View source for WDBJ

{{Short description|Television station in Roanoke, Virginia}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2024}}
{{Infobox television station
| callsign = WDBJ
| city = Roanoke, Virginia
| logo = WDBJ (2012).svg
| logo_size = 250px
| image = WDBJ Transmitter Complex on Poor Mountain in Roanoke Virginia.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = WDBJ transmitter complex on Poor Mountain in Roanoke County
| branding = WDBJ 7
| digital = 30 ([[UHF]]), shared with [[WZBJ]]<ref name="graylibertycsa">{{Cite web |url=https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/25076f915fd11ef0015fe49df0f53cd6 |title=Gray-Liberty CSA |access-date=November 22, 2017 |archive-date=December 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171201045316/https://enterpriseefiling.fcc.gov/dataentry/api/download/attachment/25076f915fd11ef0015fe49df0f53cd6 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| virtual = 7
| affiliations = {{ubl|'''7.1:''' [[CBS]]|''for others, see {{section link||Subchannels}}''}}
| owner = [[Gray Media]]
| licensee = Gray Television Licensee, [[LLC]]
| location = [[Roanoke, Virginia|Roanoke]]–[[Lynchburg, Virginia]]
| country = United States
| founded = March 31, 1955<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/55-OCR/1955-04-11-BC-OCR-Page-0109.pdf "For the record: Actions of the FCC–New TV stations–Action by FCC."] ''[[Broadcasting and Cable|Broadcasting – Telecasting]]'', April 11, 1955, pg. 109.</ref>
| airdate = {{start date and age|1955|10|3|p=y}}
| callsign_meaning = derived from former sister station WDBJ radio (now [[WFIR]]), call letters were randomly assigned by the FCC when it was licensed in 1924
| sister_stations = WZBJ
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 7 ([[VHF]], 1955–2009)|'''Digital:''' 18 (UHF, 2002–2019)}}
| former_affiliations = {{ubl|[[NTA Film Network|NTA]] (secondary, 1956–1961)|[[UPN]] (secondary, 1995-1997)}}<ref>{{cite news | url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/120071982/wdbj-channel-7-cbsupn/ | title=WDBJ, Channel 7 (CBS | newspaper=The Roanoke Times | date=August 11, 1996 | page=184 }}</ref>
| former_callsigns = WDBJ-TV (1955–1983)
| erp = 1,000 [[kW]]
| haat = {{convert|603.6|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id = 71329
| coordinates = {{nowrap|{{Coord|37|11|42.7|N|80|9|22.1|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}}}
| licensing_authority = [[FCC]]
| website = {{URL|https://www.wdbj7.com}}
}}

'''WDBJ''' (channel 7) is a [[television station]] licensed to [[Roanoke, Virginia]], United States, serving as the [[CBS]] affiliate for the Roanoke–[[Lynchburg, Virginia|Lynchburg]] [[media market|market]]. It is owned by [[Gray Media]] alongside [[Danville, Virginia|Danville]]-licensed [[MyNetworkTV]] affiliate [[WZBJ]], channel 24 (and its Lynchburg-licensed [[Class A television service|Class A]] [[broadcast relay station#broadcast translators|translator]] [[WZBJ-CD]], channel 24). WDBJ and WZBJ share studios on [[Virginia State Route 101|Hershberger Road]] in northwest Roanoke; through a [[channel sharing agreement]], the two stations transmit using WDBJ's spectrum from an antenna on [[Poor Mountain]] in [[Roanoke County]].

==History==

===Early history===
WDBJ-TV first signed on the air on October 3, 1955.<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/55-OCR/1955-10-10-BC-OCR-Page-0091.pdf "New TVs take air in Roanoke, Detroit."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', October 10, 1955, pg. 95.</ref><ref>[https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=86140 FCC History Cards for WDBJ]. [[Federal Communications Commission]].</ref> It was owned by the Times-World Corporation, publishers of the ''[[Roanoke Times]]'' and ''Roanoke World-News'', alongside WDBJ radio (960 AM, now [[WFIR]]; and 94.9 FM, now [[WSLC-FM]]). Channel 7 has been a CBS affiliate since its sign-on, owing to WDBJ radio's longtime affiliation with the [[CBS Radio Network]].<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/55-OCR/1955-07-18-BC-OCR-Page-0007.pdf "At deadline: CBS signs Roanoke outlet."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', July 18, 1955, pg. 7.</ref> WDBJ-TV was the third television station to sign-on from Roanoke, after [[NBC]] affiliate [[WSLS-TV]] (channel 10) and WROV-TV (channel 27, frequency later occupied by [[WFXR]]), which operated as an [[independent station]] from February to July 1953. Before channel 7 signed on, CBS programming had been carried part-time on Lynchburg-based WLVA-TV (channel 13, now [[WSET-TV]]). During the late 1950s, WDBJ was also briefly affiliated with the [[NTA Film Network]].<ref name="Boxoffice7">{{citation|title=Require Prime Evening Time for NTA Films|url=http://issuu.com/boxoffice/docs/boxoffice_111056-1|journal=[[Boxoffice]]|publisher=Boxoffice Media|page=13|date=November 10, 1956|access-date=December 11, 2018|archive-date=June 14, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090614204506/http://issuu.com/boxoffice/docs/boxoffice_111056-1|url-status=live}}</ref>

For close to two years, the station's [[construction permit]] was heavily contested between Times-World and the owners of WROV-TV, who relinquished their UHF [[broadcast license|license]] (the station went [[dark (broadcasting)|dark]] in July 1953) in order to battle for channel 7. The two-way contest virtually ended in January 1955, when the WROV group relinquished their application and sold their television assets to WDBJ.<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/55-OCR/1955-01-31-BC-OCR-Page-0005.pdf "Closed circuit: Roanoke merger."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', January 31, 1955, pg. 5.</ref> The Times-World Corp. would be awarded the channel 7 construction permit two months later.<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/55-OCR/1955-04-04-BC-OCR-Page-0062.pdf "Roanoke VHF grant finalized; Flint stay petitions denied."] ''Broadcasting – Telecasting'', April 4, 1955, pg. 66.</ref>
 
Channel 7, along with its radio sisters, originally operated from studio facilities located in the Mountain Trust Bank Building in downtown Roanoke. Its transmitter was located temporarily on [[Mill Mountain Star|Mill Mountain]]; the station originally planned to transmit its signal from Poor Mountain, but was not able to do so due to concerns regarding interference with the signal of [[WSPA-TV]] in [[Spartanburg, South Carolina]], whose broadcasting facilities were under construction at the time. In 1956, WDBJ radio and television moved their operations to the Times-World Building; the television station also relocated its transmitter to Poor Mountain.

Due to its affiliation with the ''Times'' and Virginia's second-oldest radio station (AM 960 had signed on in 1924), WDBJ-TV overtook WSLS-TV as the area's highest-rated station within three years of its sign-on. It has remained in the lead more or less ever since. As channel 7 grew during the late 1950s, plans were drawn for a new studio at the corner of Brandon and Colonial Avenues in southwest Roanoke. The WDBJ stations moved to the then state-of-the-art building in the summer of 1961.

===Schurz Communications ownership===
[[File:WDBJ2008.png|140px|thumb|Longtime WDBJ logo, used from the 1970s until late July 2012.  The "7" in the current logo is based on this classic logo, enhanced for HD.]]
In 1969, Times-World merged with [[Norfolk, Virginia|Norfolk]]-based [[Landmark Communications]].<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/68-OCR/1968-11-18-BC-OCR-Page-0009.pdf "Roanoke stations on block."] ''Broadcasting'', November 18, 1968, pg. 9.</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Hoovers.com|url=http://www.hoovers.com/times-world/--ID__130332--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml?cm_ven=PAID&cm_cat=INK&cm_pla=CO1&cm_ite=times-world|website=[[D&B Hoovers|Hoovers]]|publisher=[[Dun and Bradstreet]]|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924052125/http://www.hoovers.com/times-world/--ID__130332--/free-co-factsheet.xhtml?cm_ven=PAID&cm_cat=INK&cm_pla=CO1&cm_ite=times-world|url-status=live}}</ref> The merger came one year after the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) barred the co-ownership of broadcast outlets and newspapers, while "[[grandfathering]]" existing newspaper-broadcasting combinations in several markets. With the Landmark merger, the WDBJ stations lost their grandfathered protection and could not be retained by the merged company. As a result, channel 7 was sold to [[South Bend, Indiana]]-based [[Schurz Communications]].<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/69-OCR/1969-05-05-BC-OCR-Page-0062.pdf "Times-World sells WDBJ-TV for $8 million."] ''Broadcasting'', May 5, 1969, pg. 58.</ref> It is not likely that the FCC would have allowed Landmark to keep WDBJ-TV in any event due to a significant signal overlap with Landmark-owned [[WFMY-TV]] in [[Greensboro, North Carolina]].<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/69-OCR/1969-11-03-BC-OCR-Page-0042.pdf "Station-sale block hot at FCC."] ''Broadcasting'', November 3, 1969, pg. 42.</ref> Channel 7's analog city-grade signal reached [[Patrick County]], which is part of the Triad market. It provided at least grade B coverage as far south as [[Reidsville, North Carolina]]. At the time, the FCC normally did not allow common ownership of two television stations with overlapping signals, and would not even consider granting a waiver for a city-grade overlap.

Times-World also sold the WDBJ radio stations to separate owners. Channel 7 retained the WDBJ-TV call sign, though it officially dropped the ''-TV'' suffix in November 1983.<ref>[http://www.americanradiohistory.com/hd2/Archive-BC-IDX/83-OCR/BC-1983-11-28-OCR-Page-0072.pdf "For the record: Call letters–Grants–Existing TV's."] ''Broadcasting'', November 28, 1983, pg. 72.</ref>

In 1979, WDBJ-TV opened a news bureau in Lynchburg, known as the Central Virginia Bureau, which provided reports focusing on the eastern part of the Roanoke–Lynchburg market (from [[Charlottesville]] to [[Danville, Virginia|Danville]]); weekend anchor Graham Wilson served as the bureau chief. In the 1980s, the station aired a series of [[promo (media)|promotional programming and station image spots]] featuring the popular "[[Ernest P. Worrell]]" character portrayed by [[Jim Varney]].

In 2000, WDBJ announced plans to construct a new studio facility on the site of the [[Best Products]] building in northwest Roanoke—which was demolished that June—which was designed for [[high-definition television|high definition]] broadcasting. WDBJ began broadcasting from the new facility on April 20, 2002.

On July 1, 2007, Jeffery A. Marks was named as the station's general manager, succeeding longtime GM Bob Lee (Marks became only the fourth general manager in the station's history). That same year, the station converted its news department to a tapeless operation, switching to a server-based playback system.

In the spring of 2010, Schurz Communications entered into a website management partnership with [[Tribune Interactive]], in which the [[content management system]] operator would assume responsibilities for operating the websites of Schurz's media properties (with the exception of NBC affiliate [[WAGT (TV)|WAGT]] in [[Augusta, Georgia]], which was operated by [[Media General]] through a [[shared services agreement]] with ABC affiliate [[WJBF]]). Schurz's [[Kansas]] television properties ([[KWCH-DT]] and [[KSCW-DT]]) were the first to launch new Tribune-run sites in late June of that year, with WDBJ following suit in mid-July. This lasted until mid-2013, when [[Internet Broadcasting (company)|Internet Broadcasting]] began operating the WDBJ website.

Schurz Communications announced on September 14, 2015, that it would exit broadcasting and sell its television and radio stations, including WDBJ, to [[Gray Television]] for $442.5 million. This would make WDBJ a [[sister station]] to [[WCAV]] (which it no longer is) and [[WHSV-TV]] in Charlottesville and [[Harrisonburg, Virginia|Harrisonburg]], respectively.<ref name=sbt-saletogray>{{cite news|title=Schurz Communications to sell WSBT and other TV, radio stations|url=http://www.southbendtribune.com/news/local/schurz-communications-to-sell-wsbt-and-other-tv-radio-stations/article_e95251d6-5b1d-11e5-b80b-ef330f571e57.html|access-date=September 14, 2015|work=[[South Bend Tribune]]|date=September 14, 2015}}</ref><ref name=b&c-saletogray>{{cite news|last1=Kuperberg|first1=Jonathan|title=Gray Acquiring TV, Radio Stations from Schurz for $442.5 Million|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/local-tv/gray-acquiring-tv-radio-stations-schurz-4425-million/144190|access-date=September 14, 2015|work=[[Broadcasting & Cable]]|date=September 14, 2015|archive-date=September 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150917040306/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/local-tv/gray-acquiring-tv-radio-stations-schurz-4425-million/144190|url-status=live}}</ref> The FCC approved the sale on February 12, 2016.<ref>[http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/washington/fcc-approves-gray-schurz-tv-station-deal/153781 FCC Approves Gray-Schurz TV Station Deal] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804014705/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/washington/fcc-approves-gray-schurz-tv-station-deal/153781 |date=August 4, 2017 }}. [[Broadcasting & Cable]], February 12, 2016, Retrieved February 13, 2016;</ref> and the sale was completed on February 16.<ref>[http://www.gray.tv/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=105&cntnt01returnid=81 Gray Closes Schurz Acquisition, Related Transactions, And Incremental Term Loan Facility] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709064554/https://www.gray.tv/index.php?mact=News,cntnt01,detail,0&cntnt01articleid=105&cntnt01returnid=81 |date=July 9, 2017 }} Press Release, [[Gray Television]], Retrieved February 16, 2016.</ref>

==WDBJ-DT2==
'''WDBJ-DT2''' is the second [[digital subchannel]] of WDBJ, which serves as an affiliate of the [[African Americans|Black]]-oriented multicast network [[the365]]. It broadcasts in [[16:9]] [[widescreen]] [[standard definition]] on channel 7.2.

===Background===
{{multiple image
 | direction = vertical
 | align = 
 | width = 120
 | image1 = Wdbj-7 too.jpg
 | caption1 = Original logo of WDBJ-DT2 as "7 Too", used from 2004 to 2006.
 | image2 = WDBJ-DT2 2008.png
 | caption2 = Logo of WDBJ-DT2 used between September 5, 2006, and August 31, 2018, under the "My19" branding.
}}
WDBJ launched its second digital subchannel in 2004 as "7 Too," an independent service which carried rebroadcasts of WDBJ newscasts along with some syndicated programming; the channel also aired special event programming, such as sporting events sourced from [[Raycom Sports]] and occasionally by [[CBS Sports]], and the entirety of the [[2004 Republican National Convention|2004 Republican]] and [[2004 Democratic National Convention|Democratic conventions]].

On February 22, 2006, [[News Corporation]] (which would later spin off its American television properties into [[21st Century Fox]] in July 2013) announced the launch of [[MyNetworkTV]], a new network that would be operated by two of its divisions, [[Fox Television Stations]] and [[Twentieth Television]].<ref>{{cite news|title=News Corp. to launch new mini-network for UPN stations|url=http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-02-22-fox-my-network_x.htm|access-date=January 21, 2013|newspaper=[[USA Today]]|publisher=[[Gannett Company]]|date=February 22, 2006|archive-date=September 23, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130923100154/http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-02-22-fox-my-network_x.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=News Corp. Unveils MyNetworkTV|url=http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/news-corp-unveils-my-network-tv/78935|author=John Eggerton|periodical=[[Broadcasting & Cable]]|publisher=[[Reed Business Information]]|date=February 22, 2006|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924121350/http://www.broadcastingcable.com/news/news-articles/news-corp-unveils-my-network-tv/78935|url-status=live}}</ref> MyNetworkTV was created to compete against another upstart network that would launch at the same time that September, [[The CW]] – a network created through a partnership between [[CBS Corporation]] and [[WarnerMedia|Time Warner]], which had announced one month earlier on January 24 that the two companies would respectively shut down [[UPN]] and [[The WB]], which originally consisted primarily of the higher-rated programs from its two predecessors; MyNetworkTV was also formed to give UPN- and WB-affiliated stations that were not named as The CW's charter affiliates another option besides converting into independent stations.<ref>{{cite news|title='Gilmore Girls' meet 'Smackdown'; CW Network to combine WB, UPN in CBS-Warner venture beginning in September|url=https://money.cnn.com/2006/01/24/news/companies/cbs_warner/|website=[[CNNMoney.com]]|publisher=[[Time Warner]]|date=January 24, 2006|access-date=August 3, 2020|archive-date=July 31, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200731094026/https://money.cnn.com/2006/01/24/news/companies/cbs_warner/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=UPN and WB to Combine, Forming New TV Network|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/24/business/media/24cnd-network.html?bl|newspaper=[[The New York Times]]|date=January 24, 2006|access-date=February 23, 2017|archive-date=October 17, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151017035638/http://www.nytimes.com/2006/01/24/business/media/24cnd-network.html?bl|url-status=live}}</ref> When the network debuted on September 5, 2006, WDBJ-DT2 became the MyNetworkTV affiliate for the Roanoke-Lynchburg market; [[WWCW]] (channel 21) became the market's CW affiliate when that network launched two weeks later on September 18.

Debuting with the subchannel's MyNetworkTV affiliation, WDBJ began producing a half-hour weeknight 10&nbsp;p.m. newscast on "My19", which maintains an alternative format to the newscasts seen on WDBJ's main channel, providing "anchor movement" to a different set after each commercial break and includes a "Fun Fact" feature during each newscast, which is associated with one of the stories featured on that evening's broadcast. {{As of|2015}}, the newscast is currently anchored by Melissa Gaona, meteorologist Robin Reed, and sports director Travis Wells. The program is WDBJ's second attempt at a prime time newscast; the station previously produced a 10&nbsp;p.m. newscast, titled ''News 7 Primetime'', for religious independent station WEFC (channel 38, now [[Ion Television]] owned-and-operated station [[WPXR-TV]]) from September 1996 to August 1997; that program was canceled due to low ratings.<ref name=rt-wefcwdbjnews>{{cite news|title=Channel 7 cancels WEFC 10 p.m. news|url=http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_product=RO&p_theme=ro&s_dispstring=%28WEFC%20AND%20WDBJ%29&p_field_advanced-0=&p_text_advanced-0=%28%22WEFC%22%20AND%20%22WDBJ%22%29&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&xcal_useweights=no|newspaper=[[The Roanoke Times]]|publisher=[[Berkshire Hathaway|BH Media]]|page=B4|date=August 8, 1997|access-date=December 4, 2011|archive-date=September 15, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170915113246/http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Archives?p_action=search&p_maxdocs=200&p_product=RO&p_theme=ro&s_dispstring=%28WEFC%20AND%20WDBJ%29&p_field_advanced-0=&p_text_advanced-0=%28%22WEFC%22%20AND%20%22WDBJ%22%29&p_perpage=10&p_sort=YMD_date:D&xcal_useweights=no|url-status=live}}</ref>

In June 2018, the MyNetworkTV affiliation moved to WLHG-CD, which was [[simulcast]] in 16:9 widescreen standard definition on WDBJ's third digital subchannel (remapped to [[virtual channel]] 43.1) for full-market over-the-air coverage; the 7.2 subchannel then began to carry the [[Decades (TV network)|Decades]] network. On September 1, 2018, MyNetworkTV moved to [[WZBJ]] (channel 24), which operates on WDBJ's spectrum; a simulcast was retained in Lynchburg on WLHG-CD, which was renamed [[WZBJ-CD]]. Concurrently, Decades moved to the third subchannel of WZBJ-CD, and Heroes & Icons moved to WDBJ's 7.2 subchannel.

==Programming==
Reruns of ''[[The Andy Griffith Show]]'' were a fixture at 5:30&nbsp;p.m. on weekdays starting in 1984. The show was something of a local tradition, regularly coming in as the far-and-away ratings winner in the timeslot.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Landon|first1=Tom|title=Andy Griffith was buried with little fanfare|url=http://www.roanoke.com/news/andy-griffith-was-buried-with-little-fanfare/article_effa738a-666c-11e3-9cc0-001a4bcf6878.html|work=Roanoke Times|date=December 16, 2013|language=en|access-date=May 31, 2017|archive-date=September 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903165637/https://roanoke.com/news/andy-griffith-was-buried-with-little-fanfare/article_effa738a-666c-11e3-9cc0-001a4bcf6878.html|url-status=live}}</ref> ''Griffith'' remained at 5:30&nbsp;p.m. for 35 years; as it continued to win the timeslot against first-run syndicated programming and competing local newscasts even at the end of its run, WDBJ management was hesitant to remove it from their schedule even after it started to drag down the station's own newscast ratings. After the launch of co-owned WZBJ in 2018 provided an option to relocate the show, WDBJ debuted a 5:30&nbsp;p.m. newscast on April 1, 2019.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Berrier Jr. |first1=Ralph |title=WDBJ will add news at 5:30 p.m., move 'Andy' to WZBJ |url=https://roanoke.com/news/local/wdbj-will-add-news-at-p-m-move-andy-to/article_5165051e-a731-530e-9bce-241c7adc6e1e.html |work=Roanoke Times |date=March 15, 2019 |language=en}}</ref>

===News operation===
WDBJ presently broadcasts {{frac|34|1|2}} hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with {{frac|5|1|2}} hours each weekday, three hours on Saturdays and four hours on Sundays). Until April 1, 2019, when WDBJ added a half-hour weeknight newscast at 5:30&nbsp;p.m., it was unlike most CBS-affiliated stations in the [[Eastern Time Zone]] when it did not produce a newscast at that timeslot due to the continued carriage of ''The Andy Griffith Show''.

In addition, the station produces the sports program ''Friday Football Extra'' (which airs Friday nights following the 11&nbsp;p.m. newscast during the [[high school football]] season) and broadcasts ''Virginia Tech Sports Today'' (a university-produced program which airs Sundays during the [[Virginia Tech Hokies football]] and [[Virginia Tech Hokies men's basketball|basketball]] seasons). In addition to the newsroom at its main studios in Roanoke, WDBJ also maintains newsrooms in Lynchburg/Bedford, New River Valley, Danville, and Lexington.

For the better part of the last 60 years, WDBJ has led the news ratings in Roanoke, in particular, WDBJ's 6 and 11&nbsp;p.m. newscasts are viewed by an estimated average of 92,000 households within the market. In recent years, however, WDBJ has been in a spirited three-way battle for first with WSLS and WSET.

In 2006, WDBJ entered into a news content partnership with its former radio sister, WFIR. In August 2006, WDBJ added an outdoor "Weather Deck" outside of the station's studios, providing a controlled new location for weather and news segments conducted outdoors. In addition to the "Weather Deck", the station also has a "Weather Garden" outside its Roanoke studio; WDBJ often presents feature packages about the "Weather Garden" and offers tips, advice and ideas about common gardening from that area.

On August 13, 2007, WDBJ became the only television station in the Roanoke-Lynchburg market to employ four meteorologists as part of its weather staff. WDBJ's weather department also serves as the market's broadcast partner in the [[WeatherBug]] real-time [[automatic weather station|automated weather observation]] network, which offers real-time observation and same-day almanac data from 24 weather stations located around the region within the WDBJ viewing area. On April 22, 2008, WDBJ began broadcasting its local newscasts in high definition; the station also became the first in the Roanoke–Lynchburg market with high-definition weather graphics.

In 2012, WDBJ began to phase out the longstanding ''News 7'' branding for its newscasts, shifting to "Your Hometown News Leader: WDBJ 7"–playing on its longtime slogan, "Your Hometown Station". Newscast titles no longer reference a specific time, except for the morning newscast which is still titled ''Mornin{{'}}''. WDBJ's also rebranded its weather department under the "First Alert Weather" brand, replacing the longtime moniker of "Skytracker 7".

====Notable former on-air staff====
* [[Ann Compton]] – reporter
* [[Chris Hurst (Virginia politician)|Chris Hurst]] – reporter and partner of Alison Parker
* Alison Parker and Adam Ward – reporters, murdered during a live interview
* [[Mike Randall (entertainer)|Mike Randall]] – reporter
* [[Robin Reed (meteorologist)|Robin Reed]] ([[American Meteorological Society|AMS]] [[Certified Broadcast Meteorologist]] Seal of Approval) – Anchor
* [[Cecily Tynan]] – reporter and weather anchor

==Controversies==
===Political ad refusal===
In July 2009, WDBJ announced that it would refuse to air a [[political advertisement]] from the [[National Republican Congressional Committee]] attacking Democratic Representative [[Tom Perriello]]'s position on [[climate change]], citing "factual inaccuracies".<ref>{{cite news|title=Dems: Virginia Station Won't Air GOP Climate Change Ad, Citing Factual Errors (VIDEO)|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/02/virginia-station-wont-air_n_225195.html|author=Ryan Grim|website=[[The Huffington Post]]|publisher=[[AOL]]|date=July 2, 2009|access-date=July 2, 2009|archive-date=July 4, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090704173312/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/07/02/virginia-station-wont-air_n_225195.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Indecent content fine===
On March 23, 2015, the FCC issued a $325,000 fine against WDBJ—the largest levied against a television station in the agency's history for a one-time instance of indecent content—for a story aired on the station's 6&nbsp;p.m. newscast in July 2012 for airing sexually explicit material outside of the designated [[Watershed (broadcasting)|safe harbor]] period (between 10&nbsp;p.m. and 6&nbsp;a.m.). The report, which centered a former female [[porn actress]] who became a volunteer [[emergency medical technician|EMT]] for a Roanoke area rescue squad, featured a brief image from an adult website showing the subject of the report (who was not [[nude]] or engaged in a sexual act) that included a video clip of a hand stroking a [[human penis|penis]] unblurred which appeared within the [[Safe area (television)|safe area]] of the editing suite while the story was being packaged, but was visible on the edge of the screen when it was broadcast. Schurz Communications stated that it would challenge the fine, contending the images were fleeting (lasting only three seconds) and small enough to not be visible for many viewers.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cjr.org/united_states_project/fcc_fine_wdbj_virginia.php|title=The huge FCC fine against a Virginia station is a sign we need to rethink broadcast indecency rules|author=Jonathan Peters|periodical=[[Columbia Journalism Review]]|publisher=[[Columbia University]]|date=March 26, 2015|access-date=April 9, 2015|archive-date=April 16, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150416051032/https://www.cjr.org/united_states_project/fcc_fine_wdbj_virginia.php|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=FCC Slaps Virginia TV Station With $325,000 Indecency Fine|url=https://variety.com/2015/biz/news/fcc-slaps-virginia-tv-station-with-325000-indecency-fine-1201458034/|author=Ted Johnson|work=Variety|publisher=Penske Media Corporation|date=March 23, 2015|access-date=December 10, 2017|archive-date=February 24, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180224033738/http://variety.com/2015/biz/news/fcc-slaps-virginia-tv-station-with-325000-indecency-fine-1201458034/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Indecency Meets Big-Screen TVs: FCC Proposes Mammoth $325K Fine|url=http://www.commlawcenter.com/2015/03/indecency-meets-big-screen-tvs-fcc-proposes-mammouth-325k-fine.html|author=Scott R. Flick|work=Common Law Center|date=March 23, 2015|access-date=March 24, 2015|archive-date=April 2, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402165816/http://www.commlawcenter.com/2015/03/indecency-meets-big-screen-tvs-fcc-proposes-mammouth-325k-fine.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

===2015 murders of reporting crew===
{{main|Murders of Alison Parker and Adam Ward}}
On August 26, 2015, WDBJ reporter Alison Parker and photojournalist Adam Ward were fatally shot during a live report on that day's edition of ''Mornin{{'}}'' at the Bridgewater Plaza in [[Moneta, Virginia|Moneta]]. Their killer was later identified as Vester Lee Flanagan II, a multimedia journalist who worked under the professional [[pseudonym]] "Bryce Williams" and was employed by WDBJ from 2012 to 2013 until he was fired. Flanagan died that afternoon at a hospital from self-inflicted gunshot wounds after he was approached by police on [[Interstate 66 in Virginia|I-66]] in [[Fauquier County]]. Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce director Vicki Gardner, who was being interviewed by Parker before the shooting, was the only survivor and was hospitalized with gunshot wounds to the back.<ref>{{cite news|title=Virginia TV Reporter and Photographer Shot During Live Broadcast|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/27/us/wdbj7-virginia-journalists-shot-during-live-broadcast.html&assetType=nyt_now|author=Katie Rogers|author2=Alan Blinder|newspaper=The New York Times|date=August 26, 2015|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=November 29, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151129095116/http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/27/us/wdbj7-virginia-journalists-shot-during-live-broadcast.html%26assetType%3Dnyt_now|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Virginia TV reporter, photographer killed in shooting during live interview|url=http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/26/us/virginia-shooting-wdbj/index.html|author=Eliott C. McLaughlin|website=CNN|publisher=Time Warner|date=August 26, 2015|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=August 26, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150826151755/http://www.cnn.com/2015/08/26/us/virginia-shooting-wdbj/index.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=About Vester L. Flanagan, alleged WDBJ shooter|url=http://www.richmond.com/news/virginia/article_6184ff97-809c-5478-bb5f-2b6bbc31e881.html|author=Louis Llovio|newspaper=[[Richmond Times-Dispatch]]|publisher=BH Media|date=August 26, 2015|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=September 3, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200903165636/https://richmond.com/news/virginia/article_6184ff97-809c-5478-bb5f-2b6bbc31e881.html|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Accused WDBJ Killer Shoots Self; Had Been Fired From Station in 2013|url=http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/wdbj-shooter-was-a-known-problem/154167|author=Kevin Eck|website=[[AdWeek|TVSpy]]|publisher=[[Prometheus Global Media|Mediabistro Holdings]]|date=August 26, 2015|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=August 28, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150828191235/http://www.adweek.com/tvspy/wdbj-shooter-was-a-known-problem/154167|url-status=live}}</ref>

==Technical information==
===Subchannels===
<section begin=subs />
{| class="wikitable"
|+Subchannels of WDBJ and WZBJ<ref>{{cite web|title=RabbitEars TV Query for WDBJ|url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WDBJ#station|website=[[RabbitEars.info]]|access-date=August 26, 2015|archive-date=September 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924132947/http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WDBJ#station|url-status=live}}</ref>
! scope = "col" | License
! scope = "col" | [[Digital subchannel#United States|Channel]]
! scope = "col" | [[Display resolution|Res.]]
! scope = "col" | [[Aspect ratio (image)|Aspect]]
! scope = "col" | Short name
! scope = "col" | Programming
|-
! rowspan = "4" style="border-right: 4px solid #60B0FF;" | WDBJ
! scope = "row" | 7.1 
| [[1080i]] || rowspan=6|[[16:9]] || WDBJ || [[CBS]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 7.2 
| rowspan=3|[[480i]] || WDBJ365 || [[The365]] 
|-
! scope = "row" | 7.3 
| HEROES || [[Heroes & Icons]] 
|-
! scope = "row" | 7.4 
| JUSTICE || [[True Crime Network]]
|-
! rowspan = "2" scope = "row" style="border-right: 4px solid #0057AF;" | WZBJ
! scope = "row" | 24.1 
| [[720p]] || WZBJ || [[MyNetworkTV]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 24.4 
| 480i || DABL || [[Dabl]]
|}
<section end=subs />
===Analog-to-digital conversion===
WDBJ discontinued regular programming on its analog signal, over [[VHF]] channel 7, on June 12, 2009, the official date on which full-power television stations in the United States [[Digital television transition in the United States|transitioned from analog to digital broadcasts]] under federal mandate. The station's digital signal remained on its pre-transition [[UHF]] channel 18,<ref>{{cite web|title=WDBJ7: Local news, weather, & sports for Southwest and Central Virginia|url=http://www.wdbj7.com/Global/story.asp?S=9796289&nav=S6aK|website=WDBJ|publisher=Schurz Communications|access-date=August 26, 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=DTV Tentative Channel Designations for the First and the Second Rounds|url=http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|access-date=March 24, 2012|archive-date=August 29, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829004251/http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/DA-06-1082A2.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref> using virtual channel 7.

==Out-of-market cable and satellite coverage==
WDBJ is also carried on cable providers on the West Virginia side of the [[Bluefield, West Virginia|Bluefield]]–[[Beckley, West Virginia]] television market; the station had served as the default CBS affiliate for the West Virginia side of that market until WVSX (now [[WVNS-TV]]) became a CBS affiliate in 2001.

WDBJ is also available on cable systems in [[Pocahontas County, West Virginia]] (including [[Snowshoe, West Virginia|Snowshoe]]), and as far east as [[Clarksville, Virginia|Clarksville]] and [[South Boston, Virginia|South Boston]], as far west as [[Glade Spring]], [[Marion, Virginia|Marion]], [[Grundy, Virginia|Grundy]] (on [[digital cable]] only), [[Clintwood]] and [[Norton, Virginia|Norton]] (all five of which are part of the [[Tri-Cities, Tennessee|Tri-Cities]] market), and as far south as [[Galax, Virginia|Galax]] and [[Martinsville, Virginia|Martinsville]] in Virginia and [[Person County, North Carolina|Person]], [[Caswell County, North Carolina|Caswell]] and [[Rockingham County, North Carolina|Rockingham]] counties in [[North Carolina]]. Person County is part of the [[Raleigh]]–[[Durham, North Carolina|Durham]] market, while Caswell and Rockingham are part of the Greensboro–[[Winston-Salem]]–[[High Point, North Carolina|High Point]] market. In Virginia, [[DirecTV]] offers WDBJ in several areas in [[Mecklenburg County, Virginia|Mecklenburg]] and Patrick counties located outside of the Roanoke–Lynchburg market. In North Carolina, DirecTV offers WDBJ in [[Alleghany County, North Carolina|Alleghany County]], which is part of the Greensboro–Winston-Salem–High Point market.

==See also==
*[[Channel 7 virtual TV stations in the United States]]
*[[Channel 18 digital TV stations in the United States]]
*[[Channel 19 branded TV stations in the United States]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

{{Refbegin}}

{{Refend}}

== External links ==
*{{Official website|http://www.wdbj7.com/}}
*[http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=wdbj RabbitEars.Info: Roanoke-Lynchburg Stations]


{{Roanoke TV}}
{{Bluefield TV}}
{{CBS Virginia}}
{{West Virginia TV}}
{{Gray TV}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wdbj}}
[[Category:1955 establishments in Virginia]]
[[Category:CBS affiliates]]
[[Category:Gray Media]]
[[Category:Heroes & Icons affiliates]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1955]]
[[Category:Television stations in Roanoke, Virginia|DBJ]]
[[Category:True Crime Network affiliates]]