W27EA-D
W27EA-D, UHF digital channel 27, virtual 35, is a low-powered Class A Retro TV-affiliated television station licensed to Cleveland, Ohio, United States. The station operates out of facilities just east of Kent in Franklin Township, which is shared with radio station WNIR (FM), both of which are owned by Media-Com, Inc.
| W27EA-D: Cleveland, Ohio United States | |
|---|---|
| Channels | Digital: 27 (UHF) Virtual: 35 (PSIP) |
| Branding | Retro TV |
| Programming | |
| Subchannels | 35.1 W27EA-D |
| Affiliations | Retro TV |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Media-Com, Inc. (Media-Com Television, Inc.) |
| History | |
| Founded | WAOH-CD: July 14, 1987 W27EA-D: November 30, 1989 |
| First air date | WAOH-CD: 1990 W27EA-D: 1996 |
| Last air date | WAOH-CD: October 25, 2017 |
| Former call signs | Channel 29: W29AI (1987-1995) WAOH-LP (1995-2014) WAOH-CD (2014-2017) Channel 35: W35AX (1989-2015) W16DO-D (2015-2020) |
| Former channel number(s) | Analog: WAOH-CD: 29 (UHF, 1990-2014) W27EA-D: 35 (UHF, 1996-2015) Digital: W27EA-D: 16 (UHF, 2015-2020) |
| Former affiliations | Network One America One (Until 2009) |
| Call sign meaning | W27EA-D (translator call letters are sequentially assigned by the FCC) |
| Technical information | |
| Class | Class-A |
| ERP | 15 kW/305 m |
WAOH-CD channel 29, a second station carrying duplicate programming for the Akron area, was the first station to sign on before W27EA-D (then known as W16DO-D). On October 25, 2017, WAOH-CD signed off the air due to selling off their frequency in the FCC spectrum auction.
W27EA-D broadcasts under a Class A low-power television license. The former WAOH-CD had some cable carriage, most notably on Charter Spectrum's Akron system (channel 11). W27EA-D is not carried on cable in the bulk of the Cleveland area.
History
WAOH-CD was originally licensed on July 14, 1987, as W29AI, and did not sign on until 1990. It became WAOH-LP on August 21, 1995, and WAOH-CD on December 30, 2014. W35AX was licensed on November 30, 1989, and signed on in 1996 as a simulcast of WAOH-LP. W35AX became known as W16DO-D on March 16, 2015 after its conversion to digital.
W27EA-D is currently affiliated with the classic TV network Retro TV, and also airs a few locally produced programs (such as the Son of Ghoul). Prior to June 1, 2009, it was affiliated with the America One network, with the branding of "The CAT" (for Cleveland Akron Television).
WAOH-CD flash-cut their signal to digital in December 2014. W35AX signed on their digital companion signal on channel 16 in March 2015 with the calls W16DO-D. The new coverage area for W16DO-D overlaps most of viewing area formerly served by WAOH-CD.
WAOH-CD went off the air on October 25, 2017 as part of the FCC's digital repack.[1][2]
On June 28, 2020, W16DO-D transitioned to their repacked frequency and is now broadcasting on RF 27, accompanied by the call letters W27EA-D. However, the virtual channel reverted back to the previous 35 allocation, rather than 16 or 27.