Fox Affiliate Switch in Works for Charlotte

"Disappointed" Bahakel the odd man out in Fox acquisition of Capitol duo

By Michael Malone -- Broadcasting & Cable, 1/29/2013 9:55:36 AM

UPDATED: Plans are afoot for Fox to take over the Fox affiliation in Charlotte on the heels of its acquisition of WJZY-WYMT Charlotte Jan. 28, flipping the affiliation to one of the newly acquired stations.

That means WCCB, part of Bahakel Communications, will split from the Fox affiliates family as of July 1. WCCB had been a Fox affiliate since the network launched in 1986, said Jim Babb, executive VP and COO at Bahakel. He added that Fox often held up WCCB as a "poster child" for good affiliate relations, and said he was disappointed to get the news from Fox Jan. 28. "We are actively engaged in looking for viable alternatives," he says.

Capitol Broadcasting agreed to sell WJZY-WYMT, a CW-MyNetworkTV duo, to Fox. The deal awaits regulatory approval. Fox parent News Corp. declined comment on its plans for Charlotte.

One option for WCCB is to pick up the affiliation vacated when Fox reassigns its affiliation to one of its new acquisitions in Charlotte.

Shawn Harris, general manager at WJZY-WYMT, said nothing was confirmed from Fox, yet, about an affiliation switch. "When you put two and two together, you have to believe that at some point, one of the stations will become a Fox affiliate," he said.