KXAN-TV
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KXAN-TV, channel 36, is an NBC-affiliated television station located in Austin, Texas. KXAN-TV is owned by LIN TV Corporation, and is a sister station of CW Television Network affiliate KNVA (channel 54). The station's studios are located near the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, and its transmitter is located on the West Austin Antenna Farm.
KXAN also operates a semi-satellite station, KXAM-TV (channel 14) in Llano, Texas. KXAM simulcasts KXAN programs and places local inserts into KXAN's newscasts. The station is based out of KXAN's bureau in Llano.
History
What is now KXAN-TV first went on the air on February 12, 1965 as KHFI-TV on channel 42, owned by the Kingsbury family, along with KHFI radio. KHFI was the second television station in Austin, signing on a little more than twelve years after KTBC-TV (channel 7). Upon signing on, KHFI took an affiliation with NBC; the network had been sharing time on KTBC-TV along with CBS (its main network partner) and ABC (also as a secondary affiliate). The Kingsburys would later bring in Henry Tippie as a partner and, in 1973, were granted Federal Communications Commission permission to move KHFI-TV to channel 36, With the channel change came a new set of call letters, KTVV. What was then known as LIN Broadcasting purchased the station in 1979; the new owners changed the callsign to the current KXAN-TV in 1987.
KXAN has always been an NBC affiliate, and is one of two stations in Austin (the other being KVUE-TV) to retain its original network affiliation in the wake of a network swap between KTBC and Fox station KBVO (now KEYE-TV, the new channel 42) in 1995.
KXAN is the Austin broadcast television home of the San Antonio Spurs, sharing coverage with sister station KNVA.
KXAN's transmitter is located in the West Austin Antenna Farm. The current tower, built in 1996, replaced an older tower that dated to 1964. Of the fifteen towers on the hill, KXAN's is the tallest; it is also the tallest structure in Austin.
In addition to its transmission antenna, the mast also incorporates a camera with views of downtown to the east and the hills to the west.
The tower for KXAM is located approximately eight miles southeast of Llano, near the intersection of State Route 71 and Llano County Road 307.
Contract Disputes
Suddenlink Communications
KXAN-TV and LIN TV were locked into a contract dispute with Suddenlink Communications, which serves portions of the Austin designated market area, such as Pflugerville and Georgetown. The dispute centered around KXAN's failure to grant retransmission consent to Suddenlink.
The previous contract expired on December 31, 2007, and KXAN-TV was removed from the Suddenlink lineup. KXAN claimed that it was seeking "fair value" for its programming; however, a press release from Suddenlink management indicated that the dispute included consideration for other stations owned by LIN TV outside of Texas.[1]
Beginning on January 3, 2008, Suddenlink began transmitting the signal of Temple-based NBC affiliate KCEN-TV to restore the network's programming to the areas affected. This is allowed under FCC rules because KCEN is a "significantly-viewed" station in Williamson County, even though that county is located in the Austin market.
On March 24, 2008, the dispute was settled between Suddenlink and KXAN, and channel 36 programming was restored to Suddenlink viewers on the following day. The terms of the settlement were not announced, though it is widely believed that KXAN had lost thousands of viewers.
Despite its cable carriage problems, KXAN surprised many observers by placing first in the 5:00 to 7:00 a.m. time period during the May 2008 sweeps period. [2]
Time Warner Cable
KXAN-TV and LIN TV are now locked in another contract dispute with Time Warner Cable, which serves a very large majority of the Austin metropolitan area. LIN TV ceased transmissions on Time Warner Cable systems nationwide at midnight (12:00 A.M. central daylight time) on Friday October 3, 2008.[3] Free over-the-air stations such as KXAN have long allowed cable companies to carry their signal for free. Cable networks are paid as much as 10 cents per day per customer for their content, and LIN TV wants Time Warner to pay them less than one cent per cable customer per day. The general manager for KXAN, Eric Lassberg, has stated that the cable company "doesn't have to pass that cost along to the viewers unless they want to." [4]
On October 3, Time Warner replaced KXAN with a continuous loop message, informing viewers that "by refusing us an extension, LIN TV pulled KXAN from Time Warner Cable."[5]; this has since been replaced by Starz Kids and Family channel.
Current personalities
- Anchors
- Robert Hadlock - Weeknights
- Sally Hernandez - Weekday Mornings & Afternoons
- Jenny Hoff - Weekend Mornings
- Ellen McNamara - Weekday Mornings Traffic Reporter
- Leslie Rhode - Weeknights
- David Scott - Weekend Evenings
- Chris Willis - Weekday Mornings & Afternoons
- Reporters
- Erin Cargile
- Carla Castano
- Matt Flener
- Robert Garcia
- Candra McGee
- Shannon Powell
- Stephanie Serna
- Jim Swift
- Kate Weidaw
- Shannon Wolfson
- Weather
- Mary Lee - Weekend Mornings
- Shawn Rutherford - Weekday Mornings & Afternoons
- Laura Skirde - Weekend Evenings
- Jim Spencer - Weeknights/Chief Meteorologist
- Sports
- Leila Rahimi - Weekend Anchor/Reporter
- Brian Sanders - Weekend Anchor/Reporter
- Roger Wallace - Weeknight Anchor/Sports Director
News/Station Presentation
Newscast Titles
- KHFI-TV News (1965-1973)
- Eyewitness News (1973-early 1980's)
- News 36 (mid 1980s)
- KXAN News 36 (1996-2005)
- KXAN News (2005-2007)
- KXAN Austin News (2007-present)
External links
References
- ^ Holloway, Diane. "The Spat: KXAN now gone from Suddenlink Cable". Austin American-Statesman.
- ^ Holloway, Diane. "Morning news in Austin gets a different look". Austin American-Statesman.
- ^ "KXAN may be yanked from local Time Warner lineup". Austin Business Journal. 2008-09-15. Retrieved 2008-09-28.
- ^ Holloway, Diane (2008-10-01). "Unless a retransmission agreement is reached by midnight Thursday, KXAN and NBC programming will disappear from Time Warner Cable in Austin". The Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved 2008-10-01.
- ^ [1]