WCOV TV in Montgomery, the local FOX-TV station has been sold by David Woods, who bought it in 1985.
Variety reports the buyer is Byron Allen:
"Allen Media Group paid $28.5 million in cash to Woods Communications for the station, which offers some 16 other channel feeds in addition to Fox through its multicast channels. The acquisition will bring Allen Media Group’s TV station holdings to 36, after a buying spree in recent years."
A 9:00 PM newscast on WCOV has been produced for several years by Alabama News Network, anchored now and then before my retirement by yours truly.
To my knowledge, it will be the first black-owned TV station in Montgomery. (A member of the family that owns WCOV now agrees that is the case.)
WCOV came on-air just as the winds of change via the Montgomery Bus Boycott were stirring:
History
In April of 1953,
Montgomery's desire for a local television station became fulfilled as
WCOV-TV began broadcasting from a newly-constructed facility just off of
Adrian Lane in the Normandale section of the city. Prior to WCOV-TV's
coming on the air, the few local residents who were able to view
television had had to erect large towers and directional antennas
alongside their homes in order to view the few unreliable signals from
distant Birmingham. WCOV-TV changed all of that. Rabbit ears, bow-ties,
and set-top converters were the order of the day and local sales of
television receivers soared. Television had come of age in Montgomery! (Source: The WCOV website)
No comments:
Post a Comment