On July 1, 2017, a former NBC affiliate serving Western Maryland took new call letters WDVM-TV and began its march toward the Nation’s Capital, taking a cue from perhaps the former “NewsChannel 8” found on cable TV systems across the Washington, D.C. market. Today, this station is known to viewers as DC News Now, and after 22 years of ownership is more of a National Capital Region facility than ever before — thanks to a new tower.
It marks a long-awaited upgrade for WDVM, which Nexstar acquired from Quorum Broadcasting for $230 million. The location? Blue Mountain, just east of Front Royal, Va. A power increase came with the transmitter move from a Fairview Mountain site closer to its city of license — Hagerstown, Md.
The result? WDVM today has a DTV Noise Limited contour of roughly 70 miles, covering all of the Washington, D.C., DMA, and the southwestern portion of the Baltimore market. The FCC granted the most recent license to cover for WDVM on September 9.
As Nexstar sees it, investment in the new Northern Virginia facility enables WDVM-TV to expand delivery of local news, weather and emergency alerts, and a variety of other local programming, to nearly 700,000 additional television households and 1.8 million people.
Indeed, WDVM’s coverage area is now akin to that of the WTOP Radio Network, heard across three FM signals spanning from Warrenton, Va., to Frederick, Md., and across the metropolitan D.C. area.
And, Nexstar can now better monetize WDVM alongside its home for The CW Network, WDCW-50, and The Hill, its longtime Capitol Hill-focused news organization.
“Nexstar is committed to serving its local communities by delivering outstanding, objective, local journalism and a variety of diverse viewpoints to as broad an audience as possible,” said Brandin Stewart, Senior Vice President and Regional Manager for Nexstar’s broadcasting division. “The company’s significant investment in this new transmission facility enables us to super-serve viewers, advertisers and communities across four states and is a clear demonstration of the vital role that local broadcasting plays in bringing communities together and keeping them informed.”
