KTFK-DT
KTFK-DT, virtual channel 64 (UHF digital channel 26), is a UniMás owned-and-operated television station serving Sacramento, California, United States that is licensed to Stockton. The station is owned by the Univision Local Media subsidiary of Univision Communications, as part of a duopoly with Modesto-licensed Univision owned-and-operated station KUVS-DT, channel 19 (and its Sacramento-licensed translator KEZT-CD, channel 23). The two stations share studios on Arden Way near Cal Expo in Sacramento; KTFK's transmitter is located near Walnut Grove.
 | |
| Stockton–Sacramento–Modesto, California United States | |
|---|---|
| City | Stockton, California |
| Branding | UniMás 64 |
| Channels | Digital: 26 (UHF) Virtual: 64 (PSIP) |
| Translators | KUVS-DT 64.2 (18.2 UHF) Modesto KEZT-CD 23.2 (UHF) Sacramento |
| Affiliations | 19.2: Univision (O&O) 64.1: UniMás (O&O) 64.3: GetTV 64.4: Grit |
| Owner | Univision Communications |
| Licensee | UniMas Sacramento LLC |
| First air date | November 12, 1987 |
| Call sign meaning | TeleFutura K |
| Sister station(s) | KUVS-DT KEZT-CD |
| Former call signs | KFTL (1987–2004) |
| Former channel number(s) | Analog: 64 (UHF, 1987–2009) Digital: 62 (UHF, until 2009) |
| Former affiliations | Independent (1987–2004) TeleFutura (2004–2013) |
| Transmitter power | 850 kW |
| Height | 595 m (1,952 ft) |
| Facility ID | 20871 |
| Transmitter coordinates | 38°14′24″N 121°30′7″W |
| Licensing authority | FCC |
| Public license information | Profile CDBS |
| Website | UniMás |
History
The station first signed on the air on November 12, 1987 as KFTL, operating as an independent station; it was founded and owned by Family Radio, a non-profit organization headed by Harold Camping that runs traditional non-commercial Christian radio stations and over the years taught conservative Calvinistic reformed Christian theology.
Because of the lack of available programming from the syndication market that complies with Family Radio's programming philosophy, KFTL instead ran religious programming about six hours a day, with programming from the Home Shopping Network filling the remainder of the schedule.
In the late 1990s, it began running a few hours of public domain movies and sitcoms each day. Family Radio never grew into television as planned; as a result, the organization sold KFTL in 2003 to Univision Communications, which turned it into a Spanish-language station as an owned-and-operated station of Telefutura (which was relaunched as UniMás in January 2013). The station also modified its call letters to KTFK.
Family Radio later bought a San Francisco low-power station, K30BI, which now carries the call letters KCNZ-CD. Initially, KCNZ-CD was reprogrammed and carried similar programming to what aired on the former KFTL.
Digital television
Digital channels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
| Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[1] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19.2 | 1080i | 16:9 | KUVS.2 | Univision (simulcast of KUVS-DT) |
| 64.1 | KTFK-DT | Main KTFK-DT programming / UniMás | ||
| 64.3 | 480i | 4:3 | KTFK.3 | GetTV |
| 64.4 | 16:9 | KTFK.4 | Grit |
Analog-to-digital conversion
KTFK-TV ended transmission of analog television over UHF channel 64 on May 8, 2009, due to equipment failure, and informed the FCC there was insufficient time before the June 12 shutoff to do repairs.[2] Although losing its analog transmitter, KTFK continued digital broadcasting on its transitional digital channel 62, until the June 12 cutoff. On June 13, 2009 it began broadcasting on its permanent DTV channel, UHF channel 26.[3]
As part of the analog-to-digital transition, KTFK-TV moved its broadcast location from an antenna on Mount Diablo, which it shared with KTNC-TV, to an antenna on the KXTV/KOVR candelabra in Walnut Grove. This move was necessary because transmissions from Mount Diablo can be received in both the San Francisco and Sacramento markets, and there were no channels remaining for KTFK to use that would be free of interference in both markets. Moving broadcasting to Walnut Grove prevented potential interference with San Francisco Bay Area stations.[4]
Newscasts
Sister station KUVS-DT formerly produced an hour-long extension of its morning newscast, but this has since been dropped.