WAFB
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WAFB is the CBS-affiliated television station in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Licensed to the city, the station broadcasts its analog signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter located southwest of Arlington. WAFB broadcasts its digital signal on UHF channel 46 from a transmitter located in Downtown Baton Rouge. The station is owned by Raycom Media and is sister station to WBXH-CA, the area's MyNetworkTV affiliate. Although WBXH has its own web address, it redirects to a separate section of WAFB's website. The two stations share broadcast facilities located on Government Street in Downtown Baton Rouge. WAFB is known on-air as "9 News".
Digital Programming
WAFB's digital signal, in addition to its own programming on DT1, offers three additional channels. On WAFB DT2 is a news rebroadcast channel which can also be seen on Cox cable channel 9. WAFB DT3, prior to October 1st, 2007, was The Tube, a 24-hour digital music channel which can also be seen on Cox digital cable channel 102 - the station is currently vacant. DT4 is a broadcast of My BR TV (WBXH).
| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 9.1 | main WAFB programming (CBS) |
| 9.2 | news rebroadcast channel |
| 9.3 | Louisiana's Weather Station |
| 9.4 | My BR TV |
History
The station began broadcasting on April 19, 1953 as the second television station in the state of Louisiana. Originally broadcasting on channel 28, WAFB moved to channel 9 in 1960. The station has always been a CBS affiliate, but carried some NBC programming until WBRZ-TV signed on in 1955. WAFB also carried some ABC programming until WRBT (now WVLA) signed on in 1971 and some programming from DuMont until that network folded.
Programming
WAFB is one of a handful of stations that shifts the air times of various CBS programming. The Price Is Right airs at 11 AM instead of 10 AM (back-to-back episodes of Family Feud airs from 10 to 11 AM) and The Young and The Restless airs at 4 PM instead of 11 AM.
The station's current syndicated library includes: Montel, Friends, CSI, Soul Train, Taxi, The Odd Couple, Who Wants to be a Millionaire, and others. The station aired Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune until 1995 (they have since aired on WBRZ), plus Regis Philbin's talk show and Oprah Winfrey until the late 90s (Oprah moved to WBRZ, but since then, it has aired on WVLA, while Regis' was the other way around). It used to also air The Phil Donahue Show, Hard Copy, and Sally Jesse Raphael, among other syndicated shows.
One locally produced show that brought years of enjoyment to children was hosted by Buckskin Bill Black (William Black), that ran from 1955 to 1990. There were several characters that were regulars on the show, Senor Puppet (a marionette voiced by Sid Crocker) and Whatsyourname (another puppet voiced by Mary Hiller). The show had a way of educating young children while making it fun to learn. Two games many adults can remember Buckskin playing were called "Hully Gully", which helped to teach counting numbers, and the "Monday Morning March". The two shows he hosted were called "Storyland" (for younger children during a.m. broadcasting) and "The Buckskin Bill Show" (for older children during afternoon broadcasting). The Buckskin Bill show was also one of the first shows in the United States to have a sign-language interpreter for hearing-impaired viewers, prior to closed-captioning. Through two gracious campaigns from his show, Buckskin Bill helped to start the Baton Rouge Zoo, and asked children to bring in their pennies to buy and elephant. The penny campaign was successful enough to purchase two elephants. He is now involved with the East Baton Rouge Parish School Board.
WAFB also airs the Sunday services from the First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge.
Newscasts
The station's news department produces 25 hours of news programming each week, including newscasts for sister station WBXH-CA. Encore airings of most recent newscasts can be found on WAFB's DT2 digital subchannel and cable channel 9 from Cox Communications.
News Team
(updated July, 2007) Anchors
- Donna Britt (6 and 10 pm weeknights)
- Jeanne Burns (weekday mornings)
- Avery Davidson (weekend evenings)
- Paul Gates (5 pm; also investigative reporter and WAFB Editorial Board chairman)
- Kellee Henessey (weekend morning and noon shows)
- Greg Meriwether (9 pm weeknights on WBXH; weeknight "Street Beat" reporter)
- Phil Rainier (noon weekdays; weeknight health reporter at 5 and 10 PM)
- George Sells (6 and 10 pm weeknights)
- Matt Williams (weekday mornings; crime reporter)
Meteorologists
- Steve Caparotta (weekdays, 5 pm and 9 pm on WBXH)
- Diane Deaton (weekday mornings and noon)
- Jay Grymes (chief meteorologist/degreed climatologist; 6 and 10 pm weeknights)
- Scott Oswalt - weekends (also weekend mornings co-anchor)
Sports
- Erin Cofiell - sports reporter/photographer
- Jacques Doucet - weekend evenings
- Steve Schneider (sports director) - weeknights
Reporters
- Anna Adair
- Avery Davidson (weekend evening anchor)
- Jack Jackson (9 pm weeknight fill-in anchor)
- Cheryl Mercedes
- Caroline Moses
- Keitha Nelson
- Jim Shannon
- Allen Tumey ("Tumey's Travels" reporter)
- Tyana Williams
Photographers
- Derron Daquano
- James DeGraauw (chief photographer)
- Robert Hollins
- Charles Holmes
- Joe Langdale
- Randy LeDuff
- Joe McCoy
- Josh Meeks
- Rick Portier
Producers
- Josh Auzenne (web producer)
- Daniel Brown (weekday mornings)
- Nathan Dewberry (9 pm weeknights)
- Angelle Dupre (6 pm weeknights)
- Robbie McCray (weekend morning & noon)
- Joe Rawley (noon & 5 pm weekdays)
- Tiesha Woods (weekend evenings)
Administration
- Robert Bienvenu (internet sales director)
- Robbie Chandler (newsroom operations)
- Cheryl Craig (art director/web manager)
- Monica Craig (assignment editor)
- Angelle Dunegan (business manager)
- Robb Hays (assistant news director)
- Vicki Kellum (general sales manager)
- Brian Norman (production manager)
- Dale Russell (chief engineer)
- Ellen Salmon (local sales manager)
- Nick Simonette (VP and general manager)
- Andree Zamarlik (marketing manager)
- Vicki Zimmerman (news director)
Former Staff
- Julie Baxter - now practicing law with Moore, Walters, Thompson in Baton Rouge; adjunct Media Law professor at LSU's School of Mass Communication
- Glynn Boyd - now at WGNO New Orleans
- Tim Brando - sports. Now broadcasts for various sports outlets, including CBS Sports and Jefferson Pilot Sports.
- George Caldwell (Sells) - now at News 12 Long Island in New York
- Isaiah Carey - now at KRIV Houston
- Marie Centanni - now on LA Governor Kathleen Blanco's staff
- Matt Clough - KUSA, Denver, CO
- Jennifer Donelan - ABC7/WJLA, Washington D.C.
- Jay Gormley - filmmaker
- Mike Graham - retired meteorologist, has since become active in performance arts.
- Jennifer Hale - WVTM, Birmingham, AL
- Victor Howell - now a basketball analyst at Cox Sports Television. He is also the host of the "CST Tonight!" and "Saints Tonight!" studio shows.
- Cyndi Nguyen - now at WGNO in New Orleans
- Nancy Parker - now at WVUE New Orleans
- Vernon Roger - anchor of 12pm and 5pm broadcasts. Remembered for his cajun cooking segments and his "taste test." Committed suicide in 2002. [1]
- Pat Simon - now anchoring evening news at WLOS in Asheville, North Carolina
- Valentina Wilson - now at WVLA-TV
Ratings
WAFB News is the top rating news channel in the Baton Rouge viewing area. In the recent rating period the station beat the other stations newscast combined at 5,6, and 10.
- 5 PM
WAFB: 10.3 WBRZ: 4.0 WVLA: 1.0
- 6 PM
WAFB: 12.9 WBRZ: 5.7 WVLA: 1.0
- 10 PM
WAFB: 14.3 WBRZ: 5.5 WVLA: 1.0