WJET-TV

WJET-TV is the ABC-affiliated television station for Pennsylvania's Northwest Region. Licensed to Erie, it broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 24 from a transmitter at its studios on US 19/Peach Street in Summit Township. The station can also be seen on Time Warner Cable channel 4 and in high definition on digital channel 1004. Owned by the Nexstar Broadcasting Group, WJET operates Fox affiliate WFXP (owned by Mission Broadcasting) through a local marketing agreement (LMA) and the two share studios. Syndicated programming on this station includes: Entertainment Tonight, The Insider, Judge Judy, and Judge Joe Brown.

History
WJET signed-on as the third station in Erie during the 6 p.m. hour on April 2, 1966. It aired an analog signal on UHF channel 24 and the first program shown was a 24-hour movie marathon. The station immediately joined ABC which had been shared as a secondary affiliate on NBCstation WICU-TV and CBS outlet WSEE-TV until this point. In January 1998, Nexstar acquired WJET. Later that year, it began performing non-programming functions for Mission Broadcasting-owned WFXP as was standard for most Nexstar stations. That station was then consolidated into WJET's facilities.

On April 3, 2006, this station celebrated its 40th anniversary. It began airing its digital signal on UHF channel 58 in high definition in 2008. In 2009, the station returned to channel 24 when the analog to digital conversion was completed. It is carried on cable in London, St. Thomas and other communities in Ontario, Canada nearLake Erie. In recent years, the station has been bumped to high dial positions on cable systems in those locations. WJET was once available on cable in the Hamilton, Niagara, and Grand River areas but was dropped in the early-1990s. Except for sharing the same call sign, the television station is unrelated to WJET-AM 1400.

News operation
Unlike most ABC affiliates in the Eastern Time Zone, WJET does not air a full-two hour weekday morning show. On Friday nights at 11:20 during the high school football season, it airs a local sports highlight show called Friday Night Lights. When the station began operating WFXP, it took over production of that station's nightly half hour prime time broadcast (known as Fox 66 News at 10). This had previously been produced by WICU through a news share agreement. On September 10, 2007, WJET began airing an hour-long weekday morning show at 8 on WFXP (called Fox 66 News in the Morning). This is the only local newscast in the area broadcasting in the time-slot.

In June 2009, WSEE moved into WICU's studios which are currently unable to air two live newscasts at the same time because there is only one news set. So that it would not compete with WICU, WSEE's weeknight broadcast at 11 was moved to 10 on CW affiliate WSEE-DT2. That show now competes with WJET's production on WFXP which had been the area's only prime time newscast. WICU and WSEE were supposed to merge their news departments together but this has not happened as of yet. There is, however, weekend evening newscasts simulcasted on both stations and sharing of resources.

News team
Anchors


 * Cassandra Garrison - weekday morning and noon news
 * Sean Lafferty - weeknight news at 5, 5:30, 6 and 11
 * Kim Thomas - weeknight news
 * David Belmondo - weekend news and reporter
 * Tom Atkins - Chief Meteorologist seen weeknights and heard on WRKT-FM 100.9, WQHZ-FM 102.3, WRTS-FM 103.7, WFNN-AM 1330, and WJET-AM 1400 (also "Weather 101" segment producer)
 * Tom DiVecchio (AMS Seal of Approval) - weekday morning and noon meteorologist
 * Jason Berry - weekend meteorologist
 * Craig Smylie - Sports Director seen weeknights and sports reporter

Reporters


 * Traci Teudhope - City Hall/Erie Police
 * Rachel Vendetti - part-time
 * Brian Sheridan - part-time
 * Alese Underwood
 * Mike Krohmaly
 * John Treanor
 * Jill Perkins
 * Ken Brown

Former on-air staff

*Jennifer Antkowiak - reporter (1989-1992), also worked at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh
 * Sarah Arbogast - reporter (2006 to May 2008), currently a reporter at WPMT-TV in York, PA
 * Kevin Benson - meteorologist, now at WPXI-TV in Pittsburgh
 * Doug Buchanan - reporter (1999-2002), at WUSA-TV in Washington, D.C., until mid-2007
 * Abby Cahill - reporter/weekend anchor (1998-2002), now teaching communications at East High School in Erie
 * Dave Call - meteorologist (1998-2003), now an Assistant Professor at Ball State University
 * Chris Cerenelli - Reporter, 2008-2010; left for WKEF/WRGT Dayton, OH
 * Jim Connors - Fill-in weatherman & WJET-AM midday air personality from the mid 1960's to 1971. One of WJET-AM's original "Good Guys".
 * Steve Drexler -- reporter/news director 1977-1990, now a partner in the law firm of Ainsman, Levine & Drexler, LLC, Pittsburgh, PA.
 * Brian Duffy - sports (1987 to 1999) now a news reporter at WOIO-TV and WUAB-TV Cleveland, OH
 * John Evans- sports director/anchor/reporter (1979-2000); current member, PA House of Representatives
 * Laura Gray - reporter (2004-2006), most recently WKBW-TV in Buffalo, NY
 * Kelly Gaughan - anchor (1995-2004)
 * Erika Howland - reporter (April 2005 to April 2007) Currently with the Millcreek School District
 * Eric Johnson - News Director/assignment editor/reporter (1981-1997), currently working as a communications operator with Pennsylvania State Police
 * Dave Jones - reporter (1998-1999), now off-air reporter/field producer for Fox News
 * Craig Layne - reporter/fill-in anchor, May 2007-June 2009, moved to WPMT Fox 43 Harrisburg
 * Diana Moon - reporter, now an anchor at WHAG-TV in Hagerstown, MD
 * Tim Miller - anchor/weekend anchor (1994 to 2003), now at WTOL-TV in Toledo, OH
 * Karla Mullenax - anchor (1999 to July 2008), now at Gannon University
 * Jamie Murphy - weekend sports anchor/reporter (1994-2004)
 * Brian Neudorff - weekend meteorologist (January 2003 to December 2007), now at WROC-TV Rochester NY
 * Trina Orlando - morning/noon anchor (January 2006 to July 2008), now a reporter at KDKA-TV in Pittsburgh, PA.
 * Cyndy Patton - reporter/anchor (1980-1999), now working for Saint Vincent Health Center in Erie
 * Amelia Segal - meteorologist (March 2008-February 2010), now a meteorologist at WIVB-TV in Buffalo NY [1]
 * Don Shriver - reporter/anchor (1979-1999), now retired
 * Torri Silver - reporter (May 2006 to May 2007)
 * Luke Simons - sports director (September 2004 to August 2010)
 * John Stehr - anchor/reporter (1979-1980), now primary anchor at WTHR-TV in Indianapolis
 * Joey Stevens - weatherman (1978-1998), later of WSEE-TV, retired March 2011
 * Bill Toth - weekend sports anchor (September 2006 to July 2007), now sports anchor/reporter at WPMT-TV in York PA
 * Tony Victor - weekend weather anchor/feature reporter (1984-1987), now Director of Philanthropy at Gannon University, Erie, PA.
 * Anita Vogel - reporter, now a reporter for Fox News
 * Greg Vorse - sports reporter/anchor (August 2006 to September 2008), currently a sports reporter for YNN Buffalo/Cable 8 Jamestown, NY.
 * Dan Wells - reporter/anchor (November 2004 to May 2008), currently a reporter at WXIX-TV in Cincinnati OH
 * Selena Wiles - Anchor (Sep 2008-July 2010), moving back to West Virginia [2]
 * Scott Wludyga - sports director (1996-2006), now teaching a multimedia class at Pymatuning Valley High School in Andover, OH, contributes to "Friday Night Lights" during fall sports months

Newscast Titles

 * Action News & Sports, Jet-Star News, TV-24 News (1966-1979)
 * Action News 24 (1979-present)

Station Slogans

 * Now Is The Time, Channel 24's The Place (1981-1982; local version of ABC ad campaign)
 * Something's Happening on 24 (1987-1990; local version of ABC ad campaign)
 * Northwestern Pennsylvania's #1 News Station (1990-1999)
 * 24 Stands for News (mid 1990s)
 * On Your Side (1999-present)