KGBT-TV

KGBT-TV, virtual channel 4.2 (UHF digital channel 31), is a TBD owned-and-operated television station licensed to Harlingen, Texas, United States and serving the Rio Grande Valley metropolitan area. The station is owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group. KGBT-TV's studios are located on West Expressway (I-2/US 83) in Harlingen, and its transmitter is located in La Feria in Cameron County. On satellite, the station is available on DirecTV and Dish Network channel 4.

KGBT-TV
Harlingen/McAllen/Brownsville, Texas
United States
CityHarlingen, Texas
ChannelsDigital: 31 (UHF)
(to move to 18 (UHF))
Virtual: 4.2 (PSIP)
Affiliations4.2: TBD (O&O)
4.3: Comet TV (O&O)
4.4: Estrella TV
4.5: Grit
4.6: Court TV Mystery
OwnerSinclair Broadcast Group
LicenseeKGBT Licensee, LLC
First air dateOctober 4, 1953 (1953-10-04)
Call sign meaningGenevieve Beryl Tichenor
(wife of founding owner McHenry Tichenor)
Sister station(s)cable: Fox Sports Southwest[1]
Former channel number(s)Analog:
4 (VHF, 1953–2009)
Former affiliations
Transmitter power1,000 kW
345 kW (CP)
Height368 m (1,207 ft)
460 m (1,509 ft) (CP)
Facility ID34457
Transmitter coordinates26°8′56.8″N 97°49′19.2″W
Licensing authorityFCC
Public license informationProfile
CDBS

History

KGBT-TV's roots lie in the 1941 establishment of KGBT radio, an independent radio station with a staff of eleven people. The station was owned by the Harbenito Broadcasting Company. KGBT became an affiliate of the CBS Radio Network in 1943.[2]

KGBT-TV signed on in 1953 as a CBS Television affiliate, mirroring its radio cousin. KGBT-TV was founded by Tichenor Media System, Inc., a regional conglomerate of Spanish-language radio stations. Tichenor owned the KGBT radio station until 2003 when the company merged with Univision Communications.

Before 1976, KGBT shared ABC programming with NBC affiliate KRGV-TV. When KRGV-TV became an ABC affiliate, KGBT-TV took on a secondary NBC affiliation until 1981 when KVEO-TV signed on. In 1986, Tichenor decided to exit the English-language broadcasting market by selling KGBT-TV to the Draper Holdings Business Trust, the owner of WBOC-TV in Salisbury, Maryland. In 1998, Draper sold KGBT-TV to Cosmos Broadcasting, the broadcasting division of the Liberty Corporation. Cosmos came directly under the Liberty banner in 2001 when Liberty sold off its insurance business. Liberty merged with Raycom Media in 2006. In August of that year, KGBT-TV was sold again to Barrington Broadcasting.

In 2013, Barrington sold KGBT-TV to the Sinclair Broadcast Group as part of a larger deal which involved 18 television stations. The sale was completed on November 25.[3][4]

Last logo as a CBS affiliate, used until 2020.

On January 27, 2020, Sinclair announced that it would sell WDKY-TV in Lexington, Kentucky and the non-license assets of KGBT (including its CBS affiliation and syndication contracts) to Nexstar Media Group as part of a settlement between the two companies over Sinclair's failed acquisition of Tribune Media, which was ultimately acquired by Nexstar.[5] KVEO-TV assumed the CBS affiliation on 23.2 the next day, thus bringing an end to KGBT's affiliation with CBS after 66 years; the .1 subchannel is now inactive, but the station's other subchannels are still in operation.

Digital television

Digital channels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed. Currently, the .1 primary channel is not active:

Channel Video Aspect PSIP short name Programming [6]
4.2480i16:9KGBT4.2TBD
4.3KGBT4.3Comet TV
4.4EstEstrella TV
4.5EscapeCourt TV Mystery
4.6GritGrit

KGBT's broadcasts became digital-only, effective June 12, 2009.[7]

Specialty programming

KGBT produces annual telethons to benefit children's hospitals. The station has also produced local segments for the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Labor Day Telethon.

News operation

24/7 Weather Lab

KGBT-TV was the first news station in the metropolitan area with its own live weather radar, which was called "Live Super Doppler." KGBT-TV broadcast a 24-hour weather station, which provided updated local forecasts.

On April 29, 2008, KGBT-TV's 43-year veteran weatherman, Larry James, retired. James was a veteran of the station's "glory days" during the late 1960s and 1970s when the station produced the top-rated newscast in the Rio Grande Valley.

"Sports Extra"

KGBT-TV formerly aired "Sports Extra", an extended sports segment that aired during the 10 p.m. newscasts on Fridays and Sundays. The main focus of the Friday segment was local high school football games, while the Sunday edition provideed the highlights of high school, college and professional football, and generally featured a panel of local sports writers and sports talk radio personalities, who break down high school football games and provide analysis.

Prior to the start of the high school football season, KGBT produced Action 4 Sports: Countdown to Kickoff. The hour-long special briefly previewd each team in the Rio Grande Valley. As of September 2008, "Sunday Sports Extra" is in association with 956 Sports. 956sports.com provides commentators who share their input and provide analysis.

Former on-air staff

References
  1. Miller, Mark K. (August 23, 2019). "Sinclair Closes $10.6B Disney RSN Purchase". TVNewsCheck. NewsCheckMedia. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  2. "Columbia Network Programs Signed Up By KGBS Now: Harlingen Station To Go On Chain". Brownsville Herald. August 18, 1943. p. 1. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  3. Malone, Michael (February 28, 2013). "Sinclair's Chesapeake TV Acquires Barrington Stations". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved March 1, 2013.
  4. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2013-12-03. Retrieved 2013-11-25.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. Eggerton, John. "Sinclair Pays Nexstar $60M, Some Assets, to Settle Tribune Suit". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved 2020-01-28.
  6. "RabbitEars.Info". www.rabbitears.info.
  7. http://hraunfoss.fcc.gov/edocs_public/attachmatch/FCC-07-138A2.pdf
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