniques to reduce the size of each individual...
. This broadcasts on UHF channel 45.2 (channel 56.2 PSIP) from a transmitter on Penobscot Knob
Penobscot Knob
Penobscot Knob, also Penobscot Mountain, is a hill located near Mountain Top, Pennsylvania and Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, that is best known as the site of many local television and radio station transmitters...
near Mountain Top
Mountain Top, Pennsylvania
Mountain Top is a census-designated place in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the CDP population was 15,269....
. NextEra Energy Resources
NextEra Energy Resources
NextEra Energy Resources is an wholesale electricity supplier based in Juno Beach, Florida. It is a subsidiary of NextEra Energy, Inc. , a Fortune 200 company. Prior to 2009, NextEra Energy Resources was known as FPL Energy....
operates a digital replacement translator on UHF channel 36 that is licensed to Waymart
Waymart, Pennsylvania
Waymart is a borough in Wayne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,341 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Waymart is located at ....
with a transmitter in Forest City
Forest City, Pennsylvania
Forest City is a borough in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania. Forest City is situated at the corner of Susquehanna County, Lackawanna County and Wayne County, Pennsylvania and is designated by a marker which is located in the Forest City Industrial Park....
. It exists because windmills run by NextEra at the Waymart Wind Farm
Waymart Wind Farm
Waymart Wind Farm is the second largest wind farm in Pennsylvania, United States. It consists of 43 GE 1.5 MW wind turbines, with a total net capacity of 64.5 MW. The project is located in Wayne County, Pennsylvania. The wind farm was developed by Atlantic Renewable Energy and constructed by...
interfere with the transmission of full-power television signals.
History
The station first signed-on June 3, 1985 with the calls WOLF-TV as the first Independent outlet in Northeastern PennsylvaniaPennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
. A few days later, it added WWLF-TV in Hazleton
Hazleton, Pennsylvania
Hazleton is a city in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 25,340 at the 2010 census, an increase of 8.6% from the 2000 census count .-Greater Hazleton:...
as a full-time satellite. This channel was intended to improve WOLF-TV's coverage in the southern part of the market
Media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
because its transmitter is farther north than the other major stations in the area. After a little more than a year as an Independent, WOLF-TV became a charter affiliate of Fox on October 6, 1986. Two years later, WILF-TV in Williamsport
Williamsport, Pennsylvania
Williamsport is a city in and the county seat of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania in the United States. In 2009, the population was estimated at 29,304...
was launched as a second full-time satellite to improve coverage in the western and northern parts of the market.
In 1993, WOLF-TV's original owner Scranton TV Partners merged with Pegasus Communications. The latter immediately sought permission to move either the analog UHF channel 38 or channel 56 transmitters to the Northeastern Pennsylvania tower farm on Penobscot Knob. The move would help improve its signal that only provided Grade B coverage to much of the southern part of the market. Ultimately, Pegasus was allowed to move the WWLF transmitter.
On November 1, 1998, Pegasus activated the new analog channel 56 transmitter while moving the WOLF-TV call letters and Fox affiliation to that channel. Meanwhile, this station became a WB affiliate under new calls WSWB. This call sign was chosen because they could have meant "Scranton's WB" for its affiliation or the area it serves Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Originally, this channel was given the WSWB calls in 1981 but it were changed to WOLF-TV before the station went on-the-air in 1985. WILF in Williamsport remained as a full-time satellite.
At the time of the switch, WSWB also picked up a secondary affiliation with UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
. It showed select programming from the network on Saturday nights (since there were no shows from The WB) without the branding. At 8 the station would air America's Next Top Model
America's Next Top Model
America's Next Top Model is a reality television show in which a number of women compete for the title of America's Next Top Model and a chance to start their career in the modeling industry....
and at 9 would be WWE Friday Night SmackDown. Whenever America's Next Top Model was in repeats, WSWB would air Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars
Veronica Mars is an American television series created by Rob Thomas. The series premiered on September 22, 2004, during television network UPN's final two years, and ended on May 22, 2007, after a season on UPN's successor, The CW Television Network. Veronica Mars was produced by Warner Bros...
instead. All UPN programming in pattern was also available on cable in the area via WWOR-TV
WWOR-TV
WWOR-TV, virtual channel 9 , is the flagship station of the MyNetworkTV programming service, licensed to Secaucus, New Jersey and serving the Tri-State metropolitan area. WWOR is owned by Fox Television Stations, a division of the News Corporation, and is a sister station to Fox network flagship...
from New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, WPSG
WPSG
WPSG, channel 57, is a television station in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. WPSG is owned by the CBS Corporation and is the east coast flagship station for the CW Television Network, which is owned jointly by CBS and Time Warner...
from Philadelphia, and WLYH-TV
WLYH-TV
WLYH-TV is the CW-affiliated television station for South Central Pennsylvania licensed to Lancaster. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 23 from a transmitter on Butler Road in South Londonderry Township's Timber Hills section. The station can also be seen on Comcast...
from Harrisburg
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania
Harrisburg is the capital of Pennsylvania. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 49,528, making it the ninth largest city in Pennsylvania...
.
On January 24, 2006, The WB and UPN announced that the networks would end broadcasting and merge. The new combined service would be called The CW. The letters would represent the first initial of corporate parents CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
(the parent company of UPN) and the Warner Bros.
Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
unit of Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
. On February 22, News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
announced that it would start up another new network called MyNetworkTV. This servive, which would be sister to Fox, would be operated by Fox Television Stations and its syndication division Twentieth Television. MyNetworkTV was created in order to give UPN and WB stations, not mentioned as becoming CW affiliates, another option besides becoming Independent. It was also created to compete against The CW.
On May 1, 2006, it was made public WILF would be a separate station and become the area's charter MyNetworkTV affiliate. Also at that point, it became known that WSWB would affiliate with The CW. This was due to both UPN and The WB being offered on the main station. Since there was a limitation of WILF's signal in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre area, it was also announced that it would be added to a new third digital subchannel of WOLF-TV. WILF changed its call sign to the current WQMY on July 7 to reflect the upcoming affiliation change. MyNetworkTV launched September 5 and that station introduced its first logo. As a WSWB full-time satellite, it did not have one. WSWB began airing The CW on September 18. On February 17, 2009, the channel shut down its analog signal and became exclusively digital.
WSWB launched the Me-TV network on May 3, 2011 on sub channel 38.2.
Newscasts
Fox required most of its affiliates to begin offering local news in 1990 in order to help the fledgling network. To satisfy this, what was then WOLF-TV entered into a news share agreement with ABCAmerican 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 WNEP-TV
WNEP-TV
WNEP-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for northeastern Pennsylvania licensed to Scranton. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 50 from a transmitter on Penobscot Knob in Mountain Top...
in 1991. This resulted in a nightly prime time newscast known as Newswatch 16 at 10 on Fox 38. It originated from WNEP's facilities on Montage Mountain Road in Moosic
Moosic, Pennsylvania
Moosic is a borough in Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania six miles south of Scranton and northeast of Wilkes-Barre on the Lackawanna River....
. When the Fox affiliation moved to the new WOLF-TV (previously WWLF), the newscasts did as well. The show then became known as Fox 56 News at 10 with a secondary title of Newswatch 16 at 10 on Fox 56. In November 2009, it was announced that WNEP would move its production of the news at 10 to a second digital subchannel called "WNEP 2" that recently gained Retro Television Network
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...
(RTV) affiliation.
That happened December 31, 2009 after which WOLF-TV and NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate WBRE-TV
WBRE-TV
WBRE-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Wilkes-Barre. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter at the Penobscot Knob antenna farm near Mountain Top. It can also be seen on Comcast and Service...
entered into an agreement. Taking over production of nightly prime time newscasts on WOLF-TV starting New Year's Day
New Year's Day
New Year's Day is observed on January 1, the first day of the year on the modern Gregorian calendar as well as the Julian calendar used in ancient Rome...
2010, WBRE expanded the show to an hour each night and changed the title to Fox 56 News First at 10. It now originates from a secondary set at WBRE's studios on South Franklin Street in Downtown Wilkes-Barre which was previously used to air newscasts on CBS affiliate WYOU
WYOU
WYOU is the CBS-affiliated television station for Northeastern Pennsylvania that is licensed to Scranton. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter at the Penobscot Knob tower farm near Mountain Top...
. As was the case with the WNEP-produced broadcasts, if there are network obligations or overruns of Fox programming that prevent WOLF-TV from showing the current program, it is aired on WSWB.