WCBI-TV
WCBI is the
CBS television affiliate for the
Tupelo-
Columbus-
West Point television market. The station is owned by
Morris Multimedia. Its transmitter is located 11.7 miles southeast of Houston, Mississippi.
When WCBI-TV signed on the air on
July 13,
1956, it was the first television station in north Mississippi. It was owned by Birney Imes, Jr., a Columbus businessman and publisher of the
Commercial Dispatch. It broadcast from a group of cheaply constructed cement block buildings in a pasture off State Highway 12, just east of Columbus.
WCBI was originally affiliated with all three networks, but has always been a primary CBS affiliate.
NBC disappeared from the schedule in
1979 after
WTVA in
Tupelo expanded its city-grade signal to include Columbus. It continued to carry some
ABC programs until
1983, when WVSB (now
WLOV a Fox affiliate) signed on.
The station remained in its rural location for more than thirty years. In the early
1990s, Frank Imes supervised the renovation of the former Egger's Department Store in downtown Columbus. The three-story building opened in
1993.
In November
2003, Imes Communications sold WCBI to its current owner,
Morris Network.
WCBI recently celebrated it's 50th anniversary, airing a three-part retrospective on the history of the station, as well as a segment showcasing various on and off-air
bloopers.
Besides being the first television station in north Mississippi, it is also the first digital television station in the region. It began digital broadcasts in
2002 and has since added two additional subchannels--a
UPN station and a 24-hour weather station.
Weekday programs
*
WCBI News Sunrise (
5:30 - 7:00 a.m.) - Variety show comprised of news and special guests on various topics. The show is hosted by Bill Gamel and Aundrea Self.
*
WCBI News Midday (
12:00 p.m. - 12:30 p.m.) - Anchored by Bill Gamel and Aundrea Self.
*
WCBI News at Five (
5:00 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.) - Anchored by Karen Roberts. Rob Smith provides
VIPIR weather forecasts.
*
WCBI News at Six (
6:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.) - Anchored by Ron Brown and Karen Roberts. Rob Smith provides
VIPIR weather forecasts and Drew Powell gives a look at the day's sports.
*
WCBI News at Ten (
10:00 p.m. - 10:35 p.m.) - Anchored by Ron Brown and Jessica NEsbitt. Rob Smith provides
VIPIR weather forecasts and Drew Powell gives a look at the day's sports.
Weekend programs
*
WCBI News at Six (
6:00 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.) - Anchored by Laquanita Reid. Shay Nanke provides
VIPIR weather forecasts and Marcus Hunter gives a look at the weekend's sports. The 6:00 p.m. newscast only airs on Saturdays.
*
WCBI News at Ten (
10:00 p.m. - 10:35 p.m.) - Same format as 6:00 p.m. newscast on Saturday. Airs Saturday and Sunday evenings.
WCBI started broadcasting a full power digital signal in late 2002. Shortly thereafter, the station was streaming three broadcast channels:
* WCBI-DT 35-1: a high-definition transmission of the CBS affiliate. Syndicated programming, local commercials, and local news programs remain in standard (4x3) definition.
* WCBI-DT 35-2: the north Mississippi area's UPN affiliate (UPN MS) that is operated and owned by Morris Multimedia, Inc. as well. The signal is also in standard definition.
* WCBI-DT 35-3: a 24-hour local weather station. This is done in conjunction with the
Accuweather service. It is also in standard definition.
WCBI is required to cease transmission of its analog signal, as the
FCC's "go-black" deadline is
February 17,
2009, or until 85% of its viewership is capable of receiving a digital signal.
*
Aundrea Self, co-anchors the Sunrise and News at Midday newscasts
*
Bill Gamel, co-anchors the Sunrise and News at Midday newscasts
*
Carole Carr, reporter
*
Karen Roberts, anchors the News at Five, and co-anchors the News at Six newscast Monday- Friday
*
Stoney Sharp, reporter and
Tupelo bureau chief
*
Marcus Hunter, sports anchor for the weekend newscasts
*
Rob Smith, chief meteorologist; appears on News at Five, News at Six, and News at Ten newscasts
*
Ross Adams, reporter
*
Ron Brown, co-anchors the News at Six and News at Ten newscasts Monday-Friday
*
R.H. Brown, reporter
*
Jessica Nesbitt, anchors the News at Ten newscast, Monday- Friday
*
Drew Powell, sports director; anchors the News at Six and News at Ten newscasts
*
Laquinta Reed, reporter
*
Brian Fowler, meteorologist for Sunrise and News at Midday
*
Dennis Hudson, former nightly newscast anchor; quit due to health concerns; died in November 2005
*
Will Kollmeyer, former sports director; now sports information director at
Itawamba Community College*
Brian Owings, former chief meteorologist
*
Jeffrey Rupp, former news director and anchor; now mayor of
Columbus, Mississippi*
Robert "Uncle Bunky" Williams, longtime host of Fun Time with Uncle Bunky
*
Pete Webb, former reporter.
*
Jim Thompson, former reporter; deceased, 2006.
*
Cynthia Bowers, former news anchor; now reporter for CBS News.
Morris Multimedia, Inc., the parent company that controls and manages WCBI and its UPN affiliate, also controls and manages four other network affiliated stations in the Southeast. It also owns and operates more than 90 daily and weekly newspapers and niche publications.
*
All About WCBI*
WCBI Homepage*
UPN MS Homepage 
