Raycom now owns two Richmond-area stations...but it will be only temporary.

[tw-804 190]

From today's Richmond-Times Dispatch...

http://www.inrich.com/cva/ric/entertainment.apx.-content-articles-RTD-2008-04-02-0126.html

 

Raycom now owns two area TV stations

Ala. company gets Richmond's WWBT and will sell WTVR

 

 

Wednesday, Apr 02, 2008 - 01:05 AM Updated: 01:51 AM

 

By DANIEL NEMAN

TIMES-DISPATCH STAFF WRITER

 

 

With the sale of WWBT completed yesterday, the Richmond area now has two television stations with the same owner.

But it will be only temporary.

Raycom Media Inc., which already owns WTVR, bought WWBT. That's generally against federal regulations, but the Federal Communications Commission agreed last week to allow the situation to stand for six months. During that time, Raycom will have to sell WTVR.

Tom Henson of Belmoro Corporate Advisors in Charlotte, N.C., which is handling the WTVR sale, said no changes will be made at WWBT in front of the camera or behind it.

"It's a wonderful television station, and it will be folded into the Raycom umbrella," Henson said. "In terms of personnel changes, etc., it doesn't mean anything. We're just going to build on what they've accomplished."

Viewers can expect to see one change, however, Henson said. The station will begin to air editorials. The editorials will be written and produced by the station staff and are part of the company's mission to interact with the community.

In the $583 million cash deal that included WWBT, Montgomery, Ala.-based Raycom acquired the three network-affiliated TV stations owned by Lincoln Financial Group, plus Philadelphia-based Lincoln Financial's sports syndication business.

"They're all three a perfect fit for Raycom's profile," said Raycom Vice President Jeff Rosser, citing the company's concentration in the South and Southeast. The company owns 46 TV stations in 18 states.

The other stations involved in the sale, WBTV in Charlotte, and WCSC in Charleston, S.C., are not in cities where Raycom already owns other stations.

Choosing to keep WWBT and sell WTVR was a difficult decision for Raycom because of the company's 11-year ownership of the station.

"If you look at the ratings report cards and financial report cards, WWBT has had the strongest numbers," Rosser said.

Media General, parent company of the Richmond Times-Dispatch, briefly owned WTVR in the mid-1990s. In 1997, WTVR went to Raycom after Media General swapped it for a station in Georgia and two in Mississippi, in keeping with the FCC rules prohibiting a daily newspaper and a broadcast TV station in the same market.

For the period that they are owned by the same company, WWBT and WTVR will be run separately, Henson said. The news staffs will be kept separate, which was part of the arrangement to get the temporary waiver from the FCC.

WWBT currently provides the 10 p.m. news for Fox affiliate WRLH. Meanwhile, WTVR has a shared-service agreement with CW affiliate WUPV, in which it provides not only the 10 p.m. news but also engineering, marketing and corporate services.

With the sale, Raycom has assumed the news-providing agreement with WRLH.

For the time being, WWBT will continue to provide the news for WRLH, and WTVR will provide the news for WUPV. When WTVR is sold, however, WWBT will provide the news for WRLH and WUPV. In the future, Rosser said, WUPV may not be able to have its newscast at 10 p.m.

Henson said Belmoro is accepting bids for WTVR.

"We're engaged in an orderly process," he said. "We're right in the middle of that process, and it's going well. Those things can't be rushed."

 

Contact Daniel Neman at (804) 649-6408 or [email protected].

[tw-804 190]

I hope whoever buys WTVR gets rid of that HORRIBLE logo....who ever thought it was a good idea to put the "CBS" lettering in the logo with no eyemark?

 

I'm from the Richmond area. The logo's been around since 2003 after they ditched the News 6 Network branding. I don't think they'll get rid of it. They put their logo beside the CBS eye for more than a few seconds after a network show is back from commercial. But I hope whoever buys WTVR gets rid of those red and white graphics (which debuted after former KDFW ND Chip Mahaney took over last year)! It screams "tabloid, aggressive news station". I stopped watching their news after that. Now I watch WWBT's news.

[tw-804 190]

WTVR seems like a joke....hell, any station that would make the insufferable Ray Collins lead anchor has to be a joke.

 

No, it's been a joke since they didn't renew now-former chief meteorologist Mike Goldberg's contract last October and replaced him with Zach Daniel (formerly of KWTV). Goldberg's been with Channel 6 for almost 10 years and after he left, WTVR is not the same. Their 6pm news is in 3rd place according to the November 2007 Nielsens, but they are still in 2nd place (except for noon). And speaking of Nielsens, I'm still waiting for the February 2008 ratings. It's already April...

[tyrannical bastard 3464]

I wonder if Media General is considering buying WTVR. To do so, they would have to dump the Times-Dispatch (their founding newspaper) or file for a waiver with the FCC (which may not happen). This was one of the Park stations they had to pass on and ended up trading with Raycom for WJTV, WHLT and WSAV.

[Ntropolis 593]

I've never thought any of the Richmond stations were that great.

 

I think WTVR's been using that Futura Bold-style "6" since the late 80s, in several incarnations, this being the earliest: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_TOnXroZDI. In their 1992 open when they started using "NewsChannel 6," it started with a CGI Virginia "morphing" into a 6... pretty cool.

[tw-804 190]

I'm sorry, but I can't picture MG dumpin' the T-D. A while ago, DCRTV.com heard rumors that Gannett (owner of WUSA 9 and company) might be interested in WTVR.