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{{Short description|ABC affiliate in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S.}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=
{{Infobox television station
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| logo_alt
| branding
| digital
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| affiliations
| owner
| licensee
| location
| country
| airdate
| callsign_meaning
| sister_stations
| former_callsigns
| former_channel_numbers = '''Analog:''' 45 (UHF, 1979–2009)
| former_affiliations
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}}
'''WXLV-TV''' (channel 45) is a [[television station]] licensed to [[Winston-Salem, North Carolina]], United States, serving as the [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] affiliate for the [[Piedmont Triad]] region. It is owned by [[Sinclair Broadcast Group]] alongside [[
Channel 45 went on the air in 1979 as WGNN-TV, a Christian-oriented TV station. It was sold to Television Corporation Stations—later renamed [[TVX Broadcast Group]]—in 1980 and changed its call sign to WJTM-TV, becoming the Triad's first general-entertainment [[
In 1995, as a result of regional ABC affiliate [[WGHP]] switching to Fox, channel 45 became an ABC affiliate under new WXLV call letters and began broadcasting local news programming. It also picked up a secondary affiliation with [[UPN]], which became channel 48's primary programming when the simulcast was split the next year. Sinclair acquired WXLV in 1998. The station's local newscasts failed to make headway against the established stations in the Triad. Sinclair shuttered the local news department in January 2002. Since then, Sinclair has implemented smaller-scale news programs for the station, first as part of the [[News Central (American TV program)|News Central]] service, then with cable news channel News 14 Carolina (later [[Spectrum News North Carolina]]) and since 2021 with local reporters and anchors at a Sinclair station in Texas.
==As an independent station and Fox affiliate==
===WGNN-TV and WJTM-TV: Establishment===
In February 1976, Good News TV Network filed with the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) for a [[construction permit]] to build a new commercial TV station in Winston-Salem, which the commission granted in August 1977.<ref name="hc">{{Cite web|url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/55ea56f3-0e31-4b9e-cd52-dc1439d1b0fd|title=FCC History Cards for WXLV-TV|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref> Good News TV had been formed after the local Calvary Baptist Church voted to set aside $139,000 ({{Inflation|US|139000|1976|fmt=eq|r=-3}}{{Inflation/fn|US}}) for the construction of the proposed outlet; one of the directors was [[Stuart Epperson]], the founder of [[Salem Communications]].<ref name="Wins760528">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122425510/religious-tv-station-formed/|date=May 28, 1976|page=24|first=Howard|last=Carr|title=Religious TV Station Formed|newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal|location=|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 7, 2023|archive-date=April 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407034531/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122425510/religious-tv-station-formed/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Fri --> The station was originally proposed to operate on a non-commercial basis with Christian religious programs and some secular classic films, though it eventually decided to accept some commercial advertising. Delays in equipment delivery and installation pushed the station's start from 1978 back into 1979;<ref>{{Cite news|title=Another Station Slated|url=https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/another-station-slated/qkqwxgfgwyhzditxxngofopgpxtagagp_wma-gateway001_1679329383697|page=D13|date=January 11, 1979|work=Greensboro Daily News|first=Jerry|last=Kenion|access-date=March 22, 2023|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322074752/https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/another-station-slated/qkqwxgfgwyhzditxxngofopgpxtagagp_wma-gateway001_1679329383697|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Gree790530">{{Cite news|url=https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/station-hopes-june/rsgcftggdsxpyyzbqimekaaukmezdixa_wma-gateway014_1668581927263|date=May 30, 1979|work=Greensboro Daily News|first=Jerry|last=Kenion|title=Station Hopes For June|page=A12|access-date=March 22, 2023|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322074751/https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/station-hopes-june/rsgcftggdsxpyyzbqimekaaukmezdixa_wma-gateway014_1668581927263|url-status=live}}</ref> the station also had to settle a payment dispute with an equipment installer.<ref name="Wins790825">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122701294/contract-dispute-settled/|date=August 25, 1979|page=13|first=Jesse|last=Poindexter|title=Contract Dispute Settled|newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 12, 2023|archive-date=April 12, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230412003657/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122701294/contract-dispute-settled/|url-status=live}}</ref><!-- Sat --> From a transmitter on the [[Winston Tower|Wachovia Building]] in Winston-Salem and studios on its top floor,<ref name="Wins790529">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122679862/plans-many-religious-tv-shows-station-m/|date=May 29, 1979|pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122679892/new-tv-station-may-be-broadcasting-soon/ 2]|title=Plans Many Religious TV Shows: Station May Be Operating Soon|newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 12, 2023}}</ref><!-- Tue -->{{r|Gree790530}} program testing for WGNN-TV began on September
Shortly before going on air, Good News TV Network had sold the construction permit for the station to a subsidiary of Piece Goods Stores, a chain of fabric stores in Winston-Salem.<ref>{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|1014688678}}|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1979/BC-1979-07-30.pdf|date=July 30, 1979|page=56|title=Changing Hands|work=Broadcasting|access-date=March 22, 2023|archive-date=January 31, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230131031303/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1979/BC-1979-07-30.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Piece Goods had stepped in when Good News TV Network ran out of cash to put the station on the air. The proprietors of Piece Goods, twin brothers Dudley and John Simms, also appeared on air giving editorials that were strongly conservative in character.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/tv-station-reflects-brothers-philosophy/ofkqofbdacgmzvcyflfptluojtfzitsx_wma-gateway013_1679329892302|pages=F-1, [https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/brothers-stay-tune/rmqbegjwzsryjacwlxkmjlswufpyfkav_wma-gateway001_1679330061331 F-5]|title=TV Station Reflects Brothers' Philosophy|first=Jim|last=Jenkins|work=Greensboro Daily News|date=September 7, 1980|access-date=March 22, 2023|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322074752/https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/tv-station-reflects-brothers-philosophy/ofkqofbdacgmzvcyflfptluojtfzitsx_wma-gateway013_1679329892302|url-status=live}}</ref> The station's programming turned out to be more middle-of-the-road than the religion-heavy, family-friendly lineup once advertised, including films with sexual mentions and violence, as the Simms brothers sought to make channel 45 profitable.<ref name="Wins800213">{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/122752607/good-news-tv-is-now-boldly-out-to-make/|date=February 13, 1980|page=27|first=John|last=Byrd|title='Good News' TV Is Now Boldly Out to Make a Profit|newspaper=Winston-Salem Journal|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=April 12, 2023}}</ref><!--Wed--> However, the station never attracted more than one percent of the audience.{{r|Gree800904}}
In 1980, Piece Goods sold 85 percent of WGNN-TV and operational control to the Television Corporation of North Carolina, a company controlled by investors from the [[Hampton Roads]] area of Virginia. After [[
===1984 hostage situation and call sign change to WNRW===
On June 5, 1984,
===Act III ownership and Fox affiliation===
TVX announced in August 1985 that it would acquire [[WLFL]], an independent station in [[
As an independent station in the Triad, WNRW was not alone. In 1981, [[WMYV|WGGT]] had reactivated channel 48 from Greensboro. However, beginning at the end of 1986, that station began to fight through a years-long bankruptcy proceeding, burdened by expensive purchases of syndicated programming.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/turned-channel-48-general-manager-gene-bohi-can-he-turn-viewers/nsynidtbwxigdlcqtglmknjddjxjxoqa_wma-gateway014_1679334644657|title=Turned on to Channel 48: General manager Gene Bohi is, but can he turn viewers on?|first=Bradley|last=Johnson|work=Greensboro News & Record|pages=Triad Business Weekly 10–11|date=April 6, 1987|access-date=March 22, 2023|archive-date=March 22, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230322075254/https://www.genealogybank.com/newspaper-clippings/turned-channel-48-general-manager-gene-bohi-can-he-turn-viewers/nsynidtbwxigdlcqtglmknjddjxjxoqa_wma-gateway014_1679334644657|url-status=live}}</ref> It did not emerge from bankruptcy until July 1991; two months later, in September, WNRW and WGGT signed an agreement to simulcast almost all of the broadcast day, a combination billed as a "super station".<ref>{{Cite news|date=September 26, 1991|title=TV stations 45 and 48 agree to share programs to make 'super station'|work=Greensboro News & Record|
==WXLV-TV: ABC affiliate==
===Switch to ABC and news launch===
On May 23, 1994, as part of a deal between Fox and [[New World Pictures#New World Communications|New World Communications]], it was announced that High Point-based ABC affiliate [[WGHP]] (channel 8) would change from ABC to Fox. The deal left WNRW–WGGT as a Fox affiliate with an uncertain future once the network moved and ABC without an affiliate in the Triad. In the meantime, during the first season of the [[NFL on Fox]], the station took the step of allowing fans to vote by telephone on which [[National Football Conference|NFC]] football game it would telecast each week. This was particularly unusual because Fox assigned games to stations; when the Greensboro ''[[
The timing of the affiliation switch in the Triad market was mostly driven by the station ownership juggling that New World had to conduct with WGHP. With 15 stations under option, New World was three stations over the 12-station limit then in force.<ref>{{cite news|date=October 13, 1994|title=TV station will still go to Fox—later|page=B5|first=Mark|last=Folk|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref> In February 1995, WGHP finally gave ABC its six months' notice of its plan to disaffiliate from the network, with WNRW–WGGT immediately earmarked as the new ABC affiliate in the market.<ref>{{cite news|date=February 22, 1995|title=Channel 8 plans Fox kickoff for fall|page=B5|first=Mark|last=Folk|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref>
The arrival of ABC to channels 45 and 48 came with plans to start a local newsroom. In May 1995, the station hired its first [[news director]],<ref>{{Cite news|title=Canadians to investigate taxation of some tobacco|page=B6|work=Greensboro News & Record|date=May 13, 1995}}</ref> and a total of 33 people—mostly from out of the market, with the notable exception of sportscaster Johnny Phelps—were hired to produce and present the station's newscasts.<ref>{{cite news|page=B2|title=Fox affiliate assembles news team|date=August 3, 1995|first=Leigh|last=Pressley|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref> As channel 45 staffed up its newsroom, the station was sold. In June, Act III Broadcasting merged with ABRY Broadcast Partners;<ref name="nyt-saletoabry">{{cite news|title=Norman Lear's Company Selling 8 TV Stations|url=https://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F60612FD3B550C718EDDAF0894DD494D81|access-date=February 17, 2011|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=June 22, 1995}}</ref> the firm named Dan Sullivan, president of the TV division of [[Clear Channel Communications]], to run Sullivan Broadcasting, a joint venture with ABRY to manage the former Act III portfolio.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Flint|first=Joe|date=October 2, 1995|title=ABRY choice is clear; Sullivan to top Act III|url=https://variety.com/1995/tv/features/abry-choice-is-clear-sullivan-to-top-act-iii-99128559/|access-date=December 9, 2021|website=Variety|language=en-US|archive-date=January 10, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230110041230/https://variety.com/1995/tv/features/abry-choice-is-clear-sullivan-to-top-act-iii-99128559/|url-status=live}}</ref>
Founding news director Chris Huston promised a focus on regional coverage and issues, hoping to leave aside a perceived focus on Winston-Salem, Greensboro, or High Point.<ref>{{Cite news|title=New ABC station makes news debut|page=B1|work=News & Record|first=Jim|last=Thompson|date=September 4, 1995}}</ref> However, despite ABC's strong national standing, viewers did not flock to WXLV's new 6 a.m., 6 p.m., and 11 p.m. local newscasts. Where WFMY and WXII drew 28 and 25 percent of the news audience at 11, WXLV attracted just 5 percent.<ref>{{cite news|date=December 16, 1995|page=B1|title=Newscast off to slow start in ratings|first=Leigh|last=Pressley|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref> An 11:30 a.m. newscast was tested but failed to draw ratings and was canceled after 13 weeks.<ref>{{Cite news|date=January 30, 1997|page=City Life 4|first=Donald W.|last=Patterson|title=Changes under way at WXLV}}</ref>
After five years, the simulcast of channels 45 and 48 was unwound on September 1, 1996, when channel 48 regained separate programming as full-time UPN affiliate WUPN.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Trekkie fans' show gets hazy reception|page=B1|first=Jeri|last=Rowe|work=News & Record|date=August 21, 1996}}</ref>
===Sinclair acquisition; news department closure===
In 1998, Sinclair Broadcast Group bought Sullivan Broadcasting; it also assumed Sullivan's [[local marketing agreement]] to program WUPN on behalf of its owner, [[Mission Broadcasting]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Morgan|first=Richard|date=February 25, 1998|title=Sinclair closes Sullivan buyout|url=https://variety.com/1998/biz/news/sinclair-closes-sullivan-buyout-1117468107/|access-date=December 9, 2021|website=Variety|language=en-US|archive-date=December 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211209023929/https://variety.com/1998/biz/news/sinclair-closes-sullivan-buyout-1117468107/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|title=Triad ABC affiliate to get new owner|first=Peter|last=Krouse|work=Greensboro News & Record|page=B5|date=February 25, 1998}}</ref> Sinclair initially invested in the WXLV news operation. To save money
However, as the station continued to make little progress at challenging the existing stations in the ratings, Sinclair cut back in the newsroom. In November 2000, the station discontinued its morning and weekend newscasts and laid off 10 full-time employees in hopes of focusing attention on its 6 and 11 p.m. broadcasts.<ref>{{Cite news|title=WXLV lays off 10 employees, axes two newscasts: The Triad's ABC affiliate gets smaller to attract a bigger news audience|date=November 16, 2000|page=B1|first=Jeri|last=Rowe|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|page=B3|first=Tim|last=Clodfelter|title=WXLV ends some news shows, lays off 10 people|work=Winston-Salem Journal|date=November 18, 2000}}</ref> A new news set and two new vehicles were acquired during the course of 2001, and WXLV-TV also hoped to move from Pilot Mountain to a site in Greensboro in hopes of adding 25,000 additional viewers. It needed the viewers: the station's 6 p.m. newscast was being outrated by reruns of ''[[The Drew Carey Show]]'' on [[
===News Central===
{{main|News Central (American TV program)|l1=''News Central'' (American TV program)}}
While a full-scale news department was scrapped, a new corporate initiative at Sinclair put the restoration of news programming to its Triad stations on the table before 2002 had concluded.<ref>{{Cite news|date=October 31, 2002|first=Jamie|last=Kritzer|page=City Life 10|title=Evening news may return to WXLV|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref> The company launched
===''News 14 Carolina/Time Warner Cable News on ABC 45''===
In February 2011, Sinclair resolved a [[retransmission consent]] dispute with [[Time Warner Cable]] (TWC) covering 28 stations in 17 markets, including WXLV-TV and WMYV; the group's carriage contract had lapsed, though no stations were temporarily removed. As part of the multiyear agreement, [[
During this time, the future ownership of WXLV came into question. On May 8, 2017, Sinclair entered into [[Attempted acquisition of Tribune Media by Sinclair Broadcast Group|an agreement]] to acquire WGHP owner [[Tribune Media]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Sinclair Broadcast Group Sets $3.9 Billion Deal to Acquire Tribune Media|url=https://variety.com/2017/tv/news/sinclair-tribune-merger-station-group-1202416416/|first=Cynthia|last=Littleton|periodical=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=May 8, 2017|access-date=June 6, 2017|archive-date=June 5, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170605120406/http://variety.com/2017/tv/news/sinclair-tribune-merger-station-group-1202416416/|url-status=live}}</ref> It intended to keep WGHP and WMYV, selling WXLV-TV and eight other stations to [[Standard General#Standard Media|Standard Media Group]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Sinclair Spins Off 23 TVs To Grease Trib Deal|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/113054/sinclair-spins-off-23-tvs-to-grease-trib-deal|
===Return of in-house newscasts===
In anticipation of taking news production in house, the Spectrum News newscast ceased airing in 2019. Sinclair announced the return of local news to WXLV to air weeknights at 6 and 11 p.m. in January 2021.<ref>{{Cite news|title=ABC-45 resumes its nightly newscasts|page=1B|date=January 20, 2021|work=Greensboro News & Record}}</ref>
==Technical information==
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! scope = "col" | Programming
|-
! scope = "row" | 45.1
| [[720p]] || rowspan="4" | [[16:9]] || WXLV HD ||
|-
! scope
| rowspan="3" |
| TBD || [[TBD (TV network)|TBD]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 45.3
| CHARGE || [[Charge! (TV network)|Charge!]]
|-
! scope
|
|- style="background-color:#DFEBF6; border-top: 2px solid #003399;"
! scope = "row" | [[WMYV|48.1]]
| 720p || 16:9 || WMYV || [[MyNetworkTV]] ([[WMYV]])
|}
{{legend|#DFEBF6|Broadcast on behalf of another station}}
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[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Charge! (TV network) affiliates]]
[[Category:Sinclair Broadcast Group]]
[[Category:TBD (TV network) affiliates]]
▲[[Category:Stadium (sports network) affiliates]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1979]]
[[Category:Television stations in the Piedmont Triad|XLV-TV]]
[[Category:TVX Broadcast Group]]
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