| Bangor, Maine | |
|---|---|
| Branding | ABC 7 (general)
Your Bangor News Fox Bangor (on DT2) |
| Channels | Digital: 7 (VHF) |
| Subchannels | 7.1 ABC /
Jewelry Television (overnight) 7.2 Fox (primary) / MyNetworkTV (secondary) |
| Owner | Rockfleet Broadcasting
(Bangor Communications, LLC) |
| First air date | October 15, 1965 |
| Call letters' meaning | VII (Roman numeral 7) |
| Sister station(s) | WFVX-LP |
| Former callsigns | WEMT (1965-1976) |
| Former channel number(s) | Analog:
7 (VHF, 1965-2009) Digital: 14 (UHF) |
| Transmitter power | 14 kW |
| Height | 229 m |
| Facility ID | 3667 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 44°45′43.2″N 68°33′56.2″W / 44.762°N 68.565611°W / 44.762; -68.565611 |
| Website | wvii.com |
Contents[][hide]*1 Digital programming
|
Digital programming[]
Its signal is multiplexed. Although WFVX has its own signal, it is carried on WVII's second digital subchannel.
| Channel | Name | Programming |
|---|---|---|
| 7.1 | WVII-DT | main WVII programming / ABC HD |
| 7.2 | WVII-DT2 | WFVX-LP "Fox Bangor" |
History[]
WVII's station ID in 1985 that used the standard version of ABC's "Circle 7" logo.The station first took to the air on October 15, 1965 under the call sign WEMT. Before it was launched, ABC maintained secondary affiliations with WABI-TV and WLBZ. The current call letters, WVII-TV, were adopted in 1976. It is the only television station in Bangor to have never switched its network affiliation. It is also one of only two stations in Bangor to broadcast in stereo.
In February 1995, the station suffered a failure of its transmitter due to a fire. This knocked it off the air during a Bangor Hydro Electric advertisement. It would not return to full-power broadcasting for two months. However, the station was available on cable and to most of its over-the-air coverage area through a temporary transmitter. TCI Cable and WVII had facilities that shared a rear property line on Target Industrial Circle. The cable company ran a line from its building to channel 7 allowing the station to continue normal operations while purchasing a replacement transmitter. WVII became the second station to broadcast in stereo in April 1995 as a result of a new transmitter. The cause of the fire was never determined other than being believed to be electrical in origin.
In 2000, Rockfleet Broadcasting made its first venture into UHF broadcasting by leasing channel 30, a former secondary PBS station. The station changed its call letters to WCKD-LP and network affiliation to UPN. In 2003, after an attempt to affiliate WCKD with Fox failed, Rockfleet purchased a new station. It was assigned the call letters WFVX-LP, was set up to broadcast on channel 22, and received the Fox affiliation.
In October 2006, WVII made national news in a New York Times article that quoted General Manager Michael Palmer as saying that "when Bar Harbor is underwater, then we can do global warming stories. Until then," he added, "no more." Mr. Palmer said he wanted no more stories broadcast on global warming because: "a) we do local news, b) the issue evolved from hard science into hard politics and c) despite what you may have heard from the mainstream media, this science is far from conclusive." Mr. Palmer said in his e-mail message to his operations manager and two women who served as a news anchor and a reporter that he placed "global warming stories in the same category as 'the killer African bee scare' from the 1970s or, more recently, the Y2K scare when everyone’s computer was going to self-destruct."
WVII's contract with Time Warner Cable to offer ABC programming in high definition was established at the start of September 2007 and will expire in 2011. In addition to being offered for free over-the-air, WVII-DT can be seen on digital channel 708. In August 2008, the station aired three New England Patriots pre-season games. On February 17, 2009 after its 11 o'clock newscast, it turned off its analog signal and began broadcasting exclusively in digital.
News operation[]
Its news open.WVII has always had local newscasts but never with the same level of success as the two older stations in the market, CBS affiliate WABI and NBC affiliate WLBZ. Due to this fact, it has long been ranked at a distant third in the ratings. Currently, the station produces local newscasts weeknights at 6, 10, and 11. All three broadcasts are simulcasted on conservative talk radio station WNZS-AM 1340. Except for the sports reports, WFVX's 10 o'clock and WVII's 11 o'clock broadcasts are taped earlier in the evening. There are also local weather cut-ins during the weekday editions of Good Morning America. WVII outsources its weather forecasts to AccuWeather in State College, Pennsylvania. When covering regional news that happens in Maine, WVII and CBS affiliate WGME in Portland often share content.
Newscast titles[]
- 7 Eyewitness News (1980s-early 1990s)
- Channel 7 News (mid 1990s)
- News 7 (late 1990s-2002)
- ABC 7 News (2002-2008)
- Your Bangor News (2008-present)
Station slogans[]
- "Maine's Watching WVII-TV" (1989-1990, localized version of ABC's "America's Watching ABC" ad campaign)
- "Coverage You Can Count On" (late 1990s-2002)
- "On the Move For You" (2002-2008)
News team[]
- Cindy Michaels - news anchor weeknights at 6 and 10
- reporter and producer
- Tony Consiglio - news anchor weeknights at 6 and 11
- producer and "Cindy at the Cinema" segment producer
- Brian Sullivan - Sports Director seen weeknights and Sports Blitz co-host
- Aaron Jackson - reporter and fill-in sports anchor
- Sports Blitz co-host
- Nicole Gerber - reporter
- Katie Hoffmann - registered dietitian and "Eat Well Live Well" segment producer
- Paul Edwards - "Officer On Duty" segment producer
AccuWeather Meteorologists
- Jim Kosek (AMS Seal of Approval) - weeknights
- Jack Boston - weekday morning cut-ins
- Bernie Rayno - fill-in
Former on-air staff[]
Anchors
- Amy (McHugh) Erickson - reporter
- now weekend anchor and reporter at WABI-TV
- Jan Smith - News Director seen weeknights at 6
- Steve Lacy - now weekend morning anchor and reporter at WCVB-TV
- Rick Douglas - reporter, producer, and editor
- Ali Carlson - weekends and reporter
- Chris White - producer and reporter
- now Senior Interactive Content Producer at WRGB
- Carolyn Callahan reporter and fill-in anchor
- now reporter and weekend anchor at WABI-TV
Meteorologists
- Ted Shapiro - Chief seen weeknights
- now same position at WAGM-TV
- Charlie Lopresti - reporter
- now Chief Meteorologist at WGME
- Erin Coakley
- Rob Nucatola
Sports
- Sean Cryan - Director
- Chuck Whitney - Director
- Ted Lombardi - Director
- Eric Frede - Director
- now at NESN
- Tim Baier - Director
- now sports reporter at News 14 Carolina
- Nate Long - Director
- now sports producer in Boston at Fox Sports Net
- Rich Chrampanis - now Sports Director in Myrtle Beach
- Ryan Welch - weekends
- now weekday sports reporter at News 14 Carolina
- Elgin Traylor - reporter
Reporters
- Kate (Barker) Shub - now at WGME
- Marci Natale - now at WRGB
- Eric Gullickson - photojournalist
- now weekend sports anchor and sports reporter at KEYC-TV
- Adam Shub
- Mike Avery
- Keith Sterling