WAXN-TV
| Company type | Television station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Broadcasting |
| Founded | October 15, 1994 |
| Headquarters | Charlotte, North Carolina , United States |
Area served | Charlotte metropolitan area |
| Owner | Cox Media Group |
| Parent | Cox Media Group |
WAXN-TV (channel 64) operates as an independent television station licensed to Kannapolis, North Carolina, catering to the Charlotte market. It is owned by Cox Media Group, which also owns ABC/Telemundo affiliate WSOC-TV (channel 9). Both stations share studio space located on West 23rd Street, just north of Charlotte’s uptown district. WAXN-TV’s transmitter is situated near Reedy Creek Park in Newell.
History
The station began broadcasting on October 15, 1994, under the call sign WKAY-TV and was initially owned by Kannapolis Television Company, a subsidiary of Truth Temple. The original call letters assigned were WDZH before switching to WKAY in 1989, a name inspired by the pastor’s wife. Early programming consisted of religious content, classic films, barter-syndicated series, and locally produced specials. In August 1996, Kannapolis Television entered into a joint sales agreement (JSA) with Cox Enterprises, owner of WSOC-TV, and rebranded WKAY-TV as WAXN-TV.
With the JSA in place, Cox assumed operational control and introduced the "Action 64" brand, a moniker also used by Cox’s independent stations in Orlando and San Jose. Cox invested more than $3 million to revamp WAXN-TV, relocating its operations to WSOC-TV’s facilities and significantly increasing transmitter power to extend coverage beyond cable-only distribution.
WSOC-TV contributed surplus syndicated shows to WAXN’s lineup, enhancing its schedule with programs such as The Andy Griffith Show. Between 2001 and 2012, WAXN broadcast the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon, which had aired on WSOC since 1974 until the telethon transitioned to ABC. From 1998 through 2000, WAXN aired numerous Pax TV programs without formal network affiliation. The station also featured reruns of popular daytime talk shows like Dr. Phil and The Oprah Winfrey Show during prime time slots.
Following an FCC rule modification in August 1999 that allowed duopolies, Cox acquired full ownership of WAXN for $3 million; this transaction was completed in 2000. In 2007, the station dropped the "Action" brand in favor of "TV64."
From 1991 until the SEC Network's launch in 2014, WAXN served as Charlotte’s broadcaster for Southeastern Conference football and basketball games through Jefferson-Pilot/Raycom Sports and ESPN Plus.
In February 2019, Apollo Global Management announced its intention to purchase Cox Media Group’s television properties. After acquiring Cox’s radio and advertising operations in June 2019, Apollo retained the Cox Media Group name. The acquisition was finalized on December 17, 2019.
For the 2024–25 season, WAXN will simulcast five Charlotte Hornets games under a partnership involving FanDuel Sports Network Southeast and Cox Media Group; three contests will air on WAXN while two will be broadcast on WSOC. Additionally, WAXN has collaborated with Major League Soccer’s Charlotte FC to rebroadcast games primarily scheduled for Monday evenings.
Newscasts
WSOC-TV produces a total of 22 hours of local news content each week for WAXN-TV, including four hours on weekdays and a half-hour during weekends. Although WSOC has managed WAXN since its launch, it did not begin producing a nightly 10 p.m. newscast specifically for channel 64 until 1999 following the conclusion of a news sharing agreement with Fox affiliate WCCB. This prime time newscast consistently leads its timeslot in ratings, outperforming competing broadcasts on CW affiliate WCCB and Fox affiliate WJZY. Its success is partly driven by strong lead-ins from rebroadcasts of Dr. Phil and The Dr. Oz Show.
In October 2008, WAXN's 10 p.m. newscast became Charlotte’s first prime time news program delivered in high definition; although WSOC upgraded its own newscasts to HD in April 2007, it continued downconverting the signal for WAXN until late 2009. September 2010 saw the addition of a two-hour extension of WSOC's weekday morning newscast airing from 7 to 9 a.m. On December 2, 2013, WSOC expanded WAXN's weeknight 10 p.m. newscast to a full hour due to rising viewership figures. In January 2020, an hour-long newscast at 7 p.m. was introduced on WAXN.
Subchannels
Before June 29, 2021, WAXN-TV broadcast its ATSC 1.0 channels on physical channel 32. These channels have since been distributed among three other Charlotte stations, while maintaining their virtual channel number 64.
| Channel | Resolution | Aspect Ratio | Identifier | Content | ATSC 1.0 Host |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64.1 | 720p | 16:9 | WAXN-TV | Independent programming | WBTV |
| 64.2 | 480i | Laff | Laff network | WCNC-TV | |
| 64.3 | Mystery | Ion Mystery | WSOC-TV |
WAXN initiated testing of a second digital subchannel on February 14, 2014, officially launching GetTV content on April 1, 2014. Subsequently, a third subchannel featuring Escape (currently Ion Mystery) was introduced on August 18, 2014. On June 1, 2017, WSOC debuted Telemundo on its DT2 subchannel and transferred its Laff affiliation to WAXN's newly established DT4 subchannel as of May 31, 2017. On May 2, 2022, GetTV programming moved from WAXN-TV to WSOC-TV; concurrently, subchannel 2 transitioned to Laff while subchannel 4 was discontinued.
Analog-to-digital conversion
WAXN-TV terminated its analog transmission on UHF channel 64 on February 17, 2009, coinciding with the federally mandated digital transition deadline. Its digital broadcast persisted on UHF channel 50 but continued to use virtual channel number 64.
On May 10, 2009, the station enhanced its digital transmitter by raising the effective radiated power from 50 kilowatts to 91 kilowatts. A subsequent power increase to 150 kilowatts took place on July 13, 2011, alongside installation of a new directional antenna designed to reduce interference with WFMY-TV in Greensboro.
ATSC 3.0 lighthouse service
On June 29, 2021, WAXN-TV converted its digital channel 32 signal to ATSC 3.0 format and began hosting simulcasts for WBTV, WSOC-TV, WCNC-TV, and WJZY. Under this arrangement, the original ATSC 1.0 programming previously on channel 32 is now transmitted via WBTV, WSOC-TV, and WCNC-TV while retaining their virtual channel designation as channel 64.
| Channel | Resolution | Aspect Ratio | Identifier | Programming |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.1 | 1080p | 16:9 | WBTV | CBS (WBTV) |
| 9.1 | WSOC | ABC (WSOC-TV) | ||
| 36.1 | WCNC | NBC (WCNC-TV) | ||
| 46.1 | WJZY | Fox (WJZY) | ||
| 64.1 | WAXN | Independent |