WVAW
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Charlottesville, Virginia United States |
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| Branding | ABC 16 (general) CBS 19 News (newscasts) |
| Slogan |
Where Charlottesville News Comes First |
| Channels |
Digital: 16 (UHF) Virtual: 16 (PSIP) |
| Affiliations | ABC |
| Owner |
Gray Television (Gray Television Licensee, LLC) |
| First air date | 1979 |
| Call letters' meaning | VA (Virginia postal abbreviation) |
| Sister station(s) | WCAV, WAHU-CD, WHSV-TV, WSVF-CD |
| Former callsigns | W64AO (1979–2004) WVAW-LP (2004–2009) |
| Former channel number(s) |
Analog: 64 (UHF, 1979–2004) 16 (UHF, 2004–2009) |
| Transmitter power | 15 kW |
| Height | 324 m |
| Facility ID | 4687 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 37°59′3″N 78°28′52″W / 37.98417°N 78.48111°W |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Public license information: |
Profile CDBS |
| Website | newsplex.com |
WVAW-LD is the low-powered ABC-affiliated television station for Charlottesville, Virginia. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 16 from a transmitter on Carters Mountain. The station can also be seen on Comcast channel 3 and in high definition on digital channel 803. Owned by Gray Television, WVAW is sister to CBS affiliate WCAV and low-powered Fox affiliate WAHU-CD.
All three share studios, known as the "Charlottesville Newsplex", on 2nd Street Southeast in Downtown Charlottesville. In addition, some behind-the-scenes duties are run alongside that of sister station WHSV-TV in Harrisonburg (which the "Newsplex" has a resource sharing alliance with).
What is now WVAW-LD originally began in 1979 on analog UHF channel 64 with the call sign W64AO. The station was a low-powered repeater of WHSV, which was the area's default ABC affiliate even though Richmond's WRIC-TV puts a strong signal into Charlottesville. In 2004, W64AO moved to UHF channel 16, gained the WVAW-LP call letters, and became the market's first ABC affiliate not long after WCAV signed-on. However, it was still officially licensed as a translator station according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
In early 2005 after the launch of WCAV and WVAW, Gray Television launched a third station in the area, Fox affiliate WAHU-CA. Since 2006, the three have been the official flagships of University of Virginia sports. WVAW was temporarily taken off-the-air by a fire on its transmitter tower at the top of Carters Mountain on November 9, 2006. The signal was restored on November 13. On December 28, WVAW moved to Comcast channel 3.
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