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 ...
in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, United States, broadcasting the Spanish-language
Univision
Univision () is an American Spanish-language free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. It is the United States' largest provider of Spanish-language content. The network's programming is aimed at the Latino public and includes ...
and
UniMás
UniMás (, stylized as ''UNIMÁS'', and originally known as TeleFutura from its launch on January 14, 2002, to January 6, 2013) is an American Spanish free-to-air television network owned by TelevisaUnivision. The network's programming, which is ...
networks.
Owned and operated
In the broadcasting industry, an owned-and-operated station (frequently abbreviated as an O&O) usually refers to a television or radio station owned by the network with which it is associated. This distinguishes such a station from an affiliate ...
by
TelevisaUnivision
TelevisaUnivision (formerly known as Univision Communications) is a Mexican-American mass media, media company headquartered in New York and Mexico City, which owns the American Spanish language broadcast network Univision. 45% of the company is ...
, it is the only full-power Spanish-language television station in the state of Ohio. WQHS-DT's studios and transmitter are located on West Ridgewood Drive in suburban
Parma
Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 ...
.
This station's sign on in 1981 as WCLQ-TV marked the return of broadcasting over channel 61 in Cleveland, a frequency unused since the closure of
WKBF-TV
WKBF-TV was a television station that broadcast on channel 61 in Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio, United States, from January 1968 to April 1975. Owned and operated by Kaiser Broadcasting as one of an eventual group of six stations, it was the first ...
six years earlier. Originally the market outlet for
subscription television
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, but ...
service
Preview
Preview may refer to:
Theatre, film, television
* Preview (subscription service), an early subscription television service in the United States
* Preview (theatre), a public performance of a theatrical show before the official opening
* Preview ...
along with a general slate of entertainment programming, Preview's 1983 closure forced WCLQ-TV to operate as a full-time
independent station
An independent station is an independent radio or terrestrial television station which is independent in some way from broadcast networks. The definition of "independence" varies from country to country, reflecting governmental regulations, market ...
under the ownership of Channel Communications, which aggressively purchased syndicated reruns and movies but consistently ranked near the bottom of the local ratings. With the sign-on of two competing independent stations in 1985 and limited chance for profitability, the station was sold to
Silver King Broadcasting
USA Broadcasting was an American television broadcasting company owned by the veteran entertainment industry executive Barry Diller. This company was the over-the-air broadcasting arm of USA Networks. Before founding USA Broadcasting, Diller was ...
, becoming one of the first owned-and-operated outlets for the Home Shopping Network (
HSN
HSN, an initialism of its former name Home Shopping Network, is an American free-to-air television network owned by the Qurate Retail Group, which also owns catalog company Cornerstone Brands. Based in the Gateway area of St. Petersburg, Flor ...
) in 1986, when it changed its call sign to the present WQHS. Purchased by Univision in 2002, WQHS has largely operated as a "pass-through" for Univision programming ever since.
Prior history of channel 61
A previous license owned by
Kaiser Broadcasting
The Kaiser Broadcasting Corp. was an American broadcast media company that owned and operated television and radio stations in the United States from 1957 to 1977.
History Creating a broadcast chain
Kaiser's involvement in broadcasting began ...
occupied channel 61 as
WKBF-TV
WKBF-TV was a television station that broadcast on channel 61 in Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio, United States, from January 1968 to April 1975. Owned and operated by Kaiser Broadcasting as one of an eventual group of six stations, it was the first ...
from January 1968 to April 1975. It was the first actual
independent station
An independent station is an independent radio or terrestrial television station which is independent in some way from broadcast networks. The definition of "independence" varies from country to country, reflecting governmental regulations, market ...
to sign on in Cleveland and was Cleveland's first commercial UHF station. Despite some innovative local programming and an inventory of some popular off-network shows, WKBF struggled for the majority of its existence due to poor revenue growth. The station failed to achieve profitability while competing against rival independent
WUAB
WUAB (channel 43) is a television station licensed to Lorain, Ohio, United States, serving the Cleveland area as an affiliate of The CW. It is owned by Gray Television alongside Low-power broadcasting#Television, low-power Telemundo affiliate WT ...
(channel 43), which signed on nine months after WKBF in September 1968. In April 1975, Kaiser Broadcasting shut down WKBF-TV, returned the license to 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), and sold off WKBF's assets to WUAB's owner, United Artists Broadcasting; Kaiser then purchased a minority ownership in that station, which it retained until WUAB was sold in 1977.
History
WCLQ-TV (1981–1986)
Even though WKBF-TV had largely failed, interest in channel 61 was fueled by the imminent maturity of
subscription television
Pay television, also known as subscription television, premium television or, when referring to an individual service, a premium channel, refers to subscription-based television services, usually provided by multichannel television providers, but ...
(STV) technology. In January 1977, Cleveland Associates Co.—a consortium of
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
firms Froelich Corporation, Balaban Television Corporation, Friedland Corporation, and Bray Corporation—filed an application for a construction permit to build channel 61 as a station that would operate on a hybrid basis. The station would air commercial, advertiser-supported programs during the day and scrambled STV programs to paying subscribers at night. A
construction permit
Planning permission or developmental approval refers to the approval needed for construction or expansion (including significant renovation), and sometimes for demolition, in some jurisdictions. It is usually given in the form of a building perm ...
was awarded by the FCC in 1978, and WCLQ-TV began broadcasting on March 3, 1981, with a special prime time airing of the movie ''
The Deer Hunter
''The Deer Hunter'' is a 1978 war drama film co-written and directed by Michael Cimino about a trio of Slavic-American steelworkers whose lives were upended after fighting in the Vietnam War. The three soldiers are played by Robert De Niro, Chr ...
'' as its marquee program on launch day. Four days later, WCLQ-TV began airing STV programs from
Preview
Preview may refer to:
Theatre, film, television
* Preview (subscription service), an early subscription television service in the United States
* Preview (theatre), a public performance of a theatrical show before the official opening
* Preview ...
, a division of
Time Inc.
Time Inc. was an American worldwide mass media corporation founded on November 28, 1922, by Henry Luce and Briton Hadden and based in New York City. It owned and published over 100 magazine brands, including its namesake ''Time'', ''Sports Illu ...
's American Television and Communications, after 8 p.m. on weekdays and 7 p.m. on weekends; the remaining time was occupied by a general-entertainment independent lineup. The station even revived a character from the old WKBF-TV—The Ghoul, portrayed by
Ron Sweed
Ronald D. Sweed (January 23, 1949 – April 1, 2019) was an American entertainer and author, known for his late-night television horror host character "The Ghoul".
Early life and career
Sweed was born on January 23, 1949, in Euclid, Ohio. His mo ...
—when it added a
horror movie
Horror is a film genre that seeks to elicit fear or disgust in its audience for entertainment purposes.
Horror films often explore dark subject matter and may deal with transgressive topics or themes. Broad elements include monsters, apoca ...
showcase on September 25, 1982.
Preview's run on WCLQ-TV initially boasted a subscription base of nearly 35,000 at its peak in February 1982. The service carried select
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...
games starting with the 1981–82 season, with executives mentioning a possible alliance with Cavaliers owner
Ted Stepien
Theodore J. Stepien (June 9, 1925 – September 10, 2007) was an American businessman who owned the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA) from 1980 to 1983. Born in Pittsburgh in 1925, he became wealthy as the founder ...
's "Total Entertainment Network" as an additional programming tier. Ultimately, Preview lost nearly half of their subscription base to cable television systems in the market's affluent suburbs, along with
piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and other valuable goods. Those who conduct acts of piracy are called pirates, v ...
from different decoder boxes and a struggling area economy. Preview added a secondary service—the "
adult
An adult is a human or other animal that has reached full growth. In human context, the term ''adult'' has meanings associated with social and legal concepts. In contrast to a " minor", a legal adult is a person who has attained the age of major ...
"-themed Niteview—which only attracted half of Preview's subscribers, while the service itself was largely criticized for poor marketing and customer service. In addition to Preview's struggles, WCLQ-TV faced low ratings and a lack of media exposure, with general manager Gary Brandt publicly musing about ''
The Chronicle-Telegram
The Elyria-Lorain Broadcasting Co. (also known as ''Elyria-Lorain'' or ''ELB'') is a privately held holding company of various assets in the broadcast media, based in Elyria, Ohio. Its parent company is the Lorain County Printing and Publishing C ...
'' in
Elyria Elyria may refer to:
*Elyria, Ohio, city in Ohio, United States
*Elyria (Amtrak station), Amtrak station in Elyria, Ohio
*Elyria, Kansas, unincorporated community in Kansas, United States
*Elyria, Nebraska, village in Nebraska, United States
*Elyri ...
listing the station as "WQLC". The station did make a further attempt at local programming with ''Video Arcade'', a daily variety show aimed at older children with various old films, cartoons,
music video
A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
TV Powww
''TV Powww'' (often stylized as ''TV POWWW'') was a franchised television game show format, in which home viewers controlled a video game via telephone in hopes of winning prizes.
History
The ''TV Powww'' format, produced and distributed by Flor ...
''.
When Time Inc. announced the closure of Preview in Cleveland on May 12, 1983, the service only had 22,000 subscribers; for its final day on August 31, that number dropped to 14,000. The shutdown announcement caught station executives off guard, as syndicated programming for the coming television season had largely been committed to months earlier. WCLQ-TV filled the loss of Preview with a traditional mixture of off-network reruns, movies and '' Independent Network News'' (anchored by former Cleveland newscaster
Bill Jorgensen
Bill Jorgensen (born 1927) was the founding and longtime anchor of New York City's WNEW-TV's (now WNYW Fox 5) ''Ten O'Clock News'' from its inception on March 13, 1967, until he left in the spring of 1979. Jorgensen moved to WPIX-TV, also in New Y ...
); it also picked up ''
CBS Late Night
''The CBS Late Movie'' is a CBS television series (later known as ''CBS Late Night'') during the 1970s and 1980s. The program ran in most American television markets from 11:30 p.m. ( ET/ PT) until 2:30 a.m. or later, on weeknights. A ...
'', which WJKW declined. WCLQ-TV also began carrying various sports packages—including
Big Ten Conference
The Big Ten Conference (stylized B1G, formerly the Western Conference and the Big Nine Conference) is the oldest Division I collegiate athletic conference in the United States. Founded as the Intercollegiate Conference of Faculty Representati ...
football and basketball,
Cleveland State Vikings men's basketball
Cleveland State Vikings men's basketball is the men's college basketball team that represents Cleveland State University. Prior to rebranding from Fenn College, they were known as the Fenn College Foxes. Cleveland State has been in Division ...
, and select ''
NBA on CBS
The ''NBA on CBS'' is the branding that is used for weekly broadcasts of National Basketball Association (NBA) games produced by CBS Sports, the sports division of the CBS television network in the United States. CBS aired NBA games from the 19 ...
'' games WJKW deferred—but dropped much of these sports packages in the summer of 1985 for schedule consistency. The Ghoul was cancelled in the spring of 1984, attributed to low ratings, but it was later suggested that Brandt dropped it after an on-air skit involving a
shed
A shed is typically a simple, single-story roofed structure that is used for hobbies, or as a workshop in a back garden or on an allotment. Sheds vary considerably in their size and complexity of construction, from simple open-sided ones de ...
being set on fire outside of the studios.
Balaban Broadcasting and the other partners in Cleveland Associates sold WCLQ-TV to Channel Communications, a subsidiary of
Nashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...
–based NASCO, Inc., on May 4, 1984, for $14 million (equivalent to $ in ). NASCO, which primarily handled
National Football League
The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league that consists of 32 teams, divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National Football Conference (NFC). The NFL is one of the ...
merchandise, established Channel as a
diversification
Diversification may refer to:
Biology and agriculture
* Genetic divergence, emergence of subpopulations that have accumulated independent genetic changes
* Agricultural diversification involves the re-allocation of some of a farm's resources to n ...
move, purchasing WCLQ-TV along with two small-market network affiliates—
KAIT
KAIT (channel 8) is a television station in Jonesboro, Arkansas, United States, affiliated with ABC, NBC, and The CW Plus. Owned by Gray Television, the station has studios on New Haven Church Road (County Road 766) north of Jonesboro, and its ...
in
Jonesboro, Arkansas
Jonesboro is a city located on Crowley's Ridge in the northeastern corner of the U.S. State of Arkansas. Jonesboro is one of two county seats of Craighead County. According to the 2020 Census, the city had a population of 78,576 and is the f ...
, and
KPLC
KPLC (channel 7) is a television station in Lake Charles, Louisiana, United States, affiliated with NBC and The CW Plus. It is owned by Gray Television, which provides certain services to dual Fox/ABC affiliate KVHP (channel 29) under a share ...
in
Lake Charles, Louisiana
Lake Charles (French: ''Lac Charles'') is the fifth-largest incorporated city in the U.S. state of Louisiana, and the parish seat of Calcasieu Parish, located on Lake Charles, Prien Lake, and the Calcasieu River. Founded in 1861 in Calcasieu ...
—for a combined $48.8 million. Brandt resigned in late April 1985, with Channel director of operations Jack White taking over as interim general manager; rumors among staffers suggested Brandt was not asked to leave willingly. In a bid to remain competitive, WCLQ-TV acquired syndication rights to ''
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
'', ''
Simon & Simon
''Simon & Simon'' is an American crime drama television series that originally ran from November 24, 1981, to September 16, 1989. The series was broadcast on CBS, and starred Gerald McRaney and Jameson Parker as two disparate brothers who operate ...
'' and ''
The Love Boat
''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy/drama television series that aired on ABC from 1977 to 1986; in addition, four three-hour specials aired in 1986, 1987, and 1990. The series was set on the luxury passenger cruise ship MS ''Pac ...
'' in expensive contracts and began using
Ernest P. Worrell
Ernest P. Worrell is a fictional character portrayed by American actor Jim Varney in a series of television commercials and later in a television series (''Hey Vern, It's Ernest!'') as well as a series of feature films. Ernest was created with ...
(
Jim Varney
James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 – February 10, 2000) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his broadly comedic role as Ernest P. Worrell, for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award, as well as appearing in films and ...
) in promotional spots and
billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
s. Later purchases included reruns of ''
The A-Team
''The A-Team'' is an American action-adventure television series that ran on NBC from January 1983 to March 1987 about former members of a fictitious United States Army Special Forces unit. The four members of the team were tried by court marti ...
'' and "lost episodes" of ''
The Honeymooners
''The Honeymooners'' is an American television sitcom which originally aired from 1955 to 1956, created by and starring Jackie Gleason, and based on a recurring comedy sketch of the same name that had been part of Gleason's variety show. It fol ...
''. ''Dallas'' reruns fared poorly, only running on WCLQ-TV for six months before being removed from the schedule entirely.
The summer of 1985 saw both
WOIO
WOIO (channel 19) is a television station licensed to Shaker Heights, Ohio, United States, serving the Cleveland area as an affiliate of CBS. It is owned by Gray Television alongside low-power Telemundo affiliate WTCL-LD (channel 6) and Lorai ...
and
WBNX-TV
WBNX-TV (channel 55) is an independent station (North America), independent television station licensed to Akron, Ohio, United States, serving the Cleveland area. The station is owned by the Winston Broadcasting Network subsidiary of locally ba ...
sign on as independents: while WBNX-TV was owned by the ministry of
televangelist
Televangelism (wikt:tele-, tele- "distance" and "evangelism," meaning "Christian ministry, ministry," sometimes called teleministry) is the use of media, specifically radio and television, to communicate Christianity. Televangelists are minister ...
Ernest Angley
Ernest Winston Angley (August 9, 1921 – May 7, 2021) was an American Christian evangelist, author, and television station owner who was based in Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio from the 1950s until his death in 2021.
Ernest Angley was a native of Moores ...
and positioned itself on family-oriented and religious fare, WOIO was financially backed by
Malrite Communications
Raycom Media, Inc. was an American television broadcasting company based in Montgomery, Alabama. Raycom owned and/or provided services for 65 television stations and two radio stations across 44 markets in 20 states. Raycom, through its Communi ...
WMMS
WMMS (100.7 FM) – branded ''100.7 WMMS: The Buzzard'' – is a commercial radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. Widely regarded as one of the most influential rock st ...
) and Metroplex Communications (later owners of
WNCX
WNCX (98.5 FM broadcasting, FM) is a commercial Radio broadcasting, radio station licensed to Cleveland, Cleveland, Ohio, featuring a classic rock format known as "98.5 WNCX". Owned by Audacy, Inc., WNCX serves Greater Cleveland and much of surr ...
and
WERE
''Were'' and ''wer'' are archaic terms for adult male humans and were often used for alliteration with wife as "were and wife" in Germanic-speaking cultures ( ang, wer, odt, wer, got, waír, ofs, wer, osx, wer, goh, wer, non, verr).
In ...
). WCLQ-TV's purchasing of expensive syndicated programming, in turn, increased prices for programming at both WOIO and WUAB substantially. The addition of competition also drove down ratings and advertising rates, with WOIO charging basic cable rates for a typical commercial. Driven into a financial crunch, WOIO's ownership group sought to sell outright to Malrite for an infusion of capital by June 1986, permissible by FCC regulations that typically barred common ownership of radio and
UHF
Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter (on ...
television stations except when the television station was in need of financial assistance. WCLQ-TV filed a petition to deny the sale.
Channel Communications's aggressiveness with WCLQ-TV failed to yield a positive return, with the station losing "a few million dollars" annually. The May 1985
sweeps
Nielsen Media Research (NMR) is an American firm that measures media audiences, including television, radio, theatre, films (via the AMC Theatres MAP program), and newspapers. Headquartered in New York City, it is best known for the Nielsen rat ...
period saw WUAB with 9 percent of viewers, WOIO with 6 percent, and WCLQ-TV with 5 percent, a trend that continued into the fall and spring. ''The Plain Dealer'' reported on January 23, 1986, that Channel president Brian Byrnes initiated a study with
Shearson Lehman Brothers
Shearson was the name of a series of investment banking and retail brokerage firms from 1902 until 1994, named for Edward Shearson General manager Jack White claimed Shearson Lehman contacted Channel on behalf of an investor, fueling the possibility of
Rupert Murdoch
Keith Rupert Murdoch ( ; born 11 March 1931) is an Australian-born American business magnate. Through his company News Corp, he is the owner of hundreds of local, national, and international publishing outlets around the world, including ...
buying WCLQ-TV for his nascent
Fox Broadcasting Company
The Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly known simply as Fox and stylized in all caps as FOX, is an American commercial broadcast television network owned by Fox Corporation and headquartered in New York City, with master control operations an ...
. Fox, however, opted to partner with WOIO on June 4, 1986, after WUAB parent
Gaylord Broadcasting
Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. () is a hotel, resort, entertainment, and media company named after National Historic Landmark the Ryman Auditorium, built as a tabernacle by Captain Thomas G. Ryman in 1892 and later the home of the Grand Ole ...
declined to affiliate any of their stations with the network.
The HSN years (1986–2002)
After months of rumors,
Clearwater, Florida
Clearwater is a city located in Pinellas County, Florida, United States, northwest of Tampa and St. Petersburg. To the west of Clearwater lies the Gulf of Mexico and to the southeast lies Tampa Bay. As of the 2020 census, the city had a populat ...
–based
Silver King Broadcasting
USA Broadcasting was an American television broadcasting company owned by the veteran entertainment industry executive Barry Diller. This company was the over-the-air broadcasting arm of USA Networks. Before founding USA Broadcasting, Diller was ...
, parent company of the Home Shopping Network (
HSN
HSN, an initialism of its former name Home Shopping Network, is an American free-to-air television network owned by the Qurate Retail Group, which also owns catalog company Cornerstone Brands. Based in the Gateway area of St. Petersburg, Flor ...
), purchased WCLQ-TV for $15 million (equivalent to $ in ) on August 20, 1986. While technically at a profit, Channel Communications sold WCLQ-TV at a significant loss after making expensive programming purchases, with the earliest estimates of profitability for the station coming sometime in 1987. The following day, WCLQ-TV withdrew their petition contesting WOIO's sale to Malrite after failing to get support from the other television stations in the market and with the HSN sale rendering it
moot
Moot may refer to:
* Mootness, in American law: a point where further proceedings have lost practical significance; whereas in British law: the issue remains debatable
* Moot court, an activity in many law schools where participants take part in s ...
.Lowell "Bud" Paxson, co-founder of HSN and co-owner of Silver King, previously announced plans to create a nationwide chain of stations supported by 14 owned-and-operated outlets (twelve owned outright and two with minority interest, as per FCC regulations) and a network of full-time and part-time affiliates. WCLQ-TV was the sixth station purchased by Silver King.
WCLQ-TV expanded to 24-hour broadcasting on September 8, 1986, with HSN accounting for 18 hours daily. The remaining six hours of programming—meant to fulfill advertising contracts and provide temporary cash flow—included a block of children's programming, ''Honeymooners'' reruns, and a feature movie. The sale also voided a new contract the station had signed for the Cleveland State Vikings; while White said the games would continue to air during the transition period, the university moved their games to WOIO. Several cable systems, including
Warner Cable
Time Warner Cable, Inc. (TWC) was an American cable television company. Before it was acquired by Charter Communications on May 18, 2016, it was ranked the second largest cable company in the United States by revenue behind only Comcast, opera ...
in Akron and Canton, quietly dropped WCLQ-TV in favor of
Cable Value Network
QVC (short for "Quality Value Convenience") is an American free-to-air television network, and flagship shopping channel specializing in televised home shopping, owned by Qurate Retail Group. Founded in 1986 by Joseph Segel in West Chester, Penn ...
. WOIO and WUAB also had the option to purchase any syndicated programming dropped by WCLQ-TV.
During the license transfer process, program distributors
Twentieth Century Fox Television
20th Television (formerly 20th Century Fox Television, 20th Century-Fox Television, and TCF Television Productions, Inc.) is an American television production company that is a division of Disney Television Studios, part of The Walt Disney Compa ...
,
MCA Television
NBCUniversal Syndication Studios (a.k.a. NUSS), formerly known as NBCUniversal Television Distribution (a.k.a. NUTD), Universal Domestic Television, Studios USA Television Distribution and MCA TV, is the television syndication division of NBCUnive ...
, and
Paramount Television
The original incarnation of Paramount Television was the name of the television production division of the American film studio Paramount Pictures, that was responsible for the production of Viacom television programs, until it changed its name ...
sued Channel over "billed and unpaid license fees" totaling $387,342 (equivalent to $ in ), forcing Channel into
Chapter 7 bankruptcy
Chapter 7 of Title 11 of the United States Code (Bankruptcy Code) governs the process of liquidation under the bankruptcy laws of the United States, in contrast to Chapters 11 and 13, which govern the process of ''reorganization'' of a debtor. ...
on October 24, 1986, later converted to
Chapter 11
Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...
by November.
Embassy Television
ELP Communications (formerly known as T.A.T. Communications Company, Embassy Television, Embassy Telecommunications, and Embassy Communications) was an American television production company that originally began in 1974.
History
Beginning
EL ...
also filed a petition with the FCC against the deal, claiming a loss of over $3 million in broken contracts by WCLQ-TV for the production company's situation comedies and movies. Channel also owed $10 million to bank
Manufacturers Hanover
Manufacturers Hanover Corporation was the bank holding company formed as parent of Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company, a large New York bank formed by a merger in 1961. After 1969, Manufacturers Hanover Trust became a subsidiary of Manufac ...
.
Worldvision Enterprises
Worldvision Enterprises, Inc. was an American television program and home video distributor established in 1954 as ABC Film Syndication, the domestic and overseas program distribution arm of the ABC Television Network. They primarily licensed p ...
later sued Channel for $1.9 million in unpaid bills (equivalent to $ in ) in late April 1987. Channel had already sold KAIT and KPLC to
Cosmos Broadcasting
The Liberty Corporation was a media corporation originally based in Greenville, South Carolina. At its peak, Liberty owned 15 network-affiliated television stations across the Midwest and Southern regions of the United States. Cable advertising ...
in early October 1986, exiting broadcasting altogether.
Once the sale was finalized on December 24, 1986, the remaining entertainment programming was dropped and the call sign changed to WQHS, reflecting the Silver King/HSN ownership. Mark Dawidziak of the ''Akron Beacon Journal'' later referred to WCLQ-TV's demise as the station falling victim to the end of the "indy boom" within the television industry. The station carried HSN programming around the clock with one notable exception: for a 13-week period in 1989, WQHS carried a video simulcast of
WMJI
WMJI (105.7 MHz) – branded ''Majic 105.7'' – is a commercial FM radio station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, serving Greater Cleveland and much of surrounding Northeast Ohio. It is owned by iHeartMedia and broadcasts a classic hit ...
's morning-drive show with John Lanigan, a programming experiment tried out at other HSN owned-and-operated stations.
Univision years (2002–present)
In the late 1990s, USA Broadcasting (renamed from Silver King in 1998 after a restructuring of HSN, Inc. by chairman
Barry Diller
Barry Charles Diller (born February 2, 1942) is an American businessman. He is Chairman and Senior Executive of IAC and Expedia Group and founded the Fox Broadcasting Company and USA Broadcasting. Diller was inducted into the Television Hall of ...
) began a years-long rollout to convert its HSN stations into general-entertainment independents using a local programming-heavy format known as "CityVision". The first CityVision station, WAMI in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, launched in 1998, and cheaper versions of CityVision were introduced in the
Atlanta
Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...
,
Boston
Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...
, and Dallas–Fort Worth markets. However, after the format failed to take off where it was introduced and the company registered operating losses of $62 million in 2000 (equivalent to $ in ), Diller opted to sell the station group to Univision on December 7, 2000, for $1.1 billion (equivalent to $ in ) in cash.
Most of the stations acquired by Univision were in markets with an existing Univision station, in which case the second stations would be used to launch a new network known as Telefutura. Some were used to launch new Univision stations. However, even compared to Atlanta or Philadelphia—the other markets where Univision purchased its first full-power station as a result of the USA deal—Cleveland had a smaller Hispanic population, with Nielsen estimating only 25,000 Hispanic households and 77,000 viewers. As a result, throughout 2001, there was speculation that Univision would attempt to sell WQHS-TV, either to be paired with another Cleveland television station or as an outlet for games of the
Cleveland Indians
The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. Since , they have played at Progressive F ...
, whose broadcasting contract with WUAB expired after 2001. Even though speculation continued, WQHS-TV joined Univision on January 14, 2002, making it the first Spanish-language broadcast TV station in the region.
In 2005, the
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ (UCC) is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination based in the United States, with historical and confessional roots in the Congregational, Calvinist, Lutheran, and Anabaptist traditions, and with approximately 4 ...
petitioned the FCC to deny a renewal of WQHS-TV's license over Univision's classification of a
telenovela
A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera produced primarily in Latin America. The word combines ''tele'' (for "television") and ''novela'' (meaning "novel"). Similar drama genres around the world include '' teleserye'' ...
as E/I (educational/instructional); the case was settled in 2007 with the payment of a $24 million fine by the network, covering violations of the law at WQHS and other Univision stations.
Despite 20 years of Univision ownership, WQHS has never produced a full-length local newscast. The first such newscasts in Spanish in the Cleveland market debuted in January 2022 when
Gray Television
Gray Television, Inc. is an American publicly traded television broadcasting company based in Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1946 by James Harrison Gray as Gray Communications Systems, the company owns or operates 180 stations across the United St ...
, owner of WOIO and WUAB, launched Telemundo outlet
WTCL-LD
WTCL-LD (channel 6) is a low-power television station in Cleveland, Ohio, United States, affiliated with Telemundo. It is owned by Gray Television alongside two full-power sister stations: Shaker Heights–licensed CBS affiliate WOIO (channel ...
(channel 6).
Technical information
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 ...
:
Analog-to-digital conversion
WQHS shut down its analog signal, over
UHF
Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter (on ...
channel 61, on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 34, using
virtual channel
In most telecommunications organizations, a virtual channel is a method of remapping the ''program number'' as used in H.222 Program Association Tables and Program Mapping Tables to a channel number that can be entered via digits on a receiver's ...