WPRI-TV
Encyclopedia
WPRI-TV is the CBS
-affiliate
d television station
for the state of Rhode Island
and Bristol County, Massachusetts
that is licensed to Providence
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter on Homestead Avenue in Rehoboth, Massachusetts
. The station is flagship of owner LIN TV Corporation and operates Fox affiliate WNAC-TV
along with a MyNetworkTV
-affiliated second
digital subchannel
(both owned by Super Towers Inc.) through a local marketing agreement
(LMA).
The two share studios on Catamore Boulevard in East Providence
. Although WPRI is the flagship of LIN TV, master control and some internal responsibilities are based at hub facilities at NBC
affiliate WWLP
in Chicopee, Massachusetts
. Syndicated
programming on this channel includes: Wheel of Fortune
, Jeopardy!
, Judge Judy
, and Judge Joe Brown.
and 92.3 FM
). WPRO-TV was originally supposed to go on-the-air in 1953 but ran into several delays. It originally planned to build a transmitter in Rehoboth but legal disputes with town officials forced Cherry & Webb to find a site in Johnston, Rhode Island
.
The station then planned to sign-on in 1954 but Hurricane Carol
destroyed the Johnston transmitter. The legal disputes in Rehoboth were finally settled in late-1954 and WPRO got the go-ahead to begin construction there. The channel was due to join CBS because of WPRO radio's long affiliation with CBS radio
. Even when it became apparent that WPRO-TV would miss its target air date, CBS opted to continue its secondary affiliation with NBC
station WJAR-TV rather than move its programming to ABC affiliate WNET-TV.
When WPRO-TV finally got on-the-air, ABC gave it right of first refusal for its more popular shows. Within less than a year, WNET had gone dark. This station continued to share ABC with WJAR until WTEV-TV (now WLNE-TV
) signed-on in 1963. Originally, WPRO-TV's studios were on the top floor of 24 Mason Street in Downtown Providence, but in the early-1970s, the station moved to its current home in East Providence at 25 Catamore Boulevard.
While it was located on Mason Street, WPRO AM-FM-TV's news facilities were completely integrated. On-air personalities from radio and TV created newscasts together. In fact, some reporters recorded conservative-sounding FM news broadcasts prior to pulling a switch to deliver live, punchy "colorful color radio PRO" on-air news for the WPRO AM radio station on the hour, with headlines on the half hour. And some radio news reporters headed into the field with photographers to cover stories simultaneously for radio and TV.
Legendary Providence radio personality Salty Brine
had a daily children's show on WPRO-TV. News personalities included Mort Blender and Walter Cryan while the beloved Hank Bouchard did a multitude of on-air duties. That included announcing, hosting programs, and giving the weather report. Cherry & Webb sold WPRO-AM-FM-TV to Albany, New York
-based Capital Cities Television Corporation, predecessor of Capital Cities Communications
, in 1959. WPRO-TV was then sold to Poole Broadcasting (owners of WJRT-TV
in Flint, Michigan
) on June 16, 1967.
That sale was necessary because CapCities had bought KTRK-TV
in Houston, Texas
which left it one VHF station over the Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) ownership limit of the time. Poole Broadcasting then changed WPRO-TV's call letters to the present WPRI-TV. It wanted to trade on the well-known WPRO calls and also realized that "PRI" could stand for Providence, Rhode Island. Capital Cities retained ownership of the WPRO radio stations until 1993 with the last seven being ABC-owned stations airing ABC Radio. Poole retained ownership until 1977 when it sold its three television stations (WPRI, WJRT, and WTEN
in Albany, New York
) to Knight-Ridder Broadcasting. WPRI swapped affiliations with WTEV and became an ABC affiliate after this sale as a result of a corporate affiliation deal between ABC and Knight-Ridder.
In 1989, Knight-Ridder left the broadcasting business selling WPRI and WTKR
in Norfolk, Virginia
to Narragansett Television LP, a locally based firm. Narragansett Television sold WPRI to CBS in 1995 making it a network owned-and-operated station
(and one of the last such acquisitions prior to the Westinghouse Electric Corporation's purchase of the network). At midnight on September 10, 1995, WPRI reversed the 1977 swap with WLNE and officially rejoined CBS. It aired a vigorous promotion called "Survive the Switch" so television viewers in Providence would be prepared for this changeover.
In August 1995, Westinghouse bought CBS for approximately $6 billion. The merger was finalized that November 24. Westinghouse already owned WBZ-TV
in Boston
. WPRI's city-grade signal, like most of the other major Rhode Island stations, decently covers most of the Boston area. Meanwhile, WBZ-TV's city-grade signal decently covers nearly all of Rhode Island. At the time, the FCC normally did not allow common ownership of multiple stations with overlapping coverage areas and would not even consider granting a waiver if the overlap was between city-grade signals.
As a result, CBS opted to keep WBZ-TV and sell WPRI to Clear Channel Communications
on July 1, 1996 after less than ten months of ownership. The FCC eliminated the requirement of a waiver for common ownership of television stations in adjacent markets with Grade B signal overlap (just months after CBS announced the sale of WPRI to Clear Channel) beginning to permit common ownership of stations whose city-grade signals overlap when duopolies began to be permitted in 2000. In 2000, Clear Channel was forced to sell WPRI as a condition of being allowed to buy additional radio stations in the Providence market. Sunrise Television acquired WPRI in early-2001 for $50 million. Sunrise merged with the LIN TV Corporation in May 2002.
In November 2006, WPRI renewed its broadcasting license with the FCC. On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that could have resulted in the sale of the company. In October 2008, WPRI and sister station WALA-TV
in Mobile, Alabama
relaunched wesites through News Corporation
's Fox Interactive Media as a result of a new partnership between LIN TV and NewsCorp. The other LIN TV-owned stations (irrespective of network affiliations) followed suit within two months ending the company's long partnership with WorldNow. The new sites are in a format which is similar to those of the Fox O&O-style web addresses used by many Fox affiliates (and which the LIN TV-owned or controlled Fox affiliates such as WNAC-TV had used) except the flashy myFox look. The myFox sites themselves were eventually redesigned to a look similar to those of the LIN TV sites.
Although the analog television shutdown
originally scheduled for February 17, 2009, was postponed to June 12, 2009, WPRI-TV has received Federal Communications Commission
(FCC) consent to transition on February 17. This allows WNAC-TV
, which will also discontinue regular analog service on February 17, to begin operation of its new digital facility on channel 12. On October 22, 2010, WPRI started carrying The COOLTV
music video programming on its 12.2 subchannel.
, owner of ABC affiliate WCVB-TV
in Boston. Hearst was forced to trade WNAC together with WDTN
in Dayton, Ohio
to Sunrise Television in return for WPTZ
in Plattsburgh, New York, WNNE
in Hartford, Vermont
, and KSBW
in Salinas, California
because of the FCC rule forbidding common ownership of two stations with overlapping city-grade signals (same rule that forced CBS to sell WPRI two years earlier).
When Sunrise bought WPRI from Clear Channel in early-2001, WNAC was sold to LIN TV due to FCC regulations forbidding common ownership of two of the four highest-rated stations in the same market. In this case, WNAC cannot be co-owned directly with WPRI. However, LIN TV was forced to put WNAC back on the market almost as soon as it closed on the station's purchase due to the ownership structures of Sunrise and LIN TV. Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst (now HM Capital Partners), a private-equity firm co-founded by Texas Rangers
and Dallas Stars
owner Tom Hicks
, was (and still is) majority owner of LIN TV. At the same time, HMTF also controlled a large block of Sunrise stock.
The FCC ruled that HMTF controlled enough Sunrise stock that the company could not own any stations in markets where LIN TV owned a station as well. Finally in April 2002, LIN TV sold WNAC to Super Towers Inc. (d/b/a
WNAC, LLC), a company owned by Timothy Sheehan, brother-in-law of former LIN TV Vice President Paul Karpowicz. This sale allowed the merger between Sunrise and LIN TV to be completed the following month. LIN TV continues to operate WNAC today under the same LMA that it inherited from Sunrise.
in 2003. Photographer Brian Butler was inside the nightclub taping a story when the pyrotechnics behind the band Great White
lit soundproof foam within the nightclub on fire. The tape became crucial evidence in the case and WPRI reporter Jeff Derderian, who owned the nightclub with his brother, became a defendant accused of manslaughter. In February 2008, WPRI agreed to pay $30 million to settle a lawsuit against the station, parent company LIN TV, and Butler. Several families and survivors of the nightclub fire claimed that Butler stood in a doorway and continued to record footage rather than help people escape. The lawsuit alleged that Butler's actions caused more people to die. However, videotape evidence shown at deposition proved those charges to be false. Ironically, WPRI was there videotaping a story on nightclub safety a week after the E2 nightclub incident
in Chicago.
Traditionally, WPRI has been runner-up in the ratings to longtime dominant WJAR. For the February and May 2010 Nielsen ratings
period, that station was number one in all time slots. Its newscast weeknights at 6 reached a reported 71,000 households which was an advantage of nearly 20,000 over WPRI. For the key audience measure of adult 18-49 and adult 25-54 viewers, WJAR out-delivered the competition in virtually all of the local news time slots. More recently, however, WPRI has mounted a spirited challenge to that channel's dominance.
Specifically, its broadcast weeknights at 11 has gained enormous popularity. As of the November 2010 sweeps period, this newscast on WPRI is the most watched in Rhode Island while WJAR continues its dominance in all other time periods. For most of its history, WLNE has been and continues to be ranked at a distant third place. This is despite recent significant format and personnel changes designed to make a run at WPRI and WJAR.
In 1996, WPRI began producing the market's first nightly prime time newscast at 10 on WNAC called Eyewitness News First on Fox Providence. This was joined in April 1997 by a WJAR-produced show seen weeknights on WLWC
entitled TV 28 News at 10. However, that was dropped in September when the WJAR LMA with WLWC ended. In 2004, an hour-long extension of WPRI's weekday morning show was added to WNAC at 7 branded as Eyewitness News This Morning on Fox Providence. Although that was eventually canceled, the 10 o'clock broadcasts remained.
On October 1, 2007, WJAR began airing 10 at 10 on its NBC Weather Plus
second digital subchannel
. This was a live ten minute update consisting of the top stories of the day along with a current weather forecast. When WJAR-DT2 switched to the Retro Television Network
(RTV), the show expanded to a half-hour format and renamed 10 at 10 on RTV. A third prime time newscast at 10 aired on WLNE's Cox
-exclusive NewsChannel 5 from October 22, 2008 until March 2011. However, it was only occasionally shown, primarily when Fox Sports
programming pre-empted the prime time broadcast on WNAC.
WPRI and WNAC received an on-air overhaul introducing a new news set and updated graphics on March 17, 2008. It operated a Bell 206L3 Long Ranger
helicopter known as "News Chopper 12" until December 2008. This was shared with sister stations WTNH
and WCTX
in New Haven, Connecticut
but known separately as "Chopper 8". The helicopter is currently being stored in Indianapolis
as a backup for sister station WISH-TV
. Footage previously shot from the chopper is still used for B-Roll as stories warrant or at the end of a newscast. Although not owned by the same company, WPRI maintains a content sharing partnership with The Providence Journal
(a Belo
-owned newspaper).
On February 18, 2009, WNAC launched a lifestyle and entertainment magazine-type program called The Rhode Show that airs weekday mornings at 8 for an hour. A new secondary set for the show was built with a fully functional kitchen. The debut followed the addition of Eyewitness News This Morning on Fox Providence for a second time. Personnel for The Rhode Show include the weekday morning news anchors and a third host found every year through open audition. In 2009, Boston-area radio deejay Shawn Tempesta won the open audition out of over 140 people. In 2010, Cranston
comedian Ben Hague beat out over 100 other hopefuls. Bridgewater State College
graduate Michaela Johnson of East Providence
won the honor in 2011.
WPRI operates a 24-hour local weather channel, known as the "Eyewitness News Pinpoint Weather Station", exclusively on Cox digital channel 125. When the weather channel was first established, it also aired on second digital subchannels of WPRI and WNAC. In 2007, new FCC regulations for educational programing forced the two stations to make the weather channel cable-only. Overnight on weekends when the main channels of WPRI and WNAC sign-off, there is a simulcast of the weather channel.
Along with its own weather radar
at its transmitter site in Rehoboth, Massachusetts
, the station also features live NOAA National Weather Service
radar data from the Local Forecast Office on Miles Standish Boulevard in Taunton
. Together, this is known in weather segments as "Live Pinpoint Doppler 12". It shares resources with WBZ-TV for coverage of Southeastern Massachusetts
. In return, WPRI does the same for its coverage of the same area. During the week, Eyewitness News This Morning (on WPRI and WNAC), The Rhode Show, and Eyewitnesses News Live at Noon are all streamed live on WPRI's website. The Rhode Show can also be seen live on WNAC's web address.
WPRI and WNAC are the last stations in the market to upgrade their newscasts to high definition
, though they were first to experiment with the format through promotional materials and debates during the election season in 2010. Set reconfiguration started on July 22, 2011. Newscasts in the interim have aired from The Rhode Show studio. WJAR was the first in Rhode Island to have made the upgrade, on May 16, 2011, followed by WLNE on September 13, 2011. They debuted the new set and modified graphics on September 20, 2011 during their 5pm newscast.
Live Pinpoint Doppler 12 Meteorologists
Sports
Reporters
Contributors
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...
-affiliate
Affiliate
An affiliate is a commercial entity with a relationship with a peer or a larger entity.- Corporate structure :A corporation may be referred to as an affiliate of another when it is related to it but not strictly controlled by it, as with a subsidiary relationship, or when it is desired to avoid...
d 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 the state of Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
and Bristol County, Massachusetts
Bristol County, Massachusetts
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 534,678 people, 205,411 households, and 140,706 families residing in the county. The population density was 962 people per square mile . There were 216,918 housing units at an average density of 390 per square mile...
that is licensed to Providence
Providence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
. It 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 VHF channel 13 from a transmitter on Homestead Avenue in Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
. The station is flagship of owner LIN TV Corporation and operates Fox affiliate WNAC-TV
WNAC-TV
WNAC-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for the state of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts licensed to Providence. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 12 from a transmitter on Homestead Avenue in Rehoboth, Massachusetts...
along with a MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV is a television broadcast syndication service in the United States, owned by the Fox Entertainment Group, a division of News Corporation...
-affiliated second
WNAC-DT2
WNAC-DT2 is the MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station for the state of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts. The station is a second digital subchannel of Fox affiliate WNAC-TV that is owned by Super Towers and operated through a local marketing agreement by the LIN TV Corporation...
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...
(both owned by Super Towers Inc.) through a local marketing agreement
Local marketing agreement
In U.S. and Canadian broadcasting, a local marketing agreement is an agreement in which one company agrees to operate a radio or television station owned by another licensee...
(LMA).
The two share studios on Catamore Boulevard in East Providence
East Providence, Rhode Island
East Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 47,037 at the 2010 census, making it the fifth largest city in the state.-Geography:East Providence is located at ....
. Although WPRI is the flagship of LIN TV, master control and some internal responsibilities are based at hub facilities at 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 WWLP
WWLP
WWLP is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Pioneer Valley of Western Massachusetts that is licensed to Springfield. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 11 from a transmitter on Provin Mountain in the Feeding Hills section of Agawam. The station can also be seen...
in Chicopee, Massachusetts
Chicopee, Massachusetts
Chicopee is a city located on the Connecticut River in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States of America. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 55,298, making it the second largest city in...
. 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 this channel includes: Wheel of Fortune
Wheel of Fortune (U.S. game show)
Wheel of Fortune is an American television game show created by Merv Griffin, which premiered in 1975. Contestants compete to solve word puzzles, similar to those used in Hangman, to win cash and prizes determined by spinning a large wheel. The title refers to the show's giant carnival wheel that...
, Jeopardy!
Jeopardy!
Griffin's first conception of the game used a board comprising ten categories with ten clues each, but after finding that this board could not be shown on camera easily, he reduced it to two rounds of thirty clues each, with five clues in each of six categories...
, Judge Judy
Judge Judy
Judge Judy is an American court show featuring former family court judge Judith Sheindlin arbitrating over small claims cases in small claims court...
, and Judge Joe Brown.
Digital programming
| Channel | Name | Programming |
|---|---|---|
| 12.1 | WPRI-HD | Main WPRI programming / CBS |
| 12.2 | CoolTV | TheCoolTV TheCoolTV THECOOLTV is a United States over-the-air digital subchannel launched in March 2009. The network's current program schedule consists of an all-music video lineup that can be customized to meet an affiliate's preference, along with the three hours per week of E/I programming as required by the... |
History
The station debuted on March 27, 1955 known as WPRO-TV (for PROvidence). It was Rhode Island's third television station and was owned-and-operated by retailer Cherry & Webb along with WPRO radio (630 AMWPRO (AM)
WPRO is a radio station located in Providence, Rhode Island. The station is owned by Cumulus Media, and airs a talk format. WPRO's studio and transmitter are located in East Providence, at the Salty Brine Broadcast Center, named after WPRO's longtime morning host...
and 92.3 FM
WPRO-FM
WPRO-FM is a radio station in Providence, Rhode Island. The station broadcasts an adult top 40 format. It is the sister station to WPRO...
). WPRO-TV was originally supposed to go on-the-air in 1953 but ran into several delays. It originally planned to build a transmitter in Rehoboth but legal disputes with town officials forced Cherry & Webb to find a site in Johnston, Rhode Island
Johnston, Rhode Island
Johnston is a town in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 28,769 at the 2010 census. Johnston is the site of the Clemence Irons House a stone-ender museum and the only landfill in Rhode Island...
.
The station then planned to sign-on in 1954 but Hurricane Carol
Hurricane Carol
Hurricane Carol was among the worst tropical cyclones to affect the New England region of the United States. It developed from a tropical wave near the Bahamas on August 25, 1954, and gradually strengthened as it moved northwestward. On August 27, Carol intensified to reach winds of , but weakened...
destroyed the Johnston transmitter. The legal disputes in Rehoboth were finally settled in late-1954 and WPRO got the go-ahead to begin construction there. The channel was due to join CBS because of WPRO radio's long affiliation with CBS radio
CBS Radio
CBS Radio, Inc., formerly known as Infinity Broadcasting Corporation, is one of the largest owners and operators of radio stations in the United States, third behind main rival Clear Channel Communications and Cumulus Media. CBS Radio owns around 130 radio stations across the country...
. Even when it became apparent that WPRO-TV would miss its target air date, CBS opted to continue its secondary affiliation 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...
station WJAR-TV rather than move its programming to ABC affiliate WNET-TV.
When WPRO-TV finally got on-the-air, ABC gave it right of first refusal for its more popular shows. Within less than a year, WNET had gone dark. This station continued to share ABC with WJAR until WTEV-TV (now WLNE-TV
WLNE-TV
WLNE-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for Rhode Island and the South Coast of Massachusetts. It is licensed to New Bedford, Massachusetts, but is headquartered in and operates from studios at 10 Orms Street in downtown Providence, Rhode Island. It is one of two major Rhode Island...
) signed-on in 1963. Originally, WPRO-TV's studios were on the top floor of 24 Mason Street in Downtown Providence, but in the early-1970s, the station moved to its current home in East Providence at 25 Catamore Boulevard.
While it was located on Mason Street, WPRO AM-FM-TV's news facilities were completely integrated. On-air personalities from radio and TV created newscasts together. In fact, some reporters recorded conservative-sounding FM news broadcasts prior to pulling a switch to deliver live, punchy "colorful color radio PRO" on-air news for the WPRO AM radio station on the hour, with headlines on the half hour. And some radio news reporters headed into the field with photographers to cover stories simultaneously for radio and TV.
Legendary Providence radio personality Salty Brine
Salty Brine
Walter L. Brine Jr. , invariably known as "Salty", was a well-known broadcaster in Rhode Island.At age 10, he lost one of his legs, attempting to jump onto a freight train near his home in Arlington, Massachusetts...
had a daily children's show on WPRO-TV. News personalities included Mort Blender and Walter Cryan while the beloved Hank Bouchard did a multitude of on-air duties. That included announcing, hosting programs, and giving the weather report. Cherry & Webb sold WPRO-AM-FM-TV to Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
-based Capital Cities Television Corporation, predecessor of Capital Cities Communications
Capital Cities Communications
Capital Cities redirects here. For the article about the seat of a government, see Capital .Capital Cities Communications was an American media company best known for its surprise purchase of the much larger American Broadcasting Company in 1985...
, in 1959. WPRO-TV was then sold to Poole Broadcasting (owners of WJRT-TV
WJRT-TV
WJRT-TV, channel 12, is the ABC-affiliated station for the Flint/Tri-Cities television market, owned by SJL Broadcasting. Its studios are located in Flint, Michigan, with offices and a second newsroom for the Tri-Cities located in Saginaw...
in Flint, Michigan
Flint, Michigan
Flint is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and is located along the Flint River, northwest of Detroit. The U.S. Census Bureau reports the 2010 population to be placed at 102,434, making Flint the seventh largest city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Genesee County which lies in the...
) on June 16, 1967.
That sale was necessary because CapCities had bought KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV
KTRK-TV, channel 13, is an owned-and-operated television station of the Walt Disney Company-owned American Broadcasting Company, located in Houston, Texas...
in 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 ...
which left it one VHF station over 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) ownership limit of the time. Poole Broadcasting then changed WPRO-TV's call letters to the present WPRI-TV. It wanted to trade on the well-known WPRO calls and also realized that "PRI" could stand for Providence, Rhode Island. Capital Cities retained ownership of the WPRO radio stations until 1993 with the last seven being ABC-owned stations airing ABC Radio. Poole retained ownership until 1977 when it sold its three television stations (WPRI, WJRT, and WTEN
WTEN
WTEN is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Capital District of New York State and Western New England that is licensed to Albany. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 26 from a transmitter southwest of the Voorheesville section of New Scotland...
in Albany, New York
Albany, New York
Albany is the capital city of the U.S. state of New York, the seat of Albany County, and the central city of New York's Capital District. Roughly north of New York City, Albany sits on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River...
) to Knight-Ridder Broadcasting. WPRI swapped affiliations with WTEV and became an ABC affiliate after this sale as a result of a corporate affiliation deal between ABC and Knight-Ridder.
In 1989, Knight-Ridder left the broadcasting business selling WPRI and WTKR
WTKR
WTKR is the CBS affiliate television station serving the Hampton Roads area of Virginia, officially known as the Norfolk-Portsmouth-Newport News DMA. The station is licensed to Norfolk and broadcasts on channel 40 . Its transmitter is located in Suffolk, Virginia...
in Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
to Narragansett Television LP, a locally based firm. Narragansett Television sold WPRI to CBS in 1995 making it a network owned-and-operated station
Owned-and-operated station
In the broadcasting industry , an owned-and-operated station usually refers to a television station or radio station that is owned by the network with which it is associated...
(and one of the last such acquisitions prior to the Westinghouse Electric Corporation's purchase of the network). At midnight on September 10, 1995, WPRI reversed the 1977 swap with WLNE and officially rejoined CBS. It aired a vigorous promotion called "Survive the Switch" so television viewers in Providence would be prepared for this changeover.
In August 1995, Westinghouse bought CBS for approximately $6 billion. The merger was finalized that November 24. Westinghouse already owned WBZ-TV
WBZ-TV
WBZ-TV, virtual channel 4, is a CBS owned-and-operated television station, located in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. WBZ-TV's studios and office facilities, shared with sister station WSBK-TV , are located in the Allston-Brighton section of Boston, and its transmitter is located in Needham,...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. WPRI's city-grade signal, like most of the other major Rhode Island stations, decently covers most of the Boston area. Meanwhile, WBZ-TV's city-grade signal decently covers nearly all of Rhode Island. At the time, the FCC normally did not allow common ownership of multiple stations with overlapping coverage areas and would not even consider granting a waiver if the overlap was between city-grade signals.
As a result, CBS opted to keep WBZ-TV and sell WPRI 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...
on July 1, 1996 after less than ten months of ownership. The FCC eliminated the requirement of a waiver for common ownership of television stations in adjacent markets with Grade B signal overlap (just months after CBS announced the sale of WPRI to Clear Channel) beginning to permit common ownership of stations whose city-grade signals overlap when duopolies began to be permitted in 2000. In 2000, Clear Channel was forced to sell WPRI as a condition of being allowed to buy additional radio stations in the Providence market. Sunrise Television acquired WPRI in early-2001 for $50 million. Sunrise merged with the LIN TV Corporation in May 2002.
In November 2006, WPRI renewed its broadcasting license with the FCC. On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that could have resulted in the sale of the company. In October 2008, WPRI and sister station WALA-TV
WALA-TV
WALA-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for Southern Alabama, Southeastern Mississippi, and the Western Florida Panhandle that is licensed to Mobile. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 9 from a transmitter in Spanish Fort, Alabama...
in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
relaunched wesites through News Corporation
News Corporation
News Corporation or News Corp. is an American multinational media conglomerate. It is the world's second-largest media conglomerate as of 2011 in terms of revenue, and the world's third largest in entertainment as of 2009, although the BBC remains the world's largest broadcaster...
's Fox Interactive Media as a result of a new partnership between LIN TV and NewsCorp. The other LIN TV-owned stations (irrespective of network affiliations) followed suit within two months ending the company's long partnership with WorldNow. The new sites are in a format which is similar to those of the Fox O&O-style web addresses used by many Fox affiliates (and which the LIN TV-owned or controlled Fox affiliates such as WNAC-TV had used) except the flashy myFox look. The myFox sites themselves were eventually redesigned to a look similar to those of the LIN TV sites.
Although the analog television shutdown
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...
originally scheduled for February 17, 2009, was postponed to June 12, 2009, WPRI-TV has received 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) consent to transition on February 17. This allows WNAC-TV
WNAC-TV
WNAC-TV is the Fox-affiliated television station for the state of Rhode Island and Bristol County, Massachusetts licensed to Providence. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 12 from a transmitter on Homestead Avenue in Rehoboth, Massachusetts...
, which will also discontinue regular analog service on February 17, to begin operation of its new digital facility on channel 12. On October 22, 2010, WPRI started carrying The COOLTV
TheCoolTV
THECOOLTV is a United States over-the-air digital subchannel launched in March 2009. The network's current program schedule consists of an all-music video lineup that can be customized to meet an affiliate's preference, along with the three hours per week of E/I programming as required by the...
music video programming on its 12.2 subchannel.
LMA with WNAC
Shortly after Clear Channel took over the station, WPRI entered in a local marketing agreement (LMA) with Fox affiliate WNAC (then owned by Argyle Television). WPRI took over the station's operations on September 28, 1997 when WNAC moved its operations into this station's facilities. Ironically, WNAC is the same station as WNET-TV that went off-the-air in 1956 largely due to the presence of WPRI. In late-1997, Argyle merged with Hearst BroadcastingHearst Corporation
The Hearst Corporation is an American media conglomerate based in the Hearst Tower, Manhattan in New York City, New York, United States. Founded by William Randolph Hearst as an owner of newspapers, the company's holdings now include a wide variety of media...
, owner of ABC affiliate WCVB-TV
WCVB-TV
WCVB-TV, channel 5, is a television station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Hearst Television and affiliated with the ABC Television Network. WCVB-TV's studios and transmitter are co-located in Needham, Massachusetts. WCVB is also one of six Boston television stations seen in Canada by...
in Boston. Hearst was forced to trade WNAC together with WDTN
WDTN
WDTN, virtual channel 2, is the NBC-affiliated television station for Ohio's Miami Valley. Licensed to Dayton, it broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 50 from a transmitter in the Frytown section of the city. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable channel 2 and in...
in Dayton, Ohio
Dayton, Ohio
Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...
to Sunrise Television in return for WPTZ
WPTZ
WPTZ, virtual channel 5, is an NBC-affiliated television station located in Plattsburgh, New York, USA. WPTZ is owned by Hearst Television, and has its studios in Plattsburgh and transmitter located on Mount Mansfield in Vermont....
in Plattsburgh, New York, WNNE
WNNE
WNNE is the NBC-affiliated television station for the Connecticut River Valley area of eastern Vermont and western New Hampshire that is licensed to Hartford, Vermont. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 25 from a transmitter on Mount Ascutney in Windsor County, Vermont...
in Hartford, Vermont
Hartford, Vermont
Hartford is a town in Windsor County in the U.S. state of Vermont. It is located on the New Hampshire border, at the intersection of Interstates 89 and 91. It is the site of the confluence of the White River and the Connecticut River; the Ottauquechee River also flows through the town...
, and KSBW
KSBW
KSBW is a television station in the United States and is the primary NBC affiliate for the Monterey-Salinas-Santa Cruz, California market. The station is owned by Hearst Television. KSBW has its studios on John Street in downtown Salinas, which is mentioned occasionally during commercial breaks...
in Salinas, California
Salinas, California
Salinas is the county seat and the largest municipality of Monterey County, California. Salinas is located east-southeast of the mouth of the Salinas River, at an elevation of about 52 feet above sea level. The population was 150,441 at the 2010 census...
because of the FCC rule forbidding common ownership of two stations with overlapping city-grade signals (same rule that forced CBS to sell WPRI two years earlier).
When Sunrise bought WPRI from Clear Channel in early-2001, WNAC was sold to LIN TV due to FCC regulations forbidding common ownership of two of the four highest-rated stations in the same market. In this case, WNAC cannot be co-owned directly with WPRI. However, LIN TV was forced to put WNAC back on the market almost as soon as it closed on the station's purchase due to the ownership structures of Sunrise and LIN TV. Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst (now HM Capital Partners), a private-equity firm co-founded by Texas Rangers
Texas Rangers (baseball)
The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...
and Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
owner Tom Hicks
Tom Hicks
Thomas Ollis Hicks, Sr. , is an American 'leveraged buyout' businessman living in Dallas, Texas. Despite Forbes Magazine estimating Hicks' wealth at USD 1 billion in 2009, Hicks was unable to pay off joint loans of circa £200 million the following year...
, was (and still is) majority owner of LIN TV. At the same time, HMTF also controlled a large block of Sunrise stock.
The FCC ruled that HMTF controlled enough Sunrise stock that the company could not own any stations in markets where LIN TV owned a station as well. Finally in April 2002, LIN TV sold WNAC to Super Towers Inc. (d/b/a
Doing business as
The phrase "doing business as" is a legal term used in the United States, meaning that the trade name, or fictitious business name, under which the business or operation is conducted and presented to the world is not the legal name of the legal person who actually own it and are responsible for it...
WNAC, LLC), a company owned by Timothy Sheehan, brother-in-law of former LIN TV Vice President Paul Karpowicz. This sale allowed the merger between Sunrise and LIN TV to be completed the following month. LIN TV continues to operate WNAC today under the same LMA that it inherited from Sunrise.
Station Nightclub fire
WPRI and WNAC were heavily involved in the coverage and aftermath of The Station nightclub fireThe Station nightclub fire
The Station nightclub fire was the fourth deadliest nightclub fire in American history, killing 100 people. The fire began at 11:07 PM EST, on Thursday, February 20, 2003, at The Station, a glam metal and rock n roll themed nightclub located at 211 Cowesett Avenue in West Warwick, Rhode Island.The...
in 2003. Photographer Brian Butler was inside the nightclub taping a story when the pyrotechnics behind the band Great White
Great White
Great White is an American hard rock band, formed in Los Angeles in 1978. The band gained popularity during the 1980s and early 1990s. The band released several albums in the late 1980s and gained airplay on MTV with music videos for songs like "Once Bitten, Twice Shy"...
lit soundproof foam within the nightclub on fire. The tape became crucial evidence in the case and WPRI reporter Jeff Derderian, who owned the nightclub with his brother, became a defendant accused of manslaughter. In February 2008, WPRI agreed to pay $30 million to settle a lawsuit against the station, parent company LIN TV, and Butler. Several families and survivors of the nightclub fire claimed that Butler stood in a doorway and continued to record footage rather than help people escape. The lawsuit alleged that Butler's actions caused more people to die. However, videotape evidence shown at deposition proved those charges to be false. Ironically, WPRI was there videotaping a story on nightclub safety a week after the E2 nightclub incident
2003 E2 nightclub stampede
The E2 nightclub stampede occurred on February 17, 2003, at the E2 nightclub located above the Epitome Chicago restaurant in Chicago, Illinois, in which 21 people died and more than 50 were injured when panic ensued from the use of pepper spray by security guards to break up a fight...
in Chicago.
News operation
Nielsen Ratings
Nielsen ratings are the audience measurement systems developed by Nielsen Media Research, in an effort to determine the audience size and composition of television programming in the United States...
period, that station was number one in all time slots. Its newscast weeknights at 6 reached a reported 71,000 households which was an advantage of nearly 20,000 over WPRI. For the key audience measure of adult 18-49 and adult 25-54 viewers, WJAR out-delivered the competition in virtually all of the local news time slots. More recently, however, WPRI has mounted a spirited challenge to that channel's dominance.
Specifically, its broadcast weeknights at 11 has gained enormous popularity. As of the November 2010 sweeps period, this newscast on WPRI is the most watched in Rhode Island while WJAR continues its dominance in all other time periods. For most of its history, WLNE has been and continues to be ranked at a distant third place. This is despite recent significant format and personnel changes designed to make a run at WPRI and WJAR.
In 1996, WPRI began producing the market's first nightly prime time newscast at 10 on WNAC called Eyewitness News First on Fox Providence. This was joined in April 1997 by a WJAR-produced show seen weeknights on WLWC
WLWC
WLWC is the CW-affiliated television station licensed to New Bedford but which operates out of Providence and acts largely as a Rhode Island station despite its licensing. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 22 from a transmitter in the Ashley Heights section of East...
entitled TV 28 News at 10. However, that was dropped in September when the WJAR LMA with WLWC ended. In 2004, an hour-long extension of WPRI's weekday morning show was added to WNAC at 7 branded as Eyewitness News This Morning on Fox Providence. Although that was eventually canceled, the 10 o'clock broadcasts remained.
On October 1, 2007, WJAR began airing 10 at 10 on its NBC Weather Plus
NBC Weather Plus
NBC Weather Plus was a 24-hour, commercially sponsored, weather-oriented broadcast/cable television network jointly owned by NBC Universal and the local affiliates of the NBC network. It debuted on November 15, 2004 and shut down on December 31, 2008...
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...
. This was a live ten minute update consisting of the top stories of the day along with a current weather forecast. When WJAR-DT2 switched to the Retro Television Network
Retro Television Network
The Retro Television Network is a system of television stations that airs classic television shows as well as more recently produced programs...
(RTV), the show expanded to a half-hour format and renamed 10 at 10 on RTV. A third prime time newscast at 10 aired on WLNE's Cox
Cox Communications
Cox Communications is a privately owned subsidiary of Cox Enterprises providing digital cable television, telecommunications and wireless services in the United States...
-exclusive NewsChannel 5 from October 22, 2008 until March 2011. However, it was only occasionally shown, primarily when Fox Sports
Fox Sports (USA)
Fox Sports is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company . It was formed in 1994 with Fox's acquisition of broadcast rights to National Football League games...
programming pre-empted the prime time broadcast on WNAC.
WPRI and WNAC received an on-air overhaul introducing a new news set and updated graphics on March 17, 2008. It operated a Bell 206L3 Long Ranger
Bell 206
The Bell 206 is a family of two-bladed, single- or twin-engine helicopters, manufactured by Bell Helicopter at its Mirabel, Quebec plant. Originally developed as the Bell YOH-4 for the United States Army's Light Observation Helicopter program, the 206 failed to be selected...
helicopter known as "News Chopper 12" until December 2008. This was shared with sister stations WTNH
WTNH
WTNH is the ABC-affiliated television station for the state of Connecticut that is licensed to New Haven. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 10 from a transmitter in Hamden. Owned by the LIN TV Corporation, the station is sister to MyNetworkTV affiliate WCTX and the two...
and WCTX
WCTX
WCTX is the MyNetworkTV-affiliated television station for the state of Connecticut that is licensed to New Haven. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 39 from a transmitter in Hamden. Owned by the LIN TV Corporation, the station is sister to ABC affiliate WTNH and the two...
in New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven, Connecticut
New Haven is the second-largest city in Connecticut and the sixth-largest in New England. According to the 2010 Census, New Haven's population increased by 5.0% between 2000 and 2010, a rate higher than that of the State of Connecticut, and higher than that of the state's five largest cities, and...
but known separately as "Chopper 8". The helicopter is currently being stored in Indianapolis
Indianapolis
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
as a backup for sister station WISH-TV
WISH-TV
WISH-TV, virtual channel 8, is the CBS-affiliated television station for Central Indiana licensed to Indianapolis. Owned by the LIN TV Corporation, WISH-TV is part of a duopoly with MyNetworkTV affiliate WNDY-TV and the two share studios on North Meridian Street at the north end of Indianapolis'...
. Footage previously shot from the chopper is still used for B-Roll as stories warrant or at the end of a newscast. Although not owned by the same company, WPRI maintains a content sharing partnership with The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal
The Providence Journal, nicknamed the ProJo, is a daily newspaper serving the metropolitan area of Providence, Rhode Island and is the largest newspaper in Rhode Island. The newspaper, first published in 1829 and the oldest continuously-published daily newspaper in the United States, was purchased...
(a Belo
Belo
Belo Corp. is a Dallas-based media company that owns 20 commercial broadcasting television stations and two regional 24-hour cable news television channels. The company was previously known as A.H. Belo Corp. after one of the early owners of the company, Alfred Horatio Belo, now the name of the...
-owned newspaper).
On February 18, 2009, WNAC launched a lifestyle and entertainment magazine-type program called The Rhode Show that airs weekday mornings at 8 for an hour. A new secondary set for the show was built with a fully functional kitchen. The debut followed the addition of Eyewitness News This Morning on Fox Providence for a second time. Personnel for The Rhode Show include the weekday morning news anchors and a third host found every year through open audition. In 2009, Boston-area radio deejay Shawn Tempesta won the open audition out of over 140 people. In 2010, Cranston
Cranston, Rhode Island
Cranston, once known as Pawtuxet, is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. With a population of 80,387 at the 2010 census, it is the third largest city in the state. The center of population of Rhode Island is located in Cranston...
comedian Ben Hague beat out over 100 other hopefuls. Bridgewater State College
Bridgewater State College
Bridgewater State University is a public liberal-arts college in Bridgewater, Massachusetts, in the United States. It is the largest college in the Massachusetts state university system outside of the University of Massachusetts system. The school's mascot is the bear.-History:BSU was founded by...
graduate Michaela Johnson of East Providence
East Providence, Rhode Island
East Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 47,037 at the 2010 census, making it the fifth largest city in the state.-Geography:East Providence is located at ....
won the honor in 2011.
WPRI operates a 24-hour local weather channel, known as the "Eyewitness News Pinpoint Weather Station", exclusively on Cox digital channel 125. When the weather channel was first established, it also aired on second digital subchannels of WPRI and WNAC. In 2007, new FCC regulations for educational programing forced the two stations to make the weather channel cable-only. Overnight on weekends when the main channels of WPRI and WNAC sign-off, there is a simulcast of the weather channel.
Along with its own 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...
at its transmitter site in Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth, Massachusetts
Rehoboth is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 10,172 at the 2000 census.-History:It was incorporated in 1643 making it one of the earliest Massachusetts towns to be incorporated. The Rehoboth Carpenter Family is among the founding families...
, the station also features 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...
radar data from the Local Forecast Office on Miles Standish Boulevard in Taunton
Taunton, Massachusetts
Taunton is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the seat of Bristol County and the hub of the Greater Taunton Area. The city is located south of Boston, east of Providence, north of Fall River and west of Plymouth. The City of Taunton is situated on the Taunton River...
. Together, this is known in weather segments as "Live Pinpoint Doppler 12". It shares resources with WBZ-TV for coverage of Southeastern Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
. In return, WPRI does the same for its coverage of the same area. During the week, Eyewitness News This Morning (on WPRI and WNAC), The Rhode Show, and Eyewitnesses News Live at Noon are all streamed live on WPRI's website. The Rhode Show can also be seen live on WNAC's web address.
WPRI and WNAC are the last stations in the market to upgrade their newscasts to 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...
, though they were first to experiment with the format through promotional materials and debates during the election season in 2010. Set reconfiguration started on July 22, 2011. Newscasts in the interim have aired from The Rhode Show studio. WJAR was the first in Rhode Island to have made the upgrade, on May 16, 2011, followed by WLNE on September 13, 2011. They debuted the new set and modified graphics on September 20, 2011 during their 5pm newscast.
Newscast titles
- WPRO-TV News (1955–1967)
- TV-12 News (1967–1973)
- On the Scene News (1973–1977)
- NewsCenter 12 (1977–1985)
- Channel 12 News (1985–1989)
- Channel 12 Eyewitness NewsEyewitness NewsEyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
(1989–1996, WPRI used this newscast after the switch from ABC to CBS.) - 12 News (1996–2002)
- Eyewitness NewsEyewitness NewsEyewitness News is a style of news broadcasting used by local television stations in different markets across the United States. It refers to a particular style of television newscast with an emphasis on visual elements and action video...
(2002–present)
Station slogans
- Providence's Channel 12 (1973–1975)
- Your Number One News (1975–1981)
- The Station For You (1981–1984)
- Stay In Touch With Channel 12 (1984–1987)
- Making A Difference (1987–1989)
- Putting You Through Our Community (1989–1996)
- The News is Here On CBS 12 (1996–2001)
- Coverage You Can Count On (2001–present)
News team
Anchors- Patrick Little - weekday mornings and noon
- The Rhode Show host
- Danielle North - weekday mornings and noon
- The Rhode Show host
- Mike Montecalvo - weeknights at 5, 5:30, 6 and 11
- Susan RobertsSusan E. RobertsSusan E. Roberts is a news anchor for WPRI, the CBS affiliate in Providence, Rhode Island, where she co-anchors the station's 5 PM, 6 PM, and 11 PM newscasts...
- weeknights at 5, 6, and 11 - Kathryn Sotnik - weekend mornings and weekday reporter
- Nneka Nwosu - weekend evenings and weekday videojournalist
Live Pinpoint Doppler 12 Meteorologists
- Tony Petrarca (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 seen weeknights - Michelle MuscatelloMichelle MuscatelloMichelle Muscatello is an American weather reporter, who joined WPRI-TV in September 2004. She appears each weekday morning for Eyewitness News This Morning and at noon on Eyewitness News at noon....
- weekday mornings and noon- seen on The Rhode Show
- Pete Mangione (Certified Broadcast MeteorologistCertified Broadcast MeteorologistCertified Broadcast Meteorologist is a rating for meteorologists given by the American Meteorological Society.The Certified Broadcast Meteorologist program was established to raise the professional standard in broadcast meteorology and encourage a broader range of scientific understanding,...
) - Thursday at noon and weekend mornings - T.J. Del Santo - weekend evenings and "Green Team" segment producer
Sports
- Eric Murphy - Director seen weeknights at 6, 10:45 (on WNAC), and 11
- Sunday Sports Wrap host
- Sara Hogan - weekend evenings and reporter
- J.P. Smollins - reporter and photographer
Reporters
- Tim White - investigative and Newsmakers host
- Sean Daly - investigative and general assignment
- Susan Hogan - "Call 12 for Action" reporter
- Walt Buteau - "Street Stories" segment producer
- Nicole Estephan - weekday mornings
- Marilyn Schairer
- Stephen Schuler
- Steve Neilsen
- Ted Nesi - digital political reporter and Newsmakers fill-in
- Julie Ruditzky - freelance
Contributors
- Courtney Caligiuri - website producer and seen on The Rhode Show
- Melissa Sardelli - website producer and seen on The Rhode Show, nightly webcast anchor
- Lt. Gen. Reginald Centracchio (Ret.) - political/military analyst
- Bob Hannah - weekday morning and evening traffic
- Joe Fleming - political analyst