View source for WMOW

{{Short description|Television station in Crandon, Wisconsin}}
{{About|the television station in Crandon, Wisconsin|the protest known alternately as the "Women's March on Washington" and abbreviated as "WMOW"|2017 Women's March}}
{{update|date=August 2021}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{infobox television station
| callsign = WMOW
| above = [[broadcast relay station#Satellite stations|Satellite]] of [[WAOW]], [[Wausau, Wisconsin]]
| logo = Wmow 2014.png
| logo_size = 200px
| branding = WMOW 4; ''News 9 WAOW''
| digital = 13 ([[VHF]])
| virtual = 4
| affiliations = {{ubl|'''4.1:''' [[Catchy Comedy]]|'''[[WAOW|4.2]]:''' [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]|''for others, see {{Section link||Subchannels}}''}}
| founded = December 4, 1998
| airdate = {{start date and age|2001|2|9|p=y}}
| location = [[Crandon, Wisconsin]]
| country = United States
| callsign_meaning = [[Metonga Lake]] WAOW
| former_callsigns = WBIJ (2001–2010)
| former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 4 (VHF, 2001–2009)|'''Digital:''' 12 (VHF, 2010–2020)}}
| owner = [[Allen Media Group]]
| licensee = Wausau TV License Company, [[LLC]]
| former_affiliations = {{ubl|[[FamilyNet]] (2001–2009)|[[Dark (broadcasting)|Dark]] (2009–2010)|[[The CW]] (2010–2021)|ABC (2021−2022, now on DT2)}}
| erp = 3.2 [[kW]]
| haat = {{convert|119|m|ft|0|abbr=on}}
| facility_id = 81503
| coordinates = {{coord|45|34|23.4|N|88|52|58.7|W|type:landmark_scale:2000}}
| licensing_authority = [[FCC]]
| website = {{URL|https://waow.com/}}
}}

'''WMOW''' (channel 4) is a [[television station]] licensed to [[Crandon, Wisconsin]], United States, affiliated with [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]. It is a full-time [[broadcast relay station#Satellite stations|satellite]] of [[Wausau, Wisconsin|Wausau]]-licensed [[WAOW]] (channel 9) which is owned by [[Allen Media Group]]. WMOW's transmitter is located just east of downtown Crandon; its parent station maintains studios on Grand Avenue/[[U.S. Route 51 in Wisconsin|US 51]] in Wausau. Besides the transmitter, WMOW does not maintain any physical presence locally in Crandon.

==History==
Founded December 4, 1998, the station first signed-on February 9, 2001, as WBIJ. It was a [[FamilyNet]] affiliate owned by Dennis Selenka. The station aired an analog signal on VHF channel 4. Since WBIJ was granted its [[construction permit]] after the finalization of the [[Federal Communications Commission]] (FCC) digital television allotment plan on April 21, 1997, it did not receive a companion digital channel.

After Dennis Selenka's death on September 30, 2008,<ref name="fccselenkadeath">{{cite web|url=http://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/prefill_and_display.pl?Application_id=1293609&Service=TV&Form_id=316&Facility_id=81503|title=Application For Consent To Assign Broadcast Station Construction Permit Or License Or To Transfer Control Of Entity Holding Broadcast Station Construction Permit Or License|last=Selenka|first=Joanne L.|date=February 4, 2009|work=CDBS Public Access|publisher=[[Federal Communications Commission]]|access-date=June 10, 2010}}</ref> [[Quincy Newspapers]] purchased WBIJ from his widow for [[United States dollar|$]]1.5 million on February 13, 2009. The company announced its intention to run WBIJ as a second satellite station of WAOW to serve the northeast portion of the Wausau market in a similar capacity that [[WYOW]] does for the extreme northern part of the [[media market|market]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.televisionbroadcast.com/article/74662 |title=Quincy Takes WBIJ for $1.55 Million |date=February 13, 2009 |work=TelevisionBroadcast.com |access-date=February 14, 2009}}</ref> In the meantime, WBIJ signed off on June 12 at the end of the [[Digital television transition in the United States|digital transition for full-service stations]] as it did not yet have digital facilities ready.

Quincy brought the station back on-the-air as WMOW on June 4, 2010, as an affiliate of [[The CW]].<ref name="waow-wmowbegin">{{cite news|title=WMOW On The Air|url=http://www.waow.com/Global/story.asp?S=12596893|access-date=June 10, 2010|newspaper=[[WAOW|WAOW — Newsline 9]]|date=June 4, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615121102/http://www.waow.com/story/12596893/wmow-on-the-air?redirected=true |archive-date=June 15, 2011}}</ref> This station operates its digital signal on VHF channel 12 which was the former analog home of [[NBC]] affiliate [[WJFW-TV]].

On June 19, 2011, WAOW (and in turn WMOW-DT2) became the market's second television outlet to upgrade local news to high definition level. Included in the change was a redesigned set and updated graphics scheme.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.waow.com/category/136204/newsteam|date=October 10, 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110425081139/https://www.waow.com/category/136204/newsteam/ |archive-date=April 25, 2011 |title=NewsTeam - WAOW - Newsline 9, Wausau News, Weather, Sports}}</ref>{{Failed verification|date=November 2022}}

On January 7, 2021, Quincy Media announced that it had put itself up for sale.<ref>[https://www.northpine.com/blog/2021/01/07/tv-station-owner-quincy-media-up-for-sale/ "TV Station Owner Quincy Media Up for Sale,"] from Northpine.com, January 7, 2021</ref>  On February 1, [[Gray Television]] announced it would purchase Quincy's radio and TV properties for $925 million. As Gray already owns [[WSAW-TV]] in the Wausau/Rhinelander market, and both that station and WAOW rank among the market's top four stations, it agreed to sell WAOW in order to satisfy FCC requirements.<ref name="graybuysquincy">{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2021/02/gray-television-quincy-media-for-925-million-in-cash-1234684531/|title=Gray Television Acquires Quincy Media For $925 Million In Cash|first=Jill|last=Goldsmith|work=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|publisher=[[Penske Media Corporation]]|date=February 1, 2021|access-date=February 1, 2021}}</ref>

On April 29, Gray announced that WMOW and WAOW would be divested to Allen Media Group, a subsidiary of [[Los Angeles]]–based [[Entertainment Studios]], in a $380 million deal that includes, among other Quincy-owned stations, [[WKOW]]/[[Madison, Wisconsin|Madison]], [[WXOW]]/[[La Crosse]], and [[WQOW]]/[[Eau Claire, Wisconsin|Eau Claire]]. The deal closed in August 2021,<ref>[https://graytv.gcs-web.com/node/18526/pdf "Gray Television Closes Quincy Acquisition"], [[Gray Television]], August 2, 2021.</ref> and did not see Gray have any direct ownership or control of those stations.<ref name=Allen>[https://www.globenewswire.com/news-release/2021/04/29/2220067/0/en/Gray-Sells-Divestiture-Stations-From-Quincy-Media-Transaction-to-Allen-Media-for-380-Million.html "Gray Sells Divestiture Stations From Quincy Media Transaction to Allen Media for $380 Million,"] press release from GlobeNewswire, April 29, 2021</ref> Gray, however, kept WYOW,<ref>[https://www.northpine.com/blog/2021/02/12/fcc-filing-provides-details-of-gray-tvs-plans-for-quincy-media-stations/ "FCC Filings Provide Details of Gray TV’s Plans for Quincy Media Stations,"] from Northpine.com; February 12, 2021</ref> which later turned into a full-power satellite of WSAW.

On June 1, 2025, amid financial woes and rising debt, Allen Media Group announced that it would explore "strategic options" for the company, such as a sale of its television stations (including WAOW/WMOW).<ref>{{cite news|last=Weprin|first=Alex|date=June 1, 2025|title=Byron Allen Puts His Local TV Stations Up for Sale|work=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/byron-allen-selling-local-tv-stations-up-1236235004/|access-date=June 1, 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Mark K. |date=June 2, 2025 |title=Allen Media Group Retains Moelis To Sell Its TV Stations |url=https://tvnewscheck.com/business/article/allen-media-group-retains-moelis-to-sell-its-tv-stations/ |access-date=June 2, 2025 |website=TVNewsCheck |language=en-US}}</ref>

==Subchannels==
The station's signal is [[multiplex (TV)|multiplexed]]:
{| class="wikitable"
|+Subchannels of WMOW<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WMOW#station|title=RabbitEars TV Query for WMOW|website=[[RabbitEars]]|accessdate=June 3, 2025}}</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" | 4.1 
| rowspan=2|[[720p]] || rowspan=2|[[16:9]] || WMOW-CW || [[Catchy Comedy]]
|-
! scope = "row" | [[WAOW|4.2]] 
| style="background-color: #E6FFF7;"|WMOW-DT || style="background-color: #E6FFF7;"|[[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] ([[WAOW]])
|-
! scope = "row" | 4.3 
| rowspan=3|[[480i]] || [[4:3]] || THIS-TV || [[MeTV Toons]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 4.4 
| rowspan=2|16:9 || rowspan=2| || [[Court TV]]
|-
! scope = "row" | 4.5 
| [[True Crime Network]]
|}
{{legend|#E6FFF7|Simulcast of subchannels of another station}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[https://waow.com/ WAOW official website]

{{Wausau TV}}
{{Marquette TV}}
{{Wisconsin TV}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wmow}}
[[Category:1998 establishments in Wisconsin]]
[[Category:Allen Media Group]]
[[Category:American Broadcasting Company affiliates]]
[[Category:Catchy Comedy affiliates]]
[[Category:Court TV affiliates]]
[[Category:MeTV Toons affiliates]]
[[Category:Television channels and stations established in 1998]]
[[Category:Television stations in Wausau, Wisconsin|MOW]]
[[Category:True Crime Network affiliates]]