KCSG
| |
City | Cedar City, Utah |
---|---|
Channels | |
Branding | KCSG 8 (general) KCSG News 8 (newscasts) |
Programming | |
Affiliations |
|
Ownership | |
Owner |
|
History | |
Founded | June 11, 1984 |
First air date | April 23, 1990 |
Former call signs |
|
Former channel number(s) |
|
| |
Call sign meaning | Cedar City St. George |
Technical information[1] | |
Licensing authority | FCC |
Facility ID | 59494 |
ERP | 25 kW |
HAAT | 385 m (1,263 ft) |
Transmitter coordinates | 37°38′21.9″N 113°2′2.8″W / 37.639417°N 113.034111°W |
Links | |
Public license information | |
Website | KCSG page on MeTV website |
KCSG, virtual channel 8 (UHF digital channel 14), is a MeTV owned-and-operated television station licensed to Cedar City, Utah, United States. The station is owned by Weigel Broadcasting. KCSG's studios are located on West 1600 South Street in St. George, and its transmitter is located on Cedar Mountain, southeast of Cedar City. The station has a network of 11 broadcast translators that extend its over-the-air coverage throughout the state. KCSG is also available on DirecTV, Dish Network, Galaxy 19, and cable systems throughout the geographically large Salt Lake City media market.[2]
History
KCSG began as KCCZ, with a construction permit issued on June 11, 1984 to Michael Glenn Golden. After several extensions and replacements of expired permits, and transfer of the permit to Liberty Broadcasting Company, the station first signed on the air on April 23, 1990, operating as an independent station; it was licensed by the Federal Communications Commission on June 21, 1990. However, financial difficulties doomed KCCZ and it shut down in November 1992. Liberty Broadcasting filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 17, 1992, but the filing had to be converted to Chapter 7 bankruptcy on June 22, 1993. On October 20, Seagull Communications Company, whose principals owned KSGI radio (1450 AM, now KZNU, and 99.9 FM, now KONY) in St. George, filed an application to acquire the station out of bankruptcy and on November 12, changed its call letters to KSGI-TV to match the radio stations. The acquisition was approved by the FCC and consummated on February 1, 1994. Seagull Communications returned the station to air the same day, again as an independent station.[3]
Almost immediately, the new owners applied to the FCC to build booster stations serving St. George, Utah and Beaver Dam, Arizona/Mesquite, Nevada, communities cut off from the signal due to the mountainous terrain of those areas. The FCC granted the construction permit for the St. George booster, KSGI1 (later KCSG1), on February 28, 1995, but did not grant a permit for the Beaver Dam booster, KSGI2 (later KCSG2), until January 1998. That station was never built, but the construction permit remained in the FCC database until 2009.
In 1997, Seagull Communications sold KSGI-TV to Bonneville Holding Company, a broadcasting company wholly owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The sale was approved by the FCC on December 10, 1997 and was consummated on April 27, 1998. On February 16, 1998, the station changed its call letters to KXIV, in anticipation of its DTV channel assignment on UHF channel 14, but the FCC adopted the virtual channel standard, whereby digital stations would continue to identify by their analog channel assignment, and on May 15, 1998, the station again changed call letters, this time to KCSG. On August 31, 1998, the station became a charter affiliate of the family-oriented network Pax TV (now Ion Television). In August 2002, KCSG was sold to Broadcast West, a St. George-based partnership of Daniel Matheson and local auto dealer Stephen Wade. The new owners elected to continue the Pax affiliation and to maintain an association with Bonneville-owned KSL-TV (channel 5).[2]
Broadcast West began to make changes to KCSG that would establish its identity as a Southern Utah station. In 2003, the company founded the region's first television news department for the station. Before, the only local news program available to residents of Cedar City and St. George came from Salt Lake City area stations. In June 2005, with Pax TV preparing to adopt a more general entertainment format, KCSG switched its affiliation to America One, continuing to offer family-focused programming. The station made news in September 2005, when it began offering its news programs in Spanish, as well as in English, attempting to serve the region's growing Hispanic population.[4] The Broadcast West partnership was dissolved on October 18, 2005, and a new company, Southwest Media, owned by Stephen Wade, became the licensee.[5]
On August 18, 2008, KCSG replaced Salt Lake City's KJZZ-TV (also on channel 14) as Utah's MyNetworkTV affiliate.[6] The station added programming from the Retro Television Network, which was previously carried in the market by KUSG and KCBU, in 2009.[7] For a time, starting on September 20, 2010, KCSG was one of two MyNetworkTV affiliates serving the geographically large Utah media market, along with KUSG; the affiliation was subsequently ceded completely to the renamed KMYU (channel 12).
On September 5, 2011, KCSG switched its primary affiliation to classic television network MeTV.[8][9] On July 26, 2012, KCSG added FamilyNet to Baja Broadband channel 87.[10] FamilyNet is limited to cable and satellite viewing because of programming restrictions placed on it by the network. Otherwise, FamilyNet would have been added to digital subchannel 14.4.
On September 29, 2014, KCSG switched its affiliation from MeTV to Heroes & Icons, a new network owned by MeTV's parent company (and KCSG's future owner), Weigel Broadcasting, as its first non-owned affiliate. The network mainly carries a format of crime shows and westerns targeted to men from the MeTV acquisition library. MeTV is still available throughout the state via KTVX-DT2.
On July 19, 2017, Weigel (through TV-49, Inc., the licensee of WMLW-TV in Racine, Wisconsin) agreed to acquire the station for $1.1 million.[11] The sale will convert KCSG in a H&I owned-and-operated station, though the possibility of Weigel's other networks being contained to it is also possible. It would also be Weigel's first purchase of any station outside of a state along Lake Michigan, as all of its properties are in Illinois, Wisconsin and Indiana. The sale closed on December 5,[12] with the St. George-related channel contracts voided the week before in order to make it a station only carrying H&I and Decades for the moment.
Digital television
Digital channels
The station's digital signal is multiplexed:
Channel | Video | Aspect | PSIP Short Name | Programming[13] |
---|---|---|---|---|
8.1 | 720p | 16:9 | KCSG-HD | Simulcast of KTVX 4.2 / MeTV |
8.2 | 480i | Decades | Decades | |
8.3 | StartTV | Start TV | ||
8.4 | Heroes | Heroes & Icons |
On January 24, 2011, KCSG began carrying My Family TV programming on digital subchannel 14.2 and local information and music service on digital channel 14.3.[14]
On July 7, 2013, KCSG added FamilyNet to digital subchannel 14.2, moving My Family TV to digital subchannel 14.4.
On November 18, 2013, KCSG removed FamilyNet on digital subchannel 14.2, moving My Family TV back to digital subchannel 14.2.
On March 22, 2014, KCSG re-added FamilyNet to digital subchannel 14.2, moving The Family Channel to digital subchannel 14.4.
On August 21, 2014, KCSG re-removed FamilyNet on digital subchannel 14.2, moving The Family Channel back to digital subchannel 14.2. Also, on August 21, 2014, KCSG added the Southern Utah Live Television Network to digital subchannel 14.4.
On September 29, 2014, KCSG removed MeTV programming on 14.1 and replaced it with Heroes & Icons,[15] moving The Family Channel to digital subchannel 14.3.
On February 24, 2015, KCSG removed Heroes & Icons Movies on digital subchannel 14.2, moving The Family Channel back to digital subchannel 14.2. Also, on February 24, 2015, KCSG removed the Southern Utah Live Television Network on digital subchannel 14.4.
On September 21, 2015, KCSG temporarily removed The Family Channel on digital subchannel 14.2.
On September 30, 2015, KCSG re-added The Family Channel on digital subchannel 14.2.
On May 30, 2016, KCSG removed The Family Channel on digital subchannel 14.2.
On June 6, 2016, KCSG added TUFF TV on digital subchannel 14.2.
On July 12, 2016, KCSG temporarily removed TUFF TV on digital subchannel 14.2 and temporarily replaced it with The Action Channel.
On July 21, 2016, KCSG removed The Action Channel on digital subchannel 14.2 and replaced it back with TUFF TV.
On August 19, 2016, KCSG added AMGTV on digital subchannel 14.3.
On August 24, 2016, KCSG removed TUFF TV on digital subchannel 14.2, moving AMGTV to digital subchannel 14.2.
On December 9, 2016, KCSG temporarily removed AMGTV on digital subchannel 14.2.
On December 23, 2016, KCSG re-added AMGTV on digital subchannel 14.2.
On December 30, 2016, KCSG completed their switch from Channel 16 to Channel 8 over the air.[16]
On April 20, 2017, KCSG removed AMGTV on digital subchannel 14.2.
On May 5, 2017, KCSG added Back Country TV on digital subchannel 14.4.
On November 27, 2017, KCSG removed St George Homes and Leisure on digital subchannel 14.2, St George News on digital subchannel 14.3, and Back Country TV on digital subchannel 14.4. KCSG moved Heroes & Icons from digital subchannel 14.1 to digital subchannel 14.3. KCSG added Decades to digital subchannel 14.4.
On March 15, 2018, KCSG switched from 480i to 720p on digital subchannel 14.1, Heroes & Icons.
On September 3, 2018, KCSG added Start TV on digital subchannel 14.3.
On November 12, 2018, KCSG added Heroes & Icons on digital subchannel 14.4.
On November 15, 2018, KCSG removed Heroes & Icons on digital subchannel 14.1 and replaced it with a simulcast of KTVX 4.2 / MeTV.
Analog-to-digital conversion
KCSG shut down its analog signal, over VHF channel 4, on June 12, 2009, as part of the federally mandated transition from analog to digital television.[17] The station's digital signal broadcasts on its pre-transition UHF channel 14.
News operation
KCSG was the first television station in southern Utah to produce local newscasts for the region. Until KCSG started its news department, St. George residents received local newscasts from stations in Salt Lake City; indeed, KCSG itself simulcast KSL-TV's morning newscast for a time under Bonneville ownership.[18] The station's news operation began in 2003 with a five-minute newscast; this subsequently expanded to half-hour newscasts at 5:30 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. KCSG discontinued its newscasts on February 19, 2010; the station still broadcasts news updates and still places news stories on its website.[19][20]
After a six-month hiatus, full-scale newscasts were reinstated on August 23, 2010, with the early evening newscast now airing at 6:30 p.m., in addition to the 9 p.m. newscast. KCSG previously announced a partnership with Dixie State College of Utah.[21] In late August 2011, KCSG began rebroadcasting the first half-hour of Even though Bonneville no longer owns the station, KSL-TV's 6 p.m. newscast continues to be rebroadcast at 7 p.m., and its 6:30 p.m. newscast re-airs at 9 p.m. Both newscasts are titled KSL Live 5 News on KCSG.
Sports programming
On August 4, 2011, Utah State University announced that it had partnered with KCSG to show select football and men's and women's basketball games on the station.[22][23]
The St. George Marathon, the City of St. George First Night and the Huntsman World Senior Games are broadcast on KCSG.
Translators
KCSG extends its over-the-air coverage throughout southwestern Utah and, more recently with Weigel's 2020 purchase of translators, into the Wasatch Front and northern Utah.
References
- ^ "Facility Technical Data for KCSG". Licensing and Management System. Federal Communications Commission.
- ^ a b "About Us". KCSG.com. Retrieved June 18, 2009.
- ^ "FCC Memorandum Opinion and Order". FCC CDBS database. December 5, 1997. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
- ^ Perkins, Nancy (September 21, 2005). "St. George station's news popular in English, Spanish". Deseret Morning News. Archived from the original on March 30, 2009. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
- ^ "License Renewal: Public Inspection File attachment". FCC CDBS database. May 31, 2006. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
- ^ Malone, Michael (July 21, 2008). "KCSG Salt Lake City Grabs MNT Affiliation". Broadcasting & Cable. Retrieved July 22, 2008.
- ^ Miller, Mark K. (July 23, 2009). "New Deals Put RTV Near 89% Coverage". TVNewsCheck. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
- ^ (ME-TV) Comes to KCSG Television September 5th Archived 2011-09-28 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved August 11, 2011
- ^ KCSG Launches Classic Television Station Archived 2012-03-30 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Family Net Television Joins KCSG Archived 2012-11-15 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved July 26, 2012
- ^ Application for consent to Assignment of Broadcast Station Construction Permit or License - Federal Communications Commission
- ^ "Consummation Notice". Federal Communications Commission. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2017.
- ^ RabbitEars TV Query for KCSG
- ^ Morgan Skinne (January 24, 2011). "KCSG Television Adds Two Digital "Over-the-air" Channels in Southern Utah". KCSG. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved January 24, 2011.
- ^ "KCSG-TV Launches Its New, Exclusive Network with Family Friendly Programming – Heroes and Icons". 2014-10-04. Archived from the original on 2014-10-06. Retrieved 2014-10-04.
- ^ KCSG plans renewed push to build local identity Retrieved December 30, 2016
- ^ List of Digital Full-Power Stations Archived 2013-08-29 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Programming". KCSG Television. Archived from the original on January 27, 2000. Retrieved March 28, 2010.
- ^ "KCSG Television Announces News Format Change". KCSG. February 20, 2010. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved February 20, 2010.
- ^ "KCSG nightly news goes dark". Casie Forbes, Editor for the Dixie Sun. February 22, 2010. Retrieved February 22, 2010.
- ^ "Dixie State College and KCSG Television Announce Partnership". 2010. Archived from the original on November 27, 2010. Retrieved August 30, 2010.
- ^ "Utah State Football and Basketball Games Will Be Broadcast on KCSG Television Beginning This Fall". 2011-08-04. Retrieved 2011-08-04.
- ^ "KCSG Television to Broadcast USU Aggie Football and Basketball". 2011-08-04. Archived from the original on 2011-09-28. Retrieved 2011-08-04.
External links
- Television stations in Utah
- Television channels and stations established in 1990
- 1990 establishments in Utah
- Companies that have filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy
- Companies that filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 1992
- MeTV affiliates
- Heroes & Icons affiliates
- Decades (TV network) affiliates
- Start TV affiliates
- Weigel Broadcasting