The CW will have a new home in Pittsburgh starting next month. The network will change from WPCW-TV’s Channel 19 to its new affiliate station, WPNT-TV Channel 22.1, according to TribLive.
The change has yet to be officially announced, but a statement is tentatively expected to be released by next week. WPNT-TV Channel 22.1 declined to comment. However, its former affiliate, My Network TV, isn’t on September’s primetime lineup.
The CW was not immediately available for comment.
WPNT’s fall schedule lists The CW content for its primetime slots starting September 1. WPCW-TV will air its last The CW program on August 31. Where or if the network will find another broadcast station in Pittsburgh hasn’t been decided.
NextStar Media Group acquired 75% of The CW in October last year, gaining majority controlling stake in the network. Warners Bros. Discovery and Paramount Global each retained 12.5% ownership in The CW. Dennis Miller, director of the board since 2014, was named president of The CW. In May, WPCW-TV said it would end its affiliation with The CW in September to become an independent TV station with a stronger focus on live sports, according to TribLiv.
At the time, a spokesperson for Nexstar said the company is “confident that The CW network will continue reaching 100% of U.S. television households without interruptions…. We have already received multiple expressions of interest from station groups hoping to deepen their relationships with The CW by aligning more of their stations with the network.”
WPNT-TV was The WB Networks ’s Pittsburgh affiliate from 1998-2006. It also served as UPN’s station from 1995 to 1998. The companies merged in near secrecy in 2006, according to Variety, causing chaos after the news broke as employees scrambled to learn if they were among those to be laid off.