WBTV

==History==
The station first signed on the air on July 15, 1949. When it debuted, WBTV was the 13th television station in the United States<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wbtv.com/story/19038282/wbtvs-anniversary?clienttype=printable |title=Celebrating WBTV's anniversary – WBTV 3 News, Weather, Sports, and Traffic for Charlotte, NC |date=July 17, 2012 |publisher=Wbtv.com |access-date=July 31, 2015}}</ref> and the first in the Carolinas; it is the oldest television station located between [[Richmond, Virginia|Richmond]] and [[Atlanta]]. Veteran Charlotte broadcaster Jim Patterson was the first person seen on the station, and remained employed there until his death in 1986. WBTV was originally owned by the [[Greensboro]]-based Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company, then-owners of WBT (1110 AM), the city's oldest [[radio station]] and the first fully licensed station in the South. At the time, the Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company also had a 16.5% interest in the [[News & Record|Greensboro News Company]], licensee of [[WFMY-TV]], which signed on from Greensboro two months after WBTV. Jefferson Standard had purchased WBT from CBS in 1947. Shortly before the television station went on the air, its call letters were modified from WBT-TV to WBTV. Jefferson Standard merged with Pilot Life in 1968 (although it had owned controlling interest since 1945) and became Jefferson-Pilot Corporation. In 1970, the media interests were folded into a new subsidiary, Jefferson-Pilot Communications.

WBTV received one of the last [[construction permit]]s issued before the [[Federal Communications Commission]]'s (FCC) [[Federal Communications Commission#The freeze of 1948|"freeze" on new television licenses]], which lasted until the Commission released its ''Sixth Report and Order'' in 1952. As such, it was Charlotte's only [[VHF]] station for eight years, carrying affiliations with all four major networks of the time—[[CBS]], [[NBC]], [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] and [[DuMont Television Network|DuMont]]. However, WBTV has always been a primary CBS affiliate, owing to WBT radio's long affiliation with the [[CBS Radio Network]]. It is the only commercial television station in the market that has never changed its primary affiliation.

Channel 3 had originally operated from a converted radio studio in the Wilder Building, alongside its sister radio station. In 1955, WBT and WBTV moved to a then state-of-the-art facility on a hill atop Morehead Street, where both stations are still based today. The studio address, One [[Julian Price]] Place, is named in honor of the executive who effectively founded Jefferson Standard/Jefferson-Pilot through an early-20th century merger.

WBTV's only competition in its early years came from a [[UHF]] station on channel 36, known as WAYS-TV and then WQMC-TV, which broadcast briefly from 1953 to 1955. It was nominally an NBC affiliate, sharing a secondary ABC affiliation with channel 3. However, channel 36's signal was severely weak, and NBC continued to allow WBTV to cherry-pick its stronger programming. Channel 36 went dark in March 1955, and DuMont shut down roughly a year later in August 1956. Channel 3 took on secondary affiliations with NBC and ABC until Charlotte's second VHF station, [[WSOC-TV]] (channel 9), took the NBC affiliation when it signed on in April 1957. Channel 36 returned to the air in November 1964 as [[WCCB]] (later moving to channel 18 in November 1966), carrying whatever CBS programs that WBTV turned down in order to carry ABC programs. ABC programming continued to be split among the three stations until 1967, when WCCB became a full-time ABC affiliate.

[[File:WBTV-Tower.jpg|thumb|WBTV's [[Radio masts and towers|broadcast]] tower in north-central [[Gaston County]].]]
From 1958 to 1974, WBTV's studio facilities served as the home for [[Mid-Atlantic Championship Wrestling]] telecasts. Since its completion in 1984, WBTV's signal has been transmitted from a {{convert|2,000|ft|m|0|adj=on}}-high guy-wired aerial mast transmitter tower located in north-central [[Gaston County, North Carolina]], which is also shared with former radio sister [[WLNK]].

When [[WAGA-TV]] in Atlanta, which signed on the air four months before WBTV, switched to [[Fox Broadcasting Company|Fox]] in December 1994, WBTV became the longest-tenured CBS affiliate located south of [[Washington, D.C.]] WFMY-TV in Greensboro, the second-oldest station in the Carolinas, is the network's second-longest tenured affiliate south of the capital; it signed on three months after WBTV. Two years later, after [[KPIX-TV]] in [[San Francisco]] became a CBS [[owned-and-operated station]] (due to owner [[Westinghouse Electric Corporation]]'s merger with CBS), WBTV became the second longest-tenured affiliate that was not owned by the network, behind only Washington's [[WUSA (TV)|WUSA]].

Jefferson Standard/Jefferson-Pilot acquired several other radio and television stations across the country, with WBTV serving as the company's flagship station. The first was [[WBTW]] in [[Florence, South Carolina]], which was built and signed on in 1954; indeed, the call letters were chosen specifically because "W" is the next letter in the alphabet after "V". The two stations were separately programmed, but shared a microwave system from 1959 onward. Jefferson-Pilot sold WBTW in 1968 because WBTW provided a fairly strong grade B signal to the eastern portion of the Charlotte market, and neither station would have been able to expand their signals as long as Jefferson-Pilot owned both of them.

In 2006, Jefferson-Pilot merged with the [[Philadelphia]]-based [[Lincoln National Corporation]]. Lincoln Financial retained Jefferson-Pilot's broadcasting division, which was renamed [[Lincoln Financial Media]], with WBTV retaining its status as the flagship station.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.lfgjpmerger.com/pressReleases/mergerPressRelease.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=February 9, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303175225/http://www.lfgjpmerger.com/pressReleases/mergerPressRelease.pdf |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Sale to Raycom Media===
On November 12, 2007, Lincoln Financial announced its intention to sell WBTV, [[sister station]]s [[WWBT]] in Richmond and [[WCSC-TV]] in [[Charleston, South Carolina]], and Lincoln Financial Sports, to [[Raycom Media]] for $583 million. Lincoln Financial also sold its Charlotte radio stations to [[Braintree, Massachusetts]]–based [[Greater Media]], effectively breaking up Charlotte's last co-owned radio/television station combination.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.lfg.com/LincolnPageServer?KPage_PageID=LFG_Page&LFGPage=%2Flfg%2Flfgclient%2Fabt%2Fnews%2F2007%2Findex.html&KURL=%2Flfg%2Flfgclient%2Fabt%2Fnews%2F2007%2F2007-11-12%2Fcontent.xml |title=Lincoln Financial – Press Releases – LFG Announces Sale of Television, Sports, and Charlotte Radio Properties |publisher=Lfg.com |access-date=July 31, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071215075853/http://www.lfg.com/LincolnPageServer?KPage_PageID=LFG_Page&LFGPage=%2Flfg%2Flfgclient%2Fabt%2Fnews%2F2007%2Findex.html&KURL=%2Flfg%2Flfgclient%2Fabt%2Fnews%2F2007%2F2007-11-12%2Fcontent.xml |archive-date=December 15, 2007 |url-status=dead }}</ref> According to ''[[Charlotte Observer]]'' TV critic Mark Washburn, Lincoln Financial decided soon after taking over the former Jefferson-Pilot properties that it would never really be able to integrate them with the rest of the company's assets, and had decided to sell them as soon as possible.<ref>[http://www.charlotte.com/326/story/366593.html Charlotte Observer | 17 November 2007 | Old TV-radio couple breaking up<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071119063551/http://www.charlotte.com/326/story/366593.html |date=November 19, 2007 }}</ref> The sale of the radio stations was finalized on January 31, 2008. However, WBTV still shares the Julian Price Place studio with its former radio sisters, and they also retain a news partnership.

The FCC approved the sale of WBTV on March 25, 2008, and Raycom formally took control of the station on April 1.<ref name="RaycomClose">Washburn, Mark. [http://www.charlotte.com/business/story/562865.html Raycom installs new GM at WBTV] {{dead link|date=December 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. ''[[Charlotte Observer]]'', April 2, 2008.</ref> With the purchase, WBTV became Raycom's second-largest station by market size, behind the [[Cleveland, Ohio]] duopoly of [[WOIO]] and [[WUAB]]. Since [[Raycom Sports]] is headquartered in Charlotte, WBTV had a very important role in Raycom Media's operations, and it shared its flagship status with NBC affiliate WSFA, located in the company's homebase of [[Montgomery, Alabama]].

In early 2008, Raycom Sports and Lincoln Financial Sports officially merged under the Raycom Sports banner. The merger coincided with the start of the 2008 [[Atlantic Coast Conference]] [[college basketball|basketball]] season. WBTV had been Charlotte's home station for ACC sporting events since C. D. Chesley piped in [[1956–57 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team|North Carolina]]'s historic win in the 1957 [[NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament|NCAA tournament]] to channel 3 and several other television stations in the state. Raycom had produced ACC basketball games in partnership with Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial since 1982. The partnership was extended to [[college football|football]] in 2004; Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial had been the sole producer of ACC football telecasts since 1984. From 2010 onward, the package was branded as the [[ACC Network (syndication package)|ACC Network]].

In mid-May 2008, the former Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial stations launched redesigned websites, powered by the Local Media network division of WorldNow (which operates nearly all of the websites of Raycom's stations), assuming web platform operations from Broadcast Interactive Media. However, WBTV and WWBT retained their Jefferson-Pilot/Lincoln Financial-era logos and branding (WCSC has since changed its logo and graphics, following its switch to high definition newscasts).{{cn|date=September 2023}} WBTV changed its logo, in use since 2001, on September 7, 2023. The new logo incorporates the "GrayONE" graphics package used by most Gray stations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.newscaststudio.com/2023/09/07/wbtv-new-logo-graphics-2023/#:~:text=Charlotte%27s%20Gray%2Downed%20WBTV%20has,used%20from%202001%20to%202023.|title=Charlotte station debuts new logo, switches to group graphics package|last=Hill|first=Michael B.|
work=NewscastStudio|date=September 7, 2023|access-date=September 8, 2023}}</ref>[[Image:WBTV logo.svg|thumb|Former logo used from 2001 to 2023]]

On November 15, 2013, both WBTV and WBT were dedicated with a North Carolina historical marker at the corner of [[Tryon Street|Tryon]] and Third Streets (reading "WBT/WBTV – Oldest broadcast stations in North Carolina established 1922. WBT radio long hosted live [[country music]]. WBTV sign-on, July 15, 1949. Studios here until 1955"). The Wilder Building, which was demolished in 1983, served as WBTV's studio facilities from 1949 to 1955.<ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.wbtv.com/story/23981467/state-dedicates-historic-marker-to-memorialize-ncs-oldest-broadcast-station |title= State dedicates historic marker to memorialize NC's oldest broadcast station |access-date= November 16, 2013 |date= November 15, 2013 |publisher= WBTV |location= Charlotte, NC}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url= http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/14/4467170/historical-marker-spotlights-wilder.html#.Uod_FOLjV20 |title= Historical marker spotlights Wilder Building, broadcasting's Charlotte birthplace |access-date= November 16, 2013 |last= Washburn |first= Mark |date= November 15, 2013 |publisher= [[Charlotte Observer]] |location= Charlotte, NC |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20140413142411/http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/11/14/4467170/historical-marker-spotlights-wilder.html#.Uod_FOLjV20 |archive-date= April 13, 2014 |url-status= dead |df= mdy-all }}</ref>

===Sale to Gray Television===
On June 25, 2018, Atlanta-based [[Gray Television]] announced it had reached an agreement with Raycom to merge their respective broadcasting assets (consisting of Raycom's 63 existing owned-and/or-operated television stations, including WBTV), and Gray's 93 television stations) under Gray's corporate umbrella. The cash-and-stock merger transaction valued at $3.6 billion—in which Gray shareholders would acquire preferred stock currently held by Raycom—resulted in WBTV gaining new in-state sister stations, including NBC affiliates [[WECT]] in [[Wilmington, North Carolina|Wilmington]] and [[WITN-TV]] in the [[Washington, North Carolina|Washington]]–[[Greenville, North Carolina|Greenville]] market, in addition to its current Raycom sister stations.<ref>{{cite press release|title=GRAY AND RAYCOM TO COMBINE IN A $3.6 BILLION TRANSACTION|url=https://www.raycommedia.com/gray-and-raycom-to-combine-in-a-3-6-billion-transaction/#amnewsers|website=[[Raycom Media]]|date=June 25, 2018}}</ref><ref name="graycom">{{cite web|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/114556/gray-to-buy-raycom-for-36-billion|title=Gray To Buy Raycom For $3.6 Billion|last=Miller|first=Mark K.|work=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheckMedia|date=June 25, 2018|access-date=June 25, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Gray Buying Raycom for $3.6B|url=https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/gray-buying-raycom-for-3-6b|first=John|last=Eggerton|periodical=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=NewBay Media|date=June 25, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Gray Acquiring Raycom For $3.65B, Forming No. 3 Local TV Group|url=https://deadline.com/2018/06/grey-acquiring-raycom-for-3-65-billion-forming-no-3-local-tv-group-1202416667/|first=Dade|last=Hayes|website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|publisher=[[Penske Media Corporation]]|date=June 25, 2018}}</ref> The sale was approved on December 20,<ref>[https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/fcc-ok-with-gray-raycom-merger "FCC OK with Gray/Raycom Merger"], [[Broadcasting & Cable]], December 20, 2018, Retrieved December 20, 2018.</ref> and was completed on January 2, 2019.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/article/top-news/227754/gray-closes-3-6-billion-raycom-merger/|title=Gray Closes On $3.6 Billion Raycom Merger|work=TVNewsCheck|publisher=NewsCheckMedia|date=January 2, 2019|access-date=January 3, 2019}}</ref><ref>[https://gray.tv/uploads/documents/pressreleases/Press%20Release%20re%20Completion%20of%20Raycom%20Acquisition.pdf "Gray Completes Acquisition of Raycom Media and Related Transactions"], [[Gray Television]], January 2, 2019, Retrieved January 2, 2019.</ref> As was the case with Raycom, WBTV became Gray's second-largest station by market size, after Cleveland's WOIO/WUAB. Since Gray acquired WAGA's successor as Atlanta's CBS affiliate, WGCL-TV (now [[WANF]]) as its flagship, WBTV has been Gray's third-largest station.

===2022 helicopter crash===
On November 22, 2022, at 11:57 a.m.,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article269688561.html|title=Initial investigative report released on WBTV helicopter crash that killed 2 people|last=Cox|first=Kallie|work=[[The Charlotte Observer]]|date=December 6, 2022}}</ref> a 1999 [[Robinson R44]] helicopter nicknamed "WBTV Sky3" crashed onto the grass verge of [[Interstate 77 in North Carolina|I-77]] in south Charlotte during a training exercise.<ref>{{cite web|title=CAROL Query:NTSB Investigations Custom Search|url=https://data.ntsb.gov/carol-main-public/query-builder?month=11&year=2022|website=data.ntsb.gov|publisher=[[National Transportation Safety Board]]|access-date=March 15, 2024}}</ref> Both occupants, WBTV pilot Chip Tayag and WBTV meteorologist Jason Myers, were pronounced dead at the scene. WBTV anchors Molly Grantham and Jamie Boll covered the incident live on the air, before receiving confirmation it was their own station's helicopter and crewmen involved in the crash; the station released a statement citing the incident as a "terrible loss" to the WBTV family. WBTV received an immediate outpouring of support from the community, sister stations, and other media outlets; [[Governor of North Carolina|Governor]] [[Roy Cooper]] and Pastor [[Franklin Graham]] posted condolences on social media, and the [[Carolina Panthers]] and [[Charlotte FC]] delayed their 2022 [[Christmas tree]] lighting ceremony at [[Bank of America Stadium]] for a moment of silence in honor of Tayag and Myers.<ref>{{cite web|first1=Ben|last1=Finley|first2=Hannah|last2=Schoenbaum|url=https://apnews.com/article/charlotte-north-carolina-57eee67e2decdd0c9841878a98f7b138?taid=637d4bf4c1bdbe000108b593|title=TV meteorologist, pilot die in news helicopter crash|website=APnews.com|publisher=[[Associated Press]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{Cite web|url=https://www.wbtv.com/2022/11/22/crews-scene-helicopter-crash-i-77-south-south-charlotte/|title=WBTV helicopter crashes on I-77 South, two killed|website=WBTV.com|publisher=[[Gray Television]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{cite web|first1=Amir|last1=Vera|first2=Sharif|last2=Paget|first3=Melissa|last3=Alonso|url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/11/22/us/charlotte-north-carolina-helicopter-crash/index.html|title=Helicopter crash leaves TV meteorologist and pilot dead in Charlotte, North Carolina|website=CNN.com|publisher=[[Warner Bros. Discovery]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.wbtv.com/2022/11/22/wbtv-mourning-loss-meteorologist-jason-myers-pilot-chip-tayag/|title=WBTV mourning the loss of meteorologist Jason Myers, pilot Chip Tayag|website=WBTV.com|publisher=[[Gray Television]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{cite web|first1=Hank|last1=Lee|first2=James|last2=Brierton|first3=Blair|last3=Schiff|url=https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/helicopter-crash-interstate-77-charlotte-north-carolina/275-516aeaad-01d0-4227-a87c-9523e5ace28a|title=Reaction to fatal WBTV helicopter crash - 2 dead in TV news helicopter crash|website=WCNC.com|publisher=[[Tegna Inc.]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{cite news|first1=Kallie|last1=Cox|first2=Joe|last2=Marusak|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article269085217.html|title=Live Updates: Charlotte meteorologist and pilot from WBTV killed in helicopter crash off Interstate 77|newspaper=[[The Charlotte Observer]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}
* {{cite news|first=McKenna|last=Oxenden|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/11/22/us/north-carolina-helicopter-crash-wbtv.html|title=TV Meteorologist and Pilot Die in Helicopter Crash in North Carolina|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}</ref>

Witnesses to the crash claim the helicopter was visibly faltering, and in a steeply-banked spiral as it came down. Witnesses also claim that Tayag, a pilot with over 20 years of experience, deliberately steered the falling helicopter into the grass to avoid crashing into nearby buildings or onto the Interstate itself, which was crowded with [[Thanksgiving (United States)|Thanksgiving]] week traffic at the time. The [[FAA]] and [[NTSB]] began an investigation into the incident, which is still ongoing; the preliminary findings of this investigation, coupled with the available [[RadarBox]] data, indicate that the helicopter was initially traveling at {{convert|80|mph|km/h|0}}, and made three 360-degree turns just before it crashed. Tayag, the pilot, never issued any distress signal, though he was in contact with [[Charlotte-Douglas International Airport|CLT]] [[air traffic control]] moments before the crash.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article269688561.html|title=Initial investigative report released on WBTV helicopter crash that killed 2 people|last=Cox|first=Kallie|work=[[The Charlotte Observer]]|date=December 6, 2022}}
* {{cite news|first=Gavin|last=Off|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article269110992.html|title=A final day of flying: hovering over uptown, South End and a deadly path along I-77|newspaper=[[The Charlotte Observer]]|date=November 22, 2022|access-date=November 22, 2022}}</ref> 

Though the full NTSB findings have not yet been released to the public, on March 6, 2023, the family of Jason Myers filed a [[wrongful death]] lawsuit against Wilson Air Center in North Carolina; this lawsuit was later expanded to include a claim of [[negligence]] against [[Total Traffic and Weather Network]] and [[iHeartMedia]], who employed Chip Tayag and were responsible for the maintenance of the helicopter. The lawsuit alleges that the helicopter was poorly maintained, and had been filled with contaminated fuel on the morning of the crash.<ref>{{cite news|first=Michael|last=Praats|url=https://www.wbtv.com/2023/03/10/family-wbtv-meteorologist-killed-helicopter-crash-files-lawsuit/|title=Family of WBTV meteorologist killed in helicopter crash files lawsuit|website=WBTV.com|access-date=March 15, 2024|date=March 10, 2023}}</ref>