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's surface to any number of tuned receivers simultaneously.
57-560: WAVE (channel 3) is a television station in Louisville, Kentucky , United States, affiliated with NBC and owned by Gray Television . The station's studios are located on South Floyd Street in downtown Louisville , and its transmitter is located in Floyds Knobs, Indiana . The station first signed on the air on November 24, 1948, originally broadcasting on VHF channel 5 with an effective radiated power of 24,100 watts . WAVE
114-572: 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 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
171-676: A barter in some cases. Al Ham Albert W. Ham (February 6, 1925 in Malden, Massachusetts — October 4, 2001 in Spring Hill, Florida ) was an American composer and jingle writer. He was notable as the composer of the Move Closer to Your World music package used since the 1970s on WPVI-TV 's Action News broadcasts in Philadelphia , and, most notably, WKBW-TV 's Eyewitness News , as well as on many other newscasts in
228-504: 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 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
285-503: A "spatial" sound that he put to use when he helped to create the first stereo LPs issued by Columbia. He worked with Dr. Peter Goldmark, creator of the long-playing record, on special circuit projects that broke new ground for stereo, multi-track recordings and broadcast signal processing. In the commercial field Ham worked consistently as a composer and arranger. His commercials have won many awards for best musical theme and scoring, including CLIO Awards and four gold medal winners at
342-684: A circle broken by a curved sine wave , which became the station's signature logo motif. It also dropped mention of channel 3 in most of its branding. WAVE-TV was founded and owned by George W. Norton Jr., a lawyer and financier who had also put WAVE radio (970 AM, now WGTK) on the air in 1933. Over the years, the Nortons acquired three other television stations and two other radio stations. They purchased WFIE-TV ( Evansville, Indiana ) in 1956; WFRV-TV ( Green Bay, Wisconsin ) and semi-satellite WJMN-TV ( Marquette, Michigan ) in 1961; and WMT-AM - FM - TV ( Cedar Rapids, Iowa ) in 1968, all of which shared
399-521: A common logotype style. Following the last acquisition, the Norton holdings became known as Orion Broadcasting, "after a prominent and brilliant constellation ". With WAVE-TV-AM serving as the flagship station , Orion greatly expanded its news, weather, editorials, agricultural programs, and documentaries. News bureaus were set up in Frankfort, Kentucky , and Washington, D.C. As a result, WAVE-TV-AM won
456-578: A fill-in whenever one of the station's meteorologists was on vacation, and announced that he was considering a return to the University of Louisville to teach meteorology as he did for several years. The station celebrated his 40-year tenure with the station during a special two-hour edition of WAVE 3 Listens Live , in which Wills's family and co-workers appeared as guests. Meteorologist John Belski, who left channel 3 in September 2010 (he now works as
513-415: 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
570-500: A number of national awards, including a Peabody in 1978. Orion merged with Liberty Corporation in 1981. WAVE-TV then became part of Liberty's broadcast arm, Cosmos Broadcasting. WAVE radio was then sold off; the WAVE cluster had been grandfathered when the FCC banned common ownership of radio and television stations in the same market in the 1960s, but lost its grandfathered protection with
627-490: A popular jingle and image campaign that the station introduced in the early 1970s. In fact, that very jingle served as the image campaign of the Al Ham -composed news music package "Home Country". On January 18, 2022, WAVE-TV reintroduced a logo inspired by the station's 1960s logo (which has remained on the station's studio building since its opening and been restored in subsequent remodels), consisting of its call letters in
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#1732797938139684-549: A severe weather specialist for WLKY), received numerous awards during his 20+ years at WAVE, including being named "Best Of Louisville" by the readers of Louisville Magazine for a number of years and was named "Best of Kentucky" by the readers of Kentucky Monthly magazine, as well as receiving the LEO's Readers' Choice Award and a "Best of the Best" award from Louisville Magazine (which is given to people and organizations that have won
741-635: A station to broadcast a minimum amount of certain programs types, such as public affairs messages . Another form of television station 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,
798-483: 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 is broadcast via terrestrial radio waves. A group of television stations with common ownership or affiliation are known as
855-561: A subsidiary of WAVE-TV's current owner, lost the rights to ESPN Regional Television at the end of the 2008–09 basketball season. The SEC syndication package by ESPN Plus ended up with WBNA throughout the 2009–2014 existence of the syndicated SEC Network (later SEC TV ). In 2014, after the University of Louisville joined the Atlantic Coast Conference , WAVE and WHAS-TV began sharing Raycom Sports' ACC Network package until its discontinuation in 2019. As NBC has held
912-425: 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
969-554: Is a small park with water and greenery, now dedicated to the late George Norton. Three years later, in 1962, channel 3 became the first station in the region to transmit live, locally produced programming in color . By 1966, it was the only Kentucky station that processed its own news footage on color film and, in 1969, WAVE-TV became the first station in the market to employ a certified television meteorologist (Tom Wills) and operate its own weather-forecasting system. The station notably refers to its coverage area as "WAVE Country", echoing
1026-431: Is broadcast in standard definition . In March 2011, WAVE and WHAS-TV began sharing a news helicopter supplied by St. Louis-based Helicopters Inc., through a Local News Service agreement, allowing the two stations to share news video, especially during breaking news events, while also partitioning time for individual use of the chopper. The starboard side of the copter displays a "Sky 11" decal (referencing WHAS-TV), while
1083-792: 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
1140-619: Is part of the Lexington market; cable providers in Frankfort have carried stations from both Lexington and Louisville for decades. On December 20, 2017, the Frankfort Plant Board announced that it would drop WAVE and competitor WHAS on January 1 , 2018 in order to curb rising retransmission consent costs that were being passed on to its customers. While they announced the continued carriage of WHAS on December 29, 2017; WAVE
1197-619: Is the only commercial television station in the Louisville market that has never changed its primary network affiliation. In 1953, WAVE-TV moved to VHF channel 3, due to signal interference issues with fellow NBC affiliate WLWT in Cincinnati . The move included a new, 100,000 watt transmitter and 600-foot (183 m) tower atop a 925-foot (282 m) (above sea level ) knob above New Albany, Indiana. This increased WAVE-TV's coverage by 66%. WAVE-TV made history again in 1954 as it became
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#17327979381391254-985: The Glenn Miller Orchestra , Ham joined as arranger and bass player, working with Henry Mancini , then on staff as arranger. While working for Beneke he met and married Mary Mayo , who was singing with the Glenn Miller Orchestra. After the birth of their daughter Lorri, Ham and his wife moved to New York in 1956 where he worked at Columbia Records . He was named director of special artists and repertoire (A&R) projects under Mitch Miller and produced records for such artists as The Ray Conniff Singers , The Ray Conniff Orchestra, Rosemary Clooney, Vic Damone , Percy Faith , Jerry Vale , Johnny Mathis , Johnnie Ray , Leslie Uggams , Kitty Callen, Guy Mitchell , The Kirby Stone Four , Tony Bennett , The Count Basie Orchestra , Frankie Laine , Jimmy Dean , The Four Lads , and Oscar Brown Jr. He
1311-487: The Grit TV network in late 2014. WAVE discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over VHF channel 3, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 47, using virtual channel 3. WAVE is available on cable providers in
1368-534: 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
1425-482: The "Best of Louisville" award more than 10 times). Belski anchored severe weather coverage that earned him and the station several Emmy Awards ; he was also presented the prestigious Mark Trail Award for bringing public awareness to weather radios as a lifeline during severe weather, which was presented to Belski on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. Sports director Kent Taylor was voted "Kentucky TV Sportscaster of
1482-605: The 7 and 7:30 p.m. newscasts began simulcasting live on Bounce 3.2. The station added a half-hour 3 p.m. newscast on January 28, 2019; it expanded to a full hour on September 9. On April 24, 2020, WAVE added an additional hour of news each weekday at 4 p.m. During the 1990s and 2000s, WAVE carried Southeastern Conference football and basketball through Jefferson-Pilot Sports (later Lincoln Financial Sports) which merged into Raycom Sports in 2007–08, although some football games were aired on WBKI-TV or WFTE (now WBKI ). This ended in 2009 when Raycom Sports, coincidentally
1539-747: The Bowling Green media market, Green and Larue counties (within the Louisville market), as well as Monroe County , which is in the Nashville media market. WAVE and WHAS were dropped in January 2018 from the SCRTC's systems in Barren, Hart, Metcalfe and Monroe Counties due to local NBC affiliate WNKY (and in Monroe County's case, WSMV-TV) claiming market exclusivity. WAVE's Bounce TV subchannel
1596-636: The Derby, WAVE acquired a Zoomar lens of its own, which was frequently loaned to the other stations owned by WAVE-TV. WAVE-TV lost CBS programming when WHAS-TV (channel 11, now an ABC affiliate) signed on in March 1950; it later lost DuMont when the network folded in August 1956. Channel 3 continued to share ABC programming with WHAS-TV until WLKY (channel 32) signed on as a full-time affiliate in September 1961. It has remained with NBC since then, and as such, WAVE
1653-516: The International Film and Television Festivals. As arranger, composer, or both, His many commercials include State Farm Insurance ("Like a good neighbor, State Farm is there."), Breck Shampoo , McDonald's (i.e. "You Deserve a Break Today"), Gillette , Kinney Shoes , Woolco , Kodak , and Scope . Ham also composed, arranged, and conducted news and station image music packages that have been broadcast by scores of TV stations across
1710-1451: The Liberty Corporation exited the insurance industry in 2000, WAVE came directly under the Liberty banner; in August 2005, Liberty announced that it would merge with Montgomery, Alabama –based Raycom Media ; the sale was finalized on January 31, 2006. This brought it a new sister station nearby in the Cincinnati market to the north, Fox affiliate WXIX-TV . On June 25, 2018, Atlanta -based Gray Television announced it had reached an agreement with Raycom to merge their respective broadcasting assets (consisting of Raycom's 63 existing owned-and/or-operated television stations, including WAVE), and Gray's 93 television stations) under Gray's corporate umbrella. The cash-and-stock merger transaction valued at $ 3.6 billion – in which Gray shareholders would acquire preferred stock currently held by Raycom – resulted in WAVE gaining new sister stations in nearby markets, including CBS affiliate WKYT-TV in Lexington (and its semi-satellite WYMT-TV in Hazard ) and ABC/Fox affiliate WBKO in Bowling Green , in addition to its current Raycom sister stations. The sale
1767-532: The Liberty merger. As the radio station promptly changed its call sign to WAVG, Cosmos dropped the "-TV" suffix from the WAVE callsign in 1987. In 1991, the station began transmitting its signal from a new broadcast tower in Oldham County ; the 1,739 feet (530 m) transmitter tower (which is 70% taller than most television broadcast towers), which is the tallest structure in the state, cost $ 5 million to build and helped to improve WAVE's signal coverage. When
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1824-488: The Louisville market for over 20 years, before WHAS-TV overtook it at #1 in the 1970s. The station has spent most of the last four decades as runner-up to WHAS-TV, though in recent years it has had to fend off a spirited challenge from WLKY. Louisville is also one of the few markets in the country where all four of the major network-affiliated stations have roughly equal ratings in recent years, although WLKY pulled ahead of WAVE, WHAS-TV and Fox affiliate WDRB (channel 41) during
1881-429: The Louisville offices for Metro United Way ), WAVE-TV moved into its current downtown facility at 725 South Floyd Street. The new, specially designed building was dedicated with a commissioned opera, Beatrice , by Lee Hoiby. George Norton's wife, Jane Morton Norton, an accomplished artist herself, also commissioned original paintings for the building and statues for the adjacent WAVE Garden. The Garden, facing on Broadway,
1938-583: The May 2011 Nielsen ratings period. On July 9, 1990, WAVE debuted the first 5 p.m. newscast in the Louisville market; titled FirstNews , it was anchored by veteran broadcaster Jackie Hays, who went on to become the longest-serving female anchor in the station's history (before WAVE, Hays anchored at then-NBC affiliate KYW-TV in Philadelphia; that station is currently a CBS O&O). Hays and co-anchor Don Schroeder were voted "Best TV News Anchor Team" and
1995-647: 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
2052-493: The United States throughout the 1970s and 1980s. He was also notable as creator of the adult standards radio format Music of Your Life . Ham began as bass player for Artie Shaw when he was 17. While attending Amherst College after WWII , Ham arranged and played double bass for the Tony Pastor Orchestra when the featured singers were Rosemary Clooney and her sister Betty. When Tex Beneke re-formed
2109-602: The World – I Want to Get Off , which he also conducted. And, a Grammy award for the "Best Spoken Word Recording" for his production of James Whitmore's Give 'em Hell, Harry! on United Artists Records. Ham also acted as programmer and associate producer for T.A.M.I. (Teenage Musical International) which featured performances by The Rolling Stones , The Beach Boys , James Brown , The Supremes , Marvin Gaye , Lesley Gore , Chuck Berry , and many other popular music stars. The show
2166-576: The Year" by the Associated Press in 2008, 2009 and 2012. On June 30, 2008, WAVE became the first television station in the Louisville market to begin broadcasting its local newscasts in high definition . WAVE is the only one of two stations that broadcast at least some portion of their newscasts in HD; footage shot in-studio is broadcast in high definition, while all news video from on-remote locations
2223-484: The country. They include "Move Closer to Your World", "Part of Your Life", "Home Country", "Bringing it Home to You", and "On Top of It All". Ham's film credits include the score of the Electronovision version of Harlow , which produced the song "I Believed it All", (Written with Lyricists Marilyn and Alan Bergman). An Academy Award nomination for his superb adaptation and scoring of Warner Brothers’ Stop
2280-415: The discontinuation of the network on in-market ABC affiliate WTVQ-DT 's seventh subchannel. The latter practice ended when in-market NBC affiliate WLEX-TV replaced their MeTV affiliation with Grit in September 2022. WAVE was also available to all customers of the cable system of Glasgow, Kentucky -based South Central Rural Telephone Cooperative (SCRTC), which serve Barren , Hart, and Metcalfe counties in
2337-1029: The eastern portion of the Evansville market (in Dubois and Perry counties), the southern portion of the Indianapolis (in Lawrence County ) and Cincinnati (in Ripley and Switzerland counties in Indiana, and Owen County in Kentucky) markets, the northern portion of the small Bowling Green market (in Hart County ), and on cable providers in the westernmost portion of the Lexington market (in Anderson County ). WAVE had been carried on Frankfort Plant Board's cable system in Frankfort, which
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2394-615: The first station in Louisville to broadcast programming in color; viewers were treated to a vivid image of the new NBC Peacock logo when it made its 1956 debut. During 1958–59, WAVE-TV produced in its studios educational programs for Jefferson County Schools —the forerunner of WFPK-TV (channel 15, now WKPC-TV ). From 1954 to 1962, WAVE-TV also produced in its studio Tomorrow's Champions , a police-sponsored program for young amateur boxers . Muhammad Ali (then Cassius Clay) got his start there. In July 1959, having long since outgrown its original studio facility on East Broadway (which now houses
2451-420: 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
2508-400: 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
2565-419: 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
2622-623: The port side carries the "Air 3" logo (referencing WAVE). Following a disappointing November 2011 sweeps period, WAVE moved its midday newscast from noon to 11 a.m. in January 2012. With the change, WAVE is the only station in the market whose midday newscast airs in the 11 a.m. timeslot (however, WDRB has carried a newscast at 11:30 a.m. since 1999). The midday newscast was rebroadcast at 1 p.m. on independent station WBNA (channel 21). In 2013, WAVE began airing rebroadcasts of its 7 and 7:30 p.m. newscasts on its Bounce TV-affiliated third digital subchannel at 8 p.m. In 2016,
2679-476: 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
2736-497: The rights to the Kentucky Derby since 2001, WAVE has been designated as the "Official Station" for the Derby, which includes live coverage of the race itself. The station's signal is multiplexed : WAVE-DT2 carried This TV programming from 2008 until 2014, when it was replaced by Bounce TV , with This moving to WKYI-CD . Bounce TV was carried on WAVE-DT3 (channel 3.3) until it was moved up to channel 3.2 to make way for
2793-542: The station itself was chosen as "Best Source for Local News" by readers of Louisville Magazine . Jackie Hays retired from WAVE in 2009 and was inducted into the Kentucky Journalism Hall of Fame in 2011. Former chief meteorologist Tom Wills holds the record as the station's longest-tenured on-air personality, having been with WAVE from 1969 until his retirement in July 2009; Wills stated that he would serve as
2850-412: The station produces two live call-in discussion programs each weekday, Listens Live at 12:30 p.m. (following WAVE News at Noon ) and WAVE Country with Dawne Gee at 2 p.m. (before InvestigateTV+ at 2:30 p.m.). In the early days, both WAVE television and radio news was done live with Livingston Gilbert; he anchored for 39 years until his 1980 retirement. Channel 3 was the ratings leader in
2907-474: Was a front runner of the type of concert programming that is now standard TV fare. Ham's additional musical credits include his arrangement and production of " I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing " by his group, the Hillside Singers (which included his wife Mary and daughter Lorri) for Metromedia Records , and the recordings he produced with his group The Midas Touch on MCA records. He also received
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#17327979381392964-440: Was also recording director for original cast albums, and produced LPs of such Broadway hits as West Side Story , The Most Happy Fella , Gypsy , House of Flowers , and Bells are Ringing . During his time as a producer at Columbia, Ham brought more to the studio than his knowledge of music and his intuition for recognizing hit material. He brought an electronic knowledge that resulted in many technical studio improvements and
3021-528: Was approved on December 20, and was completed on January 2, 2019. With the acquisition of Meredith Corporation 's Local Media division (including WSMV-TV in Nashville ) on December 1, 2021, Gray now owns stations in every market in or surrounding Kentucky. WAVE presently broadcasts 53 + 1 ⁄ 2 hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with nine hours each weekday, four hours on Saturdays and 4 + 1 ⁄ 2 hours on Sundays); in addition,
3078-399: Was national and foreign news. On May 7, 1949, WAVE-TV became the first television station in the United States to present a live telecast of the Kentucky Derby . The station shipped a canned newsreel of the event to NBC to broadcast nationally. The telecast was the first use of a Zoomar Lens in a television sports broadcast. The lens was loaned to WAVE by inventor Frank Back. Not long after
3135-522: Was replaced with that of WCZU-LD . Television station The Fernsehsender Paul Nipkow ( TV Station Paul Nipkow ) in Berlin , Germany , 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
3192-694: Was still dropped on January 1. On December 28, 2020, the FPB Board of Directors voted to approve a retransmission consent agreement with Gray Television negotiated by the National Cable Television Cooperative for WAVE and in-market CBS affiliate WKYT, bringing the NBC affiliate back starting in January 2021. After the three-year hiatus, WAVE officially returned to its former channel slots on 3 and 503 on January 12, 2021. FPB also began carrying Grit from WAVE-DT4 on channel 98 following
3249-632: Was the first television station to sign on in the state of Kentucky, and the 41st to debut in the United States. The station has been a primary NBC affiliate since its debut, owing to its sister radio station's longtime affiliation with the NBC Red Network ; however, it also initially carried secondary affiliations with ABC , CBS and the DuMont Television Network . The national coaxial cable did not reach Louisville until 1950; prior to that, NBC programs were shown on film, as
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