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About WPDE:
WPDE NewsChannel 15 is Your Station for news, weather and sports on the Grand Strand, in the Pee Dee and along the Border Belt.
WPDE NewsChannel 15 is the ABC affiliate serving the Myrtle Beach/Florence South Carolina market. Its transmitter is located near Floyd Dale, South Carolina. WPDE is owned by Barrington Broadcasting, which purchased the station from Diversified Communications in 2005. WPDE's main studio is located in the Atlantic Business Park in Conway near U.S. 501. NewsChannel 15 also has a bureau in Florence.
WPDE signed on the air November 22nd, 1980 as an ABC affiliate. The call letters represent the location of the market near the Great and Little Pee Dee Rivers. The call letters also represent the station's commitment to excellence: "We're People Dedicated to Excellence." The former Florence Civic Auditorium building was transformed into WPDE's first studio at 3215 South Cashua Drive in Florence, South Carolina. This studio would serve WPDE for 22 years. The dedication of the new studio was conducted in early 1981 with remarks by then Governor Dick Riley.
The WPDE Designate Market Area includes Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Horry, Marion, and Marlboro counties in South Carolina as well as Robeson and Scotland counties in North Carolina. The Nielsen Survey Area includes Chesterfield, Clarendon, Darlington, Dillon, Florence, Georgetown, Horry, Lee, Marion, Marlboro, Sumter, and Williamsburg counties in South Carolina as well as Bladen, Brunswick, Columbus, Hoke, Richmond, and Scotland Counties in North Carolina.
 The coverage area for WPDE. The green areas indicate the Designated Market Area and the grey areas indicate additional counties included in the Nielsen Survey Area. The economy of WPDE's viewing are is dynamic, with industry, agriculture, medical technology, and toursim taking central roles. Important agricultural products include corn, cotton, soy beans, tobacco, and vegetables. No look at WPDE's market would be complete without the mention of "The Grand Strand." With Myrtle Beach as its hub, "The Strand" features 45 miles of beautiful sandy beaches and more than 100 golf courses hosting nearly 14 million tourists annually. Because of great weather, wonderful beaches, great golf courses, and more than 1,000 restaurants, the Myrtle Beach area is one of the fastest-growing communities in the United States. Tourists and retirees flock to "The Grand Strand" making it a destination location. When Hard Rock Park opens in 2008, Myrtle Beach will join the list of must places to visit for roller coaster and amusement park fans. Forbes Magazine ranked the Myrtle Beach metropolitan area 29th on its Top 200 list of the Best Places for Business and Careers. Also in Horry County, just west of Myrtle Beach, is the beautiful City of Conway. The home of Coastal Carolina University, Conway is a bridge to the future with an elegant past. You can dine on the beautiful river or shop the boutiques of Main Street. Homes range from the historic to the new. A 12-screen cineplex just opened in a shopping center that includes a popular department store, office supply store, and many other stores. More restaurants are moving to the area making Conway a greater place to live. Heading inland, the City of Florence is a mid-sized southern city large enough to boast a performance theatre, symphony orchestra, museums, festivals, and world-class recreation complex. Residents are very proud of their small-town feeling that includes tree-lined streets and parks. Darlington County includes the legendary Darlington Raceway. Harold Brasington founded the country's oldest paved superspeedway. With its egg-shaped track, Darlington Raceway is known as the track too tough to tame. While Darlington Raceway has made NASCAR headlines, there is much more to Darlington County than stock cars. In fact, Darlington County's history dates to 1785. Parts of Darlington County now make up portions of Florence and Lee counties.
The History of WPDE was created by WPDE Director Robbie Bischoff. It features video clips of more than two decades of newscasts as well as photos of WPDE studios through the years.
| DTV Transition |
| The FCC requires all stations make available their efforts at educating the public regarding the 2009 transition to Digital Television, Posted here are Quarterly reports filed by WPDE NewsChannel 15 and WWMB CW21. Click here to see the reports WPDE Report 2Q 2009 |
| EEO Report for WPDE/WWMB |
| It is the policy of WPDE-TV to provide Equal Employment Opportunity to all qualified individuals without regard to their race, national origin, sex, marital status, age or veteran status in all personnel actions, including recruitment, evaluation, selection and promotion compensation, training and termination. Review the EEO Public File Report for WPDE/WWMB. (4 Mb in Adobe PDF format - will open in a new window)
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| Public Broadcasting Manual |
| The FCC issued a public notice on April 24, 2008 announcing the release of the latest version of the "Public and Broadcasting" document that tells the public how the FCC regulates broadcast stations and how they can get involved in the regulatory process. The new document can be downloaded by clicking here: Public and Broadcasting Manual |
| WPDE/WWMB FCC Children's Programming Report |
WWMB Children's Television Programming Report FCC 398
WPDE Children's Television Programming Report FCC 398 |
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