KJCT-LP

KJCT-LP, virtual channel 8 (UHF digital channel 20), is a low-powered dual ABC/CW+-affiliated television station licensed to Grand Junction, Colorado, United States and serving Colorado's Western Slope region. Owned by Gray Television, it is a sister station to NBC affiliate KKCO (channel 11). The two stations share studios on Blichmann Avenue in Grand Junction; KJCT-LP's transmitter is located at the Mesa Point Electronics Site on the Grand Mesa (southeast of I-70). The station can also be seen on Charter Spectrum channel 10, and on high definition on digital channel 510.

KJCT-LP
Grand Junction, Colorado
United States
ChannelsDigital: 20 (UHF)
Virtual: 8 (PSIP)
BrandingKJCT 8 (general)
KJCT News 8 (newscasts)
Western Colorado CW 13 (on LP2)
SloganWhere the News Comes First
Programming
Affiliations8.1: ABC (2014–present)
8.2: CW+
8.3: Ion Television
Ownership
OwnerGray Television
(Gray Television Licensee, LLC)
KKCO, KKTV
History
FoundedAugust 16, 2005
First air date
2006 (2006)
Former call signs
K20IN (2005-2006)
KKHD-LP (2006–2015)
Telemundo (2006–2014)
Call sign meaning
Grand JunCTion
Technical information
Licensing authority
FCC
Facility ID128473
ERP15 kW
HAAT922 m (3,025 ft)
Transmitter coordinates39°2′54.9″N 108°15′8.2″W
Translator(s)K28AD-D 28 (UHF) Montrose
Links
Public license information
Profile
LMS
Websitewww.kjct8.com

KJCT-LP's signal is relayed on K28AD-D in Montrose, which has operated from Storm King Mountain since it launched in September 1982, along with 13 analog and eight digital translators across central and northwestern Colorado.

History

Intellectual unit

The KJCT-LP intellectual unit originated on October 22, 1979, when KJCT (channel 8) signed on as the first television station in Western Colorado since KREX-TV (channel 5) in 1954. It was owned by the Pikes Peak Broadcasting Company as a semi-satellite of fellow ABC affiliate KRDO-TV in Colorado Springs. Before KJCT's sign-on, all three major networks had been shoehorned on KREX-TV. However, cable viewers could watch the full ABC schedule on Denver's KBTV (channel 9, now KUSA).

The station had full production facilities in Grand Junction; however, much of the programming was fed via hundreds of miles of microwave links from KRDO. In the late 1990s, KJCT chief engineer Roger Hightower modernized KJCT into one of the first true digital facilities in Colorado, and severed the electronic umbilical cord with KRDO.

KJCT was the first Western Colorado television station with modern electronic news gathering technology. "8 Live," the station's first live microwave newsvan, came into service in 1984.

In 2006, News-Press & Gazette Company announced the purchase of KJCT along with KRDO-TV and KRDO radio from Pikes Peak Broadcasting.[1]

In late 2008, KJCT's third digital subcarrier became western Colorado's affiliate for The CW. However, despite The CW being available locally, Denver's KWGN-TV, which has been on cable for decades in Grand Junction, is still available through two low-powered repeaters in the area.

On August 2, 2013, News Press & Gazette announced the sale of KJCT's license assets to Excalibur Broadcasting and its non-license assets to Gray Television; Excalibur is owned by former Gray executive, Don Ray. Gray planned to operate the station through joint sales and shared services agreements, making KJCT a sister station to KKCO.[2][3] The sale was completed on October 31.[4] This was NPG's first broadcast divestiture since the sale of its original group of five stations to New Vision Television in 1993.

In the wake of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)'s increased scrutiny towards virtual duopolies, Gray announced that it would move KJCT's programming to a subchannel of KKCO, and sell KJCT to a minority owned broadcaster, which will operate the station autonomously from KKCO or any other broadcaster.[5] On August 27, 2014, Gray announced that it would sell KJCT to Jeff Chang and Gabriela Gomez-Chang, owner of KQSL.[6] The new owners would change KJCT's call letters to KGBY.[7][8] On October 21, 2014, the FCC approved a swap of virtual channels between KJCT/KGBY and a co-owned low-power station in Grand Junction, KKHD-LP (channel 20), that Gray was in the process of acquiring; as a result, KGBY, following the sale, uses PSIP to map to virtual channel 20, while KKHD inherited virtual channel 8, as well as KJCT's ABC programming. The swap is intended to reduce viewer confusion that would otherwise result from a move of ABC programming.[9] The sale of the original KJCT's license assets was completed on December 15.[10]

KJCT is currently the last station that uses the “Counterpoint” music package from Stephen Arnold.[11]

License

The current license for KJCT-LP originated on August 16, 2005, when the FCC granted a construction permit to Paul Varecha for a low-power television station on channel 20;[12][13] the station was originally issued the call sign K20IN, but changed to KKHD-LP on April 3, 2006.[14] The station filed for its license to cover the permit on September 1, 2006[15] and was granted it on December 17.[16] That October, Varecha sold KKHD, which had affiliated with Telemundo, and KXHD-LP (channel 36) in Montrose to News-Press and Gazette Company for $675,000;[17] the deal was completed on January 2, 2007.[18] KXHD was previously K07IU (channel 7),[19] a translator for Fox affiliate KFQX (channel 4),[20] which moved to channel 36 (as K36HJ[19]) in March 2006 after being displaced by the digital signal of eventual sister station KJCT;[21][22][23] shortly thereafter, Varecha bought K36HJ from Professional Antenna, Tower and Translator Service for $15,000[24][25] and changed its call letters to KXHD-LP.[19] On April 26, 2010, KKHD was granted a construction permit to flash cut to digital.[26][27]

KKHD-LP and KXHD-LP (the latter of which had joined KKHD in carrying Telemundo programming) were included in Excalibur Broadcasting's 2013 purchase of KJCT from NPG.[28] In June 2014, Excalibur reached a deal to sell KKHD and KXHD to Gray outright for $2.5 million;[29] the purchase was completed on December 15.[30] KKHD changed its call letters to KJCT-LP on January 9, 2015;[14] this followed the move of the original KJCT's virtual channel 8 and its programming (including ABC) to the station.[9]

Digital channels

The station's digital signal is multiplexed:

Channel Video Aspect PSIP short name Programming [31]
8.1720p16:9KJCT-DTMain KJCT-LP programming / ABC
8.2CWWestern Colorado CW 13
8.3480iIONIon Television

Programming

Syndicated programming on this station includes Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, The Doctors, The Dr. Oz Show, Daily Blast Live and Judge Judy among others.

News operation

KJCT presently broadcasts 17 hours of locally produced newscasts each week (with three hours each weekday and one hour each on Saturdays and Sundays).

On May 22, 2009, KJCT became the first station in Grand Junction to launch local news in high definition.[32] The station debuted a new set in May 2011, to coincide with a new graphics package. In July 2011, KJCT overtook its competitors to become the top rated station in the coveted 25-54 demographic in all weekday newscasts.

Notable former on-air staff

Repeaters
Translator City of License
K02RG-D Gateway, CO
K22LR-D Collbran, CO
K34LC-D Rifle, CO
K36AF-D New Castle, CO
K45AF-D Parachute, CO
K42EV-D Glenwood Springs, CO
K31OH-D Mesa, CO
K13RD-D Collbran, CO
K02OP Collbran, CO
K23NX-D Gateway, CO
K28AD-D Montrose, CO
K40LR-D Paonia, CO
K21JK-D Montrose, CO
K35CH-D Cortez, CO
K34KM-D Basalt, CO
K10PR-D Thomasville, CO
K45HL-D Redstone, CO
K28JY-D Carbondale, CO
K38FO-D Carbondale, CO
K12QO-D Aspen, CO
K25MR-D Snowmass Village, CO
K48BK-D Monticello/Blanding, UT

See also

References
  1. NPG to buy two broadcast TV affiliates, radio station
  2. "News-Press & Gazette Gets $12M For KJCT". TVNewsCheck. August 2, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  3. Harden, Mark (August 2, 2013). "Grand Junction TV station KJCT to be sold". Denver Business Journal. Retrieved August 4, 2013.
  4. https://licensing.fcc.gov/cgi-bin/ws.exe/prod/cdbs/forms/prod/cdbsmenu.hts?context=25&appn=101572917&formid=314&fac_num=52593
  5. Gray retains MMTC as broker for former SSA’d stations, rbr.com, Retrieved 13 June 2014.
  6. "Gray Sets Buyers For Its Six SSA Stations". TVNewsCheck. 27 August 2014. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
  7. "Call Sign History (KLML)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  8. "Media Bureau Call Sign Actions" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission. December 9, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  9. Hashemzadeh, Hossein (October 21, 2014). "Re: KJCT(TV), Grand Junction, CO Facility ID No. 52593 KKHD-LP, Grand Junction, CO Facility ID No. 128473 Request for Waivers of ATSC A/65C" (PDF). CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved October 28, 2014.
  10. Consummation Notice. CDBS Public Access, Federal Communications Commission, Retrieved 16 December 2014.
  11. "Counterpoint".
  12. "APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY TO CONSTRUCT OR MAKE CHANGES IN A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. January 18, 2005. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  13. "Application Search Details (KJCT-LP, 1)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  14. "Call Sign History (KJCT-LP)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 9, 2015.
  15. "APPLICATION FOR A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. September 1, 2006. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  16. "Application Search Details (KJCT-LP, 2)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  17. BIA Financial Markets (November 3, 2006). "Deals". Broadcasting & Cable.
  18. "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. January 8, 2007. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  19. "Call Sign History (KXHD-LP)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  20. "APPLICATION FOR A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. December 5, 2005. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  21. "APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY TO CONSTRUCT OR MAKE CHANGES IN A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. August 13, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  22. "APPLICATION FOR A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION LICENSE". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. March 20, 2006. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  23. "Application Search Details (KXHD-LP, 1)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  24. "APPLICATION FOR TRANSFER OF CONTROL OF A CORPORATE LICENSEE OR PERMITTEE, OR FOR ASSIGNMENT OF LICENSE OR PERMIT OF TV OR FM TRANSLATOR STATION OR LOW POWER TELEVISION STATION". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  25. "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. August 3, 2006. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  26. "APPLICATION FOR AUTHORITY TO CONSTRUCT OR MAKE CHANGES IN A LOW POWER TV, TV TRANSLATOR OR TV BOOSTER STATION". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. March 24, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  27. "Application Search Details (KJCT-LP, 3)". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  28. "Station Trading Roundup: 7 Deals, $6.5M". TVNewsCheck. August 6, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  29. "Station Trading Roundup: 5 Deals, $4.6M". TVNewsCheck. June 17, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  30. "Consummation Notice". CDBS Public Access. Federal Communications Commission. December 16, 2014. Retrieved January 10, 2015.
  31. RabbitEars TV Query for KJCT-LP
  32. KJCT now broadcasting in high definition
  33. "John Gurtler". Retrieved 11 January 2014.
  34. "Michelle Tuzee biography". KABC-TV. Archived from the original on 27 November 2010. Retrieved 26 September 2013.
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