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|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | Fox 20; WCOV News at Nine |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner |
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| WALE-LD, WIYC | |
| History | |
First air date | April 17, 1953 |
Former channel number(s) |
|
Call sign meaning | Will Covington (founding owner of WCOV radio) |
| Technical information[2] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 73642 |
| ERP | 670 kW |
| HAAT | 528 m (1,732 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 31°58′29″N 86°9′44″W / 31.97472°N 86.16222°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | www |
WCOV-TV (channel 20) is a television station in Montgomery, Alabama, United States, affiliated with the Fox network. It is owned by Allen Media Broadcasting alongside Troy-licensed Cozi TV affiliate WIYC (channel 48) and low-power local weather station WALE-LD (channel 17). The three stations share studios on WCOV Avenue in the Normandale section of Montgomery; WCOV-TV's transmitter is located southeast of Grady along the Montgomery–Crenshaw county line.
WCOV-TV was the first television station to be built in Montgomery, beginning broadcasting on April 17, 1953. It was an affiliate of CBS; however, it was on the new ultra high frequency (UHF) band. When Montgomery's allocated very high frequency (VHF) station, WSFA-TV, began in late 1954, it immediately came to dominate the Montgomery market. WCOV owners attempted to have the playing field leveled by proposing either a move of WSFA-TV to UHF or of WCOV-TV to VHF, but neither was approved. In 1964, Gay-Bell Broadcasting acquired WCOV-TV and its associated radio stations; seeking to bolster its position, it attempted to buy WSLA, a VHF station in Selma and another CBS affiliate, but no sale ever materialized.
In 1985, WSLA changed its call sign to WAKA and added Montgomery to its coverage area. Despite prior reassurances from CBS, the network informed WCOV-TV that it would discontinue its affiliation with channel 20. Gay-Bell sold the station to Woods Communications, which operated it as an independent station and discontinued its local newscasts before adding the new Fox network in October 1986. The station initially struggled before Fox programming attracted significant ratings. A 1996 tornado destroyed the tower from which the station broadcast in Montgomery; WCOV-TV did not return to full power until the next year.
Allen Media acquired WCOV-TV, WIYC, and WALE-LD in 2023 from Woods Communications. The station airs a 9 p.m. local newscast produced by WAKA.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
wcovtoallenwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Facility Technical Data for WCOV-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.