WTVF
Encyclopedia
WTVF is the CBS
-affiliated television station
for Middle Tennessee
that is licensed to Nashville
. It broadcasts a high definition
digital signal on VHF channel 5 from a transmitter north of downtown along I-24
. Owned by Landmark Media Enterprises, the station has studios on James Robertson Parkway. Syndicated
programming on WTVF includes: Inside Edition
, Ellen
, and Rachael Ray
.
On WTVF-DT2 and Comcast
digital channel 250 is an independent station that features locally-produced programming, repeats of local news from the main channel, and additional syndicated shows. There is also live gavel-to-gavel coverage of high-profile criminal trials in the Nashville area including those of Paul Dennis Reid
, Perry March, and Mary Winkler
. WTVF-DT2 goes live during severe weather and will sometimes air local newscasts if CBS programming preempts the main channel, such as during the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
. It also carries the Saturday edition of The Early Show
, which WTVF does not run. On WTVF-DT3 and Comcast digital channel 249 is This TV
.
have been approved. On July 31, WTVF began multicasting on its digital subchannels the over-the-air relaunch of "NewsChannel 5+" (originally a cable-only operation) on 5.2 and the addition of This TV on 5.3.
along with Nashville businessmen Guilford Dudley, Al Beaman, and Thomas Baker. Ever since its inception, its analog signal was short-spaced to Memphis'
WMC-TV
also on Channel 5 (coincidentally, WMC-TV began on Channel 4 and was immediately short-spaced to WSM-TV, now WSMV, Channel 4, Nashville). WLAC-TV was part of a triopoly
along with WLAC-AM
1510 and later WLAC-FM (now WNRQ
-FM). The call sign reflected the initials of the insurance company. It immediately took the CBS affiliation from WSIX-TV (analog channel 8, eventually WKRN-TV
on analog channel 2) because WLAC-AM had been Nashville's CBS Radio
affiliate since 1928. With WLAC-TV, Nashville became the smallest city in the United States
to have three network-affiliated commercial television stations. American General Corporation, a Houston
-based insurer, bought L&C and WLAC-AM-FM-TV in the 1960s.
WLAC-TV was sold in 1975 to the Hobby family (owners of the now-defunct Houston Post
) who changed the station's call sign to the current WTVF. American General/L&C eventually sold WLAC-AM-FM to other interests and the other stations have had several owners over the years. In 1983, the Hobbys reorganized their broadcast holdings as H&C Communications
after their flagship property the Post was sold. Landmark Communications, based in Norfolk, Virginia
, bought WTVF from the Hobbys in 1994. February 1, 2007 marked the end of the decades-long monopoly WTVF had in providing CBS programming to some counties in Southern Kentucky
. Bowling Green's
WNKY
, an NBC
affiliate, launched an new second digital subchannel to be the area's CBS affiliate. WTVF was removed from a number of Southern Kentucky cable systems as a result due to FCC
rules against duplication of network programming on different cable channels.
In 1998, WTVF became the primary home station for the Tennessee Titans
, known as the Oilers for that season, when the rights to air road games of the National Football League
's American Football Conference
moved to CBS
.
On January 30, 2008, Landmark announced its intention to sell WTVF along with sister station KLAS-TV
in Las Vegas, Nevada
and cable network The Weather Channel
. This was followed on July 14, 2008 with an announcement that this channel would be sold to Bonten Media Group, a firm that owns sixteen conventional broadcast and digital stations in five states. However, the deal was put off due to the economic crisis of 2008 as Bonten informed Landmark that it could not close on the purchase after its key financial backer for that purchase, Lehman Brothers
, went bankrupt. Landmark Communications changed its name to Landmark Media Enterprises in September 2008.
Although the sale of The Weather Channel and some other assets was eventually completed, Landmark took most of its other properties off the market in October 2008. As a result, WTVF and KLAS remain owned by Landmark. WTVF would have become the biggest station in Bonten's holdings as well as the first CBS affiliate in its portfolio.
by making her a regular news anchor
in the early-1970s. The station's Studio A, which was built in 1967 near the Tennessee State Capitol
building, was also the home of the hit show Hee Haw
for most of its 1968–1993 run. Its last few years were recorded at The Nashville Network
's studios adjacent to the now-defunct Opryland USA
theme park. The channel's relation to WLAC-AM, which was known for many years for its nighttime soul music
programming, led it to air a groundbreaking show on Friday and Saturday nights during the mid-and late-1960s called Night Train hosted by Noble Blackwell (a disc jockey on Nashville soul radio station WVOL
-AM 1470), which featured R&B performances and dancing similar to American Bandstand
. From 1972 until 1975 Show Biz, Inc.'s The Bobby Goldsboro
Show was recorded at the WLAC/WTVF studios.
Behind Winfrey, the station's most notable anchor is Chris Clark
. He served as the station's main anchor from 1966 to 2007, longer than anyone in Nashville television history. Clark is a Greek-American whose real name is Christopher Botsaris. In June 2006, Clark reduced his daily anchoring schedule to one newscast (weeknights at 6) and announced he would retire at the end of his contract in 2007. Clark's final broadcast, after 41 years on-air, took place on May 23, 2007, the final day of the May "sweeps" ratings period. The station ran a number of on-air tributes in the days leading up to Clark's departure. He signed-off with a tribute to his co-workers and friends and gave his closing line a final time: "I'll see you then...". Rhori Johnston, the co-anchor on the weeknight 5 and 10 o'clock broadcasts, succeeded Clark at 6 p.m. Before arriving at WLAC/WTVF, Clark worked for stations in his native Georgia
in Atlanta and Albany
. He graduated from the University of Georgia
in Athens
. While at Albany's WALB-TV, Clark interviewed Martin Luther King, Jr.
affiliate WSMV (which itself started as WSM-TV — the television arm of another Nashville heritage radio station, WSM-AM
650) for the top spot in the Nashville ratings. Generally speaking, this channel is more popular in the city of Nashville itself than in the more conservative suburbs (e.g., Williamson
and Sumner
Counties) because of its emphasis on hard news
and investigative reports as opposed to WSMV's emphasis on softer stories. The reverse was true some fifteen to twenty years ago as WSMV earned numerous awards for hard-hitting investigative and government affairs coverage (while still targeting a more upscale suburban demographic) while WTVF did not make many waves relying mainly on newscast staples like crime coverage (which reflected its urban lead).
During the 1970s and 1980s, the station used the Eyewitness News
moniker. The current NewsChannel 5 branding and logo have been in use since 1989. In 1974, WLAC became the first non-network-owned television station in the country to use Electronic News Gathering
(ENG) to bring live field reports to its viewers. On February 2, 2007, WTVF rolled out a new on-air look complete with a new state-of-the-art news set, weather center, and graphics in tandem with its official HD debut. The new set was completely built in a separate studio from its existing set keeping disruptions of news operations to a minimum. As of February 4, WTVF is the 25th television station in the nation to air local news in high definition and one of only four at the time with an HD weather center and system.
WTVF produces daily ninety second news updates for Telefutura
affiliate WLLC-LP anchored by Eva Melo. This newscast is the only Spanish-language newscast in Nashville, a market
consisting of about 4% Spanish-speaking viewers, a fast-growing audience in the Middle Tennessee area. Both "NewsChannel 5" and "NewsChannel 5 Network" are also used by stations in other markets. All news anchors also serve as reporters.
A full broadcast of the August 8, 1974 6 p.m. newscast exists in the Vanderbilt Television News Archive
in Nashville, the result of the Archive's staff inadvertently leaving recording equipment on after taping CBS News' coverage of the events leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon
at 5:30 p.m. The broadcast featured interviews with Nashville-area and Tennessee politicians about that day's events in Washington and was anchored by Harry Chapman, with Ron Kaiser doing the weather and Hope Hines the sports. Main anchor Chris Clark filed a telephone report from Washington concerning reaction from the senators and representatives in Tennessee's Congressional delegation. Since it was not the policy of the Archive to record local newscasts alongside network ones and this occurrence was quite accidental, this may well be the only preserved, full-length Nashville television news broadcast prior to the late 1970s (when video cassette recorders became widely marketed), other than local cut-ins to network election coverage and two 1973 special broadcasts of The Today Show
(on WSM-TV). It is available for public viewing at the Archive, but, because of the equipment at the time, the broadcast was recorded in black and white, although all live television by then was broadcast in color.
Before the advent of satellite technology in the 1980s, the Archive taped all CBS News broadcasts from the airwaves of WLAC/WTVF.
Storm 5 HD Weather Team
Sports team
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 Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee is a distinct portion of the state of Tennessee, delineated according to state law as the 41 counties in the Middle Grand Division of Tennessee....
that is licensed to Nashville
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. 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 5 from a transmitter north of downtown along I-24
Interstate 24 in Tennessee
In the U.S. state of Tennessee, Interstate 24 runs from Clarksville to Chattanooga via Nashville. Just west of Chattanooga, I-24 drops into Georgia's Dade County for before reentering Tennessee....
. Owned by Landmark Media Enterprises, the station has studios on James Robertson Parkway. 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 WTVF includes: 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...
, Ellen
The Ellen DeGeneres Show
The Ellen DeGeneres Show, often shortened to Ellen, is an American television talk show hosted by comedian/actress Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it is produced by Telepictures and airs in syndication, including stations owned by NBC Universal. For its first five seasons, the show...
, and Rachael Ray
Rachael Ray (TV series)
Rachael Ray, also known as The Rachael Ray Show, is a talk show starring Rachael Ray that debuted in syndication in the United States and Canada on September 18, 2006....
.
Digital programming
| Channel | Video Display resolution The display resolution of a digital television or display device is the number of distinct pixels in each dimension that can be displayed. It can be an ambiguous term especially as the displayed resolution is controlled by all different factors in cathode ray tube , flat panel or projection... |
Aspect Aspect ratio The aspect ratio of a shape is the ratio of its longer dimension to its shorter dimension. It may be applied to two characteristic dimensions of a three-dimensional shape, such as the ratio of the longest and shortest axis, or for symmetrical objects that are described by just two measurements,... |
Name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5.1 | 1080i 1080i 1080i is the shorthand name for a high-definition television mode. The i means interlaced video; 1080i differs from 1080p, in which the p stands for progressive scan. The term 1080i assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a frame size of 1920×1080 pixels... |
16:9 16:9 16:9 is an aspect ratio with a width of 16 units and height of 9. Since 2009, it has become the most common aspect ratio for sold televisions and computer monitors and is also the international standard format of HDTV, Full HD, non-HD digital television and analog widescreen television ... |
WTVF-DT | Main WTVF programming / CBS |
| 5.2 | 480i 480i 480i is the shorthand name for a video mode, namely the US NTSC television system or digital television systems with the same characteristics. The i, which is sometimes uppercase, stands for interlaced, the 480 for a vertical frame resolution of 480 lines containing picture information; while NTSC... |
4:3 | WTVF-DT2 | "NewsChannel 5+" |
| 5.3 | WTVF-DT3 | This TV This TV This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies.... |
On WTVF-DT2 and 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...
digital channel 250 is an independent station that features locally-produced programming, repeats of local news from the main channel, and additional syndicated shows. There is also live gavel-to-gavel coverage of high-profile criminal trials in the Nashville area including those of Paul Dennis Reid
Paul Dennis Reid
Paul Dennis Reid, Jr. is an American serial killer, convicted and sentenced to death for seven murders during three fast food restaurant robberies in Metropolitan Nashville, Tennessee and Clarksville, Tennessee between the months of February and April 1997...
, Perry March, and Mary Winkler
Mary Winkler
Mary Carol Winkler was convicted of voluntary manslaughter in the 2006 shooting death of her husband, Matthew Winkler, the pulpit minister at the Fourth Street Church of Christ in the small town of Selmer, Tennessee...
. WTVF-DT2 goes live during severe weather and will sometimes air local newscasts if CBS programming preempts the main channel, such as during the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
. It also carries the Saturday edition of The Early Show
The Early Show
The Early Show is an American television morning news talk show broadcast by CBS from New York City. The program airs live from 7 to 9 a.m. Eastern Time Monday through Friday; most affiliates in the Central, Mountain, and Pacific time zones air the show on tape-delay from 7 to 9 a.m. local time. ...
, which WTVF does not run. On WTVF-DT3 and Comcast digital channel 249 is This TV
This TV
This TV is a United States general entertainment television network, with a large emphasis in its programming on movies....
.
Analog-to-digital conversion
WTVF discontinued regular analog programming on June 12, 2009 , and moved its digital broadcasts back to channel 5. Since WTVF's transition to that channel, some viewers in the immediate Nashville area were having reception problems of the VHF digital channel. So on July 6, 2009, the station decided and filed for a low-powered digital channel 50 on UHF to cover the viewers that cannot receive the VHF channel. It broadcasts at 100 kW. The original application to operate this translator has yet to be granted but STAsSpecial temporary authority
In U.S. broadcast law, a special temporary authorization or special temporary authority is a type of broadcast license which temporarily allows a broadcast station to operate outside of its normal technical or legal parameters...
have been approved. On July 31, WTVF began multicasting on its digital subchannels the over-the-air relaunch of "NewsChannel 5+" (originally a cable-only operation) on 5.2 and the addition of This TV on 5.3.
History
WTVF signed on-the-air August 6, 1954 as WLAC-TV owned by the Life and Casualty Insurance CompanyLife and Casualty Insurance Company of Tennessee
The Life and Casualty Insurance Company of Tennessee was a life insurance company based in Nashville, Tennessee, founded in 1903 by A. M. Burton, great-grandfather of singer Amy Grant....
along with Nashville businessmen Guilford Dudley, Al Beaman, and Thomas Baker. Ever since its inception, its analog signal was short-spaced to Memphis'
Memphis, Tennessee
Memphis is a city in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Tennessee, and the county seat of Shelby County. The city is located on the 4th Chickasaw Bluff, south of the confluence of the Wolf and Mississippi rivers....
WMC-TV
WMC-TV
WMC-TV is the NBC affiliate television station for the Memphis, Tennessee metropolitan area. The station serves roughly the western third of Tennessee, northwestern Mississippi, northeastern Arkansas and the southeastern corner of Missouri over the air on satellite and on various cable systems. Its...
also on Channel 5 (coincidentally, WMC-TV began on Channel 4 and was immediately short-spaced to WSM-TV, now WSMV, Channel 4, Nashville). WLAC-TV was part of a triopoly
Duopoly (broadcasting)
In United States broadcast television and radio, duopoly is a term used to describe a single company which owns two or more stations in the same city or community....
along with WLAC-AM
WLAC
WLAC is a clear channel radio station based in Nashville, Tennessee, operating at 1510 kHz on the AM dial.-Early history:Its first broadcast took place on November 24, 1926. The call letters were chosen to contain an acronym for the first owner of the station, the Life and Casualty Insurance...
1510 and later WLAC-FM (now WNRQ
WNRQ
WNRQ is an FM radio station in Nashville, Tennessee, broadcasting on a frequency of 105.9 MHz. It serves counties in northern middle Tennessee and southern central Kentucky.-History/Ownership:...
-FM). The call sign reflected the initials of the insurance company. It immediately took the CBS affiliation from WSIX-TV (analog channel 8, eventually WKRN-TV
WKRN-TV
WKRN-TV, virtual channel 2.1 , is the ABC-affiliated television station in Nashville, Tennessee. It is owned by Young Broadcasting under the operation of Gray Television. Its transmitter is located in Brentwood, Tennessee....
on analog channel 2) because WLAC-AM had been Nashville's 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...
affiliate since 1928. With WLAC-TV, Nashville became the smallest city in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
to have three network-affiliated commercial television stations. American General Corporation, a Houston
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 ...
-based insurer, bought L&C and WLAC-AM-FM-TV in the 1960s.
WLAC-TV was sold in 1975 to the Hobby family (owners of the now-defunct Houston Post
Houston Post
The Houston Post was a newspaper that had its headquarters in Houston, Texas, United States. In 1995, the newspaper was absorbed into the Houston Chronicle.-History:The newspaper was established on February 19, 1880, by Gail Borden Johnson...
) who changed the station's call sign to the current WTVF. American General/L&C eventually sold WLAC-AM-FM to other interests and the other stations have had several owners over the years. In 1983, the Hobbys reorganized their broadcast holdings as H&C Communications
H&C Communications
H&C Communications is a now defunct corporation that owned a number of media outlets throughout the United States.Originally known as Channel 2 Television Company, it was created in 1983 to unite the Hobby family's television & radio interests under one umbrella after the Houston Post, their...
after their flagship property the Post was sold. Landmark Communications, based 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....
, bought WTVF from the Hobbys in 1994. February 1, 2007 marked the end of the decades-long monopoly WTVF had in providing CBS programming to some counties in Southern Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
. Bowling Green's
Bowling Green, Kentucky
Bowling Green is the third-most populous city in the state of Kentucky after Louisville and Lexington, with a population of 58,067 as of the 2010 Census. It is the county seat of Warren County and the principal city of the Bowling Green, Kentucky Metropolitan Statistical Area with an estimated 2009...
WNKY
WNKY
WNKY is the NBC-affiliated television station for South Central Kentucky licensed to Bowling Green. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 16 from a transmitter on Pilot Knob in Smiths Grove along I-65. The station can also be seen on Insight channel 7 and in high definition...
, an 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, launched an new second digital subchannel to be the area's CBS affiliate. WTVF was removed from a number of Southern Kentucky cable systems as a result due to FCC
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...
rules against duplication of network programming on different cable channels.
In 1998, WTVF became the primary home station for the Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
, known as the Oilers for that season, when the rights to air road games of the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
's American Football Conference
American Football Conference
The American Football Conference is one of the two conferences of the National Football League . This conference and its counterpart, the National Football Conference , currently contain 16 teams each, making up the 32 teams of the NFL....
moved to CBS
NFL on CBS
The NFL on CBS is the brand name of the CBS television network's coverage of the National Football League's American Football Conference games, produced by CBS Sports.-Market coverage and television policies:...
.
On January 30, 2008, Landmark announced its intention to sell WTVF along with sister station KLAS-TV
KLAS-TV
KLAS-TV, virtual channel 8 , is the CBS-affiliated television station serving the Las Vegas, Nevada market; it is owned and operated by Landmark Media Enterprises...
in Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
and cable network The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel
The Weather Channel is a US cable and satellite television network since May 2, 1982, that broadcasts weather forecasts and weather-related news, along with entertainment programming related to weather 24 hours a day...
. This was followed on July 14, 2008 with an announcement that this channel would be sold to Bonten Media Group, a firm that owns sixteen conventional broadcast and digital stations in five states. However, the deal was put off due to the economic crisis of 2008 as Bonten informed Landmark that it could not close on the purchase after its key financial backer for that purchase, Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers
Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. was a global financial services firm. Before declaring bankruptcy in 2008, Lehman was the fourth largest investment bank in the USA , doing business in investment banking, equity and fixed-income sales and trading Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (former NYSE ticker...
, went bankrupt. Landmark Communications changed its name to Landmark Media Enterprises in September 2008.
Although the sale of The Weather Channel and some other assets was eventually completed, Landmark took most of its other properties off the market in October 2008. As a result, WTVF and KLAS remain owned by Landmark. WTVF would have become the biggest station in Bonten's holdings as well as the first CBS affiliate in its portfolio.
Famous programs and on-air staff
During its years as WLAC, the station helped launch the career of a young African-American reporter and native Nashvillian named Oprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey
Oprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
by making her a regular news anchor
News presenter
A news presenter is a person who presents news during a news program in the format of a television show, on the radio or the Internet.News presenters can work in a radio studio, television studio and from remote broadcasts in the field especially weather...
in the early-1970s. The station's Studio A, which was built in 1967 near the Tennessee State Capitol
Tennessee State Capitol
The Tennessee State Capitol, located in Nashville, Tennessee, is the home of the Tennessee legislature, the location of the governor's office, and a National Historic Landmark. Designed by architect William Strickland, it is one of Nashville's most prominent examples of Greek Revival architecture...
building, was also the home of the hit show Hee Haw
Hee Haw
Hee Haw is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with fictional rural Kornfield Kounty as a backdrop. It aired on CBS-TV from 1969–1971 before a 20-year run in local syndication. The show was inspired by Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In, the major difference being...
for most of its 1968–1993 run. Its last few years were recorded at The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network
The Nashville Network, usually referred to as TNN, was an American country music-oriented cable television network. Programming included music videos, taped concerts, movies, syndicated programs, and numerous talk shows...
's studios adjacent to the now-defunct Opryland USA
Opryland USA
Opryland USA was an amusement park located in suburban Nashville, Tennessee. It operated seasonally from 1972 until 1997...
theme park. The channel's relation to WLAC-AM, which was known for many years for its nighttime soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
programming, led it to air a groundbreaking show on Friday and Saturday nights during the mid-and late-1960s called Night Train hosted by Noble Blackwell (a disc jockey on Nashville soul radio station WVOL
WVOL
WVOL is a radio station broadcasting a Urban Oldies format. Licensed to the Nashville suburb of Berry Hill, Tennessee, USA, the station serves the Nashville area. The station is currently owned by Heidelberg Broadcasting, LLC.-History:...
-AM 1470), which featured R&B performances and dancing similar to 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...
. From 1972 until 1975 Show Biz, Inc.'s The Bobby Goldsboro
Bobby Goldsboro
Bobby Goldsboro is an American country and pop singer-songwriter. He had a string of Pop and Country hits during the 1960s and 1970s, including his signature #1 classic "Honey," which sold well over one million copies in the United States.-Early life:Goldsboro was born in Marianna, Florida...
Show was recorded at the WLAC/WTVF studios.
Behind Winfrey, the station's most notable anchor is Chris Clark
Chris Clark (reporter)
Chris Clark was the lead news anchor at WTVF in Nashville, Tennessee. He had been a consistent anchor at the station since 1966, but retired on May 23, 2007 after 41 years, making him one of the longest-tenured anchors in American television history. In the earlier years of his tenure, Clark...
. He served as the station's main anchor from 1966 to 2007, longer than anyone in Nashville television history. Clark is a Greek-American whose real name is Christopher Botsaris. In June 2006, Clark reduced his daily anchoring schedule to one newscast (weeknights at 6) and announced he would retire at the end of his contract in 2007. Clark's final broadcast, after 41 years on-air, took place on May 23, 2007, the final day of the May "sweeps" ratings period. The station ran a number of on-air tributes in the days leading up to Clark's departure. He signed-off with a tribute to his co-workers and friends and gave his closing line a final time: "I'll see you then...". Rhori Johnston, the co-anchor on the weeknight 5 and 10 o'clock broadcasts, succeeded Clark at 6 p.m. Before arriving at WLAC/WTVF, Clark worked for stations in his native Georgia
Georgia (U.S. state)
Georgia is a state located in the southeastern United States. It was established in 1732, the last of the original Thirteen Colonies. The state is named after King George II of Great Britain. Georgia was the fourth state to ratify the United States Constitution, on January 2, 1788...
in Atlanta and Albany
Albany, Georgia
Albany is a city in and the county seat of Dougherty County, Georgia, United States, in the southwestern part of the state. It is the principal city of the Albany, Georgia metropolitan area and the southwest part of the state. The population was 77,434 at the 2010 U.S. Census, making it the...
. He graduated from the University of Georgia
University of Georgia
The University of Georgia is a public research university located in Athens, Georgia, United States. Founded in 1785, it is the oldest and largest of the state's institutions of higher learning and is one of multiple schools to claim the title of the oldest public university in the United States...
in Athens
Athens, Georgia
Athens-Clarke County is a consolidated city–county in U.S. state of Georgia, in the northeastern part of the state, comprising the former City of Athens proper and Clarke County. The University of Georgia is located in this college town and is responsible for the initial growth of the city...
. While at Albany's WALB-TV, Clark interviewed Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Martin Luther King, Jr. was an American clergyman, activist, and prominent leader in the African-American Civil Rights Movement. He is best known for being an iconic figure in the advancement of civil rights in the United States and around the world, using nonviolent methods following the...
News operation
WTVF has long battled with NBCNBC
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 WSMV (which itself started as WSM-TV — the television arm of another Nashville heritage radio station, WSM-AM
WSM (AM)
WSM is the callsign of a 50,000 watt AM radio station located in Nashville, Tennessee. Operating at 650 kHz, its clear channel signal can reach much of North America and various countries, especially late at night...
650) for the top spot in the Nashville ratings. Generally speaking, this channel is more popular in the city of Nashville itself than in the more conservative suburbs (e.g., Williamson
Williamson County, Tennessee
Williamson County is a county in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2010 US Census, the population was 183,182. The County's seat is Franklin, and it is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The county is named after Hugh Williamson, a...
and Sumner
Sumner County, Tennessee
Sumner County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of 2000, the population was 130,449. Its county seat is Gallatin, but its largest town is Hendersonville...
Counties) because of its emphasis on hard news
Hard News
Hard News: The Scandals at The New York Times and Their Meaning for American Media is a 2004 book by journalist Seth Mnookin about the reign of Howell Raines at The New York Times.Mr...
and investigative reports as opposed to WSMV's emphasis on softer stories. The reverse was true some fifteen to twenty years ago as WSMV earned numerous awards for hard-hitting investigative and government affairs coverage (while still targeting a more upscale suburban demographic) while WTVF did not make many waves relying mainly on newscast staples like crime coverage (which reflected its urban lead).
During the 1970s and 1980s, the station used the Eyewitness News
Eyewitness News
Eyewitness 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...
moniker. The current NewsChannel 5 branding and logo have been in use since 1989. In 1974, WLAC became the first non-network-owned television station in the country to use Electronic News Gathering
Electronic news gathering
ENG is a broadcasting industry acronym which stands for electronic news gathering. It can mean anything from a lone broadcast journalist reporter taking a single professional video camera out to shoot a story, to an entire television crew taking a production truck or satellite truck on location...
(ENG) to bring live field reports to its viewers. On February 2, 2007, WTVF rolled out a new on-air look complete with a new state-of-the-art news set, weather center, and graphics in tandem with its official HD debut. The new set was completely built in a separate studio from its existing set keeping disruptions of news operations to a minimum. As of February 4, WTVF is the 25th television station in the nation to air local news in high definition and one of only four at the time with an HD weather center and system.
WTVF produces daily ninety second news updates for Telefutura
TeleFutura
TeleFutura is a U.S. Spanish-language broadcast television network owned by Univision with headquarters in Miami, Florida.-Overview:TeleFutura Is America’s #2 Spanish-Language Network in prime time...
affiliate WLLC-LP anchored by Eva Melo. This newscast is the only Spanish-language newscast in Nashville, a 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...
consisting of about 4% Spanish-speaking viewers, a fast-growing audience in the Middle Tennessee area. Both "NewsChannel 5" and "NewsChannel 5 Network" are also used by stations in other markets. All news anchors also serve as reporters.
A full broadcast of the August 8, 1974 6 p.m. newscast exists in the Vanderbilt Television News Archive
Vanderbilt Television News Archive
The Vanderbilt Television News Archive, founded in August 1968, maintains a library of televised network news programs. Located in Nashville, Tennessee, the Vanderbilt Television News Archive is a unit of the Vanderbilt University Libraries.-Collection:...
in Nashville, the result of the Archive's staff inadvertently leaving recording equipment on after taping CBS News' coverage of the events leading to the resignation of President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
at 5:30 p.m. The broadcast featured interviews with Nashville-area and Tennessee politicians about that day's events in Washington and was anchored by Harry Chapman, with Ron Kaiser doing the weather and Hope Hines the sports. Main anchor Chris Clark filed a telephone report from Washington concerning reaction from the senators and representatives in Tennessee's Congressional delegation. Since it was not the policy of the Archive to record local newscasts alongside network ones and this occurrence was quite accidental, this may well be the only preserved, full-length Nashville television news broadcast prior to the late 1970s (when video cassette recorders became widely marketed), other than local cut-ins to network election coverage and two 1973 special broadcasts of The Today Show
The Today Show
Today is an iconic American morning news and talk show airing every morning on NBC. Debuting on January 14, 1952, it was the first of its genre on American television and in the world. The show is also the fourth-longest running American television series...
(on WSM-TV). It is available for public viewing at the Archive, but, because of the equipment at the time, the broadcast was recorded in black and white, although all live television by then was broadcast in color.
Before the advent of satellite technology in the 1980s, the Archive taped all CBS News broadcasts from the airwaves of WLAC/WTVF.
Newscast titles
- Newsbeat (6 p.m. newscast)/The Big News (10 p.m. newscast; 1950s–1960s)
- Channel 5 News (1970–1974)
- 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...
(1974–1989) - NewsChannel 5 (1989–present)
Station slogans
- "Tune In. Turn On. Take Five." (1968–1969)
- "5 Takes You There Live" (1975–1976)
- "The News People" (1977–1979)
- "We're Looking Good on Channel 5" (1979–1980; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- "Looking Good Together, Channel 5' (1980-1981; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- "Reach for the Stars on Channel 5" (1981–1982; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- "Great Moments on Channel 5" (1982–1983; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- "Friends You Can Turn To" (1983–1986)
- "Share the Spirit on 5" (1986–1989; localized version of CBS ad campaign also used in image campaign using TM Productions' "Spirit of Texas")
- "Nashville's News Station' (1986–1989)
- "The Look of Nashville is Channel 5" (1991–1992; localized version of CBS ad campaign)
- "More News. More Experience. More Often." (1989–1998)
- "Your News and Information Leader" (1995–present)
- "Tennessee's First and Only Local News in High Definition" (2007–2008)
- "Tennessee's First Local News in High Definition" (2008–present)
Current on-air staff
Anchors- Scott Arnold - Saturdays at 6, Sundays at 5:30 and weekends at 10 p.m.; also State Capitol reporter
- Jennifer Kraus - weekend mornings; also consumer reporter
- Steve Hayslip - weekday mornings (4-8 a.m.)
- Rhori Johnston - weeknights at 5, 6, and 10 p.m.
- Kristin Priesol - weeknights at 5 and 10 p.m.
- Amy Watson - weekday mornings (4-8 a.m.)
- Vicki Yates - weekdays at 4, and weeknights at 6 p.m.
Storm 5 HD Weather Team
- Ron Howes (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...
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,...
Seal of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weeknights at 6 and 10 p.m. - Kelly Cox - meteorologist; Saturdays at 6, Sundays at 5:30 and weekends at 10 p.m.
- Charlie Neese (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...
Seal of Approval) - meteorologist; weekdays at 4, and weeknights at 5 p.m. - Lelan Statom (NWA and AMS Seals of Approval) - meteorologist; weekday mornings (4-8 a.m.), also host of Talk of the Town
Sports team
- Mike Rodgers - sports anchor; Monday And Tuesday at 6 and 10 p.m., Saturdays at 5, 6, and 10 p.m
- Steve Layman - sports anchor; Wednesday-Friday at 6 and 10 p.m, Sundays at 5:30 p.m.
Reporters
- Syreeta Baker - general assignment reporter
- Mark Bellinger - general assignment reporter
- Nick Beres - general assignment reporter
- Chris Cannon - general assignment reporter
- Rodney Dunigan - general assignment/education reporter; web producer, fill-in news & sports anchor, NC5+ fill-in host and "Wonderful Kids" producer
- Nicole Ferguson - general assignment reporter
- Aundrea Cline-Thomas - general assignment reporter
- Brent Frazier - general assignment reporter
- Ben Hall - investigative reporter
- Amanda Hara - general assignment reporter
- Dave Nichols - weekday morning traffic reporter
- Jeff Tang - general assignment reporter
- Marcus Washington - general assignment reporter
- Eric White - general assignment reporter
- Phil Williams - chief Investigative reporter
Former on-air staff
- Chris ClarkChris Clark (reporter)Chris Clark was the lead news anchor at WTVF in Nashville, Tennessee. He had been a consistent anchor at the station since 1966, but retired on May 23, 2007 after 41 years, making him one of the longest-tenured anchors in American television history. In the earlier years of his tenure, Clark...
- news anchor/reporter (now retired) - Oprah WinfreyOprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
- news anchor/reporter - Hope HinesHope HinesHope Hines is the Sports Director at WTVF in Nashville, Tennessee.-Career:Hines joined WTVF, then known as WLAC-TV, as Sports Director in 1971 following his graduation with a Bachelor of Arts in journalism from the Henry W. Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of...
- sports director (now retired)
News directors
- Sandy Boonstra (2008–present)
- Mike Cutler (1998–2008)
- Bob Stoldal (1992–1998)
- Mike Cavender (1987–1992)
- Mike Cohen (1982–1987)
- Dave Goldberg (____ – ____)
- Chris Clark
- Bill Goodman
General managers
- Debbie Turner (1999–present)
- Lem Lewis (1994–1999)
- Tom Ervin (1979–1994)
- Harold Crump (1976–1979)
- Tom Baker (1954–1976)