WJCL (TV)

Infobox_Broadcast
call_letters = WJCL
city =
station_
station_slogan = The Coastal Source
station_branding = WJCL 22 (general)
WJCL News (newscasts)
analog = 22 (UHF)
digital = 23 (UHF) returning to 22 in 2009| other_chs =
affiliations = ABC
network =
founded = July 18, 1970
location = Savannah, Georgia
callsign_meaning = J. Curtis Lewis
former_callsigns = WJCL-TV (1970-1981)
former_channel_numbers =
owner = New Vision Television, Inc.
licensee = NVT Savannah Licensee, LLC
sister_stations = WTGS
former_affiliations = ABC (1970-1982)
NBC (1982-1986)
effective_radiated_power = 3800 kW (analog)
200 kW (digital)
HAAT = 436 m (analog)
413 m (digital)
class =
facility_id = 37174
coordinates = coord|32|3|29.3|N|81|20|18.8|W|type:landmark_scale:2000|name=WJCL
homepage = [http://www.thecoastalsource.com/ www.thecoastalsource.com]

WJCL is the ABC-affiliated television station for the Savannah, Georgia area and the Low Country of South Carolina. Licensed to Savannah, the station broadcasts an analog signal on UHF channel 22 and a digital signal on UHF channel 23. WJCL's transmitter is located in Bloomingdale. The station is owned by New Vision Television as part of a duopoly with the area's FOX affiliate WTGS. The two stations share studios located on Abercorn Street near Hunter Army Air Field. WJCL's on-air slogan is "THE COASTAL SOURCE".

History

WJCL began broadcasting on August 18, 1970 as an ABC affiliate. Owned by former Savannah mayor Julius Curtis Lewis, Jr. (whose initials provided the station's callsign), WJCL marked many "firsts". At that time, WJCL built the tallest tower in the market, rising some one hundred fifty feet above sea level. Color film and videotape were introduced to the Savannah market by WJCL; it claims to have been the first station in the market to televise a live event (President Richard Nixon's Savannah visit and ride in a parade on Skidaway Road) and to broadcast in stereo. WJCL TV and Radio were both run by Lewis Broadcasting's Executive Vice President, J. Fred Pierce from 1972 until WJCL's first sale in 1999.

In 1982, WJCL swapped affiliations with WSAV-TV (due to the latter's action) and became an NBC affiliate. However, a mere four years later, channel 22 returned to ABC, in 1986.

When Lewis purchased WNOK television and radio stations in Columbia, South Carolina in 1977, he quickly sold off WNOK radio (undisclosed price) and immediately changed the television callsign to WLTX. In 1982, he purchased WYEA television in Columbus, Georgia from Aflac and changed it's callsign to WLTZ to follow a similar call letter format used for his station in South Carolina's Capitol City of Columbia. LT meaning Lewis Television. In the early 1990s, Lewis sold off two of his radio stations, WSTZ-FM and WSTZ-AM in Jackson, Mississippi for an undisclosed price. In 1999, Lewis Broadcasting sold WJCL-TV to Grapevine Communications, which has since merged with Piedmont Television, LLC. In the mid-to-late 1990s, Lewis decided to divest an even larger portion of his media interests and sold four of his combined eight owned and/or previously owned radio and television stations: WJCL-TV, WTGS (FOX-Savannah), WJCL-FM ("Kix 96.5"-Savannah) ($50 million), and WLTX ($90 Million). On May 1, 2007, Lewis broadcasting entered into an agreement with Sagamore Hill Broadcasting to sell off its last remaining television station ($11 Million), [http://savannahnow.com/node/275838/print] WLTZ-TV.

WJCL produces a 10 p.m. newscast for WTGS "FOX 28", with a news partnership agreement that has been in place since the late 1990s.

In 2001, WJCL partnered with Carleton Public Relations, Inc. to produce the show "ABC 22 LawCall." Radio on-air Lexie Kaye was hired by Carleton PR as producer of the weekly live, legal call-in show. The show featured Mike Avery as host, along with attorneys from the Carter & Tate firm, with a weekly guest and various topics. This was the first legal call-in show in the nation to use the LawCall name. The show aired until June 2006 on Sunday nights from 11 to 11:30 p.m.

WJCL has never enjoyed as much success as it did under its founding owners. From its start in the early 1970s even through the 1990s, the station lagged behind the others in news ratings (typical at the time for a UHF competing against two VHF stations in a single market), but was known as the market leader in commercial video production and in local television advertisement sales. The station also would frequently beat out the market's news leader, WTOC, in afternoon and primetime programming such as "Dr. Phil," "Wheel of Fortune," and "Jeopardy!", though those syndicated television series now air on Savannah's NBC affiliate, WSAV. Since Lewis' sale of the station in 1999, the station has been bought, sold, and refinanced twice. In fact, its sale price in its most recent sale in 2007 was for two million dollars less than its sale price in 1999 with WTGS. WJCL and WTGS were most recently sold for $17.5 million each, to New Vision Television and Parkin Broadcasting, respectively. [ [http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6439370.html Deals - 5/7/2007 - Broadcasting & Cable ] ] The station unveiled a new blog-based website in June 2007. On November 2, 2007, the station announced on said website that, with the recent acquisition of WJCL by New Vision Broadcasting, a brand new website was on the way. The revamped website now features the usual news, weather, and sports, along with streaming video.

In October 2007, longtime Savannah radio (currently heard on Rock AC station WRHQ-FM - Quality Rock Q105.3) and television personality Lyndy Brannen switched stations. A longtime anchor at Savannah's NBC affiliate, WSAV, Lyndy now anchors WJCL's morning show, "Good Morning" from 5AM-7AM.

WJCL is the setting of the second season of the TV Guide Network show "", which began airing on June 4th, 2008.

Programming

WJCL-TV was the home of the syndicated game shows "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy!" for almost two decades until September 2005, when those shows moved to WSAV-TV. They were replaced with "Inside Edition" and "Access Hollywood".

Digital television

Analog-to-digital conversion

After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17, 2009 http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf] , WJCL will move its digital broadcasts back to its present analog channel number, 22. [http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101256221&formid=387&fac_num=37174 CDBS Print ] ]

Personalities

Anchors

*Jenifer Andrews - weeknights @ 6 & 11 PM
*Lyndy Brannen - weekday mornings
*Jessica Kiss - weekday mornings
*Casey Jones - weeknights @ 6 & 11 PM

Weather:
*Jeff Kirk - chief meteorologist/weekday evenings
*Jonathan Myers - weekday mornings
*Jennifer Beale - weekends (also entertainment/feature reporter)

Sports:
*Allen Kinzly, sports reporter/weekends
*Frank Sulkowski - sports director/weeknights @ 6, 10 PM on WTGS, & @ 11

Reporters

*Ashely Olstead - military reporter
*Kelly Foster - city government reporter/weekend anchor @ 6 & 11
*Candace McCowan - crime reporter
*Stephanie Simoni - weekday morning/education reporter

Notable alumni

*Aisha Greer, News Anchor
*Wendy McNew, Education/Military Reporter (Now reporter @ WNEP)
*Trish Hartman, Morning Anchor/Reporter (Now reporter @ WNEP)
*Greg Pallone, News Anchor
*Rich Edson, Political Beat Reporter
*Brady Poscik, Sports Director (?-2005)
*John O'Neil, News Anchor
*Bill Edwards, Sports Anchor
*Brent Solomom, News Reporter
*Kathy Walters, News Anchor
*Pete Preston, Weatherman
*Joe Cox, Weatherman
*Nancy Newman, News Anchor
*Marvin Vawter, News Anchor
*Doug Weathers, News Anchor
*Nelson Lewis, Kids Reporter (1995-1999)
*Kristin Williams, News Anchor
*Natalie Hendrix, News Anchor
*Mark Taylor, News Reporter
*Laurie Rapp, News Reporter
*Kelly Wright, News Reporter
*Buck Belue, Sports Anchor
*Al Jennings, Sports Anchor
*Jordan Siegel, Sports Anchor
*Betsy Nolen, News Anchor
*Michanda Anthony, News Anchor
*Beth Eckard, Weather Anchor
*Julie Martin, Weather Anchor, Reporter
*Tom Stringfellow, News Anchor
*Scott Pierce, News Anchor, Weather
*Kim Gusby, News Anchor, Reporter (Now at WSAV)
*Pamela Kister, Weather Anchor
*Ken Griner, Sports Anchor
*Ramona Parks, News Reporter
*Danielle Powell, News Producer
*Kim Grossman, News Reporter
*Andy Behrend, News Reporter
*Richard Lantz, News Anchor
*Erina McCoy, News Reporter
*Joey Gangi, News Reporter
*Michelle Paynter, News Reporter
*Shawnette Wilson, News Anchor (now @ WTXF-FOX 29 in Philadelphia)
*Mary Kay Kleist, meteorologist (now @ CBS 2 in Chicago)

Newscast titles

* "JCL News"
* "JCL Newswatch 22"
* "Action News"
* "News Savannah"
* "ABC 22 News"
* "WJCL, Your Local News Source"
* "WJCL, The Coastal Source"

External links

* [http://www.thecoastalsource.com/ thecoastalsource.com]
*TVQ|WJCL
*BIA|WJCL|TV|TV

References