WHDH

WHDH is a television station in Boston, Massachusetts in the United States. It is owned by Sunbeam Television and is an independent television station that used to carry NBC. It is received on Channel 7 in eastern Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and southern New Hampshire.

In the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, there was another television station in Boston with the name WHDH-TV. That station aired on Channel 5 and is now called WCVB-TV. There is no relationship between the two stations.

History

Channel 7 in Boston went on the air June 21, 1948 as WNAC-TV. It is the second oldest television station in Boston, and the third oldest in the New England states. The first owner was General Tire, which later became RKO General. The station showed CBS network programs when it first went on the air. The station also showed some programs from the ABC network. However, when a new TV station in Boston, Channel 5, then known as WHDH-TV but now known as WCVB-TV, started in 1957, Channel 7 dropped all ABC programs, which were then aired on Channel 5. In 1961, Channel 7 and Channel 5 switched networks, and Channel 7 became an ABC station, and Channel 5 became the CBS station for Boston. In 1972, the two channels switched again, and Channel 7 returned to being a CBS station, and Channel 5 an ABC station.

On May 21, 1982, RKO General lost the license to broadcast and Channel 7 was taken over by New England Television on May 22. The channel was renamed WNEV-TV. New England Television bought a radio station known as WHDH in 1989, and in January, 1990, channel 7 was renamed WHDH-TV. On January 2, 1995, Channel 7 stopped showing CBS programs and began showing NBC programs. Before then, NBC programs were shown on WBZ-TV, Channel 4, which now shows CBS programs. The reason for this switch is because WBZ-TV's owners merged with the CBS network.

In 1993, the station was sold to Sunbeam Television. In July, 2010, Channel 7 officially dropped the -TV from its name, becoming just WHDH.

In 2017, the station stopped carrying NBC programming, losing the affiliation to WBTS-CD, and became an independent television station.