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69-581: WAND (channel 17) is a television station licensed to Decatur, Illinois , United States, serving the Central Illinois region as an affiliate of NBC . Owned by Block Communications , the station maintains studios on South Side Drive in Decatur, and its transmitter is located along I-72 , between Oreana and Argenta . Channel 17 was the first station built in the market, signing on as WTVP on August 16, 1953. Originally an affiliate of ABC , it

138-635: A barter in some cases. WICS WICS (channel 20) is a television station licensed to Springfield, Illinois , United States, affiliated with ABC . The station is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group , and maintains studios on East Cook Street in Springfield's Eastside ; its transmitter is located west of Mechanicsburg , in unincorporated Sangamon County . WICD (channel 15) in Champaign – Urbana operates as

207-435: A semi-satellite of WICS. As such, it simulcasts all network and syndicated programming as provided through WICS, and the two stations share a website. However, WICD airs separate commercial inserts and legal identifications . Local newscasts, produced by WICS, are simulcast on both stations. WICS serves the western half of the Central Illinois market while WICD serves the eastern portion. The two stations are counted as

276-601: A backup. A temporary antenna allowed the station to get back on the air on April 3. However, the shorter and less powerful transmitter did not reach the Champaign–Urbana area, so WAND temporarily relocated its translator at Danville to Champaign, meaning the former city would have to go without ABC programs for months while the Argenta tower was rebuilt. The tower was rebuilt at 1,314 feet (401 m) and activated in June 1979;

345-541: A half-hour from a modified set at WICS' Springfield studios featuring unique duratrans indicating the Fox-branded show. From the start, NewsChannel at 9 competed with a newscast already established in the time slot on then- UPN affiliate WCFN (produced by WCIA). Unlike the WRSP/WCCU show, WCFN's broadcast originated from WCIA's Champaign facilities but was targeted specifically at a Springfield audience. Although

414-455: A larger national deal between LIN and NBC that also involved WDTN in Dayton, Ohio (who swapped affiliations with WICS/WICD's Dayton sister station WKEF the year before). WICS/WICD was to have switched to ABC at the beginning of the 2004–05 television season, but it was required to remain with NBC for another year, as its affiliation contract with the station did not expire until September 4 of

483-738: A material impact. In 2004, NBC and LIN negotiated a new affiliation agreement that included clauses for switching two LIN-operated ABC affiliates to NBC: WAND and WDTN in Dayton, Ohio . At the time, NBC had higher ratings. As a result, on September 5, 2005, WAND became an NBC affiliate, with WICS/ WICD switching to ABC. Historically, the Champaign–Springfield–Decatur media market, fragmented between stations in multiple cities, has typically seen news viewership divided among city lines. This dynamic also holds for WAND. For instance, in November 1996, WAND's newscasts led all but one timeslot in

552-415: A much shorter wavelength, and thus requires a shorter antenna, but also higher power. North American stations can go up to 5000 kW ERP for video and 500 kW audio, or 1000 kW digital. Low channels travel further than high ones at the same power, but UHF does not suffer from as much electromagnetic interference and background "noise" as VHF, making it much more desirable for TV. Despite this, in

621-399: A regional network sharing most network and syndicated programming. This arrangement nearly brought down WICD, and for a time, it appeared the station would revert to a full-time satellite of WICS. Guy Gannett finally bought WICD in 1994. Sinclair purchased most of Guy Gannett's stations, including WICS and WICD, in 1999. The company almost immediately turned around and announced it was selling

690-417: A second antenna to clearly receive WAND alongside other stations. On March 26, 1978, WAND's tower was brought down by a massive ice storm , narrowly missing a house. All but 100 feet (30 m) of the tower fell down under the weight of massive sheets of ice. The lost tower was worth $ 1.5 million. To restore service, WAND prepared to reactivate its original tower behind its studios, which had been retained as

759-890: A secondary CBS affiliation because its primary affiliate, WCIA in Champaign, only provided a marginal signal to Springfield. It also aired whatever ABC programs WTVP in Decatur (now WAND ) had to turn down in order to air CBS shows not cleared by WCIA. By 1958, WICS was an exclusive NBC affiliate. The station originally had facilities at the Leland Hotel on Capitol Street in Downtown Springfield. In 1964, it moved to its current studios on East Cook Street in East Springfield. The FCC considered making East Central Illinois an all-UHF market but dropped these plans under heavy lobbying from WCIA. However, WICS' signal

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828-458: A seven-county area around Decatur, with 25 percent of viewers in the region watching WAND's 6 p.m. newscast. However, in the full 20-county market, it was a distant third in all timeslots behind WCIA and WICS/WICD, with its 6 p.m. newscast only attracting 8.5 percent of the audience. The 1990s were a decade of news department expansion at WAND. The station's only full-length newscasts were at 6 and 10 p.m. until 1992, when WAND debuted Live at Five ,

897-781: A single unit for ratings purposes. Although WICD maintains its own studios on South Country Fair Drive in downtown Champaign, master control and most internal operations are based at WICS' facilities. Through joint sales and shared services agreements (JSA/SSA), Sinclair also provides certain services to the area's Fox affiliate, Springfield-licensed WRSP-TV , channel 55 (and its semi-satellite, Urbana-licensed WCCU, channel 27), as well as Decatur -licensed CW outlet WBUI , channel 23 (all are owned by GOCOM Media, LLC ). WRSP and WBUI share studios with WICS but WBUI also maintains an advertising sales office on South Main Street/ US 51 in downtown Decatur. WCCU's advertising sales operation

966-528: A spokesman for Sinclair stated that he had been, in fact, let go. This is not the first time the station has taken issue with talent popular with their viewers; in 2015, chief meteorologist Ric Kearbey was unable to reach a deal with WICS on a new contract, while anchor Liz Foster resigned to take a new position in Charlotte, North Carolina . The station's signal is multiplexed : WICS shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 20, on February 17, 2009,

1035-425: A variety of ways to generate revenue from television commercials . They may be an independent station or part of a broadcasting network , or some other structure. They can produce some or all of their programs or buy some broadcast syndication programming for or all of it from other stations or independent production companies. Many stations have some sort of television studio , which on major-network stations

1104-496: Is non-commercial educational (NCE) and considered public broadcasting . To avoid concentration of media ownership of television stations, government regulations in most countries generally limit the ownership of television stations by television networks or other media operators, but these regulations vary considerably. Some countries have set up nationwide television networks, in which individual television stations act as mere repeaters of nationwide programs . In those countries,

1173-616: Is also based out of WICD's studios. WICS began operations on September 17, 1953, and was owned by Plains Television Partners of Springfield, which was a 50/50 joint venture of Transcontinental Properties and the H & E Balaban Corporation. It carried programming from all four networks of the era ( NBC , CBS , ABC, and DuMont ). However, it was a primary NBC affiliate. Although the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) had collapsed most of East Central Illinois into one giant television market, WICS took on

1242-470: Is broadcast via terrestrial radio waves. A group of television stations with common ownership or affiliation are known as a TV network and an individual station within the network is referred to as O&O or affiliate , respectively. Because television station signals use the electromagnetic spectrum, which in the past has been a common, scarce resource, governments often claim authority to regulate them. Broadcast television systems standards vary around

1311-792: Is often used for newscasts or other local programming . There is usually a news department , where journalists gather information. There is also a section where electronic news-gathering (ENG) operations are based, receiving remote broadcasts via remote pickup unit or satellite TV . Outside broadcasting vans, production trucks , or SUVs with electronic field production (EFP) equipment are sent out with reporters , who may also bring back news stories on video tape rather than sending them back live . To keep pace with technology United States television stations have been replacing operators with broadcast automation systems to increase profits in recent years. Some stations (known as repeaters or translators ) only simulcast another, usually

1380-599: The LIN TV Corporation , then-owner of WAND. The FCC ruled HMTF held enough stock in Sunrise that if it bought WICS/WICD, it would have created a duopoly between two of the four highest-rated stations in the market, which is forbidden by FCC rules. With the eventual relaxation of ownership limits, Sinclair soon took the stations off the market and retained them. On September 5, 2005, the two stations swapped affiliations with WAND and became ABC affiliates as part of

1449-405: The broadcast range , or geographic area, that the station is limited to, allocates the broadcast frequency of the radio spectrum for that station's transmissions, sets limits on what types of television programs can be programmed for broadcast and requires a station to broadcast a minimum amount of certain programs types, such as public affairs messages . Another form of television station

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1518-534: The electricity bill and emergency backup generators . In North America , full-power stations on band I (channels 2 to 6) are generally limited to 100 kW analog video ( VSB ) and 10 kW analog audio ( FM ), or 45 kW digital ( 8VSB ) ERP. Stations on band III (channels 7 to 13) can go up by 5 dB to 316 kW video, 31.6 kW audio, or 160 kW digital. Low-VHF stations are often subject to long-distance reception just as with FM. There are no stations on Channel 1 . UHF , by comparison, has

1587-481: The Champaign– Urbana area. It then worked to make the translator a moot point in 1964 by increasing power for channel 17, which had never operated at its full authorized effective radiated power since beginning broadcasting. The station had originally operated at 17,000 watts; successive increases had brought its authorized effective radiated power to 200,000 watts by January 1962. Metromedia grew rapidly during

1656-650: The FCC granted WAND a construction permit to move its digital frequency back to channel 17 with the UHF digital maximum power of one million watts. WAND relocated its signal from channel 17 to channel 20 on January 17, 2020, as a result of the 2016 United States wireless spectrum auction . In addition to its main signal, WAND can also be seen on three low-power translators: Television station The Fernsehsender Paul Nipkow ( TV Station Paul Nipkow ) in Berlin , Germany ,

1725-558: The Prairie Television Company applied for channel 17. Its president was W. L. Shellabarger, who had previously led a soy mill company. The commission quickly issued Prairie a construction permit on November 20, and the station shortly after took the call sign WTVP. Construction began on a facility south of the city along the Sangamon River , including an interim transmitter facility (a 1-kilowatt transmitter

1794-559: The U.S., the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is taking another large portion of this band (channels 52 to 69) away, in contrast to the rest of the world, which has been taking VHF instead. This means that some stations left on VHF are harder to receive after the analog shutdown . Since at least 1974, there are no stations on channel 37 in North America for radio astronomy purposes. Most television stations are commercial broadcasting enterprises which are structured in

1863-596: The WICS signal to air some local programming for the eastern side of the market, which was simulcast on WICD. In 1967, Plains Television merged WCHU and WICD into a new full-power station on UHF channel 15 under the WICD calls, but operating under the WCHU license. Plains Television sold WICS to Guy Gannett Communications (no relation to the larger Gannett Company ), in 1986 but held onto WICD until 1994. The two stations operated as

1932-400: The WRSP/WCCU newscast features market wide coverage, including contributions from WICD reporters based in Champaign, there is a separate weeknight weather segment for WRSP and WCCU that was seen. WCFN's prime time broadcast would be eventually canceled by WCIA on September 28, 2009. On October 7, 2013, the weekday edition of NewsChannel at 9 was expanded to an hour. The effort on WRSP/WCCU

2001-566: The WTVP sale awaited FCC approval, Metromedia was already negotiating to acquire KSAN-TV , a UHF station in San Francisco . Nearly immediately after the FCC approved the transfer of ownership, LIN announced its plan for changes: a substantial power increase, increased local programming, and new call letters — WAND. The call sign changed on February 14, and other changes came throughout the year, including expanded news coverage. In July, ground

2070-678: The air until that evening; even then, it could only air the audio portion of the Backstage for Polio benefit concert. Normal operations resumed the following afternoon. A total of 20 employees resigned, all of them identically claiming "an unstable administrative situation" and "proposed changes in program policy". At the time, the station had 47 employees, more than double the number of staffers employed by WCIA and WICS in Springfield and three times as many as WBLN in Bloomington . One of

2139-467: The air, the station was roiled by a management crisis. The station did not sign on as scheduled on January 20, 1954. Soon afterward, it emerged that three executives—general manager Harold Cowgill, chief engineer James Wulliman, and program director Paul Taff—had resigned instead of complying with an ultimatum from principal owner Shellabarger. Station stockholders sought to cut expenses by reducing staff and reassigning job duties. The station did not return to

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2208-451: The air: WCIA (channel 3) of Champaign , which had hoped to move its transmitter slightly to the east and improve its coverage of Decatur. WTVP contended that WCIA's proposed relocation had hampered its efforts to obtain a network affiliation, even though it had announced plans months earlier to affiliate with CBS , WCIA-TV wound up with that affiliation. The antenna arrived in Decatur and was erected on August 2; 10,000 people turned out at

2277-479: The departing executives, Cowgill, went as far as to announce his intention to apply for channel 23 so as to compete with WTVP. WTVP also had to contend with the uneven structure of television in Central Illinois. WCIA, as a very high frequency (VHF) station, had a larger coverage area, better ratings, and more advertiser support than WTVP, WICS, or other UHF outlets. Shortly after WTVP and WICS failed at

2346-604: The end of 1957 in their joint bid to force WCIA to move to a UHF channel, in April 1958, Shellabarger sold controlling interest in the station to a group of Chicago businessmen fronted by advertising executive George Bolas. Several members of the Swanson family were also represented in the ownership. In January 1960, Prairie Television announced the sale of the station to Metropolitan Broadcasting of New York City, which then renamed itself Metromedia in 1961. The $ 570,000 purchase of

2415-523: The final WICD-produced newscast aired on April 3. In its place are newscasts simulcast from WICS (in all time slots) which provide market-wide coverage including content from the eastern areas through a downsized bureau at WICD's studios. On April 7, 2015, despite this significant reduction, WICD began airing a full sixty-minute Champaign-based prime time newscast (weeknights at 9) on WCCU entitled Fox Champaign News at Nine . The existing hour-long WICS-produced newscast on WRSP, which had been simulcast on WCCU,

2484-476: The first television station in East-Central Illinois to upgrade news production to high definition level. It was not until December 2012 that local newscasts seen on WICS were upgraded to HD. Included with the change was a new set at the Springfield studios and updated Sinclair corporate graphics. Until October 13, 2014, WICD's separate weekday newscasts at its Champaign studios were not included in

2553-679: The following year. On November 17, 2010, WICS became available to Dish Network customers in Terre Haute, Indiana , as the ABC affiliate since the market lacked an affiliate of its own. WICD's transmitter is near the border between Illinois and Indiana, and WICD was carried on most cable systems on the Illinois side of the Terre Haute market. However, WICS was the only station uplinked by satellite providers due to contractual obligations, since it

2622-420: The highest point available in the transmission area, such as on a summit , the top of a high skyscraper , or on a tall radio tower . To get a signal from the master control room to the transmitter, a studio/transmitter link (STL) is used. The link can be either by radio or T1 / E1 . A transmitter/studio link (TSL) may also send telemetry back to the station, but this may be embedded in subcarriers of

2691-400: The local television station has no station identification and, from a consumer's point of view, there is no practical distinction between a network and a station, with only small regional changes in programming, such as local television news . To broadcast its programs, a television station requires operators to operate equipment, a transmitter or radio antenna , which is often located at

2760-419: The main broadcast. Stations which retransmit or simulcast another may simply pick-up that station over-the-air , or via STL or satellite. The license usually specifies which other station it is allowed to carry. VHF stations often have very tall antennas due to their long wavelength , but require much less effective radiated power (ERP), and therefore use much less transmitter power output , also saving on

2829-607: The market's ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) deployment, which launched in December 2022. WAND shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 17, on February 17, 2009, the original target date on which full-power television stations in the United States were to transition from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate (which was pushed back to June 12, 2009). The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 18, using virtual channel 17. On June 6, 2011,

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2898-476: The programmes seen on its owner's flagship station, and have no television studio or production facilities of their own. This is common in developing countries . Low-power stations typically also fall into this category worldwide. Most stations which are not simulcast produce their own station identifications . TV stations may also advertise on or provide weather (or news) services to local radio stations , particularly co-owned sister stations . This may be

2967-477: The second 5 p.m. newscast in the area. Its launch was brought forward by five months to cover a five-month strike against Caterpillar Inc. In late 1993, a Doppler weather radar was installed atop the station's building in Decatur; the purchase, made by LIN as part of a push to add radar at all of its stations, represented the first Doppler radar in the local area. The 20-minute Good Morning Central Illinois shifted from 20 minutes to an hour in 1994. However, WAND

3036-401: The second attempt at a joint market-wide product by WICS/WICD. At one point in time, there had been a newscast weeknights at 5 that was simulcast on both outlets originating from Springfield. On March 13, 2015, Sinclair announced that WICD would stop offering separate newscasts on weekdays that focus on the eastern areas of the market (Champaign– Urbana –Danville). This change took effect after

3105-410: The severity of the event being forecast, stating that the system was "created by, likely, a journalism school graduate", rather than a professional meteorologist. (The initiative, which Sinclair began implementing in 2018 and is similar to systems devised by other groups such as Gray Television through the stations it inherited from the now-defunct Raycom Media , is known by different names depending on

3174-511: The station increased its power to the UHF maximum of five million watts. LIN wholly owned WAND until March 2000, when it sold 67 percent of the station to current owner Block Communications in exchange for 100 percent of WLFI-TV in Lafayette, Indiana . However, LIN continued to own a third of WAND and operate the station as part of the deal and did not sell the remaining stake to Block until November 2007. The continued LIN connection would have

3243-465: The station was a near-tripling of its value in two years. Under Metromedia, some operations of the station were shared with WTVH in Peoria , including senior leadership. Metromedia purchased the first video tape recorder at a central Illinois TV station for WTVP in 1961. Metromedia also set about expanding WTVP's coverage area. It applied for and built a translator on channel 77 to extend its signal into

3312-458: The station's news ratings strength is concentrated within Decatur and Macon County , with lesser figures in the areas of Springfield and Champaign–Urbana . Decatur was assigned ultra high frequency (UHF) channels 17 and 23 when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) lifted its four-year freeze on TV station grants in 1952. While Decatur radio stations WSOY and WDZ announced plans to apply, neither had done so by October 1952, when

3381-443: The station, such as "Weather Warn" or as a "(weather branding) Alert Day".) Critics of the initiative stated that the "Code Red" days unnecessarily alarm Central Illinois-area residents and harms local business revenue on the designated days. Despite complaints and comments from viewers on the station's social media platforms, letters to the editor and local talk radio shows, Sinclair continued to mandate its meteorologists to use

3450-515: The stations pursuant to shared services and joint sales agreements. Both WRSP/WCCU and WBUI were initially operated from separate facilities from WICS/WICD. However, WCCU quickly moved its advertising sales operation from its location on South Neil Street/U.S. 45 in Champaign into WICD's studios. Eventually, WRSP and WBUI also moved from their offices on Old Rochester Road in Springfield and were consolidated into WICS' facility. Along with several other Sinclair properties, WICS/WICD did not participate in

3519-411: The studios for a previously scheduled open house and to see the antenna hoisted atop the 550 feet (170 m) tower. The first test pattern went out two days later, and WTVP began telecasting on August 16, 1953. The station was a primary affiliate of ABC , though in the first months, programming from all the major networks—ABC, CBS, NBC , and DuMont Television Network —was shown. Months after going on

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3588-481: The terminology. The station's social media page was flooded with comments from viewers demanding the reinstatement of Joe Crain, pushing the hashtag #IStandWithJoeCrain, while U.S. Senator Dick Durbin ( D -IL) stating that the "Code Red" system "overstat[es] the danger to our community". Despite this, by June 11, Sinclair posted an advertisement on its website seeking a replacement for Crain as meteorologist for WICD/WICS and WRSP/WCCU's morning newscasts. On June 13,

3657-510: The time it owned WTVP, and it began to signal that it wanted to shed its Illinois stations in pursuit of larger markets. In March 1965, the company sold WTVH in Peoria to make room for the potential acquisition of a major-market UHF outlet. In October, it announced the $ 2 million sale of WTVP to LIN Broadcasting Company of Nashville, Tennessee ; LIN operated four Southern radio stations and a series of cable television systems but no TV stations. As

3726-469: The two (which count as one for regulatory purposes) plus KGAN in Cedar Rapids, Iowa , to Sunrise Television. However, the FCC did not allow Sunrise to buy WICS/WICD due to Sunrise's ownership structure. Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst (HMTF), an investment firm controlled by then- Texas Rangers and Dallas Stars owner Tom Hicks , owned a large block of Sunrise stock. HMTF was majority stockholder of

3795-416: The upgrade because that set lacked high definition cameras. On March 26, 2011, WICD ceased airing its own newscasts on weekends opting to simulcast those from WICS. These broadcasts are known as ABC NewsChannel and feature a common graphics package seen on WICS and WICD. Multimedia journalists based at WICD's Champaign studios still provide coverage of the eastern areas of the market. The change represented

3864-482: The wider implementation of the company's now-defunct, controversial News Central format for their newscasts. This format saw local news operations reduced at some stations and combined with national news coverage, weather forecasting , and sports headlines based out of Sinclair's headquarters in Hunt Valley, Maryland . WICS/WICD, however, did air The Point (a one-minute conservative political commentary) that

3933-399: The world. Television stations broadcasting over an analog system were typically limited to one television channel , but digital television enables broadcasting via subchannels as well. Television stations usually require a broadcast license from a government agency which sets the requirements and limitations on the station. In the United States, for example, a television license defines

4002-407: Was all that was available, leaving a 10-kilowatt unit to be installed at a later date). Fabrication of the station's transmitting antenna had become the principal obstacle to going on the air by the start of July, with eight changes in the promised shipping date from the manufacturer, RCA . Even while construction was drawing to a close, issues were emerging involving another station planning to get on

4071-423: Was also controversial and a requirement of all Sinclair-owned stations with newscasts until the series was discontinued in December 2006. On September 11, 2006, a news share agreement was established with WRSP/WCCU (then separately controlled). As a result, a nightly prime time newscast began airing on those two stations that was jointly produced by WICS/WICD. Known as NewsChannel at 9 on Fox Illinois , it aired for

4140-443: Was broken on a new 1,064-foot (324 m) tower and transmitting facility near Argenta, Illinois . It operated at 1.95 million watts, a nearly tenfold power increase from its predecessor. Though it was originally intended just to double channel 17's coverage area, after the new transmitter went online that October, reports of clear reception came from a larger area than anticipated. It also required some viewers in Decatur proper to buy

4209-519: Was considered the main station. WICS disappeared from the Terre Haute local feed in the fall of 2011 after that city's Fox affiliate, WFXW, rejoined ABC as WAWV-TV . On December 31 , 2012, the Sinclair Broadcast Group closed on the purchase of the non-license assets of GOCOM's three television stations, WRSP/WCCU and sister station WBUI for approximately $ 25.6 million. Sinclair is providing sales and other non-programming services to

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4278-503: Was further expanded on January 20, 2014, when WICS began producing a two-hour weekday morning show for the Fox affiliates. Known as Good Day Illinois , the program can be seen from 7 to 9 a.m. and offers a local alternative to the national morning programs seen on the big three networks . It also competes with another two-hour local newscast seen at same time on MyNetworkTV affiliate WCIX (produced by WCIA). On June 26, 2010, rival WAND became

4347-460: Was not nearly strong enough to reach the eastern portion of the area. At the time, UHF signals were not strong enough to cover large amounts of territory. Accordingly in 1959, Plains Television signed-on WCHU in Champaign as a low-power satellite of WICS. In 1960, it bought WDAN-TV (another low-power station in Danville ) and changed the calls to WICD. At the same time, WCHU began breaking off from

4416-434: Was not rebuilt for more than a year, hindering the station's reach. LIN sold majority ownership to Block Communications in 2000, but it continued to operate the station until Block purchased the remainder in 2007. During that time, WAND switched affiliations from ABC to NBC as part of a new group affiliation agreement between LIN and NBC. As the station's media market is spread out among several stations in different cities,

4485-405: Was owned by local non-broadcast investors and struggled due to its impaired reach. Investments were made in facilities and programming under Metromedia in the early 1960s, but it was as the first television station property owned by LIN Broadcasting that the station activated a more powerful transmitter facility and changed its call sign to WAND in 1966. The tower collapsed in a 1978 ice storm and

4554-437: Was particularly the case when covering Decatur (located between Springfield and Champaign). In June 2019, Sinclair fired Joe Crain, a weekday morning meteorologist who had been with WICS since 2006, for speaking out on-air – during the June 5 edition of NewsChannel 20 Sunrise – against a group mandate to Sinclair's news-producing stations to denote threats of severe thunderstorm activity through "Code Red" alerts, regardless of

4623-502: Was refocused to Springfield and became known as Fox News at Nine . The weekend edition of the prime time news will continue to be a market-wide simulcast on WRSP and WCCU. With the exception of the WCCU newscast, WICD no longer produces Champaign-specific local news. While WICS and WICD operated separate news departments, there was a considerable amount of resource sharing between the two outlets, such as with video footage and personnel. This

4692-678: Was the first regular television service in the world. It was on the air from 22 March 1935, until it was shut down in 1944. The station was named after Paul Gottlieb Nipkow , the inventor of the Nipkow disk . Most often the term "television station" refers to a station which broadcasts structured content to an audience or it refers to the organization that operates the station. A terrestrial television transmission can occur via analog television signals or, more recently, via digital television signals. Television stations are differentiated from cable television or other video providers as their content

4761-489: Was the last of the three major stations to only run an hour-long morning newscast as WCIA and WICS each extended their morning newscasts to start earlier than 6 a.m. On January 27, 2014, WAND expanded its weekday noon broadcast to one hour. 2018 saw the introduction of weekend morning newscasts. The station's signal is multiplexed : WAND hosts a subchannel of WRSP-TV and is in turn hosted in ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) as part of

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