Wikipedia
WIAT is the CBS affiliate in the Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham/Tuscaloosa, AlabamaTuscaloosa/Anniston, AlabamaAnniston, Alabama television market. It is a UHF television station licensed to Birmingham. Its transmitter is located on Red Mountain in Birmingham. "CBS42" originally began in 1965 as a local venture by Bill DuBois.
History - The station had been affiliated with CBS from its beginning but with different call letters, WBMG (standing for Birmingham). It was a well-known local television station not because of its affiliation but its local shows. Its newscasts often became comedy shows. Park Communications bought the station in 1970 and tried to professionalize the newscasts in the '80s without much success. In 1997, Park Communications merged with Media General. When the station didn't improve its ratings, general manager Eric Land cancelled the station's newscast and fired the entire news team on January 1, 1998. Over the next 3 months, the station went through a serious overhaul from graphics and set to logo and newscast format. The station's call letters were changed to WIAT, which stood for It's About Time, the station's slogan. The new format debuted in March 1998, with a new name ("42 Daily News") in favor of the old newscast name ("CBS42 News"). Ratings improved somewhat, but many problems behind the scenes occurred involving on-air talent and management that led to lawsuits. However, in 1998, the station received its first two Emmy Awards in station history. The station recently updated its graphics, set, and newscast title to "News42, Its About Time."
Newscast titles - ''News42 at 5:00'' (airs Monday through Saturday)''News42 at 10:00'' (everyday)''News42 at 5:30'' (airs Sundays)
External links - wiat.com - Station HomepageTVQWIAT Birmingham TV Category:Television stations in BirminghamCategory:CBS network affiliates
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