By admin 
RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) – Nexstar station WNCN/CBS 17 is excited to announce the launch of “Wake Up Carolina,” a new morning newscast airing weekdays from 4:30 a.m. to 7 a.m., starting Monday, August 24.
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Anchor Greg Funderburg and Meteorologist Rachel Duensing will guide you through the morning with everything you need to know to start the day.
“In the current local news landscape, we saw an opportunity to do something different,” said Derek Rowles, CBS 17 News Director. “We will stay loyal to our ‘Local News That Matters’ brand, covering overnight breaking news, big stories, and severe weather, but we will also inject more personality, more fun, and more positive news that highlights the community we live in and care so much about. We hope viewers will choose to wake up to something different and wake up with us.”
Greg Funderburg joined CBS 17 in January 2024 as a weekend evening anchor and weekday reporter. He moved to the morning news in mid-July. Since arriving in the Triangle, Greg has covered many of the biggest stories, including Hurricane Helene and the recent Carolina Hurricanes Stanley Cup Championship and Parade. He is also embedded in the community and often featured during the station’s Friday Night on White coverage in Wake Forest.
Rachel Duensing joined the CBS 17 Storm Team in June 2021 as part of the weekday 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. newscasts. Rachel moved to the morning news in December 2025. She has been part of major severe weather coverage in the area, including extended live on-air coverage during Tropical Storm Debby, and tracking the EF-3 tornado live on-air as it hit Rocky Mount in 2024, during Hurricane Helene.
CBS 17 is also expanding the morning block with a new one-hour live podcast-style morning show. “Wake Up Later Carolina” will air weekdays from 7 a.m. to 8 a.m. on the station’s streaming app CBS 17 Plus, starting Monday, August 24.
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The show will be hosted by former morning anchor and current Noon anchor Bill Young, morning reporter Judith Retana, and streaming producer John Lowe. The show will also feature a variety of guests.
“We are constantly adding original streaming content to CBS 17 Plus, and ‘Wake Up Later Carolina’ is just the latest addition,” said Rowles. “This will be a light and fun show where pretty much everything and anything will be discussed, from viral videos, to trending topics, to dramatic sports moments, to big stories that impact everyone.”
“Wake Up Later Carolina” is part of a larger effort by Nexstar Media Group to produce more local content beyond broadcast for audiences wherever they are. CBS 17 currently producers nearly 15 hours a week of original content for CBS 17 Plus, including several shows that also air on CBS 17 on weekends.
Carolina Cold, a true-crime podcast, airs on Saturday and Sunday at 11:30 p.m. Sunday morning features Off the Radar, a topical weather podcast, at 6 a.m. Rated G, a podcast that features uplifting and inspiring local stories and interviews, airs at 8 a.m., and Local Matters, a podcast focused mostly on big political stories and hosted by veteran CBS 17 political anchor and reporter Russ Bowen, airs at 8:30 a.m. Other streaming shows that are growing in popularity include: The Surge (Carolina Hurricanes show which will return in September), The Conference Room (ACC Sports), Triangle After Dark (Triangle Nightlife), Job Alert (Employment), Health Now (Trending Health Topics), On the Radar LIVE (Daily Weather).
WNCN-TV (CBS 17) produces over 40 hours of local news and content weekly in the Raleigh-Durham-Fayetteville television market and is owned by Nexstar Media Group, Inc.
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