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WHDH, virtual channel 7 (UHF digital channel 35), is an independent television station licensed to Boston, Massachusetts, United States. The station is owned by Sunbeam Television, as part of a duopoly with Cambridge-licensed CW affiliate WLVI (channel 56). The two stations share studios at Bulfinch Place (near Government Center) in downtown Boston and transmitter facilities in Newton, Massachusetts.
From 1982 to 1995, WHDH was Boston's CBS affiliate, inheriting the affiliation from its predecessor on channel 7, WNAC-TV. On January 2, 1995, WHDH switched to NBC, after CBS moved to WBZ-TV (channel 4) by virtue of a group-wide affiliation deal with its owner, Westinghouse Broadcasting (CBS and Westinghouse merged that November, making WBZ-TV a CBS owned-and-operated station). On January 1, 2017, after losing NBC's affiliation to a newly formed owned-and-operated station, WBTS-LD (channel 8, now Telemundo O&O WYCN-LD in Providence, Rhode Island), WHDH became a news-intensive independent station.
The original occupant of the channel 7 allocation in Boston was WNAC-TV, which commenced operations on June 21, 1948, as Boston's first CBS affiliate. The station switched to ABC in 1961, but rejoined CBS in 1972.
Programming
Preempted programming
As a CBS affiliate, the station preempted programming in moderation, in favor of more locally produced shows. From 1989 to 1990, the station delayed the first hour of CBS This Morning in favor of the children's show Ready To Go. In February 1994, CBS This Morning was dropped and picked up by WABU (channel 68, now WBPX-TV). WHDH then began airing an expanded local morning newscast.
Syndicated programming
The station's considerable local news output as of 2019 limits the number of programs WHDH carries in syndication; most of them air in non-prime slots or overnights. Programs include Dateline, The Doctors, Funny You Should Ask, Family Feud, Extra, Inside Edition, and many others.
Sports programming
WHDH became the primary station for the New England Patriots in 1995, as the Patriots played in the American Football Conference of the NFL, which had a deal with NBC for the network to air AFC games (thus Boston was not as important as a market for Fox in regards to getting an VHF affiliate). When the AFC package moved to CBS in 1998, this role was reclaimed by WBZ-TV. From 2006 to 2016, the station aired Patriots games when they were featured on NBC Sunday Night Football (the station aired the Patriots' Super Bowl XLIX victory in 2015). Also, WHDH aired selected Red Sox games from 1990 to 1993 as a CBS station via that network's MLB over-the-air broadcast contract, and again through NBC's limited rights to MLB's postseason from 1995 to 2000. WNEV/WHDH has also aired Boston Celtics games, first via CBS' broadcast contract with the NBA from 1982 to 1990 (continuing what WNAC-TV had aired since 1973; their NBA Finals victories in 1984 and 1986 were aired on WNEV), and again through NBC from 1995 to 2002. From 2006 to 2016, the station also aired Boston Bruins games via the NHL on NBC, including their victory in the 2011 Stanley Cup Finals.
Between 1992 and 2016, WHDH aired a total of twelve Olympic Games; the first two events in 1992 and 1994 were aired while the station was affiliated with CBS, with the remaining ten games airing while the station was affiliated with NBC (WBZ-TV aired its last Olympic broadcast in 1998).
