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WJMN dumping CBS?

Discussion pertaining to Marquette, Escanaba, Iron Mountain, Houghton, Ironwood, and Northern Wisconsin, too!
innate-in-you
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by innate-in-you » Sun Jan 23, 2022 3:14 am

Wow.

WJMN is/was a satellite of WFRV in Green Bay. Will WFRV have the same low-budget schedule of WJMN?

I expect that both of the other full-service stations in the area will have two major networks from each transmitter - many rural markets further west are now twin-stick stations.



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MWmetalhead
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by MWmetalhead » Sun Jan 23, 2022 7:41 am

The affiliation agreement with WFRV was renewed, so that station is not in jeopardy of losing CBS affiliation.

WJMN is the only major station in the U.P. with a decent tower site as far as over-the-air coverage is concerned, but again, TV station owners for the most part don't care. What they do care about is maximizing cable & satellite retransmission fees. The crappier the OTA signal, the greater the likelihood viewers subscribe to one of those services.

Of course, now that the networks themselves offer streaming services, that's all the more incentive to not care about maximizing OTA signal reach.

Will be interesting to see how the loss of the CBS affiliation affects WJMN financially. Prime time and weekend afternoon viewership will be in the toilet, but the other dayparts might not be affected as much.



SBaxley
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by SBaxley » Sun Jan 23, 2022 2:29 pm

The big test is going to be..two words
MARCH MADNESS



EdWalker
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by EdWalker » Sun Jan 23, 2022 4:14 pm

There has to be something else at play here. Nexstar would not intentionally f*up WJMN unless there is some trading about to take place. I bet WJMN is combined with WLUC one way or another down the road. Who owns the combined operation remains to be seen. I’ve been wrong before.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duopoly_(broadcasting)



SBaxley
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by SBaxley » Sun Jan 23, 2022 7:23 pm

Unless, and i shudder to think this, but I am thinking it, and it may just fit..
What if, Nexstar gave some major coin to Marks Radio Group [Lake Superior Community Broadcasting Corporation] and bought WBUP TV/WBKP
and gave Marks WJMN TV then Nexstar would boost up WBUP's news department , while Marks would farm WJMN to NewsNet..think about it



ftballfan
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by ftballfan » Mon Jan 24, 2022 6:38 pm

MWmetalhead wrote:
Sun Jan 23, 2022 7:41 am
The affiliation agreement with WFRV was renewed, so that station is not in jeopardy of losing CBS affiliation.

WJMN is the only major station in the U.P. with a decent tower site as far as over-the-air coverage is concerned, but again, TV station owners for the most part don't care. What they do care about is maximizing cable & satellite retransmission fees. The crappier the OTA signal, the greater the likelihood viewers subscribe to one of those services.

Of course, now that the networks themselves offer streaming services, that's all the more incentive to not care about maximizing OTA signal reach.

Will be interesting to see how the loss of the CBS affiliation affects WJMN financially. Prime time and weekend afternoon viewership will be in the toilet, but the other dayparts might not be affected as much.
WJMN had been slowly drifting away from WFRV over the last few years. I think even before this, WJMN was airing some separate syndicated programming than WFRV. For at least the first 30-35 years, WJMN was nearly a straight simulcast of WFRV (outside of maybe some local ads).



SBaxley
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by SBaxley » Mon Jan 24, 2022 11:01 pm

A youtube channel "Studio 31" posted up the first edition of "LOCAL 3 NEWS" sans CBS logo, and while they were still using the old WJMN logo as transitions, it was pretty much business as usual.. sadly no looky loo at the "NEW CBS 19.2" Newscast..YET!



WC8KCY
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by WC8KCY » Tue Jan 25, 2022 2:32 pm

ftballfan wrote:
Mon Jan 24, 2022 6:38 pm
WJMN had been slowly drifting away from WFRV over the last few years. I think even before this, WJMN was airing some separate syndicated programming than WFRV. For at least the first 30-35 years, WJMN was nearly a straight simulcast of WFRV (outside of maybe some local ads).
By 1986 at the latest, we had local ads running on WJMN(-TV). A UP-specific weather cut-in during Eyewitness News also premiered around that time.

Since at least the early '90s, WJMN has carried Detroit Lions preseason football games. The Saturday evening Michigan State Lottery programs have usually aired on WJMN as well.

All this was microwaved up from Green Bay. WJMN's local facilities were limited to a slide camera and audio board at the TX site, which was black and white until around 1985(!).

For a few weeks in 1992, WJMN was a CBS affiliate, and WFRV was an ABC affiliate. Up until the recent CBS disaffiliation, that was as close as WJMN ever got to having an identity all its own.

Good luck to my old friend, Channel 3. I hope brighter days are ahead...
Last edited by WC8KCY on Tue Jan 25, 2022 11:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.



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rugratsonline
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by rugratsonline » Tue Jan 25, 2022 9:02 pm

SBaxley wrote:
Mon Jan 24, 2022 11:01 pm
...sadly no looky loo at the "NEW CBS 19.2" Newscast..YET!
Will WZMQ even have a local newscast, even one farmed out of elsewhere?



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MWmetalhead
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by MWmetalhead » Tue Jan 25, 2022 9:22 pm

A newscast filmed at a co-owned station in Erie, PA will reportedly air on WZMQ 19.2 at 6pm & 11pm.

Does anyone know from where ABC 10's newscasts originate? Do the newscasters still stand in front of a chroma key well? (I hate that look, by the way. The lower thirds used on that newscast look nice, though.)



SBaxley
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by SBaxley » Tue Jan 25, 2022 10:02 pm

doesnt ABC10 & CW5 do their news from a studio in Ishpeming ? with a virtual set [cliche' I know] by the way, they now stream their newscasts on VUit



innate-in-you
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by innate-in-you » Thu Jan 27, 2022 11:17 pm

WJMN fowled up their digital transition. They were determined to have a solid-state transmitter and did not want to build translators.

WJMN has a highly directional antenna, with a tight major lobe aimed at Iron Mountain - one of three significant cities in central Upper Peninsula, with very little power headed at Escanaba and Marquette.

Bear in mind, Upper Michigan's trees are predominantly needleleaf, which tend to absorb UHF RF transmissions.

So, the narrow beam at about 250° azimuth (Iron Mountain) is peak power.

Problem is, Iron Mountain doesn't get good reception from WJMN in its major lobe because Iron Mountain is literally an iron mountain, and blocks WJMN's signal path.

The FCC originally balked at the proposal, because the narrow WSW beam would create a "white area" to the areas that were just in the near East of the UP.

The FCC capitulated and approved the change.

It just so happened that I saw a crew at the WJMN site when looking at different transmitter sites. One of the crew members informed me that they wanted a solid-state transmitter.

Knowing the RF conditions of the area, I mentioned that the area transmitter had few lightning strikes, that they could transmit a lot of power (being in Zone III), and that most non-cable viewers did not have UHF Antennas



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MWmetalhead
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by MWmetalhead » Fri Jan 28, 2022 7:38 am

Good info; thanks for sharing that story.

I think it can be said for many TV operators in the digital age in the U.P. that a medium powered main transmitter - preferably on VHF - coupled with digital translators in major population centers would be the most effective way to maximize OTA reach.

Indeed, most U.P. viewers were accustomed to picking up channels 3, 6 and 13 over the air in the analog age, and eventually, channel 10.

TV station owners are disincentivized from maximizing over-the-air reach, unfortunately.

With regard to WJMN, there *is* actually a healthy amount of RF beamed toward Esky, but you are correct that it is much less than licensed maximum ERP.

The very sharp null to the SE makes sense, since WFQX needs to be protected. What I am unable to understand is why so little power is sent northward from the TX site.



innate-in-you
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by innate-in-you » Fri Jan 28, 2022 8:17 pm

MWmetalhead wrote:
Tue Jan 25, 2022 9:22 pm
A newscast filmed at a co-owned station in Erie, PA will reportedly air on WZMQ 19.2 at 6pm & 11pm.

Does anyone know from where ABC 10's newscasts originate? Do the newscasters still stand in front of a chroma key well? (I hate that look, by the way. The lower thirds used on that newscast look nice, though.)
Filmed? In the 2020s?
I guess rural television isn't changing quickly.



WC8KCY
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Re: WJMN dumping CBS?

Post by WC8KCY » Sat Jan 29, 2022 1:09 am

MWmetalhead wrote:
Fri Jan 28, 2022 7:38 am
I think it can be said for many TV operators in the digital age in the U.P. that a medium powered main transmitter - preferably on VHF - coupled with digital translators in major population centers would be the most effective way to maximize OTA reach.

Indeed, most U.P. viewers were accustomed to picking up channels 3, 6 and 13 over the air in the analog age, and eventually, channel 10.

TV station owners are disincentivized from maximizing over-the-air reach, unfortunately.
Absolutely. Many central U.P. viewers from Escanaba westward were once served by at least one translator; most rebroadcast WLUC or WLUK, but WFRV/WJMN, WAEO/WJFW, and WLRE/WGBA translators were around, too. Escanaba once had a translator rebroadcasting WWTV.



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