.webp) | |
| |
|---|---|
| Channels | |
| Branding | NOLA CW38 |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
|
| Ownership | |
| Owner |
|
| WGNO | |
| History | |
First air date | March 25, 1984 |
Former channel number(s) | Analog: 38 (UHF, 1984–2009) |
| |
Call sign meaning | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | 54280 |
| ERP | 775 kW |
| HAAT | 286 m (938 ft) |
| Transmitter coordinates | 29°57′0″N 89°57′28″W / 29.95000°N 89.95778°W |
| Links | |
Public license information | |
| Website | wgno |
WNOL-TV (channel 38) is a television station in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, serving as the market's outlet for The CW. It is owned and operated by network majority owner Nexstar Media Group alongside ABC affiliate WGNO (channel 26). The two stations share studios at The Galleria in Metairie; WNOL-TV's transmitter is located in Chalmette, Louisiana.
Channel 38 was the second independent station in the New Orleans market when it began broadcasting in 1984. It was owned by Channel 38 Associates, a consortium of mostly out-of-town investors. After a credible start, ratings dropped because of Tribune Broadcasting's purchase of and investment in WGNO, then its primary competition; TVX Broadcast Group acquired the cash-strapped station in late 1985. WNOL became the New Orleans affiliate of Fox at the network's launch in 1986. While the station slowly closed the ratings gap with WGNO, TVX's financial problems led it to sell the station to a group controlled by musician Quincy Jones in 1989.
In 1994, a group in which Fox held a minority stake bought WVUE (channel 8), which had been the ABC affiliate. However, the ABC affiliation went to WGNO. At the same time, Tribune provided financial backing for Jones and other investors to form Qwest Broadcasting and owned a minority stake in the company. On January 1, 1996, WNOL-TV became the new The WB affiliate in the city and absorbed some syndicated programs from WGNO. Upon the legalization of duopolies in 1999, Tribune bought WNOL-TV outright.
Even though Tribune owned two stations in New Orleans, they continued to operate from separate studio facilities until July 2005, when WGNO joined WNOL-TV in the New Orleans Centre shopping mall. A month later, however, Hurricane Katrina inundated the mall and left the two stations without permanent facilities for two years. During this time, in 2006, WNOL-TV began airing a WGNO-produced 9 p.m. newscast, which lasted four years, and The WB yielded to The CW. Tribune was purchased by Nexstar Media Group in 2019.
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for WNOL-TV". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.