WLVI

WLVI is a television station licensed to Cambridge, Massachusetts, serving the Boston metropolitan area as an affiliate of The CW. It operates as part of a broadcasting duopoly with WHDH, an independent Boston station owned by Sunbeam Television. The stations share facilities at Bulfinch Place near Government Center in downtown Boston, while WLVI transmits through a channel-sharing arrangement using WHDH's spectrum and tower facilities in Newton, Massachusetts. The station traces its roots to WTAO-TV, which received a construction permit in 1953 and began broadcasting on September 27 of that year. It was Boston's first UHF television station and one of the earliest UHF outlets in the United States. WTAO-TV was initially associated with the DuMont Television Network and carried some ABC programming, but its commercial prospects were weakened by the limited ability of television receivers to tune UHF channels before the All-Channel Receiver Act. After struggling with limited network and local programming, the station ceased broadcasting in March 1956 while retaining its construction permit. Kaiser Broadcasting revived channel 56 in 1966. Operating as WKBG-TV through a partnership involving Kaiser and The Boston Globe, the station returned to the air on December 21, 1966, with substantially improved transmission facilities and a stronger emphasis on movies, syndicated entertainment, local programming, and sports. It carried Boston Celtics games and later New England Whalers hockey, although competition for major Boston sports rights remained intense. The Globe eventually exited the partnership, and Kaiser later sold its interest to Field Communications. The call sign became WLVI-TV in 1974, using the Roman numeral representation of channel 56. Field sold WLVI to Gannett in 1983. During the Gannett period, the station maintained a broad independent-station schedule and became particularly recognizable for children's programming. Its children's brand included hosted cartoon blocks and the WLVI Kids Club, which attracted tens of thousands of members. WLVI also regained Boston Celtics road-game rights under a five-year agreement beginning in 1985. The station declined the Fox affiliation when that network launched in 1986, leaving Fox to acquire Boston outlet WXNE-TV, later WFXT. Tribune acquired WLVI from Gannett in a transaction announced in 1993 and completed in early 1994. Tribune had recently established The WB Television Network, and WLVI became one of the network's charter affiliates when The WB launched in January 1995. During the Tribune era, the station continued local entertainment and sports programming and retained a significant news identity through its 10 p.m. newscast. It also remained available on cable in Providence, Rhode Island, where it served as the area's practical WB affiliate until a local outlet launched. In 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. announced that UPN and The WB would be replaced by The CW. WLVI was selected as a CW affiliate, despite CBS ownership of Boston station WSBK. Before the network launched, Tribune sold WLVI to Sunbeam Television for a reported $117.3 million. Sunbeam assumed control in December 2006 and consolidated WLVI's remaining operations with WHDH. The final Tribune-produced WLVI newscast aired on December 18, 2006. Since then, WLVI has operated primarily as a CW programming outlet rather than as a separately staffed local-news station. Its current role combines network programming, syndicated entertainment, and the distribution infrastructure of the Sunbeam-owned WHDH operation.

WLVI began as WTAO-TV, created by Middlesex Broadcasting Company for Boston's newly allocated UHF channel 56. The FCC granted the construction permit in March 1953, and the station debuted that September from facilities associated with Zion Hill in Woburn. It was affiliated with DuMont and carried selected ABC programs, but UHF's limited household penetration made the station difficult to sustain. WTAO-TV stopped broadcasting on March 30, 1956, although its permit remained active. Harvey Radio Laboratories acquired the operation in 1959. In 1962, the company made the dormant television authorization available to the Archdiocese of Boston for a demonstration connected with Catholic television. The archdiocese ultimately established a different station, and the channel 56 call sign changed to WXHR-TV in 1965. Kaiser Broadcasting purchased the Boston-area operation in 1966 and rebuilt channel 56. In partnership with The Boston Globe, Kaiser launched WKBG-TV on December 21, 1966. The new station had a much stronger signal, new RCA equipment, and a schedule focused on movies, syndicated shows, local productions, and sports. Its sports portfolio included Celtics basketball, Bruins hockey at various points, and New England Whalers games. The station relocated its transmitter to a site in Needham and constructed a substantial studio complex in Dorchester. Despite those investments, it incurred substantial early losses. The Boston Globe reduced its interest and later sold its remaining share back to Kaiser. Kaiser Broadcasting merged with Field Communications in 1973, and Field became the sole owner of WLVI after acquiring Kaiser's interest in 1977. The station adopted the WLVI-TV call letters in 1974. In 1983, Field sold it to Gannett. Under Gannett, WLVI remained a prominent independent station and developed a durable children's-programming identity, including hosted cartoon blocks and the WLVI Kids Club. It also carried Celtics road games from 1985 to 1990 under a reported five-year, $12.5 million agreement. WLVI did not take the Fox affiliation in 1986; Fox instead moved onto channel 25, which became WFXT. Field had begun limited local news production before the Gannett sale. WLVI expanded the service in 1984 into a half-hour 10 p.m. broadcast called The News at Ten. The program later became a one-hour weeknight and weekend newscast and was renamed The Ten O'Clock News in 1993. For much of its run, it was a leading late-newscast service in Boston, although competition increased during the 1990s from WFXT and WSBK. WLVI's news operation continued until 2006, with its final Tribune-produced broadcast airing shortly before Sunbeam assumed control. Tribune acquired WLVI in the early 1990s. The station became a charter affiliate of The WB when that network launched in 1995 and also served as a practical WB outlet for Providence viewers through cable carriage. In August 1998, a crane collapse at the station's Dorchester facility caused significant damage and temporarily disrupted operations, forcing the station to use remote and shared facilities while repairs were made. The WB and UPN were replaced by The CW in 2006. WLVI received a CW affiliation agreement, but Tribune sold the station to Sunbeam Television before the new network began. The transaction closed in December 2006, after which Sunbeam integrated WLVI with WHDH. WLVI currently remains an active Boston-area CW station, sharing transmission and operational resources with WHDH rather than maintaining the separate full-scale news department it had operated under previous owners.

• 2006

  WLVI becomes a CW affiliate and is sold to Sunbeam

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  The station transitions from The WB to The CW and is acquired by Sunbeam Television.

• 1995

  WLVI becomes a WB affiliate

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  The station joins The WB at the network's launch.

• 1984

  The News at Ten expands

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  WLVI establishes a substantial local late-news operation.

• 1983

  Gannett takes ownership

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  Gannett purchases WLVI as Field Communications exits television broadcasting.

• 1974

  The WLVI call sign is adopted

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  Channel 56 changes from WKBG-TV to WLVI-TV.

• 1966

  Channel 56 is relaunched as WKBG-TV

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  Kaiser Broadcasting and The Boston Globe restore the station with upgraded facilities and a new general-entertainment format.

• 1956

  WTAO-TV leaves the air

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  The station suspends broadcasting after struggling with UHF reception limits and an insufficient programming base.

• 1953

  WTAO-TV begins broadcasting

  [1]WLVIen.wikipedia.org

  The station launches on September 27 as Boston's first UHF television outlet.

A Boston-market broadcast television station positioned as a local CW affiliate, with a heritage in independent television, syndicated entertainment, children's programming, local news, and regional sports.

• Network television · 2006

  The CW programming

  WLVI's principal current offering is carriage of The CW's entertainment schedule for the Boston television market. The station distributes network series and other CW programming over the air and through multichannel providers, supported by local station identification, promotion, and public-service obligations.

• Television news · 1969

  Local news programming

  WLVI historically produced local late-evening newscasts, beginning with a short-lived 1969 experiment and later developing The News at Ten and The Ten O'Clock News into a prominent Boston late-news operation. The separately produced news service ended after Sunbeam acquired the station in 2006.

• Television programming

  Children's programming

  During its independent-station years, WLVI built a recognizable children's schedule around cartoons and hosted presentation. The WLVI Kids Club, launched in 1990, extended that identity beyond the broadcast schedule and reportedly attracted members throughout New England and into Long Island.

• Sports broadcasting

  Regional sports telecasts

  WLVI's historical sports output included Boston Celtics and Boston Bruins games, New England Whalers hockey, and later New England Revolution soccer. Sports rights were central to the station's identity at several points, although it faced strong competition from other Boston outlets.

• 2006

  Join The CWProduct launch

  Background

  The WB and UPN were being replaced by a combined network created by CBS Corporation and Warner Bros.

  Action taken

  WLVI accepted a long-term affiliation agreement and began carrying The CW when the network launched.

  Aftermath

  The station became the Boston market's CW outlet, although ownership soon changed from Tribune to Sunbeam.

  • WSBK-TV — WSBK was owned by CBS, but WLVI retained the Boston CW affiliation despite that ownership relationship.

  Source

• 2006

  Sell WLVI to Sunbeam TelevisionM&A

  Background

  Tribune pursued asset sales under a balance-sheet improvement plan while the station was preparing to change network affiliations.

  Action taken

  Tribune announced the sale of WLVI to Sunbeam Television, which already owned WHDH in Boston.

  Aftermath

  Sunbeam consolidated WLVI's operations with WHDH, ended the separately produced news operation, and retained WLVI as a CW outlet.

  Reported purchase price. $117.3 million (2006 transaction)

  Source

1. 1WLVIen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Official WHDH/CW56 pagewhdh.com