WHSV-TV facts for kids
 |
|
| Harrisonburg–Staunton, Virginia United States |
|
|---|---|
| City | Harrisonburg, Virginia |
| Channels | Digital: 20 (UHF) Virtual: 3 |
| Branding |
|
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
|
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Gray Media (Gray Television Licensee, LLC) |
|
Sister stations
|
WSVF-CD, WSVW-LD |
| History | |
|
First air date
|
October 1953 |
|
Former call signs
|
WSVA-TV (1953–1976) |
|
Former channel number(s)
|
|
|
Former affiliations
|
|
|
Call sign meaning
|
Harrisonburg, Shenandoah Valley |
| Technical information | |
|
Licensing authority
|
FCC |
| Facility ID | 4688 |
| ERP | 271 kW |
| HAAT | 666.1 m (2,185 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 38°9′55.8″N 79°18′44.9″W / 38.165500°N 79.312472°W |
| Translator(s) |
|
| Links | |
|
Public license information
|
Profile LMS |
WHSV-TV (channel 3) is a television station in Harrisonburg, Virginia. It is an ABC affiliate. The station is owned by Gray Media. WHSV-TV shares its home with two other stations. These are WSVF-CD, which shows Fox and CBS programs, and WSVW-LD, which shows NBC and CW+ programs. All three stations have their studios in downtown Harrisonburg. They also have a newsroom in Fishersville. This newsroom serves nearby cities like Staunton and Waynesboro. WHSV-TV's main broadcast tower is located at Elliott Knob, west of Staunton.
WHSV-TV also uses smaller broadcast towers called translators. These help its signal reach more areas. For example, there are translators near Winchester, Broadway, Luray, and Massanutten. Another translator in Moorefield, West Virginia, also relays its signal.
Since December 1, 2019, WHSV has helped broadcast programs from WSVW-LD and WSVF-CD2. This makes sure these programs can be seen across the whole area. The WSVW-LD programs are shown in high definition.
Contents
The Story of WHSV-TV
Starting Out: The Early Years
Channel 3 first started broadcasting in October 1953. It was known as WSVA-TV back then. The name stood for "We Serve Virginia Agriculture." A local businessman, Frederick L. Allman, owned the station. It also had radio stations WSVA AM and FM.
WSVA-TV showed programs from several networks. These included NBC, CBS, ABC, and DuMont. For many years, it was the only commercial TV station between Richmond and Roanoke.
In its early days, the station had a small budget. Engineers had to switch between signals from Washington, D.C., stations. This was because they couldn't afford direct network feeds. The station didn't have many local shows at first. In 1956, it built a studio in Rockingham County. This allowed it to create more local programs.
Over the years, the station changed owners several times. In 1956, Frederick Allman sold the stations to Transcontinent Television. Later, in 1959, the Washington Evening Star newspaper bought a large part of the station. The CBS programs were dropped in 1963.
In 1965, James Gilmore Jr. bought the WSVA stations. He was a businessman from Michigan. Under his ownership, WSVA-TV became mainly an ABC station in 1968. This was a big change because ABC was not as popular as NBC or CBS at the time. The station also showed the second hour of NBC's Today show until 1975. Sometimes, funny things happened. Engineers would accidentally show commercials from another station because they forgot to switch signals.
In 1975, channel 3 stopped showing NBC programs completely. James Gilmore Jr. sold WSVA-TV to Worrell Newspapers in 1976. The station then changed its name to WHSV-TV. With new owners, WHSV finally got a direct network feed. This meant better quality programs. In 1979, WHSV launched a translator in Charlottesville. Worrell Newspapers later sold WHSV and its other stations to Benedek Broadcasting in 1986.
WHSV-TV from the 1990s to Today
In 1994, Fox network asked WHSV to show its new NFL football games. This would let people in the area watch the Washington Redskins (now the Washington Commanders). WHSV agreed for two years. But they did not continue after the 1995-96 season. The ratings were not as good as hoped. People could still watch Fox games through WTTG in Washington on cable.
A new building for broadcasting was built in downtown Harrisonburg in 1998. WHSV moved into this new facility in the spring of 1999.
In 2002, Benedek Broadcasting faced financial difficulties. Gray Television bought most of its stations, including WHSV. That same year, WHSV added a 5 p.m. weekday newscast. A new set was built in the station's newsroom in Staunton. This set had a window looking out over downtown Staunton. The 5 p.m. newscast was the first to come from this Augusta County newsroom. In October 2003, the 5 p.m. newscast started broadcasting from both Harrisonburg and Staunton. For a short time in 2004, the 6 p.m. newscast also used three anchors from both cities.
In August 2004, WHSV helped Gray Television launch a new CBS station, WCAV, in Charlottesville. Some of WHSV's news and production staff moved to WCAV. Also in 2004, WHSV's Charlottesville translator became a separate ABC station, WVAW-LP.
WHSV is still the only full-power commercial TV station in the Shenandoah Valley. This is partly because the area has a smaller population. Also, much of the area is in the United States National Radio Quiet Zone. This zone limits radio signals. However, WHSV's sister stations, WSVF-CD and WSVW-LD, now provide full network service. Cable TV also brings in stations from Washington, Richmond, or Charlottesville.
More Channels: WHSV's Subchannels
Television stations can broadcast more than one channel. These extra channels are called subchannels. WHSV-TV has several digital subchannels.
WHSV-DT3: Ion Television
WHSV-DT3 is the third digital subchannel of WHSV-TV. It shows programs from Ion Television. You can watch it in standard definition on channel 3.3.
On March 5, 2007, WHSV started "TV3 Winchester." This was an ABC affiliate for Winchester, Virginia. It was a project with Shenandoah University. TV3 Winchester served several counties in Virginia. Even though it broadcast over the air on WHSV-DT3, most people watched it on cable. TV3 Winchester stopped operating on December 5, 2013. WHSV-DT3 was empty until October 2018. That's when Ion Television started broadcasting on this subchannel.
WHSV-DT4: MyNetworkTV and MeTV
WHSV-DT4 is the fourth digital subchannel. It shows programs from MyNetworkTV and MeTV. It broadcasts in standard definition on channel 3.4. When MyNetworkTV programs are not on, MeTV fills the rest of the time.
A new tower was built behind WHSV's studios in Harrisonburg. This tower helped with the extra equipment needed for these channels. The station started broadcasting on September 5, 2006. This was the same day MyNetworkTV launched. In September 2012, WHSV-DT4 added MeTV. MeTV shows classic television programs. It replaced other syndicated shows.
News on WHSV-DT4
WHSV-DT4 does not have its own live news shows. Instead, it shows repeats of newscasts from the main WHSV channel. For example, you can watch the two-hour morning show at 7 a.m. and the 6 p.m. news at 7 p.m. It also shows the 10 p.m. news from Fox affiliate WSVF-CD. This 10 p.m. show has its own news anchor and reporter.
Local Shows and Community Events
Besides network programs and local news, WHSV produces other local shows.
- The Endzone: This is a 40-minute sports show. It covers high school football games across the Shenandoah Valley. It airs on Fridays at 11:25 p.m. during football season.
- Sports X-tra: This is an online sports discussion show. WHSV's sports team produces it. It talks about sports news from the past week.
The station also produces a Sunday morning religious program. It's called Light for Today. This show broadcasts from People's Baptist Church in Harrisonburg. WHSV also broadcasts a music and variety show called Virginia Dreams Centerstage.
WHSV used to sponsor a singing competition. It was called "Voice of the Valley." Finalists were announced during the noon newscasts. The final show was broadcast live from the Rockingham County Fair.
Behind the Scenes: WHSV News
WHSV's weekday morning newscast is called WHSV News Daybreak. It is known as one of the most popular local morning news shows. WHSV uses Facebook and Twitter to share local news stories.
In the early 1990s, the station started a midday newscast at noon on weekdays. In 2004, WHSV-TV bought its first microwave live truck. This allowed them to broadcast live from different locations. Before that, they rented equipment for remote broadcasts. Since 2004, they have bought more equipment for their news team.
The year 2006 brought many changes to WHSV-TV. On February 27, the morning newscast became two hours long. It started at 5 a.m. This also came with new weather technology. In April 2006, the newsrooms in Harrisonburg and Augusta County got new sets and camera equipment. The new sets debuted on April 24, 2006. The old sets were given to Turner Ashby High School. The news director, Van Hackett, retired in August 2006. Ed Reams, a former WHSV reporter, took his place. Popular weather anchor Jay Webb left in July 2006 for a job in Roanoke.
On October 30, 2006, WHSV-TV added a new half-hour newscast at 5:30 p.m. This newscast was anchored by Melanie Lofton. At the same time, the station got a new logo. Its newscasts were renamed WHSV News 3. They also got updated graphics. In November 2006, WHSV changed its theme music for newscasts. It used "News One" until 2015, then switched to "This is the Place."
On April 7, 2008, the 5 and 5:30 p.m. newscasts started using three anchors. These were Melanie Lofton, Bob Corso, and meteorologist Tracy Turner. This new format also came with a new way of presenting the newscast.
TV3 Winchester stopped its news operations on December 5, 2013.
Well-Known Former Staff
Some people who worked at WHSV-TV later became well-known:
- Julie Banderas
- Keith Jones
How WHSV-TV Works: Technical Details
Subchannels Overview
Here's a look at the different digital subchannels WHSV-TV broadcasts:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | 720p | 16:9 | ABC-HD | ABC |
| 3.2 | 1080i | NBC-HD | NBC (WSVW-LD) | |
| 3.3 | 480i | ION-SD | Ion Television | |
| 3.4 | MeTV-SD | MyNetworkTV & MeTV | ||
| 3.5 | CBS-SD | CBS (WSVF-CD2) in SD | ||
| 3.6 | Outlaw | Outlaw |
Simulcast of subchannels of another station
Translator Stations
Translators are smaller stations that rebroadcast a main station's signal. This helps the signal reach areas that might otherwise miss it. Here are WHSV-TV's translators:
- WHSV-TV (DRT) 25 Broadway
- WHSV-TV (DRT) 28 Luray
- WHSV-TV (DRT) 34 Massanutten
- WHSV-TV (DRT) 24 Winchester
- W33EJ-D 33 Moorefield, WV
In late 2006, WHSV made big technical improvements. These changes helped them add new digital subchannels. A new tower was built behind the Harrisonburg studios for this purpose. WHSV's main analog transmitter was replaced in August 2006. During this time, only cable viewers could watch the broadcasts.
On January 16, 2008, WHSV made an agreement with DirecTV. This allowed DirecTV to add WHSV and its Fox and MyNetworkTV subchannels to its local channel lineup.
WHSV originally planned to turn off its analog transmitter on February 17, 2009. This was the first deadline for the big switch to digital TV. However, the station brought the signal back a few days later. This was because some smaller translator stations and viewers could not receive the digital signal well. WHSV's broadcasts became digital-only on June 12, 2009.
Moving the Main Signal: Spectrum Changes
The government made changes to how TV channels use radio waves. This was part of a "spectrum reallocation" in 2016–17. Channels 38 through 51 were removed from TV broadcasting. WHSV's main digital signal, which was on channel 49, moved to channel 20. It also moved its broadcast location from Big Mountain to Elliott Knob, near Staunton.
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) had concerns about WHSV broadcasting from Big Mountain. They asked for the signal strength in their direction to be greatly reduced. Gray Television, WHSV's owner, said this would make the signal unusable in Harrisonburg.
To fix this, Gray Television planned new ways to broadcast and added new translators. These changes helped cover areas that might lose the signal. For example, a translator near Winchester moved to channel 24. It was also made less directional to cover more of the valley. The old main transmitter site on Big Mountain became a translator on channel 28. This allowed it to send its signal east, towards Page County. Gray also added new translators on North Mountain in Broadway and on Massanutten Peak overlooking Harrisonburg.
Gray asked for permission to start broadcasting from Elliott Knob by August 31, 2018. This was much earlier than their original March 2020 deadline. Even though the permission was not yet approved, WHSV-TV announced the switch-over date as September 10 at midnight. When that date passed without approval, Gray asked again to move the transition date to December 2018. The switch-over was completed on December 7, 2018.
See also
In Spanish: WHSV-TV para niños
