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|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | ABC 24 Memphis; ABC 24 News Right Now |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WLMT | |
| History | |
First air date | September 10, 1978 |
Former call signs | WPTY-TV (1978–2013) |
Former channel number(s) | Analog: 24 (UHF, 1978–2009) |
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Call sign meaning | ABC for Tennessee |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 11907 |
| ERP | |
| HAAT | 340 m (1,115 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 35°16′33″N 89°46′38″W / 35.27583°N 89.77722°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
WATN-TV (channel 24) is a television station in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, affiliated with ABC. It is owned by Tegna Inc. alongside dual CW/MyNetworkTV affiliate WLMT (channel 30). The two stations share studios at the Shelby Oaks Corporate Park on Shelby Oaks Drive in the northeast section of Memphis; WATN-TV's transmitter is located in the Brunswick section of unincorporated northeast Shelby County.
Channel 24 in Memphis began broadcasting in September 1978 as WPTY-TV, the first independent station in the Memphis area. It was originally owned by Petry Television, an advertising sales representative for TV stations. Under the station's third owner, Chase Broadcasting, WPTY cemented its status as the leading independent over channel 30 by securing the rights to Memphis State University basketball and the Fox affiliation, which had both been on its competitor. Clear Channel Television purchased WPTY-TV in 1992 and then began programming WLMT in 1993.
In 1995, Fox acquired WHBQ-TV (channel 13), then the ABC affiliate. As a result, WPTY-TV became the ABC affiliate in Memphis and started a local news department, though it has met with little ratings success. Clear Channel spun off its television stations to Newport Television in 2007; when Newport liquidated, channels 24 and 30 were purchased by Nexstar Broadcasting. Nexstar initiated a comprehensive overhaul of the station, moving it to its present studios and changing the call sign to WATN-TV. When Nexstar merged with Tribune Media in 2019, the company kept the higher-rated WREG-TV and spun off WATN–WLMT to Tegna.
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WATN-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.