WDCW
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Washington, D.C. United States |
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| Branding | DCW Television, DCW 50 (general) DCW 50 News (newscasts) |
| Slogan | Serious Fun |
| Channels |
Digital: 50 (UHF) Virtual: 50 () |
| Subchannels | |
| Affiliations |
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| Owner |
Tribune Broadcasting (WDCW, LLC) |
| Founded | January 1, 1972 |
| First air date | April 6, 1981 |
| Call letters' meaning | Washington D.C.'s CW |
| Former callsigns |
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| Former channel number(s) |
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| Former affiliations | |
| Transmitter power | 1000 kW |
| Height | 253 m |
| Facility ID | 30576 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 38°57′44″N 77°1′36″W / 38.96222°N 77.02667°WCoordinates: 38°57′44″N 77°1′36″W / 38.96222°N 77.02667°W |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Public license information: |
Profile CDBS |
| Website | dcw50.com |
WDCW Channel 50 is the CW-affiliated television station located in the American capital city of Washington, District of Columbia. The station is owned by the Tribune Broadcasting subsidiary of the Tribune Media Company. WDCW maintains studios on Wisconsin Avenue Northwest in the Glover Park section of Washington, D.C., and its transmitter is located atop the Hughes Memorial Tower in the city's Brightwood neighborhood.
WDCW is carried on satellite provider DirecTV (as standard definition only "CW-E") to serve the few areas of the eastern United States where a CW affiliate is not receivable over-the-air or through cable television and on JetBlue's LiveTV inflight entertainment system though DirecTV (the other network stations featured on JetBlue are predominantly from New York City).
The Channel 50 license was first assigned to WGSP. That station ran test patterns in early 1972, but never signed on. On April 6, 1981, Channel 50 finally signed on under the callsign WCQR. Beginning on November 1, WCQR aired the subscription television service SuperTV at night and live pictures of Washington, D.C. from above its broadcast tower during the daytime. Early in the day, WCQR also ran some basic computer still images with music called "Morning Muse". The live pictures were soon replaced with programming from the Financial News Network. Hill Broadcasting purchased both Channel 50 and WHLL-TV (now WUNI) in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1985. On July 1, the call letters were changed to WFTY, in reference to its channel FifTY allocation. It then became a full-time independent station in early 1986. Initially, the station ran a lineup of classic off-network sitcoms, dramas, cartoons, movies and some religious programs. WFTY also picked up the ABC soap opera Ryan's Hope after WJLA-TV (Channel 7) dropped it in 1986, with Channel 50 running the final years of the program.
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Wikipedia