WPXR-TV
| Roanoke, Virginia United States | |
|---|---|
| Branding | ION Television |
| Slogan | Positively Entertaining |
| Channels |
Digital: 36 (UHF) Virtual: 38 (PSIP) |
| Subchannels |
38.1 Ion Television 38.2 qubo 38.3 Life 38.4 ION Shop 38.5 QVC 38.6 HSN |
| Affiliations | Ion Television (O&O; 2007–present) |
| Owner |
Ion Media Networks, Inc. (Ion Media License Company, LLC) |
| First air date | January 3, 1986 |
| Call letters' meaning | PaX TV Roanoke |
| Former callsigns | WEFC (1986–1998) |
| Former channel number(s) |
Analog: 38 (UHF, 1986–2009) |
| Former affiliations |
Religious (1986–1997) inTV (1997–1998) Pax TV (1998–2005) i (2005–2007) |
| Transmitter power | 700 kW |
| Height | 623 m |
| Facility ID | 70251 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 37°11′37″N 80°9′25″W / 37.19361°N 80.15694°W |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Public license information: |
Profile CDBS |
| Website | www.ionline.tv |
WPXR-TV is the Ion Television affiliate for Roanoke, Virginia. The station is owned by Ion Media Networks, and operates in digital on UHF channel 36. The station broadcasts from atop Poor Mountain. It is on channel 12 on Cox Cable in Roanoke and channel 11 on Comcast in Lynchburg.
History
The station signed on January 3, 1986 as WEFC, a religious station owned by Evangel Foursquare Church (hence the call letters). It was the first new station to sign on in Roanoke in 31 years.
Paxson Communications (now Ion Media Networks) bought the station in 1997 and made it part of the all-infomercial inTV network. It joined Pax TV (later i and now ION) on the network's launch in 1998.
Newscasts
From September 1996 until August 1997, WDBJ produced a 10 p.m. newscast, News 7 Primetime, for WEFC; the newscast was canceled due to low ratings.[1] From 2000 to 2005, WPXR aired rebroadcasts of WSLS-TV's newscasts as part of a joint sales agreement between Paxson Communications and WSLS owner Media General.[2]
Digital television
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
Digital channels
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 38.1 | 720p | 16:9 | ION | Ion Television |
| 38.2 | 480i | 4:3 | qubo | Qubo |
| 38.3 | IONLife | Ion Life | ||
| 38.4 | Shop | Ion Shop | ||
| 38.5 | QVC | QVC | ||
| 38.6 | HSN | HSN |
Analog-to-digital conversion
WPXR-TV discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over UHF channel 38, on June 12, 2009, the official date in which full-power television stations in the United States transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 36,[4] using PSIP to display the station's virtual channel as its former UHF analog channel 38.
References
- ↑ "Channel 7 cancels WEFC 10 p.m. news". The Roanoke Times. August 8, 1997. p. B4. Retrieved December 4, 2011.
- ↑ "PAX TV Signs Strategic Agreement With Media General's NBC-Affiliated Stations in Tampa & Roanoke". Online Media Daily. November 3, 2000. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for WPXR
- ↑ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-03-24.
External links
- ION Television website
- Query the FCC's TV station database for WPXR
- Query TV Fool's coverage map for WPXR
- BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WPXR-TV
- Site of the Week – Roanoke, Virginia – discusses WPXR's antennas