WGPX-TV

WGPX-TV is a full-power television station licensed to Burlington, North Carolina, and serving the Piedmont Triad region. It operates on virtual channel 16 and is affiliated with Ion Television. The station is currently owned by Inyo Broadcast Holdings. Its administrative offices are in Greensboro, while its transmitter is located in Randleman, North Carolina. The station began broadcasting on August 7, 1984, under the call sign WRDG. It initially operated as a religious independent station. In 1990, the call letters changed to WAAP, and the station continued to carry religious programming while adding Shop at Home home-shopping content. During 1992, WAAP broadened its schedule with cartoons in morning and afternoon periods and inexpensive barter-syndicated entertainment programs in the evening. It also briefly produced a local newscast, News Source 16, in 1991; the program was canceled the following year. By 1993, WAAP had moved toward a general-entertainment format. Its schedule included syndicated barter programming and professional wrestling from organizations including the United States Wrestling Association, Smoky Mountain Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation. The station faced strong competition from other independent and emerging network-affiliated outlets in the Triad market. Its limited ratings performance made it difficult to secure a major network affiliation. WAAP sought an affiliation with either UPN or The WB when those networks launched in 1995, but both networks selected other local outlets. Later that year, WAAP obtained several syndicated cartoons previously carried by stations that were changing their programming arrangements. Paxson Communications acquired the station in July 1996. By the end of that year, WAAP had become affiliated with the Infomall Television Network, commonly known as inTV, and carried a schedule dominated by infomercials and religious programming, including overnight content from The Worship Network. The station adopted the WGPX-TV call sign in January 1998. On August 31, 1998, it became a charter owned-and-operated station of Pax TV, the network later renamed Ion Television. WGPX-TV has also undergone changes to its transmission facilities. For many years, its signal originated from a transmitter in the Cane Creek Mountains near Snow Camp. The transmitter was later relocated to southern Rockingham County, and the station now transmits from Randleman. Like other full-power U.S. television stations, WGPX-TV completed the federally mandated transition from analog to digital broadcasting on June 12, 2009. Its digital signal continued using UHF channel 14 while retaining virtual channel 16. The station's recent identity has been shaped by Ion Television's national programming model rather than by locally produced news or entertainment. On February 27, 2021, its second, third, and fourth digital subchannels changed from Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop to Grit, Court TV, and Laff, respectively, following the discontinuation of the former services. WGPX-TV therefore functions primarily as a local broadcast outlet for Ion's national schedule, supplemented by nationally distributed digital multicast networks.

WGPX-TV signed on August 7, 1984, as WRDG, a religious independent station licensed to Burlington, North Carolina. It later adopted the WAAP call sign in 1990 while retaining religious programming and adding home-shopping content from Shop at Home. In 1991, the station briefly attempted local news with News Source 16. That newscast was canceled in 1992. During 1992 and 1993, WAAP gradually expanded into general entertainment. Cartoons occupied portions of the daytime schedule, while barter-syndicated programs and professional wrestling filled much of the evening lineup. The station carried wrestling from the United States Wrestling Association, Smoky Mountain Wrestling, and the World Wrestling Federation. Despite these changes, it remained a minor competitor in the Piedmont Triad, where several other independent or emerging network stations competed for viewers and syndicated programming. WAAP sought a UPN or WB affiliation when those networks began in January 1995, but neither network selected it. The station subsequently acquired some syndicated cartoons from local stations whose schedules were changing. Paxson Communications purchased WAAP in July 1996. Later that year, the station became an outlet for the Infomall Television Network, or inTV, with infomercials and religious programming making up most of the schedule. Overnight programming from The Worship Network was also carried. The station changed its call letters to WGPX-TV in January 1998 and became a charter owned-and-operated station of Pax TV when that network launched on August 31, 1998. Pax TV was later renamed Ion Television, and WGPX-TV continued as an Ion outlet. The station's transmitter was originally located in the Cane Creek Mountains near Snow Camp before being moved to southern Rockingham County; its current transmitter site is in Randleman. WGPX-TV ended analog broadcasting on June 12, 2009, in accordance with the U.S. digital television transition. Its digital signal remained on pre-transition UHF channel 14, using virtual channel 16. On February 27, 2021, the station revised its digital multicast services after Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop stopped broadcasting. The affected subchannels adopted Grit, Court TV, and Laff. Today, WGPX-TV serves the Piedmont Triad primarily through Ion Television's national schedule and associated multicast services.

• 2021

  Multicast services are replaced

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Grit, Court TV, and Laff replace Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop on the station's second through fourth subchannels.

• 2009

  Digital transition

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WGPX-TV shuts down its analog signal and continues digitally on UHF channel 14 under virtual channel 16.

• 1998

  WGPX-TV becomes a charter Pax TV station

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The station adopts the WGPX-TV call sign in January and becomes a charter owned-and-operated station of Pax TV at the network's August launch.

• 1996

  Paxson Communications acquires the station

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Paxson Communications purchases WAAP and transitions it toward the inTV programming service.

• 1991

  News Source 16 launches

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  WAAP introduces a local newscast, which is discontinued in 1992.

• 1990

  Call sign changes to WAAP

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The station adopts the WAAP call letters while continuing religious programming and adding Shop at Home content.

• 1984

  Station launches as WRDG

  [1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  The Burlington-licensed station begins broadcasting as WRDG with a religious independent format.

A network-affiliated, full-power broadcast station serving the Piedmont Triad, with a schedule centered on Ion Television and nationally distributed digital multicast services rather than a substantial locally produced news operation.

• Broadcast television network affiliation · 1998

  Ion Television

  WGPX-TV's principal service is Ion Television, a national broadcast network whose programming forms the core of the station's schedule. The affiliation dates to the launch of Pax TV on August 31, 1998, when WGPX-TV became one of the network's charter owned-and-operated stations.

• Digital multicast television · 2021

  Grit

  Grit is carried on WGPX-TV's second digital subchannel following the February 2021 replacement of Ion Plus. The service is distributed as part of the station's multicast lineup.

• Digital multicast television · 2021

  Court TV

  Court TV occupies WGPX-TV's third digital subchannel after the station's February 2021 lineup change. It provides a nationally distributed court and legal programming service.

• Digital multicast television · 2021

  Laff

  Laff is carried on the station's fourth digital subchannel. It replaced Ion Shop in the February 2021 multicast realignment.

• 2021

  Digital subchannel realignmentGeneration change

  Background

  Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop ceased broadcasting, requiring changes to affiliated stations' multicast lineups.

  Action taken

  WGPX-TV replaced those services on its second, third, and fourth subchannels with Grit, Court TV, and Laff.

  Aftermath

  The station's multicast portfolio shifted from Ion-branded and children's programming services toward entertainment and legal-content networks.

  Source

• 1998

  Adoption of the Pax TV affiliationStrategy

  Background

  Paxson Communications was developing a national broadcast network focused on a consistent network schedule.

  Action taken

  The station changed its call letters to WGPX-TV and joined Pax TV as a charter owned-and-operated station at the network's launch.

  Aftermath

  Pax TV was later renamed Ion Television, and WGPX-TV continued as an Ion outlet.

  Source

• 1996

  Shift to the inTV programming modelStrategy

  Background

  After Paxson Communications acquired the station, its previous general-entertainment strategy was replaced by a schedule centered on infomercials and religious programming.

  Action taken

  WAAP became affiliated with the Infomall Television Network and also carried overnight programming from The Worship Network.

  Aftermath

  The change preceded the station's 1998 conversion into a charter Pax TV station and eventual Ion Television affiliation.

  Source

• 2021

  WGPX-TV changes its digital multicast lineup[1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Product generation · Other

  The station replaced Ion Plus, Qubo, and Ion Shop on its second, third, and fourth digital subchannels with Grit, Court TV, and Laff after the former services ceased broadcasting.

• 2009

  WGPX-TV completes the U.S. analog-to-digital transition[1]WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org

  Regulation · Other

  WGPX-TV ended its analog transmission as part of the federally mandated transition for full-power television stations. Its digital operation continued on UHF channel 14 with virtual channel 16.

1. 1WGPX-TVen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Ion Televisioniontelevision.com