WRCX-LD
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2022) |
kW | |
| HAAT | 292.2 m (959 ft) |
|---|---|
| Transmitter coordinates | 39°43′28″N 84°15′18″W / 39.72444°N 84.25500°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | LMS |
| Website | watchwrcx |
WRCX-LD (channel 40) is a low-power independent television station in Dayton, Ohio, United States. The station is owned by Ross Communications, Ltd., and its transmitter is located on Gettysburg Avenue south of Dayton.
History
The station was founded on August 24, 1987, and signed on for the first time on August 21, 1995, as WB affiliate WUCT-LP (channel 51). However, it lost the affiliation to WBDT in 1999, in part due to management trouble. WBDT's then-ownership group (ACME Communications) was run by Jamie Kellner, the founding president of The WB.
Ross Communications, owned by Dayton resident Glenn "Skip" Ross, purchased the station from Higher Calling Enterprises. At one point, the Higher Calling group was locked out of the building due to unpaid rent. The station's lone master control operator at the time, broke into the building to bring the station back on the air.
Upon taking the station over, Ross began programming to appeal to the area's minority community, and offered programming unavailable on other stations.
During the time of transition of ownership, the previous group was barred from going onto the property, while the legal battles over the license continued.
New ownership and staff
Although the company's offices are located on Hillcrest Avenue in Dayton, the station continued to physically broadcast from WUCT-LP's studios on Gettysburg Avenue, which housed the transmitter and was owned by WPTD, the local PBS station. The building serviced as studios, offices, and the transmitter facility for WRCX-LP, WUCT-LP and WPTD.
Ross replaced Program Director Walter Briggs, a local sports personality, with Michael Crook, who had been a master control operator at various television stations. Ross also employed the services of Fran Robinson, who at the time was an on-air personality at local station WDTN, although she was mostly on the production side, rarely appearing on-air. She mostly did voiceovers for commercials that the company did for the local Ross automobile dealerships, owned by Ross' cousin.
Programming
With supervision from Ross, Crook ensured that new programming was added constantly, including children's programming, such as Zebby's Zoo and Blinky Bill. During this time of transition, sports programming was added, which consisted mostly of live coverage of black college teams. The station added numerous musical specials.
When the
For a time, the station aired
Around this time, Ross was searching for a network that would provide programming and resources for WRCX-LP. Ross wanted UPN, which was on the Miami Valley Channel, a cable-only channel operated by WHIO-TV, but did not receive the affiliation. Another network considered was Pax TV; at the time, Pax's local affiliate was WBDT, which aired Pax's programming in the mornings and overnights; the idea was dropped when it was learned the network wanted a ten-year deal. WRCX-LP eventually became an affiliate of Black Family Channel, then known as MBC, a network that caters to black families.
Also added during this time was an agreement with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Move from channel 51 to channel 40
The station began to transition to facilities at the Hillcrest location, in preparation for the loss of their channel 51 signal. WRCX-LP began sending a signal directly to the cable company to ensure that they would remain available to most of their viewers while arrangements were made to broadcast on channel 40.
In spring 2002, fellow Dayton station WKEF took over the channel 51 slot for its digital allocation, leaving WRCX-LP without an over-the-air signal for a time, though it remained on channel 22 for much of the area's Time Warner Cable subscribers. The station soon gained approval to broadcast on channel 40.
In 2004, the license and ownership transferred to Ross Communications after years of appeals and battles with one of WUCT-LP's former members. The station broadcast original and syndicated programming to Dayton and the Miami Valley, including high school sports coverage.
Black Family Channel and Ion
On April 24, 2007, Black Family Channel announced that it would cease as a cable channel, effective April 30, 2007, as part of a deal in which BFC's programming and subscriber base would be sold to the
Digital television
In the summer of 2009, WRCX-LP began the transition to digital. It shut off its analog signal to install a new digital transmitter, but encountered technical problems resulting in its old analog transmitter being turned back on for the time being. It remained on the air until August 1, 2018, when the station temporarily ceased operations after being informed by
Subchannels
The station's digital signal is
| Channel | Res. | Aspect | Short name | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 40.1 | 1080i | 16:9 |
WRCXHD1 | Main WRCX-LD programming |
| 40.2 | WRCXHD2 | All Sports TV Network | ||
| 40.3 | 480i | WRCXSD3 | The365
| |
| 40.4 | WRCXSD4 | Music videos | ||
| 40.5 | WRCXSD5 | WRCX-LD programming | ||
| 40.6 | WRCXSD6 | WRCX-LD programming |
See also
- Channel 40 virtual TV stations in the United States
- Channel 9 digital TV stations in the United States
- List of television stations in Ohio
- List of television stations in Ohio (by channel number)
- List of television stations in the United States by call sign (initial letter W)
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WRCX-LD". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ "Black Family Channel Nears Deal with Gospel Music Channel - 4/24/2007 5:38:00 PM - Multichannel News". www.multichannel.com. Archived from the original on April 27, 2007.
- ^ "Home". www.wrcxtv40.com. Archived from the original on August 5, 2006.
- ^ "ION, WRCX in Affiliation Agreement". Archived from the original on May 20, 2011.
- ^ "Displacement for LPTV Translator Application". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. May 31, 2018. File Number: 0000054778. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
- ^ FCC Filing (LMS #78353) — STA Extension — WRCX-LP
- ^ "Cable Channel Chart". Dayton Daily News. June 24, 2019. p. D8. Retrieved July 29, 2019.
- ^ "WRCX Commencement of Operations". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. January 11, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
- ^ RabbitEars TV Query for WRCX