WLOX

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WLOX is the ABC affiliate for Biloxi and the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Its transmitter is located near the unincorporated town of McHenry, Mississippi.

History

WLOX was the first television station on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, signing on September 15, 1962. It was founded by the Love family, who also owned WLOX radio (1490 AM, now WXBD).

Due to ABC having an affiliate further east in Pensacola, Florida, rather than Mobile, Alabama, WLOX-TV helped fill a void in areas west of Mobile that could not receive ABC programs. Until 1978, WLOX also filled a void in the New Orleans area, as it cleared ABC's daytime soap operas, most of which were declined by WVUE during this time. WVUE also preempted moderate amounts of other ABC shows. As WLOX had a grade B signal in New Orleans, these programs thus remained available to viewers in that area. However, today, most of the New Orleans network affiliates are on cable in Biloxi and Gulfport, causing competition for WLOX. On the other hand, WLOX is the default ABC affiliate for the Hattiesburg area, which does not have its own ABC station.

Among former WLOX employees is Chuck Scarborough, anchorman for New York's WNBC, and ABC's Good Morning America anchor Robin Roberts. Scarborough is a Coast native, and Roberts grew up in Pass Christian, Mississippi. Roberts' sister, Sally-Ann, remains close to the area, working at WWL-TV in New Orleans.

The Love family sold WLOX-TV to Liberty Corporation in 1994. Along with the other Cosmos stations, WLOX came directly under the Liberty banner following Liberty's exit from the insurance business in 2000. Liberty merged with Raycom Media in 2005.

WLOX remained on the air during Hurricane Katrina, even though the studios were heavily damaged in the storm, and continued to broadcast non-stop for more than 12 days afterward. WLOX created an award-winning two-disc DVD set about the storm entitled "Katrina: South Mississippi's Story".

Footage of WLOX's building being damaged and the move to a "temporary studio" were part of The Weather Channel series Storm Stories on June 5, 2010. Anchor Rebbecca Power's survival after returning home from the station was the main focus of the show.

WLOX was added to DirecTV and Dish Network in the Biloxi/Gulfport market on June 16, 2010.

Digital television

The station's digital channel on UHF 39, is multiplexed:

Digital channels

Digital Channel	Programming
13.1	WLOX ABC HD
13.2	WX 24-7 Weather Channel
13.3	This TV

WLOX first operated digitally on channel 39 (UHF) (re-mapped digitally to Channel 13 on digital televisions). After June 12, 2009, WLOX went to digital only on Channel 13 (VHF). Viewers were having problems picking up the signal all over South Mississippi. On June 29, 2009, WLOX changed its digital channel from 13 to 39 and from 10.9 kilowatts to 715 kilowatts, 70 times more power than before, so people all over South Mississippi can receive the signal, including some areas of Louisiana and Alabama. Increasing the power on channel 13 would not have worked due to potential interference on another station.

WLOX's digital signal is multiplexed, with a main signal on 13.1, a 24/7 weather channel on 13.2, and This TV on 13.3. 13.3 was the former home of The Tube until it ceased operations in 2007. WLOX used a digital still to notify viewers of the network's demise until the subchannel was eliminated from WLOX's signal. By August 22, 2008, the subchannel was restored with a logo slide; in July 2010, it began to carry This TV programming.

News/Station presentation

Newscast titles

• WLOX-TV News (1962–1966)
• Newsroom (1966–1971)
• Channel 13 News (1971–1978)
• Newsline 13 (1978–1984)
• Newswatch 13 (1984–1999)
• WLOX News (1999–present)

Station slogans

• The News For South Mississippi (1992–present)
• Building South Mississippi Together (2005–present)

On-air staff

Current on-air news staff

WLOX News Anchors

• Rebecca Powers 6:00 and 10:00 p.m. Anchor/Reporter
• Jeff Lawson 6:00 and 10:00 p.m. Anchor/Reporter
• David Elliott Co-Host The 4 O'Clock Show/5:00 p.m./Reporter/Co-Host WLOX News This Week
• Karen Abernathy Co-Host The 4 O'Clock Show/5:00 p.m. Anchor/Healthwatch Reporter
• Rhonda Weidner Good Morning Mississippi Anchor/Reporter
• Meggan Gray Good Morning Mississippi Anchor/Reporter
• Krystal Allen Weekend Anchor/Reporter

WLOX News Reporters

• Steve Phillips Reporter
• Trang Pham Bui Assignment Education Reporter
• Danielle Thomas News Reporter/Photographer
• Doug Walker Reporter and Co-Host WLOX News This Week
• Al Showers Hancock and Pearl River Counties Reporter
• Patrice Clark Jackson County Bureau Chief/Reporter
• Sylvia Hall Jackson County Bureau Reporter
• Jessica Bowman General Assignments Reporter
• Elizabeth Vowell General Assignments Reporter

WLOX News 24/7 Meteorologists

• Mike Reader Chief Meteorologist
• Tommy Richards Good Morning Mississippi and Midday Meteorologist
• Carrie Duncan Weekend Meteorologist
• Rob Knight Weekend Morning/Substitute Meteorologist

Sports

• A.J. Giardina Sports Anchor/Reporter
• Jeff Shepard Weekend Sports Anchor/Reporter

Editors

• Brad Kessie News Director

Past on-air news staff

• Robin Roberts, Joined 1984, Left 1986.
• Elise Roberts, Joined 2006, Left 2009

Awards

In 2006 WLOX received the Edward R. Murrow National Award in the category of continuing coverage, for its around-the-clock coverage of Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath. WLOX also received a Southern Regional Emmy Humanitarian award in June 2006. [1]

External links

• Official website
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