 | |
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Media |
| Founded | June 4, 1964; 60 years ago (1964-06-04) |
| Founder | John Weigel |
| Headquarters | Chicago,Illinois, United States |
Key people |
|
| Products | Television,Broadcasting |
| Owner |
|
| Website | www |
Weigel Broadcasting Co. is an Americantelevision broadcasting company based inChicago,Illinois, alongside its flagship stationWCIU-TV (Channel 26), at 26 NorthHalsted Street in theGreektown neighborhood. It currently owns 25 television stations, seven digital over-the-air television networks (most notablyMeTV), and one radio station.
The company was founded by Chicago broadcasting veteran John Weigel, whose career dated back to the 1930s. With $1,000 of his own money and another $1,000 from his attorney, Daniel J. McCarthy, Weigel bought the broadcasting license for what became the firstUHF television station in the Chicago area. WCIU signed on the air on February 6, 1964. One year later, in 1965, the company was the subject of a successful hostile takeover at the hands of the Shapiro family.[1]
Over the years, the company began to acquire and also launch new stations in the adjacent markets ofMilwaukee andSouth Bend, at first by placing WCIU translators in those markets to gain a foothold in each market, before programming the stations independently. Weigel would end up an unexpected beneficiary of thetelevision industry realignment of 1994–95. Full-power independent stationWDJT-TV in Milwaukee, which had only signed on five years earlier, ended up with the CBS affiliation in late 1994.WBND-LP became the home of ABC programming in South Bend the next year. In both cases, the longtime affiliates of the networks in those markets —WITI in Milwaukee andWSJV in South Bend — switched toFox, and the Weigel-owned stations secured 11th-hour affiliation deals after no other viable replacement affiliates surfaced.
Also in that same year, WCIU dropped the Spanish-languageUnivision network and became Chicago's only true full-power independent station whenWGN-TV andWPWR-TV joinedThe WB andUPN networks respectively, whileWGBO-TV became a Univision-owned station. These changes allowed WCIU to pursue sports rights and syndicated programming not previously available, ultimately giving WCIU some strength in the market.
Weigel'sMeTV format originated as a programming block that debuted on January 6, 2003, on television stationWFBT-CA (channel 23) inChicago,Illinois, anindependent station that otherwise featured an ethnic programming format.[2]
In April 2008, Weigel completed the purchase of WJJA-TV inRacine, Wisconsin, which gave the company its second full-power station in the Milwaukee market. The station carried a local version of MeTV for four years before it and the independent format of low-power WMLW-CA were switched around in August 2012, becomingWMLW-TV.
In July 2008, Weigel announced the creation ofThis TV, a national subchannel network, operated as a joint venture withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer.[3]
In early August 2008, Weigel agreed to sell all three of its South Bend stations, WBND-LP,WCWW-LP andWMYS-LP, toSchurz Communications, the longtime owner of the local CBS affiliateWSBT-TV, for undisclosed terms.[4] However, in the absence of action by theFederal Communications Commission, the deal was called off in August 2009.[5]
Weigel launchedYou and Me This Morning, anInterstitial program lifestyle news program in fourth quarter (fall) 2009 onWCIU-TV's first two subchannels.[6][7]
At the end of 2009,Broadcasting & Cable gave Weigel its first annual Multi-Platform Broadcaster of the Year award. The company makes efficient use of digital TV's multicast capabilities, with one main channel and four subchannels forWCIU in Chicago, and MeTV and This TV on subchannels nationwide.[8]
On November 22, 2010, Weigel announced that they would take the MeTV concept national and compete fully withRTV andAntenna TV, while complementing its successful sister networkThis TV.[9][10]
On December 1, 2010, WCIU dropped their FBT foreign broadcasting digital subchannel (with some of that programming eventually to be moved to Polnet Communications'WPVN-CA) and is currently airing a simulcast of WCIU-TV on WCIU digital subchannel 26.2. The new digital subchannel,The U Too, was officially launched on January 5, 2011. The new digital network will be airing on WCIU digital subchannel 26.2, replacing MeTV, which moved to WCIU digital subchannel 26.3 on December 15, 2010, and mainly consists of other purchased programming without room on the main WCIU schedule, second runs of WCIU programming or programmingburned off due to low ratings.[11][12]
On January 4, 2011, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer and Weigel announced plans to distribute MeTV nationwide.[13][14]
On January 28, 2013, Weigel entered into a partnership withFox Television Stations to create a new digital subchannel network calledMovies!, which is expected to debut on all ofFox's owned-and-operated stations in the spring of 2013.[15] On May 13, 2013, Weigel announced thatTribune Broadcasting would take over operations of This TV on November 1, and that the channel would move to aWGN-TV subchannel following the changes.[16][17]
On July 1, 2013, Weigel premiered the new subchannel service TouchVision, which provides a rolling news and information service designed for television, mobile and tablet platforms starting on WDJT-DT4, after Milwaukee real estate agency Shorewest Realtors ended their time-lease on the channel space to concentrate on an Internet on-demand channel instead. TouchVision was based out of Weigel's Chicago facilities under the LLC "Think Televisual", and was run by former radio and Tribune executiveLee Abrams and Brandon Davis.[18] TouchVision ceased operations on January 14, 2016.[19][20]
On September 29, 2014, Weigel launchedHeroes & Icons, a new digital subchannel which specializes in reruns of classic television series and films. Heroes & Icons, abbreviated H&I, aims to attract a generally male audience with shows from the genres of action, police, detective, western, science fiction, superhero, and war and military.
On October 21, 2014, Weigel andCBS announced the launch of a new digital subchannel service calledDecades, scheduled to launch on all CBSO&O stations in 2015. The channel will be co-owned by Weigel and CBS, with Weigel being responsible for distribution to stations outsideCBS Television Stations. It will air programs from the extensive library ofCBS Television Distribution, including archival footage fromCBS News.[21]
On July 19, 2017, Weigel agreed to acquireCedar City, Utah stationKCSG for $1.1 million.[22] The sale will convert the station in a H&I owned-and-operated station, though the possibility of Weigel's other networks being contained to it is also possible. It was Weigel's first station purchase outside of a state alongLake Michigan, as all of its properties were inIllinois,Indiana andWisconsin. This sale closed December 5, 2017.[23]
On September 8, 2017, it was announced that Weigel agreed to purchaseLos Angeles,California stationKAZA-TV for $9 million.[24] The same day also saw the announcement of the purchase ofKNLC inSt. Louis, a religious station holding a commercial license, for $3.75 million.[25] Many of its purchases since 2017 have been made through its LLC for WMLW. It sold that station's spectrum in the 2016 FCC auction for $69.7 million, with WMLW itself re-transitioning to the spectrum of WBME-CD.[26] KNLC's former owners continue to maintain a right to the station's second subchannel to carry their schedule as a part of the sale to Weigel.
On October 18, 2017, Weigel agreed to acquireKAXT-CD andKTLN-TV, inSan Francisco andKVOS-TV andKFFV inSeattle, fromOTA Broadcasting in a $23.2 million deal.[27] The Seattle deal was completed, while the San Francisco completion took until April 15, 2019, as both KAXT-CD and KTLN-TV are involved in a spectrum transition resulting from the 2016 FCC auction.
On July 18, 2018, CBS Television Stations and Weigel Broadcasting announced the formation ofStart TV, with plans to launch the network onLabor Day of that year (September 3). The network will focus on women-ledpolice procedurals andprocedural dramas.[28][29]
On May 30, 2019,Marquee Broadcasting agreed to sellKREG-TV (formerly a satellite ofKREX-TV) to Weigel Broadcasting for $2 million. Once the sale closes, the station will become an H&I owned-and-operated station, and likely be positioned as Weigel's station in theDenver market (many stations surrounding Denver have used cable and satellite carriage to take advantage of the larger market reach).
September 1, 2019, saw WCIU-TV taking over the affiliation forThe CW in Chicago as "CW 26", replacingFox-ownedWPWR-TV and resulting in the move of some programming and that station's former "The U" branding to WMEU-CD.
In December 2019, Weigel agreed to purchase low-powerWHCT-LD in theHartford, Connecticut market from Venture Technologies Group LLC for $1.5 million.[30]
On September 11, 2020, Weigel announced that it was buyingWJFB in Lebanon, Tennessee (serving the Nashville television market), fromHC2 Holdings for $5.5 million, pending FCC approval.[31][32] On October 28, Weigel announced it will acquireKAZD in Dallas,KYAZ in Houston,KMOH-TV inKingman, Arizona, and itsPhoenix translatorKEJR-LD from HC2, for $35 million.[33][34] The sale of the Arizona and Texas stations, which at the time of acquisition were all affiliated withAzteca América and later converted to MeTV owned-and-operated stations, was completed on December 29.[35][36] All of the HC2 sales except for WJFB came with the move of the Azteca America affiliations to subchannels under long-term affiliation agreements with Weigel.
On September 1, 2021, Weigel acquiredWZME inBridgeport, Connecticut, moving into theNew York/Tri-State market for the first time. On October 11, 2021, Weigel filed to acquireWJLP, licensed toMiddletown Township, New Jersey and transmitting from4 Times Square, from PMCM TV LLC for $62.5 million.[37] In March 2022, Weigel filed to purchaseCleveland,Ohio-basedW27EA-D.[38]
On February 14, 2022, Weigel announced that it would launch Story Television, a digital multicast network, on March 28, 2022. The network's focus is on historical and factual programming and utilizes the library of the cable networkHistory, expanding its non-fiction offerings beyondThrough the Decades.[39]
On February 13, 2023, Weigel announced that Decades would be re-branded asCatchy Comedy on March 27, 2023. It will focus on classic sitcoms weekdays with comedy marathons on weekends.[40]
On December 29, 2023,CBS Media Ventures re-launchedDabl, pivoting it from lifestyle programming to Black-oriented sitcoms owned by their parent companyParamount Global. Weigel took over operations of the channel at this time, although the network is still fully owned by CBS.[41]
On January 22, 2025, the management of Weigel affiliateWDJT-TV in Milwaukee fired meteorologist Sam Kuffel over posts on her Instagram account that criticizedElon Musk for giving aNazi salute at a rally followingDonald Trump's January 20, 2025 presidential inauguration.[42]
Stations arranged alphabetically bystate and bycity of license. Most of the stations are categorized into separatelimited partnerships for licensing purposes, with many of Weigel's post-2017 deals using the WMLW limited partnership as a direct result of the profits from that station's spectrum sale.
Notes:
| City of license /Market | Station | Channel TV (RF) | Owned since | Network affiliation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phoenix, AZ | KMOH-TV | 6 (19) | 2020 |
|
| KEJR-LD | 40 (32) |
| ||
| Los Angeles, CA | KHTV-CD | 6 (22) | 2021 | MeTV+ |
| KPOM-CD | 14 (27) | 2021 | Catchy Comedy | |
| KSFV-CD | 27 (27) | 2021 |
| |
| KAZA-TV | 54 (22) | 2018 |
| |
| KVME-TV | 20 (20) | 2021 | ||
| San Francisco, CA | KAXT-CD | 1 (22) | 2019 | Catchy Comedy |
| KTLN-TV | 68 (22) | 2019 |
| |
| Glenwood Springs, CO | KREG-TV | 3 (23) | 2020 | |
| Hartford–New Haven, CT | WHCT-LD | 35 (35) | 2021 |
|
| Washington, D.C. | WDME-CD | 48 (20) | 2021 |
|
| Ocala, FL | W30EM-D | 30 (30) | 2021 | Independent |
| Chicago, IL | WWME-CD | 23 (20) | 1992 |
|
| WCIU-TV ** | 26 (23) | 1964 |
| |
| WMEU-CD | 48 (18) | 2004 |
| |
| Rockford, IL | WFBN-LD | 35 (23) | 1989 | |
| Evansville, IN | WZDS-LD | 5 (18) | 2021 |
|
| South Bend, IN | WCWW-LD | 25 (25) | 2002 |
|
| WBND-LD | 57 (35) | 1990 |
| |
| WMYS-LD | 69 (28) | 1987 |
| |
| Des Moines, IA | KDIT-CD | 45 (17) | 2021 |
|
| St. Louis, MO | KNLC | 24 (14) | 2017 |
|
| New York, NY | WJLP | 33 (3) | 2021 |
|
| WZME | 43 (21) | 2021 | MeTV+ | |
| Cleveland, OH | WOCV-CD | 35 (27) | 2022 |
|
| Astoria, Oregon | KPWT-LD | 3 (36) | 2021 |
|
| Nashville, TN | WJFB | 44 (25) | 2020 |
|
| Dallas–Fort Worth, TX | KAZD | 55 (31) | 2020 |
|
| Houston, TX | KYAZ | 51 (25) | 2020 |
|
| Salt Lake City, UT | KCSG | 8 (14) | 2017 |
|
| Seattle–Bellingham, WA | KFFV | 44 (16) | 2018 |
|
| KVOS-TV | 12 (14) | 2018 |
| |
| Green Bay, WI | WMEI ** | 31 (31) | 2024 |
|
| Milwaukee, WI | WBME-CD | 41 (17) | 1983 | MeTV |
| WMLW-TV | 49 (17) | 2008 |
| |
| WDJT-TV ** | 58 (29) | 1988 | ||
| WYTU-LD | 63 (16) | 1989 |
|
You may also send inquiries by mail to: 26 North Halsted Chicago, IL 60661