Withers looks to double in Clarksburg

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W. Russell Withers and his Withers Broadcasting Company already has CBS 5 WDTV-TV in the Clarksburg-Weston WV DMA, along with three LPTVs, according to brokerage Kalil & Company. (Is there a station anywhere that is better prepared, in a call-letter sense, for the digital television transition?) He now has a deal in place which would add another full power station and two networks.


The station is Davis Television's WVFX-TV which plays Fox on Channel 46 and carries CW programming on a DT multicast side channel. The catch: Clarksburg isn't exactly a big signal-drenched market, and it is not big enough to combine two major network affiliates. Withers is seeking a failed station waiver from the FCC to allow the transaction to go forward. The price was not immediately available.

TVBR observation: Withers recently came to Washington to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee in opposition to the XM/Sirius merger. However, we believe it unlikely that Mel Karmazin will journey back to the Capitol to return the favor in opposition to this deal.