WETM-DT2
Encyclopedia
WETM-DT2 is an Independent television station
for New York
's Central Southern Tier
. It is a second digital subchannel
of NBC
affiliate WETM-TV
owned by Newport Television
. Over-the-air, the station airs a standard definition digital signal on UHF channel 18.2 from a transmitter on Hawley Hill in West Elmira
. It can also be seen on Time Warner Cable
channel 11. Known on-air as WETM 2, its parent station has studios on East Water Street in Downtown in Elmira
. However, master control and some internal operations are based at centralcasting
facilities within WSYR-TV
's studios on Bridge Street in East Syracuse
. Syndicated
programming on WETM-DT2 includes Two and a Half Men
, How I Met Your Mother
, Judge Joe Brown, and Judge Karen
among others.
, the PBS
member station in Binghamton
. WSKG closed down the translator in 2003 after concluding that the expenses required to operate W30AA were not justified by its limited viewership. That station then sold the W30AA license to Clear Channel Communications
, then-owner of WETM, who brought it back on-air in September 2004 as UPN
affiliate WTTX-LP identified on-air as "UPN 30". With the September 2006 merger of UPN and The WB
into The CW
, WTTX competed to become the market
's affiliate.
Ultimately, that went to cable-only WB 100+
station "WBE" which is operated by ABC
affiliate WENY-TV
. WTTX was dealt another blow when WSKG launched full-power digital station, WSKA on channel 30 forcing Clear Channel to shut down the low-powered transmitter. WTTX's programming was then moved to WETM-DT2 which became an independent after The CW launched on September 18, 2006. WETM-DT2 won a New York State Broadcasters Association Award for its coverage of high school sports in 2006 and 2008. The channel airs local sports such as Elmira Jackals
hockey and New York Yankees
baseball.
. However, that station's programming listings on its own website does not mention the update. In addition, WETM-DT2 simulcasts the entire weekday morning show as well as weeknight newscasts at 5 and 6.
Anchors
Reporters
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 New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
's Central Southern Tier
Southern Tier
The Southern Tier is a geographical term that refers to the counties of New York State west of the Catskill Mountains along the northern border of Pennsylvania. It is a loosely defined term that generally includes the counties that border Pennsylvania west of Delaware County inclusive...
. It is a second digital subchannel
Digital subchannel
In broadcasting, digital subchannels are a means to transmit more than one independent program at the same time from the same digital radio or digital television station on the same radio frequency channel. This is done by using data compression techniques to reduce the size of each individual...
of 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 WETM-TV
WETM-TV
WETM-TV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Upstate New York's Central Southern Tier licensed to Elmira. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 18 from a transmitter on Hawley Hill in West Elmira. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable channel 3 and in...
owned by Newport Television
Newport Television
Newport Television, LLC is a television station holding company founded by Providence Equity Partners and Sandy DiPasquale in 2007 to acquire the television stations owned by Clear Channel Communications. In September 2007, Newport agreed to sell KFTY and KVOS-TV to LK Station Group LLC for $26.6...
. Over-the-air, the station airs a standard definition digital signal on UHF channel 18.2 from a transmitter on Hawley Hill in West Elmira
West Elmira, New York
West Elmira is a suburban census-designated place in Chemung County, New York, United States. The population was 5,136 at the 2000 census. The name arises from its location....
. It can also be seen on Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable is an American cable television company that operates in 28 states and has 31 operating divisions...
channel 11. Known on-air as WETM 2, its parent station has studios on East Water Street in Downtown in Elmira
Elmira, New York
Elmira is a city in Chemung County, New York, USA. It is the principal city of the 'Elmira, New York Metropolitan Statistical Area' which encompasses Chemung County, New York. The population was 29,200 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Chemung County.The City of Elmira is located in...
. However, master control and some internal operations are based at centralcasting
Centralcasting
In terrestrial radio and television broadcasting, centralcasting refers to the use of systems automation by which customised signals for broadcast by multiple individual stations may be created at one central facility.- :...
facilities within WSYR-TV
WSYR-TV
WSYR-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for Central New York State that is licensed to Syracuse. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 17 from a transmitter on Sevier Road in Pompey. The station can also be seen on Time Warner channel 9 and in high definition on...
's studios on Bridge Street in East Syracuse
East Syracuse, New York
East Syracuse is an incorporated village and a suburb of the City of Syracuse in eastern Onondaga County, New York. United States. As of the 2000 U.S. Census, the village had a population of 3,178....
. 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 WETM-DT2 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...
, How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother
How I Met Your Mother is an American sitcom that premiered on CBS on September 19, 2005, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays.As a framing device, the main character, Ted Mosby with narration by Bob Saget, in the year 2030 recounts to his son and daughter the events that led to his meeting...
, Judge Joe Brown, and Judge Karen
Judge Karen
Judge Karen is a nationally-syndicated American courtroom television show that debuted on September 8, 2008 in 48 of the top 50 U.S. markets. As with other court shows, such as The People's Court and Judge Judy, a real-life judge presides over small claims court cases...
among others.
History
WETM-DT2 has its roots in W30AA, a translator of WSKG-TVWSKG-TV
WSKG-TV is a public television station in Binghamton, New York, broadcasting locally on channel 46 as a Public Broadcasting Service member station. It is owned and operated by the WSKG Public Telecommunications Council, Inc....
, the PBS
Public Broadcasting Service
The Public Broadcasting Service is an American non-profit public broadcasting television network with 354 member TV stations in the United States which hold collective ownership. Its headquarters is in Arlington, Virginia....
member station in Binghamton
Binghamton, New York
Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
. WSKG closed down the translator in 2003 after concluding that the expenses required to operate W30AA were not justified by its limited viewership. That station then sold the W30AA license to Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications
Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008...
, then-owner of WETM, who brought it back on-air in September 2004 as UPN
UPN
United Paramount Network was a television network that was broadcast in over 200 markets in the United States from 1995 to 2006. UPN was originally owned by Viacom/Paramount and Chris-Craft Industries, the former of which, through the Paramount Television Group, produced most of the network's...
affiliate WTTX-LP identified on-air as "UPN 30". With the September 2006 merger of UPN and The WB
The WB Television Network
The WB Television Network is a former television network in the United States that was launched on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between Warner Bros. and Tribune Broadcasting. On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros...
into The CW
The CW Television Network
The CW Television Network is a television network in the United States launched at the beginning of the 2006–2007 television season. It is a joint venture between CBS Corporation, the former owners of United Paramount Network , and Time Warner's Warner Bros., former majority owner of The WB...
, WTTX competed to become 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...
's affiliate.
Ultimately, that went to cable-only WB 100+
The WB 100+ Station Group
The WB 100+ Station Group was a group of primarily non-broadcast local cable television outlets for The WB Television Network, for markets below the top 100 television media markets in the United States. Dayparts with no WB programming were programmed by the network...
station "WBE" which is operated by 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 WENY-TV
WENY-TV
WENY-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Central and Western Southern Tier of New York State and Northern Pennsylvania licensed to Elmira. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 36 from a transmitter on Higman Hill in Corning. The station can also be seen on...
. WTTX was dealt another blow when WSKG launched full-power digital station, WSKA on channel 30 forcing Clear Channel to shut down the low-powered transmitter. WTTX's programming was then moved to WETM-DT2 which became an independent after The CW launched on September 18, 2006. WETM-DT2 won a New York State Broadcasters Association Award for its coverage of high school sports in 2006 and 2008. The channel airs local sports such as Elmira Jackals
Elmira Jackals
The Elmira Jackals are an ice hockey team that play in the ECHL. Their home games are played in First Arena in Elmira, New York and they refer to themselves as "the beasts of the east"...
hockey and New York Yankees
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees are a professional baseball team based in the The Bronx, New York. They compete in Major League Baseball in the American League's East Division...
baseball.
Newscasts
The 2004 launch of WETM-DT2/WTTX-LP introduced the area's first prime time broadcast at 10 which can be seen for thirty minutes on weeknights. According to one television listing website, WETM 18 News at 10 competes with a ten minute update seen on Fox affiliate WYDCWYDC
WYDC is the Fox-affiliated television station for New York State's Central Southern Tier licensed to Corning. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 48 from a transmitter on Higman Hill in Corning. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable channel 13 and in high...
. However, that station's programming listings on its own website does not mention the update. In addition, WETM-DT2 simulcasts the entire weekday morning show as well as weeknight newscasts at 5 and 6.
Anchors
- Zach Wheeler - weekday morning news
- Brittni Smallwood - weekday morning news and reporter
- Jeff Stone - Chief Managing EditorManaging editorA managing editor is a senior member of a publication's management team.In the United States, a managing editor oversees and coordinates the publication's editorial activities...
seen weeknights at 5 and 6 (also Twin Tiers Weekly host) - Rebecca Solomon - weeknight news at 6 and 10
- Joe Pasquarelli (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...
Seal of Approval) - Chief Meteorologist seen weekday mornings and "Joe's Garden" segment producer - Thomas Esterguard - weeknight meteorologist
- Steve Vesey - Sports DirectorSports DirectorA sports director is an individual at a television or radio station who is in charge of the sports department. In local news, the sports director is typically the station's primary sportscaster, and often anchors the primetime newscasts on weekdays. They are in charge of sports programming and...
seen weeknights at 6 and 10 - Henry Dormann - Friends & Neighbors host
- Stephen Coleman - Coleman and Company host
Reporters
- George Kastenhuber - "Twin Tiers Most Wanted" segment producer
- Fred Ball - "Cooking with Chef Fred" segment producer
- Jenelle Tortorella - weeknights at 5 and 6
- Jim Reed - "Law Talk" segment producer
- Bobby Brooks
- Sam Smink
- Chris Hush