WMAQ-TV
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| WMAQ-TV | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Chicago, Illinois | |
| Branding | NBC5 Chicago |
| Channels | 5 (VHF) analog, 29 (UHF) digital |
| Affiliations | NBC |
| Owner | NBC Universal |
| Founded | January 7, 1948 |
| Call letters meaning | We Must Ask Questions |
| Former callsigns | WNBQ (1948-1964) |
| Former affiliations | None |
| Transmitter Power | 20 kW/494 m (analog) 350 kW/508 m (digital) |
| Website | http://www.nbc5.com/ |
WMAQ-TV, officially branded as NBC5 Chicago, is a American television station in Chicago, Illinois owned and operated by National Broadcasting Company and present-day NBC. Broadcasting from facilities at NBC Tower on North Columbus Drive and its Magnificent Mile street-level Studio 5 on North Michigan Avenue, the station transmits from the Sears Tower. WMAQ-TV call letters refers to a past slogan, "We Must Ask Questions."
Contents |
[edit] History
The station signed on January 7, 1948, as WNBQ. Eight years later, it became the first station to broadcast all of its programs in color. Though NBC had long owned WMAQ-AM, it did not change the TV station's call letters to match until 1964.
WMAQ-TV gained fame for its newscasts during the 1960s, anchored by Floyd Kalber, with weatherman Harry Volkman (later of WBBM-TV, WGN-TV and WFLD), and commentator Len O'Connor. In 1975, Jane Pauley, later of NBC national news, briefly co-anchored WMAQ-TV's 10 p.m. news with Kalber. The station operated from the Merchandise Mart before moving to the NBC Tower in 1989.
The station was not only a launching pad for Jane Pauley, but also for a few other personalities before they went national as well, including CBS sportsman Greg Gumbel, CNN Headline News morning anchor Robin Meade, Inside Edition host Deborah Norville, and The Insider host Pat O'Brien.
[edit] Jerry Springer controversy
WMAQ achieved notoriety in 1997 when the station, in an effort to boost its newscast ratings, hired Jerry Springer as a commentator. At the same time, the station adopted a more tabloid news format by bringing in Joel Cheatwood. Previously, Cheatwood was known for establishing fast-paced tabloid newscasts at WSVN in Miami, Florida and WHDH in Boston, Massachusetts.
Though Springer was once a newscaster at WLWT in Cincinnati, Ohio (another NBC affiliate), his association with his infamous talk show (which was, and is, broadcast from WMAQ's NBC Tower studios, and is now distributed by NBC Universal) led to the belief that the newscast was being dumbed down. There were a handful of Springer supporters; nevertheless, the incident triggered a lot of negative publicity, both locally and nationally. The station's well-respected longtime anchor team, Carol Marin and Ron Magers, resigned in protest. News broadcasts at that time originated from a studio that opened onto the station's newsroom. As Marin signed off her last newscast, station personnel stood en masse in the newsroom behind her in a symbolic show of support for her decision to resign. The station saw a drop in its ratings. Springer only made two commentaries before being let go, and station management later called his hiring a mistake.
Magers wound up at rival WLS-TV, where he still is today. Marin joined rival WBBM-TV while contributing reports at CBS before coming back to WMAQ in 2004 as a special correspondent.
[edit] Logos
 WNBQ logo with RCA logo |
 WMAQ-TV logo from 1964 to 1969 |
 WMAQ-TV logo from January 1, 1976 to January 25, 1986 (Channel 5 used the Proud N [11-feathered peacock merged with the N] from September, 1979 to January 25, 1986) |
 WMAQ-TV logo from January 26, 1986 to July 24, 1992 (used the 11-feathered peacock from January to May 1986) |
 WMAQ-TV logo from 1996 to 2000 |
 The Present NBC 5 logo, used since 2000 |
[edit] News
The station's radar is called "Live Doppler 5".
[edit] Newscasts
Monday thru Friday
- NBC5 Chicago News Today - 5-7 a.m.
- NBC5 Chicago News at 4 p.m. - 4:00-4:30 p.m.
- NBC5 Chicago News at 5 p.m. - 5-5:30 p.m.
- NBC5 Chicago News at 6 p.m. - 6-6:30 p.m.
- NBC5 Chicago News at 10 p.m. - 10-10:35 p.m.
Saturdays and Sundays
- NBC5 Chicago News - 6-7 a.m. (Saturday)
- NBC5 Chicago News - 9-10 a.m. (Saturday)
- NBC5 Chicago News - 8-9:30 a.m. (Sunday)
- NBC5 Chicago News at 5 p.m. - 5-5:30 p.m.
- NBC5 Chicago News at 10 p.m. - 10-10:30 p.m.
Other Local Programs
- City Desk - 9:30-10:00am (Sunday)
- Bears Game Day Live - 10:30-11am (Sunday)
- Sports Sunday - 10:30-10:45pm (Sunday)
- Bears Game Night Live - 10:45-11:15pm (Sunday)
[edit] Personalities
- Warner Saunders and Allison Rosati: News 5/6/10 pm Monday-Thursday and Sundays (10pm only)
- Bob Sirott: 4 pm /5, 6 & 10 pm Fridays
- Marion Brooks: 4 pm/6 pm Fridays
- Anna Davlantes: 5/10 pm on Friday and Saturday
- Nesita Kwan: Health reporter
- Brant Miller: Meteorologist (4/5/6/10 pm)
- Art Norman: Reporter/Fill-in Anchor
- Zoraida Sambolin: Reporter/Fill-in Anchor
- Dick Johnson: Today
- Ellee Pai Hong: Today
- Bruce Wolf: Today (traffic)
- Andy Avalos: Weather (Today)
- Carol Marin: investigative
[edit] Trivia
In director Spike Lee's 1986 film She's Gotta Have It, the character Greer Childs is seen wearing a WMAQ tee shirt.
[edit] References
- Johnson, Steve (July/August 1997). How Low Can TV News Go?. Columbia Journalism Review.
- Broadcasting in Chicago: 1921-1989
- WNBQ/WMAQ-TV history
[edit] External links
- WMAQ-TV NBC 5 Web Site
- WMAQ Wireless
- WMAQ General Information at NBC5.com
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WMAQ-TV
- Aerial photo of WMAQ-TV transmitter from Google Local
| Broadcast television in the Chicago market (Nielsen DMA #3) | ||
|---|---|---|
|
WBBM 2 (CBS) - W04CQ 4 (Silent) - WMAQ 5 (NBC) - WLS 7 (ABC) - WGN 9 (The CW) (The Tube on DT2) - WTTW 11 (PBS, Create on DT.2) - WOCK-CA 13 (Azteca América) - W13BQ 13 (DW) - W18AT 18 / W54BK 54 (LeSEA) - WYCC 20 (PBS) - W64CQ 22 (TBN) - WWME-CA 23 (Ind) - WHVI-LP 24 (LeSEA) - WCIU 26 (Ind) - WSPY-LP 30 (A1) - WFLD 32 (Fox) - WEDE-CA 34 (Ind) - WWTO 35 (TBN) - WCPX 38 (i) - WOCH-CA 41 (Ind) - WSNS 44 (TEL) - WFBT-CA 48 (Ind) - WPWR 50 (MNTV) - W54BE 54 (Edu. Ind) - WLFM-LP 55 (Ind) - WYIN 56 (PBS) - WXFT 60 (TFT) - WCHU-LP 61 (MTV3) - WJYS 62 (Ind) - WGBO 66 (UNI) |
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| Local cable television channels | ||
| edit | NBC Universal, Inc. (a subsidiary of General Electric) |
