WFWA (channel 39) is a PBS member television station in Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States.
The FCC approved on January 29, 1985; WFWA signed on the air on December 5, 1986, bringing northeast Indiana its own PBS station for the first time ever.
[4] In 2003, WFWA became the first television station in the Fort Wayne market to broadcast a digital signal, originally carrying the national PBS HDTV feed on a separate subchannel from its regular programming; funding issues would later cause the national HD feed to be pulled, leaving all programming in standard definition for several years.
[5] During a summer 2010 pledge break, general manager Bruce Haines announced that the change would occur on July 4, 2010, at 7:30 p.m. Due to advancements in video compression, the station was able to upgrade its main channel to HD without sacrificing the video quality of its other three SD subchannels.
As part of the SAFER Act,[10][better source needed] WFWA kept its analog signal on the air for 2+ weeks to inform viewers of the digital television transition through a loop of public service announcements from the National Association of Broadcasters.