WHDH-TV Totally Explained

Everything about Whdh-tv totally explained

WHDH-TV channel 7 is the NBC-affiliated television station for Boston, Massachusetts, serving eastern Massachusetts and southern New Hampshire. Its transmitter is located in Newton, Massachusetts. Owned by Sunbeam Television, WHDH is sister to CW affiliate WLVI-TV. The two stations share studios located at Bulfinch Place (near Government Center) in downtown Boston.
The station is the largest NBC affiliate that isn't a network-owned and operated station. Sunbeam Television, which is based in Miami, Florida, owns that market's FOX affiliate, WSVN. WHDH and WSVN share resources when covering each other's news.
WHDH offers NBC Weather Plus on its second digital subchannel. Via digital cable, it's offered on Comcast channel 297 and Verizon FiOS channel 860.

History

Channel 7 first went on the air on June 21, 1948 as WNAC-TV, the second television station in Boston (twelve days after WBZ-TV). It was owned by General Tire along with WNAC-AM 680 (now WRKO), flagship of the Yankee Network, a New England regional radio network. General Tire had purchased the Yankee Network in 1943. WNAC first broadcasted from studios at 21 Brookline Avenue (which had also been home to WNAC radio and the Yankee Network) before moving to its current facilities at 7 Bullfinch Place near Government Center in 1968.
In 1950, General Tire bought the West Coast regional Don Lee Broadcasting System. Two years later, it bought the Bamberger Broadcasting Service (WOR-AM-FM-TV in New York City) and merged its broadcasting interests into a new division, General Teleradio. General Tire bought RKO Radio Pictures in 1955 after General Tire found RKO's film library would be a perfect programming source for WNAC and its other television stations. The studio was merged into General Teleradio to become RKO Teleradio; after the film studio was dissolved, the business was renamed RKO General in 1959.
WNAC-TV was originally a CBS affiliate, but shared ABC programming with WBZ until 1957 when (the original) WHDH-TV signed on channel 5. It switched affiliations with WHDH in 1961 and joined ABC. (External Link

) It stayed with ABC until 1972, when channel 5 lost its license. The licensees of the station that replaced it, WCVB-TV, planned to air more local programming than any other station in the country, heavily preempting CBS programming in the process. This didn't sit very well with CBS, who immediately moved back to WNAC. However, WNAC utilized the version of the circle 7 logo it had adopted in 1973 until 1977, when ABC complained it was infringing on its trademark, and it began using a Times-Serif-Italic "7". In 1980, a stylish, strip-layered "7" was introduced, which ended up being the last logo redesign under RKO General ownership.
   Two legendary Boston TV personalities had shows on WNAC: Louise Morgan, who hosted a talk show and was known as "New England's First Lady of Radio and Television", and Ed McDonnell, who as the costumed (as an astronaut) character "Major Mudd", hosted a popular children's show in the 1960s and early 1970s.
   By 1965, RKO General faced numerous investigations into its business and financial practices. Though the FCC renewed the broadcast license for WNAC in 1969, RKO General lost the license in 1981 after General Tire admitted to a stunning litany of corporate misconduct as part of a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Among other things, General Tire admitted that it had committed financial fraud over illegal political contributions and bribes. However, in the FCC hearings, RKO General had withheld evidence of General Tire's misconduct, and had also failed to disclose evidence of accounting errors on its own part. In light of RKO's dishonesty, the FCC stripped RKO of the Boston license and the licenses for WOR-TV in New York and KHJ-TV in Los Angeles. The FCC had previously conditioned renewal of the latter two stations' licenses on WNAC's renewal. An appeals court partially reversed the ruling, finding that RKO's dishonesty alone merited having the WNAC license yanked. However, it held that the FCC had overreached in tying the other two license renewals to WNAC's renewal, and ordered new hearings.
   RKO appealed this decision, but after almost two years of legal action agreed to a settlement in 1982. It agreed to sell channel 7 to New England Television, a merger of two of the original rivals to the station's license controlled by Boston grocery magnate David Mugar. The transfer took effect on May 22, 1982. At that time, the station's call letters were changed to WNEV and the "7" logo was dropped in favor of a new SE7EN logo. This logo would change to one of a number 7 made up of seven dots in 1987.
   In 1990, Mugar bought WHDH (850 AM, now WEEI) and renamed the TV station WHDH-TV. Those call letters had previously been used by what is now WCVB Channel 5 from 1957 until 1972. In fact, the call letter change took place on March 19, 1990--18 years to the day they'd last been used on Channel 5. In June 1993, WHDH-TV was sold to Sunbeam Television of Miami (controlled by Ed Ansin), who still owns the station today. Shortly afterward, it adopted its present circle 7 logo, the same one also used by WSVN.
   Over the years, channel 7 as WNAC had preempted little network programming. As WNEV, the station prempted programming in moderation, in favor of more locally-produced shows. The preempted programs often aired on WHLL (now WUNI-TV). From 1989 to 1990, the station delayed CBS This Morning in favor of a children's show called Ready To Go. In February 1994, CBS This Morning was dropped and picked up by WABU (now WBPX). WHDH then began an expanded morning local newscast. When the station became a NBC affiliate, WHDH ran the entire NBC lineup.
   WNEV/WHDH also had exclusive rights to Lottery Live, broadcasting the state lottery games six nights a week from the fall of 1987 until February 1994. Originally hosted on WNEV by Andi Waugh, she was replaced within a year and a half by Dawn Hayes, who began her long run as host during this era. For the majority of its time (or heyday) on Channel 7, both drawings of the evening were played during the last two commercial breaks of Jeopardy!. The daily Numbers Game drawing would always air at 7:52 (following the conclusion of "Double Jeopardy!"), while the specialty game of the evening (Megabuck$, Mass Ca$h, Mass Millions, etc) would air at 7:58. Weekend hosts for this era included Linda Ward, Linda Frantangela, and Jill Stark (who sometimes filled in for Hayes on weekdays from 1993-94). After WHDH changed ownership in 1993, the games were subsequently moved over to WCVB-TV Ch. 5.
   WHDH stayed with CBS until January 2, 1995, when WBZ took over the CBS affiliation as part of a group deal between CBS and WBZ's owner, Group W. Fox considered an affiliation deal with WHDH. However, WHDH opted to become the NBC affiliate.
   Between 1996 and 1997, WHDH also produced a mid-morning weekday newsmagazine for the NBC network called Real Life. (External Link

) In May of 2006, WHDH began offering NBC Weather Plus.
On September 14, 2006, it was announced that Tribune Broadcasting would sell WLVI-TV, Boston's The CW affiliate, to Sunbeam Television, owners of WHDH and WSVN, for $117.3 million dollars, after much speculation that Sunbeam would buy WLVI. (External Link

) The sale was approved by the FCC in late-November giving Boston its second television duopoly (the other one being WBZ-TV and WSBK-TV). WLVI moved from its Dorchester studios to WHDH's facilities in downtown Boston.

Digital Television

The station's digital channel is multiplexed:
Digital channels

Channel	Programming
7.1	Main WHDH programming
7.2	NBC Weather Plus

In 2009, WHDH will move its digital signal from channel 42 to its analog channel position, at channel 7. (External Link

)

News operation

As WNAC-TV, the station had been among the first to use the music called "Move Closer to Your World" in 1970. Two years later, the station's news director moved to WPVI-TV in Philadelphia and took the theme with him, where it became famous. It was also during that time that a young news personality by the name of Chuck Scarborough assumed the role of lead anchor at the WNAC news department. Scarborough would later move on to WNBC in New York, where he remains today, and be prominently featured on NBC's national news.
   For many years, WNAC-TV was a distant third behind WBZ-TV and WCVB. However, due to Scarborough's presence and those of other up-and-coming journalists, the station had begun to be fairly competitive with WCVB and WBZ in the early 1970s. For a brief period in 1974, WNAC's 6pm newscast actually catapulted from third place to first, thanks in part to its new hit lead-in, Candlepins For Cash, a local bowling show which had premiered the previous year. However, WNAC's news operation wasn't able to maintain this momentum for long; the RKO fiasco caused a sharp drop in the ratings.
   By the time New England Television bought the station, a massive attempt to bring Channel 7 as WNEV out of the ratings basement occurred with the infamous "dream team" headed by Tom Ellis and Robin Young. Ellis had previously maintained WBZ's dominance in the news market and then helped WCVB reach number one during his tenure there (1978-82). Young, on the other hand, had no hard news experience but was well-known to Boston viewers as former co-host of Evening Magazine. Despite a massive influx of capital and marketing (including the launch campaign "There's A New Day Dawning", and a highly-financed promotional campaign employing the refrain "Feel Good About That"), the "dream team" failed to take the market by storm.
   What would follow for WNEV's news in the next few years was more shakeups, both in talent and identity due to ongoing sagging ratings, starting with the axing of Robin Young from the news in late 1983 (she would remain on the station as the host of specials and events through 1987). Tom Ellis would remain on with a more suitable co-anchor replacement, Diane Willis, but by 1986, Willis left and Ellis was demoted from anchoring to a smaller role. At that time, WNEV then promoted a shining talent from other dayparts, Kate Sullivan, and newcomer Dave Wright to become the new lead duo. Ellis, meanwhile, left the station altogether at the end of that year. In September 1987, numerous changes occurred when R.D. Sahl, another anchor from other slots joined Kate Sullivan as her new partner on weeknights. That same month WNEV became the first Boston TV station to launch a 5pm newscast, which was anchored by Dave Wright and Diana Williams (who moved to her current job at WABC in 1990). Although WNEV/WHDH would spend the rest of its years under Mugar in the ratings basement, Sahl became regarded as the strongest figure the station had going for it, at first with Sullivan and then her early 1990s replacement, Margie Reedy. In addition, Channel 7's news identity constantly changed under Mugar, changing from NEWSE7EN (1982-84) to The New England News (1984-1988) to News 7 New England (1988-1990) to News 7 (1990-1994).
   Amid all the local prominent journalists who attempted to leverage WNEV's news, a few future national talents had brief stints at the station in the 1980s. Bill O'Reilly, long before his national exposure on Inside Edition and Fox News Channel's The O'Reilly Factor, co-anchored NEWSE7EN Weekend in 1982-83. Soon after, O'Reilly also became the host of the station's weekday afternoon talk/lifestyle program, New England Afternoon (which replaced the ill-fated two-hour magazine show Look, canceled after its first season). His successor on the weekend newscast was Paula Zahn, now a well-renowned newswoman of many TV networks, who co-anchored with Lester Strong from 1983-85. Later, for six months during 1988, future Today host Matt Lauer hosted WNEV's mid-morning talk show Talk of the Town. Then in the early 90s, two more would later hit the big time: Edye Tarbox, who was an anchor/reporter at WHDH from 1990-92, now goes by the name E.D. Hill and has been at Fox News Channel since 1999. Rehema Ellis, who anchored and reported at WHDH in the same period, is now with NBC News.
   However, there were abrupt changes when Sunbeam bought the station in 1993. New station owner Ed Ansin brought Joel Cheatwood, the creator of WSVN in Miami's fast-paced news format, to Boston. Most of the station's prominent newscasters, including R.D. Sahl, wanted nothing to do with Cheatwood and promptly resigned. Cheatwood introduced a considerably watered-down version of the WSVN format. However, it was still shocking by Boston standards.
   Nevertheless, the new format soon rejuvenated WHDH's ratings, especially after switching to NBC. For most of the last decade, WHDH has waged a spirited battle for first behind long-dominant WCVB. In 2002, WHDH was noted as having the best newscast in the U.S. in a study published by the Columbia Journalism Review

. In previous studies, the station was deemed as having one of the worst newscasts.
   The station, in partnership with MetroNetworks, launched the TrafficTracker truck during the Democratic National Convention held in Boston in 2004. With traffic reporter Marshall Hook behind the wheel of one of the station's live vehicles, WHDH became the only station in the market to produce live traffic reports from the road. They continue to launch the TrafficTracker during snowstorms, including the December 13, 2007 storm that resulted in paralyzing commutes that, in some cases, exceeded seven hours.
   As of August 2006, WHDH airs the Boston area's only weekday 4 and 4:30 o'clock news. Before this point, WBZ-TV also broadcasted news at this time.
   As of December 19, 2006, WHDH has been producing WLVI's nightly 10 o'clock news under the name 7 News at 10 on CW 56.
   WHDH shares its resources with WJAR, the NBC affiliate for the state of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts, for news coverage of southeastern Massachusetts. WWLP, the NBC affiliate for Springfield, shares its resources with WHDH for news coverage of western areas of the state.
   The station operates a Bell LongRanger 206L news helicopter entitled "Sky 7". The station's weather radar is presented on-air as "Storm Scan Doppler" with a signal coming from the radar at the National Weather Service local forecast office in Taunton.
   On February 29 2008, it was reported that the 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike caused a significant loss in viewers during the late news. WHDH-TV finished at 11pm, with an average of 166,100 total viewers, down from 199,900 viewers in 2007.(External Link

) On May 23, 2008, the station preempted an appearance of Alan Alda on the daytime show Live With Regis and Kelly to report a minor news event. Because the news event posed no immediate public threat, the station was critisized for censorship via preemption.

News team

Anchors

Adam Williams - weekday mornings and Noon
- reporter
Anne Allred - weekday mornings and Noon
- reporter
Matt Lorch - weeknights at 4, 4:30, 5:30, and 10
- reporter
Kim Khazei - weeknights at 4, 4:30 and 5:30
- reporter
Randy Price - weeknights at 5, 6, and 11
Frances Rivera - weeknights at 5, 6, 10, and 11
Steve Cooper - weekend mornings
- reporter
Christa Delcamp - weekend mornings
- reporter
Brandon Rudat - weekend evenings
- reporter
Lauren Przybyl - weekend evenings
- reporter

Meteorologists

Pete Bouchard (AMS Seal of Approval) - Chief seen on weeknights

Dylan Dreyer (AMS certified) - weekday mornings and Noon

Jeremy Reiner (Certified Broadcast Meteorologist) - weekends Sports

Joe Amorosino - Director seen on weeknights at 6, 10, and 11

host of BMW Sports Xtra

Larry Ridley - weekend evenings

sports reporter

Julie Donaldson - sports reporter 7 FastTrak Traffic

Marshall Hook - weekday afternoons

TrafficTracker Truck reporter

Karen Kiley - weekday mornings

Kevin Michaels - weekday morning fill-in

Jim Ryan - weekday afternoon fill-in Reporters

Byron Barnett - host of Urban Update

Dan Hausle - fill-in anchor

Andy Hiller - political editor

Dr. Deanna Lites - health

Hank Phillippi Ryan - investigative

Johnathan Hall - investigative

Janet Wu - fill-in anchor

Romeo - entertainment weeknights at 10

Nicole Oliverio

Sorboni Banerjee

Victoria Block

Linda Ergas

Grant Greenberg

Michelle Relerford

Ryan Schulteis

Victoria Warren

Past personalities

Katy Abel - parenting beat reporter (1992-1999)

Teri Adler - reporter (1997-2005, now working in real estate) (External Link

))

Eddie Andelman - sports critic at large (1974-1979)

Garry Armstrong - reporter (1971-2002)

Juli Auclair - reporter (2002-2006)

Caterina Bandini - anchor (1995-2006)

Susan Banks - anchor (1981-1982, last at WKBW Buffalo, now retired)

Amalia Barreda - reporter (1982-1992, now at WCVB)

Linda Blackman - reporter (1975-1977, now a motivational speaker (External Link

))

Barbara Borin - sports (1975-1977)

Dave Briggs - sports reporter (2004-2008, now at CSN New England

David Brudnoy - commentator (1973-1983, deceased)

Susan Burke - anchor/reporter (1981-1983)

Terry Casey - Fill-in and Senior Weather Producer (1994-2007) Now at WCVB-TV

Kim Carrigan - anchor (1994-2001, now at WFXT)

Christine Caswell - reporter (1994-2000)(now at NECN and Boston College)

Tom Chisholm - weather (1987-1995) now at WMTW Portland,ME.

Liz Claman - weekend anchor/reporter (1994-2000, now at Fox Business News)

Eric Clemons - sports anchor/reporter (1991-1994)

Jack Cole - anchor (1975-1981, deceased)

S. James Coppersmith - GM/station manager (1970s)

John Corcoran - arts & entertainment reporter (1985-1989)

Joe Day - longtime political editor (1982-1993)

John Dennis - longtime sports anchor (1977-1997, now at WEEI-AM)

Jack Edwards - sports reporter/anchor (1988-1991, now at NESN)

Sara Edwards - arts & entertainment reporter (1991-2003, now at CN8)

Rehema Ellis - weekend anchor/reporter/Urban Update host (1985-1993, now at NBC News)

Tom Ellis - anchor (1982-1986, now at NECN)

Debbie Enblom - entertainment reporter (1989-1991) now at PR frim.

Bob Faw - reporter (1970, now at NBC News)

Carmen Fields - reporter/host of Higher Ground (1979-1986, now working in public relations for KeySpan)

Bob Gamere - Sports anchor and host of Candlepins for Cash (1975-1982)

Gary Gillis - sports anchor/reporter (1983-2004)

Jeff Glor - anchor/reporter (2003-2007, now national correspondent for The Early Show)

Gerry Grant - anchor (1993-94)

Todd Gross - chief meteorologist (1984-2005, now at KTVX-TV)

Dolores Handy- weekend anchor (1986-1989)

Peter Henderson - reporter (1987-1994)

Sean Hennessey - reporter/anchor (1996-2007) Now at WCBS-TV

John Henning - reporter/anchor (1964-1968, 1977-1981)

Brad Holbrook - anchor/reporter (1980-1982)

Tanya Kaye - reporter (circa 1977-??)

Kristy Kim - morning anchor/reporter (1997-2001, now Kristy Lee at NECN)

Nichelle King - weekend anchor/reporter (2005-2007)Now at WPTV

Janet Langhart - special features reporter ("Janet Langhart's Special People" on NEWSE7EN, 1982-1983)

Matt Lauer - Talk of the Town host (1988, now the co-host of The Today Show on NBC)

Gene Lavanchy - sports anchor (1993-2003, now at WFXT)

Mike Lawrence - reporter (1982-1998)

Mike Leavitt - reporter; Southern MA bureau chief (circa 1977-??)

Roy Leonard - anchor (1958-1967)

Harvey Leonard - longtime chief meteorologist (1977-2002, now at WCVB)

Maurice Lewis - anchor (1972-1979)

Phil Lipof - anchor/reporter (2001-2006, now at WABC-TV)

Kate Lurie - weekend anchor/reporter (1998-2000) PR consultant

Mike Macklin - reporter (1994-2007)

John Marler- Anchor 5,6,11 (1995-1998) husband & wife anchor team

Cathy Marshall - anchor (1995-1999) wife & husband anchor news team

Chris May- anchor until 2006 now at KYW-TV

Darlene McCarthy - noon anchor (1992-1997)

Mish Michaels - meteorologist (1992-1999, now at WBZ-TV)

Wendi Nix - Weekend Sports Anchor (2002-2006), now at ESPN, occasional guest on Sports Extra

Miles O'Brien - reporter (1987-1989); now at CNN

Ted O'Brien - anchor (1974-1981)

Bill O'Connell - Sports Anchor (1982-1984)

Bill O'Reilly - weekend anchor (1982-1983); now at Fox News Channel

Ryan Owens - reporter (2001-2006) works for ABC, former co-host of World News Now, currently a network correspondent.

Paul Reece - reporter (circa 1977-??)

Margie Reedy - anchor (1990-1993) recently at NECN

Mary Richardson - anchor (1978-1980, now at WCVB)

Angela Rippon - Arts & Entertainment (1984-1985) returned to the BBC in England.

Dave Rodman - reporter (1970-1977)

R.D. Sahl - anchor (1983-1994, now at NECN)

Ron Sanders - reporter (1979-1998, now at WBZ-TV)

Chuck Scarborough - anchor (1972-1974); now at WNBC in New York

Steve Sheppard - reporter (1971-1978) with ABC News (1978-1982)

Samantha Stevenson - anchor/reporter (1971-1973)

Lester Strong - anchor/Urban Update host (1984-2000)

Kate Sullivan - anchor (1984-1990)

Mike Taibbi - investigative reporter (1977-1983, now at NBC News)

Edye Tarbox - anchor/reporter (1990-1992, now E.D. Hill at Fox News Channel)

Garvin Thomas - reporter (1997-2002, now at KNTV in San Francisco/San Jose, CA)

Jilda Unruh - investigative reporter (1994-1997)

Lyn Vaughn - anchor/reporter (1979-1983)

Dr. Fred Ward - weather (1971-1979)

Ken Wayne - reporter (1971-1979)

Mark Wile - Weekend anchor/reporter (1985-1989)

Diana Williams - anchor (1987-1990, now at WABC-TV in New York)

Diane Willis - anchor (1983-1986) now in Missouri

Chikage Windler - meteorologist (2000's, now at KSTP in the Twin Cities)

Dave Wright - anchor (1986-1988) later at ATV in Nova Scotia, now retired

Robin Young - anchor (1982-1987, now at WBUR-FM)

Paula Zahn - anchor/reporter (1983-1985)

Zip Rezzipa - sports (1985-1986)

Jay Scott - anchor (1978)

Stuart Siorka - weather (1972-1979) deceased

Craig Stevens - weekend anchor/reporter (1997-1999) now anchor at sister-station WSVN-TV Miami

Cynthia Vega - freelance reporter (1998-1999) now at WFAA-TV Dallas

Out-of-market coverage

WHDH-TV is one of six local Boston television stations seen in Canada on the Bell ExpressVu satellite provider. It is also carried via the Anik F1 satellite to several Canadian cable companies, particularly in Atlantic Canada. Other cable systems also carry WHDH, such as Citizens Cable Television in the Thousand Islands region of New York State and Bermuda CableVision.

Logos

Image:WNAC50s.PNG|A WNAC test pattern from the 1950s. Image:WNAC69.PNG|WNAC standard ID logo, circa 1969 when the station was an ABC affiliate. For many years by then, announcer Leif Jensen contained the following in his spiel: "WNAC-TV, Boston 7, Your RKO General Station." Image:WNAC72.PNG|The WNAC 7 logo used in 1972 when the station switched back to CBS affiliation. Image:WNAC73.PNG|The new "Circle 7 logo" introduced by WNAC in 1973; after a lawsuit threat by ABC that it was infringing on their O&O station trademark, it was pulled in 1974. Image:WNAC77.jpg|A WNAC NewsRoom 7 promo still, circa 1977. Image:WNAC77B.jpg|A still from WNAC's late '70s movie intro, using the Times Serif "7" logo of 1977-1980. Image:WNAC82.PNG|The very last WNAC "7" logo, the strip-layered design of 1980-82. Image:Radar7.PNG|Boston's next "Circle 7 logo", the dotted 7 that ran from September 1987 through January 1994. WNEV introduced it to coincide the with the station's acquisition of the Mass State Lottery (the dots represent lottery balls). Image:Whdh_tv_2007.JPG|The new and current Sunbeam Television logo that has been used since January 1994. Further Information

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