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WEWS-TV, virtual channel 5 (digital channel 15), is a television station in Cleveland, Ohio. WEWS has been owned by the E. W. Scripps Company since its inception, and is an affiliate of the ABC television network. WEWS' studios are located on Euclid Avenue in downtown Cleveland, and its transmitter located in Parma, Ohio.

WEWS-TV
WEWS 5 2016
Cleveland, Ohio
Branding News 5
Slogan On Your Side (primary general)

First in Ohio, First In Cleveland (secondary general)

Channels

Digital: 15 (UHF)

Virtual: 5 (PSIP)

Subchannels

5.1 ABC

5.2 Grit

5.3 Laff

5.4 Court TV

Owner E. W. Scripps Company

(Scripps Broadcasting Holdings, LLC)

First air date December 17, 1947
Call letters' meaning Edward Willis Scripps(founder of the Cleveland Press)
Former channel number(s) Analog:5 (VHF, 1947-2009)
Former affiliations CBS / DuMont (1947-1956)
Transmitter power 1000 kW (digital)
Height 300.7 m (digital)
Facility ID 59441
Transmitter coordinates 41°22′26″N 81°43′4″W
Website www.news5cleveland.com

History[]

WEWS Sign On

A screenshot of WEWS's sign on broadcast from December 17, 1947. This also served as the station's test pattern through the 1970s.

WEWS first went on the air on December 17, 1947,[1]as the first licensed television station in Ohio, and the 16th overall in the United States. The call letters denote the initials of the parent company's founder, Edward Willis Scripps. The station is the oldest in Cleveland to maintain the same channel position (as an analog broadcaster), ownership and call letters since its sign-on.

A few weeks before WEWS-TV's sign-on, Scripps launched WEWS-FM (102.1 MHz., nowWDOK) as an outlet for WEWS television personalities to gain on-air experience before the launch of the television station. Channel 5's first broadcast was of a Christmas pageant run by the station's corporate cousin, The Cleveland Press.[1] In short order, WEWS became the most modern television station in America.[citation needed] Its staff included capable producers Jim Breslin and Betty Cope, who would later become president of WVIZ.

In October 1948, WEWS, still Cleveland's only television station, broadcast the 1948 World Seriesgames played in Cleveland between the Indians and the Boston Braves.[1] The telecasts were fed to stations throughout the Midwest. WEWS aired only one other World Series involving the Indians - in 1995, when the Indians again faced the now-Atlanta Braves - the local airing was split with WKYC.

WEWS was originally a CBS affiliate, with secondary ABC and DuMont affiliations, but it lost the CBS affiliation to WJW-TV (channel 8) in 1955 after that station's then-owner, Storer Broadcasting, used its influence with CBS to land the affiliation. It lost the DuMont affiliation when DuMont ceased operations in 1956. WEWS was also an affiliate of the short-lived Paramount Television Network; the station was one of the network's strongest affiliates, airing such Paramount programs as Time For Beany,[2] Hollywood Reel,[3] and Frosty Frolics.[4]

WEWS also aired one NBC program, The Tonight Show, during this time, as the program was preempted by Westinghouse-owned NBC affiliate KYW-TV (now WKYC-TV), and WEWS cleared it live until 1965.

Local programming[]

In its early days as an ABC affiliate, the station produced its own shows in the afternoon, as ABC offered very little network programming in that daypart. Among the local programming offered during the 1950s and 1960s was news analysis from Dorothy Fuldheim, children's programming featuring the "Uncle Jake" character played by Gene Carroll and the "Captain Penny" character played by Ron Penfound, and exercise programs with Paige Palmer.

Alice Weston had the one of first live television cooking shows, and Barbara Plummer was "Miss Barbara" for a generation of young viewers on the local version of Romper Room. The most popular show was the Gene Carroll show which began in the 1948 and ran well into the 1970s. The program aired every Sunday at noon. The show showcased the local talent of Cleveland area.[1]

WEWS also offered a 90-minute afternoon variety show The One O'Clock Club weekdays hosted by Fuldheim and Bill Gordon.[1] The program was so popular that competitor KYW-TV was prompted to organize a competing variety show which was the beginning of The Mike Douglas Show.

In the late 1960s and early 1970s, WEWS produced several programs that enjoyed national exposure through syndication. The first program was Upbeat. Considered by some to be one of the most significant early rock and roll TV variety shows, Upbeat featured a live audience, a group of dancers and live (or lip-synched) performances by the big names of the era.[1]

The program began locally as The Big 5 Show, and the name was changed to Upbeat when it went national, altogether running from 1964 to 1971. Among the hosts for this program was Don Webster, who later doubled as the station's lead weather forecaster. At its peak, Upbeatwas seen in over 100 television markets.

Artists who appeared on Upbeat included Aretha Franklin, the Beatles, Simon and Garfunkel, Otis Redding and Stevie Wonder, among others. In fact, Redding's final appearance ever came on the show on December 9, 1967. The next afternoon, his twin-engine airplane crashed in the icy waters of Lake Monona in Madison, Wisconsin, killing all but one of the eight passengers on board.

Another program seen throughout the country was Polka Varieties, an hour-long program of polka music[1] that ran locally on Sunday afternoons from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. from 1956 into the early 1980s, and was syndicated during its later years to 30 television markets. The program featured various popular bands that played Slovenian-style polka, Polish, Italian and Bohemian-style music. "America's Polka King",Frank Yankovic, was the original band to perform on the show. Other bands included Richie Vadnal, George Staiduhar, Markic-Zagger, and Hank Haller. Original host Tom Fletcher was replaced by Paul Wilcox, whose presence became an indelible part of the show. Uttering the well-known show-opening phrase, "From America's Polka Capital of Cleveland, Ohio, this is Polka Varieties, now in its ___ year on the air!" were several famous voices associated with the station over the years, including Cort Stanton, Ralph Gunderman, and David Mark.

Black On Black, which examined issues of importance to Black communities, was syndicated to several markets.

In 1970, WEWS became the broadcast rights holder of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, and ABC held the NBA's national rights at the time. Channel 5's partnership with the team continued until 1973, when the Cavaliers moved to then-independent station WUAB (channel 43), coincidentally, after the NBA moved from ABC to CBS.

WEWS is the Cleveland market carrier of the Ohio Lottery and its signature game show Cash Explosion Double Play.

WEWS vs. WAKR/WAKC[]

At one time, the Cleveland/Akron market had two ABC affiliates: in addition to WEWS, WAKR-TV served viewers in Akron and Canton who could not receive a clear signal from WEWS. WAKR was founded in 1953, six years after WEWS, and was stuck with a less-desirable UHF signal instead of a VHF signal following the FCC's 1952 Sixth Report and Order, which resulted in a realignment of television allocations in the Midwest. WAKR-TV gained an ABC affiliation as the network could not clear its full schedule on its then-primary station in Cleveland, WXEL (as WJW-TV was known then), and retained it after ABC moved full-time to WEWS in 1955. As ABC soon became on equal footing with CBS and NBC in the late 1960s, this did cause cannibalization of ratings and made WEWS brass angry; they did not want to compete with another station showing the same programming.

The E.W. Scripps Company, the owners of WEWS, would always petition ABC's decision to allow both stations to carry the same programming. In the 1960s, ABC allowed WEWS to broadcast the better shows, leaving WAKR-TV with the less popular shows and second-rate syndicated programs. Meanwhile, WAKR-TV would air ABC shows that WEWS would preempt for movies or other assorted programming, and cleared the entire ABC schedule. One notable program preempted by both stations was the very first Monday Night Football game, which involved the hometown Browns hosting the New York Jets, which the Browns won 31-21. Both stations had to preempt the game (and all other Monday night games hosted by the Browns through the end of 1972) because the NFL did not allow local telecasts of even sold-out home games at the time, something that changed in 1973.[citation needed]

It was the popularity and financial success of WAKR-TV's sister radio station that kept the TV station afloat, which was severed when the radio stations were spun off and WAKR-TV became WAKC. Into the 1990s, while WEWS carried first-run programming like The Oprah Winfrey Show, Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy!, and Live with Regis and Kathie Lee, WAKC was left with The 700 Club, Bewitched, The Brady Bunch and infomercials in the 7:00 p.m. hour. In addition, WAKC's newscasts struggled in ratings even in Akron, often being beaten by WEWS.

The feud ended in May 1996, when WAKC canceled its news operation after being purchased by Paxson Communications and dropped all ABC programming in December 1996 to air infomercials and religious programming under the WVPX-TV call letters. It would eventually settle in as the Cleveland/Akron market's outlet for the Pax TV network, which is now Ion Television.

Despite this, WAKR/WAKC became a "farm station" of sorts for TV 5; its most notable alumni were Ted Henry—who was a weather anchor at WAKR prior to his long association with WEWS, and Mark Johnson—former WAKC meteorologist who's been at WEWS since 1997.

The Morning Exchange[]

Main article: The Morning Exchange

One program in particular, The Morning Exchange, which ran from 1972 until 1999, changed the face of morning television. It was the first morning show to utilize a "living room" set, and the first to establish the now familiar concept of news and weather at the top and bottom of the hour. During its peak in the 1970s, nearly 70 percent of all television sets in Cleveland were tuned to the program. The format also served as a template for ABC's Good Morning America.[1]

Digital programming[]

Virtual

Channel

Physical

RF Channel

Video Aspect Programming
5.1 15.1 720p 16:9 main WEWS-TV programming / ABC
5.2 480i 16:9 Grit
5.3 480i 16:9 Laff
5.4 480i 16:9 Court TV

As part of the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, WEWS-TV shut down its analog transmitter on June 12, 2009, and continued to broadcast on its pre-transition digital channel 15. However, through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers still display the station's virtual channel as 5.

On May 23, 2010, WEWS-TV discouraged a number of viewers when their broadcast of the series finale of Lost was interrupted by a number of technical difficulties with their digital broadcast. The series finale was almost completely interrupted and unwatchable. This caused numerous viewer complaints, and Channel 5 issued numerous apologies both on the air and through their website.

Cable coverage in Canada[]

The station is readily available over-the-air to Kingsville, Leamington, and Pelee Island, and was once one of the three stations from Cleveland carried on local cable in those three locations (The others being WKYC-TV and WJW-TV, until 2000 when Cogeco displaced Shaw Cable as the cable provider for Essex County. WEWS was also on cable in London, Ontario, carried until December 1969 by the London Cable TV system (now Rogers) in most of London, and until 1977 by the Maclean-Hunter system (also now Rogers) in the southwest third of the city; LCTV replaced the station with fellow ABC affiliate WJET-TV from Erie, Pennsylvania.

On October 16, 2009, the Windsor Star had notified readers that digital subchannels of the Detroit and Toledo stations would be added, while the Cleveland stations (such as WEWS-TV) and some Toledo stations would have to be dropped from the listings to make room for them, starting with the next issue of the TV Times, released the next day. The only Cleveland local station remaining in the Windsor-area TV Times is WUAB.

Logos and imaging[]

Logos[]

WEWS TV5 logo - 1968

WEWS "Circle 5" logo used from 1968 until 1998

From sometime in 1968 until 1998, WEWS' logo was known as the Circle 5, a variant of the Circle 7 logo associated mainly with the original five ABC owned-and-operated stations (such as WXYZ-TV in Detroit, now owned by E.W. Scripps). The only real change to the logo came in 1995, when it was slightly tilted to the right. Initially sister station WPTV in West Palm Beach also used the same logo, but in August 2008 they also slightly modified theirs from the original.

In 1970, the station commissioned musician and jingle writer Frank Gari to create a promotional campaign song. Catch 5, as it was known, caught on in Cleveland. The Catch 5 promo was first used to highlight the then-new John Hambrick/Dave Patterson anchor team onEyewitness News.[5]

WEWS kept Catch 5 as its official slogan until 1977. The station then transitioned towards a localized version of ABC network campaigns and Gari's "Hello News" campaign ("Hello Cleveland") for its on-air imaging, and as the theme for Live on Five. By the mid-1980s, only theEyewitness News broadcasts kept the Catch 5 theme music. In 1986, WEWS dropped the Catch 5 musical theme altogether and adopted another Gari music package, "Good News". Finally, in 1987, the "Hello" news theme and image campaign were dropped and replaced with an upbeat version of "Good News".

While WEWS was positioned on-air as either "TV5" or "Channel 5" up until 1990, the "Newschannel 5" branding was initially interchanged with "WEWS Channel 5" before eventually being extended to all broadcasting dayparts, including daytime and prime-time.

In January 2007, to coincide with their debut of high-definition newscasts, WEWS returned to a slightly modified version of the old Circle 5.[6]By September 2008, the ABC logo was gradually integrated onto the "Circle 5" first on occasional promos (including a harmonization of ABC's "Start Here" campaign), then with all newscast opens on March 2009, and with the on-screen 'bug' on April 20, 2009. Unlike the ABC O&O stations, WEWS embeds the ABC logo to the right of the "Circle #" logo and not the left, a distinction shared by Detroit's WXYZ-TV,Toledo's WTVG-TV, and Pittsburgh's WTAE-TV.

By late May 2009, the station still refers to their newscasts as "Newschannel 5" but on-air promos and other imaging outside of newscasts refer to the station as "Channel 5."

WEWS Logo 1995

NewsChannel5 Logo (1995)

Imaging[]

In addition to the Catch 5 campaign, WEWS also had several customized versions of the ABC campaigns from the 1970s and 1980s, as well as other localized campaigns.

Newscasts[]

Currently, WEWS broadcasts a total of 29½ hours of newscasts per week (with 5½ hours of newscasts on Monday-Fridays, as well as one hour each on Saturday and Sundays, which consists of evening newscasts at 6 and 11 p.m.). Channel 5 also features the weekly sports highlight program Sports Sunday, hosted by sports director Andy Baskin, Sunday nights at 11:35 p.m.

Early history[]

WEWS started covering news events soon after it went on air. The winter after it went on air, Cleveland experienced a blizzard, and for the first time WEWS had extended coverage for hours. During the early and mid-1950s, channel 5's first newscasts and weather reports were delivered by Tom Field.

In 1959 Dorothy Fuldheim, who had been with the station before it even went on air, began to formulate her own newscast in response to the new 30-minute newscast on KYW-TV, the first half-hour newscast in the country.[citation needed] Fuldheim utterly hated hard-hitting newscasts such as the one KYW-TV had created.[citation needed] Instead, she centered her newscast around her interviews, a general overview of the news, and her commentaries (the very opinionated Fuldheim frequently inserted her own opinions about the stories). Fuldheim was the first female in the United States to have her own television news analysis program.

Twenty-seven year-old John Hambrick took over as lead anchor on WEWS' evening newscasts on Christmas Day in December 1967, with Fuldheim staying on as a commentator. Don Webster presented the weather and Gib Shanley was the sports anchor. In 1968, WEWS changed the format of its newscasts slightly to a version of Eyewitness News. In 1970, Dave Patterson joined Hambrick on the early newscast and then became co-anchor on the 11:00 p.m. newscast in 1971. Ted Henry, who joined WEWS in 1972 as a behind-the-scenes producer, got his start on the air later in 1975 as a weekend weatherman. (In later years, Henry would admit that he, not knowing the slightest about forecasting, simply made up the forecast every day.[7]

In that same year, Bill Jacocks, said to be Cleveland's first regularly scheduled African-American anchorman,[8] joined WEWS. Jacocks started as assistant public affairs director, and became weekend anchor in January 1975. For a solid decade (until 1985) Jacocks remained the one constant weekend anchor while many co-anchors came and went. Among those doing their first Cleveland co-anchor stints with Jacocks were Tim Taylor and Wilma Smith.

Hambrick and Patterson continued to anchor the newscasts together until Hambrick left for KABC-TV in Los Angeles in 1975. At that time, Ted Henry became the weekend anchor, and then a year later in 1976, co-anchor on the weekday evening newscasts with Patterson. Henry continued as the lead anchor until his retirement on May 20, 2009.[9]

This era marked the start of dominance for the WEWS news programs that lasted until well into the 1980s. In 1977 weekend co-anchor Tim Taylor left WEWS for weeknight anchor duties at WJW-TV. Fuldheim’s role decreased as she only presented her interviews and commentaries, but still appeared on the air three times every day until retiring in July 1984 at the age of 91.

WEWS's news department underwent another major change in 1982. Previously, the 5-6 p.m. spot was occupied by The Afternoon Exchange, the afternoon companion to The Morning Exchange. That year, the program adopted a new format, and was renamed Live on Five. The broadcast was originally hosted by Wilma Smith and Don Webster, and retained many elements from The Afternoon Exchange, such as interviews, movie reviews, health reports, and some cooking segments. Added to the mix were news updates from Ted Henry.

Evolution of the news department[]

WEWS24HourNewsSource

An 24 Hour NewsSource update circa 1991-1994. These updates are best remembered by the clock in the picture displaying the current time.

As WJW's news programs became more and more successful during the 1980s,[citation needed] (as well as CBS having better ratings than ABC during most of the 1980s) channel 5 began facing competition for the first time in years. According to Ted Henry,[citation needed] towards the end of the 1980s, management felt that the station could produce a better newscast and overcome WJW by using a format other than Eyewitness News. An outside source was brought in and concurred that the station could do a better job in news production by adapting a new format. The analysis added that the Eyewitness News format gave nothing to viewers which suggested that its news was any better than the other stations'.[citation needed] With this in mind, WEWS began developing a format which would involve the production of full newscasts at the regular time slots, and in addition, mini-newscasts at the top of every hour, even overnight. This concept was dubbed "The 24 Hour NewsSource" as a way to suggest that WEWS was better than other stations since it produced a newscast every hour. In 1990, the new format was put into place and the station began identifying itself as "NewsChannel 5" (a title it shares with several stations in other markets). From 1990 until 1993, WEWS and WJW continued battling for the top rated spot. In 1993, WEWS launched a successful campaign called "Together" which reminded viewers of the station's commitment to Cleveland through news and programming since its 1947 launch and that that same commitment was present today. The campaign also slightly toned down the newscasts by making them less hard-hitting (and more family-friendly, as ABC had been seen as a "family network" in the early to mid '90s). As a result, WEWS once again emerged as the market leader in news.[citation needed] In 1994, WJW became a Fox affiliate and adopted a more hard-hitting format for its newscasts, going with Fox's "edgier" reputation and style, leading to many of its viewers changing channels to WEWS.[citation needed] Meanwhile, WKYC-TV and WOIO (channel 19, the new CBS affiliate) failed to present much substantial competition at all. However, WJW soon began regaining viewers due to the fact that it was able to produce longer local newscasts since Fox had less programming than the other networks. In response, WEWS began promoting its news division as "The most-watched news team in Ohio" in hope that the bandwagon effect would keep viewers tuned to its newscasts. In 1997, WEWS began to lose more viewers,[citation needed] this time to WKYC, when former WUAB anchor Romona Robinson moved to WKYC. At this time WEWS discontinued its hourly “24 Hour NewsSource” updates.

To try to prevent more viewers from leaving, WEWS got a new set and a new newsroom in 1998 and adopted "On Your Side" as its slogan (which it currently still uses). More noticeable, however, was the dropping of the station's longtime Circle 5 logo. That year, WEWS also became the first TV station in Cleveland to launch a website NewsNet5.

WEWS won many well deserved national awards between 2000 and 2004. The station boldly replaced prime time programs with town hall meetings, and was credited with saving steel mills and local hosptials.

While WEWS built on its outstanding news legacy in the early 2000s, winning most primary ratings races, revenue issues dogged the station. Commercial-heavy newscasts and prime time lacking news promotion took a toll. At the same time ABC prime lead ins fell into last place. As a result the station's 11 p.m. newscast ended a 4 year run at number one, and lost by a share point to WOIO. The trend continued in late news for the next several years.

On January 7, 2007, WEWS began broadcasting newscasts in high-definition, becoming the third Cleveland television station to do so. At this present time, all locally-produced portions of the WEWS newscasts, including live remote field footage, are in high definition. On December 17, 2007, channel 5 reached a major milestone—the station celebrated its sixtieth anniversary on the air.

On May 21, 2009, Ted Henry retired as the primary news anchor at channel 5, after holding the post for 33 years. Henry is the longest serving news anchor in Cleveland TV history, and second in Ohio to former WJW-TV/WKYC-TV news anchor Doug Adair, whose combined work in Cleveland and at WCMH-TV in Columbus spanned 36 years.

On October 19, 2009, WEWS upgraded its graphics and music packages for all its newscasts to the standard issue format currently used by all Scripps stations. The station changed to a new website format to match on February 24, 2010. The new WEWS website is an in-house operation (the previous website was operated by Internet Broadcasting). The websites of the other Scripps stations (which were previously operated by Inergize Digital) followed suit three months later.

On August 4, 2010, weekend sports anchor Terry Brooks made headlines when he was indicted in a Cleveland court on rape and kidnappingcharges. Brooks was then placed on administrative leave. On October 9, 2010, Brooks resigned from WEWS.[3] On January 27, 2011, Brooks was found not guilty on all counts associated with his trial. [4]

In November 2010, WEWS became the first Cleveland television station to follow a growing national trend in starting its weekday morning newscasts at 4:30 a.m.

News/station presentation[]

Newscast titles[]

  • East Ohio Gas Company 11:00 News (1960s)
  • Channel 5 News
  • TV-5 News
  • Newswatch (?–1971)
  • TV-5 Eyewitness News (1971–1990)
  • NewsChannel 5 (1990–2016)
  • News 5 (2016–present)

Station slogans[]

  • First in Ohio, First In Cleveland (1947–1990 and 2009–present)
  • Catch 5 (1970–1986)
  • Let Us Be The One on TV-5 (1976-1977; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • We're Still The One, and You Gotta Catch 5 (1977–1979 and 1979–1980; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • We're The One, You Gotta to Catch 5 (1978–1979; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • Hello Cleveland, TV-5 Loves You. (1979–1991; used during period station used Frank Gari's Hello News, was reused in 2002 as secondary slogan, but with Newschannel 5 Loves you))
  • You and Me, and TV-5 (1980–1981; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • Now is the Time, TV-5 is the Place (1981–1982; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • Ohio's News Channel (1981–1990; news slogan)
  • Come On Along with TV-5 (1982–1983; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • That Special Feeling on TV-5 (1983–1984; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • We`re With You on TV-5 (1984-1985; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • You`ll Love It on TV-5 (1985-1986; localized version of ABC campaign)
  • Together on TV-5 (1986-1987; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
  • Something's Happening on TV-5 (1987-1990; localized version of ABC ad campaign)
  • Cleveland's Watching WEWS (1990-1992; localized version of "America's Watching ABC" ad campaign)
  • Cleveland's Live 24-Hour News Source (1990–1994; news slogan)
  • If It`s Cleveland, It Must Be Channel 5 (1992-1993; localized version of "It Must Be ABC" campaign)
  • Together, We're Making a Difference (1993–1994; image campaign)
  • Give Me Five (1994–1998)
  • The Most Watched Newsteam in Ohio (1995-1998)
  • On Your Side (1998–present)
  • Start Here (2008–present; localized version of ABC campaign)

Voiceover artists[]

  • Ernie Anderson
  • David Mark
  • Bill Ward
  • Ed Hopkins
  • Jim O'Brien
  • Scott Chapin
  • Sean Caldwell
  • Lance Hildebrand
  • Randy Culver
  • Don Blank
  • Marty Sullivan
  • Dave Pelunis
  • Ralph Gunderman
  • Walt Henrich
  • Paxton Mills
  • Cort Stanton

Current on-air staff[]

(as of January 2011) Anchors

  • - weekdays at noon
  • Tracy Carloss - weekends evenings
  • Rob Portman- weeknights at 6 & 11 p.m.
  • Mike Dunston - weekday mornings
  • Shay Harris- Saturday mornings
  • Danita Harris - weeknights at 5 and 11 p.m.

Weather*

  • Mark Johnson (AMS Certified Broadcast Meteorologist and NWA Seals of Approval) - chief meteorologist; weeknights
  • Christine Ferreria - meteorologist; weekday mornings
  • Trent Magill- (AMS/CBM seal of Approval) Thursday-Friday at noon and Saturday mornings
  • Elisa Malinovitz - meterorologist; fill-in

(*) - WEWS' weather team also provides forecasts for radio stations WNCX and WDOK Cleveland, and WDJQ Canton.

Sports

  • Andy Baskin - sports director; Friday-Tuesday nights, host of Sports Sunday
  • Mike Cairns - sports anchor; Wendesday-Thursday evenings
  • Dustin Fox - Ohio State football analyst
  • Andre Knott - contributor/sports reporter, also occasional weekend sports anchor
  • Jack O'Breza - high school football analyst
  • Reggie Rucker - Browns analyst
  • Brad Sellers - Cavs analyst

Reporters

  • Lorna Barrett - freelance reporter/producer
  • Alicia Booth - health reporter
  • Sarah Buduson - investigative reporter
  • Dan Haggerty - general assignment reporter
  • Patty Harken - traffic reporter
  • Curtis Jackson - general assignment reporter
  • Bob Jones - general assignment reporter
  • Paul Kiska - general assignment reporter
  • Ted Kortan - general assignment reporter
  • John Kosich - general assignment reporter
  • Maurielle Lue - general assignment reporter
  • John Matarese - consumer reporter (based at sister station WCPO in Cincinnati)
  • Justin Michaels - general assignment reporter
  • Joe Pagonakis - "Troubleshooter" consumer reporter
  • Ron Regan - chief investigative reporter
  • Alicia Scicolone - general assignment reporter
  • Cristin Severance - ONN Cleveland bureau reporter (embedded at WEWS)
  • Jenn Strathman - consumer reporter

Notable alumni[]

  • Ernie "Ghoulardi" Anderson (deceased)
  • Marge Banks
  • Joy Benedict
  • Katherine Boyd
  • Jodi Brooks
  • Chris Caswell
  • John Chandler
  • Nev Chandler
  • Liz Claman (now at Fox Business Network)
  • Jenny Crimm
  • Kathy Davis
  • Jenny Dean
  • Connie Dieken
  • Dan Dobrowolski
  • Don Dunwell
  • Alice Edwards
  • Jim McElroy
  • Dick Feagler
  • Tom Field
  • Dorothy Fuldheim
  • Ed Gallek
  • Ana Garcia
  • Tony Gaskins
  • Bill "Smoochie" Gordon
  • Jeff Gravely
  • Fred Griffith
  • Ralph Gunderman
  • John Hambrick (deceased)
  • Ted Hart
  • Ted Henry (retired)
  • Chris Hernandez
  • Michelle Holden
  • Shane Hollett
  • Jim Hooley
  • Susanne Horgan
  • Bill Jacocks
  • Jan Jones
  • Bill Jorgensen (retired)
  • Mark Koontz
  • Angie Lau
  • Jon Loufman
  • Carolina Leid
  • Jack Marschall
  • Dawn Meadows
  • Lou Maglio
  • Dan Maly
  • David Mark
  • Jeff Maynor
  • Carole Meekins
  • Tom Merriman
  • Chris Miller
  • David Moss
  • Paige Palmer
  • Dave Patterson
  • Tappy Phillips (retired)
  • Michelle Relerford
  • Liz Richards
  • Sue Ann Robak
  • Vince Robinson
  • Joel Rose
  • Orlando Salinas
  • Michael Settonni
  • Gib Shanley
  • Adam Shapiro
  • Rebecca Shaw
  • Bill Sheil
  • Stefani "Sissy" Schaefer
  • Trisha Skidmore
  • Court Stanton
  • Wilma Smith (retired)
  • Bob Stevens
  • Tonya Strong
  • ""Howard Sudberry""
  • Brad Sussman
  • Robin Swoboda
  • Tom Tasselmyer
  • Tim Taylor (retired)
  • Matt Underwood
  • Don Webster
  • Roy Weissinger
  • Paul Wilcox
  • Steve Wolford
  • Bill "Yunkman" Younkin

Gallery[]

External links[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Station History from WEWS Website
  2. ^ The Coshocton Tribune (Coshocton, OH): pp. 4. 1953-02-10.
  3. ^ "Television Programs". East Liverpool Review (East Liverpool, OH): pp. 12. 1952-06-25.
  4. ^ The Evening Independent (Massillon, OH): pp. 11. 1951-09-29.
  5. ^ WEWS TV "Catch 5" Local News Promo from the 1970s. Accessed May 25, 2009.
  6. ^ [1]
  7. ^ Washington, Julie E. (2009-05-17). "Cleveland's Ted Henry reflects on 40 years in broadcasting". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2009-05-19.Prior to joining WEWS, Henry worked on-air at several stations in Canton, Akron and Youngstown, and also as a weatherman at WAKR-TV.
  8. ^ Feran, T, Heldenfels, R.D.: "Cleveland TV Memories", mem# 364, Gray & Company, Publishers 1999
  9. ^ Washington, Julie E. (2009-04-23). "Ted Henry, longtime local anchor, to retire". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved 2009-04-24.
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CPN Productions:
Wonder Media Programs •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Bumblebee Studio •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Originals •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Republic Film Enterprises •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Films •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Home Entertainment •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Distribution

Television channels:
CPN Media Channels: CPN Box Office •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Movie Channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Funbox TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Mix •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Lifestyle
CPN Television: CPN One (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Two (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN News (TV channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Kids (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN International •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN 3 (Sentan) (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN 5 (Vicnora) (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN 6 (Screencold and Line) (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN 8 (Mahri) (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN 9 (North El Kadsre) (Other) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow DMP 1 (Taugaran) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow A2Z Taugaran (Taugaran)
AOA Corporation 2: AOA 2 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow AOA World News 2 AOA.com2 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Qubo on AOA 23 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow AOA+ 2
Pogobon Media & Entertainment: Pogobon (TV channel) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Pogobon Jr. •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Pogobon Extreme
CPN Sports: CPN Sports 1 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Sports 2 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Sports 3




UWM Media Entertainment Companies
Film production companies: United World Films •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Green Seas Films •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Alagoas Pictures •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow California INC. Productions •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Wild Films (Vertinelia) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Insignia Productions (Hjallford) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow VertineFilm •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Thaifilm •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Notey Films •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Objectmation Productions •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Utopia Holdiings

VTE Utopia Holdiings
Utopia Holdings=

'Programming made since 2021: Are You the One? (season 9) | Criminal Minds (season 16)7 | Flashdance | Frasier (season 12) | Land Man | Love Story | Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies | Lioness | For Heaven's Sake | The Real Criminal Minds | Ink Master (season 14) | Inside Amy Schumer (season 5) | uwu (season 4) | Road Rules (season 15) | Transformers: EarthSpark2 | 60 Seconds


Released movies since 2020: Do the Universe | Infinite | The J Team1 | Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin5 | The In Between5 | Three Months6 | Jerry and Marge Go Large 5


Documentaries made since 2022: Console Wars


2022 Specials: Madonna: Madame X | BFB: Post Covid6 | BFB: Post Covid: The Return of Covid6 | BFB: The Object Show Wars6


Upcoming movies: Secret Headquarters | Blue's Big City Adventure1 | Flame High: The Movie3 | Orphan: First Year5


Former programming: 1883 | 60 Minutes Plus | After Trek | Big Brother: Over the Top | Coyote | The Harper House | Interrogation | One Dollar | Strange Angel | Tell Me a Story | That Animal Rescue Show | The Twilight Zone (2019) | Why Women Kill | Younger (season 7)


Entertainment Group:


Utopia Pictures Group:
Utopia Pictures (Other | Trailer Variants | Closing variants | International | Website Logos) | Utopia Animation (Others | Logo Variations | Trailer variants)


Utopia Television Group:
Alive Media (50%) | Utopia Television Studios (Others | Logo Variations) | Utopia Animation (Others | Utopia Classic Animation) | Utopia Domestic Television Distribution (Others) | Utopia Unscripted Television | Utopia International Television | Alloy Entertainment | ellen Studios | Blue Ribbon Content | Zero Studios (On-Screen Logos | Logo Variants | (Others) | Zero Latin America Original Productions | Eyeworks | Zero Studios Europe


Utopia Home Entertainment Group:
Utopia Home Entertainment (Studio Distribution Services4)


Divo Subsidiaries
Frito-Lay, Inc. | The Quaker Oats Company | Tropicana Products, Inc. | Matutano Snack Ventures, S.A. | Empresas Polar | Sabritas, S. de R.L. de C.V. | Gamesa | Marbo Product | Pepsi-Cola Venezuela1 | Pepsi-Cola Products Philippines, Inc. | Postobón S.A. | Sabra Dipping Company2 | Pepsi Lipton4 | PepsiCo Snacks | Evercrisp | Elma Chips | Tesalia-CBC


Current beverage brands
Pepsi: Pepsi China | Pepsi Georgia | Pepsi Light (Lemon) | Pepsi Max (Cherry) | Pepsi Zero Sugar | Diet Pepsi | Diet Pepsi Lime | Diet Pepsi Wild Cherry | Pepsi-Cola Made with Real Sugar | Caffeine Free Pepsi | Caffeine Free Diet Pepsi | Pepsi Twist Lemon | Pepsi Lime
Other brands: Mirinda | Mountain Dew | Mountain Dew Real Sugar | Diet Mountain Dew | Mountain Dew Zero Sugar | Propel Water | Mug Root Beer | Sierra Mist | Sobe | Sting Energy Drink | Tropicana | 7Up (International) | Dr Pepper (Canada and Oceania only) | Crush | Aquafina | Slice (India) | Gatorade | Lipton4 (Ice Tea | Brisk) | Caleb's Kola | Pure Leaf4 | Sodastream | Sabores Golden | Copella | Rockstar Energy Drink


Current food brands
3D's | Alvalle | Bare | Bénénuts | Bluebird | Cap'n Crunch | Cheese Tris | Cheetos | Chester's Popcorn | Chester's Puffcorn | Chipsy | Clipsy | Cracker Jack | Cracker Jill | Doritos (UK & Ireland | Japan) | Duyvis | Fritos | Funyuns | Gamesa | Grandma's | Gud | Imag!ne | Kurkure | Lay's (Arabia | China | Japan | Taiwan | Thailand) | Life | Mabel | Maker | Margarita | Matador | Matutano | Maui Style | Miss Vickie's | Munchies | Munchos | NatuChips | Near East | Nobby's Nuts | Nut Harvest | Off The Eaten Path | Oven Baked (Oven Baked Tostitos) | Pardon | Pearl Milling Company | Pipers Crisps | Quaker | Red Rock Deli | Rold Gold | Roni (Rice-A-Roni | Pasta Roni) | Ruffles | Sabra | Sabritas | Sabritones | Sakata | Santitas | Simba Chips | Simply | Smartfood | Smith's Chips | Snack a Jacks | Sonrics | Sunbites | Sunchips | Stacy's | Toddy | Tostitos | Twisties | Uncle Chipps | Walkers (Walkers' brands)


Limited edition/discontinued
FlavorSplash | Jazz | Crystal Pepsi | Pepsi AM | Diet Pepsi AM | Pepsi Azuki | Pepsi Baobab | Pepsi Berry | Pepsi Boom | Pepsi Capuchino | Pepsi Cappuccino | Pepsi Cherry Vanilla | Pepsi Caribbean Gold | Pepsi Cáfe | Pepsi Cool | Pepsi Fresh | Pepsi Natural | Pepsi Blue | Pepsi Blue Hawaii | Pepsi Perfect | Pepsi Carnival | Pepsi Fire | Pepsi Freeze | Pepsi Gold | Pepsi Ginga | Pepsi Ginger | Pepsi Green | Pepsi Holiday Spice | Pepsi Ice | Pepsi Ice Cream | Pepsi Ice Cucumber | Pepsi Kick | Pepsi Kona | Pepsi Max Twist | Pepsi Mojito | Pepsi Mont Blanc | Pepsi Next | Pepsi One | Pepsi Pineapple | Pepsi Raging Razzberry | Pepsi Raw | Pepsi Red | Pepsi Retro | Pepsi Samba | Pepsi Shiso | Pepsi Strawberry Burst | Pepsi Strong Shot | Pepsi Summer Chill | Pepsi Summer Mix | Pepsi Tropical Chill | Pepsi True | Pepsi Vanilla | Pepsi White | Pepsi X


Former/Defunct
Yum! Brands (KFC | Pizza Hut | Taco Bell) | BN | Pepsi-Cola Indobeverages3 | Hot 'n Now | North American Van Lines | Wilson Sporting Goods | Chevy's | East Side Mario's | D'Angelo Sandwich Shops | California Pizza Kitchen | Aliva (India) | Stolichnaya (Licensed) | Slice (drink) (United States) | Indofood Fritolay Makmur3 (Chiki | Chitato | Jet-Z3 | Qtela)


Notes
1Joint venture with The Walt Disney Company.
2Joint venture with Aberic Holdings.
3Joint venture with Empresas Polar
4Joint venture with Strauss Group.
5Joint venture with Indofood.
6Joint venture with Unilever.
7Joint venture with Postobón S.A.

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Television production companies: Hot Screen Television •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Original Productions •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Objectmation Original •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN+ Original


Miscellaneous
UWM Animation •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN+ •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow TodayUWM •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Syracuse Games Inc. •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWM eWatch •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow VENTURA


Syracuse Games Inc. video games
Scratch Battle •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Scratch Movie Videogame •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Pen and Eraser Movie Videogame


TV channels
UWN (Other •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow HD •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow 3D (now defunct)) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWNN •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Pus4 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Glare! •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Network 17 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The FN (50%)1


VTE UWN
UWN 2020

Current multichannels (UWN branded)
UWN 2 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Comedy •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Music •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Adults •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Cinema •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Kids •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Sports •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Family •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Action •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Anime •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Living •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Cooking •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Doku •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Perkeyland •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN History •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN SciFi •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Tech •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Entertainment •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Preschoolers •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Teens •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN News 24 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Power •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Classics •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Zone •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Hits •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Rush


Current multichannels (non-UWN branded)
Muchingbus Network •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The FN •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Glare! •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Pus4 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Network 17


Owned Television Stations
KFLE (Springfield, MO) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUDW-TV (Dallas-Fort Worth, TX) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUNC-TV (Sacramento, CA) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUWA (Anchorage, AK) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUWH-TV (Honolulu, HI) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUWN-TV (Los Angeles, CA) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KUWU (Salt Lake City, UT) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow KWSM-TV (Kansas City, MO) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WCIK (Cincinnati, OH) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WCN-TV (Atlanta, GA) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WMFL (Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, FL) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUCO-TV (Columbus, OH) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUIN (Indianapolis, IN) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUNO-TV (New Orleans, LA) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWC (Chicago, IL) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWD (Detroit, MI) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWK-TV (Louisville, KY) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWN-TV (New York City, NY) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWP-TV (Philadelphia, PA) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow WUWT-TV (Tampa-St. Petersburg, FL)


VTE UWN News
UWN News horizontal

Current programming
UWN AM •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN AM on Saturday •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN AM on Sunday •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN PM •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN News Flash •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow ON The Bright Side •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Direct & Express •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Hotnine


Special programming
R/Place Watch


Former programming
Hotnine: Video Games •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow TC2C AM Afternoon •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Back to Back

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VTE UWN Sports
UWN Sports horizontal

UWN Summer Olympics •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Winter Olympics •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN FIFA World Cup •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Formula One on UWN •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN La Liga •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Commonwealth Games •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow UWN Copa America

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Canceled multichannels
UWN Hero


Defunct multichannels (CubenRocks branded)
CubenRocks Channel 3 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CubenRocks Choice •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CubenRocks Knowledge


Defunct multichannels (! TV branded)
Learning Zone! TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Living TV! •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Life! TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Discover! TV 2 •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Objects! TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Drama! TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Kids! TV •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Children! TV


Defunct multichannels (non-CubenRocks or ! TV branded)
The Cartoon Channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Kids Zone •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow FranceNetwork •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow TheCuben2006 Comedy •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow India Zone •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Teenager Channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Drama Station •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Sitcom Channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow The Cinema Channel •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow Kpop Live Cuben

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Australia: NBC TV | Melbourne | Sydney | Brisbane | Adelaide | Perth | Hobart | Darwin | Canberra | NBC TV Kids | NBC TV News


New Zealand: Telemundo


Television Channels: NBC TV | Telemundo

Capowe Motion Pictures Group
Capowe Pictures | No Film Left Behind Studios



Capowe Animation and Design/Capowe Studios
Capowe Digital Media | Capowe Visual Effects


Capowe Labs
Software: Boulder Editor
Encoding software: NFLB Video Encoding System


Capowe Television Group
Capowe Television Studios1 | Braniff Productions1 | NFLB Television Studios


Capowe Music Group
Capowe Records | NFLB Records


Former/Defunct:
Balls Studios Chicago2 JLS+MF15 Productions3 BAD Productions


Notes
1 Joint venture with Qube Holdings.
2 Shut down due to the Gabriel Garcia pedo incident.
3 Shut down due to the acquisition and shutdown of BAD Productions.

Capowe Holdings

CPN Television: CPN Online (CPN+ •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow TheCoolTimes •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN News Online •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Sports Online) •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN News Radio (under CPN News)
Pogobon Media & Entertainment: Pogobon Music

CPN Media Group: CPN Interactive •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Music •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Store •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Foundation •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Magazine •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Toys •Kapow Kapow Kapow Kapow CPN Media Tower

1Co-owned with Glitch Productions.
2Joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery, The Walt Disney Company, and Paramount Global.
3Co-owned by E.W. Scripps Company.
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