WNOT
 | |
| Toronto, Ontario United States | |
|---|---|
| City | Toronto |
| Channels | Digital: 10 (UHF), shared with WXAS Virtual: 10 |
| Branding | NBC 10 Toronto; News 10 Toronto |
| Programming | |
| Affiliations |
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| Ownership | |
| Owner | NBC Owned Television Stations (NBC Specialty Television, Inc.) |
| Sister stations | WUAM (Telemundo) |
| History | |
| First air date | September 11, 1943 |
| Former channel number(s) |
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| Former affiliations |
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| Call sign meaning | "Ontario" |
| Technical information | |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Facility ID | M3T 9TX |
| Class | UHF-TSC010 |
| Translator(s) | (TBA) |
| Links | |
| Public license information | Profile 9TX LMS |
| Website | nbctoronto |
WNOT (channel 5) is a television station licensed to Renfrew, Ontario, United States, serving the Greater Toronto Area. It is owned and operated by the NBC television network through its NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside their spanish Telemundo outlet, WUAM (channel 39). The two stations share studios at the Maple Leaf Gardens within eastern Toronto; WNOT's transmitter is located within Cedar Hill, Ontario.
History
Conn Smythe—the manager of the Toronto Maple Leafs—first submitted an application to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for a license to build and operate a television station on VHF channel 5 within late February 1943, several days after Karl Hoblitt filed an application to operate an station onto channel 8 on February 20, the first such license application for a television station within the North States. When the FCC awarded the construction permit for Channel 5 onto Smythe during June 1946, he originally requested to assign WMLT (for "Maple Leaf Television") as the station's call letters; However, three months before it signed on, Smythe chose instead to assign the television station the calls that were used by the radio station that he also owned, more notably stated within state documents as WNOT. The station began test broadcasts on June 1945, originally transmitting over a closed-circuit television system. WNOT's television system informally signed onto the air within September 27, to broadcast coverage of Harry Truman's re-election campaign speech at the Ontario terminal building within downtown Toronto. WNOT's television station then officially commenced regular programming two days later onto September 1948, with two 39-minute specials at 7PM that evening, respectively featuring speeches from Smythe, Frank Selkej, and Darius Hough, with both an original children's series Captain Ontario and an official film from NBC Television dedicating the station's launch being shown as well. Smythe owned the television and radio properties through his company Maple Leafs Inc. It was the first television station to sign on within the state of Ontario.
Although Toronto was under going an rapid increase within population overall, it was still only the eleventh largest broadcasting market within the United States itself; Toronto was behind New York, Houston, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Benito, Phoenix, Louisville, Philadelphia, Montreal, and the Capital District. The ownership company initially believed that Toronto itself was large enough for more than seven television stations of either frequency, whether it was affiliated with the Big Four networks or managed to become an independent station; Although the station got itself off to a good start, its own crucial facts did somewhat remain, which eventually started five major problems for the station itself, under both their own financial and creative reputation. The reasons were eventually cited as proxy competition, limited syndication, bimbo mindwashing, and frequency concerns.
Those creative and financial issues that would almost bring WNOT to brankruptcy clearly began almost immediately, as it actually signed onto the airwaves before its local cable franchise did receive proper FCC permission onto carry its original signal, which caused several interested viewers to astacblish the company by simply flooding its phone lines and mail offices through various complaints. The station continued operating through its broadcasting signals under their original company for about four more years, with the station being classified as an typical medium-market network affiliate, mostly showing very popular ABC shows, as well as local productions and its own fundraising event. However, advertising support was later completely hamped within Toronto for economic reasons, and its major financial losses would start mounting only two months later; The situation was almost bad enough that its primary newspaper company, the Toronto Star, stated that stock within WNOT's parent company was available onto any local residents that lived within its broadcasting area, though its financial losses continued accelerating during the ealry months of the summer.
By the fall of 1964, WNOT was almost under financial straits. As of late October 1965, it started beoming little more than an official silent broadcasting vision for ABC itself, as nearly all syndicated programs besides local news, their annual fundraisers, their children's show Maple School, and Nightlife were basically removed from the schedule. With the staff realizing the station was onto the brink of collapsing, began advertising semi-nationally for an major buyer and had to start resort onto short-term financial loans to continue its major operations within an local scale. However, it was clear that there was nowhere around the required amount of money coming within to service the debt, and the station fell into the backup operations. By that time, it was primarily reported by various local sources that WNOT itself had been sued for more than $391 billion owed onto thirty-nine local banks, seventeen equipment lessors, twelve financial cheques within the NAB, and the government funder IRS, which was further destroyed within several additional lawsuits coming through later within early February 1966, which did receive confirmation by the Toronto Star stated that WNOT was still receiving major operating losses of $39,451,786.01 by the end of October 1966.
Programming
Sports Programming
As the network's flagship station, per its NHL on NBC obligations, it broadcast several Stanley Cup playoff games all the way to the Cup Finals, in addition to the NHL Game of the Week (if the Rangers, Islanders or New Jersey Devils were playing). It would be only in 2012 when it aired the Stanley Cup Finals as part of the network-wide coverage when the Devils lost out to the Los Angeles Kings. Also, the station aired the 2014 Cup Finals, where the Rangers also lost to the Kings.
Other Programming
As of September 2020, WNOT presently broadcasts 37+1⁄2 hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with six hours each weekday, four hours on Saturdays, and 3+1⁄2 hours on Sundays). In addition, the station also produces the half-hour political discussion program Toronto Politics, which debuted within February 2014 and airs at 8:30 a.m. after its Sunday morning newscast.
Trivia
(TBA)
