WPDE-TV

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WPDE-TV
Florence / Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Branding	NewsChannel 15
Slogan	Your Local Team
Channels	Digital: 16 (UHF) Virtual: 15 (PSIP)
Affiliations	ABC
Owner	Barrington Broadcasting Company, LLC (Barrington Myrtle Beach License, LLC)
First air date	November 22, 1980
Call letters’ meaning	We're People Dedicated to Excellence (may also represent the Pee Dee River)
Sister station(s)	WWMB
Former channel number(s)	Analog: 15 (1980-2009)
Transmitter Power	421 kW (digital)
Height	601.3 m (digital)
Facility ID	17012
Transmitter Coordinates	34°21′53″N 79°19′49″W / 34.36472°N 79.33028°W / 34.36472; -79.33028
Website	carolinalive.com

WPDE-TV, channel 15, is an ABC-affiliated television station in Florence, South Carolina. Its transmitter is located near Floyd Dale, South Carolina. WPDE is owned by Barrington Broadcasting, after purchasing the station from Diversified Communications in 2005. [1]

[edit] History

[edit] Early years

WPDE signed on November 22, 1980 as an ABC affiliate. ABC programming had previously been airing on WBTW (channel 13) on a part-time basis. The former Florence Civic Auditorium building was transformed into WPDE's first studio at 3215 South Cashua Drive in Florence, SC. This studio would serve WPDE for twenty-two years. The dedication of the new studio was conducted in early 1981 with remarks by then Governor Dick Riley.

[edit] 10:00 News

In 1996, WPDE began producing a 10:00 newscast on their sister station WWMB. The newscast was anchored by Steve Hawley until he left WPDE in late 1996. The newscast was then anchored alternately by Dave Gilbert and Tiffany Cochran. After Cochran left WPDE and Gilbert died in 1997, the newscast was renamed the UPN 21 News at Ten and was anchored by Leo Stallworth and later by Audra Grant until going off the air in 2000. After three years off the air, the newscast returned as WPDE News Channel 15's News at Ten on UPN. Anchored by Jim Heath, this version of the 10:00 news featured nightly segments such as "Say What?" and "Quick Hits." On September 18, 2006 with the launch of the CW network, the newscast was renamed to NewsChannel 15 News at 10PM on CW 21. On January 26, 2009, days after Heath left WPDE, the CW News at 10PM was cancelled and replaced by paid advertising.

[edit] Digital television

The station's digital signal is not multiplexed. In 2009, WPDE-TV's digital signal remained on channel 16 when the analog to digital conversion completed.

[edit] Market

The Designated Market Area includes Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Horry, Marion, and Marlboro counties in South Carolina and Robeson and Scotland counties in North Carolina. The Nielsen Survey Area includes Chesterfield, Clarendon, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Georgetown, Horry, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Sumter, and Williamsburg counties in South Carolina and Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Hoke, Richmond, Robeson and Scotland counties in North Carolina.

The coverage area for WPDE. The green areas indicate the Designated Market Area and the grey areas indicate additional counties included in the Nielsen Survey Area.

[edit] News/Station Presentation

[edit] Newscast Titles

• Pee Dee 15 News (November 22, 1980-1983)
• 15 News (1983-1986 and 1993-1996)
• Action News (1986-1993)
• NewsChannel 15 (1996-present)

[edit] Station Slogans

• Hello Grand Strand/Hello Pee Dee/Say Hello! (1984-1989; used during period station used Frank Gari's "Hello News")
• Action News is Everywhere (1989-1991)
• The Team to Watch (1991-1993)
• The Carolinas' News Channel (1996-1998)
• Your Local Team (2003-present)

[edit] Personalities

[edit] Current Personalities

(In Alphabetical Order)

[edit] Notable alumni

(In Alphabetical Order)

[edit] See also

• WWMB
• Diversified Communications Tower

[edit] External links

• WPDE-TV
• The History of WPDE
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WPDE
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WPDE-TV