WTNZ

WTNZ-TV

Knoxville, Tennessee
Branding	Fox 43 (General) Fox 43 Morning News / Fox 43 10 O'Clock News (Newscasts)
Slogan	Something For Everyone
Channels	Digital: 34 (UHF)
Subchannels	43.1 Fox 43.2 This TV
Owner	Raycom Media (WTNZ License Subsidiary, LLC)
First air date	December 31, 1983
Call letters' meaning	TeNneZ (Tennessee)
Former callsigns	WKCH-TV (1983-1994)
Former channel number(s)	43 (UHF analog, 1983-2009)
Former affiliations	Independent (1983-1986)
Transmitter power	930 kW
Height	527 m
Facility ID	19200
Transmitter coordinates	36°0′13″N 83°56′34″W
Website	www.wtnzfox43.com

WTNZ is the Fox-affiliated television station for the central portion of East Tennessee, licensed to Knoxville. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 34 (virtual channel 43.1 via PSIP) from a transmitter on Sharp's Ridge in the city's Arlington section. Owned by Raycom Media, WTNZ has studios on Executive Park Drive (along I-75/I-40) in Knoxville's Green Valley section. Syndicated programming on the station includes Two and a Half Men, Everybody Loves Raymond, and The New Adventures of Old Christine among others. It can be found on channel 11 on most cable systems in the market.

History

The station signed-on December 31, 1983 with the calls WKCH-TV. It was known on-air as "Catch 43" and aired an analog signal on UHF channel 43. It was locally owned by Knoxville Television, LP. There had been another independent in the area, WINT-TV, but it went dark about a month after WKCH signed on. On October 6, 1986, WKCH became a charter Fox affiliate and became known on-air as "Catch Fox 43".

Knoxville Television, LP declared bankruptcy in the late 1980s, and WKCH was sold to FCVS Communications (the owner of WACH in Columbia, South Carolina) in 1990. FCVS sold all three of its stations (WKCH and WACH, plus WEVU-TV (now WZVN-TV) in Naples, Florida) to Ellis Communications in 1993.

In 1994, it changed call letters to the current WTNZ. Ellis Communications was folded into current owner Raycom Media in late 1996. Despite the network musical chairs which have occurred in Knoxville over the years, the station has been the area's only Fox affiliate during the network's history.

Digital television

Digital channels

Channels	Video	Aspect	PSIP Short Name	Programming
43.1	720p	16:9	WTNZ-DT	Main WTNZ programming / Fox
43.2	480i	4:3	THIS TV	This TV

Analog-to-digital conversion

After the DTV transition on June 12, 2009, WTNZ remained on its pre-transition digital channel (34). However through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers display the station's virtual channel as 43.

News operation

Former news open.

In the mid-1980s, it produced a news break each day called WKCH News. The brief news and weather update was anchored by one of the station's staff announcers, Phil Rainey. In 1998, a news share agreement was established with ABC affiliate WATE-TV (owned by Young Broadcasting). This resulted in a nightly prime time newscast debuting on WTNZ known as Fox 43 Ten O'Clock News. The show originated from WATE's studios in Camp House on North Broadway Northeast/SR 33/SR 71/US 441 in the city's Old North Knoxville section. It competed with another nightly broadcast seen in the time slot on CW affiliate WBXX-TV.

In March 2011, WTNZ terminated its agreement with WATE and entered into a new arrangement with WBIR (owned by the Gannett Company). At the same time, that station stopped producing the WBXX update. On March 28, WBIR took over production of the nightly half-hour newscast which is still known as FOX 43 Ten O'Clock News.

Starting June 2, a two-hour weekday morning show (airing from 7 until 9) was added to WTNZ and is known as FOX 43 Morning News. In addition, the weeknight prime time news at 10 was expanded to an hour. All shows now originate in high definition from WBIR's facilities on Hutchinson Avenue in Knoxville's Lincoln Park section (official address is Bill Williams Avenue). Although existing personnel from that station is featured on WTNZ, WBIR's on-air staff will eventually increase by less than a dozen.

Newscast titles

• WKCH News (mid-1980s)
• FOX 43 News (1998-present)

Station slogans

• "East Tennessee's First 10 O'Clock News" (1998-2004)
• "East Tennessee's Only 10 O'Clock News" (news, 2004-2011)
• "Something For Everyone" (general, 2006-present)

News team

Anchors

• Abby Ham - weekday mornings (7:00-9:00 a.m.)
• Moira Kaye - weekday mornings (7:00-9:00 a.m.)
• John Becker - weeknights at 10:00 p.m. and "Service and Sacrifice" segment producer
• Robin Wilhoit - weeknights at 10:00 p.m. and "Live Green at Heart" segment producer
• Sean Dreher - weekends at 10:00 p.m.
• Beth Haynes - weeknights at 10:00 p.m.

Meteorologists

• Todd Howell - Chief Meteorologist seen weeknights at 10:00 p.m.
• Mike Witcher (CBM and NWA Seals of Approval) - weekday mornings (7:00-9:00 a.m.)
• Kirsten Horne - weekends at 10:00 p.m.

Sports

• Steve Phillips - Director seen weeknights at 10:00 p.m.
• Kris Budden - weekends at 10:00 p.m. and sports reporter

Reporters

• Bill Williams - "Monday's Child" and "Our Stories" segments producer
• Erin Donovan - photojournalist and "Live a Little" segment producer
• Ken Schwall - "Positively Schwall" segment producer
• Brittany Bailey - backpack journalist
• Ed Rupp - weekday morning traffic (7:00-9:00 a.m.)
• Mary Scott
• Stoney Sharp
• Emily Stroud
• Steve Butera
• Jim Matheny
• Hillary Lake
• Johnn Henry
• Allison Bybee - also fill-in anchor

External links

• WTNZFox43.com - Official WTNZ-TV Website
• Knoxville.ThisTV.com - Official This TV Knoxville Website
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WTNZ