WLXI

WLXI is a full-power television station licensed to Greensboro, North Carolina, and serving the Piedmont Triad region. The station broadcasts religious programming under the ownership and operating structure of Tri-State Christian Television, commonly known as TCT. Its present identity is primarily that of a local broadcast outlet carrying programming supplied through TCT's national production and distribution system rather than a conventional locally programmed commercial station. The station's origins were connected to the long-delayed development of UHF channel 61 in Greensboro. Although the channel had been assigned decades earlier, a construction application was not filed until 1979, when Consolidated Broadcasting Corporation sought authority to build the facility. The Federal Communications Commission granted a construction permit in 1981. The project encountered delays as ownership, technical plans, tower arrangements, and studio plans changed. The station ultimately began broadcasting on March 5, 1984, using a locally presented music-video format with video jockeys and sales staff. The original format proved difficult to sustain. WLXI had trouble attracting advertisers, experienced substantial staff turnover, and operated in a market where its audience performance was limited. One highly publicized programming stunt involved airing “This Is the Life” by “Weird Al” Yankovic continuously for 18 hours. The attention did not resolve the station's underlying business and programming problems. In 1985, Billy Satterfield acquired controlling interest in the station's ownership company. After the change, WLXI moved away from music videos and toward Christian programming. The transition was accompanied by the departure or dismissal of several employees and became a notable turning point in the station's history. Trinity Broadcasting Network subsequently acquired WLXI. TBN paid $300,000 and assumed or funded a $1.4 million loan connected with the station's debts, and the station completed its conversion to TBN programming in September 1985. TBN later placed WLXI on the market, in part amid distribution and audience challenges. In 1991, Tri-State Christian Television purchased the station for $1.9 million, giving TCT its first station in the southern United States. WLXI remained associated with TBN programming for many years after the acquisition, but TCT replaced that programming with its own service in April 2007. For much of its history, WLXI maintained local facilities in Greensboro while its signal also reached viewers through a low-power translator in Danville, Virginia. The Danville relay operated from 1993 until 2009, when it was sold to another broadcaster and ceased carrying WLXI. WLXI completed the federally mandated transition from analog to digital broadcasting on June 12, 2009. Following the transition, it used virtual channel 43 rather than its former analog channel 61. The station's local operating model changed in 2018. At the end of June that year, TCT closed WLXI's Greensboro studio and ended local programming after the FCC repealed the Main Studio Rule. Since then, the station has been programmed through TCT's default national schedule, with content supplied from TCT's studio center in Marion, Illinois. WLXI continues to transmit from the Greensboro market, sharing a transmitter location on Sauratown Mountain with WUNL-TV, a PBS North Carolina satellite. Its current offering is therefore best understood as a locally licensed broadcast outlet for TCT's religious television service.

WLXI developed from the allocation and eventual construction of UHF channel 61 in Greensboro. The channel had been assigned in the 1960s, but no application was filed until 1979, when Consolidated Broadcasting Corporation applied to construct a station. The company initially considered a low-power facility using a former WFMY-TV tower. The FCC granted a construction permit on July 28, 1981. Before the station launched, Eugene Johnston, one of Consolidated's principals, reduced his involvement after being elected to Congress in 1980. Construction and launch plans changed several times. Consolidated first expected to use an existing tower and earlier television studio facilities, then decided to construct studios near Kernersville. By early 1983, the company had settled on an all-music-video concept. WLXI began broadcasting on March 5, 1984, with local video jockeys and a local sales operation. The first program manager departed shortly after sign-on, and the station struggled to build advertising support. The entire initial on-air and sales staffs eventually turned over, although ownership later said that the operation had reached greater stability. The music-video format became especially notable for an unusual publicity stunt: WLXI played “This Is the Life” by “Weird Al” Yankovic for 18 consecutive hours, drawing attention outside the local market. The stunt did not solve the station's commercial difficulties. In 1985, Billy Satterfield of Winston-Salem purchased controlling interest in Consolidated Broadcasters. Rumors quickly circulated that the station would be sold to a religious broadcaster and that the music-video format would end. Several on-air employees left or were dismissed during the transition. Satterfield confirmed in August 1985 that WLXI would gradually become a Christian station and that he had met with executives of the Trinity Broadcasting Network. TBN then acquired the station for $300,000 together with a $1.4 million loan intended to address station debt. WLXI completed the switch to TBN programming in September 1985, before the sale formally closed in February of the following year. This conversion established the religious orientation that has defined the station for most of its subsequent history. TBN offered WLXI for sale in 1989, reportedly in a context that included distribution difficulties. Some area cable systems had dropped the station in 1986 because of its limited measurable audience. In 1991, Tri-State Christian Television purchased WLXI for $1.9 million. The acquisition was important to TCT because it represented the organization's first station in the southern United States. WLXI continued carrying TBN programming for nearly two decades after the ownership change. In April 2007, TCT removed TBN programming from its stations and replaced it with programming supplied by TCT. WLXI's coverage was supplemented by low-power translator W18BG on channel 18 in Danville, Virginia, from 1993 through 2009. That translator, now identified as WMDV-LD, was sold to Star News Corporation in June 2009 and stopped rebroadcasting WLXI. The main station ended analog broadcasting on June 12, 2009, as part of the FCC-mandated national digital transition. It subsequently used channel 43 as its virtual channel rather than the former analog channel 61. The station historically maintained studios on Patterson Street in Greensboro and originated or supported local operations there. At the end of June 2018, TCT closed the local studio and discontinued local programming. The change followed the FCC's repeal of the Main Studio Rule and moved WLXI to a centralized operating model. Programming has since been supplied through TCT's studio center in Marion, Illinois, using the network's default national schedule. WLXI remains licensed to Greensboro, transmits for the Piedmont Triad, and shares a Sauratown Mountain transmitter site with WUNL-TV, a PBS North Carolina satellite.

• 2018

  Local studio closes

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  TCT ended local studio operations and local programming in Greensboro, moving the station to a centrally supplied national schedule.

• 2009

  Digital transition

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  WLXI ended analog transmission and adopted virtual channel 43.

• 2007

  TCT programming becomes primary service

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  TCT replaced TBN programming on its stations, including WLXI, with its own programming supply.

• 1991

  TCT acquires WLXI

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  Tri-State Christian Television purchased WLXI from Trinity Broadcasting Network.

• 1985

  Conversion to Christian broadcasting

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  The station changed from music videos to Christian programming and entered the TBN ownership and programming orbit.

• 1984

  WLXI signs on

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  WLXI began broadcasting on March 5 with a locally presented music-video format.

• 1981

  FCC grants construction permit

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  The Federal Communications Commission approved the construction permit on July 28, 1981.

• 1979

  Construction application filed

  [1]WLXIen.wikipedia.org

  Consolidated Broadcasting Corporation filed an application to build a station on Greensboro's UHF channel 61 allocation.

A local religious television station carrying Tri-State Christian Television programming for the Piedmont Triad market.

• Television broadcasting · 1984

  WLXI digital broadcast service

  WLXI is the station's over-the-air television service for Greensboro and the wider Piedmont Triad. It broadcasts on a digital facility associated with virtual channel 43 and uses a transmitter site on Sauratown Mountain shared with WUNL-TV. The service currently functions principally as a distribution outlet for programming supplied by Tri-State Christian Television.

• Religious television programming · 2007

  TCT religious programming

  The station's principal programming product is TCT's Christian television schedule. Following the end of local operations in 2018, WLXI has been fed from TCT's studio center in Marion, Illinois, and operates with the network's default national schedule rather than a substantial locally produced lineup.

• Local television programming · 1984

  WLXI local programming

  WLXI historically maintained Greensboro studios and supported local station operations, including its original music-video presentation and later local activities associated with its broadcast identity. This offering ended when TCT closed the Greensboro studio and discontinued local programming in June 2018.

• 2018

  End local studio operationsStrategy

  Background

  The FCC's repeal of the Main Studio Rule allowed TCT to centralize station operations.

  Action taken

  TCT closed WLXI's Greensboro studio and ended local programming, supplying the station from its Marion, Illinois, studio center.

  Aftermath

  WLXI continued serving the Greensboro market but operated primarily as a transmitter for TCT's national schedule.

  Source

• 2007

  Shift from TBN programming to TCT programmingStrategy

  Background

  Although TCT owned WLXI, the station had continued to carry TBN programming for almost two decades.

  Action taken

  TCT withdrew TBN programming from its stations and substituted programming supplied by TCT.

  Aftermath

  WLXI became more directly aligned with TCT's own national religious television service.

  Source

• 1991

  Tri-State Christian Television acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Trinity Broadcasting Network placed WLXI among its stations offered for sale after distribution and audience challenges.

  Action taken

  Tri-State Christian Television purchased WLXI for $1.9 million.

  Aftermath

  The purchase gave TCT its first station in the southern United States, while WLXI continued carrying TBN programming for several more years.

  Acquisition price. $1.9 million (1991)

  Source

• 1985

  Replace music videos with Christian programmingStrategy

  Background

  WLXI's original music-video format faced difficulty attracting advertisers and underwent substantial staff turnover. After Billy Satterfield acquired controlling interest, the station moved toward a religious format.

  Action taken

  The station gradually replaced music videos with all-Christian programming and subsequently became part of the Trinity Broadcasting Network's service.

  Aftermath

  The change permanently established WLXI as a religious broadcaster and ended its brief music-video identity.

  Source

• 1985

  Trinity Broadcasting Network acquisitionM&A

  Background

  Following the decision to convert WLXI to Christian programming, Trinity Broadcasting Network entered discussions with the station's controlling owner.

  Action taken

  TBN acquired WLXI for $300,000 and provided a $1.4 million loan connected with the station's debts. TBN programming became the station's full schedule in September 1985.

  Aftermath

  WLXI became a TBN-affiliated religious station before later being sold to Tri-State Christian Television.

  Acquisition price and debt-related loan. $300,000 acquisition price and $1.4 million loan (1985)

  Source

1. 1WLXIen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Tri-State Christian Televisiontct.tv