WRDQ
{{Short description|Television station in Orlando, Florida}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{Infobox television station
| callsign = WRDQ
| city =
| logo = Wrdq 2009.png
| logo_size = 200px
| branding = Central Florida's TV 27; Eyewitness News
| digital = 27 (UHF)
| virtual = 27
| translators =
| affiliations = {{ubl|27.1: Independent / ABC (alternate)|31.2: Telemundo|for others, see {{section link||Subchannels}}}}
| airdate = {{start date and age|2000|4|23}}{{cite news|last=Abbott|first=Jim|title=New TV station offers reruns and talk shows|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2000/04/21/new-tv-station-offers-reruns-and-talk-shows/|access-date=April 1, 2012|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel|date=April 21, 2000|archive-date=March 26, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326181117/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2000-04-21/news/0004210095_1_wftv-reece-time-warner|url-status=live}}
| location = Orlando, Florida
| country = United States
| callsign_meaning =
| former_callsigns =
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|Analog: 27 (UHF, 2000–2009)|Digital: 14 (UHF, until 2009)}}
| owner = Cox Media Group
| licensee = WFTV, LLC
| sister_stations = WFTV
| former_affiliations =
| erp = 1,000 kW
| haat = {{convert|490|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id = 55454
| coordinates = {{coord|28|34|7|N|81|3|16|W|type:landmark_scale:2000|display=inline, title}}
| licensing_authority = FCC
| website = {{URL|http://www.wftv.com/tv27community}}
}}
WRDQ (channel 27) is an independent television station in Orlando, Florida, United States. It is owned by Cox Media Group alongside ABC affiliate WFTV (channel 9). The two stations share studios on East South Street in downtown Orlando; WRDQ's transmitter is located near Bithlo, Florida.
History
The station's original construction permit was issued as early as 1990. Channel 27 first signed on the air on April 23, 2000, under the ownership of Reece Associates Ltd., with WFTV (which has been owned by Cox since 1985) operating the station under a local marketing agreement (LMA); Reece was co-owned by former WFTV reporter/anchor Marsha Reece. Several months before WRDQ signed on, in August 1999, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) began allowing duopolies involving commercially licensed television stations, allowing Cox to exercise an option to acquire the station outright on February 1, 2001.{{cite news|last=Boyd|first=Christopher|title=Cox buys WRDQ, now has 2 area stations|url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2001/02/02/cox-buys-wrdq-now-has-2-area-stations/|access-date=April 1, 2012|newspaper=Orlando Sentinel|date=February 2, 2001|archive-date=March 4, 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304061643/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/2001-02-02/news/0102020171_1_reece-wftv-channel-9|url-status=live}}
On May 24, 2011, Cox decided to use WRDQ to carry coverage of the Casey Anthony trial in full from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with WFTV airing the last hour from 4 to 5 p.m., preempting the station's weekday programming schedule.{{Cite web |url=http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/05/casey-anthony-wftv-expands-trial-coverage-drops-oprah-winfrey.html |title=Casey Anthony: WFTV expands trial coverage, drops Oprah Winfrey – the TV Guy – Orlando Sentinel |access-date=May 28, 2011 |archive-date=May 30, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110530001223/http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/05/casey-anthony-wftv-expands-trial-coverage-drops-oprah-winfrey.html |url-status=live }} High interest in the trial eventually led to coverage being increasingly shifted to WFTV (with WRDQ generally only airing "more procedural" and "more dry or technical" portions);{{cite news|title=Casey Anthony: WFTV keeps viewers guessing with fluid scheduling|url=http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/06/casey-anthony-wftv-keeps-viewers-guessing-with-fluid-scheduling.html|access-date=June 8, 2011|newspaper=The Orlando Sentinel|date=June 1, 2011|archive-date=June 3, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110603084715/http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/06/casey-anthony-wftv-keeps-viewers-guessing-with-fluid-scheduling.html|url-status=live}} on June 8, coverage was moved to WFTV entirely, after ABC granted Cox permission to move ABC Daytime programming to WRDQ for remainder of the trial's duration.{{cite news|title='The View,' ABC soaps to air on WRDQ starting today|url=http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/06/the-view-abc-soaps-to-air-on-wrdq-starting-today.html|access-date=June 8, 2011|newspaper=The Orlando Sentinel|date=June 8, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613014900/http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2011/06/the-view-abc-soaps-to-air-on-wrdq-starting-today.html|archive-date=June 13, 2011|url-status=dead}} It returned to WFTV upon the trial's conclusion. ABC Daytime was temporarily moved to WRDQ once more during WFTV's coverage of the George Zimmerman trial in 2013.{{cite news|last=Boedeker|first=Hal|title=George Zimmerman trial to rearrange daytime lineup|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/blogs/tv-guy/os-george-zimmerman-trial-to-rearrange-daytime-20130621,0,3627724.post|access-date=June 26, 2013|newspaper=The Orlando Sentinel|date=June 21, 2013|archive-date=June 27, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130627084942/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/blogs/tv-guy/os-george-zimmerman-trial-to-rearrange-daytime-20130621,0,3627724.post|url-status=live}}
Newscasts
{{see|WFTV#News operation}}
Shortly after the station signed on, WFTV began producing a nightly half-hour 10 p.m. newscast for WRDQ (this resulted in the discontinuance of a prime time newscast in that same timeslot that WFTV had produced for then-UPN affiliate WRBW [channel 65] under a news share agreement); this program competes with an in-house newscast that runs for an hour on Fox owned-and-operated station WOFL (channel 35) and a newscast produced by NBC affiliate WESH that it produces for CW-affiliated sister station WKCF (channel 18).
On June 29, 2006, WFTV began broadcasting newscasts in high definition; the WRDQ shows were included in the upgrade.
In January 2007, WFTV also began producing a two-hour weekday morning newscast from 7 to 9 a.m. on channel 27. Prior to the debut of the morning newscast, the 10 p.m. news program was branded as Action News at 10. This title was derived from WRDQ's general station branding ("Action TV 27") at the time of the station's launch ("Action" had ceased to be used as an overall station branding term several years before the newscast was renamed). WRDQ has also aired The Daily Buzz from 7 to 9 a.m. on digital subchannel 27.2, preempting some classic programming broadcast by Antenna TV that are seen on that slot nationally on that network's other affiliates. On two occasions, WRDQ has also aired early evening newscasts; a 7 p.m. newscast was produced for a time in March 2003 to present Iraq War coverage, and a 6:30 p.m. newscast was seen on the station from September 2010{{cite news|last=Boedeker|first=Hal|title=WFTV to add 6:30 p.m. newscast on WRDQ|url=http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/tvguy/2010/06/17/wftv-to-add-630-newscast-on-wrdq/|access-date=June 18, 2013|newspaper=The Orlando Sentinel|date=June 17, 2010|archive-date=October 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004235424/http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/tvguy/2010/06/17/wftv-to-add-630-newscast-on-wrdq/|url-status=live}} until it was dropped in June 2013 in favor of a 4 p.m. newscast on WFTV.{{cite news|last=Boedeker|first=Hal|title=WFTV drops 6:30 p.m. news on WRDQ|url=http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/blogs/tv-guy/os-wftv-drops-630-pm-news-on-wrdq-20130617,0,2110557.post|access-date=June 18, 2013|newspaper=The Orlando Sentinel|date=June 17, 2013|archive-date=October 4, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004235037/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/blogs/tv-guy/os-wftv-drops-630-pm-news-on-wrdq-20130617,0,2110557.post|url-status=live}} On September 15, 2014, WFTV expanded the weeknight 10 p.m. news on WRDQ to an hour, citing the ratings success of the broadcast in which has now able to tightly compete against long-time leader WOFL.[http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/tv/tv-guy/os-wrdq-expands-10-pm-news-to-hour-20140916-post.html WRDQ expands 10 p.m. news to hour.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006071709/http://www.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment/tv/tv-guy/os-wrdq-expands-10-pm-news-to-hour-20140916-post.html |date=October 6, 2014 }} Orlando Sentinel September 16, 2014.[http://changingnewscasts.wordpress.com/2014/09/17/wftv-expanded-wrdq-1000-p-m-news-an-hour/ WFTV has expanded the WRDQ 10 p.m. news to an hour.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006160720/http://changingnewscasts.wordpress.com/2014/09/17/wftv-expanded-wrdq-1000-p-m-news-an-hour/ |date=October 6, 2014 }} The Changing Newscasts Blog, September 17, 2014.
Technical information
=Subchannels=
The station's signal is multiplexed:
| class="wikitable"
|+ Subchannels of WRDQ{{cite web|title=RabbitEars TV Query for WRDQ|website=RabbitEars|access-date=May 3, 2023|url=https://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WRDQ}} ! scope = "col" | Channel ! scope = "col" | Res. ! scope = "col" | Aspect ! scope = "col" | Short name ! scope = "col" | Programming | |||
| scope = "row" | 27.1
| rowspan="2" | 720p || rowspan=4|16:9 || WRDQ || Independent | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| scope = "row" | 27.2
| CourtTV || Court TV | |||
| scope = "row" | 27.4
| rowspan="2" |480i |HSN2|| HSN2 | |||
| style="background-color: #E6FFF7;"
! scope = "row" | 31.2 | WTMO-SD | Telemundo (WTMO-CD) | ||
| style="background-color:#DFEBF6; border-top: 2px solid #003399;"
! scope = "row" | 65.2 | 480i | 16:9 | Movies. | Movies! (WRBW) |
{{legend|#E6FFF7|Simulcast of subchannels of another station}}
{{legend|#DFEBF6|Broadcast on behalf of another station}}
On April 14, 2008, the station launched a new digital sub-channel 27.2 to carry the Retro Television Network. On September 5, 2011, WRDQ replaced RTV with Antenna TV on its second digital subchannel. The RTV affiliation in Orlando then moved to a sub-channel of competitor WKMG-TV and later onto WRCF-CD. In June 2013, WRDQ added a third sub-channel 27.3. In January 2014, 27.3 was remapped as virtual channel 31.2 and used for a simulcast of Telemundo Orlando affiliate WTMO. On April 10, 2015, a fourth sub-channel 27.4 was added to accommodate the move of Grit TV from sister station WFTV. In 2020, WRDQ replaced Antenna TV with a duplicate station of Court TV on 27.2 which can be also seen on WOTF-DT5. On August 15, 2021, This TV replaced Grit TV. Sometime in May 2024, HSN2 replaced This TV.
=Analog-to-digital conversion=
WRDQ shut down its analog signal, on UHF channel 27, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.{{Cite web|url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|title=List of Digital Full-Power Stations|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|archive-date=August 29, 2013}} The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 14 to channel 27 for post-transition operations.
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- [http://www.wftv.com/tv27community TV27.com] – Official WRDQ website
- [http://www.wftv.com/ WFTV.com] – Official WFTV website
{{Orlando TV}}
{{Other Florida Stations}}
{{COXMG}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wrdq}}
Category:2000 establishments in Florida
Category:Independent television stations in the United States
Category:Television channels and stations established in 2000