WMGM-TV

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WMGM-TV
Wildwood / Atlantic City, New Jersey
Branding	News Channel 40 NBC
Slogan	The South Jersey Newschannel and Where Local Comes First
Channels	40 (UHF) analog, 36 (UHF) digital
Translators	7 WMGM-LP (VHF)
Affiliations	NBC
Owner	Access.1 Communications
Founded	January 15, 1966
Call letters meaning	W Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Former callsigns	WAAT (1970-1984) WCMC-TV (1966-1970)
Transmitter Power	741 kW (analog) 200 kW (digital)
Height	128 m
Website	nbc40.net

WMGM-TV "News Channel 40 NBC" is a television station in Wildwood, New Jersey, serving Atlantic City and the rest of southern New Jersey on channel 40 as an affiliate of NBC. Founded on January 15, 1966, the station is owned by Access.1 Communications. The station can also be seen in Atlantic City on a low-power translator WMGM-LP channel 7.

The station is officially considered a Philadelphia market station, and was once a full-time repeater for former NBC affiliate KYW-TV. WMGM's transmitter is located in Swainton. For other network programming besides NBC, Philadelphia stations cover the Atlantic City area along with the rest of Southern New Jersey. WMGM's NBC affiliation creates a rare situation where there are two affiliates of the same network in the same market (NBC O&O WCAU in Philadelphia is the other).

Contents 1 History 2 Atlantic City Transmitter Fire 3 Newscasts 4 News Team 5 External Links

[edit] History

WMGM-TV signed on as WCMC-TV on January 15, 1966 under the ownership of the South Jersey Radio Company, which owned radio stations WCMC-AM-FM and WAAT-FM.

The station changed its call letters twice, once to WAAT in 1981, and to the current WMGM-TV in 1984, reportedly in an attempt to sell the station to the Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer movie studio^{[citation needed]}, but the station was eventually sold to Access.1 Communications.

For several years, people in the Philadelphia market could watch the entire NBC schedule on channel 40, as KYW-TV (now a CBS O&O) pre-empted NBC's daytime programs, among others.

[edit] Atlantic City Transmitter Fire

On Wednesday, May 3, 2006, WMGM-LP in Atlantic City fell silent when a fire struck the building its transmitter was located in, adjacent to the tollbooths on the Atlantic City Expressway. The building also housed transmitters for Atlantic City's WMGM (FM) 103.7, Pleasantville's WOND AM 1400, and WTKU AM 1490. While WMGM-FM has since moved to auxiliary facilities atop the Trump Taj Mahal casino, the AM stations, and WMGM-LP, remain dark, leaving many Atlantic City residents without clear analog reception of NBC programs. [1]

[edit] Newscasts

WMGM currently airs newscasts, under the branding of News Channel 40 News, weekday evenings at 5, 5:30, 6, and 11 PM. There are only two newscasts on the weekends at 11 PM. There are no weekday morning newscasts on this station, but a talk show, known as Don Williams in the AM, airs at 6 AM. Local news and weather updates, however, are provided during The Today Show.

On Saturdays at 7:30 PM, another talk show, called WMGM-TV Presents Pinky, airs on this station. The program consists of politics and current affairs.

[edit] News Team

• Michelle Dawn Mooney, Anchor
• Michael Schurman, Anchor/Saturday Managing Editor
• Jeff Whitaker, Anchor/Sunday Managing Editor
• Teresa Berry, Reporter
• Phaedra Laird, Reporter
• Frank Holland, Reporter
• Veronica Dudo, Reporter
• Greg Browne, Reporter
• Dan Skeldon, Chief Meteorologist
• Matt Powell, Evening & Weekend Meteorologist
• John Isgro, Morning Meterorologist
• Pete Thompson, Sports Director
• Dave Robin, Sports Reporter

[edit] External Links

• Station Website

• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMGM