Atlanta News First

What Atlanta News First does

Atlanta News First (WANF) is a local broadcast television station serving the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area, owned and operated by Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE: GTN), one of the largest U.S. local broadcast groups. Founded in 1971 and headquartered at 425 14th St. NW in Atlanta, the station produces and distributes hyperlocal news, weather, sports, politics, entertainment, and investigative journalism content across broadcast, digital, mobile, and streaming platforms. Its core editorial franchises include ANF Investigates (investigative journalism unit), First Alert Weather (proprietary severe weather alerting system), First Alert Traffic, Peachtree Sports Network (covering the Braves, Falcons, Hawks, Dream, Georgia Bulldogs, Georgia Tech, and high school sports), and ATL Live (lifestyle programming).

The station's technology stack combines traditional over-the-air broadcast television infrastructure with digital streaming capabilities, including iOS and Android mobile apps, the ANF+ premium streaming subscription service, NextGen TV (ATSC 3.0), and a network of First Alert weather cameras and radar. Content is distributed via free over-the-air broadcast, cable and satellite retransmission agreements, the ANF+ direct-to-consumer streaming platform, the Peachtree TV sub-channel, and podcast distribution on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Amazon Music. Editorial products span daily newscasts, breaking news alerts, an email newsletter suite, five podcast series (Atlanta News First Podcast, Aging Better, Behind the Investigation, On the Record, ANF Overtime), and community engagement programs such as Surprise Squad, St. Jude Dream Home, and Books to Kids.

Atlanta News First generates revenue through three primary streams: traditional television advertising (commercials, sponsorships, segments sold to local and national advertisers), digital advertising across website, mobile, and streaming properties (including programmatic display and sponsored content), and retransmission fees paid by cable and satellite providers for the right to carry WANF programming. The ANF+ subscription service represents an emerging direct-to-consumer revenue stream. The station serves two principal customer segments: Atlanta metropolitan viewers (B2C, seeking local news, weather, sports, and community information) and local and national advertisers (B2B, seeking access to the Atlanta DMA audience). Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed.

Name

Atlanta News First

Legal name

Gray Television, Inc.

Website

https://atlantanewsfirst.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2002

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Atlanta News First (WANF) is a local broadcast television station serving the Atlanta metropolitan area with news, weather, sports, and investigative journalism, owned and operated by publicly traded Gray Television, Inc. (NYSE: GTN).

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Local Television News

NAICS

Television Broadcasting Stations (51612), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (5162)

SIC

Television Broadcasting Stations (4833)

akta.pro primary industry

Rolling News & Breaking News Channels (MPABAIAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

Consumer News & Digital Newsrooms (Web/App-First) (MPAJADAD)

Keywords

• Local broadcast television
• Local news coverage
• Weather forecasting
• Investigative journalism
• Streaming media

Headquarters

HQ city

Atlanta

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Television Advertising: Traditional broadcast television advertising including commercials, sponsorships, and segments sold to local and national advertisers
2. Digital Advertising: Digital advertising across website, mobile apps, and streaming platforms including display ads and sponsored content
3. Retransmission Fees: Fees paid by cable and satellite providers for the right to rebroadcast WANF programming

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Atlanta News First (WANF) is a local broadcast television station serving the Atlanta metropolitan area, producing and distributing local news, weather, sports, traffic, investigative journalism, and lifestyle programming across over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite retransmission, mobile apps, the ANF+ streaming subscription, and the atlantanewsfirst.com website. Content is monetized primarily through television and digital advertising sold to local and national advertisers, supplemented by retransmission fees from pay-TV providers.

Product overview

Atlanta News First (WANF) is a local broadcast television station serving the Atlanta, Georgia metropolitan area with a multi-platform news and entertainment offering. The station operates a 24/7 news website as its core digital product, supplemented by mobile and streaming apps, an investigative journalism unit (ANF Investigates), and sports coverage through the Peachtree Sports Network. Content offerings include weather (First Alert Weather with 3-Degree Guarantee), traffic (First Alert Traffic), podcasts (Atlanta News First Podcast, Aging Better, Behind the Investigation, On the Record, ANF Overtime), lifestyle programming (ATL Live), and community initiatives (Surprise Squad, Movers for Mom, Together We Care, We the People, St. Jude Dream Home). The station also offers a premium streaming subscription service (ANF+) and produces local programming including Aging Untold and Monica Pearson One-on-One.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Peachtree TV: A sub-brand of Atlanta News First offering local programming and entertainment content for the Atlanta market.
• ANF Investigates

Products and services

• WANF Broadcast Television Channel
• Atlanta News First News Website
• Atlanta News First Mobile and Streaming Apps
• ANF+ Streaming Subscription
• First Alert Weather
• ANF Investigates
• Peachtree Sports Network
• Atlanta News First Podcast Network
• ATL Live
• Peachtree TV
• First Alert Traffic
• Television and Digital Advertising

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Gray Television (Parent Company)coreOthersAtlanta News First is owned and operated by Gray Television (Gray Local Media), providing corporate resources, technology infrastructure, advertising sales support, and content sharing across the Gray station network

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• WSB-TV (Channel 2 Atlanta): WSB-TV is the ABC affiliate in the Atlanta DMA, owned by Cox Media Group, and is the longstanding local broadcast news leader in Atlanta. It competes head-to-head with Atlanta News First across breaking news, weather, sports coverage, and Atlanta metro advertising, making it the most directly comparable peer.
• 11Alive (WXIA-TV): 11Alive is the NBC affiliate in the Atlanta DMA, owned by TEGNA, producing local news, weather, and sports for the same audience Atlanta News First targets. It shares overlapping distribution (broadcast, streaming apps, digital) and competes for the same local and national advertiser dollars.
• Fox 5 Atlanta (WAGA-TV): Fox 5 Atlanta is the Fox-owned broadcast affiliate serving the Atlanta DMA with news, weather, and sports programming. It shares the same broadcast-plus-digital monetization model and competes for the same hyperlocal Atlanta audience and advertising market.
• Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC): AJC is the dominant regional digital-first news outlet covering the Atlanta metro, operating paid digital subscriptions and advertising. It competes with Atlanta News First for local Atlanta news audience attention and digital advertising spend, particularly among cord-cutters who do not consume broadcast TV.

Regional players

• Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB): GPB is a statewide public television and radio network that produces and distributes news, educational content, and programming across Georgia. While not a commercial direct competitor, it targets similar Atlanta audiences with local news and operates in the same regional content space with a non-commercial model.

Broad incumbents

• Nexstar Media Group: Nexstar is the largest US television broadcasting operator, running ~200 stations. As a fellow large broadcast group competing for retransmission carriage, advertising inventory, and syndicated content, Nexstar's commercial model and challenges closely mirror those of Atlanta News First's parent Gray Television at scale.
• Sinclair Broadcast Group: Sinclair operates a large portfolio of local TV stations across the US, sharing the broadcast-plus-digital monetization model, retransmission dependence, and national sales scale that characterize Atlanta News First's parent. It is a broad incumbent in the same operating playbook rather than a head-to-head local competitor.
• TEGNA: TEGNA owns and operates a portfolio of local TV stations and digital properties including Atlanta's 11Alive. It shares the broadcast-plus-digital model, retransmission revenue dependence, and a strong emphasis on local journalism, making it a directly comparable incumbent operator across the US station industry.
• Hearst Television: Hearst Television operates a national portfolio of local news and entertainment broadcast stations, sharing the broadcast advertising and retransmission revenue model that defines Atlanta News First's economics. As a fellow diversified broadcast group, it provides a directly comparable benchmark for station-level unit economics.
• Cox Media Group: Cox Media Group owns WSB-TV in the Atlanta DMA and operates other TV stations plus radio and digital advertising businesses. Atlanta News First competes with its Atlanta station directly while sharing a comparable broadcast-plus-digital operating model across Cox's broader portfolio.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCWElIIlFx2JiyI9UVrbrEcw
• Facebookfacebook.com/AtlantaNewsFirst
• Instagraminstagram.com/atlantanewsfirst
• Xx.com/ATLNewsFirst
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/atlantanewsfirst

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Atlanta News First