The Story Of NewsChannel 8: From Start-Up To Sign-Off With Wayne Lynch
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The world was very different in 1991; there was no internet, no smartphones, and if you wanted local news, you had to wait for a live newscast from channels 4, 5, 7, or 9 or read it the next day in The Washington Post.
Allbritton Communications, which owned Channel 7 (WJLA) then, saw an opportunity for a hyper-local 24/7 all-news TV Station, and NewsChannel 8 was born.
Wayne Lynch was hired as the station’s first News Director and was tasked with building out the television station’s programming.
On this episode, Wayne takes us behind the scenes in the early days of NewsChannel 8.
We talk about the founding of the station, some of the anchors and reporters who worked for Wayne, the concept of zoned news – where they aired different newscasts in DC, Virginia, and Maryland, and what led to the ultimate downfall of the station.
