Outlet profile

WCNC

U.S. center / mainstream local TV

Owned byNexstar Media Group (acquired from Tegna Inc. in March 2026 for approximately $6.2 billion; a federal court injunction issued April 2026 temporarily bars full integration, so WCNC and other former-Tegna stations continue operating with day-to-day management autonomy under Nexstar ownership)

FundingCommercial advertising — local and national broadcast TV ad revenue

On the administrationmostly neutral

Background

WCNC traces its roots to July 9, 1967, when the station signed on as WCTU-TV, North Carolina's first independent television station, founded by Charlotte dentist Harold Twisdale and engineer David Steel under Charlotte Telecasters Inc. After falling into financial difficulty, the station was purchased by Ted Turner and rebranded WRET-TV; under Turner's ownership it stabilized and grew through the 1970s. In 1978 it became Charlotte's NBC affiliate when WSOC-TV switched from NBC to ABC, and it adopted its current WCNC call letters along with local newscasts. The Providence Journal Company bought the station in 1988, the Belo Corporation acquired it in 1996 and invested in upgrading its newsroom, and Gannett then purchased Belo in 2013 for $1.5 billion. In 2015 Gannett split its print and broadcast holdings into two companies; the broadcast side, renamed Tegna, retained WCNC. In March 2026 Nexstar Media Group completed a $6.2 billion acquisition of Tegna, making it the nation's largest local TV broadcaster, though an April 2026 federal court injunction temporarily prevents full integration and WCNC continues operating with independent day-to-day management. Media Bias/Fact Check rates WCNC as 'Least Biased' with high factual reporting standards. Since January 2025 its coverage of the Trump second term has included an investigative series called 'Shifting Ground' examining how federal policy changes affect Charlotte-area housing, health, and education, as well as straightforward reporting on immigration enforcement effects on the city's large Hispanic community — consistent with the station's pattern of localizing national political news rather than editorializing.

Sources

Profile compiled 2026-07-12; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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