WBTW (channel 13) is a
television station
A television station is a set of equipment managed by a business, organisation or other entity, such as an amateur television (ATV) operator, that transmits video content and audio content via radio waves directly from a transmitter on the earth ...
licensed to
Florence, South Carolina
Florence is a city in and the county seat of Florence County, South Carolina, United States. It lies at the intersection of Interstates 20 and 95 and is the eastern terminus of the former. It is the primary city within the Florence metropolit ...
, United States, serving the
Pee Dee
The Pee Dee is a region in the northeast corner of the U.S. state of South Carolina. It lies along the lower watershed of the Pee Dee River, which was named after the Pee Dee, a Native American tribe that historically inhabited the region.
His ...
and
Grand Strand
The Grand Strand is an arc of beach land on the Atlantic Ocean in South Carolina, United States, extending more than from Little River to Winyah Bay. It is located in Horry and Georgetown Counties on the NE South Carolina coast.
The term Gra ...
regions of South Carolina as an affiliate of
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainmen ...
. The station is owned by
Nexstar Media Group
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is an American publicly traded media company with headquarter offices in Irving, Texas; Midtown Manhattan; and Chicago, Illinois. The company is the largest television station owner in the United States, owning 197 te ...
, and maintains studios on McDonald Court in the
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
of
Socastee (but with a
Myrtle Beach
Myrtle Beach is a resort city on the east coast of the United States in Horry County, South Carolina. It is located in the center of a long and continuous stretch of beach known as "The Grand Strand" in the northeastern part of the state. Its y ...
postal address); its transmitter is located near
Dillon, South Carolina
Dillon is a city in Dillon County in eastern South Carolina, United States.
It is the county seat and largest city of Dillon County. It was established on December 22, 1888. Both the name of the city and county comes from James W. Dillon, an earl ...
(across from the
tower
A tower is a tall Nonbuilding structure, structure, taller than it is wide, often by a significant factor. Towers are distinguished from guyed mast, masts by their lack of guy-wires and are therefore, along with tall buildings, self-supporting ...
of
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
affiliate
WPDE-TV
WPDE-TV (channel 15) is a television station licensed to Florence, South Carolina, United States, serving the Pee Dee and Grand Strand regions of South Carolina and affiliated with ABC and The CW. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which al ...
, channel 15).
History
The station went on the air on October 18, 1954 on VHF channel 8 from a transmitter at its original studios on TV Road in the Back Swamp section north of the town of
Quinby (though with a Florence address). It was owned by Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company (later becoming Jefferson-Pilot, now part of
Lincoln Financial Group
Lincoln National Corporation is a ''Fortune'' 200 American holding company, which operates multiple insurance and investment management businesses through subsidiary companies. Lincoln Financial Group is the marketing name for LNC and its subsi ...
). It was Jefferson Standard's second television station behind
WBTV
WBTV (channel 3) is a television station in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States, affiliated with CBS and owned by Gray Television. The station's studios are located off Morehead Street, just west of Uptown Charlotte, and its transmitter is ...
in
Charlotte, North Carolina
Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...
. WBTW's call sign was derived from "W" being the next letter in the alphabet after "V". The two stations were programmed separately, but shared a microwave system built in 1959. On September 17, 1962, it moved to VHF channel 13, while its previous channel was re-allocated to
High Point, North Carolina
High Point is a city in the Piedmont Triad region of the United States, U.S. state of North Carolina. Most of the city is in Guilford County, North Carolina, Guilford County, with parts extending into Randolph County, North Carolina, Randolph, ...
as
WGHP
WGHP (channel 8) is a television station licensed to High Point, North Carolina, United States, serving the Piedmont Triad region as an affiliate of the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network. The station is owned by Nexstar Media Group, and main ...
.
Jefferson Standard sold the station to the Shott family of
Bluefield, West Virginia
Bluefield is a city in Mercer County, West Virginia, United States. The population was 9,658 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Bluefield WV- VA micropolitan area, which had a population of 106,363 in 2020.
Geography
Bluefie ...
, publishers of the ''
Bluefield Daily Telegraph
The ''Bluefield Daily Telegraph'' is a newspaper based in Bluefield, West Virginia, and also covering surrounding communities in McDowell, Mercer and Monroe counties, West Virginia; and Bland, Buchanan, Giles and Tazewell counties, Virginia ...
'' and owners of
WHIS-AM-
FM-
TV in Bluefield through the Daily Telegraph Publishing Company, in 1968. The move came because WBTV and WBTW had a fairly significant grade B signal overlap, and neither station would have been able to expand its signal if Jefferson Standard had kept them both. During WBTW ownership by the Shott family, the station often used local radio personalities to deliver news, sports and weather. Regular talent included Jim (James) Griffin and Gene Allen.
In 1979, WBTW activated its current tower on Pee Dee Church Road in rural
Dillon County
Dillon County is a county located in the U.S. state of South Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the county's population was 28,292, down from 32,062 in 2010. The county seat is Dillon.
Founded in 1910 from a portion of Marion County, both Dillo ...
, southeast of the
county seat
A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US st ...
of Dillon south of
South Carolina Highway 9
South Carolina Highway 9 (SC 9) is a major state highway in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The highway travels from Cherry Grove Beach to the North Carolina state line upstate. The highway is currently the longest state highway in ...
. This more than doubled its coverage area, giving it at least secondary coverage as far north as
Fayetteville,
Raeford
Raeford is a city in Hoke County, North Carolina, United States. Its population was 4,611 at the 2010 census, and in 2018, the estimated population was 4,962. It is the county seat of Hoke County.
History
John McRae and A.A. Williford operated ...
and
Pinehurst; as far west as
Polkton and
Pageland; as far south as
Georgetown and
Summerton
Summerton is a town in Clarendon County, South Carolina, United States. Per the 2020 census, the population was 814.
Geography
Summerton is in southwestern Clarendon County at (33.605145, -80.352159). Interstate 95 passes just south of the tow ...
and as far east as
Leland and
Elizabethtown. Only local cable systems in Fayetteville and Pinehurst do not currently carry WBTW, but did until the 1980s and early-1990s.
For many years, it was the only commercial television station located between
Wilmington and
Charleston
Charleston most commonly refers to:
* Charleston, South Carolina
* Charleston, West Virginia, the state capital
* Charleston (dance)
Charleston may also refer to:
Places Australia
* Charleston, South Australia
Canada
* Charleston, Newfoundlan ...
. This was because of a quirk in the
Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdiction ...
(FCC)'s allocation of VHF channels. Most markets got at least two VHF allocations. However, Florence–Myrtle Beach is sandwiched between
Raleigh
Raleigh (; ) is the capital city of the state of North Carolina and the seat of Wake County in the United States. It is the second-most populous city in North Carolina, after Charlotte. Raleigh is the tenth-most populous city in the Southeas ...
–
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
*Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in No ...
(channels
4,
5, and
11) and Wilmington (channels
3 and
6) to the north, Charleston (channels
2,
4,
5, and
7) to the south, and
Columbia (channel
10) and Charlotte (channels 3 and
9) to the west. This created a "doughnut" in northeastern South Carolina where there could be only ''one'' VHF license.
The station has always been a CBS affiliate, but carried some
ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
shows until
WPDE-TV
WPDE-TV (channel 15) is a television station licensed to Florence, South Carolina, United States, serving the Pee Dee and Grand Strand regions of South Carolina and affiliated with ABC and The CW. It is owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, which al ...
(channel 15) signed-on in 1980. The Shotts sold most of their media holdings in 1984, with their two remaining television stations, WBTW and
KIMT
KIMT (channel 3) is a television station licensed to Mason City, Iowa, United States, serving North Central Iowa and Southeast Minnesota as an affiliate of CBS and MyNetworkTV. Owned by Allen Media Broadcasting, the station maintains studios on ...
in
Mason City, Iowa
Mason City is a city and the county seat of Cerro Gordo County, Iowa, United States. The population was 27,338 in the 2020 census, a decline from 29,172 in the 2000 census. The Mason City Micropolitan Statistical Area includes all of Cerro Go ...
going to
Spartanburg
Spartanburg is a city in and the seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. The city of Spartanburg has a municipal population of 38,732 as of the 2020 census, making it the 11th-largest city in the state. For a time, the Offi ...
-based Spartan Radiocasting Corporation (later
Spartan Communications
Spartan Communications, Inc. was a company that was based in Spartanburg, South Carolina that owned WSPA-TV as Spartan's flagship station from 1956 to 2000 when Spartan merged with Media General of Richmond, VA.
In 1984, Spartan bought WBTW and ...
), the founding owners of fellow CBS affiliate
WSPA-TV
WSPA-TV (channel 7) is a television station licensed to Spartanburg, South Carolina, United States, serving Upstate South Carolina and Western North Carolina as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Nexstar Media Group alongside Asheville, North C ...
. In the late-1980s and early-1990s, it branded itself on-air as the "Best of Two Worlds" playing off the "BTW" in its call letters. In 2000, Spartan merged with
Media General
Media General was an American media company based in Richmond, Virginia. The company's origins can be traced back to 1887 when Richmond attorney Joseph Bryan acquired ''The Richmond Daily Times'', which later became ''The Richmond Times-Dispatch' ...
.
From 1995 to 2000, WBTW served as the ''de facto'' CBS affiliate for parts of the Wilmington market because former affiliate WJKA-TV switched to
Fox
Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush'').
Twelve sp ...
and became
WSFX-TV
WSFX-TV (channel 26) is a television station in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by American Spirit Media, which maintains a shared services agreement (SSA) with Gray Television, owner of NB ...
. That market got another CBS affiliate in 2000 when WILM-LP (now
WILM-LD
WILM-LD (channel 10) is a low-power independent television station in Wilmington, North Carolina, United States, owned by the Capitol Broadcasting Company. The station's studios are located on Wrightsville Avenue (US 76) in Wilmington, and its ...
) picked up the affiliation. However, WBTW still served some parts of the Wilmington area that did not receive the low-powered WILM signal over-the-air or on cable. This ended in 2017 when WWAY acquired the CBS affiliation for its second digital subchannel. After being known as "TV 13" for most of its history, this station re-branded itself as "News 13" in 2002. WBTW's broadcasts became digital-only, effective June 12, 2009.
On May 2, 2011, a letter was submitted to the FCC requesting that WBTW be authorized to abandon its channel 13 frequency (213
MHz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one he ...
) and move to channel 41 (635 MHz), and transmit a non-directional signal with a strength of 1 million
watt
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Wa ...
s—equivalent to 5 million watts in analog (it is 316,000 watts on channel 13). The letter also requested that the height of the transmitter elements on the tower be the same as now on channel 13. This was never acted upon by the FCC and WBTW remains on channel 13.
On January 27, 2016, Media General announced that it had entered into a definite agreement to be acquired by Nexstar Broadcasting Group for $4.6 billion. The combined company would be called
Nexstar Media Group
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. is an American publicly traded media company with headquarter offices in Irving, Texas; Midtown Manhattan; and Chicago, Illinois. The company is the largest television station owner in the United States, owning 197 te ...
and own 171 stations (including WBTW). The deal was completed on January 17, 2017.
Programming
Syndicated programming
Syndicated programming on WBTW includes ''
Dr. Phil'', ''
Jeopardy!
''Jeopardy!'' is an American game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead given genera ...
'', and ''
Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or ''Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Art
* ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-Jo ...
'' (co-hosted by North Myrtle Beach native
Vanna White).
News operation
Historically, WBTW was one of the most dominant stations in the country. This is in part because it was the only station in the market for a quarter-century; until WPDE signed on in 1980, viewers had to rely on cable to get programming from the other networks. The ratings have tightened with more competition, but WBTW continues to lead.
In 2004, WBTW established a news share agreement with Fox affiliate
WFXB
WFXB (channel 43) is a television station licensed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States, serving the Grand Strand and Pee Dee regions of South Carolina as an affiliate of the Fox network. Owned by Bahakel Communications, the station m ...
. It then began producing a weeknight 10 o'clock newscast for that station known as ''Fox 43 News at 10''. In 2006, the title switched to ''Fox News at 10''.
During August 2007, WBTW became the second station in the market to move most of its operations to new studios in Myrtle Beach. A smaller facility at that same site had been serving as the station's Grand Strand bureau since 1989; it was demolished in 2007 to make way for the larger facility. The station maintained some operations its old facilities in Florence for a time. However, by 2008 the station had moved all of its operations to Myrtle Beach. A physical
Lumberton bureau closed in 2007. Like the other two stations in the market, it has kept a small team of reporters in Florence to cover the inland portion of the market.
In March 2008, WBTW converted its news operation to all-digital. The revamp included new graphics, new news set, and robotic studio cameras. In 2013, WBTW became the second station in the market (after
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...
affiliate
WMBF
WMBF-TV (channel 32) is a television station licensed to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, United States, serving as the NBC affiliate for the Grand Strand and Pee Dee regions of South Carolina. Owned by Gray Television, the station maintains stud ...
, which signed on in HD) to broadcast its newscasts in
high definition. This left ABC affiliate WPDE as the last local news station to still broadcast in enhanced digital widescreen (until 2015).
On December 1, 2011, WBTW began producing an hour-long weekday morning show on WFXB. Known as ''Fox Morning News'', the broadcast is seen from 7 until 8 offering a local alternative to the
big three network morning shows. On May 19, 2012, WBTW launched an hour-long newscast on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 8–9 a.m.
On April 20, 2015, WBTW began producing a half-hour extension to its morning newscast at 4:30 a.m., as well as an hour-long 9:00 a.m. newscast titled ''News 13 NOW''. The newscasts are the only ones on at that time in the Florence/Myrtle Beach market, and as a result, WBTW 13 produces five and a half hours of weekday morning news, with two of those hours produced for WFXB.
On September 10, 2018, WBTW debuted a 5:30 p.m. newscast, with ''
Inside Edition
''Inside Edition'' is an American news broadcasting newsmagazine program that is distributed in first-run syndication by CBS Media Ventures. Having premiered on January 9, 1989, it is the longest-running syndicated-newsmagazine program that is n ...
'' moving to WMBF-TV in the same timeslot, which moved its 5:30 p.m. newscast to 7:30 p.m.
WBTW will finally add a 5:30 p.m. newscast while WMBF moves its 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
''The Changing Newscasts Blog'', August 30, 2018.
Notable former staff
* Darby Mullany Dunn – anchor (1993–1997; later at CNN
CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by the M ...
; now reporter at CNBC
CNBC (formerly Consumer News and Business Channel) is an American basic cable business news channel. It provides business news programming on weekdays from 5:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., Eastern Time, while broadcasting talk sho ...
)
* Kellie Rasberry – weekend weather and reporter (1990–1994) now on-air personality at ''The Kidd Kraddick Morning Show
''The Kidd Kraddick Morning Show'' (formerly ''Kidd Kraddick in the Morning'') is an American ensemble morning radio show that originates from Dallas, Texas. The show is heard weekday mornings on flagship station, KHKS, and on dozens of other r ...
''.
Subchannels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed
In telecommunications and computer networking, multiplexing (sometimes contracted to muxing) is a method by which multiple analog or digital signals are combined into one signal over a shared medium. The aim is to share a scarce resource - a ...
:
On September 5, 2006, WBTW launched a new subchannel branded as My TV, carrying programming from MyNetworkTV
MyNetworkTV (unofficially abbreviated MyTV, MyNet, MNT or MNTV, and sometimes referred to as My Network) is an American commercial broadcast television syndication service and former television network owned by Fox Corporation, operated by its ...
and Retro TV
Retro TV (stylized as retrotv), formerly known as Retro Television Network, is an American broadcast television network owned by Get After It Media. The network mainly airs classic television sitcoms and drama series from the 1950s through th ...
. It is carried on Spectrum
A spectrum (plural ''spectra'' or ''spectrums'') is a condition that is not limited to a specific set of values but can vary, without gaps, across a continuum. The word was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of colors i ...
digital
Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits.
Technology and computing Hardware
*Digital electronics, electronic circuits which operate using digital signals
**Digital camera, which captures and stores digital i ...
channel 1215, on HTC Cablevision channel 99 in Conway, and previously in Brunswick County, North Carolina
Brunswick County is the southernmost County (United States), county in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 136,693. Its population was only 73,143 in 2000, making it one of the ...
on ATMC An ATM controller (ATMC) is a system used in financial institutions to route financial transactions between Automated teller machine, ATMs, core banking, core banking systems and other banks. An ATMC is sometimes referred to as an "EFTPOS Switch." ...
channel 73. In 2011, RTV was replaced with Antenna TV
Antenna TV is an American digital television network owned by Nexstar Media Group. The network's programming consists of classic television series, primarily sitcoms, from the 1950s to the 1990s. Antenna TV's programming and advertising operati ...
and the subchannel was rebranded as WBTW 13.2.
Cable and satellite coverage outside of the DMA
During the CATV
Cable television is a system of delivering television programming to consumers via radio frequency (RF) signals transmitted through coaxial cables, or in more recent systems, light pulses through fibre-optic cables. This contrasts with broadc ...
period of the 1970s and 1980s, WBTW had even more significant coverage in North Carolina. It was once carried in Anson Anson may refer to:
People
* Anson (name), a give name and surname
** Anson family, a British aristocratic family with the surname
Place names
;United States
* Anson, Indiana
* Anson, Kansas
* Anson, Maine
** Anson (CDP), Maine
* Anson, Missour ...
( Wadesboro system), Montgomery, Moore
Moore may refer to:
People
* Moore (surname)
** List of people with surname Moore
* Moore Crosthwaite (1907–1989), a British diplomat and ambassador
* Moore Disney (1765–1846), a senior officer in the British Army
* Moore Powell (died c. 1573 ...
and Lee
Lee may refer to:
Name
Given name
* Lee (given name), a given name in English
Surname
* Chinese surnames romanized as Li or Lee:
** Li (surname 李) or Lee (Hanzi ), a common Chinese surname
** Li (surname 利) or Lee (Hanzi ), a Chinese ...
counties. As of 2011, it was only carried in Polkton (Anson County), the counties of Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
, Hoke, and parts of Columbus
Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to:
* Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer
* Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio
Columbus may also refer to:
Places ...
and Brunswick.[http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/coals7/forms/search/cableSearchNf.cfm ] Most of WBTW's out-of-market carriage has since ended. WBTW is not carried on satellite
A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisotope ...
outside of the market.
Anson and Richmond counties are within the Charlotte DMA (served by WBTV), while Hoke and Moore counties are in the Raleigh–Durham DMA (served by sister station WNCN
WNCN (channel 17) is a television station licensed to Goldsboro, North Carolina, United States, serving the Research Triangle area as an affiliate of CBS. Owned by Nexstar Media Group, the station maintains studios on Front Street in north Ral ...
) and Montgomery is the only county served by WBTW that is within the Greensboro
Greensboro (; formerly Greensborough) is a city in and the county seat of Guilford County, North Carolina, United States. It is the third-most populous city in North Carolina after Charlotte and Raleigh, the 69th-most populous city in the Un ...
DMA (served by WFMY-TV
WFMY-TV (channel 2) is a television station licensed to Greensboro, North Carolina, United States, serving as the CBS affiliate for the Piedmont Triad region. Owned by Tegna Inc., the station maintains studios on Phillips Avenue in Greensboro, an ...
).
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wbtw
CBS network affiliates
Antenna TV affiliates
Ion Television affiliates
Ion Mystery affiliates
Television channels and stations established in 1954
1954 establishments in South Carolina
BTW
BTW or btw may refer to:
* BTW (company), a Chinese manufacturer
* British Traditional Wicca, a set of Wiccan traditions originating in the New Forest region
* Buckfast Tonic Wine, a fortified wine licensed from Buckfast Abbey in Devon
* The Broth ...
Nexstar Media Group