Technical Profile: WSFA-DT

TV Technical Profile: WSFA

Channel:: 8
Programming:: 12.1 - NBC; 12.2 - Bounce TV
12.3 - Gulf Coast Sports and Entertainment Network
12.4 - Grit TV
12.5 - Dabl
12.6 - Oxygen
Transmitter Location:: [map] [street view] Southeast of the Grady community in Montgomery county, along Fannin Mill Road, just west of its intersection with CR-39. Co-located with WCOV.
Power (ERP):: 32.1 kW
Height Above Average Terrain (HAAT):: 1,949 feet
Antenna:: Omni
Other Information:: 36 dBu protected contour map, from the FCC.; [FCC]
[FCCdata]
[RabbitEars]; [Wikipedia]

[Facebook] Main News Page
[Facebook] Weather Page
[Facebook] Sports Page; [History] WSFA's own history pages.

[Studio] Street View of the station's studios on East Delano Avenue in Montgomery.; mDTV - active

Owned by Gray Television
History:: WSFA-TV was spawned from the WSFA-AM radio station. The calls stand for "With the South's Finest Airport". The station signed on the air Christmas Day 1954. The original owner was Gordon Persons, who went on to become governor of Alabama.; .; The TV and radio stations was sold to Oklahoma Publishing Company in February of 1955.; .; In the mid-70's WSFA erected it's "tall tower", which at the time was the third tallest man made structure in the modern world.; .; The station was embroiled in controversy in the early 90's, when Retirement Systems of Alabama tried to buy the station for what at the time was considered a very high price. Opposition claimed that ownership would compromise the station's editorial independence.; .; In the summer of 2004 WSFA's digital channel signed on channel 14, where WAIQ-DT orginially sat. Rumor has it WSFA paid WAIQ to move their digital channel off of 14, for who-knows-what reason! WSFA began airing newscasts in high definition in August of 2008.; .; It was correctly rumored that WSFA would be adding the Retro Television Network in the spring of 2008.; This station elected to keep analog broadcasts on until the new June 12^th deadline, moving their digital signal to RF channel 12 after the shutdown.; In May 2011 WSFA parent company Raycom announced WSFA would be adding the black American-targeted Bounce TV network to its subchannel lineup in the fall. It replaced RTV on 12.2 when it debuted 26 September 2011. In the summer of 2014, the station added the male-targeted Grit TV to 12.3.

The station received a permit to relocate to RF channel 8, from RF channel 12, in late June 2017, as part of the TV repacking process. That new channel signed on at the start of July 2020.

Raycom Media and Gray Television Inc. agreed to a merger in June 2016, for $3.6 billion. The merger was approved in December 2016.

The station added the Circle network to a subchannel in early 2020, and Dabl shortly thereafter.

In April 2023, it was reported that the station added Oxygen to the —.6 subchannel. At the end of the year the Circle network shut down; later in its place The 365 was added.

In early October 2024, Gray Television launched the Gulf Coast Sports and Entertainment Network on the —.3 subchannel, displacing The 365. The network exists to funnel New Orleans Pelicans NBA games back to TV after they didn't renew their contract with Bally Sports.