WMGT-TV
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| WMGT-TV | |
|---|---|
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| Macon, Georgia | |
| Branding | 41 NBC 41 NBC News (newscasts) |
| Slogan | Clear. Accurate. To the Point. |
| Channels | |
| Subchannels | 41.1 NBC 41.2 MyNetworkTV |
| Owner | Morris Multimedia, Inc. (Morris Network, Inc.) |
| First air date | September 30, 1968 |
| Call letters’ meaning | Middle Georgia Television |
| Former callsigns | WCWB-TV (1968-1983) WMGT (1983-2003) |
| Former channel number(s) | Analog: 41 (1968-2009) |
| Transmitter Power | 110 kW |
| Height | 189 m |
| Facility ID | 43847 |
| Transmitter Coordinates | 32°45′11.2″N 83°33′47.3″W / 32.753111°N 83.563139°W |
| Website | www.wmgt.com |
WMGT-TV is Macon, Georgia's NBC affiliate. It is currently owned by Morris Multimedia as part of its Morris Network division, as it has been since 1978. Its transmitter is located in Macon. It broadcasts on digital channel 40 and previously broadcast on analog channel 41.
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[edit] History
WMGT-TV began broadcasting on September 30, 1968 as WCWB-TV, the first commercial station started in Middle Georgia since WMAZ-TV started in 1953; it has always been an NBC affiliate. Unlike many NBC affiliates in two-station markets, WCWB did not assume a secondary ABC affiliation; the market did not get a full ABC affiliate until 1982 (in WGXA).
WCWB was founded by Dothan, Alabama broadcaster and perennial Alabama political candidate Charles Woods; Woods sold the station to a local group known as Bibb Television, Inc. in 1974[1]. Morris bought the station from Bibb four years later; WCWB marked that company's entry into the broadcasting business.
Its studios were located at the transmitter location 15 miles east of Macon, on what locals term the "Cochran Short Route" (US-129). The station renamed itself WMGT in 1983, to reflect the Middle Georgia area it serves. One final change to the station's legal callsign took place in 2003, when the -TV suffix was added, because of a radio station also holding the WMGT callsign in Minnesota.
During its first 24 years on the air, channel 41's newscasts were never competitive with WMAZ, in part because many households didn't even have UHF-capable sets. It fell even further behind when WGXA started up in 1982 and immediately surged to second place due to a more modern on-air look. In 1992, WMGT shut down its news department. For the next 12 years, WMGT aired no local newscasts at all.
In 2000, the station moved into a two-story renovated warehouse in downtown Macon, adding to the revitalization of the historic area and signifying future growth for the station. In September 2004, WMGT relaunched its news department.
On April 3, 2006, the station retired its "41" logo and "41 NBC" branding in favor of a new logo and branding, Today's MGT. WMGT's broadcasts have been digital-only since noon, February 17, 2009.[2]
On February 17, 2009; WMGT-TV terminated its analog signal and continued to broadcast its digital signal on channel 40.
On March 23, 2009, WMGT-TV has rebranded itself as "41 NBC" again and launched a new logo.
On July 6, WMGT-TV began carrying MyNetworkTV on DT channel 41.2 [[1]] Also the digital channel will carry 41NBC's 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. newcasts.
[edit] Current News Personalities
[edit] Anchors
- Brandon Long, 6:00 p.m. Anchor/Reporter, Managing Editor
- Brooke Martin, 6:00 p.m. and 11 p.m. Anchor/Reporter
- Coreen Savitski, Daybreak Anchor/Reporter
[edit] Reporters
- Shelby Coates, General Assignment Reporter
- Gabe Dalusky, General Assignment Reporter
- Liz Foster, General Assignment Reporter
- Rachel Schaerr, General Assignment Reporter
[edit] Meteorologist
- Brian Fowler, Chief Meteorologist
- Michael Estime, Daybreak Meteorologist
- Chrissy Keeley, Meteorologist
[edit] Past personalities
- Seth Bauguess, General Assignment Reporter (2004-2006, now at WKEF/WRGT Dayton
- Lauren Casey, Daybreak Meteorologist (2006-2008)
- Ryan Chambers, Fill-In Meteorologist/Sport Reporter
- Mark Christian, General Assignment Reporter (2006-2007,now at KERO Bakersfield, CA)
- Jackie Cooper, Movie Critic (?-2008)
- Ashley DeBeltrand Fuori, Morning Meteorologist (2004-2005)
- Walt Gray, Anchor/Reporter (During the WCWB era, now at KCRA/KQCASacramento)
- Russ Geller, Weathercaster (During the WCWB era, now News Director at WCBI)
- Stephanie Golden, Morning Anchor/Reporter (2004-2005)
- Jennifer Gordon, General Assignment Reporter (2005-2007)
- Heather Graf, General Assignment Reporter (2006-2007, now at WLOS in Asheville, NC)
- Gaynor Hall, Morning Anchor/Reporter (2004-2006)
- Antwan Harris, General Assignment Reporter (2007-2009)
- Ashanti Hathaway, General Assignment Reporter (2005-2006)
- Susan Jackson, 5:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. Anchor/Reporter (2004-2006)
- Derek Kinkade, Morning Meteorologist (2005-2006, now at WTVM/WXTX Columbus, GA)
- Stephanie Leydon, Anchor/Reporter (During the pre-1992 era, last seen at WLVI Boston)
- Ke'Sha Lopez, Daybreak Anchor/Reporter (2004-2008)
- Monica Lorriane, Morning Anchor/Reporter (2006-2007)
- Jerry Mathewson, Chief Meteorologist (2004-2007)
- Gavin Moberg, Sport Reporter 2007
- Kaitlyn Pratt, General Assignment Reporter (2004-2006, now at WAGA, Atlanta, GA)
- Bill Shanks, The End Zone Host (2008-2009)
- Chris Smith, Morning Meteorologist (2005, now the meteorologist CNN)
- Melissa Sogegian, General Assignment Reporter (2004-2006, now at Bay News 9 Tampa Bay)
- Callie Starnes, General Assignment Reporter (2007-2008)
- Aundrea Cline-Thomas, General Assignment Reporter (2006-2008)
- Nancy Marshall Genzer, Anchor/Producer (____ -1985, now at National Public Radio)
- Brent Weber, Sports Anchor (_____-1986, now at KOKH-TVFox 25, in Oklahoma City)
- Julie Gilreath Henry, Anchor/Producer (1985-1987, now at WNCN-TV NBC 17 in Raleigh)
- Neysa Wilkins-Trout, Anchor (____-1992, now at WJHG-TV News Channel 7 in Panama City)
- Kym Clark, Morning Anchor/Reporter (1986-_____, now at WMC-TV Action News 5 in Memphis)
- Jim Noble, Sports Anchor
- Dave Kurpius, Reporter/Producer/News Director (1986-1991, now Associate Dean at LSU Manship School of Mass Communication)
- Dave Carter-Anchor
- Karen Acar
- John Hosenberg
- Keysha Morgan
- Liz Jarvis-Fabian (later worked as an anchor/reporter at WGXA and WMAZ and now anchors a morning webcast and writes for The Macon Telegraph)
- Dodie Cantrell (now General Manager of WMAZ)
- Jim Lee (former news director and later a Macon City Councilman) died in 2004
- Dave Culbreath-Sportscaster
- Jeff Zell-Sportscaster
[edit] References
- ^ Broadcasting Yearbook 1975
- ^ WMGT-TV Goes Digital, Brandon Long, WMGT-TV, 17 February 2009
[edit] External links
- WMGT-TV website
- My 41 TV website
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WMGT
- BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WMGT-TV
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