CBS Changing Stations in Atlanta

Gray’s WANF in Atlanta has been the dog station in the market for years.

When it was owned by Meredith, the call letters were WGCL and it was a trainwreck.

Now, under the call letters WANF and owned by Gray, the station is in for another big change. They are losing their CBS affiliation.

CBS is set to change its Atlanta affiliate, moving its network programming to WUPA Channel 69 starting August 16. The station, which CBS has owned and operated as an independent outlet since 1994, will be rebranded as CBS Atlanta.

The shift is part of a broader strategy by CBS to strengthen its local market presence and leverage its owned-and-operated stations. This move will bring CBS's full slate of entertainment, news, and sports content directly to Atlanta, the nation's seventh-largest television market with 2.8 million households.

As part of the rebranding, CBS Atlanta will launch CBS News Atlanta, a dedicated streaming news channel. This new platform aims to provide comprehensive local coverage, including regional weather, traffic, and breaking news, underscoring CBS's commitment to local journalism in the market. Jennifer Mitchell, president of CBS Stations and CBS News and Stations Digital, emphasized this commitment.

"Launching our first owned CBS station in Atlanta is a milestone moment for us," Mitchell said. "This expansion allows us to bring the full strength of CBS’ award-winning news, sports and entertainment programming directly to one of the most vibrant and influential markets in the country. With WUPA and the launch of the CBS News Atlanta streaming channel, we’re not just delivering content – we’re investing in the community, local journalism and ensuring Atlanta viewers receive the same trusted, high-quality journalism that defines CBS in every market we serve.”

As to what happens to WANF? They need to go all in with local news and spend some big bucks expanding the operation. Gray’s CEO is promising just that. “As residents of Atlanta along with our families, this company’s leadership and our corporate colleagues have been keenly focused on improving what we watch every day on WANF and its sister station, WPCH PeachtreeTV,” said Gray’s Executive Chairman Hilton Howell. “We are excited to now take WANF in a new direction that puts full control of the station’s offerings in local hands and that allows us to expand our investment in local news, weather and sports by, for and about the people who, like us, live in Greater Atlanta.”

Gray pointed out in a press release, “Former network affiliates like Gray-owned KTVK in Phoenix, WJXT in Jacksonville, and WHDH in Boston are all highly-rated independent stations that have flourished with a strong local news presence.”

The one thing Gray doesn’t mention is all those stations had a strong news presence with high ratings before they went independent. That is certainly nowhere near the case with WANF.  

So, will Gray really put up the money needed to make WANF a player in the market?

Time will tell…