WMBD-TV
This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "WMBD-TV".

WMBD-TV
Peoria, Illinois
Branding	WMBD NewsChannel 31
Slogan	Taking Action for You
Channels	Analog: 31 (UHF) Digital: 30 (UHF)
Affiliations	CBS
Owner	Nexstar Broadcasting Group, Inc. (Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc.)
First air date	January 1, 1958
Call letters’ meaning	World's Most Beautiful Drive (referring to Peoria's Grandview Drive overlooking the Illinois River)
Sister station(s)	WYZZ-TV
Transmitter Power	2040 kW (analog) 800 kW (digital)
Height	195 m (analog) 193 m (digital)
Facility ID	42121
Transmitter Coordinates	40°38′5.7″N 89°32′19.7″W / 40.634917, -89.538806
Website	www.centralillinoisproud.com

WMBD-TV, channel 31, is the CBS affiliate in Peoria, Illinois. It is the first Peoria station to broadcast local color television, the last to broadcast digital television, and the only commercial television station with its studio and offices still in the city itself.

Ownership

WMBD-TV has been co-owned with WCIA (TV) in Champaign, Illinois for decades. Along with WCFN in Springfield, Illinois, they are now owned by Nexstar Broadcasting Group. WMBD-TV also operates WYZZ-TV.

History

WMBD-TV first signed on the air on January 1, 1958. The original owners were Charles Caley and John Fetzer of WMBD, Inc., and it was co-owned with WMBD radio (AM 1470 and 93.3 FM, now WPBG). The stations were sold to Midwest Television Inc. of Champaign, Illinois; owners of WCIA in 1960 for $1.85 million.

In 1999, WMBD-TV was split from its radio sisters when Midwest Television divested its Illinois stations, selling TV stations WMBD-TV, WCFN Springfield, and WCIA Champaign to Nexstar Broadcasting Group and the two Peoria radio stations to Peoria-owned JMP Media LLC (a subsidiary of California-based Triad Broadcasting).

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (May 2008)

Logos

WMBD-TV Logo, 1991 to 1993 (the 1993 logo was used until 1997)

WMBD-TV Logo, 2003 to 2007

WMBD-TV Logo, 2007 to present

Programming

In addition to sharing news items with WCIA, WMBD-TV has also carried some original WCIA programs:

• At the Hop (1950s-1960s): with John Coleman and later with Ed Mason
• Dialing for Dollars (1960s-1970s)
• Nightmare Theater (1958–1962)
• The Bruce Weber Show

Please help improve this section by expanding it. Further information might be found on the talk page or at requests for expansion. (May 2008)

Station names

• "Action News 31" (1960s-1970s)
• "31 News Alive" (1970s-1980s)
• "NewsCenter 31" (1980s-90s)
• "News 31" (early to mid-1990s)
• "WMBD News" (mid 1990s)
• "CBS 31 News" (1997 to 2003)
• "NewsChannel 31 News" (2003-present)

Slogans

• "The Best News of All" (Did use CBS' "Get Ready" campaign and montage in 1989) (1980s-1990s)
• "Your News Authority" (Did use CBS' "The Look of America is CBS" campaign and montage in the early 1990s) (1990s)
• "Specifically Designed for Busy People (Like You)" (Did use "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls for a montage in 1997) (1990s)
• "The One and Only" (Did air a montage featuring the news team with the song "You're The One That I Want" from the film Grease) (1990s)
• "Bottom Line, Better News" (Did use CBS' "Its All Here" montage in 2002 also) (2001–2003)
• "Making A Difference For You" (2003–2007)
• "Taking Action For You" (2007-Present)

Personalities

Current

Former

Digital Television

Analog-to-digital conversion

After the analog television shutdown and digital conversion, which is tentatively scheduled to take place on February 17, 2009 ^[1], WMBD will remain on its current pre-transition channel number, 30. However, through the use of PSIP, digital television receivers will display WMBD's virtual channel as 31.

References

1. ^ http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf

External links

• WMBD homepage
• Query the FCC's TV station database for WMBD-TV
• BIAfn's Media Web Database -- Information on WMBD-TV
• Unoffical WMBD-TV 31 Fan Blog