WLUC-TV
Encyclopedia : W : WL : WLU : WLUC-TV
WLUC-TV is the NBC station in Marquette, Michigan. It broadcasts on channel 6 from studios in the nearby suburb of Negaunee. Its transmitter is located in Republic. WLUC broadcasts its signal from an antenna 980 feet in height. It is currently owned by Montgomery, Alabama-based Raycom Media; however, a sale to Barrington Broadcasting is pending FCC approval.
It signed on as WDMJ-TV in 1956 as the Upper Peninsula's first television station. It carried programming from all three networks, but was a primary CBS affiliate. It was owned by the Daily Mining Journal along with WDMJ-AM 1320. The studios were located on the top floor of the Mining Journal building on Washington Street in downtown Marquette.
In 1964, the station was sold to the owners of WLUK-TV in Green Bay, who changed the calls to WLUC, to match its moniker at the time, "Lucky 6" (though some locals would say it meant "With Luck You "C" TV) . The station quickly outgrew its facilities in downtown Marquette. in 1959, the station moved into its current facilities on US-41 in Negaunee, near its original transmitter. WLUC first broadcast network programs in color in 1963 and with the purchase of color video tape equipment, WLUC began broadcasting all of its locally produced programs in color in 1969.
WLUC has been affected several times by television shakeups in Green Bay since rival station WJMN-TV in Escanaba is a satellite of WFRV-TV in Green Bay. For example, it dropped NBC programming in 1968 when WJMN signed on. When CBS bought WFRV in 1992 and switched it from ABC, WLUC became a primary ABC affiliate with a secondary NBC affiliation. It became solely NBC in 1995. It also carried some Fox programs in the early 1990s before WLUK switched to Fox and opened a low-power repeater in Marquette.
Until recently, the station was owned by Raycom Media. In late-2005, following Raycom's purchase of The Liberty Corporation, Raycom announced that WLUC would be sold, along with the other NBC affiliate in the Upper Peninsula, WPBN-TV & WTOM-TV (7&4) in Traverse City. The sale was necessary to help meet federal restrictions on station ownership.
On March 27, 2006, Raycom announced that Barrington Broadcasting will be acquiring 12 Raycom stations, including WLUC. The FCC approved the deal in June 2006. Upon finalization, WLUC will join 7&4, Saginaw's WEYI-TV and, to a degree, Toledo's WNWO-TV as part of Barrington's family of stations in Michigan.
WLUC is also seen on translators W14CE in Escanaba and W07DB in Marquette -- the latter is for areas of Marquette that get a poor reception from WLUC's main Republic transmitter. It used to operate a network of translators serving communities including Calumet, Iron Mountain, L'Anse, Pewabic, and White Pine.
The Logo
WLUC has used the same multicolored "6" logo for many years, probably as early as sometime in the early 1990's. From about 1989 to about 1992 a similar metallic-looking "6" was used, with a rainbow slash underneath. The rainbow, while used with on-air promos and the news open, was never used on mic flags during this time. From the time TV6 went on the air in 1956, network logos, CBS/ABC, CBS/NBC, were always separate from the TV6 logo. That changed in 1992, when the ABC ball was added to the now rainbow six logo. When WLUC switched to NBC primary in 1995 it simply replaced the ABC logo with the letters "NBC" rather than place NBC's peacock alongside the 6 (as many NBC affiliates do). Unless one has a good eye, a stranger to the Marquette market may accidentally think WLUC's an ABC affiliate.
External link
- [Query the FCC's TV station database for WLUC]
- [Query the FCC's TV station database for W14CE]
- [Query the FCC's TV station database for W07DB]
- [Northpine.com: WLUC screengrabs]
| Broadcast television in the Marquette market [(Nielsen DMA #180)]''' | ||
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| WJMN 3 (CBS) - WBKP 5 / WBUP 10 (ABC) - WLUC 6 (NBC) (The Tube on DT3) - WDHS 8 (EWTN) - WNMU 13 (PBS) - WMQF 19 (Fox) - W40AN 40 (Fox) | ||
| Broadcast television available on cable only: | ||
| CBMT 6 (CBC) (Montreal) - WLUK 11 (Fox) (Green Bay) - WFQX 33 (Fox) (Cadillac) | ||
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Corporate Management Roster: K. James Yager (CEO) | Christoper H. Cornelius | Mary L. Flodin | Keith L. Bland
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ABC Network Affiliates: KTVO1 | KVII / KVIH | WHOI2 | WPDE
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CBS Network Affiliates: KGBT1 | KHQA | KRCG
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Fox Network Affiliates: KXRM1 | WACH1 | WFXL1
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NBC Network Affiliates: WEYI | WLUC1 | WNWO1 | WPBN / WTOM1 | WSTM13
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UPN Network Affiliates: KXTU12 | WSTQ12 | WWMB24
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WB Network Affiliate: WBSF2 | WEYI3
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1The FCC has approved the acquisition of these stations from Raycom Media. The acquisition is now awaiting finalization.
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2These stations will become affiliates or subaffiliates of The CW Television Network starting September 18, 2006.
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3These stations will carry feeds of their low-power sister stations for owners of high-definition television sets.
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4Barrington operates this station owned by SagamoreHill Broadcasting.
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| Annual Revenue: Unknown at this time. | Employees: Unknown at this time. | Stock Symbol: Unknown at this time. | Website: [www.barringtontv.com] |
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