WABI-DT2
 |
|
| Bangor, Maine | |
|---|---|
| Branding | The CW of Eastern and Central Maine WABI-TV 5 News |
| Slogan | TV to Talk About |
| Channels | Digital: WABI-DT 13.2 (VHF) Virtual: 5.2 (PSIP) |
| Affiliations | The CW (via The CW Plus) |
| Owner | Diversified Communications (Community Broadcasting Service) |
| Founded | late-1998 |
| Call letters' meaning | see WABI |
| Sister station(s) | WCJB-DT2 |
| Former callsigns | "WBAN" (1998-2006) |
| Former affiliations | The WB (1998-2006, via The WB 100+) |
| Transmitter power | 12 kW (digital) |
| Height | 391.4 m (digital) |
| Facility ID | 17005 (digital) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 44°42′11.7″N 69°4′46.8″W / 44.70325°N 69.079667°W (digital) |
WABI-DT2 is the CW-affiliated television station for Central and Eastern Maine. It is part of The CW Plus which a special CW feed broadcasting on cable and/or over-the-air on a digital signal. The station is a second digital subchannel of CBS affiliate WABI-TV owned by Diversified Communications. Over-the-air, WABI-DT2 broadcasts a digital signal on UHF channel 13.2 (PSIP virtual channel 5.2) from a transmitter on Peaked Mountain in Dixmont. It can also be seen on Time Warner Cable channel 10 (in most areas), DirecTV channel 14, and Dish Network channel 19. Known on the air as The CW of Eastern and Central Maine, its parent station has studios on Hildreth Street in West Bangor.
[edit] History
WABI-DT2 started broadcasting in late-1998 and had the fictional call letters "WBAN". It was part of The WB 100+ cable group as The WB required over-the-air affiliates above the top 100 markets to be on cable. WBAN gradually replaced low-powered WBGR-LP as the WB affiliate in Bangor. That station is now with America One and Ion Television. On Adelphia systems, this station was on channel 4 and known on-air as "Bangor's WB 4". In early-2006, it swapped channel positions with low-powered Fox affiliate WFVX-LP but continued using the same branding.
On January 24, 2006, The WB and UPN announced the two 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 "C"BS (the parent company of UPN) and the "W"arner Bros. unit of Time Warner. There was no UPN station in the market so Boston's WSBK-TV and Portland's WPME were piped in through cable.
On July 28, WABI announced it was creating a new second digital subchannel to become part of The CW. On the station's website, an announcement said Time Warner (which was in the process of taking over cable coverage in the Bangor area for bankrupt Adelphia) would have "WBAN" on its system. This station would then become a simulcast of WABI-DT2 to provide off-air viewers access to the new network. The arrangement was part of a three year deal with WABI which also let the main station be on the system as well. The CW launched on WABI-DT2 (call sign used officially) September 18. On January 10, 2007, WABI introduced redesigned websites for itself and WABI-DT2.
The CW Plus is a similar operation to The WB 100+. The service provides the affiliate with programming 24/7 but allows the station to preempt certain blocks for local programs or locally-acquired syndicated programs. In addition to morning and prime time pre-emptions designated for local news, WABI-DT2 preempts the allowed two hours in daytime (noon to 2) for syndicated fare. The channel also pre-empts some CW Plus overnight infomercials in order to provide additional syndicated shows and movies. It occasional preempts on Saturday afternoons in the fall to air SEC on CBS college football games preempted for local programming on the main station.
[edit] Newscasts
Like most WB 100+ affiliates, WBAN offered the nationally syndicated morning show The Daily Buzz on weekday mornings from 6 to 9. With the launch of The CW on September 18, 2006, WABI-DT2 added local news and weather cut-ins during The Daily Buzz. A simulcast of the weekday noon news was also added but this was switched to a rebroadcast at 12:30 in September 2008. A new live prime time show weeknights at 10 premiered known as WABI-TV 5 Prime Time News on The CW originating from a new secondary set.
In January 2008, WABI-DT2 began offering an additional half-hour of the main station's weekday morning show pre-recorded in advance. Airing at 7, this is known as WABI-TV 5 Morning News on The CW and preempts the first half of the second hour of The Daily Buzz. In addition to its main studios, WABI operates bureaus in Waterville (on Main Street) and Ellsworth (on High Street). WABI made the upgrade to high definition newscasts on October 11, 2010 becoming the first station in Maine to make the transition. However, the shows on WABI-DT2 were not included because this subchannel airs in standard definition.
Anchors
- Wayne Harvey - weekday morning news and reporter
- Joy Hollowell - weekday morning news and reporter
- Carolyn Callahan - weekday news at 12:30 and reporter
- Lauren Morrison - weeknight news and reporter
- Todd Simcox - Chief Meteorologist seen weekday mornings and weekdays at 12:30
- Chris Ewing - weeknight meteorologist
- Tim Throckmorton - Sports Director seen weeknights
Reporters
- Chelsey Anderson - "Take This Job and Love It" segment producer
- Cathy Speronis - "Cooking with Cathy" segment producer
- Marion Syversen - "Finance is Fun" segment producer
- Tracey Marceron - "Arts & Crafts" segment producer
- Rob Poindexter - Central Maine Bureau Chief
- Caroline Connolly - photographer
- Prescott Rossi - sports
- Catherine Pegram
- Meghan Hayward
- Diana Bosch
[edit] External links
|
|||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||
