:WMYD
{{good article}}
{{Short description|Television station in Detroit}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2024}}
{{Infobox television station
| callsign = WMYD
| atsc3 = yes
| logo = WMYD 20 Detroit - 2014.png
| logo_alt = A white angled 20 in a sans serif inside a red shiny rounded rectangle. Underneath in two lines are the words "Detroit" in bold and "WMYD-TV20" in smaller, thinner text.
| logo_size = 150px
| branding = TV 20 Detroit; 7 News Detroit
| digital = 31 (UHF)
| virtual = 20
| affiliations = {{ubl|20.1: Independent|for others, see {{Section link||Subchannels}}}}
| owner = E. W. Scripps Company
| licensee = Scripps Broadcasting Holdings LLC
| location = Detroit, Michigan
| country = United States
| airdate = {{Start date and age|1968|9|15|p=y|br=yes}}
| callsign_meaning = "MyNetworkTV Detroit" (former affiliation)
| sister_stations = WXYZ-TV
| former_callsigns = {{ubl|WXON (1968–1997)|WDWB (1997–2006)}}
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|Analog: 62 (UHF, 1968–1972), 20 (UHF, 1972–2009)|Digital: 21 (UHF, 2002–2019)}}
| former_affiliations = {{ubl|Independent (1968–1995, 2021–2023)|ON TV (1979–1983)|The WB (1995–2006)|FoxBox/4KidsTV (secondary, 2003-2008)|MyNetworkTV (2006–2021)|The CW (2023–2024)}}
| erp = 935 kW
| haat = {{convert|324|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id = 74211
| coordinates = {{Coord|42|26|52.5|N|83|10|23.1|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}
| licensing_authority = FCC
| website = {{URL|https://www.tv20detroit.com/}}
}}
WMYD (channel 20) is an independent television station in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is owned by the E. W. Scripps Company alongside ABC affiliate WXYZ-TV (channel 7). The two stations share studios at Broadcast House on 10 Mile Road in Southfield; WMYD's transmitter is located on Eight Mile Road in Oak Park.
Founded in 1968 as WXON on channel 62 and relocated to channel 20 in 1972, the station was an independent focusing primarily on syndicated programs and classic reruns. It made an ill-fated foray into subscription television (STV) from 1979 to 1983, broadcasting a pay service under the ON TV brand that was dogged by a poor relationship with the station and signal piracy issues exacerbated by Detroit's proximity to Canada. After it folded, WXON continued as an independent station and emerged as the second-rated independent in its market, affiliating with The WB in 1995.
Granite Broadcasting purchased WXON in 1997 and renamed it WDWB. However, its high debt load motivated several attempts to sell the station, one of which fell apart after The WB merged with UPN to form The CW but did not include WDWB as an affiliate. The station then became WMYD, aligned with MyNetworkTV and airing its programming for 15 years. In 2014, Scripps purchased WMYD and added local newscasts from the WXYZ-TV newsroom. As Detroit's ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) station, WMYD is used in automotive-related tests of the transmission technology. It was Detroit's affiliate for The CW from 2023 to 2024.
History
=The channel 62 years=
At the end of January 1965, Aben Johnson, majority owner of a chemical manufacturing company and with several real estate holdings, filed with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to build a television station on channel 44 in Pontiac, in Oakland County.{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|1014490304}}|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1965/1965-02-08-BC.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=February 8, 1965|via=World Radio History|page=88|title=For the Record|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151345/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1965/1965-02-08-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} After an overhaul of the FCC's UHF table of allocations, Johnson amended his application to specify channel 62 in Detroit.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588463/public-notice/|date=July 22, 1965|page=10-C|title=Public Notice|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202625/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588463/public-notice/|url-status=live}} A construction permit for the station was issued on October 7, 1965,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588512/issue-license/|date=October 9, 1965|page=7|title=Issue License|newspaper=The Ludington Daily News|location=Ludington, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202610/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588512/issue-license/|url-status=live}} and assigned the call sign WXON that December.{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|1014501072}}|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1965/1965-12-13-BC.pdf|date=December 13, 1965|work=Broadcasting|title=For the Record|page=89|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108160849/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1965/1965-12-13-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} Johnson also held construction permits for stations in Hammond, Indiana, and Akron, Ohio, which he called the Action Network and proposed to focus on programming for teen audiences.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589620/channel-62-expected-on-air-in-1968/|date=December 31, 1967|page=1B|title=Channel 62 Expected on Air in 1968|newspaper=The Times|location=Munster, Indiana|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202610/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589620/channel-62-expected-on-air-in-1968/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589805/opposed-by-ksu-tallmadge-denies-zoning/|date=September 24, 1965|page=B-1|title=Opposed By KSU: Tallmadge Denies Zoning For UHF Television Site|newspaper=The Akron Beacon Journal|location=Akron, Ohio|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202610/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589805/opposed-by-ksu-tallmadge-denies-zoning/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=UHF owner plans teen slant to programing|page=66|work=Broadcasting|date=May 23, 1966|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1966/1966-05-23-BC.pdf|id={{ProQuest|1014509855}}|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151250/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1966/1966-05-23-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} He considered a Detroit radio station as well before learning how saturated the market was.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106578383/ratings-count-not-birthdays/|date=December 24, 1988|page=D1|first=Ted|last=Shaw|title=Ratings count, not birthdays|newspaper=The Windsor Star|location=Windsor, Ontario, Canada|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202610/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106578383/ratings-count-not-birthdays/|url-status=live}}
After three years, WXON began broadcasting on September 15, 1968.{{Cite news|title=WXON-TV, Detroit Area's 7th, Bows as 3d UHFer|page=39|work=Variety|date=September 18, 1968|id={{ProQuest|962937069}}}} While it had originally proposed to broadcast from Southfield, where a new UHF transmission facility was being built for WKBD-TV (channel 50) and three other stations, Johnson bowed out and built his own transmitter facility and studio at 14 Mile and Decker roads in Walled Lake. Syndicated reruns and movies were joined by Rae Dean and Friends, a series of children's puppets conducted by Frank Deal and previously seen on WJRT-TV in Flint.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93251881/detroits-new-uhf-tv-station-channel-62/|date=August 23, 1968|page=5-D|first=Bettelou|last=Peterson|title=Detroit's New UHF TV Station: Channel 62 Set to Debut Sept. 15|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202612/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93251881/detroits-new-uhf-tv-station-channel/|url-status=live}} The small facility, with its lower costs of operation, also produced commercials seen on other local TV stations; a revival of Robin Seymour's Swingin' Time, a dance show that had been canceled by CKLW-TV in Windsor, Ontario;{{Cite magazine|title='Swingin' Time' Show Back In Detroit Via WXON-TV|magazine=Billboard|date=June 14, 1969|page=38|id={{ProQuest|1286301530}} }} and a syndicated wrestling program, Big Time Wrestling.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588894/wxons-looking-for-a-piece-of-the-detroi/|date=June 12, 1972|page=4-B|first=Charlie|last=Hanna|title=WXON's Looking for a Piece Of the Detroit TV Action|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202612/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106588894/wxons-looking-for-a-piece-of-the/|url-status=live}} However, the station's signal coverage of Detroit itself proved poorer than expected.{{r|Detr720612}}
=Move to channel 20=
In an unusual circumstance, a full transmitter facility for channel 20 at Southfield had been built, but the station slated to use it had failed to start. In 1964, United Broadcasting Company had purchased the construction permit for WJMY, which had briefly broadcast from Allen Park from 1962 to 1963 but was no longer on the air.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45295282/fcc-okays-transfer-of-allen-park-station/|date=July 9, 1964|page=8|agency=UPI|title=FCC Okays Transfer Of Allen Park Station|newspaper=The Holland Evening Sentinel|location=Holland, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=May 19, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200519113739/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45295282/fcc-okays-transfer-of-allen-park-station/|url-status=live}} United proposed to return it to the air with a focus on specialty ethnic programs from the new Southfield UHF mast,{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45294848/within-weeks-tv-sports-outlet-within/|date=December 24, 1964|page=7-A|first=Bettelou|last=Peterson|title=Within Weeks, TV Sports Outlet; Within Year, a 7th Station|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202612/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45294848/within-weeks-tv-sports-outlet-within/|url-status=live}} but planned dates came and went without any activity, including an announced May 1969 groundbreaking on studios.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45296401/tv-station-schedules-fall-opening/|date=May 9, 1969|page=12-C|first=Bettelou|last=Peterson|title=TV Station Schedules Fall Opening|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202613/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45296401/tv-station-schedules-fall-opening/|url-status=live}}
However, United faced increasing legal scrutiny that primarily centered around issues at its radio and television stations in Washington, D.C., WOOK and WFAN-TV, and extended to several other properties. After a sale of WJMY to United Artists fell through, in December 1970, United filed to sell the construction permit for WJMY to WXON—which had reportedly lost $136,000 in its first two years of operation because of the deficient signal in the full market—with the purpose of moving WXON to channel 20.{{cite news|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1971/1971-02-01-BC.pdf|date=February 1, 1971|work=Broadcasting|page=45|id={{ProQuest|1016863322}}|title=Land-mobile group asks denial of CP assignment|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151224/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1971/1971-02-01-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} Land mobile radio users protested the proposal, asking for the fallow channel 20 to be turned over for their use,{{r|BC710201}} but the FCC approved the deal in June 1972, finding that United's inability to utilize the improved WJMY-TV facility was due to its own financial troubles.{{cite news|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1972/1972-06-05-BC.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=June 5, 1972|id={{ProQuest|1016865903}}|pages=40–41|title=FCC approves sale of one Eaton UHF|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=April 17, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417132746/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1972/1972-06-05-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} Johnson announced the station would relocate its studios from Walled Lake and floated the possibility of changing the call sign.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45297874/avery-to-host-open-house/|date=June 6, 1972|page=6-C|first=Bettelou|last=Peterson|title=Avery to Host 'Open House'|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202631/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45297874/avery-to-host-open-house/|url-status=live}}
In November 1972, WXON went off channel 62 and remained off the air for a month to effectuate the change to channel 20.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589942/wxon-tv-to-change-channels/|date=November 9, 1972|page=5-B|title=WXON-TV To Change Channels|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202612/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106589942/wxon-tv-to-change-channels/|url-status=live}} Broadcasting resumed on channel 20 on December 9.{{Cite news|title=Detroit|work=Variety|page=30|id={{ProQuest|1032461417}}|date=December 13, 1972}} Several new shows were added with the channel change, including The 700 Club.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45298005/new-shows-fresh-reruns-bow-on-wxons/|date=November 30, 1972|page=8-C|first=Bettelou|last=Peterson|title=New Shows, Fresh Reruns Bow on WXON's New Ch. 20|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=January 23, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220123062848/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/45298005/new-shows-fresh-reruns-bow-on-wxons/|url-status=live}} In 1975, the city of license for the station was changed from Allen Park to Detroit, and the studios were moved to the transmitter site in Southfield.{{Cite web|url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/3ab21925-fce3-a1f1-9e8a-34b6f60879f9|title=History Cards for WMYD|publisher=Federal Communications Commission}} (As the current WMYD is the former WJMY construction permit, the Walled Lake era is not covered in this card set.)
Through the 1970s, WXON primarily focused on syndicated output. It did, however, bring late-night horror movie cult favorite The Ghoul Show back to Detroit television after WKBD had canceled his show in 1976;{{Cite news |last=Bifoss |first=Fawn |date=March 20, 1977 |title=Ghoulish Success Mixes Kitsch with Kiszka |page=7C |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |location=Detroit, Michigan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104517850/the-ghoul-detroit-free-press-03-20-77/ |access-date=September 23, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=September 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923143855/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/104517850/the-ghoul-detroit-free-press-03-20-77/ |url-status=live }} The Ghoul would air in two stints on the station, from 1977 to 1979{{Cite news |date=December 20, 1977 |title=Names & Faces: Mrs. Abzug Tries for House Seat Again |page=12D |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |location=Detroit, Michigan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93324874/names-faces-mrs-abzug-tries-for/ |url-status=live |access-date=January 24, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220124030108/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93324874/names-faces-mrs-abzug-tries-for/ |archive-date=January 24, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com}} and again for several years in the early 1980s.{{Cite news |last=Duffy |first=Mike |date=April 29, 1983 |title=The Ghoul Is Back: TV horror wars are heating up |pages=1C, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108158992/the-ghoul-part-2-detroit-free-press-29/ 10C] |newspaper=Detroit Free Press |location=Detroit, Michigan |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108158897/the-ghoul-detroit-free-press-29-apr/ |access-date=September 23, 2022 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=September 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220923143855/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/108158897/the-ghoul-detroit-free-press-29-apr/ |url-status=live }}{{sfn|Castelnero|2006|p=221}} Though Gordon Castelnero, who wrote a 2006 book on local TV programming in Detroit, characterized WXON as producing "virtually no local programming to speak of" outside The Ghoul during the 1970s,{{sfn|Castelnero|2006|p=8}} there were other shows. Twice during the decade, it aired a television version of the long-running Middle East Melodies radio show, which featured guests as well as belly dancers.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591998/josephine-faddol-detroits-arabic-voice/|date=February 20, 1999|page=A11|first=Dan|last=Shine|title=Josephine Faddol: Detroit's Arabic voice for 31 years|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202613/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591998/josephine-faddol-detroits-arabic/|url-status=live}}
=Subscription television=
{{see|ON TV (TV network)}}
As early as 1970, WXON eyed the possibility of broadcasting scrambled subscription television (STV) programming to paying subscribers, filing one of the first applications for such a service at the FCC.{{Cite news|id={{ProQuest|1016852957}}|date=August 10, 1970|page=39|title=Two more firms grasp for STV ring|work=Broadcasting|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1970/1970-08-10-BC.pdf|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=November 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211108151348/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1970/1970-08-10-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} The FCC approved this application in 1977,{{r|hc}} and the same year, WXON struck an agreement with National Subscription Television, owner of the ON TV service that started in Los Angeles that year, to provide STV programs to air on the station.{{Cite news |date=April 3, 1977 |title=What's This? Scrambled TV That You Pay For? |page=7C |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61488411/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313004132/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61488411/whats-this-scrambled-tv-that-you-pay/ |url-status=live }} Under a 1978 agreement between Oak Industries and Chartwell Communications – the two partners in National Subscription Television – Chartwell was given the Detroit market to develop.{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|1014699399}}|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/1978-11-06-BC.pdf|work=Broadcasting|date=November 6, 1978|title=Thinking big with over-the-air-pay|access-date=October 1, 2021|via=World Radio History|page=58|archive-date=March 8, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308030350/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1978/1978-11-06-BC.pdf|url-status=live}} The two parties successfully aimed for a July 1, 1979, launch.{{Cite news |last=McMahon |first=Tom |date=February 13, 1979 |title=Pay-TV is getting closer |page=15 |work=The Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61488996/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com}} Unlike in other markets, Chartwell selected equipment from Oak's rival, Blonder-Tongue.{{Cite news |date=October 1, 1979 |title=FCC letting STV out of the closet |pages=23–24 |work=Broadcasting |id={{ProQuest|1014699254}} |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1979/BC-1979-10-01.pdf |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=World Radio History |archive-date=November 1, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201101221353/https://worldradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1979/BC-1979-10-01.pdf |url-status=live }} This decision drew Oak's ire when Chartwell ordered more Blonder-Tongue equipment in 1981,{{Cite news |last1=Crook |first1=David |last2=Harris |first2=Kathryn |date=December 13, 1981 |title=Jerry Perenchio: Hollywood's Consummate Deal Maker |pages=[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61842196/ 3], [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61841997/ 15] |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61842259/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313004134/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61842259/jerry-perenchio-hollywoods-consummate/ |url-status=live }} part of a falling-out that saw Oak buy out Chartwell's stake in the successful ON TV system in Los Angeles.{{Cite news |date=September 9, 1981 |title=Oak Industries said it will buy the remainder of ON-TV. |page=2 |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61490572/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313004134/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61490572/oak-industries-said-it-will-buy-the/ |url-status=live }}
The ON TV service in Detroit quickly gained 15,000 subscribers within three months{{r|canham}} and snared the rights to Detroit Red Wings hockey, Detroit Tigers baseball (consisting of 20 weeknight games a year from Tiger Stadium), and Michigan Wolverines athletics (including tape-delayed football games).{{Cite news |last=Lapointe |first=Joe |date=January 27, 1980 |title=Pay TV buys two-year Tiger game package |page=1G |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62124902/ |access-date=October 29, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202614/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62124902/pay-tv-buys-two-year-tiger-game-package/ |url-status=live }} In the case of the Wolverines, it even ran one experimental 1979 telecast live, a presentation spearheaded by Michigan athletic director Don Canham with the blessing of the NCAA.{{Cite news |last=Lapointe |first=Joe |date=September 29, 1979 |title=Canham plugs Michigan into pay-television circuit |page=1C |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62125258/ |access-date=October 29, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202613/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62125258/canham-plugs-michigan-into/ |url-status=live }}
However, ON TV in Detroit was challenged on several fronts, one of which had an outsize impact: the manufacture of pirate decoder boxes to receive the ON TV signal without being an actual subscriber. This issue was particularly pronounced in Detroit because ON TV could not legally sell its service across the Detroit River in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission's then-ongoing study of pay television services prompted ON TV to halt any plans to start its own business operations there;{{Cite news |date=June 10, 1981 |title=Tune in for more ON-TV drama |pages=3, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921244/ 4] |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921145/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202613/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921145/tune-in-for-new-on-tv-drama/ |url-status=live }} when asked about the possibility of ON TV being legal in Canada, Minister of Communications David MacDonald replied that the idea "would appear to fly in the face of every statement that's ever been made about Canadian broadcasting".{{Cite news |last=McMahon |first=Tom |date=November 17, 1979 |title=It's a first-run freebie |page=30 |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62094596/its-a-first-run-freebie/ |access-date=October 29, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=January 18, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210118071237/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/62094596/its-a-first-run-freebie/ |url-status=live }} Consequently, a cottage industry of illegal decoder box manufacturing arose in Windsor. This activity was unregulated in Canada, but as Americans began to purchase the Canadian decoders and use them in the United States, they posed a serious legal threat to the viability of Chartwell's subscription operation. In late May 1981, the company stationed process servers outside of the Windsor offices of one decoder manufacturer, Video Gallery, to dissuade potential U.S. buyers.{{Cite news |date=June 1, 1981 |title=TV decoders upset firm |pages=3, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61920522/ 4] |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61920540/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202652/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61920540/on-tv-may-try-to-jam-signal/ |url-status=live }} Chartwell then successfully took Video Gallery and its American clients to U.S. federal court, seeking and obtaining an injunction to prevent Americans from importing its products.{{Cite news |date=June 5, 1981 |title=Notice to United States Residents... |page=10C |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61920984/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202652/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61920984/notice-to-united-states-residents/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |date=June 9, 1981 |title=TV firms battles sales of decoders |page=4 |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921098/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202652/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921098/tv-firms-battles-sales-of-decoders/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite news |last=Kohn |first=Martin F. |date=June 12, 1981 |title=Pay-TV firm wins order barring sale of pirating device |pages=3A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921483/ 10A] |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921435/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202653/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921435/pay-tv-firm-wins-order-barring-sale-of/ |url-status=live }} In response, Video Gallery obtained an injunction in an Ontario court preventing ON TV representatives from interfering with customers entering its store.
The U.S. government closed the border to Canadian decoders in August.{{Cite news |date=August 6, 1981 |title=U.S. pulls the plug on decoder imports |page=5 |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921678/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202654/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921678/us-pulls-the-plug-on-decoder-imports/ |url-status=live }} Video Gallery closed at the end of the year,{{Cite news |date=January 1, 1982 |title=The plug is pulled on pay-TV decoder business |page=3A |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921773/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202655/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61921773/the-plug-is-pulled-on-pay-tv-decoder/ |url-status=live }} and Chartwell won a $618,000 judgment against it in March 1982.{{Cite news |last=McMahon |first=Tom |date=March 25, 1982 |title=ON-TV shows on cable lines may be illegal |pages=A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61922068/ A8] |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61843625/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202655/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61843625/on-tv-shows-on-cable-lines-may-be/ |url-status=live }} Even then, it was estimated that some 10,000 additional households received ON TV in southwestern Ontario, including on master antenna systems in apartment complexes—none of them making money for Chartwell.{{r|newdetroit}} ON TV in Detroit, as elsewhere, responded to the piracy by modifying pulse signals and introducing new scrambling techniques.{{Cite news |date=November 20, 1982 |title=ON-TV's changed signal hits Windsor decoders |page=A4 |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61843460/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202655/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61843460/on-tvs-changed-signal-hits-windsor/ |url-status=live }} In Detroit, Chartwell began migrating to a new generation of decoder boxes in an attempt to stem its piracy problem.{{Cite news |last=McMahon |first=Tom |date=April 29, 1982 |title=ON-TV installing new decoders |page=C17 |work=Windsor Star |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61882491/on-tv-installing-new-decoders/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=October 30, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201030090703/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61882491/on-tv-installing-new-decoders/ |url-status=live }}{{r|changedsignal}}
Equally debilitating for ON TV in Detroit was its relationship with WXON, which included disputes over airtime and programming content. After airing the R-rated movie Is There Sex After Death? (which contained considerable sex and nudity) on March 12, 1980, the station then ordered ON TV to screen all movies it aired for WXON executives.{{r|blames}} More critically, however, the station refused to cede any time before 8 p.m. and aired reruns in that time slot, severely crippling it as a sports broadcaster; WXON noted that it had already committed to air and sold advertising around reruns of the series Baretta in the 7 p.m. hour, and after February 1982, it refused to lease the 7:30 p.m. half hour to ON TV on an as-needed basis.{{cite news|work=The Hollywood Reporter|title=ON TV going off in Detroit; 'censorship' called big factor|first=Graham|last=Jefferson|pages=1, 29|date=March 10, 1983|id={{ProQuest|2594762173}} }} Midweek Red Wings and Tigers games regularly began before ON TV was on the air, forcing the station to join games in progress (as with the Red Wings) or tape delay them (which it did for the Tigers). The flaw became highly visible when the Red Wings played the Calgary Flames in a game on October 29, 1981, in which the Red Wings scored five goals in the first period before ON TV picked up the game.{{Cite news |last=Lapointe |first=Joe |date=October 30, 1981 |title=ON-TV, Channel 20 feud costs Wings fans 5 TV goals |pages=1D, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61925993/ 6D] |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61925957/ |access-date=October 26, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=July 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202655/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61925957/on-tv-channel-20-feud-costs-wings-fans/ |url-status=live }} WXON then sued ON TV to get out of what Chartwell claimed was a "fifty-year contract" with the station.{{r|fivegoals}} After the 1982 season, ON TV dropped its Tigers deal because it could not secure the air time it needed to telecast games in their entirety.{{Cite news |last=Duffy |first=Mike |date=March 10, 1983 |title=ON staff blames fall on Channel 20 |page=12B |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61853058/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313004640/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61853058/on-staff-blames-fall-on-channel-20/ |url-status=live }} As a result, the subscription service could not offer sports programming, nor could it broadcast an adult programming tier, a lucrative add-on with high uptake at STV services nationwide.{{r|THR830310}}
When ON TV closed in Detroit on March 31, 1983, with the alleged "censorship" and other issues being cited,{{r|THR830310}} Chartwell shuttered a business in which it had invested $13 million but never turned a profit.{{r|blames}} The system—which was vigorously competing against it, the subscription service on Ann Arbor–based WIHT (channel 31, now WPXD-TV), and Livonia-based MDS service MORE-TV, in addition to rapidly proliferating cable services—had lost 26,000 of the 68,000 subscribers it claimed at its peak.{{Cite news |last=Duffy |first=Mike |date=March 8, 1983 |title=ON-TV will switch off on March 31 |pages=3A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61852781/ 4A] |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61852736/ |access-date=October 25, 2020 |via=Newspapers.com |archive-date=March 13, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210313004727/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61852736/on-tv-will-switch-off-on-march-31/ |url-status=live }}
In a 1988 interview with The Windsor Star, Doug Johnson—Aben's son, who had started working at the station around the time of the channel switch and progressively took over management duties—would state his regret for his station's foray into subscription television, claiming that it set back the development of WXON by several years.{{r|Wind881224}}
=Growth and development=
As the 1980s progressed, the station began acquiring stronger series, though it continued to focus on mostly buying syndicated product after a brief incursion into production, making 35 hours of a soap opera titled Generations (unrelated to NBC's 1989 soap of the same name).{{r|Wind881224}} Doug Johnson cited the acquisition of He-Man and the Masters of the Universe and its companion She-Ra: Princess of Power as a turning point for the station's program inventory.{{r|Wind881224}}
It got a significant boost in the years after WKBD became a Fox charter affiliate in 1986; by the start of the 1990s, with Fox increasing its programming, WXON was able to fill the void WKBD left as a movie station.{{cite news|title=WDIV, WXYZ Battle to Be No. 1 News Station|id={{ProQuest|212292416}}|page=3|work=Crain's Detroit Business|date=September 17, 1990|first=Steve|last=Raphael}} When fellow Detroit outlet WJBK dropped its CBS affiliation in favor of Fox—displacing WKBD—in 1994, the former network approached WXON for an affiliation deal and priced itself out by asking $200 million for an acquisition instead, with CBS only offering half that asking price.{{cite news|work=Crain's Detroit Business|first=Matt|last=Roush|page=3|title=WGPR sale means CBS spending jag: Network may spend millions on expansion, hiring|date=September 26, 1994}}
=The WB affiliation and sale to Granite=
On January 11, 1995, WXON became a charter affiliate of the upstart WB Television Network, having signed the month before to join.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591947/whats-up-detroit-channel-20-joins-new/|date=December 9, 1994|page=5F|first=Mike|last=Duffy|title=What's up, Detroit? Channel 20 joins new Warner Bros. network|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202656/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591947/whats-up-detroit-channel-20-joins/|url-status=live}}
Granite Broadcasting agreed in 1996 to buy WXON from the Johnson family for $175 million, the largest purchase in the history of the minority-owned broadcasting company.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591919/channel-20-wxon-sells-for-175-million/|date=December 5, 1996|page=B8|title=Channel 20 (WXON) sells for $175 million US|newspaper=The Windsor Star|location=Windsor, Ontario, Canada|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202656/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591919/channel-20-wxon-sells-for-175/|url-status=live}} The sale closed in February 1997;{{cite press release|id={{ProQuest|450065477}}|title=Granite Broadcasting completes acquisition of WXON-TV in Detroit, Michigan|date=February 3, 1997|publisher=Granite Broadcasting}} that October, the call letters were changed to WDWB to reflect the network affiliation.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591956/franklin-buys-jackson-bio/|date=September 22, 1997|page=6C|first=John|last=Smyntek|title=Franklin buys Jackson bio|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202655/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106591956/franklin-buys-jackson-bio/|url-status=live}} The new owners set out to improve a station whose sales force was described by an article in Black Enterprise magazine as "less than aggressive",{{cite news|id={{ProQuest|217875259}}|first=Dwight|last=Oestriche|title=Wall Street gives Granite a stone-faced look|work=Black Enterprise|page=27|date=July 1997}} whose on-air look was considered cheap, and which John Smyntek of the Detroit Free Press described as "the station for Baywatch babes and badly cut movies with a rather amateurish on-air presence".{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106621273/channel-20s-first-lady/|date=June 14, 1998|page=1H, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106621227/channel-20s-first-lady/ 4H]|first=John|last=Smyntek|title=Channel 20's first lady: A black female broadcaster is making local history—and ready to make some waves—as head of WDWB-TV|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202718/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106621273/channel-20s-first-lady/|url-status=live}} Sarah Norat-Phillips, who had climbed the ranks at Granite's WKBW-TV—an ABC affiliate in Buffalo, New York—was named general manager of WDWB and became one of the first Black women to run a TV station in the region;{{cite news|work=Michigan Chronicle|id={{ProQuest|390121650}}|title=First Black female heads WDWB|page=1-A|date=May 27, 1998}} she focused the station's programming strategy around youth audiences.{{cite news|title=TV exec feeds the needs of youth - WDWB-TV president focuses programming on audience aged 12-34|first=Maureen|last=McDonald|page=4B|work=The Detroit News|date=September 17, 2000}}
Though Granite reluctantly put WDWB on the market in 2001 in an attempt to improve its balance sheet,{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/wdwb-tv-goes-block-87209|work=Broadcasting & Cable|first=Steve|last=McClellan|title=WDWB-TV goes on the block|date=October 7, 2001|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=May 6, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506155111/https://www.nexttv.com/news/wdwb-tv-goes-block-87209|url-status=live}} and bidders such as Tribune Broadcasting and other local station owners were reported to show interest, nothing came of discussions.{{cite news|title=Young and NBC do KRON dance|first=Diane|last=Mermigas|work=Electronic Media|page=7|date=November 12, 2001|id={{ProQuest|203800902}}}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106592028/local-tv-landscape-could-change-conditi/|date=October 31, 2001|page=6E|first=John|last=Smyntek|title=Local TV landscape could change: Conditions ripe for station consolidation|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202720/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106592028/local-tv-landscape-could-change/|url-status=live}} Tribune was also linked to a possible purchase of WDWB, along with KBWB in San Francisco, in 2003; these were the only two top-10 markets where Tribune did not own a station, but Tribune was reported to have balked at Granite's asking price.{{cite news|title=WB affiliates offer duopoly appeal|id={{ProQuest|213647416}}|pages=4–5|first=John|last=Consoli|work=Mediaweek|date=June 16, 2003}}
In 2004, the station became the new over-the-air broadcast home of the NBA's Detroit Pistons under a three-year deal, replacing WKBD, which no longer had time to air the team after doing so for 25 years.{{cite news|work=Crain's Detroit Business|first=Jennette|last=Smith|date=June 7, 2004|page=93|id={{ProQuest|212249948}}|title=Palace Sports set to score profits from playoff runs}}{{cite news|date=November 8, 2004|title=Detroit|pages=9–12|work=Mediaweek|first=Eileen|last=Davis Hudson|id={{ProQuest|213647121}}}} WDWB also supplanted WKBD as the broadcast home of the Detroit Tigers, airing a slate of 16 games produced by Fox Sports Net Detroit in 2006 after the team had no over-the-air partner in 2005.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106612627/opener-among-16-games-on-tv-20/|date=April 8, 2006|page=7C|first1=John|last1=Lowe|first2=Jon Paul|last2=Morosi|author-link2=Jon Morosi|title=Opener among 16 games on TV 20|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202719/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106612627/opener-among-16-games-on-tv-20/|url-status=live}} The Tigers agreement was profitable but not overly so for the station.{{cite news|page=1|id={{ProQuest|212286799}}|first=Bill|last=Shea|work=Crain's Detroit Business|title=No free TV?|date=October 30, 2006}}
Granite's high debt load continued to motivate attempts to sell WDWB and its San Francisco sister station KBWB.{{cite news|title=Granite Deal in Jeopardy|first=Jay|last=Sherman|date=February 20, 2006|pages=1, 21|work=TelevisionWeek|id={{ProQuest|203834352}}}} In 2004, the company brought in $7.3 million in cash flow, far short of the $38.7 million needed just to service Granite's $517 million in total debt; that year, its stock price fell 75 percent.{{Cite news|title=The Worst Stock in Television|first=John M.|last=Higgins|id={{ProQuest|225298727}}|work=Broadcasting & Cable|date=December 20, 2004|page=7}} In September 2005, Granite announced its intention to sell WDWB and KBWB to AM Media Holdings, Inc., a company mostly owned by ACON Investments, for a total of $180 million.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106612794/granite-to-sell-detroits-channel-20/|date=September 9, 2005|page=1C|title=Granite to sell Detroit's Channel 20|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202719/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106612794/granite-to-sell-detroits-channel-20/|url-status=live}}
=MyNetworkTV affiliation=
An unanticipated event, however, would ultimately quash that deal. In January 2006, The WB and UPN announced their merger into The CW beginning in September. The first confirmed affiliates for the new network included 16 WB affiliates owned by Tribune as well as 13 CBS Corporation–owned UPN outlets, including WKBD-TV and KBHK-TV in San Francisco.{{Cite web |last=Seid |first=Jessica |date=January 24, 2006 |title='Gilmore Girls' meet 'Smackdown'; CW Network to combine WB, UPN in CBS-Warner venture beginning in September |url=https://money.cnn.com/2006/01/24/news/companies/cbs_warner/ |website=CNN Money |publisher=CNN |access-date=August 3, 2020 |archive-date=March 16, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170316043531/http://money.cnn.com/2006/01/24/news/companies/cbs_warner/ |url-status=live }}{{Cite web |last=Carter |first=Bill |date=January 24, 2006 |title=UPN and WB to Combine, Forming New TV Network |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/24/business/media/24cnd-network.html?bl |website=The New York Times |access-date=February 22, 2017 |archive-date=October 17, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017035638/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/24/business/media/24cnd-network.html?bl |url-status=live }} This left WDWB and KBWB without an available network affiliation; in Detroit, general manager Norat-Phillips, who had been the general manager of WDWB for nearly all of its ownership by Granite, was not aware of the deal until the Free Press reached her seeking comment.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106613192/secondary-tv-networks-to-merge-upn-and/|date=January 25, 2006|page=1F, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106613149/tv-wb-and-upn-networks-to-merge/ 7F]|first=John|last=Smyntek|title=Secondary TV networks to merge: UPN and WB will combine this fall|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202719/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106613192/secondary-tv-networks-to-merge-upn-and/|url-status=live}}
In mid-February, AM Media allowed Granite to shop WDWB and KBWB to other buyers, with W. Don Cornwell, Granite's CEO, noting that "they are clearly having a hard time deciding whether they should proceed".{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/wb-fold-unwinds-granite-tv-deal-78864|work=Broadcasting & Cable|title=WB Fold Unwinds Granite TV Deal|first=John M.|last=Higgins|date=February 14, 2006|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 26, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210726025537/https://www.nexttv.com/news/wb-fold-unwinds-granite-tv-deal-78864|url-status=live}} A deal to sell the two WB affiliates to DS Audible, a consortium of four private equity firms, was reached, with the new buyers paying $30 million less than AM Media would have.{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/granite-finds-buyer-stations-40308|date=May 2, 2006|title=Granite Finds Buyer for Stations|first=Allison|last=Romano|work=Broadcasting & Cable|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=March 2, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302130310/https://www.nexttv.com/news/granite-finds-buyer-stations-40308|url-status=live}}
However, once Granite obtained a new senior credit facility, it opted to retain the Detroit station while continuing to seek a different buyer for the San Francisco outlet.{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/granite-unwinds-detroitsf-station-deal-40353|title=Granite Unwinds Detroit/SF Station Deal|first=John|last=Eggerton|date=July 18, 2006|work=Broadcasting & Cable|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=May 14, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210514165946/https://www.nexttv.com/news/granite-unwinds-detroitsf-station-deal-40353|url-status=live}} One reason was that, unlike KBWB in San Francisco, WDWB was able to secure the affiliation with MyNetworkTV, a new network backed by Fox Television Stations, which had many bypassed UPN affiliates not chosen for The CW.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106613953/waitress-says-hank-jr-harassed-her/|date=March 23, 2006|page=2E|first=John|last=Smyntek|title=Waitress says Hank Jr. harassed her|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202720/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106613953/waitress-says-hank-jr-harassed-her/|url-status=live}} It changed its call sign to WMYD and began branding as "My TV20 Detroit".{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/hanging-tough-motown-77332|title=Hanging Tough in Motown|first=Allison|last=Romano|date=July 14, 2006|work=Broadcasting & Cable|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=June 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210617215026/https://www.nexttv.com/news/hanging-tough-motown-77332|url-status=live}} Granite would sue The WB and CBS for damages from the collapse of the sale and file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in December 2006, when it settled with the networks for $13.2 million.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106614131/wb-cbs-to-pay-granite-132m/|date=December 28, 2006|page=A49|title=WB, CBS to pay Granite $13.2m|newspaper=Newsday|location=Melville, New York|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202721/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106614131/wb-cbs-to-pay-granite-132m/|url-status=live}}
In March 2008, WMYD began airing Wolfman Mac's Nightmare Sinema (later known as Wolfman Mac's Chiller Drive-In), a 90-minute comedic "horror host" series hosted by "Wolfman" Mac Kelly featuring vintage sci-fi and horror films, skits and cartoons. The program was dropped from WMYD's schedule on February 14, 2010, three months after Chiller Drive-In reached a deal with the Retro Television Network to show reruns as well as new episodes.{{cite news|title=It's alive! - Wolfman Mac brings horror B-movie classics back to local TV|first=Susan|last=Whitall|date=March 13, 2008|work=The Detroit News}}{{cite news|first=Bonnie|last=Caprara|title='Wolfman Mac's Chiller Drive-In' goes national|work=The Oakland Press|date=November 27, 2009}}
= Scripps ownership =
On February 10, 2014, the E. W. Scripps Company, owner of ABC affiliate WXYZ-TV, announced that it would acquire WMYD and WKBW-TV in Buffalo from Granite Broadcasting for $110 million; the deal also included an immediate time brokerage agreement for Scripps to program four to six hours a day of WMYD.{{cite news|url=https://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/73998/scripps-buying-granite-tvs-in-buffalo-detroit|title=Scripps Buying Granite TVs in Buffalo, Detroit|work=TVNewsCheck|date=February 10, 2014|access-date=February 10, 2014|archive-date=February 21, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140221214623/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/73998/scripps-buying-granite-tvs-in-buffalo-detroit|url-status=live}} The purchase created a duopoly for Scripps in Detroit. After FCC approval, the sale was completed on June 16.{{cite press release|url=http://www.scripps.com/press/details?id=1351|title=Scripps closes on deal to buy two stations from Granite in Buffalo, Detroit|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140706184142/http://www.scripps.com/press/details?id=1351 |archive-date=July 6, 2014 |publisher= E. W. Scripps Company|access-date=June 16, 2014}} Scripps retained two-thirds of the former WMYD workforce, including the entire sales staff.{{r|CDB140623}}
MyNetworkTV programming moved to WADL on September 20, 2021, with WMYD becoming an independent station again.{{cite web|date=July 9, 2021|title=WADL Gets Detroit's MyNetworkTV Affiliation|url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/wadl-gets-detroits-mynetworktv-affiliation|work=Broadcasting & Cable|publisher=Future US, Inc.|accessdate=July 9, 2021|archive-date=July 9, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210709215822/https://www.nexttv.com/news/wadl-gets-detroits-mynetworktv-affiliation|url-status=live}} WMYD affiliated with The CW on November 13, 2023;{{Cite news|date=November 6, 2023|title=TV20 Detroit to air CW Network primetime programming, live sports starting Nov. 13|publisher=WXYZ Detroit|access-date=November 6, 2023|url=https://www.wxyz.com/news/tv20-detroit-to-air-cw-network-primetime-programming-live-sports-starting-nov-13}} this came after WADL—which picked up The CW in September (replacing WKBD) in lieu of a pending sale to Mission Broadcasting, an affiliate of The CW's majority owner Nexstar Media Group—abruptly dropped the network on October 29.{{Cite news |last=Hinds |first=Julie |date=November 1, 2023 |title=Detroit's WADL-TV drops CW's prime-time programming: Here's why |language=en-US |work=Detroit Free Press |url=https://www.freep.com/story/entertainment/television/2023/11/01/detroit-wadl-tv-cw-programming/71407772007/ |access-date=November 6, 2023}}{{cite news |last1=Malone |first1=Michael |title=WMYD Detroit Will Become Market's The CW Station |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/wmyd-detroit-will-become-markets-cw-station |access-date=November 8, 2023 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |date=November 6, 2023 |language=en}} WADL owner Kevin Adell unsuccessfully sought a cease and desist order against Scripps after the affiliation was announced, claiming Scripps and Nexstar conspired to harm WADL's business and interfere with Mission's acquisition of the station.{{cite web |last=Keys |first=Matthew|url=https://thedesk.net/2023/11/wadl-cease-and-desist-scripps-nexstar-detroit-cw/|title=WADL sends cease-and-desist to Scripps over CW in Detroit|website=TheDesk.net|date=November 7, 2023|accessdate=November 7, 2023}}
WMYD's CW tenure turned out to be an interregnum, as Nexstar opted to not renew the network's affiliation contracts with Scripps-owned stations.{{cite news |last1=Lafayette |first1=Jon |date=April 19, 2024 |title=Nexstar Dropping Scripps-Owned The CW Affiliates in 7 Markets |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/nexstar-dropping-scripps-owned-cw-affiliates-in-seven-markets |access-date=April 19, 2024 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |language=en}} CBS agreed to re-affiliate WKBD with The CW on September 1, 2024; this also included co-owned WBFS-TV in Miami joining the network.{{Cite web |last=Lafayette |first=Jon |date=July 30, 2024 |title=Paramount Stations in Detroit, Miami To Return as CW Affiliates |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/paramount-stations-in-detroit-miami-to-return-as-cw-affiliates |access-date=July 30, 2024 |website=Broadcasting & Cable |language=en}}
Local programming
=Newscasts=
{{see|WXYZ-TV#News operation}}
On July 14, 2008, WMYD launched a weeknight prime time newscast produced by the Independent News Network (INN) in Davenport, Iowa, competing with WJBK-TV's longer-established hour-long 10 p.m. newscast. The My TV20 News at 10 maintained three locally based reporters in Detroit, while the news presenters were in Iowa.{{cite news|work=Detroit Free Press|first=John|last=Smyntek|page=C6|date=July 12, 2008|title=Names & Faces: Oops! That wasn't Dave|id={{ProQuest|436946792}}}} The next year, Granite began producing the newscast from WISE-TV, its station in Fort Wayne, Indiana, which already provided master control and commercial production services for the company's Midwestern stations). As before, the newscast was produced in advance using centralized anchors, with contributions from Detroit-based reporters.{{cite news|url=http://www.fwbusiness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5952:Good-evening,-Detroit&catid=51:latest&Itemid=6 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110711061718/http://www.fwbusiness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5952:Good-evening,-Detroit&catid=51:latest&Itemid=6 |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 11, 2011 |title=Good evening, Detroit |publisher=KPC Media Group, Inc. |work=Fort Wayne Business}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106616021/your-home-team-266-miles-away/|date=February 25, 2011|page=D1|first=Bill|last=Flick|title=Your 'home team'? 266 miles away?|newspaper=The Pantagraph|location=Bloomington, Illinois|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202721/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106616021/your-home-team-266-miles-away/|url-status=live}}{{cite news|title=News flash: Fort Wayne, Indiana, not so local|work=Peoria Journal-Star|date=March 3, 2011|first=Phil|last=Luciano|page=1B}} The INN newscast was a non-factor in the market and very low-rated, with few viewers even aware of its existence.{{cite news|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/uncategorized/article/scripps-puts-wmyd-to-work-airing-news/|work=TVNewsCheck|first=Diana|last=Marszalek|title=Scripps Puts WMYD To Work Airing News|date=July 22, 2014|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202721/https://tvnewscheck.com/uncategorized/article/scripps-puts-wmyd-to-work-airing-news/|url-status=live}}
With the acquisition of the station by Scripps, new sister station WXYZ-TV began producing news programming for WMYD; on June 16, 2014, the station re-launched its primetime newscast as 7 Action News at 10 on TV 20 Detroit.{{cite web|url=http://www.wxyz.com/tv-20-detroit/tv-20-detroit-promotions/introducing-7-action-news-at-10-on-tv20-detroit|title=Introducing 7 Action News at 10 on TV20 Detroit|date=June 13, 2014|publisher=WXYZ website for WMYD|access-date=June 14, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714131912/http://www.wxyz.com/tv-20-detroit/tv-20-detroit-promotions/introducing-7-action-news-at-10-on-tv20-detroit|archive-date=July 14, 2014}}{{cite news|title=Channel 20 deal will bulk up TV ads buys, watchers say|date=June 23, 2014|work=Crain's Detroit Business|first=Chad|last=Halcom|id={{ProQuest|1541529082}}}} On August 4, 2014, WMYD also introduced a two-hour extension of Action News This Morning, running from 7 to 9 a.m.; both the morning and 10 p.m. newscasts are designed to fully compete against WJBK, which has historically been the only other station in Detroit to air newscasts in these timeslots.{{cite news|url=http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/77892/scripps-puts-wmyd-to-work-airing-news|title=Scripps Puts WMYD To Work Airing News|last=Marszalek|first=Diana|date=July 22, 2014|publisher=TVNewser|access-date=July 23, 2014|archive-date=July 29, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140729230558/http://www.tvnewscheck.com/article/77892/scripps-puts-wmyd-to-work-airing-news|url-status=live}}
=Sports programming=
In October 2014, WMYD acquired a package of Oakland University Golden Grizzlies college basketball games, airing eight men's games and two women's games during the 2014–15 season.{{cite web|title=WMYD TV20 Detroit to broadcast ten Oakland University Basketball games|url=http://www.wxyz.com/sports/wmyd-tv20-detroit-to-broadcast-ten-oakland-university-basketball-games|website=WXYZ.com|access-date=December 4, 2014|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141207204928/http://www.wxyz.com/sports/wmyd-tv20-detroit-to-broadcast-ten-oakland-university-basketball-games|archive-date=December 7, 2014}}
In February 2020, WMYD established a broadcasting agreement with Detroit City FC, a USL Championship soccer team.{{cite web |title=Detroit City FC announces TV deal with WMYD-TV20 |url=https://www.detcityfc.com/news_article/show/1083242|publisher=Detroit City FC |access-date=January 16, 2021 |archive-date=January 22, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210122044541/https://www.detcityfc.com/news_article/show/1083242 |url-status=live }}
In March 2024, WMYD announced an agreement to simulcast five Detroit Pistons games with Bally Sports Detroit during April of that year.{{cite web |title=Detroit Pistons partner with Scripps Sports, TV-20 Detroit to broadcast 5 April games over the air |url=https://www.wxyz.com/sports/detroit-pistons-partner-with-scripps-sports-tv-20-detroit-to-broadcast-5-april-games-over-the-air |access-date=March 28, 2024 |date=March 28, 2024|website=WXYZ.com}} It was the Pistons' first major over-the-air TV deal since 2007–08.{{Cite news |last=Sankofa |first=Omari II |date=March 29, 2024 |title=Detroit Pistons to air 5 games in April on local, over-the-air broadcast TV for free |url=https://www.freep.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2024/03/28/detroit-pistons-over-the-air-broadcast-tv-tv-20-detroit-wymd/73133406007/ |access-date=March 30, 2024 |work=Detroit Free Press |language=en-US}} In April 2024, WMYD announced a similar agreement to simulcast three Detroit Red Wings games.{{cite web |title=TV20 Detroit, Scripps Sports to simulcast final 3 Red Wings games of the regular season |url=https://www.wxyz.com/sports/tv20-detroit-scripps-sports-to-simulcast-final-3-red-wings-games-of-the-regular-season |access-date=April 12, 2024 |date=April 10, 2024|website=WXYZ.com}} The Pistons simulcasts returned to WMYD for the 2024–25 season,{{cite web|url=https://www.nba.com/pistons/news/detroit-pistons-partnering-with-scripps-sports-tv|title=Detroit Pistons partnering with Scripps Sports, TV-20 Detroit to broadcast five games over the air in 2025|work=Detroit Pistons|date=January 2, 2025|access-date=January 2, 2025}} while the Red Wings would move their simulcasts to WJBK.{{Cite web |last=Petzold|first=Evan|date=March 9, 2025|title=Tigers, Red Wings to air 15 games on local TV in 2025: Full schedule for TV broadcasts |url=https://www.freep.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2025/03/09/detroit-tigers-red-wings-to-air-15-games-on-local-tv-in-2025-full-schedule/82065628007/ |access-date=March 9, 2025 |website=Detroit Free Press|language=en-US }}
Technical information
=Subchannels=
The station's ATSC 1.0 channels are carried on the multiplexed signals of other Detroit television stations:
| class="wikitable"
|+ Subchannels provided by WMYD (ATSC 1.0){{Cite web|url=https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WXYZ|title=RabbitEars TV Query for WXYZ|website=www.rabbitears.info|access-date=August 25, 2021|archive-date=August 25, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210825031537/https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WXYZ|url-status=live}}
! scope = "col" | Channel ! scope = "col" | Res. ! scope = "col" | Aspect ! scope = "col" | Short name ! scope = "col" | Programming ! scope = "col" | ATSC 1.0 host |
| scope = "row" | 20.1
| 720p || rowspan=4| 16:9 || WMYD-HD || Main WMYD programming || WXYZ-TV |
|---|
| scope = "row" | 20.2
| rowspan=3| 480i || WMYD-AT || Antenna TV || WDIV-TV |
| scope = "row" | 20.3
| WMYD-MS || Ion Mystery || WJBK |
| scope = "row" | 20.4 |
=Analog-to-digital conversion=
WMYD ended regular programming on its analog signal, over UHF channel 20, on February 17, 2009, the original target date for full-power television stations in the United States to transition from analog to digital broadcasts under federal mandate; WMYD and WPXD-TV were the only Detroit stations to carry out the switch in February instead of waiting for the new June 12 date.{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106617147/mich-stations-go-digital/|date=February 13, 2009|page=4|title=Mich. stations go digital|newspaper=Detroit Free Press|location=Detroit, Michigan|via=Newspapers.com|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 30, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220730202720/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/106617147/mich-stations-go-digital/|url-status=live}} The station's digital signal continued to broadcast on its pre-transition UHF channel 21.{{Cite web |date=May 23, 2006 |title=DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and Second Rounds |url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf |archive-date=August 29, 2013 |access-date=August 29, 2021 |publisher=Federal Communications Commission}} As part of the SAFER Act, WMYD kept its analog signal on the air until March 4 to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop of public service announcements from the National Association of Broadcasters.{{cite web|url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DOC-291375A1.pdf|title=UPDATED List of Participants in the Analog Nightlight Program|publisher=Federal Communications Commission|date=June 12, 2009|access-date=June 4, 2012|archive-date=February 1, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201225603/http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/wnbc-ch-4-trims-promo-featuring-nypd-commissioner-ray-kelly-super-bowl-airing-article-1.1018204|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-09-221A5.pdf|title=FCC.gov Appendix B All Full Power Station By DMA, Indicating Those Terminating Analog service On Or Before February 17, 2009|access-date=February 12, 2009|archive-date=October 18, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111018111148/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-09-221A5.pdf|url-status=live}}
=ATSC 3.0 lighthouse service=
On December 7, 2020, WMYD converted from an ATSC 1.0 signal to ATSC 3.0 (NextGen TV) broadcasting. The station's ATSC 1.0 subchannels were moved to other broadcasters for simulcasting, while WMYD became the "lighthouse" host for the ATSC 3.0 transmission of WJBK, WDIV-TV, WXYZ-TV, WMYD, and WWJ-TV.{{cite news|url=https://tvnewscheck.com/tech/article/five-detroit-launch-atsc-3-0-broadcasts/|work=TVNewsCheck|title=Five Detroit Stations Launch ATSC 3.0 Broadcasts|date=December 10, 2020|first=Mark K.|last=Miller|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=January 24, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220124043555/https://tvnewscheck.com/tech/article/five-detroit-launch-atsc-3-0-broadcasts/|url-status=live}}
| class="wikitable"
! style="background-color: #bdbdff" scope="col" | Channel ! style="background-color: #bdbdff" scope="col" | Res. ! style="background-color: #bdbdff" scope="col" | Short name ! style="background-color: #bdbdff" scope="col" | Programming |
| scope="row" | 2.1
| rowspan="3"|1080p || style="background-color:#ffe8d0|WJBK || style="background-color:#ffe8d0|Fox (WJBK) File:Action lock 2 - orange.svg |
|---|
| scope="row" | 4.1 |
| scope="row" | 7.1
| style="background-color:#ffe8d0|WXYZ-HD || style="background-color:#ffe8d0|ABC (WXYZ-TV) File:Action lock 2 - orange.svg |
| scope="row" | 7.99
| 720p || WXYZMOB || Mobile test feed of WXYZ-TV |
| scope="row" | 20.1
| rowspan=2|1080p || WMYD-HD || Independent |
| scope="row" | 62.1
| style="background-color:#ffe8d0|WWJ-HD || style="background-color:#ffe8d0|CBS (WWJ-TV) File:Action lock 2 - orange.svg |
{{legend|#ffe8d0|Subchannel broadcast with digital rights management}}
Because of the Detroit–Windsor area's importance in the American and Canadian auto industries, WMYD is the key in a "Motown Test Track" run by Pearl TV, a consortium of commercial broadcasters, that works on testing use cases relevant to the automotive industry such as datacasting software updates to fleet vehicles.{{cite news|url=https://www.nexttv.com/blogs/motown-30-detroit-trial-adding-telematics-fleets-with-ultra-affordable-transmissions|first=Gary|last=Arlen|date=June 10, 2021|title='Motown 3.0' Detroit Trial Adding Telematics, Fleets With 'Ultra-Affordable' Transmissions|work=Broadcasting & Cable|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=July 11, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210711154428/https://www.nexttv.com/blogs/motown-30-detroit-trial-adding-telematics-fleets-with-ultra-affordable-transmissions|url-status=live}} The ceremonial first file broadcast was an 1886 patent for an early automobile.{{r|TVNC201210}} Testing was also done on data hand-offs between transmitters, utilizing WMYD and three other ATSC 3.0 facilities in Michigan.{{cite news|title=NextGen TV: 'Michigan Coast-To-Coast' 3.0 Test Proves Viability of IP Data Delivery To Moving Vehicles|first=Phil|last=Kurz|url=https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/nextgen-tv-michigan-coast-to-coast-30-test-proves-ip-data-delivery-to-moving-vehicles-to-be-viable|date=June 6, 2022|work=TV Tech|access-date=July 30, 2022|archive-date=June 6, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220606210048/https://www.tvtechnology.com/news/nextgen-tv-michigan-coast-to-coast-30-test-proves-ip-data-delivery-to-moving-vehicles-to-be-viable|url-status=live}}
See also
References
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Bibliography
{{Refbegin|}}
- {{Cite book|last=Castelnero|first=Gordon|url=https://archive.org/details/tvlanddetroit0000cast|title=TV Land Detroit|publisher=University of Michigan Press|year=2006|isbn=978-0-472-03124-5|location=Ann Arbor, Michigan|access-date=March 2, 2022}}{{Refend}}
External links
- [https://www.tv20detroit.com/ TV20Detroit.com] – Official website
{{Detroit TV}}
{{Other Michigan Stations}}
{{EWS CORP}}
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Category:1968 establishments in Michigan
Category:Antenna TV affiliates
Category:ATSC 3.0 television stations
Category:Companies based in Southfield, Michigan
Category:E. W. Scripps Company television stations
Category:Independent television stations in the United States
Category:Ion Mystery affiliates
Category:Television channels and stations established in 1968