Editing WABC-TV (section)

==History==
===As WJZ-TV (1948–1953)===
The station signed on August 10, 1948, as WJZ-TV,<ref>[https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1948/1948-08-16-BC.pdf#page=23 "WJZ-TV starts; elaborate inaugural program."] ''[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting – Telecasting]]'', August 16, 1948, pg. 23.</ref> the first of three television stations signed on by ABC during that same year, with [[WENR-TV]] in Chicago and [[WXYZ-TV]] in Detroit being the other two. Channel 7's call letters came from its then-sister radio station, [[WABC (AM)|WJZ]]. In its early years, WJZ-TV was programmed much like an [[independent station]], as the ABC television network was still, for the most part, in its very early stages of development; the ABC-owned stations did air some common programming during this period, especially after the 1949 fall season when the network's prime time schedule began to expand. The station's original transmitter site was located at [[The Pierre]] Hotel at 2 East 61st Street, before moving to the Empire State Building a few years later. The station's original studios were located at 77 West 66th Street, with additional studios at 7 West 66th Street. A tunnel linked ABC studios at 7 West 66th Street to the lobby of the Hotel des Artistes, a block north on West 67th Street. Another studio inside the Hotel des Artistes was used for ''Eyewitness News Conference''.{{citation needed|date=July 2018}}

===As WABC-TV (1953–present)===
[[File:WJZ now WABC advertisement (1953).jpg|thumb|A March 1953 advertisement announcing the call letter change from WJZ-TV to WABC-TV<ref name="callchange">{{cite magazine|title=WABC and WABC-TV ad|volume=44|url=https://archive.org/stream/broadcastingtele44unse#page/n904/mode/1up|access-date=March 14, 2018|magazine=Broadcasting Telecasting|issue=9|date=March 2, 1953|page=37}}</ref>]]
The station's call letters were changed to WABC-TV on March 1, 1953,<ref>[https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1953/BC-1953-03-02.pdf#page=70 "It's now WABC-AM-FM-TV; ABC also changes slides."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', March 2, 1953, pg. 70.</ref><ref>[https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1953/BC-1953-03-02.pdf#page=37 WABC-AM-FM-TV advertisement]. ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', March 2, 1953, pg. 37.</ref> after ABC merged its operations with [[United Paramount Theatres]], a firm which was broken off from former parent company [[Paramount Pictures]] by decree of the U.S. government.<ref>[https://www.americanradiohistory.com/Archive-BC/BC-1953/BC-1953-02-16.pdf#page=27 "Ambitious ABC planning initiated under new merged ownership."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', February 16, 1953, pp. 27–29.</ref> The WJZ-TV callsign was later reassigned to [[Westinghouse Broadcasting]] (the original owners of WJZ radio in New York) as an historical nod in 1957 for their newly acquired [[WJZ-TV|television station]] in [[Baltimore]] – a station that was, by coincidence, an ABC affiliate until 1995.

As part of ABC's expansion program, initiated in 1977, ABC built 7 [[Lincoln Square, Manhattan|Lincoln Square]] on the southeast corner of West 67th Street and [[Ninth Avenue (Manhattan)|Columbus Avenue]], on the site of an abandoned moving and storage warehouse. At about the same time, construction was started at 30 West 67th Street on the site of a former parking lot. Both buildings were completed in June 1979 and WABC-TV moved its offices from 77 West 66th Street to 7 Lincoln Square.

On September 11, 2001, the transmitter facilities of WABC-TV, as well as eight other local television stations and several radio stations, were destroyed when two [[September 11 attacks|hijacked airplanes crashed]] into and destroyed the north and south towers of the [[World Trade Center (1973–2001)|World Trade Center]]. WABC-TV's transmitter maintenance engineer Donald DiFranco died in the attack.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.silive.com/september-11/2010/09/donald_difranco_43_tv_station.html|title=Donald DiFranco, 43, TV station engineer|date=September 11, 2010|newspaper=Staten Island Advance}}</ref> In the immediate aftermath, the station fed its signal to [[WNYE-TV]], [[WHSE-TV]], [[WFTY-DT|WHSI-TV]], and the [[New Jersey Network]]<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://variety.com/2001/tv/news/tv-beams-back-into-n-y-1117852904/|title=TV beams back into N.Y.|first=John|last=Dempsey|date=September 20, 2001|magazine=Variety}}</ref> before establishing temporary facilities at the [[Armstrong Tower]] in [[Alpine, New Jersey]]. The station eventually re-established transmission facilities at the Empire State Building, its original home when it signed on the air in 1948.<ref>{{citation |last=Fybush |first=Scott |date=September 10, 2002 |url=http://www.fybush.com/wtc-recovery.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051218160702/http://www.fybush.com/wtc-recovery.html |title=9/11 Plus One |publisher=NorthEast Radio Watch |archive-date=December 18, 2005}}</ref>

[[ABC News Now]] was launched in 2004 on digital subchannels of the ABC O&O stations.<ref>{{cite news|title=ABC News banks on digital, despite small audiences today|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/tech/news/techinnovations/2004-09-04-digital-broadcasts_x.htm|access-date=May 29, 2014|newspaper=USA Today|agency=Associated Press|date=September 4, 2004}}</ref> On January 31, 2005, ABC removed ABC News Now from O&O and affiliated stations' subchannels as the channel ended its experimental phase originally.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kerschbaumer |first1=Ken |title=ABC News Now... And Later |url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA498484.html |access-date=January 15, 2020 |work=Broadcasting & Cable |date=January 24, 2005 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081007075559/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA498484.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 7, 2008}}</ref> The group changed its programming on secondary channels to ABC Plus, a local news and public affairs format. ABC teamed up with [[AccuWeather]] to launch a [[The Local AccuWeather Channel|multicast service]] on WABC's third subchannel between December 9, 2005, and March 31, 2006.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Umstead |first1=R. Thomas |last2=Moss |first2=Linda |title=Much Ado About Multicasting |url=https://www.multichannel.com/news/much-ado-about-multicasting-368289 |access-date=January 24, 2020 |work=Multichannel |publisher=Future Publishing Limited |date=December 9, 2005 |language=en-us |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200115190636/https://www.multichannel.com/news/much-ado-about-multicasting-368289 |archive-date=January 15, 2020 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

On May 27, 2007, WABC-TV's studios suffered major damage as the result of a fire that knocked the station off the air shortly before the start of the 11&nbsp;p.m. newscast. According to preliminary reports, the fire may have been ignited by a spotlight coming into contact with a curtain inside the news studio; the station's website later reported the cause as an "electrical malfunction". The station's building was evacuated and the fire was brought under control, though the studio was said to be "badly damaged", having suffered smoke and water damage. WABC-TV resumed broadcasting at around 1&nbsp;a.m. on May 28, 2007 (initially carrying the network's 10&nbsp;pm. West Coast feed of ''[[Brothers & Sisters (2006 TV series)|Brothers & Sisters]]'', followed by the full broadcast of ''[[World News Now]]''). Due to the fire, the station broadcast ''Eyewitness News'' from the newsroom, while ''Live! with Regis and Kelly'', whose set was also affected, moved to the set of ''[[Who Wants to Be a Millionaire (American game show)|Who Wants to Be a Millionaire]]''. Starting with the 5&nbsp;p.m. newscast on June 20, 2007, the station resumed the ''Eyewitness News'' and ''Live!'' broadcasts from its main studios at Columbus Avenue and 66th Street.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wabc-tv-back-air-studio-fire-article-1.254337# |title=WABC-TV back on the air after studio fire |date=May 28, 2007 |publisher=Associated Press/New York Daily News |location=New York}}</ref>

The [[Live Well Network]] (LWN) was launched on April 27, 2009, in high definition by ABC's O&O stations on the stations' .2 subchannels.<ref>{{cite news|date=April 27, 2009|title=ABC O&Os Launch Digital Network|work=Broadcasting & Cable|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/209986-ABC_O_Os_Launch_Digital_Network.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090430035659/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/209986-ABC_O_Os_Launch_Digital_Network.php|archive-date=April 30, 2009}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=ABC Multicasts Live Well HD Channel |url=http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/local-broadcast/e3i18f9fdff77fbe360c575973113dc907b |work=Mediaweek |date=October 25, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091030074214/http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/local-broadcast/e3i18f9fdff77fbe360c575973113dc907b |archive-date=October 30, 2009}}</ref>

WABC-TV discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, [[VHF]] channel 7, at 12:30&nbsp;p.m. on June 12, 2009, as part of the [[Digital television transition in the United States|federally mandated transition from analog to digital television]].<ref>{{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 }}</ref> The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 45 to VHF channel 7.<ref name="FCCForm387">{{Cite web |url=http://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101234258&formid=387&fac_num=1328 |title=FCC DTV Status Report for WABC |publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref><ref>{{citation |url=http://media.myfoxny.com/pdf/WWORForm388Update091508.pdf |title=WWOR-DT FCC Form 387, Exhibit 4 |date=September 15, 2008 |publisher=[[WNYW]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120321131859/http://media.myfoxny.com/pdf/WWORForm388Update091508.pdf |archive-date=March 21, 2012}}</ref> WABC's digital signal was initially difficult to receive over-the-air in New York City. The station was requested by the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) to broadcast at a lower power; WABC was among many stations which have found it necessary to increase power to restore coverage to the same level as its former analog signal. On June 29, 2009, WABC filed an application with the FCC to increase power from 11.69&nbsp;kW to 27&nbsp;kW.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://fjallfoss.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101319333&formid=301&fac_num=1328 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120805222955/https://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101319333&formid=301&fac_num=1328 |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 5, 2012 |title=CDBS Print |publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]] |access-date=October 3, 2009 }}</ref> On January 31, 2010, the FCC granted a [[special temporary authority]] (STA) for the station to increase power to 26.9&nbsp;kW.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1347981&Service=DS&Form_id=911&Facility_id=1328 |title=Engineering STA |publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]] |access-date=March 7, 2010 |archive-date=October 20, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121020213223/http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1347981&Service=DS&Form_id=911&Facility_id=1328 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In May 2013, WABC-TV and [[Philadelphia]] [[sister station]] [[WPVI-TV]] became the first two ABC-owned stations to offer live, web-based streaming of programming to authenticated subscribers of participating cable and satellite television providers as provided through the relaunched ''Watch ABC'' [[mobile app]]s.<ref name=variety-watchabc>{{cite magazine |title=ABC to Stream Live Via App |url=https://variety.com/2013/tv/news/abc-to-stream-live-via-app-1200479778/ |magazine=Variety |access-date=June 1, 2013}}</ref><ref name=engadget-watchabc>{{cite web |title=Watch ABC app with live TV streaming comes to Kindle Fire, but not Google Play |url=https://www.engadget.com/2013/05/31/watch-abc-app-kindle-fire/ |work=Engadget |date=May 31, 2013 |access-date=June 1, 2013}}</ref>

ABCOTS indicated in January 2015 that its stations' third subchannel would affiliate with [[Laff (TV network)|Laff network]] upon launch on April 15, 2015; until then, LWN would run on both subchannels.<ref name="bc">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/currency/exclusive-comedy-multicast-net-launching-abc-scripps/137199|title=Exclusive: Comedy Multicast Net Launching on ABC, Scripps|last=Lafayette|first=Jon|magazine=Broadcasting & Cable|date=January 18, 2015|access-date=January 20, 2015}}</ref> ABC Stations rebranded Live Well Network on .2 as Localish on February 17, 2020, to add an outlet for the Localish lifestyle content.<ref>{{cite news |last=Lafayette |first=Jon |url=https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/abc-rebranding-live-well-broadcast-diginet-to-localish |title=ABC Rebranding Live Well Broadcast Diginet to Localish |work=Broadcasting & Cable |publisher=Future Publishing Limited |date=January 21, 2020 |access-date=January 24, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200124195838/https://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/abc-rebranding-live-well-broadcast-diginet-to-localish |archive-date=January 24, 2020 |url-status=dead }}</ref>