WDCW

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WDCW
Washington, D.C.
Branding	The CW Washington
Channels	50 (UHF) analog, 51 (UHF) digital
Affiliations	CW The Tube Music Network DT2
Owner	Tribune Company
Founded	January 1, 1972
Call letters meaning	a portmanteau of Washington DC, and the CW network
Former callsigns	WGSP-TV (1972-1973) WCQR (1981-1985) WFTY (1985-1995) WBDC-TV (1995-2006)
Former affiliations	Independent (1972-1995) The WB (1995-2006)
Transmitter Power	4168 kW/252.5 m (analog) 125 kW/252.5 m (digital)
Website	www.thecwdc.com

WDCW, channel 50, is Washington, D.C.'s CW affiliate, owned by the Tribune Company.

[edit] History

Channel 50 first signed on January 1, 1972 as WGSP-TV. The station ran test patterns for a while, then shut down. On April 6, 1981, channel 50 signed back on as WCQR. WCQR aired SuperTV, subscription programming at night, and live pictures of Washington, DC from above its broadcasting tower by day. The live pictures were soon replaced with programming from the Financial News Network.

Hill Broadcasting purchased both Channel 50 and WHLL-TV, Channel 27 (now WUNI) in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1985. On July 1, 1985, channel 50's call letters were changed to WFTY. The station then became a full-time independent station early in 1986. Initially the station ran a lineup of classic off-network sitcoms and dramas, cartoons, movies, and some religious shows. However, it was airing mostly religious shows, infomercials, low budget but copyrighted movies, and a few off-network dramas by 1988. Ratings were very low, but so were the programming costs. WFTY did pick up a few cartoons for the 7-9 AM slot in June 1990 when WTTG dropped its children's block for a morning newscast.

In 1993, WFTY, along with WHLL, was purchased by the Jasas Corporation. In the fall of that year, WFTY added more cartoons, barter sitcoms, some low priced syndicated shows and cut back on paid programming. On January 11, 1995 WFTY became an affiliate of the WB network and on September 6, 1995, the call letters were changed to WBDC-TV to reflect its status as Washington's WB affiliate. In 1996, Tribune Broadcasting began managing the station and in 1999, purchased the station outright from the Jasas Corporation.

On January 24, 2006, the WB and UPN networks announced they would merge, effective September 2006. The newly combined network would be called The CW, the letters representing the first initial of its corporate parents CBS (the parent company of UPN) and the Warner Bros. unit of Time Warner. During this announcement, it was revealed that WBDC would become the CW's Washington affiliate. On May 1, 2006, WBDC changed its call letters to WDCW to reflect this. On July 20, the station began airing a promotional item that featured both a new logo and the station's new branding: The CW Washington. The station's web address has changed to "thecwdc.com".

Today WDCW offers a lineup of off-network sitcoms, cartoons from Kids WB, prime time first-run shows from The CW, syndicated talk/court/reality shows, sports, and paid programming. WDCW also runs a community affairs program called "The Inner Loop", which premiered under the title "WB Now". There are no news programs on this station.

It has been speculated recently that WDCW may be sold to Gannett, along with other Tribune assets. This is due in part to the financial troubles of the Tribune Company. If this occurs, that would give WUSA a duopoly with WDCW, much like many FOX/MyNetworkTV stations.

[edit] External links

• Station Website
• Station History
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WDCW