In addition, WBTV's studios continue to house the operations of its former sister radio stations currently owned by Urban One: WBT-AM/FM and WLNK, as well as WFNZ, which was previously owned by CBS Radio prior to its acquisition by Beasley Broadcast Group in 2014, followed by Entercom (now known as Audacy) in late 2017 and then Urban One in 2020 under a local marketing agreement.[1]. The Bell Jet Ranger replaced substitute news gathering helicopters. WBTV begins a major public service campaign on Diabetes awareness. This studio is the home of commercial productions and special live programming. WBTV begins thepopular feature called "On The Square". The band shell at Freedom Park in Charlotte is dedicated to former WBTV/WBT personality and public affairs director, Alan Newcomb. She helps Georgians get ready for their day as the anchor for Channel 2 Action News This Morning from 4:30 a.m. - 7 a.m. Lori has covered . The third subchannel resumed operations upon the launch of Bounce TV on September 26, 2011. And the WBTV Raleigh Bureau is expanded. WBTV's brand new "Sky 3" helicopter returns to daily operation. WBTV News returns to the 6:30pm time slot with the first local 6:30pm news in Charlotte for that time period in a "stand-alone" format. CBS News anchorwoman Katie Couric hosts The CBS Evening News from Charlotte. Jefferson Standard announces WBTV will begin carrying scheduled programs on July 15, 1949. Both have been produced by Raycom Sports after their acquisition of Lincoln Financial's sports division during the 20072008 season. A project which he founded with the purpose to create and support a positive program among broadcasters to overcome the increasing spiritual and moral decay in the country. [26] It placed third among local newscasts during the July 2013 ratings period, behind the WSOC-produced newscast on WAXN, and WCCB's in-house newscast.[24]. WBTV is the first television station in Charlotte to open a "Washington DC Bureau.". Jefferson Standard/Jefferson-Pilot acquired several other radio and television stations across the country, with WBTV serving as the company's flagship station. WBTW in Florence, SC signs on as a sister station to WBTV. At high noon, viewers saw the picture of the American flag on the screen and heard the "Star Spangled Banner." Since the early 1990s, WBTV has generally cleared most of the CBS programming schedule in pattern, with the exception of ACC football and basketball games from Raycom Sports. Watch Live; Latest Video; News; First Alert Weather; Calendar; WBTV Investigates; On Your Side Tonight; QC Life; Sports; WBTV News. Ratings come out for various local programs on WBTV. The merger coincided with the start of the 2008 Atlantic Coast Conference basketball season. The program is called "Mike McKay's Newscope.". WBTV begins first use, on a regular basis, of helicopter-supported news coverage. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - With the uncertainty surrounding us amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), it's challenging finding the positives in life. By August 1, 1949, there are already 2,000 sets in Carolina households. WBTV is first in the Carolinas to begin Closed Captioning for the hearing impaired in its newscasts. WBTV is awarded the rights as "Official Television Station" of the NFL's Carolina Panthers. WBTV inaugurates a new Internet business venture, called "ClickCarolina.com." I'm number 8 of 10 kids- mother of just one. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. WBTV introduces "Radar Plus" the most advanced weather radar system in the television industry. It is called "The Alan Newcomb Memorial Park Shell.". It is WJZY-TV. Personal Life, Parents and Family Details : Education : Qualifications, High School & College Read More Maureen O'Boyle WBTV, Husband . On January 1, 2012, WBTV switched the subchannels for This TV and Bounce TV, due to a contractual obligation to carry Bounce TV on the station's second subchannel. WBTV's Barbara Stutts begins hosting a daily information and entertainment program called "Barbara". . In 1970, the media interests were folded into a new subsidiary, Jefferson-Pilot Communications. You can watch Fred and Vanessa Ruffes at 5, 6 and 11 p.m. Then at 9:00 pm a motion picture titled, "A Star is Born", was broadcast. He then continued filing stories.) WBTV airs a number of special Carolina Panthers programs saluting the run to the playoffs for the second time in five years. WBTV begins local sponsorship of "The Jefferson Awards." Giving the "hi-sign" to his young fans, Kirby was a fixture for many years at the western-themed park Tweetsie Railroad in Blowing Rock (an hour northwest of Charlotte). WBTV begins a public services fund raising drive called "Water for Africa". At the end of the program, a winner of a new HD - TV is chosen from contest entries. WBTV conducts a Southeastern television conference for TV industry people to learn how to create and manage a television station. "Doug Mayes was a true professional and outstanding broadcast journalist who inspired . For many years, WBTV aired Face the Nation on Sundays at 11:30a.m.; most CBS affiliates in the Eastern Time Zone air it at 10:30a.m. It was seen for several years at 11:30p.m. on Fridays, preempting the CBS late-night shows which competed poorly against The Tonight Show. Remembering Jason & Chip. WBTV begins a new midmorning local live program called "Together.". It shifted to 11:30a.m. in 1982. WBTV begins consistently running test patterns from 12:00 noon to 7:00 pm. In mid-May 2008, the former Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial stations launched redesigned websites, powered by the Local Media network division of WorldNow (which operates nearly all of the websites of Raycom's stations), assuming web platform operations from Broadcast Interactive Media. It is the North Carolina - Notre Dame football game from South Bend, Indiana. The mindset may get even more difficult as time goes on, with people . "Where are they now?". Trivia. WBTV and Charlotte Memorial Hospital team up for the first "Health Matters" medical show. WBTV's Mike McKay begins hosting a local news magazine program weekdays at 5:30pm. Telegrams arrive from CBS and NBC informing WBTV would soon be getting LIVE programs via a coaxial cable coming from Washington DC. WBTVforms its"Creative Services Group" to operate as part of the Programming Department in cooperation with the Sales Department. The station claims credit for a number of television "firsts", among them being the construction of the first building in the United States built specifically for color television broadcasting. In 1994, WBTV entered into a news share agreement to produce a 10:00p.m. newscast for then-independent station WJZY; the newscast later moved to PBS member station WTVI, before returning to WJZY in 2003 and then to that station's duopoly partner, MyNetworkTV affiliate WMYT-TV in April 2012. Hosted by Alan Ryan. 2023 Cox Media Group. The show was known at various times as Tiny Town, Whistle Stop, Fred Kirby's Little Rascals and Kirby's Corral. Medical Marijuana bill passes NC Senate; some cannabis supporters against bill, 8-year-old helps raise money for favorite Waffle House worker in need of car, PLAN AHEAD: Latest Weather Forecast Video. Copyright 2020 WBTV. She formerly co-hosted Good Day New York on Fox 5 NY WNYW, with Rosanna Scotto.From April 2000 to August 2017, she co-anchored on WABC-TV's Eyewitness News This Morning, with Ken Rosato. Underwood. Shevaun Bryan, WBTV's newest anchor, stopped by to play some get-to-know you trivia with fellow anchor Alex Giles. Partners in this massive community service effort are CVS Pharmacies and the Salvation Army. While WBT, and sister station WLNK were purchased by Braintree, Massachusetts based Greater Media Inc. Introduction : Maureen O'Boyle is an American news anchor and presenter, most popular for the segment "Stretching Your Dollar," which broadcasts on WBTV News in Charlotte, NC. A special journalism scholarship is also announced in C.J. The money will be used for the Char-Wheels group to participate in the National Wheelchair Games in Hawaii. Some of our partners may process your data as a part of their legitimate business interest without asking for consent. WBTV viewers raised money for African communities hit hard by the worst drought of the 20th century. "The Betty Feezor Show" each weekday afternoon at 1:00pm is the third watched woman's show in the United States. [34] Through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as its former VHF analog channel 3. WBTV is the first TV Station in Charlotte to premiere a 10p, newscast on another TV station. WBTW in Florence, SC is sold. WBZ-TV created the first female anchor team when Gail Harris joined Shelby Scott on First Four News. Boys Town of NC is a child care institution open to boys ages eight to sixteen. Mathematically speaking, from December 1949 to July 1964 there have been 188 homes a DAY getting a television set. C. J. Underwood represents the station as honorary Grand Marshall as part of WBTV's 50th Anniversary series of celebrations in 1999. During the month of the letter writing campaign WBTV received 372,000 letters from viewers in the Carolinas. WBTV is the first television station in Charlotte to broadcast Live from a helicopter in flight. WBTV is the first station in the United Stated to produce a weeknight newscast for a local PBS station, WTVI-TV. It will also later develop the first totally computerized newsroom in the World for WBTV. former Vice President Mike Pence's visit to Jacksonville to discuss the USMCA (United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement), and November 2020 . Reception reports were received from cities as far away as 150 miles. For its first five years, the show aired at 12:00p.m., preempting The Young and the Restless. easier, and happier," former WBTV journalist Maddie Garnder . "Top O' The Day" is the idea of Executive Producer Pat Lee. She grew up in Hendersonville, NC, and graduated from UNC. It is hosted by C.J. The Rev. WBTV received one of the last construction permits issued before the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) "freeze" on new television licenses, which lasted until the Commission released its Sixth Report and Order in 1952. By Joe Marusak. WBTV carried the Live telecast via coaxial cable of General Eisenhower's report in the state of the Atlantic Pact nation's defenses. In times like this, it is so easy to say, I have to mow the lawn, I have to do the laundry, I have to go to work. When you change that one word, I have to to I get to, Hampton said. WBTV originates Edward R. Murrow's interview with Charlottean Harry Golden for the CBS Network program, "Person to Person.". A Live program, "WBTV: The First 50 Years," is anchored by Paul Cameron and Denise Dory, with special guest Loonis McGlohon. The first show is emceed by Jim Patterson and includes the President of Jefferson Standard Broadcasting Company, Mr. Joseph M. Bryan, Charlotte mayor Victor Shaw, and Dr. George Heaton of Myers Park Baptist Church. By this time all local live programs are presented in color on WBTV. Maureen O'Boyle WBTV, Husband, Salary, Husband, Age, Net worth, Wiki. After WBTV Telenews at 7:00 pm, the network program "The Cliff Edwards Show" was on at 7:15 pm, at 7:30 pm Robert Ripley's "Believe it or Not" was broadcast, featuring the Charlotte Rotary Boys Choir. WBTV-WBT-WBCY help to originate "Springfest". Former Channel 9 meteorologist Melissa Greer Polsky died Friday morning after a six-month-long battle with cancer. Over $86,000 was raised to buy well drilling equipment and install water systems in several African villages. The Jefferson Standard Convocation program brings nationally known speakers to Charlotte. On November 12, 2007, Lincoln Financial announced its intention to sell WBTV, sister stations WWBT in Richmond and WCSC-TV in Charleston, South Carolina, and Lincoln Financial Sports, to Raycom Media for $583 million. We, and yeahthe viewers especially are going to miss her. WBTV increases power to the maximum allowed for channel 3 on the VHF dial - 100,000 watts. As of 2023, she is around 60 years old. She Flew the Coop follows four women who left something secure or stable to travel abroad and pursue a dream. WBTV installs a satellite Earth Station enabling instant television coverage from anywhere in the world. [35], In recent years, WBTV has been carried on cable in several areas outside of the Charlotte television market, including cable systems within the adjacent GreensboroWinston-SalemHigh Point and Asheville markets in North Carolina and South Carolina, and the Tri-Cities market in Tennessee and Virginia.[36]. The truck carries three cameras, monitor and replay equipment, cables, lighting and spare parts. It will provide computerized business services to radio and television stations. Charlotte Mayor John Belk proclaims this day as "WBTV Day" in honor of twenty years of community service to the people of Charlotte. The WeatherNet network is available worldwide on TV stations and the Internet. WBTV originates for ABC TV Network the "Circus Spectacular" featuring Ernie Kovacs and the entire Ringling Brothers, Barnum and Bailey Circus from the Charlotte Coliseum (now Bojangles' Coliseum). However, area viewers could watch those preempted shows on WSPA-TV in Spartanburg or WFMY through a strong antenna (WFMY and WSPA were and still are available on some cable systems in the Charlotte market, although non-local programming is subject to blackout due to network non-duplication and syndication exclusivity rules). Kristi solo-anchors the weekend . After watching Eric Thomas and Al Conklin, she decided to go back to grad school at Mississippi State to become a Meteorologist. The Charlotte News headlines its editorial page with the title, "And Now Television." In addition to its legacy as the state's first television station, it also benefited from its ties to WBT, one of the most respected radio news operations in the Southeastern United States. WBTV is the first station in Charlotte to feature Traffic reports in morning news programs including live "Sky 3" helicopter traffic reports. It was nominally an NBC affiliate, sharing a secondary ABC affiliation with channel 3. WGBA-TV wptv Join to Connect WJAC TV. From 1982 to 2019, WBTV was the flagship station of syndicated over-the-air coverage of Atlantic Coast Conference sports. Transcontinental television was inaugurated with President Truman's address to the Japanese Peace Treaty Conference in San Francisco. Maureen Jeralyn O'Boyle (born July 14, 1963) is an American television reporter and news anchor. The program's original host is Lester Strong. This project is the idea of Loonis McGlohon. In response to the devastating floods due to Hurricane Floyd in Eastern North Carolina, WBTV/WBT/107.9 The Link announced a joint project called "Flood Relief - Baby Aid." Graham is a Christian evangelist whose indoor and outdoor rallies . However, when Face the Nation was permanently expanded to an hour in 2012, WBTV moved the show to 10:30a.m. WBTV gained a major ratings windfall in 198182, when CBS won the television rights to the NCAA men's basketball tournament. The FCC prohibits the stations' "Grade B" signals to overlap. A teletext news and information service. This studio is the home of the cooking set. 1 in basketball TV ratings, "A production, distribution, and event management company", "Broadcasting legend, Doug Mayes, returns to WBTV for final broad WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC", "About 140,000 lose WBTV in Dish dispute | CharlotteObserver.com", "Historic sweep: WBTV wrestles the news ratings lead from WSOC", "A new radio generation at CBS | CharlotteObserver.com", "More News Shows Coming-in to beat WSOC's broadcast of GMA", Channel 3 to add newscasts to Bounce channel, "Charlotte, NC OTA Page 141 AVS Forum | Home Theater Discussions And Reviews", "Charlotte, NC OTA Page 156 AVS Forum | Home Theater Discussions And Reviews", "Country music network 'Circle' to launch with 16 shows", "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds", "These Charlotte TV stations upgraded broadcasts. Only women's shows in Chicago and Cincinnati have more viewers. Former WBTV Good News reporter Kristen Hampton provides a positive message amid uncertain times, Medical Marijuana bill passes NC Senate; some cannabis supporters against bill, 8-year-old helps raise money for favorite Waffle House worker in need of car, North Carolina Supreme Court to revisit school funding, Vigil to be held Saturday in memory of three men killed in Rock Hill 25 years ago, Re-using the cheater beans from breakfast for dinner with Chef Elizabeth, Product Test: Elissia and Caroline try out bundt cake pan with removable bottom, PLAN AHEAD: Latest Weather Forecast Video. Introduction : Maureen OBoyle is an American news anchor and presenter,Read More Maureen OBoyle WBTV, Husband, Salary, Husband, Age, Net worth, Wiki, Introduction : Molly Grantham is an Emmy Award-Winning news anchor, currently working for WBTV News. WBTV meteorologist Eric Thomas, who covered the biggest weather stories in Charlotte's history during a 33-year career, told viewers on Wednesday . Also this month, WBTV and area TV set dealers hold a contest for the 100,000th television set purchased in the coverage area. @jsrontv is leaving us and on to an exciting adventure in Atlanta! In 2006, Jefferson-Pilot merged with the Philadelphia-based Lincoln National Corporation. Filmed programs ran from 6:30 pm to sign-off. A two million dollar expansion program to the WBTV/WBT building is completed. There are still only about 30 HDTV stations on the air in the United States. Good Morning America correspondent Amy Robach announced Monday morning that she'd been diagnosed with breast cancer after undergoing . Doug Mayes begins WBTV's first regularly scheduled news programs as "The Esso Reporter" a ten minute newscast airing at 6:30 pm Monday - Friday. WBTV News reporters are sent to Iraq and Afghanistan to cover local National Guard troops on deployment in the War On Terror. At 8:00 pm the "54th Street Review" was broadcast. He last worked at WBTV News in 1982, but his legacy lives on. WBTV anchors Molly Grantham and Jamie Boll covered the incident live on the air, before receiving confirmation it was their own station's helicopter and crewmen involved in the crash; the station released a statement citing the incident as a "terrible loss" to the WBTV family. WBTV's only competition in its early years came from a UHF station on channel 36, known as WAYS-TV and then WQMC-TV, which broadcast briefly from 1953 to 1955. Tower SkyscraperPage.com, sorted by primary channel network affiliations, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=WBTV&oldid=1138068495, Television stations in Charlotte, North Carolina, Television channels and stations established in 1949, Articles with dead external links from December 2017, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from June 2016, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles using infobox television station, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 7 February 2023, at 21:39. That station actually dates back to a ham radio station that started in late 1920. WBTV underwrites the cost of the trip for the Oratorio Singers of Charlotte to sing at the National Christmas Tree Lighting at the White House, at the invitation of President Johnson. Marshall Scott's piloting skills are given credit for both men to be able to "walk away" from the crash. 5 TV market in the country, according to the 2020-21 . Courtney Cole is an anchor and reporter at WBZ-TV. It claims to have been the first station in the country to develop computerized election return projections, to broadcast CBS' ExtraVision teletext service, and to produce a local newscast for a PBS member station (WTVI, channel 42). WBTV welcomes CBS newsman Eric Sevareid to Charlotte as guest on "The Spearhead Group". WBTV begins news at noon with "The Noon Report" hosted by Don Robertson and Pat Lee. The first program features open heart surgery. WBTV/WBTW could have been "grandfathered" into the FCC law but would be restricted in improving the signal coverage of either station because of the overlap. The station's digital signal is multiplexed: WBTV had previously carried a standard-definition simulcast of the station's main channel on its second digital subchannel. At this time, there were only 12 television stations on the air in the United States, four of the being in New York City. Learn about careers at Cox Media Group. The station's studios are located off Morehead Street, just west of Uptown Charlotte, and its transmitter is located in north-central Gaston County. Watch Live. WBTV broadcasts a telethon for Char-Wheels. [32] On January 1, 2020, Circle, a country music and lifestyle channel was launched and added as a fourth subchannel at 3.3, moving Grit to subchannel 3.4.[33]. Many longtime friends and colleagues of C.J. The FAA and NTSB began an investigation into the incident, only releasing their preliminary findings to the public; these and the RadarBox findings indicate the helicopter was initially traveling at 80 miles per hour (129km/h), and made three 360-degree turns just before it crashed.[18]. Cabarrus County. Diana Williams (later at WABC-TV in New York City; now retired) served as an anchor at WBTV during the early 1980s; she was succeeded as the station's main female anchor by Sara James (now a reporter for Dateline NBC). WBTV's older brother, WBT Radio celebrates its 75th Anniversary of receiving those call letters. This is the first of a number of visits by WBTV News reporters to the active war zone. WBTV carries President Eisenhower's address from Freedom Park in Charlotte commemorating the 179th anniversary of the signing of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence. WBTV becomes the first television station in the World with a fully computerized news operation. Steve Ohnesorge, photographed in 2015 at App . WBTV begins transmitting color test patterns, the first television station in the southeastern United States to do so. A lot! Morning Anchor Steve Johnson. Charlotte, North Carolina, United States Kristi solo-anchors the weekend morning shows on WBTV. Charlotte is ranked as the seventh largest single-station market in the United States. WBTV is only the second television station in the United States to have the antenna setup required for this increase. Location: Wilmington, North Carolina Area. The consent submitted will only be used for data processing originating from this website. The N A B adopts "American Values" as a nationwide project. Stacey joined WBTV in August 2019 from WJXT in Jacksonville, Fla., where he worked as a meteorologist and environmental reporter, according to the station. This newscast places weather coverage at the start of the program, and continues with rapid paced stories, and new viral video segments sent in by viewers. It is a Robinson R44 Raven II. WBTV was purchased by Montgomery, Alabama based Raycom Media Inc. The journey starts with Sarah Batista, a single mom and former TV news reporter who left behind a decade-long career in 2013 to follow her "gut . WBTV is allowed by the FCC - the first time ever - to film and then televise FCC court proceedings on the application for a license for another charlotte television station to start on Channel 9. WBTV launches a year-long conservation project for the Carolinas called "Planet Earth". Love family, great friends, delicious food, and feeling fit over 55! WBTV is first in the United States to broadcast "Extravision." Due to North Carolina's status as a college basketball hotbed and local teams North Carolina and Duke being mainstays in the tournament, NCAA tournament games are consistently among the highest-rated programs in the market during playoff season. WBTV, in cooperation with Duke Power begins displaying an electric light bulb symbol in the corner of the TV screen to alert Carolina viewers of an energy crisis situation. Channel 3 took on secondary affiliations with NBC and ABC until Charlotte's second VHF station, WSOC-TV (channel 9), took the NBC affiliation when it signed on in April 1957. Twenty-one hours of programming dedicates to the telethon's two day run. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (WBTV) - With the uncertainty surrounding us amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), its challenging finding the positives in life. Hosted by Doug Mayes, viewers would meet Doug and tell him their opinion on various issues for later broadcast on the nightly news. WBTV's parent company forms Jefferson Data Systems. Mecklenburg County alone has 76,100 TV sets. WBTV will host a LIVE primetime program saluting the 60th Anniversary of the station. Final Nielsen ratings for the year of 1963 show WBTV programming winning a majority of viewers in 18 of 20 times slots. Find out what former NEWS9 anchor Allison Latos has been up to since leaving the station. 's name for the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Send us your photos! WBTV originates the broadcasts of "The Billy Graham Crusade" from the Charlotte Coliseum (now Bojangles' Coliseum). Prior to joining in 2004, evening anchor Maureen O'Boyle, a Charlotte native and graduate of West Charlotte High School, served as anchor of the syndicated newsmagazines A Current Affair and Extra. He then continued filing stories.). A drug-free party for high school seniors in the WBTV viewing area. But he's not calling it 'retirement.'. The permanent switchover occurred at 5:55am on June 12, 2009. A news anchor who " punched out " at WIS TV-10 (NBC - Columbia, S.C.) last fall after only one year at the station has been hired as to anchor the news in her home state of Minnesota. WBTV returns to broadcasting local Editorials. Languages: Italian. She was the lead anchor for WBTV News 3 in her hometown of Charlotte, North Carolina and used to anchor the weekly "Stretching Your Dollar" report. An addition to the WBTV studio and building is completed adding 7,500 square feet to the building. WBTV presents a patriotic musical "Our Country Tis of Thee" with Ty Boyd, Pat Lee and Clara Lowry. In early 2008, Raycom Sports and Lincoln Financial Sports officially merged under the Raycom Sports banner. TV-2 is now renamed The McLean Studio in memory of Clyde McLean. That is one of the most common questions we receive about WTOV9 alums. The day has come. WBTV's first programs aired that night. Updates of evacuations and changes in security to buildings in Uptown Charlotte are broadcast in addition to the CBS News coverage from around the world. . WBTV presently broadcasts 38 hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with 6 hours each weekday, four hours on Saturdays and two hours on Sundays). Jennifer Abney Age and Birthday. Former WSOC-TV and WBTV anchor Doug Mayes will also be a part of the inaugural class. [20] Feezor's show was also carried on Richmond sister station WWBT after Jefferson-Pilot bought the station in 1968. WBTV's owner Jefferson Standard begins the underwriting of a series of lectures for area high school students to inspire them to higher achievements. Jefferson Standard Broadcasting buys land on top of Spencer Mountain in Gaston County to serve as the transmitter site for WBT-FM radio. After the installation of a coaxial cable from AT & T, WBTV carries its first Live network program. WBTV and CBS broadcast "Super Bowl XXVIII," as the Carolina Panthers take on the New England Patriots. WBTV's digital TV station, WBTV-DT Channel 23 is the first digital television station in the United States to broadcast at the fill power of one million watts. Other notable on-air personalities include Western bureau chief Steve Ohnesorge, who started as a photographer at WBTV in 1975. Erika Schmitt Wilmington, NC. Bonanza Productions NBC's Revolutionsince Jul 2012 Fox 26/WECTTV6 Former TV News Anchor/Producer and Investigative Reporter2008 - 2010. The FCC grants WBTV the first commercial permit in the United States to construct a Digital Television Station. The first Carolinas edition of "TV Guide" appears at newsstands. Charlotte, NC. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 23. WBTV's Lori Thomas and WBT Radio's Mike Collins begin a TV Radio morning show partnership and simulcast. Purchased by Cox Broadcasting in 2000, Action 64 is committed to providing . He was 42. Bryan is moving to the Queen City from WHNT in Huntsville, Ala. "Shevaun is a true professional and has a magnetic personality," WBTV News Director Molly Kelleher said. However, WBTV and WWBT retain their Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial-era logos and branding (WCSC has since changed its logo and graphics, following its switch to high definition newscasts). Morning and midday anchor John Carter formerly served as a North Carolina state senator prior to joining the station. Viewers also saw for the first time on Carolina television the personalities they had heard so often, and for so long, on WBT Radio.