WHPX-TV

WHPX-TV
New London/Hartford/New Haven, Connecticut
United States
City New London, Connecticut
Branding Ion Television
Slogan Positively Entertaining
Channels Digital: 26 (UHF)
(to move to 28 (UHF))
Virtual: 26 (PSIP)
Subchannels
Affiliations Ion Television
Owner Ion Media Networks
(Ion Media Hartford License, Inc.)
First air date September 15, 1986 (1986-09-15)
Call letters' meaning Hartford PaX
Former callsigns WTWS (1986–1998)
Former channel number(s) Analog:
26 (UHF, 1986–2009)
Former affiliations Independent (1986–1995)
inTV (1995–1998)
Transmitter power 475 kW
932 kW (CP)
Height 384 m (1,260 ft)
385 m (1,263 ft) (CP)
Facility ID 51980
Transmitter coordinates 41°25′3.7″N 72°11′53.2″W / 41.417694°N 72.198111°W / 41.417694; -72.198111Coordinates: 41°25′3.7″N 72°11′53.2″W / 41.417694°N 72.198111°W / 41.417694; -72.198111
Licensing authority FCC
Public license information: Profile
CDBS
Website www.iontelevision.com

WHPX-TV, virtual and UHF digital channel 26, is an Ion Television owned-and-operated television station licensed to New London, Connecticut, United States and serving the Hartford–New Haven television market. The station is owned by Ion Media Networks. WHPX's offices are located in New London, and its transmitter is located in the Oakdale neighborhood of Montville near Lake Konomoc.

History

The station began operation on September 15, 1986 as independent station WTWS. It was owned by C&S Broadcasting with majority owner Neil Denenberg and ran a low-budget general entertainment format. In 1988, the station took over some programming from WHCT-TV (channel 18, now Univision affiliate WUVN) as a result of that station's financial problems.

In 1990, the station also began to acquire programming that WTXX (channel 20, now WCCT-TV) chose not to renew. It also offered to pick up WTXX's programming inventory in 1992, but WTXX's owner (Renaissance Broadcasting) declined.

The station had added more infomercials to its lineup by 1993. Two years later, it was sold to Paxson Communications (predecssor to Ion Media Networks), and switched to Paxson's standard schedule of religious programming in the morning, infomercials in the afternoon and evenings, and worship programming overnight after affiliating with inTV. The rights to its programming were acquired by LIN Television, which placed those shows on WTVU (channel 59, now WCTX).

Paxson then began programming WHCT in 1997, and sold WTWS to Roberts Broadcasting. Roberts, in turn, sold the station to DP Media the following year. However, DP Media was owned by—and named for—Devon Paxson, son of Paxson Communications founder Bud Paxson. Paxson then cut its ties with WHCT and took control of WTWS. The station then affiliated with Pax TV (the predecessor to Ion Television) that year, and changed its call letters to WHPX-TV to reflect its affiliation. Paxson bought DP Media in 2000.

From 2001 until 2005, WHPX re-aired newscasts produced by NBC owned-and-operated station WVIT (channel 30).

Digital television

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

Digital channels

Channel Video Aspect PSIP Short Name Network
26.1720p16:9IONIon Television
26.2480i4:3quboQubo
26.3IONLifeIon Life
26.4ShopIon Shop
26.5QVCQVC
26.6HSNHSN

[1]

Analog-to-digital conversion

WHPX-TV shut down its analog signal, over UHF channel 26, on February 17, 2009, to conclude the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[2] The station's digital signal relocated from its pre-transition UHF channel 34 to channel 26.

References

  1. ↑ RabbitEars TV Query for WHPX
  2. ↑ List of Digital Full-Power Stations
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