WMGM-TV

WMGM-TV

Wildwood/Atlantic City, New Jersey
Branding	NBC 40 (general) NewsChannel 40 NBC (newscasts)
Slogan	Clear. Accurate. Reliable. South Jersey’s News Leader
Channels	Digital: 36 (UHF) Virtual: 40 (PSIP)
Subchannels	40.1 NBC
Translators	WMGM-LP 7 (VHF) Pleasantville
Owner	Access.1 Communications (Access.1 New Jersey License Company)
First air date	January 25, 1966
Call letters' meaning	Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Sister station(s)	WOND-AM/WGYM-AM
Former callsigns	WCMC-TV (1966-1981) WAAT (1981-1984)
Former channel number(s)	40 (UHF analog, 1966-2009)
Transmitter power	205 kW
Height	126.5 m
Facility ID	61111
Transmitter coordinates	39°7′28.3″N 74°45′54.5″W
Website	nbc40.net

WMGM-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for South Jersey that is licensed to Wildwood. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 36 from a transmitter along Avalon Boulevard in the Swainton section of Middle Township, east of the Garden State Parkway off Exit 13. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 4 and in high definition on digital channel 791. Owned by Access.1 Communications, WMGM has studios on New Road (U.S. 9) in Linwood. Syndicated programming on the channel includes: Entertainment Tonight, The Insider, Judge Judy, Judge Joe Brown and The Doctors, all produced by CBS Television Distribution.

Overview

Officially, WMGM is considered a Philadelphia market station. For other network programming besides NBC, channels from that city cover the area. This station's affiliation creates a rare situation where there are two affiliates of the same network in the same area (with NBC O&O WCAU being the other) which means cable systems must carry both stations. WMGM is the only NBC affiliate based in the state although WNBC in New York City covers Northern New Jersey and WCAU in Philadelphia covers Southern New Jersey.

History

The station began broadcasting on January 25, 1966 known as WCMC-TV (meaning Cape May County). It was owned by Jersey Cape Broadcasting along with radio stations WCMC-AM-FM. During the early years, even when NBC went to full-time color programming (provided off KYW-TV's own feed), the station still broadcast local programming in black and white. WCMC-TV was sold to South Jersey Radio in 1981 and changed its call letters to WAAT and then the current WMGM-TV in 1984 to coincide with the co-owned FM radio station and in turn, established their own NBC affiliate feed. Upon the death of owner Howard Green in 2002, the stations were eventually sold to Access.1 Communications. On May 3, 2006, WMGM-LP in Pleasantville fell silent when a fire struck the building its transmitter was located in. The building also housed the transmitters for Atlantic City's WMGM-FM as well as Pleasantville's WOND-AM and WTKU-FM.

While WMGM-FM began broadcasting from WPUR-FM's auxiliary facilities atop the Trump Taj Mahal casino, the AM stations and WMGM-LP remained dark, leaving many Atlantic City residents without clear analog reception of NBC programs. However, the on-air signals were eventually brought back. For several years, people on the New Jersey side of the Philadelphia market could watch the entire NBC schedule on this channel, as KYW-TV (now a CBS O&O) pre-empted many of NBC's daytime programs as well as other shows. However, WMGM is one of the few affiliates not to carry the Sunday edition of Today.

Coverage area

WMGM-TV logo card, 2012.

WMGM's digital over-the-air signal is viewable in the three-county area it serves. The signal does penetrate parts of southern Ocean County, southern Burlington County, eastern Camden and Gloucester counties and coastal Delaware, even though the station has no cable carriage in these areas. On cable in Southern New Jersey, it serves Cape May, Atlantic, Cumberland, and Salem Counties. In addition, WMGM is also on cable in Vineland and Turnersville which covers parts of Eastern Camden and Gloucester Counties such as Winslow Township and the Williamstown/Monroe Township area. This is the only location where WMGM is carried out of its designated area. However, it is only viewable on Comcast digital channel 247. DirecTV and Dish Network had carried the station in the Philadelphia market until 2011, because of signal issues. As a result of the expanded carriage of its signal in the entire Philadelphia DMA, it is carried in Mercer County alongside with the market's NBC affiliate from WCAU instead of New York City's WNBC. That station is carried on cable for Verizon FiOS, Comcast, and Cablevision subscribers in all of Mercer County. WMGM's terrestrial signal under tropospheric-like dxing conditions can be picked up in that county but it is not offered on cable.

CATV

In coastal and some interior parts of Sussex County, Delaware, WMGM was carried during the 1970s and possibly the 1980s.

Newscasts and local programming

NBC 40 news open seen every night at 11.

An entertainment program called Curtain Call with David Spatz, winner of a 2007 Emmy Award for outstanding interview/discussion series, airs Saturday nights at 6, featuring interviews with world-class artists performing in Atlantic City. There are three public affairs shows that air on the station: WMGM Presents Pinky (Saturday nights at 7:30), Forum 40 (Sunday mornings at 9:30), and Health Today (Saturdays at 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. and Sunday mornings at 11). Prior to 2011, the station did not air local news weekday mornings (offering religious programming from 5 to 6 a.m. and a simulcast of the Don Williams radio talk show from WOND from 6 to 7 a.m.). However, on March 28, 2011, WMGM began airing Today in South Jersey, a one hour local morning newscast, which airs at 6:00 a.m. weekdays. It has since been expanded to 5:00 a.m.

News/station presentation

Newscast titles

• NewsCenter 40 (1985-1999)
• NewsChannel 40 NBC (1999-present)
• NBC 40 News (2010-present)

Station slogans

• "TV-40's the One for All" (1990-1997, used with Frank Gari's "The One for All")
• "South Jersey's News Source" (1993-1999)
• "The South Jersey News Channel" (1999-2009, still used as secondary)
• "Where Local Comes First" (2009-2010)
• "Clear. Accurate. Reliable." (2010-present)

News team

Current on-air staff

Anchors

• Jennifer Husko - weekday mornings from 5:00-7:00 a.m.
• Michelle Dawn Mooney - weeknights at 5:00, 5:30, 6:00 and 11:00 p.m.
• Jeff Whitaker - weekends at 11:00 p.m.

Weather team

• Dan Skeldon - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 5:00, 5:30, 6:00 and 11:00 p.m.
• Adam Rutt - meteorologist; weekdays at 5:00-7:00 a.m.
• Sydney Daniel - meteorologist; weekends at 11:00 p.m.

Sports team

• Pete Thompson - sports director; weeknights at 6:00 and 11:00 p.m.
• Mike Frankel - sports anchor; weekends at 11:00 p.m.

Reporters

• Phaedra Laird
• Marquis Lupton
• Lynda Weed
• Ryan Ross
• Matt Alba

External links

• WMGM-TV website
• WMGM-TV mobile
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMGM-TV
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMGM-LP