WMFD-TV (channel 68) is an
independent television station in
Mansfield, Ohio, United States. It is owned by Mid-State Television, Inc., along with sister radio stations
WVNO-FM (106.1) and
WRGM (1440 AM/106.7 FM). The stations share studios on Park Avenue West in
Ontario, Ohio (with a Mansfield
mailing address), where WMFD-TV's transmitter is also located.
WMFD-TV is available on
digital cable systems in the north central Ohio area and seen in the
Cleveland
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–U.S. maritime border and approximately west of the Ohio-Pennsylvania st ...
market via
Spectrum
A spectrum (: spectra or spectrums) is a set of related ideas, objects, or properties whose features overlap such that they blend to form a continuum. The word ''spectrum'' was first used scientifically in optics to describe the rainbow of co ...
cable,
DirecTV
DirecTV, LLC is an American Multichannel television in the United States, multichannel video programming distributor based in El Segundo, California. Originally launched on June 17, 1994, its primary service is a digital Satellite television, s ...
and
Dish Network.
History
The station first signed on the air on January 10, 1986, as WCEO-TV, originally broadcasting on UHF channel 68.
It changed its call letters to WCOM on July 24, 1987. The station attempted to enter the
Columbus market by construction with a
tall transmitter tower (the tallest ever erected in Ohio) south of Mansfield in
Butler, but it never achieved cable carriage in the market and shut down in 1989.
Channel 68 returned to the air under the current WMFD-TV call letters on June 1, 1992; this time, targeting viewers in north-central Ohio (the WMFD-TV callsign was previously used on what is now
WECT in
Wilmington, North Carolina
Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...
, from that station's sign-on in 1954 until 1958).
Programming

As the only full-power television station specifically serving the Mid-Ohio region, WMFD concentrates on local programming such as ''Bon Appetit: The Dining Show'' and ''Focus on North Central Ohio''.
The station produces local newscasts, branded as ''NewsWatch'', which air Monday through Friday. WMFD also airs Mid-Ohio area high school football and basketball games.
Outside of local programs, the station fills out the remainder of its schedule with
syndicated programming and
infomercial
An infomercial is a form of television commercial that resembles regular TV programming yet is intended to promote or sell a product, service or idea. It generally includes a toll-free telephone number or website. Most often used as a form of di ...
s.
Technical information

Subchannels
The station's signal is
multiplexed:
Analog-to-digital conversion
WMFD-TV signed on its digital signal on
VHF channel 12 in 1998, claiming to be the first independent station in the United States to begin digital television broadcasts. The station shut down its analog signal, over
UHF channel 68, on June 16, 2008. The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition VHF channel 12.
References
External links
Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wmfd-Tv
1986 establishments in Ohio
Independent television stations in the United States
Mansfield, Ohio
Television channels and stations established in 1986
MFD-TV