ABC11 / WTVD (Disney-owned)
U.S. center-left
Background
WTVD began broadcasting on September 2, 1954, originally as a primary NBC affiliate based in Durham, North Carolina. In 1957 it became the second station acquired by Capital Cities Television, a group that grew into one of the country's largest broadcast companies. In January 1986, Capital Cities completed its acquisition of ABC, converting WTVD into an ABC owned-and-operated station — the first network-owned TV station in North Carolina. Disney acquired Capital Cities/ABC in 1995, folding WTVD into the Walt Disney Company's portfolio, where it has remained under the ABC11 brand. The station produces substantial local news for Raleigh, Durham, and Fayetteville alongside national content from ABC News. Media bias organizations such as AllSides (rating: Lean Left) and Media Bias/Fact Check (rating: Left-Center) consistently place ABC News to the left of center, with high factual reporting scores. Beginning in March 2025, the Trump administration's FCC opened an investigation into Disney's diversity practices and pushed to accelerate license renewal reviews for all eight ABC owned-and-operated stations, including WTVD. ABC and Disney publicly challenged these actions as unconstitutional and launched on-air campaigns urging viewers to support the network during public comment periods, reflecting a sustained adversarial relationship with the current administration.
Sources
- WTVD – Wikipedia
- History of ABC11 WTVD – ABC11.com
- WTVD-TV, Raleigh – ABC Owned Television Stations Press
- ABC 11 WTVD Media Bias – AllSides
- ABC News Media Bias – AllSides
- ABC News – Media Bias/Fact Check
- ABC 'fighting back', urging US public to defend stations amid FCC scrutiny – Al Jazeera
- ABC is acting as an unlikely First Amendment champion – NPR
- ABC enlists viewers in free-speech fight with Trump's FCC – CNN Business
Profile compiled 2026-07-15; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.