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WXSP-CA
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| WXSP-CA | |
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| Grand Rapids, Michigan | |
| Branding | WXSP, The X |
| Slogan | The TV Station with Game |
| Channels | Analog: 15 UHF Digital: WOOD-DT 7.2 WOTV-DT 20.2 |
| Translators | 14 WOBC-CA Battle Creek 27 WOLP-CA Grand Rapids 29 WOMS-CA Muskegon 33 WOHO-CA Holland 50 WOKZ-CA Kalamazoo |
| Affiliations | My Network TV |
| Owner | LIN Television (WOOD License Company, Inc.) |
| Founded | 1986 (as W29AD), 1995 (under LWS format), 2000 (general programming format) |
| Call letters meaning | W- eXtreme and SPorts (for sports coverage) WOLP - WOOD Low-Power Other stations - WO + city of license initialized |
| Former callsigns | W29AD, W15AM, WOWD-LP, WXSP-LP |
| Former affiliations | WOOD Local Weather Service (1995-2000) UPN (2000-2006) |
| Class | CA (Class A service); DC (digital Class A, WXSP-CA permits only) |
| Facility ID | 36851 |
| Website | www.wxsp.tv |
WXSP-CA (WXSP, "The X") is a low-power MyNetworkTV affiliated television station affiliate serving Grand Rapids, Michigan and nearby cities. It is owned by the same company as WOOD-TV, LIN Television. Its primary broadcast is on UHF channel 15, but is simulcast on the following stations:
- WOBC-CA (channel 14) - Battle Creek
- WOLP-CA (channel 27) - Grand Rapids (Middleville through Federal Communications Commission Special Temporary Authorization)
- WOMS-CA (channel 29) - Muskegon
- WOHO-CA (channel 33) - Holland
- WOKZ-CA (channel 50) - Kalamazoo
WXSP can also be seen on the digital signals of WOOD-TV and WOTV. The WOHO call letters were originally used for 40 years by a Toledo, Ohio radio station on 1470 KHz AM.
Normally, per FCC regulations, low-powered stations aren't eligible for "must-carry". However, due to their coverage of major regional sports (Detroit Pistons, Detroit Red Wings, and Big Ten sports), along with a major network (MyNetworkTV), retransmission deals allow the LPTV to be carried by both major cable and satellite systems. Additionally, LIN has the right under the "retransmission consent" section of the must-carry rules to require cable systems to carry WXSP as compensation for carrying WOOD-TV and WOTV. As a result, WXSP is available on almost every cable system in the market and on DirecTV.
As of September 2007, ownership of LIN Broadcasting denied access to WXSP's programming to some cable companies in south-central Michigan in a dispute over cable TV revenue.
WXSP's studio-to-transmitter (STL) link is WPOL564.
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WXSP-CA itself started on channel 29 as W29AD on 23 July 1986. It moved to channel 15 and acquired the W15AM callsign on 12 January 1988. In the station's early days it was a translator for World Harvest Television.
When it was an LWS station and through four months as a UPN affiliate, it had the callsign WOWD-LP (a variation on WOOD-TV's calls) from 1 March 1996. WOWD-LP and its low-power network of translators used to air 24-hour weather information direct from Storm Team 8's weather center on a network called LWS, or Local Weather Station, an early pre-digital format which is comparable to the NBC Weather Plus digital channel. The weather programming aired from the mid-1990s until WXSP's programming took over a few years later. It featured graphic displays of various conditions and forecasts, as well as periodic forecasts from Storm Team 8's meteorologists. Short commercial breaks would feature local TV spots, as well as LWS' ident.
A format change took place when UPN was added in 2000, prompting the move of LWS to the early mornings and new calls, WXSP-LP. WXSP-CA was acquired after it became a Class A station, which meets stricter requirements than most LPTVs.
The CW Television Network, the network resulting from the merger of the WB and UPN, announced that it would begin broadcasting in Fall 2006. Because WWMT (Channel 3) announced on April 4, 2006 that it would start a CW digital subchannel [1], WXSP became available as a My Network TV affiliate, partly because the (then) WB affiliate WZPX was also an i network-owned station and ran WB programming on a 22-hour delay. As a result, West Michigan is one of the largest television markets in which the CW is not available by over-air broadcasts, and one of the few to which the CW was awarded to a station not affiliated with either the WB or UPN. As a result, WXSP may also air NBC programs whenever WOOD-TV preempts for either a breaking news story, a local special, or the annual North American International Auto Show charity preview.
It was reported that WXSP was in talks to join The CW, but due to WXSP's heavy reliance upon prime-time professional sports (the programming that gets the highest ratings on the channel) and the CW's concerns over preemptive programming, the two sides couldn't come to an agreement.
On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that may result in the sale of the company.[2]
Weekdays: Jerry Springer, Maury Povich, Judge Hatchett, Judge Mathis, People's Court, Fear Factor, Cops and sitcoms from the 1980's to the present.
Weekends: 24, DaVinci's Inquest, Star Trek: The Original Series (2006 remastered version), Tom Joyner, Maximum Exposure, This Old House, Hometime, Rebecca's Garden, HomeTeam, and outdoor shows.
WOOD-TV's 6:00pm newscast airs at 7:00pm on WXSP every weekday. On October 21, 2007, a live 10pm seven-day a week newscast was announced specifically for WXSP to compete with WXMI. Check the WXSP homepage for details.
WOOD-TV's meteorologists provide Local Weather Station at 5am-6:30am Sunday-Friday and Saturday 5am-7am on WXSP; it is the only surviving portion of the all-LWS schedule from the late 1990s.
Part of WXSP's call letters come from the word "sports", and for good reason: the station is known for its coverage of sports in both the Grand Rapids and Detroit areas. The station also carries the University of Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State University Spartans basketball and football teams . These broadcasts of regional sports give WXSP more viewership than other programming on this channel.
The station airs Detroit Pistons and Red Wings, picking up feeds from statewide networks.
- Federal Communications Commission records show WXSP holds a permit to "flash-cut" to an ATSC-only signal on channel 15, after which it may change to the call letters WXSP-DC.
- Official site
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WXSP-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOBC-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOGC-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOLP-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOMS-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOHO-CA
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WOKZ-CA
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WWMT 3 (CBS - The CW on DT2) - WOOD 8 (NBC) - WZZM 13 (ABC, The AccuWeather Channel on DT2) - WXSP 15 (MNTV) - WXMI 17 (Fox) - WUHQ 29 (LAT TV) - WGVU 35 / WGVK 52 (PBS) - WUHO 36 (Ind.) - WMKG 38 (FN/Sportsman) - WOTV 41 (ABC) - WZPX 43 (ION) - W48CL 48 (3ABN) - WTLJ 54 (TCT) - WLLA 64 (FN) Local Cable Television Channels Significantly Viewed Out-of-Market Broadcast Stations |
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WXSP-CA 15 1 / WOOD-DT 7.2 / WOTV-DT 20.2 (Grand Rapids / Battle Creek) - WHTV 18 (Jackson) - WMQF 19 (Marquette) - WMYD 20 (Detroit/Windsor) - WNEM-DT 22.2 (Bay City / Saginaw) |
| See also: ABC, CBS, The CW, Fox, NBC, PBS and Other stations in Michigan |
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Corporate Staff: Gary R. Chapman (President & CEO) · Vincent L. Sadusky · Greg Schmidt · Scott Blumenthal · Edward L. Munson, Jr. · William S. Banowsky · Peter S. Brodsky · Royal W. Carson, III · Dr. William H. Cunningham · Randall S. Fojtasek · Wilma H. Jordan · Michael A. Pausic 1Co-owned with NBC Universal in a joint venture (76% owned by NBC, 24% owned by LIN). |
| Annual Revenue: $443.5 million USD · Employees: 2,414 (full time) · Stock Symbol: NYSE: TVL · Website: www.lintv.com |