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| Channels | |
| Branding | Local 3 |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner | Sarkes Tarzian, Inc. |
| History | |
First air date | May 6, 1956 (69 years ago) (1956-05-06) |
Former call signs | WRGP-TV (1956–1963) |
Former channel numbers | Analog: 3 (VHF, 1956–2009) |
Call sign meaning | Rust Craft Broadcasting (former owners) |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 59137 |
| ERP | 160 kW |
| HAAT | 363.5 m (1,193 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 35°9′40.2″N85°18′50.8″W / 35.161167°N 85.314111°W /35.161167; -85.314111 |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
WRCB (channel 3), brandedLocal 3, is atelevision station inChattanooga, Tennessee, United States, affiliated withNBC. The station has been owned bySarkes Tarzian, Inc. since 1982. WRCB's studios are located on Whitehall Road on Chattanooga's north side; its transmitter is located in the town ofWalden onSignal Mountain. Although parts of the Chattanoogamarket are in theCentral Time Zone, all schedules are listed inEastern Time.
The station signed on the air on May 6, 1956, on analog Channel 3 as WRGP-TV.[2] Thecall letters came from its founder, Ramon G. Patterson. It picked up the NBC affiliation from WROM-TV inRome, Georgia (nowWTVC, located today in Chattanooga proper). Its studios were first located at 1214 McCallie Avenue, between downtown andMissionary Ridge.
The station has belonged to several owners over the years. In 1959, Friendly Broadcasting, owner of WSTV-TV inSteubenville, Ohio (nowWTOV-TV), bought WRGP from Patterson's group. In 1961, WSTV and WRGP were sold to theMassachusetts-based United Printers and Publishers, which later becameRust Craft Broadcasting, named after itsgreeting card line, which has since been acquired byAmerican Greetings. These owners changed the station's call letters to WRCB-TV in 1963, to reflect the initials of the licensee. In 1968 the station moved to new facilities on Whitehall Road, on Chattanooga's north side, across theTennessee River from downtown. Those new studios and equipment enabled channel 3 to begin broadcasting incolor. In 1979, Rust Craft merged with magazine publisherZiff Davis, which, in turn, sold WRCB to current owner Sarkes Tarzian, Inc. ofBloomington, Indiana, in 1982.
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WRCB produces38+1⁄2 hours of news each week; with6+1⁄2 hours of news each weekday, and 3 hours of news each on Saturday and Sunday. The station is known for its "School Patrol" and "Crimestoppers" reports, which have been popular features on its newscasts for more than twenty years. Whenever a newscast is preempted, by other programming, the station streams a live newscast on their website. On September 28, 2012, WRCB made the on-air transition fromstandard definition (4:3) tohigh definition (16:9).[3] On January 15, 2022, the station debuted a new logo, graphics, and website. The new look included a re-branding of its on-air identity toLocal 3.[4]
The station's signal ismultiplexed:
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | 1080i | 16:9 | WRCB-HD | NBC |
| 3.2 | 480i | 4:3 | Dabl | Dabl |
| 3.3 | 16:9 | ION | Ion Television | |
| 3.4 | ION + | Ion Plus | ||
| 3.5 | Newsy | Grit |
On November 1, 2008, WRCB addedRetro Television Network (RTV) on its second digital subchannel; the station had previously airedNBC Weather Plus on the subchannel, but that network was shut down by the end of the year.[6] On January 1, 2012, WRCB replaced RTV withAntenna TV.[7]
WRCB ended regular programming on its analog signal, overVHF channel 3, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United Statestransitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition VHF channel 13,[8] usingvirtual channel 3.
As part of theSAFER Act,[9] WRCB kept its analog signal on the air until July 12 to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop ofpublic service announcements from theNational Association of Broadcasters.
Broadcast television stations by affiliation in the state ofTennessee | ||
|---|---|---|
Includes stations in out-of-state TV markets, but reaching a portion of Tennessee | ||
| ABC | ||
| CBS | ||
| Fox | ||
| NBC | ||
| The CW | ||
| Ion Television | ||
| Independent | ||
| PBS | ||
| Religious | ||
| Other | ||
| ATSC 3.0 | ||
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Broadcast television stations by affiliation in the U.S. state ofGeorgia | ||
|---|---|---|
Includes stations in out-of-state TV markets, but reaching a portion of Georgia | ||
| ABC | ||
| CBS | ||
| Fox | ||
| NBC | ||
| The CW | ||
| Ion Television | ||
| Independent | ||
| PBS | ||
| Religious | ||
| Spanish | ||
| Other | ||
| ATSC 3.0 | ||
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