WRID-LD

WRID-LD is a low-power television station serving Richmond, Virginia, on RF channel 36. The station operates primarily as a digital translator and repeater for two Gray Media sister stations: NBC affiliate WWBT and CW affiliate WUPV. Its role is to extend the reach of those stations’ signals into parts of the Richmond market, particularly areas where viewers may have difficulty receiving the stations’ VHF broadcasts and do not subscribe to cable, satellite, or streaming services. The station began broadcasting on June 2, 1992, as W48BI under the ownership of VVILPTV, Inc. During its early years it occupied a relatively limited position in the Richmond television market. It carried minor networks and brokered local programming, and it was periodically viewed as a possible candidate for a larger network affiliation. That possibility became more prominent after WUPV, then operating as WAWB, moved from The WB to UPN in 1998. The expected Richmond allocation for a full-power WB outlet had been moved to Charlottesville, however, and The WB ultimately supplied Richmond through WWBT’s overnight schedule from 1999 to 2006 rather than placing its programming on W48BI. Fox affiliate WRLH-TV also carried selected Kids’ WB programs between 1998 and 2001. In 2003, W48BI affiliated with ShopNBC, reflecting the station’s use for specialized and commercial programming rather than a conventional local-news operation. The station’s ownership and identity changed in 2004 when it was acquired by Word of God Fellowship, the commercial-station arm associated with the Daystar Television Network. It adopted the call sign WRID-LP and carried the national Daystar feed, apart from federally required station identification. The station later converted from low-power analog operation to digital service, ultimately broadcasting digitally on channel 48 after a series of technical-authority changes and extensions. Although the Federal Communications Commission approved a flash-cut request in 2007, the digital facility did not begin operating until November 8, 2014, and the final digital license was issued on December 5, 2016. Gray Television agreed to purchase WRID-LD from Daystar in 2021, and the transaction closed on January 4, 2022, for a reported $630,000. Following the sale, the station became a UHF repeater for WWBT and WUPV. The arrangement addresses the practical reception limitations of those stations, which continue to broadcast from VHF facilities and have not shifted their principal transmissions to UHF. WRID-LD’s transmitter is located behind Gray’s Richmond studio on Midlothian Turnpike, where it shares a tower with WWBT; WUPV uses a separate transmitter site northeast of Richmond. Despite the change in ownership, Daystar retained control of one WRID-LD subchannel. As a result, the station continues to carry Daystar programming on virtual channel 48, a remnant of its former identity and ownership. The station therefore combines two functions: a Gray-operated translator carrying the principal services of WWBT and WUPV, and a continuing local outlet for Daystar’s religious television network. It is not a standalone national consumer brand or a separately listed public company; its identity is primarily that of a local broadcast facility within the Richmond television ecosystem.

WRID-LD began service on June 2, 1992, as W48BI, a low-power station owned by VVILPTV, Inc. Its early programming history reflected the constraints of a small Richmond-market outlet. It carried minor networks and brokered programming rather than maintaining the full local-news and network schedule associated with a major full-power station. The station attracted attention during the late 1990s because Richmond’s changing affiliation landscape appeared to create an opportunity for a WB affiliate. In 1998, WUPV, then known as WAWB, left The WB for UPN. The full-power channel allocation originally associated with a potential Richmond WB station had been relocated to Charlottesville, and cable-carriage concerns made a new over-the-air outlet uncertain. The WB therefore used WWBT’s overnight schedule from 1999 through 2006. WRLH-TV carried selected Kids’ WB programming from 1998 to 2001, while W48BI continued its more limited programming model. In 2003, W48BI took an affiliation with ShopNBC. The station’s next major transition came in 2004, when Word of God Fellowship acquired it. Word of God Fellowship operated commercial broadcast outlets connected with the Daystar Television Network. After the acquisition, the station changed its call letters to WRID-LP and carried Daystar’s national feed, with no regular local programming beyond required station identification. The call sign later changed from the analog low-power designation WRID-LP to the digital designation WRID-LD. The station’s move to digital broadcasting took several years. In January 2007, the FCC granted Word of God Fellowship permission to flash-cut the facility to digital operation on channel 51. The authorization was extended multiple times, and the planned operating channel was later changed to channel 48. Digital service finally began on November 8, 2014. The FCC issued the final digital license on December 5, 2016. A further ownership change occurred in 2021. On August 27, Gray Television filed to purchase WRID-LD from Daystar for $630,000. The sale closed on January 4, 2022. Under Gray ownership, WRID-LD was repurposed principally as a UHF repeater for WWBT, the Richmond NBC affiliate on channel 12, and WUPV, the Richmond CW affiliate on channel 65. The repeater arrangement helps viewers in the inner Richmond market who have difficulty receiving the stations’ VHF signals and lack access to pay-TV or streaming alternatives. WWBT and WUPV continue to use VHF principal transmitters and have not shifted their main facilities to UHF. WRID-LD transmits from a site behind Gray’s Richmond studio on Midlothian Turnpike, also identified as U.S. Route 60. Its tower is shared with WWBT, while WUPV uses a different site west of Enfield, northeast of Richmond. Daystar did not disappear entirely after the sale. Consistent with arrangements used in some other Daystar station transactions, Daystar retained control of one WRID-LD subchannel. Daystar programming therefore continues to be identified with virtual channel 48, while the station’s other operational role is to carry the principal services of its Gray-owned sister stations. The station’s history is consequently defined by several changes in function: an initial low-power general-programming outlet, a brief ShopNBC affiliation, a Daystar religious-network operation, and a post-2022 translator role within Gray Media’s Richmond cluster. Its present identity is technical and market-specific rather than that of an independently programmed local television brand.

• 2022

  Gray ownership begins

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The sale closes on January 4, and WRID-LD becomes a UHF repeater for WWBT and WUPV while retaining a Daystar subchannel.

• 2021

  Gray Television files to acquire WRID-LD

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  Gray files an application to purchase the station from Word of God Fellowship for $630,000.

• 2016

  Final digital license issued

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The FCC issues the station’s final digital license on December 5.

• 2014

  Digital facility begins operation

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  After authorization extensions and a move to channel 48, WRID-LD begins digital broadcasting on November 8.

• 2007

  FCC authorizes a digital flash-cut

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The FCC approves Daystar’s request to convert the station to digital operation, initially identifying channel 51 for the proposed facility.

• 2004

  Daystar acquires the station

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  Word of God Fellowship purchases W48BI, changes its call sign to WRID-LP, and places the Daystar national feed on the station.

• 2003

  W48BI affiliates with ShopNBC

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The station adopts ShopNBC programming after several years of minor-network and brokered programming.

• 1998

  Richmond affiliation landscape changes

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  WUPV, then WAWB, moves from The WB to UPN, increasing speculation that W48BI might become a Richmond WB outlet.

• 1992

  W48BI signs on

  [1]WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org

  The low-power Richmond station begins broadcasting on June 2 under the W48BI call sign and VVILPTV, Inc. ownership.

A low-power Richmond-market television facility positioned as a coverage-enhancing UHF repeater for Gray Media’s WWBT and WUPV, while preserving a Daystar religious-programming outlet on one subchannel.

• Television signal retransmission · 2022

  WWBT retransmission

  WRID-LD retransmits the primary programming of WWBT, Richmond’s NBC affiliate. The service uses the station’s UHF facility to improve reception for viewers who may have difficulty receiving WWBT’s VHF transmission, especially those without cable, satellite, or streaming access.

• Television signal retransmission · 2022

  WUPV retransmission

  The station also carries the main programming of WUPV, Richmond’s CW affiliate. This repeater function extends access to WUPV within the inner Richmond market and complements the station’s continued Daystar-related service.

• Religious television network programming · 2004

  Daystar

  One WRID-LD subchannel remains under Daystar control following the sale to Gray Media. The Daystar national feed continues to be associated with virtual channel 48, preserving the station’s former network role alongside its newer retransmission function.

• 2022

  Convert the station into a UHF repeaterStrategy

  Background

  WWBT and WUPV continued to operate their primary facilities on VHF, creating reception limitations for some over-the-air households in the Richmond market.

  Action taken

  Gray integrated WRID-LD into its Richmond station cluster and used the facility to retransmit the primary services of WWBT and WUPV.

  Aftermath

  WRID-LD became a coverage-enhancement facility for Gray’s Richmond stations while continuing to provide Daystar on one virtual-channel service.

  Source

• 2021

  Sell WRID-LD to Gray TelevisionM&A

  Background

  Daystar sought to transfer the station to another broadcaster while preserving continuing access to one subchannel.

  Action taken

  Gray Television filed to acquire WRID-LD for $630,000 on August 27.

  Aftermath

  The transaction closed in January 2022, after which the station became principally a repeater for WWBT and WUPV. Daystar retained one subchannel.

  Reported purchase price. $630,000 (Transaction announced in 2021; sale closed January 4, 2022)

  Source

• 2004

  Adopt the Daystar national feedStrategy

  Background

  After Word of God Fellowship acquired the station, the new owner used it as a Richmond outlet for the Daystar Television Network rather than as a conventional locally programmed station.

  Action taken

  The station changed its call sign to WRID-LP and carried Daystar programming with no regular local deviation apart from required station identification.

  Aftermath

  WRID-LP became identified with Daystar for most of its ownership period under Word of God Fellowship.

  Source

1. 1WRID-LDen.wikipedia.org