View source for WIIH-CD

{{Short description|Television station in Indianapolis}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=May 2025}}
{{Infobox television station
| callsign = WIIH-CD
| digital = 8 ([[VHF]])
| virtual = 17
| translators = [[WISH-TV]] 8.3 Indianapolis
| affiliations = '''17.1:''' Confess
| owner = [[Circle City Broadcasting]]
| licensee = CCB License, [[LLC]]
| location = [[Indianapolis]], Indiana
| country = United States
| airdate = {{start date and age|1988|01|29|p=y}}
| callsign_meaning = Visual disambiguation of former W11BV translator calls with look-alike characters, "H" from WISH-TV calls
| sister_stations = [[WISH-TV]], [[WNDY-TV]]
| former_callsigns = {{ubl|W11BV (1988–1995)|WIIH-LP (1995–2002)|WIIH-CA (2002–2009)|WIIH-LD (2009–2011)}}
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 11 (VHF, 1988–2002), 17 (UHF, 2002–2011)}}
| former_affiliations = {{ubl|[[Independent station|Independent]] (1988–2003)|[[Univision]] (2003–2008)|Weather forecast service (2009–2011)|[[CBS]] via WISH-TV (secondary 1988–2003 and 2009–2011, primary 2011–2014)|[[Get (TV network)|Get]] (2014–2025)}}
| erp = 0.3 [[kW]]
| haat = {{convert|143.2|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| class = [[Class A television service|CD]]
| facility_id = 167765
| coordinates = {{coord|39|53|25|N|86|12|20|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}
| licensing_authority = [[FCC]]
}}

'''WIIH-CD''' (channel 17) is a [[low-power broadcasting#Television|low-power]] [[Class A television station]] in [[Indianapolis]], Indiana, United States, affiliated with the [[digital multicast network]] Confess. Locally owned by Circle City Broadcasting, it is a [[sister station]] to Circle City's [[duopoly (broadcasting)|duopoly]] of Indianapolis-licensed [[The CW|CW]] affiliate [[WISH-TV]] (channel 8) and [[Marion, Indiana|Marion]]-licensed [[MyNetworkTV]] affiliate [[WNDY-TV]] (channel 23). The three stations share studios on North [[Meridian Street (Indianapolis)|Meridian Street]] (at the north end of the Television Row section) on the near north side of Indianapolis; WIIH-CD's transmitter is located on Walnut Drive in the Augusta section of the city's northwest side (near [[Meridian Hills]]).

Even though WIIH-CD broadcasts a digital signal of its own, its [[broadcast range|broadcast radius]] is limited to the immediate Indianapolis area. It is therefore [[simulcast]] on WISH-TV's second [[digital subchannel]] (8.2) in order to reach the entire [[media market|market]].

==History==
===Early history===
The station first signed on the air on January 29, 1988, as W11BV, broadcasting on VHF channel 11. Its original owner, White River Corporation, sold the station to Indiana Broadcasting Corporation, the subsidiary of LIN Broadcasting Corporation (predecessor to [[LIN Media]]) that held the license for WISH-TV, on December 21, 1992.<ref name="fcc-saletolin">{{cite web |title=Application Search Details |url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/pubacc/prod/app_det.pl?Application_id=175810 |access-date=December 24, 2014 |website=CDBS Public Access |publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]}}</ref> The station changed its call letters to WIIH-LP in 1995. In 2002, WIIH moved its allocation to UHF channel 17 and received approval from the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) to reclassify its license to Class A status, modifying its calls to WIIH-CA in the process. In 2003, the station became the market's [[Univision]] affiliate, branding as "Univision Indiana". Soon afterward, WISH-TV began producing a nightly [[Spanish language in the United States|Spanish-language]] newscast for WIIH-CA (titled ''WIIH Noticias''), which was cancelled in 2008. On May 18, 2007, LIN TV announced that it was exploring strategic alternatives that could result in the sale of the company.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lintv.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=298&Itemid=114|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090302114601/http://www.lintv.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=298&Itemid=114|archive-date=March 2, 2009|title=LIN TV Corp. Exploring Strategic Alternatives}}</ref>

On September 15, 2008, LIN and [[Time Warner Cable]] entered into an impasse during negotiations for new [[retransmission consent]] deals for some of the group's television stations. [[Bright House Networks]], a major cable provider for Indianapolis, negotiates carriage contracts through Time Warner Cable. LIN TV requested compensation for carriage in a manner similar to cable networks, as other broadcast station owners began to seek compensation from pay television providers for their programming. The agreement with Bright House expired on October 2.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://indiana.mybrighthouse.com/products_and_pricing/digital_cable/programming/programming_status.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081008233800/http://indiana.mybrighthouse.com/products_and_pricing/digital_cable/programming/programming_status.aspx|archive-date=October 8, 2008|title=Bright House Networks is working hard to get WISH-TV, WNDY, WIIH, LWS, and, WANE-TV back in our channel lineup.}}</ref> By 12:35&nbsp;a.m. on October 3, Time Warner Cable and Bright House Networks substituted WIIH, WISH and WNDY as well as LIN's other television stations around the country with other cable channels in markets where the group owns or manages stations and both providers maintain systems. Locally, WISH and WNDY were restored 23 days later on October 26 after LIN reached a groupwide carriage agreement with TWC/Bright House; however, WIIH-CA was excluded from the deal. By 2008, Indianapolis had grown to become the 57th largest media market based on the local Hispanic population in the United States.<ref name="indystar.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.indystar.com/article/20081229/LOCAL18/812290361|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090201180457/http://www.indystar.com/article/20081229/LOCAL18/812290361|archive-date=February 1, 2009|title=Many in metro area losing TV in Spanish: Decision to drop Univision leaves growing population of Hispanics with few options}} </ref>

On January 1, 2009, the station dropped Univision programming after LIN failed to renew its contract with the network (which expired the day before on December 31, 2008), and adopted a weather-focused programming format, branded as "LWS: Local Weather Station". As a result, two other pay television providers in the Indianapolis market, [[Xfinity|Comcast]] and [[AT&T U-verse]] secured carriage agreements with Univision to receive its programming from the network's national feed; however, Bright House decided not to pursue a contract with the network at that time.<ref name="indystar.com"/> Univision have returned to the Indianapolis market when [[WHMB-TV]] affiliated with the network in August 2024.

===As a WISH-TV translator===
On January 29, 2010, LIN TV filed an application to the FCC to operate a fill-in [[broadcast relay station#Broadcast translators|translator station]] for WISH-TV using WIIH-LD's UHF channel 17 signal,<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1354342&Service=LD&Form_id=346&Facility_id=39269|title=Application View ... Redirecting}}</ref> to serve areas of Indianapolis that experienced problems receiving the WISH-TV signal after the transition. The Commission granted a [[construction permit]] to build transmitter facilities for this purpose on June 16, 2010.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/prod/cdbs/pubacc/Auth_Files/1364690.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=August 5, 2010 |archive-date=May 18, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518082410/http://licensing.fcc.gov/prod/cdbs/pubacc/Auth_Files/1364690.pdf |url-status=dead }}</ref> The transmitter was relocated to the tower site used by WISH-TV on 7619 Walnut Drive (though the City of Indianapolis lists the address as 2500 Westlane Road<ref>{{Cite web |title=IMAGIS database inquiry |url=http://imaps.indygov.org/newimagis/ |website=indygov.org}}</ref>) in northwestern Indianapolis, and was installed on the tower at {{convert|144|m|ft}} above average terrain.

The FCC cancelled WIIH-CA's analog license on January 13, 2011, when WIIH-LD was converted into a fill-in translator of WISH-TV<ref>{{Cite web |date=January 13, 2011 |title=Federal Communications Division |url=https://cdbs.recnet.com/corres/?doc=23788 |access-date=January 28, 2024 |website=licensing.fcc.gov}}</ref> (LWS programming remained on digital subchannel 8.2 on WISH-TV and was moved to that same mapped subchannel on both WIIH-CD with the translator conversion). In September 2011, LIN Media filed an application to the FCC to upgrade the WIIH-LD license to Class A status. After the move was approved by the FCC, WIIH's call letters were modified to WIIH-CD.

On March 21, 2014, [[Media General]] announced that it would merge with LIN Media in a $1.6 billion deal.<ref name=ibj-saletomg>{{cite news|title=Media General to buy WISH-TV parent in deal worth $1.6B|url=http://www.ibj.com/media-general-to-buy-wish-tv-parent-in-deal-worth-16b/PARAMS/article/46796|access-date=March 22, 2014|newspaper=[[Indianapolis Business Journal]]|date=March 21, 2014|agency=[[Associated Press]]}}</ref> The merger was completed on December 19.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Nexstar Media Group, Inc. |url=https://www.nexstar.tv/ |access-date=January 28, 2024 |website=Nexstar Media Group, Inc. |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Technical information==
===Subchannel===
{| class="wikitable"
|+Subchannel of WIIH-CD<ref>{{cite web |title=Digital TV Market Listing for WIIH-CD |url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WIIH#station |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=May 13, 2025 |website=[[RabbitEars]]}}</ref>
! 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
|-
! scope = "row" | 19.1 
| [[480i]] || [[4:3]] || WIIH-LD || Confess
|}

===Analog-to-digital conversion===
WIIH-CA shut down its analog signal on September 9, 2009, and [[flash cut]] its digital signal into operation on VHF channel 8 (the former analog and current virtual channel allocation of WISH-TV, which it vacated upon the June 12 [[Digital television transition in the United States|digital television transition]]).

==References==
{{Reflist}}<!--added above External links/Sources by script-assisted edit-->

==External links==
*{{URL|https://www.wishtv.com/}} - WISH-TV official website
*{{ASR|key=130716|number=1030817}}

{{Indy TV}}
{{Indiana TV}}

[[Category:1998 establishments in Indiana]]
[[Category:Low-power television stations in Indiana|IIH]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1988]]
[[Category:Television stations in Indianapolis|IIH-CD]]