WGBS-LD

WGBS-LD
Channels
BrandingWGBS-TV 7
Programming
Affiliations
Ownership
Owner
  • Joan Wright
  • (Joan and Kenneth Wright)
History
First air date
March 1994; 30 years ago (1994-03)
Former call signs
  • W07CZ (1993–1996)
  • WGBS-LP (1996–2009)
Former channel number(s)
  • Analog: 7 (VHF, 1994–2009)
  • Digital: 11 (VHF, 2009–2022)
AIN, Retro TV
Technical information[1]
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID31350
ClassLD
ERP2.7 kW
HAAT116 m (381 ft)
Transmitter coordinates36°51′39.1″N 76°21′9.6″W / 36.860861°N 76.352667°W / 36.860861; -76.352667
Links
Public license information
LMS

WGBS-LD (channel 7) is a low-power television station licensed to Carrollton, Virginia, United States, serving the Hampton Roads area and primarily airing paid programming. The station is owned by Joan Wright.

The station began broadcasting in March 1994. For most of the 1990s, the station was a low-power independent outlet known as "Genesis TV7", mixing programs from the American Independent Network with local programs, some of them Christian, such as Morning Praise, Peninsula SportsCenter, and a community bulletin board. It originally broadcast from the former studio of WVEC in Hampton;[2] the signal was broadcast from its former tower.[3] In 1996, the station moved its studio to the Newmarket Fair shopping mall.[4]

In 1998, Cox Communications removed WGBS-LP from its lineup in Hampton as part of a move to consolidate lineups in different Hampton Roads municipalities. The removal forced Genesis TV7 to lay off 10 employees and scale back its local programming.[4][5]

The founders, Kenneth and Joan Wright, separated in 2017. In 2020, they signed an agreement whereby Kenneth transferred all of his interest in WGBS-LD to Joan Wright.[6]

  1. ^ "Facility Technical Data for WGBS-LD". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
  2. ^ Harville, Bobbie (November 10, 1994). "Inspirational TV: Genesis TV 7 brings new line of family shows". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. Y6. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ Knemeyer, Nelda L. (April 27, 1995). "Genesis TV7 changing signal, adding new markets". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. N7. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ a b Nicholson, David (May 14, 1998). "Station strruggling [sic] to stay on cable lineup: Hampton owners confer with NAACP". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. C4. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ Nicholson, David (October 10, 1998). "WPEN burned by Cox decision to change lineup". Daily Press. Newport News, Virginia. p. D1. Retrieved April 22, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Transfers #170659". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission. November 22, 2021.