WBIR-TV
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WBIR-TV channel 10 is the NBC affiliate in Knoxville, Tennessee. The station is owned and operated by Gannett. Its transmitter is located in Knoxville. 10 News WeatherPlus is offered through WBIR's digital feed.
History
WBIR-TV signed on the air on August 12, 1956 as an affiliate of the CBS television network. It was owned by Jesse W. "Jay" Birdwell along with WBIR radio (1240 AM, now WIFA and 103.5 FM, frequency now occupied by WIMZ). WBIR's sign off was "We are the best in radio," which is where the call letters originated from. Birdwell was one of the partners who had put WJHL-TV, the CBS affiliate for the Tri-Cities on the air in 1953.
Shortly after signing on channel 10, Birdwell gave up his interest in WJHL-TV due to a fairly large grade B signal overlap between the two stations. At the time, the FCC normally did not allow common ownership of two stations with overlapping signals. In 1963, Birdwell sold his Knoxville stations to Southern Broadcasting Corporation, which merged with the News-Piedmont Publishing Company of Greenville, South Carolina in 1967 to form Multimedia.
In 1988, WBIR became an NBC affiliate, swapping affiliations with WKXT-TV (channel 8, now WVLT-TV). Ironically, channel 8 had been the original CBS affiliate in Knoxville (when it operated on channel 26). Multimedia merged with Gannett in 1995.
Our Stories
In 2006, WBIR celebrated its 50th anniversary with a special report on some of the past stories captured on WBIR for the past 50 years. These reports were called "Our Stories" and included retrospectives on events such as U.S. Presidents visiting Knoxville and East Tennessee, major crimes and even the 25th Anniversary of the 1982 World's Fair.
Digital television
The station's digital channel is multiplexed:
Digital channel| Channel | Programming |
|---|---|
| 10.1 / 31.1 | main WBIR-TV programming / NBC HD |
| 10.2 / 31.2 | NBC Weather Plus |
Analog-to-digital conversion
After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17, 2009 [1], WBIR-TV will move its digital broadcasts back to its present analog channel number, 10. [2]
News reporters and journalists
News Anchors
- Bill Williams (Anchor Emeritus)
- Robin Wilhoit (6pm and 11pm weekdays)
- John Becker (6pm and 11pm weekdays)
- LaSaundra Brown (Weekday mornings and Noon) alternates with *Michele Silva
- Michele Silva (Weekday mornings and Noon) alternates with *LaSaundra Brown
- Russell Biven (Weekday mornings and Live @ Five)
- Beth Haynes (Live @ Five)
- Yvette Martinez (Weekends)
- Brittany Bailey (Weekends)
Sports
- Steve Phillips (Weekdays)
- Kris Budden (Weekends) Weekday fill-in
News Reporters
- Ken Schwall
- Emily Stroud
- Yvette Martinez
- LaSaundra Brown
- Brittany Bailey
- Stoney Sharp
- Erin Donovan
- April Lamb
- Jim Matheny
- Alison Morrow
"Live at Five" Hosts
Prior to September 15, 2008, this show was aired at 5:00 PM on weekdays, but since then airs at 4:00. A new name for the program has yet to be announced, with WBIR asking for viewers' opinions on a new name. Hosts are:
- Russell Bivens
- Beth Haynes
Weather
- Todd Howell
- Mike Witcher
- Julya Johnson
- Christina Meeks (Fill In Substitue)
Traffic
- Ed Rupp
The Heartland Series
- Bill Landry
The program, which was conceived in 1984 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, continues to celebrate the people and the land of the entire Appalachian region. In 1998, the series was expanded to a 30-minute version airing each Saturday, 7:30 p.m. It still continues to run the original five-minute version during the morning news, after 10 News at Noon, and after 10 News Nightbeat. Bill Landry has been host for the entire run of the series.
Newscast Titles
- The Esso Reporter (1956-1960)
- The Big News (1960-1970)
- 24 Hours (1970-1974)
- NewsCenter 10 (1974-1977)
- Action 10 News (1977-7/2004)
- 10 News (7/2004-present)
Newscast Themes
- Move Closer to Your World by Al Ham (1970-1974 and 1980-1982)
- NBC TV-Radio Newspulse by NBC-TV (1974-1980)
- WBIR 1982 News Theme by Unknown Composer (1982-1983)
- Theme From Firepower by Gato Barbieri (1983-1985)
- Power News V.1 and V.2 by 615 Music (1985-1997)
- Newsmark by 615 Music (1997-2000)
- Heartland by 615 Music (2000-Present)
Past personalities
- Lisa Cornwell,(Weekday mornings and Noon)
- Moira Kaye, Style
- Dan Farkas, reporter and sports
- Ben Senger, anchor
- Abby Ham, anchor (now anchor at WKYC)
- Josh Roe, sports
- Seth Grossman, anchor
- Mark Schnyder, anchor and reporter
- Teresa Woodard, anchor and reporter
- Ted Hall, anchor and reporter (now anchor at WXIA-TV Atlanta)
- Gary Loe, sports (now anchor of Hockey LoeDown WVLT-TV Knoxville)
- Steve Burgin, anchor
- Byron Webre, weather
- Jim Early, anchor and news director (D)
- Cassandra McGee, anchor
- Jennifer Mabe, reporter
- Rob Braun, anchor and reporter (now anchor at WKRC-TV Cincinnati)
- Scott Sams, weather and sports
- Rex Rainey, weather
- Carl Williams, anchor
- Marti Skold, weather (now at KTVX Salt Lake Utah)
- Terri Gruca, anchor (now anchor/reporter at WCCO-TV Minneapolis)
- Bob Kesling, sports (now Voice of the Vols with Vol Network3)
- Chip Carter, sports
- Doc Johnston, anchor
- Gene Patterson, anchor and reporter (now Anchor at WATE-TV Knoxville)
- Sara Allen, host of "Live at Five"
- Nicole Henrich, host of "Style"
- Jim Cline, sports
- Judy Jenkins, anchor and reporter
- Kristin Hoke, anchor and reporter
- Kim Carson, weather
- Larry Smith, reporter
- Todd Summers, sports
- Jim Holliday, sports
- Phil Rainey, sports
- Greeley Kyle, reporter
- JaQuitta Williams, anchor and reporter (now reporter/weekend anchor at WSB-TV Atlanta)
- Bret Dark, anchor
- Al Klensch, anchor and reporter
- Van Hackett, reporter
- Charles Thompson, reporter
- Steve Dean, reporter
- Pauletta Jackson, reporter
- Cheryll Jones, weather
- Janet Cunningham, weather
- Sonja Smith, reporter
- Edye Ellis, anchor
- Margie Ison, weather (retired)
- Mark Packer, sports (now First at 4 anchor, Sports Overtime Anchor at WVLT-TV Knoxville)
- Greg Zorb, sports
- Mark Smith, sports
- Jennifer Broome, weather
- Missy Kane, reporter
- Valerie Hyman, reporter
- Lindsey Nelson, reporter
- Tony Perkins, reporter
- Kim Stephens, anchor
- Faith Fancher, reporter
- Carol Marin, reporter (now with WMAQ-TV "NBC 5 Chicago" as political reporter)
- Deborah Roberts, reporter
- Bill Harris, weather
- Mark Nagi, sports
- Adina Chumley, anchor and reporter
- Steve Oglesby, reporter, anchor, newscast producer
- Jim Acosta, reporter
- Renee Jameson, reporter
- Jennifer Leslie, reporter
- Mark Johnson, weather
- Alysiah Bond, sports
- Krista Goldhair, reporter
- Tom Poe, anchor
- Wallene Dockery, weather
- Cheryl Mazur, anchor
- Alan Williams, sports (now anchor at WVLT-TV Knoxville)
- Lori Perry, weather
- Tim Cox, anchor and reporter ((now with WXIN-TV "Fox 59" Indianapolis as Gene Cox, which is his first name)
- Lance West, anchor and reporter
- Lisa Argen, weather
- David Nelson, anchor and reporter
- Mary Nelson, anchor and reporter
- Jason Pack, reporter
- Jim Ragonese, reporter
- Syan Rhodes, anchor and reporter
- Carmen Ainsworth, reporter
- Mary Loos, weather
- Stephanie Wines, reporter
- Chuck Denney, reporter
- Foster Arnett, reporter
- Janice Williamson, reporter
- Ben Bailey, weather
- Gina Miller, sports
- Jay Beeler, reporter
- Laura Hatch, reporter
External links
References