KTWO-TV

KTWO-TV
Casper, Wyoming
United States
Branding K2TV
K2 News
Slogan Wyoming's News Leader
Channels Digital: 17 (UHF)
Virtual: 2 (PSIP)
Translators see below
Affiliations ABC (1978–1984, 2004–present; secondary, 1957–1978)
Owner Silverton Broadcasting Company, LLC
First air date March 1, 1957 (1957-03-01)[1]
Call letters' meaning from former radio sister KTWO, also refers to PSIP channel position
Former channel number(s) Analog:
2 (VHF, 1957–2009)
Former affiliations CBS (1957–1980; secondary from 1978)
NBC (1957–2003; secondary until 1984)
Independent (2003–2004)
The WB (secondary, 1995–1998)
Pax TV (secondary, 2003–2004)
Transmitter power 52.9 kW
Height 560 m (1,837 ft)
Facility ID 18286
Transmitter coordinates 42°44′26″N 106°21′36″W / 42.74056°N 106.36000°W / 42.74056; -106.36000
Licensing authority FCC
Public license information: Profile
CDBS
Website www.k2tv.com

KTWO-TV is an ABC-affiliated television station licensed to Casper, Wyoming, United States. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on UHF channel 17 (or virtual channel 2 via PSIP) from a transmitter atop Casper Mountain. Owned by Silverton Broadcasting, the station maintains studios on Skyview Drive in Casper.

KTWO-TV is also available on channel 6 on Charter Spectrum cable in Casper, as well as on the digital subcarrier of Cheyenne-based Fox affiliate KLWY (channel 27) and a network of UHF and VHF translators across the state. It had also been available on a free-to-air satellite uplink (as with all of Equity's stations, hubbed out of Little Rock, Arkansas and sent to the transmitter via FTA satellite) until Equity went bankrupt and the satellite was sold.

History

KTWO signed on the air on March 1, 1957 as Wyoming's second television station. It was owned by Harriscope Broadcasting with Wyoming's oldest radio station, KTWO (1030 AM). As the only station in Casper, it aired programming from all three major networks, but was a primary CBS affiliate owing to its radio sister's long affiliation with CBS Radio. In 1978, KTWO-TV became a primary ABC affiliate; this was around the same time that ABC became the nation's highest rated network. In 1980, the CBS affiliation went to KGWC-TV (channel 14), and KTWO became an ABC affiliate with a secondary NBC affiliation. In 1984, KFNB (channel 20) began carrying ABC, leaving KTWO with NBC. Harriscope Broadcasting sold KTWO along with sister station KULR-TV in Billings, Montana to Dix Communications in 1986. On August 28, 1987, KKTU signed on channel 33 as KTWO's satellite station in Cheyenne. In 1994, Dix sold KTWO and KAAL-TV in Austin, Minnesota to Eastern Broadcasting. For a time starting in 1995, KTWO and KKTU had a secondary affiliation with The WB.[2] Eastern sold KTWO along with two of its stations (KAAL-TV in Austin, Minnesota and KODE-TV in Joplin, Missouri) to Grapevine Communications in 1997. Equity Broadcasting bought the station in March 2001.

From inception, KTWO's programming originated from a studio on East Second Street in Casper. Its lone presence on the east side of Casper continued for many years until major retail development occurred in the early 1980s. Its present location shares operations with KFNB, KWYF, and KGWC on Skyview Drive.

Affiliation transition from NBC to ABC

On September 1, 2003, NBC moved its affiliation from KTWO to KCWY. KTWO was planning on becoming an ABC affiliate before a change of ownership, but it had to wait until ABC's affiliation with KFNB expired in June 2004. During the interim period, KTWO operated as an independent station, but carried programming from Pax TV (now Ion Television).

KKTU, the Cheyenne satellite of KTWO, immediately switched from NBC to ABC and began branding itself as "ABC 8", after its position on the Cheyenne cable system. After reaching an agreement with KTWO, KFNB agreed to end its ABC affiliation early. In March 2004, KTWO officially became an ABC affiliate, KFNB obtained the Fox affiliation from K26ES (now MyNetworkTV affiliate KWYF-LD, channel 27) and K26ES became an affiliate of UPN. KKTU changed its call sign to KDEV in 2005.

On May 31, 2006, Equity Broadcasting sold KTWO to Silverton Media, headed by Barry Silverton. Equity retained ownership of KDEV and allowed KTWO to continue to operate it.

KTWO later moved its ABC programming in Cheyenne to a low-powered repeater, KKTU-LP channel 40, after KDEV dropped ABC in favor of programming from RTN. On June 24, 2008, KKTU-LP changed its call letters to KDEV-LP, after KDEV changed its call sign to KQCK.

In September 2009, KDEV dropped all ABC programming, and KTWO-TV signed on a new low-powered satellite in Cheyenne, KKTQ-LD, in September 2010. Its programming airs on KLWY's digital subcarrier. However, it airs separate identifications and commercials.

In July 2005, KTWO was added to the Dish Network line up of channels for customers in the Casper/Riverton designated market area. On January 1, 2012, KTWO, KFNB (by then a Fox affiliate and satellite of Cheyenne's KLWY) and KGWC were dropped from Dish Network after failing to come to an agreement on a new contract. KCWY and Wyoming PBS flagship KCWC-TV were unaffected by this dispute. The signals were restored by Dish Network on May 1, 2012.

Silverton Broadcasting agreed to sell KTWO-TV to Legacy Broadcasting on February 8, 2018. The deal would have created a duopoly with KFNB, which Legacy would have concurrently acquired from Wyomedia Corporation; in its filing with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Legacy stated that the duopoly was permissible because KFNB is the fifth-ranked station in the Casper–Riverton market.[3] The sale was canceled in October 2018.[4]

Notable former on-air staff

Translators

References

  1. ↑ The Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook says March 1, while the Television and Cable Factbook says March 8.
  2. ↑ Smith, Doug (November 1995). "TV News" (PDF). VHF-UHF Digest. pp. 11, 13. Retrieved April 18, 2015.
  3. ↑ "Application for Consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. February 12, 2018. Retrieved February 13, 2018.
  4. ↑ "Notification of Non-consummation". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. October 5, 2018. Retrieved October 9, 2018.
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