{{Short description|Television station in Towson, Maryland}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2024}} {{Multiple issues| {{update|date=April 2023}} {{More citations needed|date=September 2024}} }} {{Infobox television station | callsign = WMJF-CD | city = Towson, Maryland | logo = | branding = | digital = 23 (UHF) | virtual = 39 | affiliations = ''see {{section link||Subchannels}}'' | founded = May 31, 1989 | airdate = {{start date|1995|1|30}} | location = Towson–Baltimore, Maryland | country = United States | callsign_meaning = Michigan J. Frog (from its days as a WB affiliate) | owner = HME Equity Fund II, LLC | licensee = | operator = | former_affiliations = {{ubl|The WB (1995–1998)|N1 (secondary, 1995–1997)|America One (1998–2004)|Independent (2004–2018)|MTV2 (secondary, 2004–2011)|CAS (secondary, 2011–2018)|Grit (2018–2020 and January–June 2021)|MeTV (2020–January 2021)|Ion Television (June 2021–2023)|Mariavision (2023–2024)}} | former_callsigns = {{ubl|W61BT (1995–1996)|WMJF-LP (1996–2014)}} | former_channel_numbers = {{ubl|'''Analog:''' 61 (UHF, 1995–2001), 16 (UHF, 2001–2014)|'''Digital:''' 39 (UHF, 2014–2020)}} | erp = 15 kW | haat = {{convert|107.3|m|ft|0|abbr=on}} | facility_id = 191262 | class = LD | coordinates = {{coord|39|24|10.4|N|76|36|10.9|W|type:landmark_scale:2000|display=inline, title}} | licensing_authority = FCC | website = }} '''WMJF-CD''' (channel 39) is a low-power, Class A television station licensed to Towson, Maryland, United States, serving the Baltimore area. The station is owned by HME Equity Fund II, LLC, and has a transmitter on Maryland Route 45 near the Towson Town Center mall.
==History== thumb|right|300 px|WMJF's former studio in the Media Center at the campus of Towson University. Towson University (then Towson State University) applied for a construction permit on channel 61 in 1988 as a student television station. After eight extensions of the permit into 1994, Towson applied to reduce the station's effective radiated power by a factor of ten to just 521 watts. Station W61BT then applied for its license January 30, 1995.<ref>{{cite web |title=DWMJF-LP Facility Data |url=https://fccdata.org/?lang=en&appid=206017&facid=67462 |website=FCCData}}</ref>
W61BT was the Baltimore market's charter affiliate for The WB, which launched the same month. At the time "Towson State Television" was largely invisible to local viewers, as its coverage radius was about {{convert|3|mi|km|0|spell=in}} from the university and it did not have must-carry rights on cable as a low-power station. Station management took the chance on joining The WB after no full-power station in the city was willing to join the network, and expressed optimism that the network affiliation for the new station would lead to cable carriage and provide a unique learning opportunity for students.<ref>{{cite news |last1=McKerrow |first1=Steve |title=Two networks debut this week in Baltimore area |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1995-01-15-1995015150-story.html |work=Baltimore Sun |date=January 15, 1995}}</ref> By the fall, when the network was also available from WBDC (channel 50, now CW owned-and-operated station WDCW) in Washington, D.C., this had not materialized and ''Baltimore Sun'' sports media critic Milton Kent called on local cable providers to carry that station instead.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kent |first1=Milton |title=Credit Olbermann for viewpoint |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1995-09-05-1995248064-story.html |work=Baltimore Sun |date=September 5, 1995}}</ref> The station changed its callsign to WMJF-LP in February 1996, reflecting its network's mascot, Michigan J. Frog. The WB signed a deal to move to UPN affiliate WNUV (channel 54) in July 1997, effective the following January, and a network spokesman referred to Baltimore as one of the network's "five biggest holes" in coverage.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Kaltenbach |first1=Chris |title=WNUV pulls plug on UPN, switches to WB in Jan. |url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1997-07-15-1997196065-story.html |work=Baltimore Sun |date=July 15, 1997}}</ref>
After a brief stint as an America One affiliate, WMJF became an independent station and also carried MTV2 in 2004. WMJF was also a CNN student bureau, one of only two in the country.
WMJF was a 90 percent student run organization, operated under faculty advisers Dr. John MacKerron and Dr. David Reiss, and an executive board of five elected and appointed positions that they deemed necessary to help operate the station.
Towson University sold WMJF-LP to LocusPoint Networks in December 2012.<ref name=tvbr-saletolocuspoint>{{cite news|last=Seyler|first=Dave|title=LocusPoint again demonstrates it's a Class A Act|url=http://rbr.com/locuspoint-again-demonstrates-its-a-class-a-act/|access-date=December 16, 2012|newspaper=Television Business Report|date=December 13, 2012}}</ref> The deal closed on August 8, 2013. LocusPoint then sold WMJF-CD to HME Equity Fund II on April 8, 2018. Towson University continued to operate the station until 2019. Programming and operations are handled remotely via satellite feed. From 2021 to 2023, WMJF-CD was an affiliate of Ion Television, which moved to WMAR-DT5.
On June 28, 2024, the signal was shut down to upgrade the signal in preparations for the addition of MeTV Toons.
==WMJFNow== WMJFNow was launched in August 2006, after a beta run the previous spring. The program was run using Google Video. WMJFNow was created by webmaster and station president Christopher Taydus with help from many station members including Josh Eisenberg, Joe Achard and Diego Torres. It was created to help find a new audience for the station. Taydus was quoted as saying, "I have a friend who goes to Northeastern who has been watching our sitcom ''Film School''. We've even had guys from other countries watching."<ref name="techbrief">{{cite web|url=http://www.thetowerlight.com/media/storage/paper957/news/2006/11/16/Technology/Technology.Briefs-2463210.shtml?norewrite200612131158&sourcedomain=www.thetowerlight.com|title=Technology Briefs|date=November 16, 2006|website=The Towerlight|access-date=December 13, 2006}}{{dead link|date=June 2016|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> When asked about the numbers that some shows were receiving, Eisenberg said, "In the college television market those are incredible numbers to be receiving. It used to be just a five-mile radius, and now anyone can see it."<ref name="techbrief" />
==Technical information== ===Subchannels=== The station's signal is multiplexed: {| class="wikitable" |+Subchannels of WMJF-CD<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rabbitears.info/market.php?request=station_search&callsign=WMJF#station|title=RabbitEars TV Query for WMJF|website=RabbitEars|accessdate=April 23, 2026}}</ref> ! scope = "col" | Channel ! scope = "col" | Res. ! scope = "col" | Short name ! scope = "col" | Programming |- ! scope = "row" | 39.1 | 1080i || WMJF-CD || MeTV Toons |- ! scope = "row" | 39.2 | rowspan=6|480i || rowspan=2|JTV || MovieSphere Gold |- ! scope = "row" | 39.3 | Jewelry TV |- ! scope = "row" | 39.4 | Laff || Laff |- ! scope = "row" | 39.5 | IONPlus || Ion Plus |- ! scope = "row" | 39.6 | Heroes || Heroes & Icons |- ! scope = "row" | 39.7 | MarioVi || Mariavision (4:3) |}
===Spectrum reallocation=== As a part of the repacking process following the 2016–2017 FCC incentive auction, WMJF-CD relocated to UHF channel 23 in summer 2020, using virtual channel 39.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.nab.org/repacking/clearinghouse.asp|title=Searchable Clearinghouse {{!}} National Association of Broadcasters|website=www.nab.org|language=en|access-date=May 28, 2018}}</ref>
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *[https://www.facebook.com/wmjftv/ WMJF-CD] on Facebook
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{{Baltimore TV}} {{Other Maryland Stations}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wmjf-Lp}} Category:1995 establishments in Maryland Category:MeTV Toons affiliates Category:Laff (TV network) affiliates Category:Ion Plus affiliates Category:Heroes & Icons affiliates MJF-CD Category:MovieSphere Gold affiliates Category:Television channels and stations established in 1995 MJF-CD