WMCF-TV

Summary

WMCF-TV (channel 45) is a religious television station in Montgomery, Alabama, United States, owned and operated by the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN). The station's transmitter is located near Sevenmile Creek, on the east side of Montgomery.

WMCF-TV
Channels
BrandingTrinity Broadcasting Network
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
WTJP-TV, WMPV-TV, WHSG-TV
History
First air date
1985 (39 years ago) (1985)[a]
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 45 (UHF, 1985–2009)
  • Digital: 46 (UHF, 2006–2020)
Independent (1985–1990)
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID60829
ERP725 kW
HAAT130 m (427 ft)
Transmitter coordinates32°24′13″N 86°11′49″W / 32.40361°N 86.19694°W / 32.40361; -86.19694
Links
Public license information
  • Public file
  • LMS
Websitewww.tbn.org

The station formerly operated from a studio located on Mendel Parkway West in Montgomery. That facility was one of several closed by TBN in 2019 following the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)'s repeal of the "Main Studio Rule", which required full-service television stations like WMCF-TV to maintain facilities in or near their communities of license.[2]

History edit

WMCF-TV was signed-on in 1985 by Word of God Fellowship, Inc., the future parent organization of the Daystar Television Network. It has broadcast Christian television programs for the entirety of its existence, and this continued following subsequent sales of the station: in 1990 to Sonlight Broadcasting Systems, which owned WMPV-TV in Mobile;[3] and in 1997 to All American TV (not to be confused with an unrelated television syndication company of a similar name), a minority-owned firm with close ties to TBN, who already owned WTJP-TV in Gadsden.[4] WMCF had been airing many TBN programs, and the sale to All American made the station a full-fledged affiliate of the network.

WMCF became a TBN owned-and-operated station in 2000, when TBN purchased all of All American's stations.[5]

Subchannels edit

The station's signal is multiplexed:

Subchannels of WMCF-TV
Channel Res. Aspect Short name Programming
45.1 720p 16:9 TBN HD Main TBN programming
45.2 Merit Merit Street Media
45.3 480i 4:3 Inspire TBN Inspire
45.4 16:9 SMILE Smile
45.5 POSITIV Positiv

TBN-owned full-power stations permanently ceased analog transmissions on April 16, 2009.[6] The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition UHF channel 46,[7] using virtual channel 45.

Notes edit

  1. ^ The Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook says October 12, while the Television and Cable Factbook says November 25.

References edit

  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WMCF-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ Strang, Steve (July 15, 2019). "How Trump's New Regulation Cuts Will Save TBN $20 Million a Year for Gospel Purposes". Charisma. Archived from the original on August 12, 2022. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  3. ^ "For the record–Ownership changes" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. August 27, 1990. p. 69. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  4. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. April 14, 1997. p. 47. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  5. ^ "Changing Hands" (PDF). Broadcasting & Cable. March 27, 2000. p. 74. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  6. ^ RabbitEars TV Query for WMCF
  7. ^ "DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on August 29, 2013. Retrieved March 24, 2012.

External links edit

  • Official website