FRIDAY HALL OF FAMERS - WNKW

Continuing with the September “theme” of looking behind the scenes of the TV and movie business within Toobworld, we have another fictional TV station to induct into the Television Crossover Hall of Fame with this Friday Hall of Famer.  (For those who are curious, KBEX is already a member, as is the network UBS.)

This time….

WNKW

I’ve written about WNKW in the past - at least three times! 

That breaking news story (during a flash-back, so technically it took place eight years ago) happened in the 'White Collar' episode "Forging Bonds". It's not the first time WNKW has appeared in 'White Collar', but it's always good to have more evidence that the superstation belongs in New York City - as if it being the central location in the TV series 'Jack & Jill' wasn't enough!

It's also appeared in 'Fringe', 'Invasion', and 'Pushing Daisies', but in those cases the station was broadcasting from locations outside of New York City.
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“Super-Station" WNKW made another appearance in Toobworld this week, and on a key series to help bring in the other TV shows in which it appeared - 'White Collar'.

As we wrote about the TV station in the past, WNKW has been seen before in such shows as 'Fringe', 'Invasion', 'Pushing Daisies', and as a major location in 'Jack & Jill'.

It also crossed over into the alternate TV dimension that houses 'Spin City'. As a "super-station", WNKW shows up on different TV channels and reporting from different locations (from Florida in 'Invasion' and Boston in 'Fringe').

But it's based in New York City and it was brought home to the Big Apple with its report on the investigations into NY State Senator Gary Jennings.

What helps all those other shows is that 'White Collar' has also used another Toobworld staple in the past - the NY Ledger newspaper. It's deeply entrenched into the 'Law & Order' franchise and was even the central location for an ancillary series, 'Deadline'.
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WNKW made a return appearance on 'Fringe' this past week. As I mentioned in an earlier post, WNKW should be a NYC TV station, as it was the place of employ for the main characters in 'Jack & Jill'.

Before, my splainin was that its reporters were filing news reports that were then picked up by other news outlets from outside their broadcast area. This would splain why WNKW showed up onscreen from the Homestead, Florida, region in 'Invasion', and why it appears now on 'Fringe' which is generally taking place in the Boston area.

However, this doesn't splain why the call letters were for Channel 42 in the first episode, and for Channel 5 in the second.

There could be three ways to go with this.

1) Two different TV channels in the Boston area picked up the news reports from WNKW, probably small independent stations without the facilities to produce their own news broadcasts.

2) Channel 42, being a UHF station, could be a satellite for Channel 5, which would have the stronger signal, but which might not reach the area covered by 42. (I don't know if this still happens, but I know it used to be widespread just in the smaller state of Connecticut back when I was growing up there.)

3) The station that has the contract for use of WNKW news reports applied for and received permission from the FCC to upgrade their signal from UHF 42 to VHF 5.
Perhaps most of these crunchy bits of pretzel logic (Sorry, been in a Steely Dan mood all week) might not make sense or are not feasible in the real world. But then again, the rules can be different in Toobworld.  

Based on those other examples, it’s obviously a “super-station” like TBS and WGN in the Real World.  (This was a suggestion from Team Toobworld member Vincent back in 2009 and it holds up a decade later.  He also added two more examples for its inclusion in the TVXOHOF: 'The Vampire Diaries' and 'The Good Wife'.  Thanks again, Vincent!)

I also found it mentioned in a fictional stations wiki:

WNKW
Chicago, Illinois, station seen in ‘How I Met Your Mother’

Gotham City station seen In some Batman stories; WNKW is the NBC affiliate for Gotham City.

However, I’m not sure if that’s from any of the television incarnations or the comic books or even just wishful thinking fanfic on the part of the contributor.  At the very least, it shows WNKW is a multiversal, as does this scene from the movie "The Need For Speed":

But either way, WNKW is qualified to join with all of those other series appearances.  And they may not be alone in showcasing the TV station.  I can’t see everything.  I’m not Argos; I’ve only got two eyes and even then, they don’t work together!

That last picture is fanfic and is not eligible to be included as part of WNKW's membership in the Hall.  I'm only sharing it here to help establish that WNKW was part of the world for 'I How I Met Your Mother'. 

(If anybody out there from Team Toobworld has an HIMYM screencap - and also from 'The Good Wife' and 'The Vampire Diaries,' for that matter - showing the call letters for WNKW, copies would be much appreciated!)

Welcome to the Hall, WNKW!