WCSC-TV
Encyclopedia
WCSC-TV is the CBS
-affiliated television station
for South Carolina
's Lowcountry
area licensed to Charleston
. Its broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on UHF channel 47 (PSIP channel 5.1) from a transmitter in Awendaw
. The station can also be seen on Time Warner
channel 5 as well as Comcast
and Knology
channel 9. There is a high definition signal offered on Comcast digital channel 433, Time Warner digital channel 810, and Knology digital channel 902. Owned by Raycom Media
, it has studios on Charlie Hall Boulevard in the West Ashley
section of Charleston. The road is named for the station's original personality who died just months before its relocation to the current facilities. Syndicated
programming on WCSC includes: Two and a Half Men
, The Wendy Williams Show
, and The Doctors
.
, My Name Is Earl
, The Insider
, and Inside Edition
. On weekday mornings, it simulcasts Up to the Minute
and CBS Morning News
from the main channel. There are also re-airings of the weekday morning, midday noon, and weeknight 11 o'clock newscasts as well as a periodical live feed of WCSC's own regional weather radar
, "Super Doppler HD".
WCSC-TV began broadcasting on June 19, 1953 from studios on East Bay Street in Downtown Charleston. It was the second television station in South Carolina and the oldest continuously broadcasting channel in the state (the first was WCOS-TV in Columbia
now WOLO-TV
). It is the only station in Charleston to keep its original network affiliation since sign-on. The channel aired an analog signal on VHF channel 5 and was originally owned by the Rivers family along with WCSC radio (AM 1390 now WSPO
, and 96.9 FM now WIWF
).
Many of WCSC's early on-air staff were former disc jockeys who became involved with the new medium of television in 1953. Al Stone, formerly of WGAR-FM
in Cleveland, Ohio
, hosted an American Bandstand
-like dance show for local teens. Carroll Godwin hosted a local daytime talk show in the 1960s. Loraine (Rainee) Evans hosted the popular children's program The Happy Raine Show. Ken Clyce was another popular news announcer.
The Rivers family sold WCSC-TV to Crump Communications of Houston, Texas
in 1987 while the radio stations were sold to Ralph Guild of New York City
. Crump kept the station until selling it to the Jefferson-Pilot Corporation in 1994. Jefferson-Pilot merged with the Lincoln Financial Group in 2006 with its broadcast properties assuming the new corporate name of Lincoln Financial Media
. In 1997, the station moved to newly built studios on Charlie Hall Boulevard in the West Ashley section of Charleston. The facilities were named for WCSC's longtime weatherman and one of its most popular on-air staff. Hall signed-on the station in 1953 and worked there covering events including Hurricane Hugo
's impact on Charleston in 1989 until his death in March 1997. Local sports coverage has also been prominent at WCSC. In the early-1980s, Charleston Cougars
games were aired on the station. It aired the Cooper River Bridge Run
from 1986 until 1990 and resumed the telecasts in 2004. The broadcasts feature reporters on the course.
WCSC is the local outlet for Atlantic Coast Conference
basketball and Southeastern Conference
football which have been produced by its parent company since the 1980s. In 2004, Jefferson-Pilot management effectively forced out Warren Peper (who had been with the station since 1974) by offering him only a one-year extension of his contract with no renewal option. The popular anchor, who had handled both news and sports during his time at WCSC, was also the play-by-play announcer for the station's live coverage of college basketball and the Cooper River Bridge Run.
After the station was sold to Jefferson-Pilot, he was a sideline reporter for the company's syndicated college football broadcasts. Peper went to Media General
's WCBD-TV
after a one-year non-compete agreement in the market
expired. Viewers wrote that they hoped WCSC would not force out Bill Sharpe
or Debi Chard (another longtime WCSC anchor) the same way. WCSC had lured meteorologist Bill Walsh away from rival WCIV
in 1994 and had to hide his identity with thunderclouds when running station promotions during his non-compete agreement.
On November 12, 2007, Lincoln Financial Media entered into an agreement to sell WCSC and the company's two other television stations (WBTV
in Charlotte, North Carolina
and WWBT
in Richmond, Virginia
) and Lincoln Financial Sports to Raycom Media for $583 million. Raycom took ownership of the station on April 1, 2008. This made WCSC sister to WIS
in Columbia. WCSC-TV shut down its analog signal, on June 12, 2009, as part of the DTV transition in the United States
. The station remained on its pre-transition channel 47 using PSIP to display WCSC-TV's virtual channel as 5.
's cable system in the Northern Grand Strand
and the rural portions of Horry County, South Carolina
alongside WBTW
. To the north, it is carried in southern Florence
and Orangeburg Counties. Although Orangeburg is part of the Columbia market, WCSC usually trounces WLTX
and WIS in ratings. An attempt to drop this channel from Orangeburg in 1997 led to protests that resulted in the station's restoration in 1999. Raycom has effectively assigned the Orangeburg area to WCSC rather than WIS. To the south, it is carried in most of the South Carolina side of the Savannah, Georgia
market including Beaufort
, Bluffton
, and Hilton Head Island.
There is no DirecTV
out-of-market carriage for WCSC. Appling County, Georgia
in the far western end of the Savannah market has this station listed as significantly viewed by the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC). This also includes Independent station WJXT
out of Jacksonville, Florida
. It is the only county in Georgia listed by the FCC that picks up WCSC.
and Marion
in the Pee Dee
. In Georgia, it was once carried in Statesboro
and Sylvania, Screven County
.
WCSC's newscasts have long dominated the ratings in Charleston. The station had the same two news anchors weeknights at 6:30 from the mid-1970s until 1991 and the same three news anchors were together until 1997. Bill Sharpe became an employee at the station in 1973 after a short time at WTMA
and has now been with the station for 38 years. For most of the time since 1991, he has been teamed with Debi Chard. WCSC has been a trend-setter in South Carolina for newscasts as it expanded its local evening news programming on weeknights from thirty minutes to two and a half hours and has the most newscasts in the state within a broadcast day.
After Fox requested its affiliates to air local news in the early-1990s, WTAT-TV
(then owned by Act III Broadcasting
) entered into a news share agreement with WCSC. This resulted in a nightly prime time broadcast known as The Fox 24 News at 10 to debut. It was one of the first prime time shows in South Carolina along with Fox affiliate WACH
in Columbia which had a similar arrangement with NBC
affiliate WIS
in that market. Eventually, an hour long morning show on weekdays called The Fox 24 News at 7 also produced by WCSC launched on WTAT. Both shows originate from a secondary set at WCSC's studios. The 10 o'clock news is currently the second highest rated broadcast in the area.
In 1991, this station began airing a one-hour broadcast weeknights at 6 which later became ninety minutes from 5 to 6:30 followed by CBS Evening News
in 1997. Prior to this, the national news aired at 7. In January 2000, WCSC launched its regional weather radar called "Live Super Doppler 5000". Now known as "Super Doppler HD", the system comprises four regional live NOAA National Weather Service
radars and its own Collins radar sold by Advanced Designs Corporation in Bloomington, Indiana
(which makes the station the only one in the market to operate its own radar). The station has often shared weather radars with fellow Raycom stations since the practice started after being purchased by Jefferson-Pilot.
In 2004, it added a thirty minute newscast weeknights at 4 now totaling two hours of local broadcasts between 4 and 6:30. WCSC is the only station in the area to air local news at 4. In August 2006 with an anchor and format change at CBS Evening News and concerns over ratings, it added a prime time show weeknights at 7 to "piggyback" with the network newscast. WCSC and ABC
affiliate WCIV are the only stations in the area to offer news in this time slot.
The station expanded its weather product with the "Live 5 Storm TRACKER Mobile Storm Center". It is the first vehicle of its kind in the region and allows WCSC meteorologists access to weather data away from the station and ability to send back live weather data for display on-air. On September 29, 2008, WCSC set another broadcasting benchmark in the area when it became the first to offer newscasts in high definition. The upgrade included new custom Raycom corporate graphics, a re-designed HD logo, and updated music package. The WTAT broadcasts were initially not included in the new HD production because that station was not yet equipped to broadcast local or syndicated programming in high definition. As of January 24, 2011, the WTAT news shows are now in HD. Starting August 31, 2009, the weeknight prime time show at 10 on WTAT was expanded to an hour and added a second news anchor.
Live 5 News Storm Team
Sports (both seen on Friday Night Lights)
Reporters
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
-affiliated television station
Television station
A television station is a business, organisation or other such as an amateur television operator that transmits content over terrestrial television. A television transmission can be by analog television signals or, more recently, by digital television. Broadcast television systems standards are...
for South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
's Lowcountry
South Carolina Lowcountry
The Lowcountry is a geographic and cultural region located along South Carolina's coast. The region includes the South Carolina Sea Islands...
area licensed to Charleston
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. Its broadcasts a high definition
High-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
digital signal on UHF channel 47 (PSIP channel 5.1) from a transmitter in Awendaw
Awendaw, South Carolina
Awendaw is a small fishing town in Charleston County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 1,195 at the 2000 census. As defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget, and used by the U.S...
. The station can also be seen on Time Warner
Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable is an American cable television company that operates in 28 states and has 31 operating divisions...
channel 5 as well as Comcast
Comcast
Comcast Corporation is the largest cable operator, home Internet service provider, and fourth largest home telephone service provider in the United States, providing cable television, broadband Internet, and telephone service to both residential and commercial customers in 39 states and the...
and Knology
Knology
Knology Inc. is a cable company that formed in 1994 by ITC Holding Company, Inc, a telecommunications holding company in West Point, Georgia that also founded Internet service provider Mindspring. In late 1994, shortly after Knology's inception, two employees made a $600,000 investment to make...
channel 9. There is a high definition signal offered on Comcast digital channel 433, Time Warner digital channel 810, and Knology digital channel 902. Owned by Raycom Media
Raycom Media
- History :Although Raycom Media dates its birth to 1996, the core of the company was formed in 1992 when Atlanta native Bert Ellis formed Ellis Communications. He eventually controlled 13 television stations and two radio stations....
, it has studios on Charlie Hall Boulevard in the West Ashley
West Ashley
West Ashley is one of the six distinct areas of the city proper of Charleston, South Carolina, with an estimated 2010 population of 57,403. Its name is derived from the fact that the land is west of the Ashley River. A few skirmishes took place there in the American Revolution and in the Civil War...
section of Charleston. The road is named for the station's original personality who died just months before its relocation to the current facilities. Syndicated
Television syndication
In broadcasting, syndication is the sale of the right to broadcast radio shows and television shows by multiple radio stations and television stations, without going through a broadcast network, though the process of syndication may conjure up structures like those of a network itself, by its very...
programming on WCSC includes: Two and a Half Men
Two and a Half Men
Two and a Half Men is an American television sitcom that premiered on CBS on September 22, 2003. Starring Charlie Sheen, Jon Cryer, and Angus T. Jones, the show was originally about a hedonistic jingle writer, Charlie Harper; his uptight brother, Alan; and Alan's growing son, Jake...
, The Wendy Williams Show
The Wendy Williams Show
The Wendy Williams Show is a syndicated talk show hosted by Wendy Williams that premiered on July 14, 2008, as six-week sneak peek, in Detroit, Dallas, Los Angeles, and New York City. The test run was picked up for a full season that began its run on July 13, 2009 in over 70% of the country in...
, and The Doctors
The Doctors (2008 TV series)
The Doctors is an American syndicated talk show airing daily in the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Ireland, Sweden and Finland. It debuted on September 8, 2008. The hour-long daytime program is produced by Phil McGraw and his son Jay McGraw and is distributed domestically and globally by CBS Television...
.
Digital programming
On WCSC-DT2, Knology digital channel 146, Comcast digital channel 212, and Time Warner digital channel 811 is an Independent station known as "Live 5 Plus". Syndicated programming on this channel includes: George LopezGeorge Lopez (TV series)
"The George Lopez Show" redirects here. For the late-night program hosted by the same comedian, see Lopez Tonight.George Lopez is an American sitcom starring comedian George Lopez...
, My Name Is Earl
My Name Is Earl
My Name Is Earl is an American television comedy series created by Greg Garcia that was originally broadcast on the NBC television network from September 20, 2005, to May 14, 2009, in the United States...
, The Insider
The Insider
An insider is a member of a group of people of limited number and with restricted access.The Insider may refer to:-Film media:*The Insider , a 1999 film drama about a 60 Minutes exposé of the tobacco industry, by director Michael Mann*"The Insider" , a 2002 episode of the American television crime...
, and Inside Edition
Inside Edition
Inside Edition is a thirty-minute American television syndicated news program, first aired on CBS on October 9, 1988. It was originally similar to the programs Hard Copy and A Current Affair, but now more closely resembles a condensed version of breakfast television, exclusively with pre-recorded...
. On weekday mornings, it simulcasts Up to the Minute
Up to the Minute
Up to the Minute is a CBS overnight broadcast which offers hard news, features, interviews, weather, sports, business and commentary. Up to the Minute draws from the full resources of CBS News, including the CBS Evening News, Newspath, affiliate stations, the CBS Radio Network and Reuters Television...
and CBS Morning News
CBS Morning News
For CBS's main morning news program, formerly known as CBS Morning News, see The Early Show.CBS Morning News is the half-hour daily television broadcast from CBS News that airs following Up to the Minute and features late-breaking news stories, weather forecasts, and sports scores...
from the main channel. There are also re-airings of the weekday morning, midday noon, and weeknight 11 o'clock newscasts as well as a periodical live feed of WCSC's own regional weather radar
Weather radar
Weather radar, also called weather surveillance radar and Doppler weather radar, is a type of radar used to locate precipitation, calculate its motion, estimate its type . Modern weather radars are mostly pulse-Doppler radars, capable of detecting the motion of rain droplets in addition to the...
, "Super Doppler HD".
| Channels | Programming |
|---|---|
| 5.1 | Main WCSC-TV programming / CBS |
| 5.2 | WCSC-TV "Live 5 Plus" |
| 5.3 | Bounce TV Bounce TV Bounce TV is a United States television network airing on digital terrestrial television stations. Promoted as "the first 24/7 digital multicast broadcast network created exclusively for African Americans," Bounce TV launched on September 26, 2011 and features programming geared toward blacks in... |
History
Columbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
now WOLO-TV
WOLO-TV
WOLO-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for South Carolina's Midlands licensed to Columbia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 8 from a transmitter on Rush Road in unincorporated Southwestern Kershaw County. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable...
). It is the only station in Charleston to keep its original network affiliation since sign-on. The channel aired an analog signal on VHF channel 5 and was originally owned by the Rivers family along with WCSC radio (AM 1390 now WSPO
WSPO
-External links:**...
, and 96.9 FM now WIWF
WIWF
WIWF is a commercial radio station located in Charleston, South Carolina, broadcasting to the Lowcountry area on 96.9 MHz. WIWF airs a Country music format branded as "96.9 The Wolf."-History:...
).
Many of WCSC's early on-air staff were former disc jockeys who became involved with the new medium of television in 1953. Al Stone, formerly of WGAR-FM
WGAR-FM
WGAR-FM — branded 99.5 WGAR — is a commercial radio station in Cleveland, Ohio with a country music format. Studios are located at 6200 Oak Tree Boulevard off of Rockside Road in Independence, Ohio along with other local Clear Channel stations, and its transmitter is located in Parma.- WGAR:The...
in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, hosted an American Bandstand
American Bandstand
American Bandstand is an American music-performance show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989 and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as producer...
-like dance show for local teens. Carroll Godwin hosted a local daytime talk show in the 1960s. Loraine (Rainee) Evans hosted the popular children's program The Happy Raine Show. Ken Clyce was another popular news announcer.
The Rivers family sold WCSC-TV to Crump Communications of Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
in 1987 while the radio stations were sold to Ralph Guild of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Crump kept the station until selling it to the Jefferson-Pilot Corporation in 1994. Jefferson-Pilot merged with the Lincoln Financial Group in 2006 with its broadcast properties assuming the new corporate name of Lincoln Financial Media
Lincoln Financial Media
Lincoln Financial Media is a subsidiary of Lincoln National Corporation that owns radio stations in the United States.-History:In April 2006, Lincoln Financial acquired Jefferson-Pilot's television and radio operations, which were renamed Lincoln Financial Media. The group owns 14 radio stations in...
. In 1997, the station moved to newly built studios on Charlie Hall Boulevard in the West Ashley section of Charleston. The facilities were named for WCSC's longtime weatherman and one of its most popular on-air staff. Hall signed-on the station in 1953 and worked there covering events including Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo
Hurricane Hugo was a classical, destructive and rare Cape Verde-type hurricane which struck the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe, Montserrat, St. Croix, Puerto Rico and the USA mainland in South Carolina as a Category 4 hurricane during September of the 1989 Atlantic hurricane season...
's impact on Charleston in 1989 until his death in March 1997. Local sports coverage has also been prominent at WCSC. In the early-1980s, Charleston Cougars
College of Charleston
The College of Charleston is a public, sea-grant and space-grant university located in historic downtown Charleston, South Carolina, United States...
games were aired on the station. It aired the Cooper River Bridge Run
Cooper River Bridge Run
The Cooper River Bridge Run is an annual one-way road running event held in the cities of Mount Pleasant and Charleston in South Carolina, on the first Saturday in April, unless it is the day before Easter Sunday, when the event is held on the last Saturday in March...
from 1986 until 1990 and resumed the telecasts in 2004. The broadcasts feature reporters on the course.
WCSC is the local outlet for Atlantic Coast Conference
Atlantic Coast Conference
The Atlantic Coast Conference is a collegiate athletic league in the United States. Founded in 1953 in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC sanctions competition in twenty-five sports in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association for its twelve member universities...
basketball and Southeastern Conference
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference is an American college athletic conference that operates in the southeastern part of the United States. It is headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama...
football which have been produced by its parent company since the 1980s. In 2004, Jefferson-Pilot management effectively forced out Warren Peper (who had been with the station since 1974) by offering him only a one-year extension of his contract with no renewal option. The popular anchor, who had handled both news and sports during his time at WCSC, was also the play-by-play announcer for the station's live coverage of college basketball and the Cooper River Bridge Run.
After the station was sold to Jefferson-Pilot, he was a sideline reporter for the company's syndicated college football broadcasts. Peper went to Media General
Media General
Media General, Inc. is a media company based in the Southeastern United States. Its major properties include newspapers such as The Tampa Tribune, the Winston-Salem Journal, and the Richmond Times-Dispatch, as well as numerous television stations, such as flagship station WFLA-TV.The company was...
's WCBD-TV
WCBD-TV
WCBD-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Lowcountry area of South Carolina licensed to Charleston. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 50 from a transmitter in Awendaw. The station can also be seen on Time Warner channel 2 as well as Knology and Comcast...
after a one-year non-compete agreement in the market
Media market
A media market, broadcast market, media region, designated market area , Television Market Area , or simply market is a region where the population can receive the same television and radio station offerings, and may also include other types of media including newspapers and Internet content...
expired. Viewers wrote that they hoped WCSC would not force out Bill Sharpe
Bill Sharpe (WCSC-TV)
William Hershel Sharpe, Jr. is the head anchor on Charleston, South Carolina broadcast station WCSC-TV.-Education:A native of the St. Andrews area in Charleston, he graduated from St...
or Debi Chard (another longtime WCSC anchor) the same way. WCSC had lured meteorologist Bill Walsh away from rival WCIV
WCIV
WCIV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Lowcountry area of South Carolina licensed to Charleston. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 34 from a transmitter in Awendaw. The station can also be seen on Time Warner channel 4 as well as Comcast and Knology...
in 1994 and had to hide his identity with thunderclouds when running station promotions during his non-compete agreement.
On November 12, 2007, Lincoln Financial Media entered into an agreement to sell WCSC and the company's two other television stations (WBTV
WBTV
WBTV, channel 3 , is the CBS affiliate in Charlotte, North Carolina. It is one of two flagship stations of Raycom Media. WBTV's studios are located off Morehead Street just west of Uptown Charlotte, and its transmitter is located in north-central Gaston County, North Carolina...
in Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte is the largest city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the seat of Mecklenburg County. In 2010, Charlotte's population according to the US Census Bureau was 731,424, making it the 17th largest city in the United States based on population. The Charlotte metropolitan area had a 2009...
and WWBT
WWBT
WWBT is the NBC-affiliated television station for Richmond, Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 12 from a transmitter at its studios on Midlothian Turnpike in the city. Owned by Raycom Media, the station operates CW affiliate WUPV through a shared services...
in Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
) and Lincoln Financial Sports to Raycom Media for $583 million. Raycom took ownership of the station on April 1, 2008. This made WCSC sister to WIS
WIS
WIS, channel 10, is an NBC-affiliated television station in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. Owned by Raycom Media, WIS has studios on Bull Street in downtown Columbia, and transmitter located in Lugoff, South Carolina.-History:...
in Columbia. WCSC-TV shut down its analog signal, on June 12, 2009, as part of the DTV transition in the United States
DTV transition in the United States
The DTV transition in the United States was the switchover from analog to exclusively digital broadcasting of free over-the-air television programming...
. The station remained on its pre-transition channel 47 using PSIP to display WCSC-TV's virtual channel as 5.
Out Of Market and CATV
Outside of the Charleston area, WCSC is carried on Horry Telephone CooperativeHorry Telephone Cooperative
Horry Telephone Cooperative is America's largest telephone cooperative and the 25th largest telecommunications company in America. The cooperative was incorporated on June 16, 1952 to serve the rural areas of Horry County, South Carolina where it was cost prohibitive for national telephone...
's cable system in the Northern Grand Strand
Grand Strand
The Grand Strand refers to a large stretch of beaches on the East Coast of the United States extending from Little River to Georgetown in the U.S. State of South Carolina. It consists of 60+ miles along an essentially uninterrupted arc of beach land, beginning around the Little River and...
and the rural portions of Horry County, South Carolina
Horry County, South Carolina
Horry County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. This name honored Revolutionary War Hero, Peter Horry. Brigadier General Horry was born in South Carolina sometime around 1743 and started his distinguished military career in 1775 as one of 20 captains the Provincial Congress...
alongside WBTW
WBTW
WBTW is the CBS-affiliated television station for the Pee Dee and Grand Strand areas of South Carolina that is licensed to Florence. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter southeast of Dillon on Pee Dee Church Road. Owned by Media General, the station...
. To the north, it is carried in southern Florence
Florence County, South Carolina
Florence is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. In 2000, its population was recorded to be 125,761; in 2005, the U.S. Census Bureau estimated that its population had reached 131,097. Its county seat is Florence. The county's population is about 60% urban and it comprises part of...
and Orangeburg Counties. Although Orangeburg is part of the Columbia market, WCSC usually trounces WLTX
WLTX
WLTX, is the CBS-affiliated television station in Columbia, South Carolina. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 17 from a transmitter located in Lugoff, South Carolina. Syndicated programming on the station includes: The Andy Griffith Show, The Doctors, The Ellen DeGeneres...
and WIS in ratings. An attempt to drop this channel from Orangeburg in 1997 led to protests that resulted in the station's restoration in 1999. Raycom has effectively assigned the Orangeburg area to WCSC rather than WIS. To the south, it is carried in most of the South Carolina side of the Savannah, Georgia
Savannah, Georgia
Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...
market including Beaufort
Beaufort, South Carolina
Beaufort is a city in and the county seat of Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1711, it is the second-oldest city in South Carolina, behind Charleston. The city's population was 12,361 in the 2010 census. It is located in the Hilton Head Island-Beaufort Micropolitan...
, Bluffton
Bluffton, South Carolina
The weather in the Bluffton, SC area is typical of the Southeast with generally mild temperatures from Fall through Spring and a warm and humid Summer. There can be occasionally snow flurries in the winter but that is quite unusual....
, and Hilton Head Island.
There is no DirecTV
DirecTV
DirecTV is an American direct broadcast satellite service provider and broadcaster based in El Segundo, California. Its satellite service, launched on June 17, 1994, transmits digital satellite television and audio to households in the United States, Latin America, and the Anglophone Caribbean. ...
out-of-market carriage for WCSC. Appling County, Georgia
Appling County, Georgia
Appling County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population is 17,419. The 2007 Census Estimate placed the population at 17,946...
in the far western end of the Savannah market has this station listed as significantly viewed by the Federal Communications Commission
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission is an independent agency of the United States government, created, Congressional statute , and with the majority of its commissioners appointed by the current President. The FCC works towards six goals in the areas of broadband, competition, the spectrum, the...
(FCC). This also includes Independent station WJXT
WJXT
WJXT, channel 4 , is an independent television station serving Jacksonville, Florida, and surrounding communities. Its transmitter is in the Kilarney Shores section of Jacksonville, with the WTLV transmitter. The station originally broadcast an analog signal on VHF channel 4 and a digital signal...
out of Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968...
. It is the only county in Georgia listed by the FCC that picks up WCSC.
CATV
During the 1970s and 1980s, WCSC was once carried in DillonDillon, South Carolina
Dillon, South Carolina, the county seat of Dillon County, was established on December 22, 1888. The name of the city came from James W. Dillon, who was a key component in bringing a railroad through this area of the state, which led to development and formation of the County. Dillon’s population...
and Marion
Marion, South Carolina
Marion is a city in Marion County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 7,042 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Marion County...
in the Pee Dee
Pee Dee
The Pee Dee region of South Carolina is the northeastern corner of the state. It is the area of the lower watershed of the Pee Dee River, named after the Pee Dee Native American tribe. Its center is Florence...
. In Georgia, it was once carried in Statesboro
Statesboro, Georgia
Statesboro is a city in southeast Georgia, United States, and is the county seat and most populous city of Bulloch County. Statesboro has a population of 28,422 and the Statesboro, GA Micropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 70,217...
and Sylvania, Screven County
Sylvania, Georgia
Sylvania is a city in Screven County, Georgia, United States. The population was 2,675 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Screven County.-Geography:Sylvania is located at ....
.
News operation
WTMA
WTMA is an AM radio station serving the Charleston market area with a News/Talk format. This station operates on AM frequency 1250 kHz and is under ownership of Cumulus Media.-History:...
and has now been with the station for 38 years. For most of the time since 1991, he has been teamed with Debi Chard. WCSC has been a trend-setter in South Carolina for newscasts as it expanded its local evening news programming on weeknights from thirty minutes to two and a half hours and has the most newscasts in the state within a broadcast day.
After Fox requested its affiliates to air local news in the early-1990s, WTAT-TV
WTAT-TV
WTAT-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for South Carolina's Lowcountry licensed to Charleston. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 24 from a transmitter in Awendaw. The station can also be seen on Comcast, Knology, and Time Warner channel 6...
(then owned by Act III Broadcasting
Act III Broadcasting
Act III Broadcasting was a company that owned several television stations that started as independents, and later became Fox affiliates. The stations were located in medium-sized markets, and the company existed from the mid 1980s to the mid 1990s, eventually to be sold to Abry in 1994...
) entered into a news share agreement with WCSC. This resulted in a nightly prime time broadcast known as The Fox 24 News at 10 to debut. It was one of the first prime time shows in South Carolina along with Fox affiliate WACH
WACH
WACH is the Fox-affiliated television station for the Midlands of South Carolina. It is licensed to Columbia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 48 from a transmitter along SC 12 in Southwestern Kershaw County. Owned by Barrington Broadcasting, the station has studios on...
in Columbia which had a similar arrangement with NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
affiliate WIS
WIS
WIS, channel 10, is an NBC-affiliated television station in Columbia, South Carolina, USA. Owned by Raycom Media, WIS has studios on Bull Street in downtown Columbia, and transmitter located in Lugoff, South Carolina.-History:...
in that market. Eventually, an hour long morning show on weekdays called The Fox 24 News at 7 also produced by WCSC launched on WTAT. Both shows originate from a secondary set at WCSC's studios. The 10 o'clock news is currently the second highest rated broadcast in the area.
In 1991, this station began airing a one-hour broadcast weeknights at 6 which later became ninety minutes from 5 to 6:30 followed by CBS Evening News
CBS Evening News
CBS Evening News is the flagship nightly television news program of the American television network CBS. The network has broadcast this program since 1948, and has used the CBS Evening News title since 1963....
in 1997. Prior to this, the national news aired at 7. In January 2000, WCSC launched its regional weather radar called "Live Super Doppler 5000". Now known as "Super Doppler HD", the system comprises four regional live NOAA National Weather Service
National Weather Service
The National Weather Service , once known as the Weather Bureau, is one of the six scientific agencies that make up the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration of the United States government...
radars and its own Collins radar sold by Advanced Designs Corporation in Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington, Indiana
Bloomington is a city in and the county seat of Monroe County in the southern region of the U.S. state of Indiana. The population was 80,405 at the 2010 census....
(which makes the station the only one in the market to operate its own radar). The station has often shared weather radars with fellow Raycom stations since the practice started after being purchased by Jefferson-Pilot.
In 2004, it added a thirty minute newscast weeknights at 4 now totaling two hours of local broadcasts between 4 and 6:30. WCSC is the only station in the area to air local news at 4. In August 2006 with an anchor and format change at CBS Evening News and concerns over ratings, it added a prime time show weeknights at 7 to "piggyback" with the network newscast. WCSC and ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
affiliate WCIV are the only stations in the area to offer news in this time slot.
The station expanded its weather product with the "Live 5 Storm TRACKER Mobile Storm Center". It is the first vehicle of its kind in the region and allows WCSC meteorologists access to weather data away from the station and ability to send back live weather data for display on-air. On September 29, 2008, WCSC set another broadcasting benchmark in the area when it became the first to offer newscasts in high definition. The upgrade included new custom Raycom corporate graphics, a re-designed HD logo, and updated music package. The WTAT broadcasts were initially not included in the new HD production because that station was not yet equipped to broadcast local or syndicated programming in high definition. As of January 24, 2011, the WTAT news shows are now in HD. Starting August 31, 2009, the weeknight prime time show at 10 on WTAT was expanded to an hour and added a second news anchor.
Newscast titles
- TV-5 News (1970-1972)
- Live 5 News (1972-present)
- Live 5 News HD (2008-present)
Station slogans
- "Channel 5 Says Hello" (1980s, featured when station used Frank GariFrank GariFrank Gari is a popular singer and songwriter from the late 1950s and early 1960s. His best known songs as a performer are "Utopia" , "Lullaby of Love" and "Princess" , all of which hit the U.S. Top 40 in 1961. He co-wrote with Roger McGuinn the song Beach Ball for Bobby Darin...
's "Hello News") - "Count On The Best!" (late-1980s)
- "Your LIVE 24 Hour News Source24 Hour News SourceThe 24 Hour News Source brand was a common name used by American television stations starting in the early 1990s for brief hourly news updates, usually running 30 seconds to a minute in length. At its peak, dozens of stations across the U.S. were producing these brief news updates...
" (1990-2001) - "The Lowcountry's News Leader" (2001-present)
News team
Anchors- Bill Burr - weekday mornings
- Ann McGill - weekday mornings and consumer reporter
- Bill Sharpe - weekdays at noon, 4, 5, and 6
- Debi Chard - Managing Editor; seen weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6, 7, and 11; also medical reporter
- Raphael James - weeknights at 5:30, 7, 10, and 11
- KeKe Collins - weeknights at 10 and reporter
- Aisha Tyler - weekdays at 4
- Jordan Smith - weekends
- Bill Rancic - AmericaUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Now host
Live 5 News Storm Team
- Bill Walsh (AMSAmerican Meteorological SocietyThe American Meteorological Society promotes the development and dissemination of information and education on the atmospheric and related oceanic and hydrologic sciences and the advancement of their professional applications. Founded in 1919, the American Meteorological Society has a membership...
and NWANational Weather AssociationThe National Weather Association is an American professional association with a mission to support and promote excellence in operational meteorology and related activities...
Seals of Approval) - Director of Meteorology and Chief seen weeknights (also heard on WCKNFM 92.5, WIOPWIOPWIOP is a radio station licensed to Isle of Palms, South Carolina, USA, serving the South Carolina Lowcountry. The station is owned by Apex Broadcasting, Inc. WIOP airs a soft adult contemporary format.-History:...
-FM 95.9, WXSTWXSTWXST is a Gold-based Urban Adult Contemporary radio station located in Charleston, South Carolina, but licensed by the FCC to the town of Hollywood, South Carolina. The station broadcasts with an ERP of 70 kW.-History:...
-FM 99.7, WAVFWAVFWKZQ-FM is an Alternative rock radio station licensed to Forestbrook, South Carolina and serves the Grand Strand area. The NextMedia outlet is licensed by the Federal Communications Commission to broadcast at 96.1 MHz with an effective radiated power of 8,500 watts...
-FM 101.7, WSPO-AM 1390/W255BW-FM 99.3) - Chad Watson (NWA Seal of Approval) - weekday mornings and noon
- Brad Miller - weekends
Sports (both seen on Friday Night Lights)
- Andy Pruitt - Managing Editor; seen weeknights at 6, 7, 10, and 11
- Kevin Bilodeau - weekends and sports reporter
Reporters
- Chip Walker
- Harve Jacobs
- Nicole Johnson
- Alan Campbell
- Deja Knight
- Mark Davenport